Chapter 13 – Slaughterhouse (2/2)

His bathing facilities had been specially designed to replicated Japanese ‘furo’ bathtubs. (4)

When he soaked in the boiling water, he felt as if he were back at his brother’s side, feeling his heat and pressure.

—Was he abusing himself? Was he punishing himself?

Did he amuse himself by abusing and punishing others?

Right now Zhuo Donglai wasn’t thinking about these things. Right now he was thinking about something much more amusing. He was thinking about Little Gao and Xiao Leixue.

One was the greatest master in the world, who carried the most fearsome weapon under heaven.

But his fate had been preordained, his life certain to be taken by the treasured sword forged by his father.

The other person should die by his hand, as there was no way for him to escape.

But that person had the treasured sword.

—Which of these two people would die?

Zhuo Donglai found this question very amusing, extremely amusing.

He couldn’t help but laugh.

And yet before the cold laugh could come out, his smile froze.

His pupils constricted.

Only when he was truly frightened or anxious would his pupils constrict. And now he had that feeling.

He could sense that someone had used an unfathomable technique to open the door to this secret room, and stood like a ghost behind him.

This truly was unbelievable. He never imagined that someone in the world would have this type of unbelievable skill.

But he had to believe.

He suddenly thought of a person. The one and only: “Xiao Leixue. I know it must be you.”

“Yes.” His voice was deep and hoarse. “It’s me.”

Zhuo Donglai suddenly let out a long sigh. “Gods and ghosts can’t be relied on. And all the sayings about spirits are just as unreliable. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have come.”

“Why?”

“Because you should be dead, dead beneath Little Gao’s ‘Tearstains.’ Your death was destiny, your demise preordained by the spirit world.” He sighed again. “Now I know that this type of talk is ridiculously absurd.”

“What about before?” asked Xiao Leixue. “Before, you believed?”

“I didn’t believe, and I didn’t disbelieve.”

“So you thought of a way to get me to go after Gao Jianfei. You wanted to see which of us would be able to kill the other.”

“Yes.”

“And regardless of who died, you wouldn’t be sad.”

“No, I definitely wouldn’t be,” said Zhuo Donglai. “Whoever died, it would benefit me. And if you both died, it would be too wonderful for words. I would definitely take care to arrange all of your affairs after your death.”

What he said was the truth. Zhuo Donglai always spoke the truth.

Because he didn’t need to lie.

In front of most people, he had no need to lie, and in front of others, lying was useless.

Xiao Leixue could see this.

He liked fighting with people like this, it cut out a lot of needless frustration.

Having a fight with a person like this was much more enjoyable than having that person as a friend.

“I always tell the truth, too,” said Xiao Leixue. “You’d better believe every word I say.”

“I definitely believe.”

“I know you’ve never seen me. You surely must wish to see what kind of person I am.”

“Yes, it’s killing me.”

“And yet, if you turn your head and even glance at me, you’ll never see anything ever again.”

“I won’t turn my head,” said Zhuo Donglai. “At the moment I don’t wish to die.”

“Speaking the truth is a really good habit. And I really hope you’ll keep on living.” Xiao Leixue’s voice was very flat. “If you speak one lie, I’ll see that you die in that wooden tub.”

“As I said, I don’t wish to die at the moment.” Zhuo Donglai’s voice was also very calm. “I definitely don’t want to die naked in a wooden tub. You should believe me that I won’t turn around.”

“Very good.”

Xiao Leixue seemed to be satisfied with the situation, and so he finally asked the question he so wanted to ask.

“Twenty years ago, I signed an assassination contract with someone. You know about this?”

“I do.”

“The most important part of the contract was left blank. It lacked a person’s name.”

“I know about this, too.”

“Someone sent the contract back to me, and a name had been filled in. Do you know whose name it is?”

“I do.” Zhuo Donglai suddenly laughed. “I was the one who filled in the name. How could you not know?”

“Was the contract between me and you?”

“No,” said Zhuo Donglai. “I”m not worthy.”

“Was it you who delivered it to me?”

“Yes,” said Zhuo Donglai. “Someone sent me to deliver it. First I took the contract to the little village temple. Then I went to the outskirts of the city to light the fire. To make sure you would see it, I lit the fire three times every day.”

“Someone sent you.” Xiao Leixue’s voice suddenly became more hoarse. “Do you know who this person is?”

“I know,” said Zhuo Donglai. “Everyone who knows about him thinks he died long ago. Many people don’t know his name, but I do. I know. There is no one in the world who knows more than me.”

“You know that he’s not dead?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know where he is?”

“Yes.”

“Very good.” It seemed as if Xiao Leixue’s voice had been ripped to pieces. “You can stand now.”

“Why must I stand?”

“Because I want you to take me to see him.”

“Can I not go?”

“No.”

Zhuo Donglai stood. When matters could not be argued with, he would never argue.

“You can put on your marten fur and your shoes,” said Xiao Leixue. “But you’d better not do anything else.

Zhuo Donglai stepped out of the bathtub and put on his marten fur.

He moved very slowly, his every movement very cautious.

He could hear the animosity and killing spirit in Xiao Leixue’s voice.

Xiao Leixue wouldn’t kill him or chop off his legs. But if Xiao Leixue thought even one of his movements was out of place, there would definitely would be some part of his body removed.

He would never give anyone this chance.

Xiao Leixue was certainly watching him very carefully, watching his every movement in extreme detail.

“I know that you’re a very arrogant person, that your reaction and speed are extremely quick, and that you have practiced your family’s qigong extremely well,” said Xiao Leixue. “In the future, not very many people will be able to defeat you. I think even Sima Chaoqun is no match for you, because he cannot achieve the same state of calmness that you can. I’ve never seen someone as calm as you.”

“I’ve thought this before too,” said Zhuo Donglai with another laugh. “Everyone gets narcissistic sometimes, especially late at night when no one is around and they are a little drunk.”

“You’ve never seen me, and have never seen me fight. How do you know that I’m more powerful than you?” asked Xiao Leixue coolly. “Did you ever think that perhaps you could kill me?”

“I never thought of it,” said Zhuo Donglai. “I never even considered thinking about it.”

“Why not?”

“Because I control my thinking.” Zhuo Donglai’s laughter seemed to contain a bit of sadness. “If a person wishes to continue on living, they will not think about that kind of thing.”

Xiao Leixue laughed coldly. “So you’d rather turn into someone who follows orders like a dog, not daring to make a move?”

“Correct,” said Zhuo Donglai. “There are many situations in the world like this.”

Part 5

The door to the small courtyard was closed.

Zhuo Donglai knocked. First three times, then once.

This secret knock had been devised by he and the old man. But there was no response from within the courtyard.

“He’s not here?”

“He’s here,” said Zhuo Donglai. “He’s definitely here.”

“So you’re notifying him that someone is here that shouldn’t be, and you want him to flee?”

“I’m sure you know that he wouldn’t flee. He’s never fled before in his life. Besides, he knew all along that you would come looking for him.”

And yet no response came from the little courtyard. Zhuo Donglai knocked again, harder than last time.

Then suddenly the door opened, just a sliver.

It had been open the whole time, neither locked nor bolted from the inside.

The old man hadn’t left.

Within the peaceful courtyard, the flowers were as fragrant as always, the ancient pine tree was there as always, and the old man sat in the pavilion as always, facing the snowy ground, as if he were watching Die Wu dance as always.

But Die Wu would never dance again.

And the old man would not grow older again.

Only thinking and emotion will make people grow old. If a person cannot think, and cannot feel, they will not grow old.

The old man had no thoughts, and could not think, judge or plan anything.

The old man was without emotions, and would never again feel heartache, pain, happiness, frustration, lovesickness or memories.

Only dead people have no thoughts or emotions, and only dead people cannot grow old.

The old man was dead.

He appeared to be alive, sitting in the pavilion with an incomparable air of elegance and leisure. But he was dead.

His eyes, which had carried a mixture of the wisdom of old age and the mischievousness of a child, no longer shone like the sun shining on the sea. They would never again glitter with the brilliance of the sun and the blueness of the sea.

His eyes had become gray, like the sky when it is just about to grow dark and begin snowing.

After seeing his eyes, Zhuo Donglai couldn’t take another step forward.

His whole body went stiff, as stiff as the body of the old man.

And then he saw Xiao Leixue.

Xiao Leixue didn’t appear to be very tall, but he was still taller than most people, and very thin.

His hair, pitch black, without a trace of white, sat coiled on top of his head, bound with a pale gray cloth.

He wore a garment made from the same cloth. The fit was not suitable and the tailoring was poor.

He carried a box in his hand, an old-fashioned and ordinary box.

This was all that Zhuo Donglai saw, because he could only see Xiao Leixue’s back.

The person who had been behind him like a shadow this whole time suddenly blew past him like the wind.

What did he look like, the most mysterious and fearsome person in Jianghu? Zhuo Donglai still couldn’t see his face.

But some people who never display emotion on their face will sometimes unconsciously reveal their emotions through their back.

Xiao Leixue’s back was taut, every single muscle, and then it began quivering, as if it were being lashed by an invisible whip.

The old man’s death was the whip.

One could tell from the tone of voice when he spoke that this man was no friend of his.

There must have existed some sort of indelible hatred between them.

Most likely, he forced Zhuo Donglai to bring him here because he wished to use the old man’s blood to wash his heart clean from the hatred and enmity.

But the old man had already died. Why would he have such a fierce reaction, filled with pain and sorrow?

But even more surprising was Zhuo Donglai.

He was not a broad-minded person, and would never allow anyone to encroach on his dignity.

No one in the world had ever insulted him the way Xiao Leixue had, and this type of insult could only be washed away with blood.

If he killed Xiao Leixue, no one would find it strange or feel sorry.

Even if he literally drank Xiao Leixue’s blood, no one would be upset.

Xiao Leixue was not the type of person people felt compassion for, and Zhuo Donglai really should have killed him. As soon as he had an opportunity, he should have done so.

This was his best opportunity.

At the moment, Xiao Leixue’s back was like a fertile, unprotected field, just waiting for someone to trample it underfoot.

At this moment, his emotions were the most agitated, and he was most likely to make careless errors or mistakes.

And yet Zhuo Donglai didn’t move a muscle.

The opportunity was like a cloud that suddenly floated past, fleeting, never to return. Zhuo Donglai’s breathing suddenly stopped, and his pupils constricted.

He finally saw Xiao Leixue, the most mysterious and fearsome person in the world.

Xiao Leixue had suddenly turned to face Zhuo Donglai.

He had an ordinary face, but his eyes looked like a sword that had just been unsheathed.

“If someone had wanted to kill me, just now was the best opportunity. There will never be an opportunity like that again.”

“I know.”

“Why didn’t you make a move?”

“Because I don’t want to kill you.” He spoke truthfully. “I never thought of killing you.”

“You should have thought about it,” said Xiao Leixue. “You must know that I will kill you.”

“You will kill me?” His eyes never left Xiao Leixue’s face. “I thought you would never kill people for free.”

“I’ll make an exception this time.”

“Why?”

“Because you killed him.”

Zhuo Donglai’s eyes shifted to the old man in the pavilion. “You think I killed him? You think he would die under my hand?”

“Originally, you could never make a move against him, not even against one of his hairs. Your martial arts aren’t bad, but in the time it would take to lift his hand, he could send you to your grave.”

“Maybe even one finger would be enough.”

“But things changed. Before his death, someone crippled him.”

“You can see that his internal qi skills were crippled?”

“Yes, I can.”

“You saw just now?”

“Yes.”

“But, I knew all along. I knew it many years ago.”

“Oh?”

“When he arrived here, his skill had already been crippled. That is why he came to live here in the first place. I’m sure you can imagine why.”

Xiao Leixue couldn’t argue.

Twenty years ago, the old man had not been old, and in Jianghu there were few who could match him.

He could roam under the heavens, flitting about like a cloud. Why else would he choose to hide here, residing under the roof of someone he detested, unless he had lost his inner power?

“He obviously wouldn’t think highly of someone like me, but he still came here. Because he knew there were some good things about me.”

“What good things?”

“I’m reliable. Very reliable. My character is reliable and my word is reliable.”

“Oh?”

“No one in Jianghu knew that his inner power had been lost. And no one knew he was staying here. My lips were sealed.”

This, Xiao Leixue couldn’t deny.

“Many in Jianghu sought after his life,” said Zhuo Donglai. “If I wanted to betray him, he would have been dead by another’s hand long ago. And if I personally had wanted to kill him, there would have been no need to wait until now.”

It seemed this was a fact as well.

“Also, he saved my life. So when he was in the most danger, he came to me. Do you think I would slay my own benefactor?”

“You would. Others wouldn’t kill their benefactor, but you would.”

Zhuo Donglai laughed bitterly.

“However, despite the fact that his power was lost, his mind remained,” said Xiao Leixue. “And inside it were inexhaustible precious deposits, buried treasures of knowledge, and secrets more valuable than any pearls or jewellery in the world.” He looked coldly at Zhuo Donglai. “You didn’t kill him before because he was useful to you.”

Zhuo Donglai said nothing. A period of time passed, and then he let out a long sigh. “Correct,” he admitted. “I killed him.”

Xiao Leixue’s fist clenched. It was the fist holding the box, the box that could kill anyone in the twinkling of an eye.

“Actually, he was very useful to me all this time.” Zhuo Donglai heaved a sigh. “But sadly, he reached the point where he could no longer be allowed to go on living.” He looked at the box in Xiao Leixue’s hand. “You’re prepared to make your move?”

“Yes.”

“Before you do, can you tell me one thing?”

“What thing?”

“Is the reason you’re going to kill me that you want to avenge his death?” Zhuo Donglai didn’t wait for Xiao Leixue to respond. He answered the question himself. “No, it’s not. It’s definitely not to avenge his death. I can see that you hated him, more than anyone in the world. If he was alive now you would kill him.”

“Correct,” admitted Xiao Leixue immediately. “If he wasn’t dead, I would kill him.” His voice was again hoarse with bitterness. “But before I made my move, I would have asked him something. Something that only he could tell me, a secret only he could explain.”

“What secret?”

“You don’t know what I wanted to ask?”

Zhuo Donglai responded, “What if I did know? Would you let me go?”

Xiao Leixue stared at him coldly, and didn’t say another word. He sighed.

“Unfortunately,” said Zhuo Donglai, “I don’t know. I really don’t.”

“That is unfortunate.”

What question did Xiao Leixue want to ask?

With the old man dead, no one in the whole world could explain the secret.

Zhuo Donglai was dead; anyone should be able to see that his death was inevitable.

Xiao Leixue had already begun opening his box.

—What is the most fearsome weapon under heaven?

—It’s a solitary box.

The box was fearsome, and the person carrying the box was even more fearsome.

Zhuo Donglai’s pupils yet again began to constrict.

His eyes stared at Xiao Leixue, his face dripped with cold sweat, the muscles in his body quivered.

A “beng” noise sounded out as the box opened. Opened just a sliver.

A sliver like that of the seductive eyes of a lover.

Part 6

Regardless of the time or place, if this box opened even a sliver, then someone would be brought to judgement like an animal.

And then the place would become a slaughterhouse.

**

(1) Lu Zhu is a pretty famous type of baijiu

(2) Here the ‘xiao’ character is doubled up to make up an onomatopoeia to describe a whistling sound.

(3) This is a medical condition in which parts of you don’t grow correctly.

(4) Here’s info about furo baths: