Chapter Ninety-Two: The Man in the Black Robe

Sleepless through the night, Qin Yu sat there, lost in thought until dawn. As for what conclusions she reached, only she herself knew. Zhao Mo kicked awake the men who had been knocked unconscious by Nangong Yao last night. Then, crouching down, he patted Fan Fan’s face and said, “Now, I’ll ask and you answer. If we’re satisfied, we’ll let you go. How does that sound?”

Fan Fan nodded, his gaze complicated, his eyes flickering toward Qin Yu. Zhao Mo poked him and said, “Don’t think I haven’t noticed you sneaking glances at Xiao Yu! Be honest! First question, why are you here?”

Fan Fan replied bitterly, “We heard you were nearby, so we came looking for you. To be precise, we were looking for Qin Yu.”

“What are you looking for Xiao Yu for? Speak up!” Zhao Mo demanded fiercely.

Fan Fan continued, “To kill her.”

He grunted in pain, clutching his stomach where Zhao Mo had struck him, beads of cold sweat breaking out. “That’s what Tian Jian said. Ever since you left the base, he seemed like a changed man—robbing and looting everywhere, constantly searching for news about you, always threatening to kill Qin Yu!”

Qin Yu walked over, gazing at Fan Fan. “Go on.”

Fan Fan, still holding his stomach, said, “Originally, Tian Jian intended to recruit you. But that day, after returning, he went alone into Qian Ying’s room. When he came out, he was dark and gloomy. Then, Qian Ying’s body disappeared, and Tian Jian began acting irrationally, ruining the reputation of the Falcon Squad in just a week. After that, he kept ordering to have you killed. Eventually, he couldn’t hold back and brought us out to find you.”

Qin Yu listened, her thoughts beginning to coalesce. She asked, “During that time, was there anything strange?”

“Something strange?” Fan Fan thought for a moment. “There were a few odd things. One, he took women from the base for unknown reasons, and the next day they were all dead. The second is—”

“What is it?” Zhao Mo pressed, kicking him impatiently.

Suddenly, Fan Fan’s eyes widened in terror. He clutched his throat, his voice strangled as he tried to say, “Black Robe—” but before he could finish, his breath ceased.

The others, sensing something amiss, touched their own necks in fear. But then their eyes also widened, black blood flowing from their mouths, followed by their noses, ears, and eyes.

In an instant, life left them.

Xia Cheng stepped forward to check their breath, shook his head at Qin Yu and the others, then gently closed their eyes.

Nangong Yao, witnessing this, spoke gravely, “It seems all the anomalies are tied to the second matter.”

Qin Yu nodded in agreement.

“Was he about to mention the Black Robed Man?” Tao suddenly interjected.

Qin Yu’s eyes lit up. “You know something?”

Tao nodded. “I once saw a black-robed man at the base. He said I was a promising candidate for cultivation. But I didn’t believe in such things and refused him. He came after me several times, even nearly tried to force me to become his disciple, but then he disappeared for reasons unknown. I never gave it much thought. Hearing this now, I suspect the two might be connected.”

Qin Yu asked, “Did he say anything strange to you?”

Tao pondered, then replied, “He mentioned that following him would bring great prospects, and said that one day this world would belong to him.”

“Belong to him?” Qin Yu’s eyes flashed. “Could he know something?”

Tao shook her head. “I don’t know. My mind wasn’t on such things at the time, so I hardly paid attention to what he said.”

Nangong Yao looked at the two conversing, then at the corpses of Fan Fan and the others, and spoke slowly, “Could these cosmic anomalies be related to the Demon Cultivator? But the zombies I’ve seen aren’t the work of demonic arts. Still, perhaps there’s a connection.”

Qin Yu turned to Nangong Yao. “What do you mean by Demon Cultivator?”

“It’s just what it sounds like,” Nangong Yao replied, puzzled that Qin Yu seemed unfamiliar with the term. “Xiao Yao, you must remember we’re in a new era now—the Demon Cultivators you speak of exist only in myth. How would we know about them?” Zhao Mo chimed in.

Nangong Yao’s expression cleared as understanding dawned. “A Demon Cultivator is someone who follows a path of demonic cultivation. People possess emotions and desires; when these swell to a certain extreme, one can fall into demonic ways, and thus begin cultivating demonic arts. Demon Cultivators have always been shunned by orthodox practitioners, but I once met a Demon Cultivator who was quite a decent person.”

Qin Yu nodded. “Tell us more of what you know.”

Nangong Yao glanced around and continued, “From Tao’s description and my own observations, that black-robed man was likely a Demon Cultivator. To what extent, I’m not sure. If Demon Cultivators still exist, there must also be other cultivators. Perhaps we can find the black-robed man and learn something from him.”

“But how would we find him?” Zhao Mo asked.

Nangong Yao turned his gaze to Tao, who was still holding Qin Yu’s hand. Zhao Mo and the others followed his gaze, then looked back at Nangong Yao.

He looked at Zhao Mo, who was full of questions, and said helplessly, “You really are slow! Since the black-robed man wanted Tao to be his disciple, Tao must possess something that attracted him. If Tao agrees now to become his disciple, do you think the black-robed man would show up?”

Zhao Mo’s face lit up with understanding, and she retorted, “Xiao Yao, who are you calling slow, huh?”

“Obviously you!” Nangong Yao replied.

“Alright, you two clowns, stop bickering. We have more important matters to attend to,” Qin Yu said fondly.

Both Zhao Mo and Nangong Yao snorted and turned away.

Qin Yu watched them, unconcerned. Based on past experience, they’d reconcile soon enough, so she wouldn’t waste her energy worrying.

“Tao, can you recall anything else about the black-robed man?” Qin Yu asked, looking at Tao, who still held her hand.

Tao was silent for a long while, then shook her head.

Qin Yu felt a twinge of disappointment, but quickly pulled herself together. She had a feeling the black-robed man would appear before them again, and soon—very soon.

She looked at the corpses and asked, “What do you plan to do with these bodies?”

Zhao Mo, a touch of sympathy in her voice, said, “Bury them.”

The others nodded in agreement. Nangong Yao used his sword to dig a large pit, and they buried the bodies. As for whether anything beneath the earth might come to devour them, that was not their concern—they had already done all that duty required.

Once finished, the group set out once more. What trials and encounters would await them in the days to come?