Chapter 59 — Malice

Lin Jinghong gave a start and turned to look, and saw that it was Zhang Qingyue who had come to stand behind him. Half of his face was swollen up high, but his eyes were already brimming with hot tears, and his voice came out choked: "Jingyu, your—your kindness I will not forget. It is I who am in the wrong now. I will go and admit my fault to Master. You go back with Senior Brother Qi first!"

Lin Jinghong knitted his brows and was about to speak, but heard Qi Hao urging at his ear, "Junior brother Lin, if you stay here any longer, I fear you will only provoke Uncle Tian to ever greater fury, and only bring harm to Junior Brother Zhang. Go, go quickly!"

With that he dragged him away by force. Lin Jinghong struggled, but catching Zhang Qingyue's faintly pleading gaze, he wavered in his heart. After much pulling and tugging, Qi Hao finally managed with great effort to drag him off, and even as he was led away he kept turning back, step after step, to look toward where Zhang Qingyue stood.

Tian Buhui's face was incomparably grim, and the disciples of Dazhu Peak all looked at one another, not one of them daring to utter a word.

Zhang Qingyue walked silently to stand before him, knelt down, and bowed his head to the ground at his feet, and did not move.

Tian Buhui gave a cold laugh and said, "Ah! I would not dare accept such courtesy. And who might you be! With such lofty cultivation, such a murderous air—do you even still have me, your master, in your eyes?"

Zhang Qingyue's body trembled, and he only knocked his head three times heavily against the ground, not even raising it, still bowed low upon the earth.

Song Dayi and the others had always doted on this youngest junior brother. Seeing him in such a state, they had long since forgotten that strange manner Zhang Qingyue had shown a moment ago, and one after another they said to Tian Buhui, "Master, youngest junior brother, he..."

Tian Buhui waved a hand, and the words of all present caught in their throats. Tian Buhui looked Zhang Qingyue up and down, gave an angry snort, and said coldly, "To think that all these years I have been teaching a traitorous wretch!"

Having said this, he turned without a backward glance and walked away, paying Zhang Qingyue no further heed at all.

Su Wan gave a sigh and followed after him. The others had no choice but to follow as well, leaving only Zhang Qingyue in the clearing, kneeling all alone upon the ground.

His head, still, he did not raise.

The sky darkened, and the people of the righteous path came one after another to rest on the mountainside south of Liubo Mountain. There were more than a dozen naturally formed rock caves here, very convenient, and on the day they had first come up the mountain, the righteous path had taken a liking to them.

The Canglan Sect, divided as it was into four branches, occupied four caves. Dazhu Peak had the fewest people, and took the cave farthest west, beside which lay a dense forest; beyond it, in order, came Long Peak, Chaoyang Peak, and Xiaozhu Peak. The caves beyond those were occupied by the monks of Fanyin Temple, the people of Fenxia Valley, and other righteous folk.

On this return of Zhang Qingyue's, Fa Cheng and Fa Jing of Fanyin Temple had seen him, and Qi Hao had come over to greet him as well. Lu Xueqi stood among the people of Xiaozhu Peak and did not come over, and he had not seen Li Xun or Yan Fei of Fenxia Valley at all.

But at this moment he naturally had no mind to think of such things. Having come back with the others, he did not dare enter the cave, and so knelt the whole time on the rock outside it. From the afternoon until nightfall, he had knelt a full four hours and more, yet Tian Buhui showed not the slightest sign of softening.

Disciples of the other branches of the Canglan Sect, and many from Fanyin Temple and Fenxia Valley, came out to look. They tended to gather in clusters, pointing and gesturing from afar, and faint snatches of mocking laughter could be heard.

Zhang Qingyue was ashamed at heart, but in the end did not dare rise. Yet having knelt so long, his knees were aching unbearably.

Suddenly a commotion came from the neighboring cave—the one where the Long Peak disciples lodged. Zhang Qingyue did not raise his head, but he vaguely heard Lin Jinghong shouting angrily there, as though he could endure it no longer and was about to come charging over, only to be held back with all their might by Qi Hao and the other disciples.

Just as the clamor was at its height, a voice of heavy authority suddenly rang out from the cave next door: "Jingyu, come in. I have something to say to you."

Zhang Qingyue knew this to be the voice of Uncle Cangsong, the master of Long Peak. The Long Peak disciples fell silent at once, a testament to Daoist Cangyan's usual authority. After a moment, Lin Jinghong, not daring to defy his master's command, went inside—and did not come out again.

In the dark night calm returned, and the onlookers gradually dispersed, leaving only Zhang Qingyue still kneeling, bowed low at the mouth of the cave.

Just then voices came again from within the Dazhu Peak cave—Song Dayi, He Dachuan, Du Biyan and the others pleading with Tian Buhui—but Tian Buhui rebuked them angrily a few times, and they did not dare speak further.

Yet before a moment of silence had passed, Tian Lingsu's agitated voice rang out: "Father, what are you doing? Xiaofan has been kneeling outside for almost five hours. What exactly has he done wrong? Did he injure eldest senior brother, or kill him? He has already admitted his fault, and still you will not let him come in..."

With a great "boom," stones flew in all directions. It seemed Tian Buhui's anger was hard to quell, and he had struck a hard rock with his palm, smashing the stone to pieces. Tian Lingsu seemed about to say more, but was heard to be spoken to in a low voice by her master's wife, Su Wan, who drew her aside—and then there was no sound at all.