Volume One: The Youth Enters the World Chapter One Hundred: The Trap

By the time Fang Tian set out, Fucang had already ordered his men to bind all the disciples of the Clear Brook Sect with the prepared spirit cords and escort them toward the deepest part of the island.

After being restrained by the pirates, the disciples of the Clear Brook Sect all hung their heads in dejection and let the pirates bark orders at them. None of them showed the slightest intention of resisting. They had considered it, but the chances of escape seemed far too slim.

As things stood, all they could do was surrender themselves and wait for Lord Huo Chen and the Grand Elder to come to their rescue. A forced struggle would likely end only in death, and perhaps not even one of them would get away. Besides, the pirates around them were numerous, no fewer than their own people.

At this point, the disciples of the Clear Brook Sect could do nothing but resign themselves to fate. No one had expected that Fucang would betray the sect, let alone prepare so thoroughly that he had even produced spirit cords capable of sealing a cultivator's spiritual power. From this alone, it was clear how deeply he had hidden himself and how meticulous he had been in planning. The more one thought about it, the more chilling it became; one could only admit defeat.

These spirit cords could seal the spiritual power within a cultivator's body, leaving them no different from ordinary mortals. With that in place, Fucang and the others had nothing to fear from any action or attempt to flee by the Clear Brook Sect disciples.

Mu Qiaoqiao, who had been walking with the crowd and was also bound, kept her head down like everyone else. She tried to keep herself hidden among the others while her eyes quietly swept the surroundings, checking the pirates' line of sight. When she saw that none were watching her, she quickly picked up a stone from the ground and immediately straightened up. A pirate seemed to sense something and abruptly turned his gaze toward her.

Mu Qiaoqiao did her best to keep her expression calm so she would not give herself away. The nearby Clear Brook Sect disciples, after seeing her actions, remained absolutely still as well, their expressions unchanged in the slightest. They understood what Mu Qiaoqiao was trying to do, so the only thing they could do was remain composed and pretend not to have noticed. Otherwise, if the pirates caught wind of anything unusual, things would turn ugly.

After staring for a while, the pirate found nothing amiss. Yet the moment he saw Mu Qiaoqiao's delicate little face, his expression turned lecherous, and he began to grin with a series of sly chuckles that were utterly revolting to hear.

Mu Qiaoqiao glanced at him. Though she felt deeply disgusted by the pirate's grin, there was nothing she could do at the moment. The only thing she could do was leave a mark for Fang Tian.

Clenching the stone in her hand, she thought that once Fang Tian rescued them, she would make sure to deal properly with these pirates. The malice on their faces suggested they had likely harmed who knew how many innocent people.

The pirate kept staring for only a moment longer before looking away again. After all, there were over a hundred disciples from the Clear Brook Sect; it was unrealistic to watch them every second. So after a while, when they passed a large boulder, Mu Qiaoqiao took advantage of the pirate looking elsewhere and swiftly scratched a few marks into the stone before returning to her original posture. On the rest of the journey, she kept doing the same. Whenever they came to a suitable place at intervals along the way, she would seize the opportunity to leave another mark.

Because Mu Qiaoqiao was naturally small and slight, and because the Clear Brook Sect disciples shielded her as they walked, none of her movements or the marks she carved were detected by the pirates.

Before long, the pirates led them to a cluster of stone-built houses. There was more than one such structure, all made from stones of varying sizes.

At that point, Mu Qiaoqiao stopped marking the way. It was not that she did not want to continue, but because they were now being herded by the pirates into places that resembled prison cells, one group at a time. After locking them inside, the pirates left only a few men standing guard at the entrance.

Mu Qiaoqiao thought that this must be the pirates' lair. Glancing at herself, still trapped by the spirit cord, and then looking outside, she found that the large group of pirates from earlier had already departed.

She moved her body a little and found that her spiritual power had been completely sealed, impossible to break free from. Seeing that her attempts were futile, she could only let out a quiet sigh and find a patch of open ground to sit on.

Looking around the cell, she saw that the air was thick with a foul, fishy stench. From time to time, a few rats would squeak as they scurried past. Looking toward the far end, she discovered several human skeletons, one of which was noticeably smaller than the others. At the sight of this, her heart trembled. She could not help but sigh that these pirates were truly devoid of humanity, not even sparing the lives of children.

Unable to bear the sight, she turned her eyes away. Just then, one of the Clear Brook Sect disciples quietly came over to her side and whispered, "Junior Sister Mu, I noticed you were making marks all along the way. Could it be that someone will follow the trail and find us?"

Mu Qiaoqiao did not speak, only nodded slightly. Then she gestured with her eyes for him not to make a scene, turned her body sideways, and used her hand to write the word "quiet" on the ground.

After seeing the word, the disciple quietly withdrew and signaled the others with his eyes. After a while, everyone understood what Mu Qiaoqiao meant, and hope seemed to rekindle in their eyes. Even so, they did not grow restless. Instead, each found a place to sit down and closed their eyes, waiting in silence for rescue to arrive.

Seeing that everyone seemed at ease, Mu Qiaoqiao used her body to rub the word away. Then she looked outside, silently praying that Fang Tian would find them soon and bring them out safely.

At the same time, Lord Huo Chen and the Grand Elder, having been impatient to chase after the figure they had seen, had forgotten their direction in the heat of the pursuit. After chasing for quite a while, the two groups unexpectedly ran into each other.

The Grand Elder and Lord Huo Chen stared at one another, then walked toward each other, both wearing expressions of surprise as if they could not understand what was happening.

After a moment, Lord Huo Chen asked, "Grand Elder, how did you end up here?"

The Grand Elder looked equally puzzled. "Island Lord, weren't you taking the middle route? How did you meet us here?"

Seeing that the Grand Elder was just as confused, Lord Huo Chen narrowed his eyes and thought for a moment before saying, "I'm afraid we were deliberately led here by those pirates. Tell me, were you just chasing after a figure as well?"

"Yes. Could it be that the Island Lord was too?" The Grand Elder hesitated only briefly before realizing something.

"Indeed, Grand Elder. It seems we have fallen into their trap."

"What cunning pirates. They've actually played us for fools." Having realized he had been tricked, the Grand Elder grew slightly angry.

"Do not lose your temper. Hurry and use the communication artifact to contact Fucang and Fang Tian," Lord Huo Chen said, his brow tightly furrowed and his heart uneasy.

"Very well, I will contact them." The Grand Elder took out the communication artifact and tried to reach Fucang.

Before long, Fucang's voice came through the artifact. "Grand Elder, what is it?"

"Has anything happened on your side?" the Grand Elder asked.

"We are chasing a figure that seems to be a pirate. Why? Is there a problem?"

"Stop chasing him. Come and meet up with us first."

"Understood."

"As quickly as possible."

After speaking, the Grand Elder cut off the connection and then switched the artifact to Fang Tian's side. Fang Tian, who was still moving, sensed a disturbance from the communication artifact in his arms and quickly took it out. Looking at the artifact Fucang had given him, he could not tell who was contacting him, since different patterns were engraved on it, corresponding to different people's frequencies.

Fang Tian stopped and raised the communication artifact before his eyes, speaking toward the light and shadow. "Who is it?"

After a pause, the Grand Elder's voice replied, "It is me."

Fang Tian heard it and thought, The Grand Elder?

Then he continued, "Grand Elder, is my Uncle Fucang standing beside you?"

The Grand Elder was immediately confused. "No. Why do you ask?"

"Listen to me. Something has happened on Uncle Fucang's side. He may be in danger. I am on my way there right now."

"That cannot be right. I just spoke with your uncle. He never mentioned encountering any danger."

"So that is how it is. Grand Elder, there may be something wrong with my Uncle Fucang."

"How could that be? Are you spouting nonsense, boy?" the Grand Elder said in astonishment.

"Believe it or not, that is up to you. I'm in a hurry and won't say more. Take care of yourselves."

With that, Fang Tian severed the connection and continued running. He knew these people might still have doubts, but he had no time to explain. He could only say what needed saying and let them work it out for themselves.

The Grand Elder looked at the communication artifact in his hand, then at Lord Huo Chen, who was also somewhat stunned. "Island Lord Huo Chen, this..."

"I know what you want to say. One of those two is lying," Lord Huo Chen said firmly.

"Then who does the Island Lord think it is?"

"I am not sure either. But from the current situation, something has suddenly changed. Let us move together first. Once we find those pirates, the truth will naturally become clear."

"As the Island Lord says." The Grand Elder nodded slightly, agreeing with Lord Huo Chen.

"Continue forward."

Just as Lord Huo Chen was about to lead the others deeper into the island, many people suddenly emerged from the surroundings and surrounded them tightly. As with Fucang's side earlier, each of them had a fierce look in their eyes and stared silently at Lord Huo Chen and the Grand Elder.

Seeing that something was wrong, Lord Huo Chen and the Grand Elder signaled everyone behind them to draw their weapons and prepare for battle. Judging from the way they were surrounded, it was as though the pirates had already decided their fate.

After a short while, one man walked out to meet them. He carried a broadsword on his shoulder, wore an eyepatch over one eye, and had a bamboo skewer clenched in his mouth. He looked at them with swaggering arrogance.

The Grand Elder studied the approaching man carefully. After a moment, he suddenly cried out, "You are!"

The man removed the bamboo skewer from his mouth and said with a smile that was not quite a smile, "It has been many years, Grand Elder."

"Weren't you buried at sea? How are you here?" The Grand Elder was deeply shocked.

"I did not die. Does that disappoint you?" the man said with a cold laugh.

The Grand Elder said nothing. Seeing the man before him, he could not help feeling startled.

Then the man glanced past the Grand Elder toward the people behind him and smiled. "Well now, if it isn't my two dear nephews. Come here and let me have a proper look. It has been ten years, and you have both grown so much."

Upon hearing this, the Second Prince and the Third Prince instinctively stepped back. Clearly, they knew exactly who this man was.

Lord Huo Chen, who was still somewhat bewildered, could not help asking as he watched them exchange words, as if they knew one another, "Grand Elder, who is this man? Why do you all seem to know him?"

The Grand Elder let out a soft sigh and said with some helplessness, "This is the second imperial uncle of our Zhao royal house, Zhao Guangji."

Lord Huo Chen's eyes widened at once. "You mean this man is the sworn brother of Zhao Guangran, Zhao Guangji?"

"Yes."