Chapter 258

Chapter 258: Don’t Call Me Yu Tie Zhu, Call Me Yu Shi Cheng

The pain he imagined never came. Li Chang Huai froze, then looked up to see the hand of that unfathomable master hanging in midair.

He did not understand. Was the man really letting them go?

But a closer look felt wrong. The hand was no longer striking forward, yet it had not withdrawn either, and blue veins bulged on the man’s forehead. It was clear he had not given up the attack. He could not attack.

Could not attack? How was that possible?

Still, since the other side seemed willing to let them off for now, Li Chang Huai was not foolish enough to stand and wait to be seized. He tugged Yu Zhi Yi’s sleeve and said: “Go!”

He pulled, but she did not move.

He turned, half confused and half impatient, and said: “What is with you? Let’s go!”

Yu Zhi Yi shook off his hand and said: “The person I was waiting for has appeared. I will not leave yet. If you are in a hurry, you may go first.”

Li Chang Huai stared in shock and said: “What do you mean the person you were waiting for? Who are you waiting for? Don’t tell me it’s…” He glanced at the man who had landed calmly on the ground, but before his mind could run wild, Yu Zhi Yi spoke: “I am a third-rank inspecting prefect of the Imperial Court. On this trip out of the capital, I may step in whenever I meet injustice. His Majesty has given me the right to kill first and report later. I may execute corrupt officials above, troublesome commoners and local bullies below, and in between I may cut down pirates and bullies of the martial world.”

As she spoke, she flicked her wrist and produced a gleaming gold token.

She held the token almost up to the face of the imposing man.

Li Chang Huai nearly fell to his knees. [Lady, even if you are an Imperial Court official, you still need to get out of here alive before you throw your weight around, right?] There were only the two of them in this place, but the Immortal Cave hid who knew how many experts. Earlier he could have slipped away alone if he did not bring her, but now that this unfathomable man had shown himself, even she would find it hard to escape.

Why reveal her identity at such a moment?

If at the beginning he had even one chance in ten thousand to use his status as the young manor lord of Sky Domain Manor to take her away, that chance vanished the instant she exposed who she was.

In his heart, Li Chang Huai cursed Yu Zhi Yi to death. [What kind of Imperial Court official are you? A female mystic with skill but no sense.]

The imposing man drew back his hand with an uncertain look and, clearly interested, watched Yu Zhi Yi as he said: “I heard long ago that the Imperial Court appointed a female official. Seeing you today, Official Yu, you truly are clever and bright, and beautiful beyond compare.”

To praise an Imperial Court official for her looks was clearly ill-intentioned.

Li Chang Huai kept feeling the man looked familiar, but he could not remember where he had seen him. The man went on and said: “Official Yu, our Immortal Cave does not only have pretty women. We also have talented men, and our food and wine are famous. I wonder if my lady would honor us by sharing two cups?”

[Say yes. Say yes! No matter what you really think, we can talk after we get out.] Li Chang Huai blinked wildly at Yu Zhi Yi.

Yu Zhi Yi ignored his twitching eyes and said: “To eat in a place where blood reeks to the sky and ghostly air clings everywhere, I am afraid I would puke.”

Her gaze fixed on the space behind the imposing man, and her red lips curved in a mocking smile as she said: “Yu Tie Zhu, when midnight wakes you from sleep, don’t you have nightmares?”

Li Chang Huai blinked in confusion. Who was Yu Tie Zhu?

The man snapped and said: “Who is Yu Tie Zhu? My name is Yu Shi Cheng!”

Li Chang Huai’s eyes flew wide and he said: “Yu Shi Cheng? He is Yu Shi Cheng? Wasn’t he dead?”

Yu Shi Cheng was a pirate whose name shook the world twenty years ago. He lived by burning, killing, and pillaging at sea, a demon who made people tremble. Bold and unfathomably skilled, he even dared to attack Imperial Court ships. Twenty years ago he robbed government silver in a case with a terrible impact.

At that time, the Northern Lands suffered a drought. The Imperial Court sent money, grain, and water from the south to provide relief. The convoy took the river first, then the road. But when the boats passed the Mei Yang River, they were ambushed by Yu Shi Cheng’s pirates. All the relief silver and grain were stolen, and not a single soldier or official on the boats was left alive.

Afterward, the Imperial Court sent an army to wipe out the bandits, and the Martial Alliance, because of the great harm caused by this man, joined hands with the Imperial Court to suppress them. In the end, the bandit force that had dominated the banks of the Mei Yang River for more than ten years was finally wiped out.

But the leader, Yu Shi Cheng, vanished.

After that, he seemed to evaporate from the human world. No one ever saw him again. Some said he was badly wounded during the suppression, fell into the water, and drowned. Others said he was never on the ship that day, that he got word early and escaped, then hid his name and lived a free life on the countless gold and silver he had hoarded.

Li Chang Huai tensed up at once and said: “Are you sure this man is Yu Shi Cheng?” If he was still alive, they were in real danger today. He had to find a way to get the news out, or the martial world would soon be soaked in blood again. The Imperial Court had long wanted to clean out martial world forces but had not found a good excuse for years. If Yu Shi Cheng continued doing evil, sooner or later he would be exposed, and the Imperial Court would certainly use that as a reason to purge the martial world.

Yu Zhi Yi did not look at Li Chang Huai’s dramatic face. She only watched Yu Shi Cheng seriously and said: “Yu Shi Cheng, birth name Yu Tie Zhu, ancestral home a small village in Shanxi. Since childhood you refused to learn and loved to fight. At the slightest disagreement you beat people, and your parents often had to clean up after you.”

She went on and said: “Once, you injured a local rich family’s young master. Your parents could no longer fix the mess. You stole all the money at home and ran, leaving your parents to face your disaster alone.”

Since his appearance, Yu Tie Zhu had kept a calm face, except for a brief moment of doubt when he failed to kill Li Chang Huai. Now his face cooled and he said: “Official Yu has investigated me?”

Yu Zhi Yi ignored him and said: “After you left, the rich young master vented all his anger on your parents. But his family was not unreasonable. They asked around and learned your parents were honest farmers dragged down by you for years. When the young master ordered a beating, his elders stopped him.”

“Even so, your parents were in poor health. After twenty strokes and with no money for a doctor, both ran a high fever that night. Your father died from his injuries.”