Death Sutra Chapter 42

Editors: aditya wirawan, Moonclipse

Honest Words

Shangguan Hongye had instigated the little gongzi to arrange the bet; at first, Gu Shenwei was supercilious, but after the kung fu compet.i.tion he pretended to be deferential by openly admitting defeat. Only by doing this would Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ underestimate her enemy and believe that Servant Huan was still the little servant that didn't dare to resist when being humiliated, just like that time before the New Year.

Gu Shenwei hoped so.

If Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ retaliated again with a crowd present, he would have no other options. He had to be as docile and obedient as a month ago in front of outsiders. If the contradiction between the two were revealed, the lord would only lose her face; the servant, however, would lose his life.

Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ came to his door when it was half an hour past noon that day. She had to stay around Shangguan Ru at all times so it was a little difficult to get away secretly.

Unlike Shangguan Hongye who had broken in aggressively, she slipped into the room like a ghost. She was almost invisible as she stood quietly at the door and merely stared at the Servant Huan who was sitting on the brick bed.

Though Servant Huan had been waiting for her, he was still startled when he raised his head.

No one would doubt Shangguan Yus.h.i.+’s fury. Her face was so stiff it could almost blend with the stone hut. Her eyes seemed to hide a raging demon that could rush out  towards the enemy at any time.

Gu Shenwei thought she would say something so he didn’t speak, alert to her every action. She attacked without a word.

Shangguan Yus.h.i.+’s gaze revealed her purpose before she could act. Gu Shenwei used his hands to push himself up and jumped off the brick bed just in time to catch her first move.

Yu Gongzi was a very smart person, smarter than most of the teenagers in the castle. In the end though, she was the same as all the descendants of Shangguan family; lacking the experience of real, cruel fight..

She used Thundering Wind Sweep. Gu Shenwei had misjudged that move in school, but this time he got it 100% right.

He seized her weak spot, lightly holding her up before using Shangguan Yus.h.i.+'s own kicking force to throw her.

Xue Niang’s counterattack was very effective and she had overestimated Shangguan Yus.h.i.+. This teenage girl who was one year younger than Gu Shenwei hadn’t learnt the Dao of Changes in marital arts. Although her moves were perfect, there was almost no change in them.

Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ crashed into a wall and staggered before standing firmly after some difficulty.

Gu Shenwei hadn’t used much strength so she was not injured. This couldn't cover up her fiasco, however. It was similar to what had happened in school; although on the surface she had won the bet, the fact that it had only taken four moves to be tackled onto the ground was remarkable.

She was not the type of person to admit defeat easily. As soon as she stabilized her stance, she immediately attacked again with one move after another like a raging storm. She had also learned her lesson, no longer blindly hoping that she could finish the fight quickly and heartlessly. Her fighting moves grew steadier, more than a dozen of the moves she had used  not included in the five moves.

Gu Shenwei dealt with her carefully, also not expecting to finish the fight quickly.

The two teenagers kept fighting in the narrow stone hut. Not one of them uttered a sound and not one would admit their inferiority to their opponent.

Gu Shenwei didn’t have many counterattacks so he gradually lost the upper hand. Fist and foot techniques were not strong points of the Gu family’s martial arts and he also hadn’t trained hard in the past 10 years. It meant that he was still incomparable to the Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ who had received strict training at Peng Yue Yuan.

And the rumors were right; Yu Gongzi‘s kung fu skills were better than Shangguan Ru. Usually she rarely displayed them, but now she fought without reservation and was determined to use all means to defeat this bold dog slave.

Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ had the upper hand and fought with greater viciousness, meaning that the chance she would use one of the five moves also grew. She used Overturning the Heaven Grasping the Sun after exchanging more than 30 moves. Gu Shenwei wasn’t able to break it in time.

After several more moves, Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ used another move called Pus.h.i.+ng the Waves Adding the Billows. It was one of the five moves Xue Niang had selected.

Amongst the many fist and palm techniques of Golden Roc Castle, this move was rather bland. It was simply pus.h.i.+ng one’s palms straight forward, but Xue Niang deemed it valuable. She had once explained its fascinating intricacies to Servant Huan and Lotus.

“Why do some people who have learnt the same move become top masters while others remain as average pract.i.tioners even until they die? The key is whether you can use it creatively. Every move in martial arts has a fixed routine. In fact, it is always a.s.sumed that the enemy has a specific position. For example, if you’re going to use Black Tiger Seizes Heart, you’re a.s.suming that the enemy is in front of you, unprepared and unprotected. If the enemy is not in front of you, it would be meaningless to use this move. The one who uses this move inflexibly will make the mistake of attacking blindly whether the enemy is prepared or not. It is similar to using a treasured sabre to chop beef; sooner or later, the blade will dull. Masters who use the move creatively will focus more on the idea than the move itself; they would seize the right time and lure their enemy into the desired position before taking the chance to finish the enemy in one move. If one wants to use the move Pus.h.i.+ng the Waves Adding the Billows effectively, one has to use a series of tricks to confuse the enemy. When the enemy becomes frantic and their lower body becomes unsteady, one will use one's full strength to attack with this move. Most of the fist techniques of Golden Roc Castle are both defensive and offensive; only this move focuses on attack completely while using one's full power to attack."

So, when Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ used five or six showy moves in a row, Gu Shenwei speculated that she would definitely use the move Pus.h.i.+ng the Waves Adding the Billows. This move could be used in two ways: the lower move focused on attacking the enemy’s body while the upper move would concentrate on the vital acupoints of the enemy’s chest. Regardless of which move, if one could judge accurately, the countermeasure was the same.

If Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ was an experienced master, she would have realized that Gu Shenwei was faking unsteady footsteps and a lowered body. She only saw her opponent’s superficial moves however. Now that it was the right time to use the move Pus.h.i.+ng the Waves Adding the Billows, she attacked heavily without hesitation.

This move was pure offensive and required the attacker to use his or her full strength. Once Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ unleashed it, she couldn’t change it halfway.

Gu Shenwei was on one knee before her palms were in position. By the time she struck out with her palms and realized her enemy was not in front of her, Gu Shenwei had already elbowed her abdomen.

There was no need to show anymore mercy; he might not be this teenage girl’s match if they continued the brawl.

Shangguan Yus.h.i.+’s body bent like an arch and flew backwards before hitting a stone wall and falling again. This time she was not able to stabilize her stance. She sat on the ground and suddenly cried out wah before vomiting her lunch.

Gu Shenwei was surprised. He thought he had used too much strength and unconsciously took a step forward to check before immediately retreating to his original position. He must hit the iron while it was still hot and not reveal even a trace of softness at this moment.

“Do you still want to fight?”

He deliberately said this with a cold, hard tone. Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ sat on the ground and stared at him, shocked and frightened. She raised her hand to wipe her mouth and instantly became ruthless again. “Eighth Brother will tear you into ten thousand pieces.”

At the last moment, Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ revealed the true face of a gilded youth, complaining to an adult who was more influential and powerful.

Gu Shenwei crouched down and stared into Shangguan Yus.h.i.+’s eyes. He wanted to tell her some ‘honest words’. More than half of these ‘honest words’ came from the rumors of the servants outside the school gate, the rest of it was from his own speculations. He would soon find out whether it could intimidate this little devil or not.

“Hmm, the eighth young lord will cut me into pieces. Before this happens though, he would probably be interested to know one matter. This matter will bring some disastrous consequences on the two little gongzis.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Someone used the Ninth Gongzi‘s name to arrange bets and cheat money from juniors of the family.”

“Everyone gambled for fun, and no one cheated!”

Gu Shenwei ignored Shangguan Yus.h.i.+’s argument and continued. What he said after this was his own conjectures.

“After this person received the money, she never shared it with others. Ninth Gongzi is pure, kind and doesn't put it in her heart. She didn’t know that this person arranged gambling for supporting the family.”

 Gu Shenwei looked at the teenage girl in front of him without blinking his eyes, not missing a single change in expression.

Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ was silent but her cheeks reddened. Her shoulders lowered like as though she would fall on him before suddenly breaking down.

“It wasn't me, it was all my brother… My mother wants me to find money… I had no choice…”

She spread her feet and cried loudly.

Gu Shenwei felt very guilty. He relied on kung fu master Xue Niang’s help to bully a girl who was one year younger than him with cruel means. Now she didn’t seem like ‘Yu Gongzi‘ at all.

“I understand, we all survive on the cracks.”

Gu Shenwei softened his tone but Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ stubbornly raised her head. She wanted to stare angrily at him, but couldn’t hold back her tears so she had to lower her head again. Her desperate attempts to suppress her tears caused the opposite effect. She sobbed without stopping and couldn’t say a word.

“I’m just a servant who wants to please my lord. No matter how hard I try I’m still a servant. This is fate. And you, your surname is Shangguan; similarly, it is also fate. Everyone minds their own business, right?” Gu Shenwei said cautiously.

Shangguan Yus.h.i.+’s personality was just as unpredictable as her name suggested. No one could accurately predict when the rain would come and whether it was a drizzle or a rainstorm. 1

The sobbing girl stood up, wiped her face hard twice and finally shut the inopportune emotion back to the cage. “I’ll never forgive you.”

Hearing the threat, Gu Shenwei’s heart eased instead. Empty threats often meant a temporary truce at least.

“A servant’s life is always within the hands of the lord.” Gu Shenwei replied submissively. It was impossible to reach a clear agreement with Shangguan Yus.h.i.+. This was already enough for now.

Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ snorted and walked towards the exit. She turned around when she reached the door. “What happened today….”

“If I reveal a word, I will be struck by lightning and never reincarnate.”

Gu Shenwei rushed to answer. Swearing was easy for him.

Shangguan Yus.h.i.+ probably was not very satisfied with the outcome that was far from her first expectations but she left without saying anything.

Gu Shenwei let out a heavy breath. It was really tiring to deal with this little devil. Shangguan Hongye was an idiot compared to her.

Although he had won this round he knew that this would not be the last. He still had to constantly guard against her retaliation. She would definitely be more vicious next time.

But taking advantage of this intermittent truce, he had to find a way to reignite Shangguan Ru’s killer dream. Only by hiding behind this energetic little girl could he reach the core secret of Golden Roc Castle.