Herb gatherer
As the person drew closer, their features gradually became clearer. Yan Dan couldn't help but sigh softly, "What a pity..."
Approaching them was a man dressed in coarse linen, mud and water splattering from his wooden clogs all the way to the hem of his clothes. He had a weasel-like face, covered in pockmarks like scattered stars, and could be described as utterly repulsive.
The tall local looked down on the man, saying, "Wu Shun, what are you doing coming into the mountains for no reason?"
Wu Shun immediately smiled apologetically and took off the basket on his back to show them: "Isn't this just to come into the mountains to collect some herbs to exchange for money? My family is almost starving. If I'm lucky, I might even catch a snake. I can sell snake gallbladders, snake meat..." He almost drooled as he said this.
Yan Dan sighed again.
She was initially thought to be a celestial being, but it turned out to be an indescribably sleazy herb gatherer. Her eyesight is really getting worse and worse.
The herb gatherer, Wu Shun, turned his head and saw Yan Dan. His mouth opened slightly, and he couldn't take his eyes off her. It took him a long time to come back to his senses. He smacked his lips, wondering what wicked idea she was plotting.
Enraged, Yan Dan felt an overwhelming urge to cleave him in two with a single sword stroke and reached for Tang Zhou's sword. Before she could react, Liu Weiyang subtly grasped her wrist. Yan Dan froze, stiffening her neck as she turned to look at the young master Liu beside her. Liu Weiyang looked at her, shook his head slightly, and then slowly released her grip.
Upon hearing that they were going to climb Zhu Cui Mountain, Wu Shun immediately and eagerly led the way, occasionally turning back to tell a bawdy joke. Yan Dan touched her wrist, feeling something was amiss. Liu Weiyang would never have pulled her wrist; Yan Dan was certain of that. Could it be that the person walking beside her wasn't Liu Weiyang anymore?
Who could it be? Whoever it is, as long as it's not the Lord of Shenxiao Palace. The thought of the Lord of Shenxiao Palace sent chills down her spine. Although she hadn't fully witnessed Liu Weiyang's abilities, she figured he was no less capable than Tang Zhou. If he were secretly dragged away and his body dumped in the wilderness by the Lord of Shenxiao Palace in less than half an incense stick's time, it would be truly terrifying.
Tang Zhou glanced at her and asked in a low voice, "Your face is pale and bluish, what happened?" He half-jokingly said, "You can't be this scared just because someone glanced at you a few times, can you?"
Yan Dan glanced at Liu Weiyang furtively, then slowly moved closer to Tang Zhou: "Do you think I'm afraid of being seen? It's not like I'm ashamed of being seen."
Tang Zhou thought for a moment, then extended his left hand to her: "If you're scared, just hold onto me."
Yan Dan hesitated. Should she pull him or not? Pulling him would be too hurtful to her pride, but not pulling him left her feeling uneasy. Suddenly, she felt a gaze sweep over her from the side, and immediately jumped, placing her hand in Tang Zhou's. Tang Zhou gently took it, smiling as he said, "Have you forgotten what you said in the cemetery?"
What she said in the cemetery? She must have said at least twenty or thirty things back then, but which one was she referring to?
Yan Dan thought for a moment, then suddenly realized, could it be… that phrase, “He won’t really kill us, he’s just testing us”? If that’s the case, then Tang Zhou also noticed Liu Weiyang’s disappearance and reappearance, which means that all of this wasn’t just her imagination. If the current Liu Weiyang is indeed the Palace Master of Shenxiao Palace in disguise, it means he won’t attack them for the time being. She had speculated about Liu Weiyang’s identity back then, but now it seems she didn’t overestimate Liu Weiyang, but rather greatly underestimated the Palace Master of Shenxiao Palace.
Because of the long delay at the beginning, the group was still in the middle of the mountain when the sun set.
The two locals were efficient; they cut tree branches, struck them with a flint and steel, and started a fire. They then took a small earthenware pot from their bag, filled it with spring water, and put it on the fire to boil. The herb gatherer, Wu Shun, immediately picked out some Solomon's seal rhizome from his basket and added it to the pot to boil together.
The group shared a bag of steamed buns and roasted them over a fire until several honeycomb-like holes appeared on the buns, which slowly turned a brownish color. Meanwhile, the pot of Solomon's Seal was boiling, and only then did they slowly fill their stomachs.
Yan Dan knew that Tang Zhou was immune to all poisons, and she wasn't afraid of any poisons in the mortal world, so she ate without any qualms. Liu Weiyang remained silent as usual, staring at the fire without saying a word, as if he had endless worries on his mind.
After discussing their provisions, the group talked about keeping watch. The two tall locals were to keep watch for the first half of the night, while the other man and the herb gatherer Wu Shun would keep watch for the second half. Seeing their arrangement, Yan Dan simply closed her eyes and went to sleep by the fire. She was never a deep sleeper and would wake up at the slightest noise, so she wasn't worried about them doing anything behind her back.
She dozed off for a while, and when she awoke, the moon was high in the sky. The mountain stream and sky, clear and blue after the rain, were dotted with countless bright stars. She looked around and saw that Liu Weiyang and Tang Zhou were still fast asleep, but the three people on watch were nowhere to be seen. She quietly stood up and walked lightly into the woods ahead. After walking a dozen or so paces, she saw flickering lights on the sloping hillside. She slowly approached and saw Wu Shun with a rope tied around his waist, carefully climbing up the mountain path. The other end of the rope was held by a tall local man, who looked impatient and said gruffly, "You brat, what are you dawdling for?! Hurry up!"
Wu Shun hesitated and stumbled, taking three steps only to fall back one, his limbs weak and his movements awkward. Yan Dan watched and sighed, but before she could finish her sigh, a piercing scream suddenly rang in her ears. Wu Shun thrashed about for a moment, as if he had sunk into something, leaving only half of his body still on the mountain path.
Yan Dan quietly moved closer to get a better look, only to see the tall local man suddenly cut the rope with an axe, and Wu Shun's figure vanished instantly.
Yan Dan stroked her chin, thinking to herself that there were many caves in the southwest, and what appeared to be a flat and solid ground were actually hollow. The herb gatherer had probably fallen into one of the caves. However, it wouldn't have been difficult for those two locals to pull him up, so cutting the rope with an axe like that was really too cruel.
The short local man said, "Why don't you pull Wu Shun up? He's from the same village, after all."
“I don’t think this kid has any good intentions at all; he’s not just after a share of the pie. Let him fall down now; it’ll save us some trouble.” The tall local snorted heavily. “If they ask later, just say Wu Shun had an emergency at home and left early. If he falls down like this, it’ll be good for us; he’ll be fed to the mountain god.”
Yan Dan was confused, but seeing them turn back, she had no choice but to quickly slip towards the fire. When she was about ten steps away, she saw Tang Zhou coming down the mountain path from the side, his face not looking too good. Yan Dan said, "I just went to follow those three locals, they..." Tang Zhou made a shushing gesture and said calmly, "I saw everything you saw just now. This mountain path connects to that one, and I followed Brother Liu after you left."
As dawn broke, the group continued their journey.
Yan Dan looked around and suddenly asked, "Hey, where's Wu Shun, the herb gatherer from yesterday? Why hasn't he been around since this morning?"
The short local chuckled twice: "Last night, this kid remembered he had something to do at home, so he went back to the village before dawn. You weren't awake when he left, so he didn't say goodbye."
Yan Dan looked at him with disdain: He couldn't even tell a lie properly, stammering and stuttering; it was obvious he wasn't telling the truth. "So he went back early this morning... Strange, it's not even summer yet, why are you sweating so much after just one sentence?" she said with a slight smile. The short local could only chuckle awkwardly a few more times and shut his mouth.
Tang Zhou gave her a warning look and whispered, "Yan Dan!"
Yan Dan sighed: "Even if you call my name a thousand times, I still won't understand what you're trying to say, right?" She always picks on the weak. If Liu Weiyang is really the Palace Master of Shenxiao Palace in disguise, she'd rather bully Tang Zhou instead.
Tang Zhou wasn't angry at all. He slowly wrote the character "Liu" in her palm. Yan Dan found it amusing and also pulled his hand to write the character "Xiao". Tang Zhou shook his head and then nodded. Yan Dan immediately understood that what he meant was that the current Liu Weiyang was likely not the original one, and it was hard to say whether he was the Palace Master of Shenxiao Palace in disguise.
They wrote one word at a time, and soon they were at the very back. The tall local turned around and laughed, saying, "You two look like a couple who eloped from home, always sticking together."
Yan Dan stared stiffly at Tang Zhou, forcing a smile that looked more like a grimace. Tang Zhou was quite indifferent: "We did run away from home to play, it was perfectly legitimate, so it doesn't count as eloping."
Yan Dan was stunned, and Liu Weiyang was also visibly taken aback. Tang Zhou then asked with a smile, "Is that right, Yan Dan?"
Yan Dan was extremely frustrated, wishing she could roar to the heavens, "No—" Before she could finish speaking, the mountain path beneath her feet loosened, and she tumbled down with a thud. Tang Zhou quickly reached out to grab her arm, but the force of her fall caused him to sway, and the ground beneath their feet made a crisp, melodious "crack."
The two of them fell down at the same time.
Yan Dan only heard the wind whistling past her ears. She grabbed something that looked like a stalagmite, and with a snap, the slender stalagmite broke. Only one thought remained in her mind: had she been living too comfortably lately and gained a lot of weight? Suddenly, her wrist tightened, and before she could stop her fall, her other wrist was grabbed. However, the two forces came from completely different directions, and Yan Dan nearly fainted from the pain.
She'd rather fall flat on her face and get covered in mud than be torn in half while suspended in mid-air.
Tang Zhou's voice slowly came from above: "Yan Dan, you're really heavy."
Yan Dan huffed, "Nonsense! I'm not heavy at all! That Aunt Hu from the Shen family said I'm as light as if I have no bones!"
"Compared to Sister Hu, you are as light as if you have no bones."
"Shut up, shut up now!" Yan Dan gritted her teeth in anger. When she looked up, she saw Liu Weiyang looking down at her, his eyes deep and unfathomable. Her right hand was in his, and cold sweat immediately broke out. "Young Master Liu, I'm too heavy. Please put me down."
Liu Weiyang smiled gently, as if it were a light breeze: "It's alright." The moment he smiled, it was truly a scene of warm breeze, fluttering butterflies and warbling birds, and flowers cleansed of all dust.
Yan Dan immediately flattered, "Young Master Liu, you have a really handsome smile. But you'd better let go quickly, we can't keep hanging here forever, can we?"
Liu Weiyang slightly suppressed his smile: "After I let go, will it be alright for you to continue like this?"
Yan Dan said obediently, "It's okay, it's okay, you can let go."
Liu Weiyang immediately let go.
Yan Dan felt her body sink downwards, and her left wrist joint made a cracking sound. She immediately shouted, "Tang Zhou, let go! My hand is going to break!"
Tang Zhou gave an "oh" and let go. Yan Dan felt her body sway forward slightly, heading straight for the opposite stone wall. Fortunately, Liu Weiyang landed lightly and kindly pulled her back.
Yan Dan's heart skipped a beat, a strange feeling rising within her. It was clearly Liu Weiyang's face, yet she felt a strange sense of familiarity.
Suddenly the light above them dimmed, and dirt began to fall from the cave where they had fallen.
Tang Zhou lit the tinderbox and saw that the opening at the top had been blocked by a piece of granite, and the cave in front of him was winding and twisting, with no idea where it led.
The southwest region receives abundant rainfall, resulting in unstable geological formations and numerous underground caves. These caves are mostly interconnected, creating a labyrinthine environment where one becomes increasingly confused. The two locals, clearly harboring ill intentions, lured them into an area with many caves, intending to seal the openings above them once they fell in.
Their motives were probably to rob and kill, right? But... he suddenly remembered that the tall local man had mentioned last night that Wu Shun had gone to feed the mountain god. Could it be...? He turned around and saw Yan Dan happily rushing towards Liu Weiyang, joyfully hugging his neck and saying, "My lord!"
A faint blue light surged from Liu Weiyang's body, and his appearance gradually changed. His black hair suddenly grew longer, his eyebrows and eyes became handsome, and a smile appeared on his lips, making him lively and refined.
Yan Dan gently rubbed his cheek, her voice soft: "My lord, you've lost weight and gotten darker...and your skin isn't smooth enough..."
"Lianqing looks quite well, she's gained a full five pounds and six qian..." Yu Mo picked her up and said with a smile, "Even her waist has thickened by half an inch..."
Tang Zhou coughed heavily: "Where is Brother Liu?"
Yu Mo said calmly, "I stopped him when we entered the mountain. This person is not so simple."
Yan Dan couldn't help but say, "But he didn't do anything bad along the way."
Yu Mo reached out and gently pinched the tip of her nose: "Do you remember that time when he got up in the middle of the night to play the flute? Did you think he was just playing the flute? When you went into the mountains and were trapped in the Fuxi Bagua Formation, it was someone who set it up beforehand."
Yan Dan immediately understood: "So you switched the person halfway through and broke the formation?"
Yu Mo smiled and nodded: "But you didn't recognize me at first, and you were scared to death, huh?" Yan Dan pouted slightly: "You don't know how terrifying the Divine Firmament Palace Master is, he can impersonate anyone perfectly... But if that's the case, who exactly is Liu Weiyang, and is he also the Divine Firmament Palace Master's subordinate?"
“I don’t know either.” Yu Mo turned to look at Tang Zhou and said slowly, “The southwest Zhu Cui Mountain is not far from Mirror Lake. If you want to find the ancient artifact, you don’t need to go to the Yi people. Because this artifact has long been in the hands of the Shenxiao Palace Master.”
Tang Zhou looked at him: "You know where Mirror Lake is, and you know that the ancient artifact is not in the Yi people but in the hands of the Lord of Shenxiao Palace. I believe everything you say. But how did you know that?"
Yu Mo said frankly, "I have been to Mirror Lake and met the Palace Master of Shenxiao Palace twice."
Yan Dan glanced at Yu Mo, then at Tang Zhou, and felt that the atmosphere between them was like a tightly strung bowstring.
"So, how can we get to Mirror Lake now?"
Yu Mo smiled gently: "I don't know."
Yan Dan couldn't help but whisper, "Yu Mo..." He had said before that he had been to Mirror Lake, but he didn't know how to get there. It was the most clumsy lie he could tell.
Yu Mo looked down at her, his expression nonchalant: "What, you don't believe me either?"
Yan Dan thought for a moment and said, "Although it sounds a bit impossible, I still believe it."
Tang Zhou crossed his arms and said calmly, "Unless a reasonable explanation is given, I'm afraid even a child wouldn't believe such a thing."
Yan Dan felt a chill run down her spine. Yu Mo and Tang Zhou had fought to the death the first time they met, and with the grudges they had accumulated before, this journey would probably be troublesome.
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