The Scum Is A

They all froze, stunned, before they suddenly exploded. "What the f*ck?!" they exclaimed. "They are two different groups?! They aren't related?!" they said. "Just how many enemies do we have?!" they asked. 

Zuo Zhe closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He also doesn't know. All his knowledge as the author of this story is already useless. The plot has completely gone haywire. He is the same as the characters now. "I don't know…" he answered, his voice sound helpless. 

They fell silent. That's right. What does Zuo Zhe know? He is as clueless as them. 

"Yu Sheng." Zuo Zhe called. 

"En." Yu Sheng answered. He called Li Tian and Feng Mo and, together, walked towards them. 

"What's going on?" they asked Yu Sheng. 

"Remember the ones we captured before?" Yu Sheng asked. 

They all looked at each other before they suddenly exclaimed. 

"That's right!" Jing Hei said. "Lei-shijie and I tied them up, then interrogated them. But, we didn't learned anything from them." He said. 

Lei Qing nodded. 

"Why?" Qian Lin asked. 

"They are mute." Jing Hei answered. 

Everyone fell silent. "'mute'…" they muttered, their expression thoughtful. 

"That's right." Qian Lin spoke when he remembered something. "We only hear the sound of their footsteps and sword clanging. We also heard them hiss. But, their voice sounds hoarse." He said. 

"And their braided hair and hair ornaments." Lei Ling spoke. "And curved sword." He added. 

Lei Qing nodded. "They are really different compared to the demonic cultivators we have dealt with before." She said. 

"So, they are really a different group?" Zheng Yi asked. 

Yu Sheng nodded. "I guess." He said as he lowered his gaze. 

Everyone sighed, while Zuo Zhe stared at Yu Sheng. Yu Sheng can fool anyone but him. He knows Yu Sheng knows something. 

"What is their motive?" Feng Mo asked. 

"Where did they come from?" Li Tian added. 

"I don't know." Yu Sheng answered. 

Their shoulders slumped. 

"Say…" Feng Mo suddenly spoke. "Do you think there's someone familiar? 'mute'." He said. 

"… oh." They muttered when they really remembered someone. 

How ironic for the person who was always forgotten to be suddenly remembered, at a time like this, and in a situation like this. 

"But… we don't know if he really is… I mean, we haven't seen his hair…" Qian Lin said, but his voice is weak. 

They all fell silent. 

"We haven't seen his hair since he's always wearing a hat. If not hat, then he has the hood of his cloak covering his head." Jing Bai said. "And face." He added. 

There's only one person that comes to their mind when the word 'mute' was spoken. 

"… do you really think he is…?" Lei Ling asked as he bit his lower lip. 

"Wu Xi." Li Tian uttered the name that was on their mind. 

West Region, Xifeng County. 

"There. That's Xifeng!" Sun Yi said as he pointed the giant boulder with a hole. 

"Let's land." Tang Zhe said. 

"Yes!" Tang Yun, Guo Cheng and Shan Lu answered. 

Wu Xi silently followed behind them. But, just as he was about to step on the land, a strong gust of wind blew and blew away his hat. The hood of his cloak slipped off of his head. 

Sun Yi, Tang Zhe, Tang Yun, Guo Cheng and Shan Lu heard a thud behind them and they turned, only to see Wu Xi's hat flying towards them. They immediately caught it and looked at Wu Xi, only to see his tanned skin, deep eyes, long eyelashes and braided hair with beads on their tips. His lower face was covered by a mask. 

"Woah…" they muttered. "Wu Xi, are you…?" they asked as they stared at him. 

Southmost Region, Nanli Town. 

"I want to trust him." Li Tian said. 

"Me, too." Feng Mo said. 

"Me, too." Lei Ling spoke. 

"And me." Lei Qing said. If You Rou was here, then she would also speak for Wu Xi. 

"But…" they looked at each other. 

"Are you suspecting Wu Xi?" Jing Cheng, who has been burying himself on the side of Jing Rui's bed, spoke. 

"Da ge!" Jing Bai and Jing Hei called while Jing Kang nodded at him. 

Jing Cheng nodded back. "I have seen Wu Xi before." He said. 

"We did, too." Li Tian said. 

"… that's not what I mean." Jing Cheng said and grimaced. "I mean, before the Intersect Competition… I've met him." He said. "I bumped into him while I was looking for Jing Bai." He explained. 

"Oh." 

"What happened, then?" they asked. 

"I… I bumped into him, and his hat fell off." Jing Cheng said. "I saw… his braided hair with colorful beads on their tips." He told them. 

A deafening silence fell as they looked at Jing Cheng, stunned. "… WHAT?!?!" they exclaimed. 

"No, no, no… this can't be. This can't be!" Lei Ling spoke. His eyes are filled with panic. 

Li Tian's and Feng Mo's expressions changed, while Lei Qing frowned. "Are you sure?" she asked Jing Cheng. 

Jing Cheng nodded. "I clearly saw it. But then, I was in a rush because uncle is calling for us, so I have forgotten that event." He said. 

They all looked at each other, their gazes talking. 

"I don't think he is an enemy." Yu Sheng spoke. 

They all turned to him. "Really?" they asked. Their eyes brightened and filled with hope. 

"How can you be sure?" Qian Lin asked. 

"Because Cheng Sheng was never wrong on his judge of people." Yu Sheng answered. 

Silence. 

"If Wu Xi is an enemy, Cheng Sheng would never befriend him. He wouldn't even create a Thought Talisman just for him." Yu Sheng explained. 

"We know…" they said, their voice low. They hung their heads, not meeting Yu Sheng's gaze since they don't want him to see the doubt in their eyes. 

Yu Sheng didn't speak. He knows he shouldn't persuade them. He just walked towards Zuo Zhe and stood beside him while he leaned on the railing. He crossed his arms. 

"A mute army…" Zuo Zhe said. "And a curved sword… ah." He muttered. 

Yu Sheng was lost in his thoughts when he suddenly heard what Zuo Zhe said. "… 'curved sword'…?" he muttered. 

Everyone who was contemplating also heard what Zuo Zhe said. "'curved sword'…" they muttered, their eyes widened in realization. "That's right!" they exclaimed. "Curved sword!" they said. 

"Wu Xi isn't using a curved sword." Feng Mo immediately said. The expression on his face turned better. 

Li Tian smiled. "That's right. Wu Xi is a righteous cultivator, not demonic cultivator." He said. "You've all seen it, too, back in the Feng Hua Palace." He told them. 

"That's right…!" they said, nodding. The sullen atmosphere suddenly turned better. 

"So, Wu Xi might be from the tribe of these demonic cultivators, but he isn't a demonic cultivator?" Qian Lin said. 

"Definitely!" Lei Ling spoke. "Or else, Cheng-shixiong would have already found out if there is a demonic qi surrounding Wu Xi, or that a demonic poison in his possession!" he said. "Didn't he find out Jie Mei?" he asked. 

"That's right! Jie Mei was carrying a demonic poison, and Cheng Sheng found her out." Jing Bai said. "So… Wu Xi is a righteous cultivator." He smiled. 

They nodded. "Yes. He is one of us!" they said and looked at each other, smiling. 

"Right. What we shall do now?" Lei Ling asked. "The demonic cultivators in the Nanli Town are now dead. There are only the ones behind us now to deal with." He said. "Also – " the smile on his face disappeared. " – who killed the demonic cultivators in the Nanli Town?" he asked. 

The moment they heard his question, they all fell silent. The smile on their faces disappeared. That's right. Although the demonic cultivators in the Nanli Town are dead, but they don't know who killed them. There are also the other group of demonic cultivators who are chasing them. Could they be the ones who killed the first group of demonic cultivators? If they did, why? What is their objective? If they are hostile against each other, then why are they chasing them – the righteous cultivators? They never met this new group of demonic cultivators. 

Just when they thought that one problem of theirs was solved, another one appears. Sigh, just when will all of these ends? 

West Region, Xifeng County. 

"Guo Cheng, this beggar's chicken is very delicious!" Sun Yi said as he and the Huakai Sect disciples eat their dinner. 

Tang Zhe and Tang Yun nodded, agreeing. Meanwhile, Shan Lu continued to gnaw on the chicken leg. 

Guo Cheng smiled. "Thank you." He told Sun Yi before he turned to glare at Shan Lu. "Pig." He said. 

They all laughed. "The fish soup is also good!" Sun Yi added and raised his bowl to Tang Yun who cooked the soup. 

Tang Yun's face lit up. "Thank you, senior!" he said. 

"Huh?" Sun Yi muttered when he was about to sip the soup. "Where's Wu Xi?" he asked as he looked around. But, he didn't see Wu Xi. 

Tang Zhe, Tang Yun and Guo Cheng. "…" we forgot Wu Xi again…