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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 7: Sister Nine, the Flower Cat
The Purgatory Palace was not as terrifying as imagined. Beneath the Yangquan Cliff, the scenery was quite pleasant. The Purgatory Palace was built at the highest point of the Yangquan Cliff, and below the cliff lay the Azure Wave Lake. The skeletons adorning the tower of the Purgatory Palace did not wail; the sounds of lamentation were caused by the Gale blowing through the hollow bones.
An Old Horse approached the gates of the Purgatory Palace at a slow pace. The rider's expression was grim, as if he was very reluctant to go to the Purgatory Palace, but due to his livelihood, he had no choice. He appeared to be in his forties, with a gaunt face and dull eyes, suggesting he had traveled all night without proper rest.
At the base of the Purgatory Palace was a clean stone plaza, flanked by Fabric Houses. Ahead lay the only exit from the Yangquan Cliff, flanked by steep rock walls. The gate stood firmly between these two walls, towering five meters high and three meters wide, appearing as solid as a boulder. This man was quite familiar with the Purgatory Palace; thus, as soon as his Old Horse approached the gates, they swung open.
He navigated effortlessly to the seventh house on the left side of the plaza. Outside this house stood two burly men on guard, their faces concealed by masks resembling flames. The Flame Masks covered the upper halves of their faces, leaving their mouths exposed.
The two men stood at either side of the entrance, their gazes fixed straight ahead, seemingly uninterested in acknowledging this newcomer.
In fact, he had grown accustomed to their stance over the years. He had visited ten times in ten years, and their posture had never changed; they stood like two stone statues.
He did not need anyone to announce his arrival. Tying his horse to a long post outside, he entered the house directly.
Inside, the decor was exquisite. Two large windows at the back were wide open, ensuring ample light illuminated every corner of the room. A refreshing breeze from the lake flowed through, making him feel invigorated.
In the room stood a red carved wooden table shaped like flickering flames, piled high with account books. A figure emerged from within; this person also wore a mask—not one resembling flames but rather a Flower Cat Mask that covered their entire face.
The wearer of the Flower Cat Mask moved gracefully and donned a floor-length robe adorned with patterns reminiscent of a flower cat.
With a feline grace that mirrored her appearance, she addressed him as "Sister Nine."
Cats are said to have nine lives; hence he referred to her as Sister Nine.
Sister Nine approached the table and lifted her robe before sitting down elegantly. She smiled gently and said, "Lord Thunder, I truly cannot help but admire you; you are very trustworthy and have never been late in all these years."
Lord Thunder paid no heed to her flattery but respectfully placed a stack of silver notes on the flame-like table. For a brief moment, Lord Thunder wished that this table were indeed flames so that he could burn away those silver notes; he would rather see them incinerated than offer them as tribute.
Lord Thunder neatly stacked the silver notes in front of Sister Nine, his voice equally orderly as he said, "Sister Nine, count them; it's exactly one hundred thousand taels."
Sister Nine smiled and replied, "You're being too polite. After all these years, do you think I wouldn't trust you? However, I must follow orders; I can't be careless."
As she spoke, Sister Nine lightly swept her delicate thumb across the stack of notes. She already had a plan in mind. Placing the silver notes into a drawer, she continued, "You look exhausted; you must have traveled quite a distance. Let me have someone prepare a room for you to rest in before you leave tomorrow."
Lord Thunder quickly declined, saying, "That's not necessary; I have some urgent matters to attend to."
Sister Nine smiled slightly. "In that case, I won't keep you. We'll meet again next year."
Lord Thunder forced a smile and replied, "See you next year."
Once outside, Lord Thunder untied his old horse and slowly walked out the main gate. Sister Nine stepped out of the house and watched him leave. It struck her as odd that someone who could easily part with one hundred thousand taels would not be able to afford a new horse.
But as she observed Lord Thunder's retreating figure, she chuckled softly to herself. "This man is truly cautious; he gives me no excuses to find fault with him. That horse must be at least ten years old."
A burly man outside remarked, "Yes, it's been a full ten years. He doesn't change his horse; perhaps he's afraid we'll find an excuse to charge him more."
Sister Nine sighed, "He has his own struggles."
Just as she was about to return inside, a Gatekeeper Disciple approached with news. "Sister Nine, that boy is back again."
Sister Nine sighed once more. "He really is stubborn."
She walked to the entrance and saw a boy of about seven or eight years old struggling to wield a machete to intimidate the guards. With tears in his eyes, he shouted, "You all better step aside! I want to see Sister Nine!"
One of the guards chuckled and said, "You little rascal, you've got quite the stubborn streak! Do you think Sister Nine is someone you can just waltz in to see? Go on now; if you don't leave, I won't be so nice."
The boy exclaimed angrily, "I won't leave! I won't go until I see Sister Nine!"
The guard found the boy's stubbornness amusing and decided not to take him seriously. Without drawing his sword, he raised the scabbard and struck the boy with it. The boy had no strength to match the adult guard, and the scabbard was knocked aside. The guard barked, "Why won't you listen? Why would Sister Nine bother with someone like you?"
Seeing that he had no chance to resist, the boy felt a surge of shame and anger. Just as he was about to draw his knife, Sister Nine stepped forward and said, "Why are you here again?"
In front of the guard, the boy appeared fearless, but upon seeing Sister Nine, he immediately knelt down and bowed his head. "Sister Nine, I beg you to be merciful. We will definitely pay you back soon. Please let my father go."
Sister Nine replied, "We have our rules. Your father made a mistake, and he must face the consequences."
The guard interjected, "Sister Nine, is it really worth your time to argue with a child? Just send him away; I'll take care of it."
Sister Nine stepped forward and picked up the boy's knife. She addressed the guard, "We are only seeking wealth; harmony brings prosperity. Never underestimate anyone, no matter their age. He may be young now, but he will grow."
She handed the knife back to the boy and said, "You can go now. I promise you that in three days, your father will return home."
The boy stared in disbelief. "My father will really come back?"
Sister Nine spoke softly, "I keep my word."
After a moment of serious contemplation, the boy wiped his tears and shouldered the knife as he turned to leave.
The guard then asked, "Sister Nine, are you really going to let him go?"
Sister Nine replied gently, "Yes, we seek wealth. People can be released but must face punishment. Tell the manager to leave one of his father's arms behind before letting him go."
Though her tone was calm, the order she gave was exceptionally cruel.
As Sister Nine was about to enter, a carriage rumbled towards her. It came to a stop beside her, and she looked at the rider. The person wore a white mask that resembled snowflakes—cold and lonely. Although the mask was pure white like snow, it concealed the person's eyes.
Sister Nine said, "Black Eyes, where have you been these past few days? Why are you only returning now?"
Black Eyes spoke in a tone devoid of emotion, like the biting wind on a winter night. "Of course, I had matters to attend to. This time, I’ve brought back a great gift."
Sister Nine's eyes sparkled with interest. "Oh? What great gift?"
Black Eyes pointed to the carriage's compartment. "I’ve brought Second Sister from Corner Lodge back with me."
For the first time in front of others, Sister Nine appeared genuinely surprised. Fortunately, her mask hid her expression from view. She emphasized, "Is it the Second Sister with the Vermilion Bird Pearl?"
Black Eyes replied, "The pearl is gone, but the person is unmistakable."
Sister Nine said, "Without the Vermilion Bird Pearl, what use is bringing her back?"
Black Eyes maintained a calm demeanor as he responded, "I left behind the Ghost Howl Order; useful people will arrive soon."
Suddenly, Sister Nine smiled brightly. "In that case, we should host a banquet to welcome Second Sister."
Meanwhile, Ji Zichen and Xia Zhou had been pursuing for seven days and had now reached the vicinity of Yangquan Cliff. Ji Zichen gritted his teeth and said, "We've arrived."
Xia Zhou stared intently at Purgatory Palace and asked, "Is Lin Chuyu really over there?"
To them, Purgatory Palace still appeared as small as a thumb; they would need to cross Tide Mountain to reach it fully.
Ji Zichen tightly gripped the Ghost Howl Order in his hand and declared, "It can't be wrong. Brother Ang said this is the Ghost Howl Order of Purgatory Palace. The ones who abducted Lin Chuyu left this order behind to lure us here."
Xia Zhou, full of spirit, said, "Then let's charge in and rescue Lin Chuyu."
Ji Zichen pondered for a moment and replied, "No, this is their territory. This plan won't work. Since they dared to leave the Ghost Howl Order behind, they won't be afraid to confront us. We should first enter Tide Mountain and make our plans from there; after all, we know nothing about them."
Xia Zhou had no experience to counter this and said, "I'll follow your lead. Whatever you decide, I'll do."
The two began their ascent into Tide Mountain. The mountain range resembled ocean waves, uneven and scattered, making progress quite difficult. After climbing over several peaks, Ji Zichen spotted a village below.
From a distance, the village appeared to have around forty or fifty households, but most of the houses were in ruins, giving off a lifeless atmosphere. As Ji Zichen walked through the village, they reached the entrance where Xia Zhou remarked, "It seems like there's no one in this village; I can't sense any vitality here."
Ji Zichen furrowed his brow and asked, "Could this be Ango's village?"
Xia Zhou replied, "Huh? Ango? I'm not so sure. Look at the expanse of Tide Mountain; there must be many villages within it."
Ji Zichen nodded in agreement but didn't argue further since there was no point in debating it. After all, their purpose for coming this time was not to search for Ango's village but to find a way to rescue Lin Chuyu.
As they entered the village, it appeared slightly damp. The roads were overgrown with wild grass, indicating that it was an abandoned settlement. However, as they continued forward, they realized that this was not an entirely deserted village.
In the southern part of the village, smoke was slowly rising into the air. Xia Zhou pointed at the smoke and said, "Look over there; doesn't it seem like someone is present?"
Where there is smoke, there must be people. Ji Zichen observed, "That smoke doesn't look like it's from a bonfire; it seems to be coming from a chimney. Let's go check it out."
Just as Ji Zichen and Xia Zhou took a couple of steps forward, two figures wearing Flame Masks suddenly appeared and blocked their path. One of them coldly laughed and said, "Here come two more who are seeking death."
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