Dark Assassination
With Chen Chi dead, the palaces begin to shake, since they are mortal Gu Houses under his control. Fang Yuan activates prepared arrangements, and the tremor settles at once. A mortal Gu House is nothing to a Gu Immortal, and only a true Immortal Gu House would trouble him. Hei Fan killed every criminal Hei tribe immortal before he died, so the inheritances he left behind lack that knowledge. Generations of unbroken peace have left these Gu Immortals with little vigilance; the palaces are huge and grand, but their methods are old, and Fang Yuan unravels them with ease. He judges Chen Chi’s hosting him so long a huge mistake, and looks down at his corpse, eyes wide, dead too fast to show fear. ch. 1124
Fang Yuan hides Chen Chi’s corpse inside his own immortal aperture. He uses familiar face to take Chen Chi’s appearance and walks out openly. The Gu Masters and mortals he passes kneel in greeting, and he raises each with a formless force, questioning them. None of them know the real Chen Chi is already dead; they are greeting the man who killed him. Days spent toying with Chen Le have given him Chen Chi’s own habits, since familiar face alone copies appearance, not behavior. ch. 1124
Fang Yuan arrives at Chen Li Zhi’s palace, one of three private residences beyond Chen Chi’s control. Chen Li Zhi, puzzled that his bedridden ancestor is out in public against their plan, greets him without doubting the face. Fang Yuan says the deal with Hei Cheng is settled. He has a matter to discuss. Chen Li Zhi serves tea and sits apart, until Fang Yuan calls him closer, appealing to his pride: with Yun Er and Le Er both women, he must shoulder more at the crucial moment. Fang Yuan wants him seated, since a seated body relaxes and drops its guard. Pleased, Chen Li Zhi moves beside him and, told the matter is secret, shuts the doors himself. ch. 1124
Fang Yuan exaggerates the benefits Hei Cheng has offered until Chen Li Zhi listens with real joy. He produces the rank seven flying sword Immortal Gu, and Chen Li Zhi gasps, overjoyed, praising it as a fine Gu. Fang Yuan calls his name, and as Chen Li Zhi raises his head Dark Assassination cuts him down. He collapses dead, one hand still reaching for Fang Yuan’s robe. Fang Yuan hides this second corpse, leaves the palace, and judges Chen Wan Yun the greater threat, making her his next target. ch. 1124
Chen Le has just mastered a new killer move, concealment within, and boasts of it to Chen Wan Yun, who teases her over which man inspired such hard training. Chen Le denies it and vanishes to dare her sister to find her. A disturbance outside interrupts the game, and Chen Wan Yun wonders why their ancestor has come. Recalling how Chen Chi once teased her, Chen Le decides to stay hidden and eavesdrop instead, meaning to surprise him later. Fang Yuan has no outstanding investigative move to find her, and using one would leak his aura; only an immortal method like Dark Assassination hides it completely. Chen Wan Yun, about to use her own investigative move, breaks off and goes out to greet him, trusting a doting ancestor will not blame Le Er for hiding. ch. 1124
Fang Yuan repeats the same approach with Chen Wan Yun. He drinks the tea she brings and has her sit close beside him. Overhearing the deal, the hidden Chen Le worries that Hei Cheng paid too huge a price for their support. Fang Yuan then takes out the flying sword Immortal Gu and sends Chen Wan Yun with it to the three immortals’ cave as a chip for support, and she agrees. Seeing a rank seven Immortal Gu for the first time, Chen Le is tempted to jump out and surprise her ancestor. Before she can, Dark Assassination kills Chen Wan Yun, and this gentle female immortal follows Chen Chi and Chen Li Zhi without any defense. ch. 1124
Fang Yuan retrieves the Gu, hides the corpse, cleans away the blood, and leaves. Chen Le, still hidden, watches with her hands clamped over her mouth, her pupils shrunk to pinpoints, shaking as tears run down without a sound. She cries, in disbelief, that ancestor has killed sister Yun Er. She kneels and collapses sobbing, unable to doubt the cold truth she has seen with her own eyes. ch. 1124
