Chapter 98: Gu Xiangnan Is Already Dead

He frowned slightly, a flicker of astonishment rising in his heart.

Zi Xiaoyin sprang to her feet.

She said urgently, “Yes, please come in.”

The young man had fair skin and a pair of narrow, elegant eyes. His features were refined and handsome, giving him a gentle, scholarly air.

He bowed politely, then took a seat under Zi Xiaoyin’s guidance.

For some reason, when Zi Xiaoyin saw him, all she felt was a strange sense of unfamiliarity.

Zi Xiaoyin said, “Let’s introduce ourselves first.”

“My name is Zi Xiaoyin. This is my classmate, Huang Ying, and this is my teacher, Gu Xiangnan.”

The young man nodded in greeting and bowed again.

“My name is Ashiya Yomei.”

Gu Xiangnan’s brows knitted even more tightly.

As expected.

A man from Fuso.

How could Zi Xiaoyin’s brother be a Fuso man?

Ashiya Yomei went on, “I remember that fifteen years ago, I was separated from my younger sister. I went to Fuso with my adoptive parents.”

“Do you remember that day you were adopted? You cried terribly, holding my hand and calling, ‘Brother, brother,’ over and over.”

Zi Xiaoyin had only been three back then, and much of it had already faded from memory.

But seeing the deep feeling in Ashiya Yomei as he spoke of the past, she began to believe him a little.

Gu Xiangnan studied Ashiya Yomei carefully, then suddenly asked, “Do you remember our parents?”

Ashiya Yomei was taken aback by the question.

But he quickly composed himself and shook his head. “It was too long ago. I can’t remember what they looked like anymore.”

Then he offered a suggestion. “With technology so advanced now, Miss Zi, we could have a DNA test done to confirm our relationship.”

Hearing this, Zi Xiaoyin felt a little relieved.

If he were a fraud trying to pass himself off as someone else, why would he主动 suggest a DNA test?

So the two of them began discussing the details of when to have it done.

At that moment, Ashiya Yomei seemed to remember something all of a sudden.

He asked, “Miss Zi, is that snuff bottle still around? Could you let me see it? I remember I once wrote something inside it when I was little, and I’d like to confirm it again.”

Zi Xiaoyin fished the snuff bottle out of her pocket and handed it to him.

Gu Xiangnan thought to himself that he had no idea whether Tao Yao was inside it, or whether she would be discovered.

He watched every move Ashiya Yomei made, tense and alert.

Ashiya Yomei picked up the snuff bottle, glanced at it with his eyes, and muttered, “It’s a bit dark.”

Then he walked to the window and held it up to the sunlight for a closer look.

The next second, he actually leapt straight out of the window.

“Ah!”

Zi Xiaoyin screamed in alarm.

“Damn it, we’ve been tricked!” Gu Xiangnan roared.

He was about to follow him through the window.

But Huang Ying clung tightly to his waist.

“Professor Gu, you absolutely mustn’t act on impulse! It’s too dangerous! We should call the police!”

Gu Xiangnan shoved her away at once.

Then he jumped out the window as well.

Tao Yao was still inside the snuff bottle, and he absolutely could not let the Fuso man take her away.

By the time Huang Ying had delayed him, Ashiya Yomei was already nowhere to be seen.

This was a bustling commercial street, and since it was the weekend, there were especially many people out shopping.

A pedestrian overpass stood ahead.

Gu Xiangnan rushed up in a few strides. Standing in the middle of the bridge, he looked down from above.

He could see the people on every road in every direction.

At last, he found him.

Ashiya Yomei was walking along West Street. Seeing no one pursuing him, he was lazily turning into a narrow alley.

Gu Xiangnan circled around to the alley’s other exit and blocked his way.

“Hand over the snuff bottle, or die.”

A wicked gleam flashed in Ashiya Yomei’s eyes. He lifted his brow and said, “If you have the skill, come and take it.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he formed a seal with his hands and drew a circle in the air before him.

Gu Xiangnan charged toward him, and the circle in the air suddenly turned into a black hole. A fierce suction force swallowed Gu Xiangnan whole.

Ashiya Yomei laughed contemptuously. “So that’s all!”

The black space was like a tightly sealed little room.

There was not the slightest gap, nor any exit.

What was terrifying was that the space kept shrinking, crushing inward.

By the time it had completely sealed shut, Gu Xiangnan still had not come out.

Ashiya Yomei triumphantly took out the snuff bottle and said, “Fox spirit, you saw that, didn’t you? Your new master has already perished.”

From within the snuff bottle came a chorus of mournful cries.

As Ashiya Yomei walked, he dialed a number.

“Is this Dazuka Shunsuke? This is Ashiya Yomei.”

On the other end, Dazuka Shunsuke asked, “I’m Dazuka Shunsuke. Ashiya, how did it go? Have you gotten the snuff bottle back yet?”

Ashiya Yomei said smugly, “I’ve gotten it back, and I’ve already killed Gu Xiangnan.”

“What?”

Dazuka Shunsuke was stunned.

Their Fuso Chinese medicine association had sent assassins after Gu Xiangnan many times, and none had succeeded.

He had heard that over in the American nation, the Dibon family had even hired mercenaries.

All of them had failed.

Who would have thought Ashiya Yomei would settle the matter so effortlessly?

He immediately grew solemn and bowed over the phone.

“Then I thank you, Ashiya. Once you are done with your matters, you must come find me. I will express my gratitude properly.”

“Very well. Wait for my good news.”

The Fuso Chinese medicine association was immensely wealthy.

If they meant to show their gratitude, it would surely be a massive reward.

Thinking of this, Ashiya Yomei felt exceptionally pleased.

He whistled as he slowly walked back to the hotel where he was staying.

The bellboy and the receptionist both greeted him first.

In their eyes, Ashiya Yomei was a polite Fuso tourist.

Ashiya Yomei walked slowly back to his room. Hanging from the doorknob was a sign that read “Do Not Disturb.”

The staff were not allowed in to clean.

He opened the door.

Inside was another world entirely.

The curtains were drawn, and the room was as dark as night. Every visible surface was covered with talismans.

Ashiya Yomei placed the snuff bottle on the coffee table and formed a seal with his hands.

Light suddenly flared across the bottle, and an invisible cord was unbound.

Tao Yao crawled out and knelt on the floor.

“What did you do to Gu Xiangnan?” Tao Yao cried, tears streaming down her face.

Ashiya Yomei sat on the sofa and said with a cold sneer, “He’s already been taken care of by me.”

“What? No!”

Tao Yao wept bitterly.

Ashiya Yomei picked up his phone and made another call.

The line connected.

“Is this the Kuzu family? I’ve found the fox spirit your family lost. When should I send it back?”

A frosty voice came from the other end.

“No need to send it back. That shikigami has been missing for more than ten years. We already have a new one. Execute it directly. After you are done, remember to come back for your reward.”

“Understood.”

After hanging up, Ashiya Yomei grinned viciously at Tao Yao.

“Wonderful. A shikigami of the Kuzu family—how rare. I’ll make full use of you and torment you properly. Just enjoy your death to the fullest. Ha ha ha!”

He laughed like a madman until tears ran from his eyes.

He took out a handkerchief to wipe them away, and on it was clearly embroidered a chrysanthemum emblem.

Tao Yao’s heart lurched.

She recognized that design.

The geomantic arts of Fuso originated in the Taoist traditions of Hua country.

During the Sui and Tang eras, after they were transmitted to Fuso, the people there added new theories of their own and put them into practice.

But in the end, all roads still led back to the same source.

Later, the field split into two factions.

One was the orthodox Onmyoji, an official post.

Put simply, Onmyoji were civil servants of the state.

During the Sui and Tang dynasties, the excellent classics of Hua country, such as the I Ching and works on geomancy, were brought to Fuso.

Yet they were twisted by Fuso into wicked sorceries.

This gave rise to another faction: the Nine Chrysanthemum school, also known as the Nine Chrysanthemum line.

Its emblem was a chrysanthemum flower.

Within the Nine Chrysanthemum line, there were two branches. One specialized in the Nine Palaces and Eight Gates methods; the other specialized in geomancy and the stars.

This faction was the most vicious of all.

By using evil arts, they could move objects through the air.

At the highest level, they could even make corpses move.

Ashiya Yomei must be an Onmyoji from the Nine Chrysanthemum school.

If she fell into their hands, she would certainly meet a miserable end.