Young Master Bai — Chapter 15
Chapter 15: Two Kings Carry the Bronze
[Gaming reference; two experts carry a weak teammate.]
Lu Ren Yi moved with incredible speed. By the time Chenzui gave chase, he had already vanished. Since Bai Chen had no yao power, he could not keep up. So he went to the nearest teahouse, got a private room, and sat sipping tea while waiting for Chenzui to return with the fugitive for questioning.
Chenzui, now with two hundred years of cultivation, was untouchable by any human cultivator below the Tribulation Crossing stage. Defeating a mere Golden Core stage practitioner should have posed no problem. Yet he returned empty-handed and knelt guiltily before Bai Chen.
"Ancestor, that human ran so fast I couldn’t keep up in human form, and I didn’t dare transform. I hesitated for just a second, and he was gone!"
The fox clan was naturally light and nimble. Even in human form, Chenzui's movement technique was top-tier. Yet he had still failed to catch Lu Ren Yi. Just who was it that managed to kill Lu Ren Wang in the vast snowfields?
Bai Chen found the brothers more and more intriguing. He didn’t scold Chenzui but instead helped him up. "Even you couldn’t catch him. Looks like this guy’s got some real skill."
Though Bai Chen was lenient, Chenzui was still gloomy, frustrated that he had been outmaneuvered by a mere human. He frowned, baffled. "I’ve never seen anyone run that fast. He didn’t use any technique, just his legs — and he’s faster than even the Heavenly Wolf clan."
Unwilling to concede, he brooded. Bai Chen chuckled. "Now you see — there’s always someone stronger. No matter how low the other's cultivation is, never underestimate an opponent."
Among the beasts of the Great Snow Mountain, the Heavenly Wolf clan was unmatched in speed and stamina. For Chenzui to rate Lu Ren Yi above them proved the man’s prowess. Bai Chen let the young one stew in his frustration, sipping his tea until finally glancing out the window.
"Li Wuming, come in already."
Chenzui was still wondering how the son-in-law could be nearby when, at Bai Chen’s words, Li Wuming climbed in through the window, carrying a fur-clad youth — none other than Lu Ren Yi.
[Window entrance #4]
"How did you — "
Li Wuming had long since mastered the art of concealing his presence. Even a six-tailed Red Fox like Chenzui couldn’t sniff him out if he wished to remain hidden. However, Bai Chen — who was carried in his Dao companion’s arms every day — had marked him with his own scent to assert ownership. No matter where Li Wuming went, the Nine-tailed White Fox could always find him.
[Take a moment to remember how foxes, and animals in general, mark places and objects.]
Of course, Bai Chen would never admit to such a possessive trick. He simply said, "Did you think a Wandering Immortal like him wouldn’t notice your chase through the market?"
His estimate was spot-on. Li Wuming had sensed Chenzui’s yao aura and thought they were under attack, so he rode his sword over. Now, he teased, "I saw you sprinting after someone and thought some heartless man had hurt your little fox. I had to help."
Chenzui had feared his failure would cause more trouble for Bai Chen, but now saw that Bai Chen had prepared a backup plan all along. Clearly, he’d known this demonic cultivator wasn’t simple. Awed, Chenzui sighed, "Truly, Ancestor, your foresight is unmatched. I am in awe."
The sword immortal line was the bane of all yao. Their sword-riding speed was peerless — no demonic cultivator could outrun it. Li Wuming handed Lu Ren Yi over to Chenzui to seal his meridians, then sat beside Bai Chen, muttering, "Look at you, lounging with tea while making me do all the work."
Bai Chen had lost all his elders over the past five hundred years. The juniors below relied on him for support. Li Wuming was now his only pillar. Yet Bai Chen’s pride would never admit it. He snorted, "It’s not like I’m not paying you. You just refuse to take the reward."
The little fox snuggled into his arms every night and practically fell over at a touch during the day. The rewards came generously. Li Wuming merely scratched Bai Chen's nose. "Forget it. If I get too used to the taste, I’ll end up being your beast of burden. My status at home will drop even lower."
He finally said what he truly felt. Bai Chen shot him a glare. "You cheeky bastard. Planning to become my master, are you?"
Li Wuming never forgot his goal was to win over the little fox, not become his obedient servant. He constantly reminded himself to keep a firm grip on how much pampering to allow. Bai Chen mustn’t think he was entirely at his beck and call. So even though he rarely rejected any request, he now said casually, "Would it hurt to try?"
This man was truly hard to control. Bai Chen had no way to rein him in. Annoyed, he tossed a peeled walnut at him. "Fine, be stubborn. Let’s see who lasts longer."
Li Wuming was stubborn as a rock. Bai Chen failed to subdue his Dao companion again today and, brimming with frustration, took it out on someone else. He turned to Lu Ren Yi, who had been trying to shrink out of sight.
"Don’t think I can’t see you just because you’re quiet. Speak. Who are you? Why did you run the moment you saw us?"
Lu Ren Yi was tough. No matter how they questioned him, he stayed silent. Bai Chen’s tone turned cold. "Chenzui, force out his qi."
Chenzui had already been annoyed at losing to a Golden Core cultivator. At Bai Chen’s word, he injected yao aura into the demonic cultivator’s body. The man’s qi resisted instinctively, and the faint scent Bai Chen had noticed earlier emerged again. He inhaled lightly, confirming his suspicion.
"Fragrance like sandalwood with a hint of bitter lotus — it’s the yao aura of the Nine-colored Deer."
Bai Chen hadn’t asked to catch him without cause. When Lu Ren Yi fled, Bai Chen had faintly smelled suppressed yao aura, though it was so faint he hadn’t been sure. Now, with a closer sniff, he looked squarely at the man.
"You’re a half-yao, aren’t you?"
After a half-yao begins cultivating, their yao aura is suppressed by their human true qi and becomes nearly impossible to detect. The Nine-colored Deer clan had been declared extinct since the Yao King’s era. Aside from Bai Chen, who had inherited the Fox Immortal’s legacy, few could recognize their scent. Now, Chenzui understood. "No wonder he’s so fast. He really is a deer!"
Lu Ren Yi and his brother had hidden their identities for sixty years. Not even the Demon Sect knew the truth. That Bai Chen saw through it with a glance stunned him. Finally, he looked up, eyes full of hate.
"I’m human. I have nothing to do with your yao clan! What I hate most in this world are yao!"
His anger was tantamount to admission. Bai Chen ignored his hostility and asked, "I heard you and your brother depended on each other since childhood. Don’t you want to know who killed him?"
Lu Ren Yi wanted nothing more. But to hide his half-yao identity, he’d kept silent and let the Demon Sect handle it. Now that his identity was exposed, he could finally vent his grief. He laughed bitterly.
"My brother was too naive. We spent years hiding just to live safely in the Demon Sect. Wasn’t it good enough to live as humans? But no — he had to go looking for that heartless father. I tried to stop him, but he still climbed the mountain and threw his life away to the yao!"
His grief sounded sincere. But the Great Snow Mountain was home to carnivorous beasts, and no Nine-colored Deer had been seen for years. Bai Chen grew puzzled. "Your father was a Deer yao?"
Lu Ren Yi loathed the yao blood in him and refused to speak of that father. He only shook his head furiously. "I don’t know! We have no father!"
Since he refused to cooperate, Bai Chen saw no point in coaxing. His tone hardened.
"You’re a Demon Sect sentry. You should know how powerful the Bai family’s Mind-stealing Technique is. I’ve spared you only to avoid giving the Demon Sect an excuse. If you keep refusing, don’t blame me for being ruthless."
Chenzui immediately caught the meaning. He leaned toward the demonic cultivator and grinned.
"This is a technique used by the Yao King to control subordinates. Once affected, the target will obey every word of the caster for life, unable to lie, unable to disobey — even in death, their soul can’t escape unless it’s completely annihilated. Our Ancestor Bai Chen is a Nine-tailed White Fox. I imagine his casting power is no less than the Yao King’s."
Everyone knew the power of the Mind-stealing Technique. The Yao King had once used it to forge an army from scattered yao tribes, nearly overturning the world order.
Lu Ren Yi turned pale at the mention of the technique. But when he heard “Nine-tailed White Fox,” his expression changed.
"That monster abandoned my mother to follow the Yao King’s heir. Since you’re a Nine-tailed White Fox, how could you not know that bastard’s whereabouts?"
According to legend, the Nine-colored Deer could see into a person’s heart, discerning good from evil. Revered in ancient times as auspicious beasts, they blessed the virtuous and punished the wicked.
For that reason, the Yao King slaughtered them as traitors when he rose to power. Even if some survived, they should consider the Yao King’s descendants their enemies. Besides, Bai Chen had been dead for five hundred years. What Yao King heir was left for that Deer yao to follow?
This was truly strange. Bai Chen’s expression grew serious.
"Tell me everything you know. I promise not to reveal your half-yao identity to anyone — and I will do everything in my power to find your brother’s killer and deliver them to you."
~ Chapter End ~
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