Ma Jingguo led Bazar Batu through the imposing main gate of the Sunset Sect and into the compound's secluded heart. Rather than the expected grandeur of a large hall, they were ushered into a small, private dining room.
The room was evidently reserved for intimate meals and was already prepared for their lunch. A variety of dishes had been meticulously laid out on a single, low table. Bazar Batu's eyes swept quickly across the entire room, taking in every detail as he confirmed a crucial observation: despite the extensive meal, only he and Ma Jingguo were present, underscoring the secretive nature of their meeting and the Chief's apparent isolation.
Ma Jingguo asked, a wry smile touching his lips, "See anything that worth catching your eyes?"
Bazar Batu got straight to the point. "I didn't see your wife. Is he going to have lunch with us?"
Ma Jingguo shook his head. "No." He picked up his chopsticks and started eating. "Shall I show you around?"
Bazar Batu declined firmly. "No... don't show me around. If you don't, I will feel better."
Ma Jingguo smiled, amusement dancing in his eyes. "Even if I take you around, I don't mind if you pass it to the six sects. Soon I will invite them to a grand celebration banquet."
Bazar Batu pressed. "When?"
Ma Jingguo shrugged, eating calmly. "I don't know. I guess whenever I want to invite them."
Bazar Batu took out a ceramic medicine bottle and set it on the table. He explained, "Zhanjin said to give this to Mu Dishi."
Ma Jingguo picked up the bottle, examined it briefly, then slid it back across the table. "Mu Dishi does not need it. He is not poisoned."
Bazar Batu changed the subject to Yong Taihua. "Ma ge, Taihua wants to visit his shizun. Can you allow this?"
Ma Jingguo sighed, his smile vanishing. "Tell Taihua that he better not see his shizun right now, because he might not be able to control his anger."
Bazar Batu inferred the worst. "So, does it mean that Taihua's shizun was tortured very badly?"
Ma Jingguo took a sip of wine, his gaze heavy. "He chose to be tortured." He looked directly at Bazar Batu. "Don't talk about others, talk about yourself. What have you been doing in the past few years?"
Bazar Batu replied, a light laughs in his voice, "Well, where do I start?"
Ma Jingguo smiled, settling in. "We have a whole day."
Bazar Batu leaned forward, ready to begin his tale. "Well, then I will start from when we were separated at that time..."
Meanwhile, six figures in black, guided by a member of the Sunset Sect, rushed through a complex corridor. When the group reached a cell door, two guards were already standing watch.
Gu Yingjie acted instantly, shooting two needles that dropped the guards silently in front of the door. Zhu Mingyang and Gu Yingjie took up defensive positions. Yongzheng, Cao Wenyan, and Yong Taihua sprinted into the cell, finding Mu Dishi lying frail and pale on a straw mat atop the cold concrete floor.
Cao Wenyan frantically pushed past everyone and rushed downstairs, gathering Mu Dishi into a fierce, protective embrace. His eyes moistened with tears. "Mu gongzi... I'm here now. I will take you out of this hell hole." He gently pushed Mu Dishi's tangled hair away from his face.
Mu Dishi spoke weakly. "Cao gongzi, let me go." He glanced left where Yong Taihua had knelt down, his expression fearful. "You guys need to leave now. If Jingguo knows, he will be angry."
Yong Taihua was consumed by rage. "Shizun, why are you still worried about what that demon thinks?"
Cao Wenyan gave the urgent command. "Carry him!"
Yong Taihua carefully lifted Mu Dishi and rushed back upstairs to join Zhu Mingyang and Gu Yingjie. The seven began moving swiftly toward the back gate.
Halfway there, they froze. Yao Huo and Yao Hu stood blocking their path with over twenty armed men.
Yao Huo smiled contemptuously. "Many people think that escape through the back door is the safest way. They are wronged. Do you think we will not see through your stupid plan?"
Yao Hu snarled, "Leave Mu gongzi, or everyone dies tragically."
Cao Wenyan stepped forward, determination blazing in his eyes. "Over my dead body!"
Yao Huo chuckled. "Alright, then you can die."
Cao Wenyan looked back at Yong Taihua, his voice tight. "No matter what, Mu gongzi stays on your back!"
Yong Taihua vowed fiercely, "Don't worry, I won't leave him behind!"
Yao Hu sneered at Yong Taihua. "Yong Taihua, you don't need to cover your face, I recognize your voice." He pointed his sword at him. "Why are you always breaking into our sect?"
Yao Huo added the grim warning. "Chief has told you that if you break into our territory again, he will cut off your legs."
Yong Taihua spat out his defiance. "I am not afraid of Demon Ma!"
Cao Wenyan shouted angrily, urging action. "Don't play words with them, let's go!"
Cao Wenyan immediately shot four red thread needles at Yao Huo and Yao Hu. The brothers swiftly deflected them, but Gu Yingjie's flying needles caught the Yao brothers off guard, forcing them to quickly back away. Simultaneously, a red thread needle shot from the left corridor toward Gu Yingjie. Yongzheng sprinted forward and swung his sword at the unseen person.
Gu Yingjie shouted frantically, turning around, "Don't hurt her!" Yongzheng's sword blade happened to stop, resting precisely on Yuan Chaomei's neck. Gu Yingjie quickly explained. "We need her to escape here!"
Yongzheng pressed the sword blade more firmly against Yuan Chaomei's neck, pushing her forward to lead their group of six and their valuable hostage. They began to leave through the back gate of the Sunset Sect.
Yongzheng looked over his shoulder at the Yao brothers, his gaze sharp and cold. "If someone follows us within an hour, I will kill her." He paused, letting the threat sink in, before commanding, "Now, close the gate."
Yuan Chaomei, surprisingly calm, defied the brothers. "Do it. Tell Chief that Yong Taihua and his men came to rescue Mu gongzi."
The Yao brothers exchanged cold glances. Yao Hu finally spoke, his voice tight with reluctance. "Close the gate."
Yuan Chaomei then offered essential instruction. "Go to the right. The road is not smooth, but there are no guards patrolling."
Meanwhile, in the dining room, Ma Jingguo and Bazar Batu were mid-meal when a guard rushed into the private dining room.
Bazar Batu immediately offered to leave. "Should I leave?"
Ma Jingguo merely smiled, unconcerned. "No need." He looked at the agitated guard. "What is it?"
The guard reported breathlessly, "Chief, Yong Taihua and four highly skilled martial artists broke into the prison cell and took Mu gongzi away."
Ma Jingguo's expression didn't change as he continued to eat. "And…"
The guard finished, swallowing hard. "They held Deputy Chief Yuan as a hostage."
Ma Jingguo's voice remained unnervingly flat as he issued a devastating decree. "If Deputy Chief Yuan does not return in the next hour, then prepare to annihilate Sword Village."
"Yes," the guard confirmed, rushing out quickly.
Ma Jingguo resumed eating, entirely unaffected by the news. He looked up at Bazar Batu, who was staring, aghast. "Why don't you eat? Is the food not to your liking?"
Bazar Batu's shock was palpable. "Why are you so calm? If I remember correctly, you will never let this happen!"
Ma Jingguo smiled, a deep weariness in his eyes. "As we grow older, we become more wise and our vision becomes broader." He continued his meal. He looked at Bazar Batu. "I'll take you out after lunch."
Bazar Batu, consumed by guilt, slammed his chopsticks onto the table, the noise echoing sharply in the small room. He roared, his emotions raw. "Ma ge, you should hit me or yell at me! If you do that, I... I will feel better!"
Ma Jingguo put down his chopsticks, his expression softened by a profound sadness. "Batu, I don't have many friends in my life, so I want to cherish any friendship as much as possible." A heartbreaking grief colored his voice. "The people who I cared about either died or betrayed me. I hope I can have lunch with you today, because once the sun goes down, I will lose one friend."
Bazar Batu's heart sank, tears welling in his eyes. Ma Jingguo's calm acceptance was far worse than anger. He knew instantly that Ma Jingguo already knew he was the bait—the diversion that allowed his companions to rescue Mu Dishi. He stood up, guilt-ridden. "Ma ge, I want to leave now."
Ma Jingguo rose as well, granting his request without reproach. "Very well, I'll see you off."
Ma Jingguo and Bazar Batu stood silently before the imposing main gate. He waved to a nearby guard, and the massive iron gate opened with a loud screech of metal. He looked at Bazar Batu, his voice carrying a weight of warning. "Batu, when you see Yong Taihua, tell him to let Yuan Chaomei go. If something happens to Yuan Chaomei..." His eyes held a flicker of genuine distress. "I will have to break my promise with Dandan."
Bazar Batu met his gaze, his voice sincere. "I will make sure to send him your message."
Bazar Batu glanced past the gate and spotted Kuo Lok standing not too far away, partially hidden behind an arrow marker on the ground. Turning back to Ma Jingguo, he saw the profound sadness in the Chief's eyes—a pain deeper than anger. Ashamed of his role in the betrayal, he took two steps forward. He quickly wiped away his tears and offered a genuine piece of information. "Ma ge, there is an old temple on the outskirt of the village. If you are going to find your wife, now is the best time, because tomorrow morning, all of the leaders of the Six Sects and the Four Households will be here to fight against the Seventy-Two Islands."
Ma Jingguo's lips curved into a rare, genuine smile. "Thank you."
Bazar Batu walked quickly to Kuo Lok's side just as the iron gate began to slowly creak shut behind them. Bazar Batu immediately grabbed Kuo Lok's hand. "Lok gege, we have to go back quickly!"
Kuo Lok, sensing the urgency, asked, "Why?"
Bazar Batu's eyes were wide with dread. "Ma ge went mad!"
Kuo Lok stared at him. "How?"
Bazar Batu pulled Kuo Lok down the mountain road, his fear driving his pace. "If my prediction is correct, Ma ge will launch an attack against the martial artists of the Central Plains."
Kuo Lok demanded a reason. "Why do you think so?"
Bazar Batu, frantic, explained his intuition with a chilling metaphor. "The sea is always calm when it prepares to unleash deadly waves."