To the best of my ability, Part Three
The waterfall roars endlessly.
She was astonished to find herself able to fall asleep here. The noisy waterfalls and the uncomfortable "bed" offered no reassurance. Qu You was utterly astonished.
She turned her head, scanning her surroundings like a hunter. After looking around, she noticed her grandmother squatting by the river, fetching water. Qu You jumped up from the ground with a start and ran to her grandmother's side, tucking her arms under her armpits.
“Didn’t I tell you not to go near the river? What if you slip and fall?” Qu You said, helping her mother-in-law up. She felt that her mother-in-law seemed lighter again. The kettle wobbled, spilling some water onto the shoes of the grandmother and granddaughter.
The mother-in-law turned around, smiled mischievously, and said, "It's okay, I feel much better now."
“Even if it’s much better, it won’t work.” Qu You’s attitude was very firm.
"Grandma, I've remembered so many things," Grandma said proudly.
"Really?" Qu You's facial muscles relaxed, and she said happily, "Then we didn't go the wrong way."
"Yes, we didn't go the wrong way." The old woman tightened the cork on the kettle, handed it to Qu You, and asked, "Can you still walk now?"
"Now? Immediately?"
"Yes." Qu You nodded. "Now, immediately."
What a willful old man. Qu You looked up at the Milky Way; the stars seemed to be flowing, stretching all the way to the horizon. "Let's go," Qu You said.
The clothes were still damp from being hung out to dry, so Qu You draped them over the outside of her bundle. Arm in arm with her mother-in-law, she continued onward.
"Mother-in-law, what are you thinking about?"
“Many people,” the old woman replied. “A young couple, a white-haired child, and my four companions.”
"Hey, are they all Grandma's friends?" Qu You said with some regret, "I haven't met them in all these years."
“You’ve met them.” The old woman’s voice was becoming more and more like that of a spoiled child. As if she felt that her words were not accurate enough, she added, “I’ve met some of them.”
"That would be even more of a pity; we should have invited them to our home for a visit."
"Is that so?"
"Ah!" Qu You suddenly remembered something. She turned to look at her grandmother with curiosity, her eyes reflecting the stars. "Some people say that you stayed in Wuling City because you were guarding something within the city. Is that true?"
"It's true."
"real?"
"Really," the mother-in-law replied earnestly.
"Then why can we leave now?"
"Because two young people came, and I thought they were pretty good, I left it to them."
"Can't you give it to me?"
"cannot."
"Grandma, you're so biased!" Qu You nuzzled her mother-in-law's shoulder and said with a smile. Perhaps it was because she hadn't seen her mother-in-law so lucid in a long time that she was somewhat happy.
"It's because of favoritism."
"What about Grandma's friends?" Qu You asked lively, "Are we going to visit them later?"
The mother-in-law and Qu You held hands. She looked up at the flowing starry river and said, "It seems like we're running out of time."
*
Wang Wenfang stared wide-eyed at the golden bronze figure that sprang out of the woods. No, perhaps "crashed out" would be a more accurate description. The moment it emerged, it ruined the fuse he had just set up, pulling out the spikes buried under the leaves, and then screeched as it rolled away from the spikes.
Looking at the wooden spear he had only half-tied up in his hand, which was originally intended to be used in conjunction with the ground spikes, Wang Wenfang felt that there was no need to continue making it.
Xiang Wu struggled to his feet. After this close encounter with all sorts of traps along the way, the gold on his body was no longer even. However, thanks to this experience, his understanding of traps had deepened considerably.
"The Golden Body of the Medicine Master?" Wang Wenfang was puzzled at first, then suddenly glared and cursed angrily, "You bastard, you didn't just walk into all the traps I set, did you?"
"I'm sorry, senior." Xiang Wu touched his chest. The earth spikes had consumed some of his true energy, and the golden patch on his chest had a hole, revealing the skin underneath. He adjusted his breathing: "But it's so good to meet you here, senior. I've finally found you."
Wang Wenfang squinted, scrutinizing Xiang Wu. "Is it you?" he said. "You're the one who rescued the descendants of Shigulin."
"It's me," Xiang Wu admitted without any hesitation.
"You use the swordsmanship of the Misty Rain Pavilion, so how come you also know the Golden Body of the Pharmacist?"
"You mean this?" Xiang Wu opened his palms, displaying his golden body from top to bottom. "To be honest, I should have learned this first, and then practiced the Misty Rain Song. But its original name was Medicine Master Golden Body."
Wang Wenfang patted the only remaining segment of his left arm and said, "If you hadn't interfered, I wouldn't have lost this arm."
“You’re exaggerating,” Xiang Wu quickly said. “I never laid a hand on you, senior.”
"A sharp-tongued brat," Wang Wenfang sneered. "Since you dared to come before me, you were already prepared to die."
"I do hope that you, senior, will spare my life."
Wang Wenfang drew his longsword from the tree trunk, about to step forward. Xiang Wu quickly stretched out his hands, gesturing for him to pull it down, and shouted, "Senior, be careful!"
Wang Wenfang turned around nimbly and deflected the several sword strikes aimed at him in a few swift movements.
“You old scoundrel,” Han Hyo-joo emerged from the shadows, “today you will pay for my disciple’s life.”
Wang Wenfang clicked his tongue and said, "This is going to be difficult."
Han Xiaozhou glared at Wang Wenfang again and reminded him of the imageless one.
"Your motives are indeed impure." Han Xiaozhou glared at Xiang Wu, who was pointing at Wang Wenfang, and reminded him.
“Master, you have wronged me.” Xiang Wu cried out in protest, “I have nothing to do with this old man. If you want, I can help you kill him.”
"I'm not your master," Han Xiaozhou frowned, "neither you nor this old bastard are leaving here today!"
Surrounded in the center, Wang Wenfang crouched low, preparing for battle. Although this deviated from his plan, he had no choice but to fight back. Just as he was thinking this, he noticed a disturbance on Xiang Wu's side. Wang Wenfang turned his head; Xiang Wu had already made his move. However, he was getting further and further away from Wang Wenfang and Han Xiaozhou.
"Seniors, please continue your conversation." Xiang Wutou didn't even turn around, and strode off. "We'll see you later."
Wang Wenfang's left cheek twitched.
"You bastards! Hand over the descendants of Shigulin!" Wang Wenfang shouted, and immediately set off to chase after them.
"Shigu Forest?" Han Xiaozhou was even more certain that Xiang Wu's encounter with Lin Zhenna was not so simple. Changsheng Palace, Xinyuan Temple, Shigu Forest—this young man had too many labels that shouldn't be there. She was certain that someone had meticulously planned and orchestrated all of this.
The moon was partially hidden among the leaves overhead.
Xiang Wu and Wang Wenfang exchanged two sword blows, and temporarily separated. Wang Wenfang immediately engaged in combat with Han Xiaozhou, who had caught up with them, and they separated again.
Wang Wenfang wasn't hunting Xiang Wu down, but rather intentionally driving him in a certain direction. Xiang Wu noticed this. It seemed Wang Wenfang was trying to lure him into a pre-prepared trap; Xiang Wu, lacking the skill of his opponent, could only be manipulated like a sheep.
Fortunately, his golden body remained intact, but how long could he hold on? Even Xiang Wu himself didn't know.
As expected, there were more traps in the direction Wang Wenfang had pointed out. Having learned from his previous experience, Xiang Wu avoided some, but still fell into quite a few. The consequences of those traps fell entirely on Xiang Wu's shoulders. As for the ones he avoided, they fell on Han Xiaozhou's shoulders.
When it came to spotting traps, Han Hyo-joo was surprisingly slow. Despite her exceptional skills, she still suffered quite a bit.
Driven by Wang Wenfang, Xiang Wu continued running towards the next trap. He glanced at the flashing swords behind him, then quickly looked up at the sky obscured by leaves. It was pitch black; apart from the stars and the moon, it was impossible to distinguish where the night sky ended and the leaves began.
Behind him, sword intent surged, accompanied by the sound of giant trees collapsing. It was as if a massive, bottomless vortex was chasing after Xiang Wu, who was fleeing ahead.
As they ventured deeper, Xiang Wu became even more certain of his suspicions: Wang Wenfang had planned from the very beginning to kill everyone from Yanyu Tower here. He had laid a trap in the woods long ago, and his supposed escape after being seriously injured was nothing more than a feigned defeat, all to lure them into his trap.
But how did he know the movements of the people from Misty Rain Pavilion? How did he know they were out looking for Miss Lin, and how did he know they would definitely go to this grove? Was it the Beggars' Sect? Or was someone backing him?
Before he could think further, another sword aura slashed from behind. Xiang Wu quickly corrected his course.
Xiang Wu sensed an aura he had encountered in Peach Blossom Spring. Wang Wenfang's brow flashed red as he drew the light blue sword he had been hiding behind him, once again facing Han Xiaozhou who was pursuing him.
"It's going to be a long night," Xiang Wu sighed.
*
He Zian opened his eyes several times, but all he could see outside was darkness. It was more of a hole than a window. It was a roughly three-story mud house; they could see the window right at their feet when they reached its base. The lower floors had been buried by years of accumulated sand.
Above the sandy surface, there were two more layers. He Zi'an and his group went up to the top layer, while the camels remained outside. Li Letian had suggested bringing the camels inside as well, "preferably to the top floor as well," he said.
However, this suggestion was immediately rejected by Lee Na-kyung. Leaving aside whether the camel could adapt to the cramped space inside, the floorboards of this old mud house would likely collapse immediately if a camel stepped on them. The final result was that the three of them went inside, while the camel remained outside.
When He Zi'an opened his eyes for the last time, he was already half-buried in the ground. Literally, half-buried. He was resting against the earthen wall, the yellow sand that had rushed in from the cave entrance already reaching his waist. At this point, it was clear that the house was tilted, and the side with the most accumulated sand was his.
If half of the house hadn't been buried deep in the sand, it probably would have collapsed long ago. He Zian thought to himself, thank goodness he listened to Li Najiong and didn't bring the camel into the house.
Then look at Lee Na-kyung. She's lying flat on the other side of the room, the yellow sand seemingly covering her with a blanket. It's almost at her lips.
He Zi'an pulled himself out of the sand pile and walked over. He hesitated for a while beside Li Najiong, but finally decided to grab her shoulders and shake her awake.
Lee Na-kyung's dream was filled with the sight of a capsized boat. She grabbed He Zi'an's arm and asked, "Helmsman, what happened?"
He Zian was taken aback for a moment, then said seriously, "Chief, the water level has risen."
Seeing He Zi'an's face, Lee Na-kyung became slightly more alert. "Oh dear, you're talking nonsense again." Lee Na-kyung frowned, closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again, asking, "It's not even dawn yet, what's wrong?"
He Zi'an pointed to her collar, and Li Najiong realized that she was about to be buried whole by sand. She suddenly stood up, and yellow sand flew up. He Zi'an, caught in the crossfire, swallowed a mouthful of yellow sand and, imitating Li Letian's actions during the day, hurriedly began spitting out the sand.
Lee Na-kyung quietly watched his disheveled appearance, even taking the opportunity to wipe the drool from her mouth. Once He Zi'an had tidied himself up, their eyes met again, and they couldn't help but burst into laughter.
This laugh woke Li Letian, who was standing nearby. He opened only one eye, glanced at the dark sky outside the window, and then asked, "Why are you all up so early?"
Lee Na-kyung slapped the sand pile on Li Letian's chest and joked, "If you don't get up, you'll be in this picture before we even find your Miss Xin."
Li Letian then realized that the yellow sand had almost buried him. He propped himself up on his elbows, preparing to get up. Li Najiong and He Zi'an immediately covered their mouths and noses with their hands, leaving Li Letian completely confused.
What's wrong with you all?
The two exchanged a glance and beamed with joy.
Li Letian slowly got up and opened his other eye. Yellow sand slid off his body like silk.
"I really envy you, being able to sleep so soundly here." Even though she herself was sleeping very soundly, Lee Na-kyung said this before He Zi-an could even finish the sentence.
Li Letian touched his temples and said, "Ah. I used to fall asleep by the furnace when my master was forging swords. I guess I just got used to it."
Meng Jizhen's intention was for him to study, but he always fell asleep. He had been scolded by Meng Jizhen for this, but he never changed his ways. It wasn't that he intentionally opposed his master. Was it because the sound of his master's hammer made him feel at ease? Li Letian had thought about this question, but ultimately couldn't figure it out.
The scoldings and punishments I endured have, in retrospect, become an unforgettable part of my past.
“That’s completely different,” He Zian said. “It’s very hot inside the sword furnace, but it’s very cold here.”
"Isn't being hot or cold essentially the same form of scolding?" Li Letian said sleepily, but his tone was sincere, without any hint of trying to be funny.
Li Najiong and He Zi'an lowered their hands from their mouths and noses, shook their heads, and said in unison:
"Completely different."
Perhaps because she had just woken up, Lee Na-kyung's voice trembled.
The two men looked at her. Her eyes darted around, but she said nothing. Another burst of laughter erupted in the room.
“Now that you’re both awake,” Lee Na-kyung said, her face flushing slightly. She cleared her throat and suggested, “Why don’t we have a contest and see if I can beat the two winners of the sword-testing tournament?”
“Alright, Miss Li, how would you like to compete?”
“Let’s practice our Qi circulation.” Lee Na-kyung glanced at the window, sat cross-legged, and said, “Before dawn, let’s see who can circulate their Qi the most times. We can also improve our control over our true Qi along the way.”
He Zian and Li Letian readily agreed.
Night returned to silence, but with some subtle changes.
The sand flew forward in the night, intending to pass through the seemingly useless window ahead and migrate to a more distant place. Suddenly, the sand and wind lost all their power and fell outside the window. The story ends abruptly.
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