Otherworldly Merchant

Chapter 528: The Women Who Committed Suicide for Their Love

Right at this moment, a murderous aura came from behind me. I shuddered. It seemed he was here.  

I placed my hand at my hip and pretended to scratch the skin there. Then, as fast as a lightning strike, I drew the Sirius Whip and lashed backward! 

The man was standing behind me. When I turned around, I saw his red eyes gazing at me. The man carried a massive, bone-chopping machete, which he used to furiously hack at me. 

Luckily, I reacted in time. Otherwise, his knife would have killed me at that instant. Before his knife reached me, I swiftly rolled aside and lashed his wrist with the Sirius Whip. 

The blow connected, and the pain forced him to drop the machete. I finally had a chance to look at his face. He was wearing a traditional costume of the Dai people. His skin tone was dark. The most eye-catching feature on his face was a big mole at the corner of his mouth. 

People with skills knew their limits best. After receiving my lash, he became vigilant. I took a deep breath and asked coldly, Why do you want to harm Mr. Lu? 

He asked for it! Mr. Big Mole answered fiercely. 

He had just confirmed that he was the one that had sold the purple clay teapot to Lu Ming. 

I was curious. How could he get the purple clay pot in the first place? I was even more curious about the women who had killed themselves in the stilt houses. What was the relationship between them and Lu Yu? 

Unexpectedly, when the man heard my question, he flew into a frenzy. He stormed forward and hacked his machete at me as if he didnt care about his life anymore. 

I passively defended. However, after a few strikes, he became much slower. He didnt have good martial techniques. I became bolder and attacked him. Soon, I was able to force him backward. 

If you have the guts, come after me! 

When he realized that he wasnt my equal opponent, he sneered then ran toward the depths of the tunnel. After two incidents, I knew that Mr. Big Mole was good at setting up illusion formations. It was like the insect technique of the Miao people. 

I understood that if I chased after him, I would face death. However, my hot-tempered head didnt consider that much. I ran after him. 

The depths of the tunnel were like a labyrinth. There were many turns. I could only listen to Mr. Big Moles footsteps to vaguely locate him. 

He was old, so he was much slower than me. The distance between us quickly shortened. I was about to catch him when suddenly, he disappeared into a junction. Moreover, it was a dead-end! 

Not good! I wanted to return, but I recognized that the path had changed. 

I looked at the labyrinth-like surroundings and felt worried. I thought that I could touch my way out of here. However, after a long time, I couldnt find the exit. I found myself back at the starting point. 

Then, I heard Mr. Big Mole's crazy laughter. The laugh came at me from every direction. Kid, this is our Dai peoples special illusional maze formation. You cant escape no matter how hard you try. The only thing you can do is wait for your death here! Hahaha 

His perverted laughter lingered in my ears. Sometimes, I thought he was right in front of me. Other times, he felt so far away. I couldnt locate him by sound. 

Gradually, his voice faded and disappeared. I knew he had left already. I didnt want that, so I continued to move. Still, I couldnt leave my spot. I had even tried the method I had used to deal with road-blocking ghosts, but it didnt work. 

I didnt know what to do. Then, a silver light flashed in front of me. The old man wearing a shroud appeared. 

Although he was still mad, he looked strangely nice in my eyes. He shot me a furious glance and turned around. He walked to an intersection. I followed behind him. 

We had walked like that for around ten minutes when I was finally able to escape the labyrinth. The old man looked at his picture in The Classic of Tea. He furrowed his brows as if he was in pain. In the next second, he disappeared. 

From his recent expression, I concluded that Lu Yu had a relationship with those women that lived in the stilt houses. He would never tell me what happened. If I wanted to know, I would have to learn from Mr. Big Mole!

After I crawled out of the tunnel, I saw that the sky was bright. The Yin energy that had covered the entire village was gone. However, it was still cold outside. I didnt linger and rushed back to the hotel. 

When I returned to the room, Lu Ming was idly watching the ceiling. His hand supported his chin. When he saw me, he looked surprised.

How did you get back? He sat on his bed. 

Why did you think that I wouldn't come back? 

I saw the worry in his eyes. However, since there was something wrong about this, I deliberately made a face. 

He shook his head. Master Zhang, Im sorry. 

All right, all right. Tell me everything from start to finish. 

If he wanted to tell me the truth, I shouldnt be mad at him. I sighed and signaled at him to talk. 

I know that old ghost. It was Lu Yu, the Tea Sage. He was also my familys ancestor. 

Since I had guessed it earlier, I wasnt surprised. I nodded and asked, Why didn't you tell me this right from the start? 

How could I tell someone about this? I dont want to be deemed a bad descendant who has no regard for his ancestor. Lu Ming licked his lips. That village was my ancestors obsession while he was alive. I got the purple clay teapot from there. If I cant keep it anymore, I would like to return it to that place. However, I didnt expect that the teapot would turn to harm me 

It seemed he didnt know the relationship between Lu Yu and that village. Do you know a man with a big mole? Did he sell the teapot to you? 

How did you know that? Lu Ming was surprised. 

I told him about the encounter I had last night. His face paled shortly. He shivered hard. Soon, sweat beaded his forehead. I hurried to press on his medial cleft. Lu Ming seemed to recall something very frightening. 

He got a hold of himself. After a while, he opened his mouth. It seems The legend of the thirty-six women who killed themselves to keep their dignity is true. Then, he grabbed my hand. Did you count those houses? Are there thirty-six in total? 

I dont remember the number, but I guess its approximately thirty-six. What are the thirty-six women who killed themselves for their dignity? 

Lu Mings eyes reddened. He wept and told me a story that was recorded in his familys genealogy. 

Lu Yu lived in the Tang Dynasty. For his whole life, he had always been interested in tea. Since he had a surprisingly broad knowledge of tea, he became friends with many high-rank courtiers. 

To dig deeper into the world of tea, Lu Yu got on his skinny horse and traveled thousands of miles to the Nanzhao Kingdom, where tea was abundant. 

At that time, the Nanzhao Kingdom was a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty. The people there welcomed Lu Yu warmly. Moreover, with his vast knowledge and aloof, immortal-like appearance, many girls secretly loved him. 

Thirty-six young women loved him the most. They volunteered to go to Lu Yus residence to help him write The Classic of Tea. Lu Yu was touched by their sincere affection. He created a stilt house for each of them. Although he was with them every day to discuss teas and how to make good teas, he was never close to any of them. However, those women thought of him as their husband. 

Unfortunately, the happy days didnt last long. A few years later, the war burst out. The Nanzhao Kingdom took the chance to rebel against the Tang Dynasty. The relationship between the two countries tensed up. Lu Yu was forced to go home. Before he left, he asked the women to dry tea leaves for him. If after three years he didnt come back, it meant he was dead. If that happened, the women should dismiss the tea house and start their lives anew. 

Lu Yu was gone for three years and there was no piece of news about him. The thirty-six women remembered the times they had spent with him. Being brave and loyal women with dignity, they decided to commit suicide to show their loyalty to their husband.

However, Lu Yu wasnt dead yet. He had been jailed for years because he made satirical poems that mocked the imperial court. After a few years, his good friends helped him get out. As soon as he was released, he cried and whipped his strong horse. He seized each second to go to the Nanzhao Kingdom where he found that his thirty-six confidantes had killed themselves for their love. 

Lu Yus heart died at that moment. He then spent all of his mind and efforts to study tea. In the end, he introduced the world to The Classic of Tea. 

Lu Yu didnt spend the last days of his life in the Nanzhao Kingdom. Before leaving, he used his blood mixed with copper to create thirty-six purple clay teapots, which he buried with each of the women.