50: Chapter 50 Righteous Alliance

The strong liquor slid down his throat, a burning sensation spreading from his esophagus all the way to his stomach.

Chen Fan set down his wine cup, the clamor of the tavern seeming to fade into the distance.

Zhang Cheng was still mumbling drunkenly at that table, talking about who in the Prince of Xiushan's estate had run into bad luck, who had received a reward, babbling incoherently without any logic.

A pitiful man.

These two words were all that occupied Chen Fan's mind.

Whether it was Zhang Cheng, passed out drunk at the table, or Princess Li Ronger, confined within the deep palace walls, they were both pitiful people.

He stood up, tossed a few copper coins onto the table, adjusted his bamboo hat, and walked out of the tavern.

As the cold wind blew, the tipsiness dissipated somewhat, and his mind became even clearer.

Captain Li Zhong was slow to appear; was he truly being cautious?

A Princess leaving the estate with only a measly ninth-rank guard by her side; would the Prince of Xiushan's estate really be at ease with that?

Impossible.

The only explanation was that people from the Prince of Xiushan's estate had arrived long ago, hiding in the shadows, watching coldly from the sidelines.

They were waiting for the assassins to make their move, waiting for them to tear apart the carriage, waiting for them to press a dagger against the Princess's throat.

They might even have been waiting for the assassins to kill the Princess.

Borrowing a knife to kill someone.

What a masterful move of borrowing a knife to kill.

That high and mighty Prince of Xiushan Zheng Xian did not care about the Princess's life or death at all; he was even happy to see the Princess die at the hands of the White Lotus Sect assassins.

In this way, he would not only eliminate a woman who had brought shame upon him but also splash all the dirty water onto the White Lotus Sect, allowing him to mobilize troops and purge the rebels with justification.

Killing two birds with one stone.

As for the death of Lin Shou and the confinement of Princess Li Ronger, they were merely insignificant embellishments in this cold game of chess.

Walking through an empty alley, Chen Fan pulled at the corner of his mouth in self-mockery.

He suddenly wondered whether he should tell Su Xin about this guess.

This was definitely a bombshell capable of shaking the interior of the Prince of Xiushan's estate.

By exploiting the Prince of Xiushan's murderous intent toward the Princess, the White Lotus Sect could do so much with this.

But this thought only flashed through his mind for a moment.

He was Chen Fan, not Chen Jinzhong.

That woman Su Xin owed him two lives.

Once for Black Wind Demon, and once for Lin Shou.

This debt hadn't been settled yet.

...

A few more days passed.

Every day, Chen Fan moved between the tavern and the surroundings of the Prince of Xiushan's estate, passing on some trivial intelligence through the White Lotus Sect's secret channels.

For example, how many people had been added to the Prince of Xiushan's estate's patrol, or which shift of the estate gate guards had been changed.

These were all things he should do in his capacity as "Chen Jinzhong," not too much, not too little, just right.

That night, he received the signal for a meeting once again.

It was still that abandoned pier in the south of the city, and still that damp warehouse.

However, the atmosphere in the warehouse was even heavier than last time.

Besides Su Xin and those surviving Sect members, there was one more person in the deepest shadows.

An old woman.

She wore a faded grey cloth garment, her face was full of wrinkles, her figure was hunched, and she leaned on a bare wooden staff, looking no different from the most ordinary old woman in the countryside.

But the moment Chen Fan stepped into the warehouse, the hairs all over his body stood on end.

An indescribable sense of oppression radiated from that old woman.

She was clearly just sitting there, motionless, yet she made people feel that she was the only existence in this space.

A fifth-rank expert!

Chen Fan immediately lowered his head, imitating the other Sect members, and stood respectfully to the side, not daring to take another look.

"Everyone is here."

Su Xin spoke; her injuries seemed to have improved a little, but when facing the old woman, her posture was very humble.

The old woman slowly raised her head, her murky eyes sweeping over everyone before finally landing on Su Xin.

"As for that person in the Prince of Xiushan's estate, this old woman will handle it."

Her voice was dry and hoarse, like two pieces of sandpaper rubbing together.

"It is just..." She changed the topic, "things are a bit more troublesome than you think."

Everyone held their breath.

"People from the Righteous Alliance have also arrived in Xiushan Prefecture."

Righteous Alliance?

These three words caused the temperature in the warehouse to drop suddenly.

On the faces of those White Lotus Sect members, a fear even deeper than when facing the Prince of Xiushan's estate emerged.

Chen Fan's heart also stirred, and he immediately searched through Chen Jinzhong's memories.

Soon, he found the relevant information.

The Righteous Alliance was a martial arts Alliance composed of dozens of large and small prestigious righteous Sects within the Great Shang Dynasty, recognized by the imperial court, with the mission of upholding justice and eradicating evil.

And the White Lotus Sect was on the Righteous Alliance's kill list.

What was even more deadly was...

The Longxing Sect, where Chen Jinzhong belonged, was actually one of the members of the Righteous Alliance!

What kind of joke was this?

Fighting against one's own people?

Oh, no, he was a traitor now.

Chen Fan only felt a sense of absurdity.

His current identity was a killer working for the White Lotus Sect, while his original Sect was one of the main forces coming to suppress the White Lotus Sect.

If he were to run into people from the Longxing Sect, he wouldn't be able to explain himself no matter how hard he tried.

Chen Fan didn't dare to think any further, feeling a massive headache coming on.

How could this Substitution Rebirth be more of a trap each time?

"Righteous Alliance..." Su Xin repeated the name, her face, which had regained some color, turning pale again, "How could they have come so quickly?"

"Hmph." The old woman snorted coldly, "You caused such a big commotion in Xiushan Prefecture; do you really think that bunch of hypocrites in the Righteous Alliance are blind and deaf?"

"The person they sent this time is 'Thunder Sword' Alliance Leader Song Yuanxing, also a fifth-rank Martial Artist, who brought thirty elite Disciples of the Righteous Alliance and is searching the whole city for our tracks."

"Thunder Sword" Alliance Leader Song Yuanxing!

As soon as this name was mentioned, the legs of several White Lotus Sect members went weak, and they almost couldn't stand steadily.

That was a long-renowned expert of the Righteous Path; his Thunder Sword technique was as fast as lightning, and there were at least eighty, if not a hundred, followers of the Evil Path who had died under his sword.

Big trouble.

Complete and utter big trouble.

In front, there was a fifth-rank retainer from the Prince of Xiushan's estate; behind, there was a fifth-rank expert from the Righteous Alliance leading a suppression force.

With the few people they had, they were simply in a desperate situation.

In the warehouse, there was dead silence, with only the heavy breathing of the crowd remaining.

Su Xin forced herself to calm down, looked at the old woman, and bowed, saying: "I ask for your instructions, Senior."

The old woman leaned on her wooden staff and slowly stood up.

Her hunched body, at this moment, seemed to contain the strength of a mountain.

"What are you afraid of? Soldiers are met by generals, water is met by earth; besides, the enemy is in the open, and we are in the dark; the advantage is ours!"

The old woman's murky eyes swept over everyone, and finally, they stopped on Chen Fan in the corner.

"How is the plan to infiltrate the Prince of Xiushan's estate going?"

Su Xin replied immediately: "Chen Jinzhong has already ascertained that after Captain Li Zhong died, the Prince of Xiushan's estate has been heavily guarded, but the interior is in a state of panic, which is a good opportunity for us to take advantage of the situation."

Her words made everyone's attention focus on Chen Fan.

Chen Fan cursed internally; this woman was pushing him into the fire to roast again.

He could only bite the bullet, step forward, and bow, saying: "This subordinate already has some leads, but it still requires time."

"Time?" The old woman said hoarsely, "What we lack the most is time."

She took a step forward, and that invisible pressure made Chen Fan almost kneel down.

"The Saintess says your movement technique is superb and that you are a talent that can be used."

The old woman walked slowly in a circle around him, her murky eyes seeming to want to see him through from the inside out.

Chen Fan's heart jumped to his throat.

"Longxing Sect..."

The old woman suddenly stopped and quietly spat out three words.

"As far as I know, the Longxing Sect is also a member of the Righteous Alliance, right?"