Chapter 96: Vow
Yuanjue stayed behind and did not leave, raising his head to say, “Princess Wenzhao, the king invites you to the main hall.”
Yaoying came out from her hiding place and looked at Yuanjue: “Banruo and General Ashina have returned with the medicine?”
Was it because he had recovered that Tumoroga summoned Xueyana?
Yuanjue shook his head, his face tense, but his slightly shaky voice gave away his covered-up sorrow and panic: “There has been no news. The monks of the temple have arrived.”
The monks arrived simultaneously, ready to perform puja for their monarch.
Yaoying sighed softly in her heart—not because she was saddened at losing her asylum, but rather because of pure lament for Tumoroga.
He was gifted and intelligent, his fame reaching all over the Western Regions. Originally, he could have been a senior monk who practiced behind closed doors and shunned the world. When Northern Rong attacked the Holy City and the powerful clans had fled the city, he took advantage of the chaos to escape from the Buddhist temple. The monks advised him to go far away to avoid trouble, but the teenager flatly refused. He led the Central Army to defend the Royal Court, saving tens of thousands of people.
Yaoying saw the shadows of many people in Tumoroga. She was reminded of her uncle Xie Wuliang, reminded of the former Zhu clan, reminded of those who rose up in the chaotic times with a sense of justice.
Whether it was the Central Plains or the Western Regions, whenever the country was broken and the common people were in danger, there would inevitably be heroes who stood up resolutely and used their flesh and blood to give a chance for the weak to survive.
Tumoroga was a true monk, who not only had profound attainments in Buddhism, but also spent his life practicing his faith: guarding all people and delievering all beings from suffering.
Unfortunately, he was plagued by a strange illness and was destined to die young.
Before, Yaoying had never met Tumoroga and didn’t have much feelings, but now that the man who saved her life only a short while ago was about to die, she was unconsciously in somewhat low spirits.
She put on her veil and followed Yuanjue to the main hall.
Xueyana and his soldiers were walking ahead of them, slowly making their way up the stairs.
The door of the main hall was closed, and only the side door was open a slight crack. Monks in one-shouldered and long-sleeved robes entered the hall one after another from the corridors on both sides.
Xueyana climbed up to the next level in one breath and said angrily, “If the king summoned me, why did he not open the door?”
No one answered him. The sound of footsteps suddenly rang out, and two groups of Central Army soldiers in blue jackets over white robes poured out from all sides. Coming down the corridor, they surrounded Xueyana and his followers.
Xueyana sneered: “What crime have I committed?”
The knights were silent.
Xueyana snorted coldly and continued to move forward: “Get lost!”
Suddenly a bright golden gleam flashed. A powerful, thin, and nimble black shadow appeaered unexpectedly, pouncing on Xueyana like lightning.
The floor was quiet for a moment, and then a blood-curdling scream rang out.
Yaoying, who was not far away, was startled and subconsciously took a half step back.
On the next floor, Xueyana looked terrified, blood dripping down his left hand. Surrounded by his followers, he stumbled backward, but was forced back to the front by the blue-clad soldiers behind him.
He raised his head and looked around in pain. His face twitching, he raised his sword and slashed down in a flurry.
The dark figure leapt up, agiley dodged his sword, and bared its teeth to bite one of his followers.
The follower was thrown to the ground before he could scream. His body twitched a few times, blood spilling from his throat, and he ceased to breathe in a matter of seconds.
The other followers could barely grip the swords in their hands. Gathered around Xueyana, their faces had gone pale.
The black shadow on the ground let go of his followers and lifted its blood-stained face.
Yaoying stood in front of the steps, her heart beating fast.
It was a golden leopard, with a gorgeous, glossy coat, covered with dark brown stripes. Biting off the throat of a follower with a single bite, its tail was waving back and forth. Crouched next to the corpse, looking at the tower next to the main hall, it stretched out its scarlet tongue and licked its blood-stained front paws.
There was a stagnant silence in front of the temple steps.
Xueyana was overflowing with cold sweat. He glanced at his follower who died from the leopard’s bite then at the tower.
The sun was setting in the west, and the halls and pavillon was filled with golden light. In front of the windows decorated in a gold finish stood the indistinct shadow of a tall, thin, and upright figure. In a dark brocade robe, lean and slim, he was like a cheetah lurking in the shadows.
Xueyana roared: “Sultan Gu! You killed my people!”
The silhouette stood with his hand on his saber, seemingly not taking Xueyana seriously at all.
Xueyana’s forehead veins bulged.
Yaoying’s thoughts stirred.
Sultan Gu, the man who controlled the court on Tumoroga’s behalf?
If Tumoroga was a god in the eyes of the people of the Western Regions, Sultan Gu was a secular regent who held the military and political power of the Royal Court. He was different from the lenient and compassionate Tumoroga. Dictatorial and ruthless, the people privately call him the Vajra Asura1 who guarded Buddha’s son.
An Asura yaksha2, cruel and aggressive, sinister and terrifying, he could make children cry at night.
Sultan Gu’s whereabouts were uncertain. He was said to have gone to Gaochang, and these days, Yaoying often heard the monks mention him.
The Central Army guards were looking forward to Sultan Gu’s early return, while the court ministers, on the contrary, were afraid of Sultan Gu’s return—it was no surprise that they were afraid of Sultan Gu; he had ruined one of Xueyana’s hands the first day he returned to the Royal Court.
Xueyana’s left hand was mangled, but he managed to stand up and shout at the main hall: “Sultan Gu, you dare to kill someone in front of the hall, where did you put the king?!”
The man in the tower turned to leave as if he had not heard. The cheetah on the ground leapt up, jumped onto the corridor, and with a few leaps, his gorgeous silhouette disappeared between the walls and roofs of the palace.
A scarlet paw print was left behind.
The door of the palace opened and the Central Army guards came out.
The wound on Xueyana’s left hand was painful, and he said angrily: “Did you not see what Sultan Gu just did? The beast he raised killed my people!”
The guards looked at Xueyana in askance and announced: “These past few days, General Xue has trespassed several times into the royal palace and disturbed our noble guest. The Regent has punished him as a warning to others. The king is already aware of this. In fact, the king also said that if someone enters the royal palace without permission again, the Regent could execute them on the spot!”
The words were loud and clear.
Xueyana was furious, trembling, his face becoming faintly green.
The Central Army guards slowly drew their long swords and took a step forward.
Their swords flashing with the movement.
A guard said: “The king wants to deliberate with the Regent. General Xue can be excused.”
The personal soldiers, trembling, persuaded Xueyana: “General, you are wounded. It is more important to go back and treat your injuries first… I heard that the cheetah raised by the Regent has poisoned teeth…”
The rest of the words the personal soldier dared not say: the reason why the Regent dared to hurt him in front of the palace, was it not because the General, urged by the Prime Minister Kang Mozhe, had repeatedly trespassed the royal palace these days! The king was Buddha’s son, who would never take a life, but the Regent was a murderous yaksha ah! This was completely what the General had brought onto himself…
Xueyana’s eyes were glowering, panting like an ox, his entire body shaking. The wound was getting more and more painful, and he could not help but suspect whether the leopard’s teeth were truly poisoned. Gritting his teeth, he said: “One day, I must kill Sultan Gu with my own hands!”
The followers unreservedly agreed and helped Xueyana’s miserable figure to leave.
The blue-clad soldiers dragged away the corpse of his dead follower, and a slave soon came with a bucket of water to mop up the blood on the ground.