Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

No one other than demons ate human flesh.

Even humans with such perversions would only do so in private. They certainly wouldn't publicly announce it, and say it with such a proud expression.

The black-clothed girl's words were absurd and sounded just like a joke. Logically speaking, it could only have been a joke, but no one in the pavilion was laughing. That was because this was a place deep in the mountains, far from human habitation, late in the snowy night on a lake. This was a place where strange stories most often occurred, and she spoke with a most serious expression.

Fear and unease enveloped the snowy pavilion, occupying the hearts of everyone present. Shame was liable to make people angry, and the same could be said for fear, because both these emotions forced one to face the weaknesses of one's heart. That Master Yang had originally planned to explain himself, but when he opened his mouth, all that came out was harsh scolding as his shame transformed to anger.

"Is what I said not correct? These medicinal ingredients are for saving lives, but they've been used by you two to satisfy the cravings of your tongues! What you're eating is human flesh! What you're drinking is human blood!"

"What you've said is naturally correct." The black-clothed girl's still-childish features were ice-cold as she said, "Because it's my nature to eat human flesh and drink human blood."

As her words fell, a pained howl ripped through the pavilion. Master Yang's hand had been cut off at the wrist!

Accompanied by shouts of fear and sparkling beads of blood sprinkling the night sky, the severed hand was seized by an invisible force and floated over to the black-clothed girl.

She looked at the hand, her brows slightly raised. For the moment, she made no movement as she seemed to ponder something.

Everyone stared at this bloody sight in fear, thinking to themselves, is she really going to eat that hand?

An Hua noticed that the girl had a particularly solemn and grave expression, cautious and focused, even somewhat sacred.

This made her feel a boundless fear, and her body became incredibly cold, as this sight made her recall the girl that she had made in that inn in Gaoyang Village today.

"Stop messing around," a voice said from the lake shore.

The young man who had suddenly vanished a few moments ago was walking back along the bridge.

This person's appearance caused the oppressive, tense, and terrified mood within the pavilion to greatly relax.

Perhaps it was because of his gentle tone, or the harmless feeling given off by his clean and delicate face.

The black-clothed girl angrily said, "Just how am I messing around? That was the lamb stew that you made for me, but how can I eat it after it was touched by that man's filthy hands?"

The young man stopped outside the pavilion and said to her, "But does that mean that you have to eat his hand?"

The girl said in a huff, "I don't care! I just want to eat human flesh! I originally ate human flesh, so why can't I eat it now?"

The young man somewhat helplessly said, "You tried it two years ago and found out you didn't like it, so why are you so obsessed with the idea now?"

The girl snorted and said, "Is the me that can't eat human flesh still me?"

"Now, now. You just said yourself that this hand is very filthy. Quickly throw it away," the young man said to her. There was an extremely fine hint of pampering in his voice, but it was mostly helplessness, concern, responsibility, and obligation. It was like an elder speaking to a junior, but with a somewhat timid feeling that was very strange.

This conversation was also very weird. Just a moment ago, had they been discussing eating human flesh in public?

They all felt this sight to be absurd, but other than Master Yang, who was about to fall unconscious from the pain, everyone hoped that the young man would be able to convince the black-clothed girl.

No one wanted to suffer from bad dreams for the rest of their life.

The girl was clearly not happy, but she ultimately obeyed the command and threw the hand into the lake.

Upon seeing this, everyone finally relaxed.

"I know what all of you want, but I really have no way to give it to you. And also…"

The young man's gaze fell on An Hua's face. "The lamb stew and the wine pot truly do contain medicinal ingredients, but they are also not what you came here for."

An Hua was already sure that the young man was the master of the Cinnabar Pill, but she didn't understand why he had insisted on speaking to her amongst all these people, so she couldn't help but be a little startled.

The young man continued, "I'm not so extravagant a person. If this meat and wine could save lives, I naturally wouldn't use them to satisfy my appetite."

An Hua felt increasingly confused. This person was certainly no ordinary individual, and there was no need for him to explain anything to an ordinary teacher from the Thirteen Divisions of Radiant Green. And when she saw Master Yang softly groaning in pain, her confusion was once more replaced by grief. She said, "But in the end, the two of you are still powerful figures who ignore the lives of ordinary people."

Upon seeing her serious and stubborn expression, the young man seemed to become a little absent-minded. He was probably thinking about a girl who had also once cultivated in the Thirteen Divisions of Radiant Green.

Perhaps this had also been the reason for his explanation to her.

"You are a pure doctor, and you are a pure soldier."

He looked at An Hua and the general respectively, and then said, "But this person is different. He is not an ordinary doctor. I could see his greed, so losing a hand is a price that he needed to pay."

Just like his previous explanation, there was no proof, only a conclusion made with his heart. It was very difficult to trust in this explanation, but upon seeing the clean and clear eyes of the young man, An Hua and the general believed it.

After this explanation, the young man regretfully said, "I didn't think that I would be found out so quickly."

The atmosphere in the pavilion once more grew tense as the soldiers tightened the grips on their blades and crossbows, their breathing becoming somewhat hurried. They thought, is he planning to get rid of us to hide his secret? If they hadn't witnessed the black-clothed girl noiselessly cut off Master Yang's hand from a distance, the soldiers might have scorned this way of thinking as an overindulgent fantasy, but now, none of them dared to think this way.

But the young man did nothing other than order to the girl to come out of the pavilion, and then turn and walk back onto the bridge.

Only now did everyone notice that he was carrying his luggage on his back. It turned out that he had vanished a few moments ago to make preparations to leave.

An Hua was a girl, so her thoughts were somewhat subtler and more numerous.

He had needed only such a short amount of time to pack his luggage. Didn't that mean that he was prepared to leave at any time?

What was he hiding from? Was it the great renown, extraordinary wealth, and endless hazards brought by the Cinnabar Pill, or was it the world itself?

Just who was this young man? Just what sort of story did he carry with him?

The general had a mission to carry out, so he naturally would not just let the young man leave. With a harsh order, he charged out of the pavilion.

With a bang, dust plumed around the pavilion. He had been blocked by an invisible barrier and been sent crashing to the ground.

The group learned that the young man had actually laid down a seal before leaving. Perhaps there was no danger, but it was now impossible for their party to stop him.

An Hua walked to the edge of the pavilion and called out to the pair, "We just want to ask for a single Cinnabar Pill to save a life."

Without turning around, the young man replied, "I really don't have any more. The next batch will be in a few days. Return and wait for it."

An Hua called back in despair, "But he can't wait for that long."

"Many things can't be decided by us. We can only accept what is decreed to us by fate."

The young man and the black-clothed girl continued their way to the other end of the bridge, saying nothing more to them.

"In the future, don't make any more unreasonable tantrums."

"And just when did I make an unreasonable tantrum!"

"Then can you not be so ruthless? To want to eat humans at the drop of a hat is truly not very good."

"Those people stole from me! And perhaps they wanted to attack you, so of course I have to kill them. Since I'm going to kill them, why can't I just eat them as well?"

"I know you also don't want to eat it, so why force yourself…"

"Just when did I say that I didn't want to eat human flesh? I just thought that what you said was reasonable. The hand was too dirty and washing it and plucking out the hairs would be too troublesome…"

"I was just giving you a convenient excuse."

"Hey! If you say it out loud, aren't you putting me back in an awkward spot? And besides, you better understand that I was just giving you face!"

The people within the pavilion listened to this conversation and watched the pair gradually walk off into the distance with mixed feelings.

Just when they thought that everything that had happened tonight was about to become a dream, ultimately become an unforgettable yet traceless dream…

Suddenly.

The starlight and snow suddenly went mad. A massive boulder howled through the air and smashed through the wooden bridge.

The lake frothed and waves surged. Wooden splinters went flying and dust and snow covered the sky.

The wooden bridge was broken, the snowy lake in turmoil.

The young man and black-clothed girl stood on the wooden bridge, their clothes slightly soaked.

All was silent and oppressive.

Suddenly, a wind began to incessantly howl, a cold wind blowing against flames.

This was followed by the sound of metal scraping and armor clinking.

Countless torches lit up along the lakeshore, gradually illuminating the scene.

People were everywhere.