Chapter 367 - News of the Tang Clan and Promises of Tea

Chapter 367: Chapter 367 - News of the Tang Clan and Promises of Tea

Qiao Wen set his cup down.

"We have not heard from Sister Tang directly," he said. "What we know came from our elders."

Su Bai watched him closely. The pause had been long enough to make him uneasy, but Qiao Wen’s expression held uncertainty rather than grief. Beside him, Mu Qing seemed to be considering how much of what they had heard could safely be repeated as fact.

"The Tang Clan has been unusually active these past months," she said. "Our elders mentioned it because they knew we had traveled with her."

"Active in what way?"

"Taking assignments," Qiao Wen replied. "More than before, apparently. Sister Tang is said to have participated in some of them."

Su Bai remained silent while they explained.

The reports concerned people who had died without their killers being identified.

Demonic spies had disappeared from positions through which they influenced a mortal kingdom. Others had been exposed while secretly passing information between factions. Even several officials serving under righteous powers had met sudden ends after their dealings became known.

The accounts varied in how much could be confirmed.

"People believe the Tang Clan accepted those jobs," Zhao Heng said. "But no one seems able to prove who carried them out."

Mu Qing nodded.

"Their methods make that difficult. Our elders know more than we do, but they did not tell us everything."

Su Bai understood.

The Tang Clan’s reputation for assassination had never depended on people catching its members in the act. If those assignments belonged to them, the lack of witnesses would hardly be surprising.

What interested him more was Tang Ziyan’s involvement.

She had possessed the temperament to act decisively. He could easily imagine her accepting a dangerous task once she decided it needed doing.

Still, hearing about her through reports of assassinations left him wondering what had happened while they were apart.

"The clan has also begun receiving outsiders again," Qiao Wen added. "Its doors were closed for months. We do not know why that changed."

Su Bai looked down at his cup.

He should have asked Lu Canghai about the Tang Clan before leaving. His master might have known which accounts were reliable and whether anything important had happened to Ziyan. Instead, he had been occupied with his own unfinished matters and preparations for the journey.

From what the three had heard, she was alive and active. That eased his immediate concern, even if it left him with more questions.

"I will have to visit when I can," he said.

At that moment, a faint sound came from his stomach.

Su Bai closed his eyes briefly.

The Tang Clan had poisons, dangerous inheritances, and a young woman whose constitution had already given him considerable reason to remember her.

Apparently, his body had formed an opinion about the proposed visit before he had finished considering it.

When he opened his eyes, Qiao Wen was politely looking into his tea.

Mu Qing’s cheeks had acquired a little color.

Su Bai decided the matter required no explanation and reached for his cup.

Their conversation gradually returned to the others who had left Fallen-Star Sanctuary.

Several sworn kin had been asking about him since news of his return spread. Some had feared the worst during his prolonged absence, while others had begun preparing questions the moment they learned he was alive.

"Quite a few want to hear what you found deeper inside," Qiao Wen said. "They have been arguing about it whenever they meet."

"Arguing?"

"About what could have kept you there."

Zhao Heng gave a small laugh.

"And what you brought back."

Su Bai looked between them. All three had become noticeably more attentive.

He smiled.

"You will see something interesting when you visit Radiant Sky Sect."

Mu Qing narrowed her eyes slightly.

"At the walls?"

"I think you will enjoy studying them."

The answer left them with very little, which Su Bai appeared to find satisfactory. He took another drink while they exchanged looks across the table.

They had seen the comprehension walls inside Fallen-Star Sanctuary. Their elders had since spoken about the value of receiving access to what Radiant Sky Sect now possessed.

Su Bai found himself increasingly interested in the moment those two experiences became connected.

Qiao Wen leaned back in his chair.

"Brother Su, you are making it difficult to wait."

"Then arrive with enough time to concentrate."

That only deepened their suspicion.

The returned forbidden land had already attracted more rumors than any of them could keep track of. People who expected to find ancient treasures had discovered far less than they hoped.

Su Bai’s return, followed by the changes at Radiant Sky Sect, had encouraged a particularly persistent explanation.

He might have carried an astonishing portion of the Sanctuary’s treasures away.

The difficulty was imagining how.

Even collecting a small part of what they had seen would require storage far beyond anything the three ordinarily used. Taking everything people claimed had vanished sounded absurd.

Nevertheless, Su Bai sat before them looking entirely comfortable while refusing to explain what they would find at his sect.

Mu Qing finally smiled and let the question rest.

"Brother Su, we also brought something for you."

Several packages appeared on the table. Qiao Wen moved his cup aside to make room while Zhao Heng added another stack beside them.

Each was sealed carefully enough to preserve the leaves within.

Su Bai looked at the growing collection.

"More tea leaves?"

"We heard how much you were buying," Qiao Wen said. "These came from our market."

Su Bai reached toward his storage, but Mu Qing shook her head before he could take out any stones.

"They are gifts, Brother Su."

"You still have a market to operate."

"And enough stock to spare some tea," Zhao Heng replied.

The three looked sufficiently determined that Su Bai abandoned the attempt to pay.

He examined the labels instead, and his appreciation became increasingly apparent as he recognized varieties he had considered buying earlier.

Qiao Wen noticed.

"If you can wait until we visit your sect, I can ask our elders about bringing some of the tea leaves we keep for ourselves."

Su Bai looked up immediately.

"Your pavilion has its own?"

Qiao Wen nodded.

"It is not normally sold. I would need to ask first, but I think they would agree."

Mu Qing and Zhao Heng offered to make similar inquiries. Neither promised what they could not decide, but both seemed confident that their elders would be willing to prepare something suitable.

Su Bai’s interest was difficult to hide.

The tea he had already purchased gave him plenty to examine. Leaves valued enough to remain within a faction’s own stores might offer something different again.

Their ordinary benefits would still work against him, but the teacup had given him a way to enjoy a drink whose combined effects suited his constitution.

He stored the gifts with considerably more care than their modest appearance required.

"Thank you. When I return, I will ask the Sect Master whether there is room to give you some additional time at the walls."

Qiao Wen straightened.

"Really?"

"I can ask," Su Bai said. "The arrangements will still be his decision."

That qualification did little to diminish their pleasure. Even the possibility of more time studying a valuable inheritance was enough to make the three look as though their elders’ tea had already been well spent.

Su Bai smiled at their expressions.

The conversation continued until the room’s light began to change. The market outside had grown louder for a while, then quieter as the day’s busiest trade passed.

By the time an attendant came to ask whether they required anything else, lamps were being lit along the street below.

Qiao Wen glanced toward the window and stood reluctantly.

"We should return. There are still things waiting at the market."

Mu Qing looked equally reluctant, but she began gathering her belongings. Zhao Heng finished his tea and rose beside them.

Su Bai stood as well.

"I need to return to the sect and speak to my master too."

They left the room together after he put away his cup and replaced his mask.

Outside the tea house, the evening air carried the lingering warmth of the day. Merchants were securing their displays, while other establishments had only just begun preparing for their nighttime customers.

The three promised to visit him when their factions’ arrangements allowed it.

Su Bai watched them leave before turning toward the city gate.

He had intended to come east for information. The day had given him that, along with several people he had not expected to find.

Above the rooftops, the moon had already risen.

He considered it for a moment, then slowed his steps.

There was one more thing worth doing before he left.