Bamboo Case Chapter 33: Miss Fengfeng

"I have already delayed too long here; I must press on."

The rain had ceased. Lu Yun, accompanied by Song Lian, set off toward the Hundred Thousand Mountains. Thanks to the power of the moonlight, the priest had ultimately failed to track them down. To Lu Yun, this was of little consequence, but to the young Song Lian, the young man—who had previously seemed only slightly taller than himself—now appeared suddenly towering and majestic.

In the days that followed, the two did nothing but travel, rest, and travel again. Throughout the journey, Song Lian remained consistently respectful toward Lu Yun, who said little, simply guiding the boy along.

Eventually, they arrived in the Kingdom of Baiyuan—or rather, what remained of the smaller nations that had already been swallowed by it. In just a few short months, the Kingdom of Baiyuan had expanded its territory twofold. Lu Yun found an inn at random and checked in with Song Lian.

Song Lian entered the room with an awkward hesitation. Lu Yun said coolly, "You sleep on the floor; I will take the bed."

The boy let out a soft "oh" and obediently sat on a small wooden stool. Lu Yun sat cross-legged on the bed and entered the vision of the bright moon. The moon remained, but the figure in the white dress was nowhere to be seen. Sitting beneath the lunar glow, Lu Yun summoned his longsword and whispered, "Shengge, are you there?"

The sword vibrated gently. Lu Yun placed his hand upon the blade and produced the jade pendant. The moonlight transformed into a white mist, slowly enveloping him. The boy’s figure grew hazy, as if a woman were standing beside him.

"I fell into deep meditation atop the sacred mountain in the Kingdom of Changxing, and when I awoke, I had broken through to the sixth realm. Yet, I cannot help but feel it was all too coincidental. And then there is that boy..."

The woman seemed to speak, and Lu Yun nodded.

"Yes, that senior has promised me: if I can reach the Hundred Thousand Mountains, he will take me as his disciple and teach me how to save you and Sister."

The woman seemed to want to say more, but her figure began to dissipate. Lu Yun reached out instinctively, but his fingers met nothing. It was like this every time. Over the past few months, he had seen Shengge only a handful of times, and each time her presence was so faint, as if she might vanish at any moment.

Lu Yun closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, he was back in the inn room.

***

Time passed, and the starry sky hung outside the window. Seeing Song Lian fast asleep on the table, Lu Yun hesitated for a moment before moving the boy to the bed.

It was unclear what occasion it was, but the city was bustling with activity. Crowds had flocked to the riverbank to watch a gargantuan ship sailing slowly by. Lu Yun appeared on the shore and looked up as well. Standing on the deck was a beautiful woman, elegant and dignified in her elaborate palace robes, gazing toward the horizon with longing.

"The Emperor of Baiyuan is choosing his concubines!" someone whispered.

Lu Yun raised an eyebrow. Choosing concubines? Wasn't that fellow Yuan Mo deeply entangled with Senior Sister Hongyu?

"You know too little," the voice continued. "This ship carries the Emperor's new concubines, taken from the various nations conquered by Baiyuan in recent days. Our Lady Fengfeng is among them!"

At these words, the crowd on the riverbank erupted. It seemed this Lady Fengfeng held great significance for them. Lu Yun, finding his room boring, had intended to watch for a moment, but since he had stumbled upon Yuan Mo's romantic escapades, he decided to stay and observe a while longer.

The atmosphere on the shore grew increasingly tense. Soon, people began throwing objects at the great ship and cursing, demanding that Yuan Mo return their Lady Fengfeng. Suddenly, a man leaped into the air, jumping toward the massive vessel. The woman on the deck turned pale and fled into the cabin.

The assailant was a burly man. Standing on the prow, he roared, "The Kingdom of Baiyuan has occupied our lands, and now they have stolen our Lady Fengfeng! Can we stand for this?!"

"No!"
"We cannot!"
"..."

Voices filled with righteous indignation rose from the shore. Lu Yun squinted, watching the scene. He was now curious: what had this so-called Lady Fengfeng done in this small nation to drive these people to such madness?

A figure emerged from the cabin, face cold, ordering the man to leave. The man was hot-tempered and refused. The opponent was a cultivator of no small skill, and seeing the man lingering on the ship, he attacked on the spot. The man was eventually overwhelmed and knocked into the water in a sorry state.

Seeing this, the crowd on the shore grew furious. Several others with decent cultivation levels surged forward, boarding the giant ship together. The cultivator guarding the vessel frowned, struggling to cope with the influx. Soon, as more onlookers joined in, the deck became crowded. The cultivator, unable to fight off so many, began to lose his momentum.

Intrigued, Lu Yun lightly leaped onto the prow, brushing past the cultivator. The cultivator reached out to stop him, only to find that the man had already vanished. The troublemakers on the deck were also stunned. The cultivator's expression changed, and he rushed into the cabin.

He found the young man looking awkward, saying, "Miss, please, don't be like this."

The woman who had been on the deck clutched her robes and retorted, "Take one more step, and I will tear them off! Let's see if the Emperor of Baiyuan sends men to hunt you down!"

Lu Yun’s eyelid twitched. He could even feel the longsword at his waist beginning to tremble.

"Shengge, don't cause trouble," Lu Yun patted the sword helplessly.

"Who are you? What do you want?" the cultivator bellowed. The man before him was unfathomable; there was no way he could defeat him. If something happened to this ship, he would surely face brutal punishment upon returning to the Kingdom of Baiyuan.

Lu Yun sighed. "I simply wish to see Lady Fengfeng."

As the cultivator hesitated, a woman's soft voice asked from within, "You wish to see me?"

Lu Yun turned toward the sound.

...

Back at the inn, Song Lian stirred, waking up in a daze to find Lu Yun gone and himself lying on the bed.

"Did he go out?" the boy murmured.

He suddenly heard a great commotion outside, so he walked to the window and looked toward the giant ship, which was now surrounded by a dense crowd.

"What is happening?"