After Changing to the Ruthless Way, the Brothers Cried and Begged for Forgiveness Chapter 89: The Four Gentlemen—Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, and Chr

Guo Ming En was not wrong. The Four Gentlen—Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, and Chrysanthemum—were as formidable as their reputation suggested. Within just half a month of Yu Zhao leaving seclusion, they tracked her using special thods, relentlessly pursuing her.

Finally, they caught up with her on a desolate mountain ten thousand miles away from Southern Abyss City.

Initially, Yu Zhao mistook the four for re travelers and stepped aside to avoid them. To her surprise, they swiftly ford a square formation, encircling her.

“Miss, you’ve made us search far and wide,” said one of the won. Her delicate and graceful features contrasted sharply with her attire, a man’s robe embroidered with green bamboo. Her deanor exuded the elegance of a scholarly gentleman.

Their intent was clearly hostile.

Yu Zhao remained outwardly calm but grew vigilant internally.

“Bamboo Gentleman, why waste words? Let’s kill her,” another woman interjected. Her attire was similar to Bamboo Gentleman’s but featured black chrysanthemums. Her fierce expression and ruthless gaze made her hostility unmistakable.

“Ah, Chrysanthemum Gentleman, you’re always so impatient,” a striking woman dressed in robes embroidered with red plum blossoms giggled, covering her mouth with an elegant hand. “After chasing this little lady for so long, don’t we deserve so fun before finishing her off?”

The last woman, wearing an orchid motif, said nothing but clearly approved of the sentint.

Yu Zhao studied their distinctive attire and how they addressed one another. Her voice turned solemn. “You must be the Four Gentlen—Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, and Chrysanthemum?”

Having lived an additional lifeti, Yu Zhao’s knowledge far surpassed that of a typical sect disciple venturing into the world for the first ti.

The Four Gentlen were the top assassins of the Dark Pavilion. Despite being won, they dressed as n and adopted the titles of Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, and Chrysanthemum, priding themselves on their supposed gentlemanly deanor.

When Yu Zhao had first heard of them, it was their deaths being reported.

The Four Gentlen accepted any assassination task so long as the price t their standards, regardless of the target. This indiscriminate approach ultimately led to their downfall. Relatives of their past targets sought vengeance, killing them in grueso ways.

For a long while after their demise, no one dared to take up assassination missions issued by the Dark Pavilion.

The realization struck Yu Zhao imdiately—soone had posted a bounty on her in the Dark Pavilion.

Her eyes flickered with cold determination as she considered who might have issued such a bounty.

Bamboo Gentleman, with a flourish, produced a folding fan made of bamboo. With a flick of her wrist, it snapped open as she adopted a pretentious pose. “Indeed, we are the Four Gentlen. I am Bamboo Gentleman.”

The woman in red plum attire smiled faintly. “I am Plum Gentleman.”

“I am Orchid Gentleman,” said the third woman.

Lastly, the one clad in black chrysanthemums scoffed but introduced herself nonetheless. “Chrysanthemum Gentleman.”

Yu Zhao: …

Was a full round of introductions really necessary?

“Miss, do you have any last wishes? I, Bamboo Gentleman, am willing to give you the ti it takes for half a stick of incense to fulfill them. Consider it our gentlemanly courtesy,” Bamboo Gentleman said, waving her fan with exaggerated sophistication.

Yu Zhao found herself reminded of pedantic scholars. She hesitated montarily before reaching into her storage pouch and retrieving her Lotus Incense Burner. “May I light so incense?”

“Poisoned incense!” Chrysanthemum Gentleman snarled, her eyes sharp with suspicion. She drew her flying sword from her waist and unleashed a deadly wave of sword energy at Yu Zhao.

Yu Zhao sighed inwardly and sidestepped the attack.

Enraged by her miss, Chrysanthemum Gentleman barked, “Bamboo Gentleman, Orchid Gentleman, what are you waiting for? Kill her!”

Her impatience stemd not only from her fiery personality but also from unease. When they had accepted the mission, Yu Zhao had only been at the Foundation Establishnt stage, late-phase perfection. Yet in less than six months, she had advanced to the Golden Core stage.

Chrysanthemum Gentleman was deeply unsettled by how rapidly Yu Zhao had progressed in cultivation. Despite her initial bravado, doubt crept into her mind.

Since Chrysanthemum Gentleman had already initiated the attack, the other three wasted no ti joining in.

Bamboo Gentleman’s artifact was her folding fan. She blew a stream of spiritual energy onto it, and the bamboo leaves painted on the fan began writhing like living creatures.

Monts later, countless ink-black bamboo leaves broke free from the fan, gathering in front of Bamboo Gentleman.

“Go!” she commanded, sending the mass of bamboo leaves hurtling toward Yu Zhao like a rain of arrows.

At the sa ti, Orchid Gentleman summoned her artifact: a massive orchid flower. Its crystalline petals shimred with veins of red.

“Lock!” she shouted, and an array of red threads shot out from the orchid, weaving into a net in mid-air that rapidly shrank toward Yu Zhao.

Plum Gentleman, however, didn’t attack. Her expertise lay in tracking, so she stood back with arms crossed, watching the spectacle unfold.

Three Golden Core cultivators attacking simultaneously—surely even a newly advanced Golden Core cultivator wouldn’t stand a chance.

Or so Plum Gentleman thought… until the very next mont proved her wrong.

Yu Zhao remained composed amidst the onslaught, even allowing a mysterious smile to appear on her lips.

Her recent breakthrough to the Golden Core stage ant that her mastery of the Illusory Tides Technique had reached its third level.

Now, she could conjure illusions without relying on incense, shaping them with her bare hands.

A peculiar wave of spiritual energy rippled outward, enveloping the four Gentlen. Before they even realized what was happening, their consciousnesses were drawn into Yu Zhao’s illusion.

The bamboo leaves, sword energy, and red threads froze mid-air. The entire battlefield seed suspended in ti.

“Little Bamboo, you’re a girl. You shouldn’t compete with your brother. Listen to your mother. Stay ho and cultivate under the family elder,” said a stern voice.

Bamboo Gentleman—her mind hazy and disoriented—opened her eyes to see a severe face staring down at her.

“Mother…” she murmured instinctively.

Her mother didn’t respond to her plea and continued pressing her to remain at ho.

Bamboo Gentleman felt reluctant, but her mother’s stern expression left her with no choice but to bow her head in silent resentnt.

Her days at ho, training under the family elder, turned out to be far worse than she imagined. The elder was openly dismissive of her due to her gender, focusing all his attention on teaching her male cousins.

Whenever her brother returned from the Longevity Sect, radiating pride and success, it only deepened her frustration.

Desperate, she begged her mother to allow her to join even a minor sect, just to escape her stifling existence. But her mother refused every ti, eventually locking her inside the house to prevent her from leaving.

Days turned into months, months into years…

Bamboo Gentleman huddled in a dark corner of her room. Her pallid skin had taken on a sickly hue from the lack of sunlight. Her eyes were vacant, her face haggard, and an indescribable pain churned within her.

No! This isn’t real!

Sowhere deep in her consciousness, she recognized the abnormality of her experiences. Yet every attempt to question the reality around her resulted in searing headaches, as though her very soul were being torn apart.

The growing rift between reality and illusion led to frequent hallucinations. Sotis, she saw herself as the ruthless assassin of the Dark Pavilion. Other tis, she was the forsaken daughter trapped in a family that never valued her.

Eventually, the lines blurred so thoroughly that she could no longer distinguish which was the illusion and which was reality. Lost and disoriented, ti ceased to hold aning for her.