Chapter 24 The Mysterious Stars and the Guardian of the Porcelain Soul: Yao Xu took out a tinderbox...
Yao Xu took out a tinderbox and lit it. Lian Xi helped Yan Chao up and, seeing her tired face, asked, "Are you really alright? The things up there have been taken care of. Do you want to go back and rest?"
Yan Chao was jolted awake by the icy touch of Lian Xi's hand; he hadn't expected his hand to be so cold, almost inhumanly so. But the feeling of exhaustion he'd just felt vanished after being held by Lian Xi. Seeing his worried expression, Yan Chao raised his hand, which was clasped in Lian Xi's, and said, "Thank you so much. I'm completely better now. Besides, all three of us are on the list; how could I fall behind?"
Lianxi quickly withdrew her hand. Seeing that her expression had softened considerably, she didn't insist any further, but still reminded her, "If you feel unwell at all, be sure to tell me immediately."
Yao Xu said, "That's right, that's right. Don't exhaust yourself just to solve a case, it's not worth it!"
Yan Chao nodded: "Don't worry. If I really have something to do, I'll go and rest by myself without you having to tell me. By the way, how did you guys get down here?"
Yao Xu said, "We found a place to get down in the front hall."
Yan Chao said, "Front Hall? You saw me as soon as you came down?"
Yao Xu said, "Yes, is there a problem?"
Yan Chao said, "But I clearly fell from the offering table!"
Lianxi said, "The two are not far apart, but in such a short time, the positions below have changed. It seems that this is also a magic array."
Yan Chao surveyed his surroundings. There was only one path leading down from above; the cave above was gone, and the walls on both sides were riddled with small holes of varying sizes. Although spacious, it was clearly a cave.
If all roads here are like this, how was she able to be moved to a different location in such a short time?
For some reason, Yan Chao suddenly had a strong feeling that the place where she had just fallen was now very far away from where she was.
Yan Chao said, "There are only two paths, left and right. Which one should we take?"
Lianxi laughed and said, "No matter which path we take, we have to turn a dead end into a way out."
Yan Chao said, "Then..."
Without the slightest hesitation, Lianxi and Yanchao walked to the left, while Yaoxu walked to the right.
Yao Xu had only taken two steps when he turned back and said, "No way! You two just abandoned me like that? Didn't you even try to stop me?"
Lianxi continued walking forward, saying, "You chose this path yourself; you might even see some different scenery."
Yao Xu turned and caught up with them, placing his hands on their shoulders, and said, "No! I'm on the list too, I'm going with you! I'm going with you and we'll go together!"
But after walking for a short while, another fork in the road appeared ahead.
The three of them stood on separate paths, with Yan Chao in the middle. He sighed and said, "Alas, it seems the people here want us to split up. Look, they've even prepared three paths, no more, no less."
Lianxi said, "I'll go with you, he can go whichever way he wants."
Yao Xu glanced at Lian Xi and said, "Lian Gou, you're so untrustworthy! You just agreed to go together and come back together, and you're already going back on your word!"
Lianxi said with a mocking expression, "I didn't agree to that. You should go get your head checked out if you're just talking nonsense."
Yaoxu: "..."
Yan Chao: "Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha."
Every time Yan Chao watched the two of them bicker, it made him burst into laughter; he loved it and found it delightful. These two were exceptionally good-looking, exceptionally skilled in combat, exceptionally good at cooking, and exceptionally funny—their backgrounds were naturally quite impressive. Traveling with such good-looking, top-notch fighters who could constantly provide laughs was truly a feast for the eyes! Truly joyful!
Except for someone singing.
Yan Chao asked, "So, how do we get there this time?"
The two of them blurted out at the same time, "Let's go in the middle."
Yan Chaoge glanced at them and laughed, "You two are quite in sync this time. Alright, let's walk in the middle together!"
Shortly after they left, the other two roads disappeared.
The three walked for a while longer, and then suddenly a gust of wind came from ahead. Yao Xu exclaimed excitedly, "There must be an exit ahead! I'm so tired of this cave!"
Having said that, he quickened his pace, leaving the two behind. As he got closer and closer to the sound of the wind, he suddenly shouted, "Don't go any further! There's no way forward!"
The two followed and saw that they were standing before a precipice, one step ahead of a bottomless abyss where falling rocks made no sound. Even more eerie, a thick fog suddenly rolled in, obscuring everything, and within the fog, mirage-like images were faintly visible, easily deceiving and enticing people to continue forward. If anyone wasn't careful, they would likely become a skeleton at the bottom of the cliff.
Yan Chao reached one hand into the fog, and some fine dust got on it. She smelled it, then quickly wiped it off with a handkerchief, saying, "The stuff in this fog is quite poisonous. If you get it on your hand, you won't even need to burn it when someone falls in."
Yao Xu was puzzled and asked, "What do you mean?"
Yan Chao said, "It means that not only did they not leave behind a complete corpse, but they also provide the service of turning them into ashes free of charge."
Yao Xu quickly took a few steps back, hugging himself tightly, and said, "Luckily I was quick-witted! But I just don't understand, how can these two be so vicious! No way! When that Ranking Spirit comes out again, I'll protest no matter what. Even gods can't be treated like this!"
Looking at the mist before her, Lianxi took out a folding fan from her waist, raised her hand and waved it. Several flashes of cold light appeared. After a few swirling motions in the air, the mist was swirled into a ball. The mist and the folding fan fought several times, but in the end, the folding fan broke through and dispersed into a wisp of gray smoke.
As the fog dissipated, an ancient square stone platform suddenly appeared, standing several dozen feet below the cliff. On the platform, a white porcelain statue emitted an eerie luster in the dim light.
Around the stone platform, stone statues of the Twenty-Eight Mansions are arranged in a square pattern representing the heavens and the earth. Mysterious lights flow between the mansions, as if they are interacting. Suddenly, a shimmering star map appears on the stone wall above, directly opposite the Twenty-Eight Mansions below.
A gentle breeze blew by, carrying with it a faint, almost imperceptible sob.
Yan Chao gazed at the white porcelain statue, a nameless sadness welling up in his heart.
"Help me..."
"...Help me..."
Is anyone there...?
The voice rang out again, clearer than before, as if it were right next to her ear. Yan Chao stared intently at the white porcelain statue and asked, "Did you hear anything?"
Lianxi asked, "What was that sound?"
Yao Xu said, "I didn't hear that."
Yan Chao said, "Save me, save me. That person is crying for help, and I heard it on my way to the temple."
Lianxi said, "Let's go down and take a look."
Suddenly, the ground beneath her feet began to shake, and rocks kept falling from the stone wall. Yan Chao felt a splitting headache, as if she were being pulled by an invisible force. She pressed her head tightly, beads of sweat dripping down her forehead. The figures of Lianxi and Yaoxu flashed before her eyes, one becoming two, two becoming many, and she couldn't tell them apart anymore.
The air grew heavy and oppressive, as if countless invisible threads were coiling and twisting, making even breathing difficult. Yan Chao tried to call out their names, but it felt as if a hand was tightly gripping his throat.
Yan Chao's eyes were blurry, and just before she lost consciousness, she heard that voice again: "Come to me...come to me quickly..."
Then, he seemed to start singing again.
The voice was ethereal, like divine music, and captivated all who heard it.
"In the land of the covenant, calamity suddenly struck. Blood turned to ice, the earth froze and the grass withered, and the people... perished."
"Fortunately, there is a flower... with a refined and kind heart. It nurtures a flower in the cold ice... and brings life back. Its name is 'Spring Morning'."
"...ascended to the God of Spring, ...and came to rule over the four seasons. From then on, the weather was favorable and all things revived."
"The people who are in accordance with the agreement are grateful... and build temples to worship them, ... the grace of spring, like the warm sun, benefits all living beings; the gentle spring rain, nourishes all things."
May the God of Spring bless you forever, may your promises be fulfilled and your life be prosperous, and may you live in peace year after year.
The singing was intermittent, and when it ended, the previously rhythmic flashing light within the star array became chaotic and disordered. At times, the light was so intense it was impossible to look directly at it, and at other times it was so faint it was almost imperceptible. The color of the light also constantly changed, from a ghostly blue to crimson, and then to an eerie purple.
The white porcelain seemed to have been infused with a soul. A bloody, mangled human face with empty eyes burst forth from the porcelain statue and suddenly appeared before Yan Chao's eyes.
A drop of blood fell on Yan Chao's face. The man-faced man curved his sewn-up lips into a smile and said, "You've finally come. I've been waiting for you for a long time."
"ah--!!!"
Yan Chao screamed in terror. Her pupils contracted, her limbs stiffened, and she stared at the white porcelain statue, unable to recover for a long time.
"Peach Blossom! Peach Blossom! It's me, Lianxi! Wake up!"
Yan Chao was awakened by Lianxi's calls. She finally saw the person in front of her clearly, stared at him blankly for a while, called out "Lianxi", and then collapsed into his arms, feeling completely exhausted.
Lianxi hugged her tightly, one arm around her and the other gently stroking the back of her head. She was breathing heavily, and a soft voice came from above Yan Chao's head, "It's alright, it's alright. Don't be afraid, Tao Hua isn't afraid."
Beyond the reassurance, Yan Chao didn't notice the cautiousness and affection in Lianxi's voice.
Yao Xu took out a blue crystal stone, which he had casually picked up from the wall of the cave earlier, and said, "We've all been tricked by this little thing."
In fact, the star formation had already begun operating from the moment they stepped into the temple.
The small holes in the cave wall where we arrived contained a type of ore. This ore was unremarkable, even inconspicuous, but having been associated with the stellar formation here for many years, it had developed some spiritual energy. It could shift the location of any cave according to the movement of the stars. However, the energy here was chaotic, unlike outside, causing the stars to constantly change position, and consequently, the location of the caves to shift as well.
This is why Yan Chao's landing position changed.
Similarly, this will make those who enter feel like they are walking through a maze. If they cannot find the right way, they will be trapped here forever and never be able to get out.
But the ore has an even greater function: it can cause a person's consciousness to detach from their physical body, allowing them to see what they want to see.
The three of them had just entered different illusions, but only Yan Chao saw that scene. The other two were trapped in a deserted place, but they broke free quickly. When they woke up, they saw Yan Chao standing stiffly with his eyes fixed on the white porcelain statue.
Yan Chao composed himself and said coldly, "I'm not easily intimidated. I was actually a little upset just now. I want to see who dares to make fun of me!"
Lianxi grasped Yanchao's hand and said, "Okay, let's go take a look."
The three of them leaped onto the stone platform. As if sensing their presence, the Twenty-Eight Constellations, which had been facing away from them, suddenly turned around in unison, their eyes filled with ferocity, as if trying to stop them from getting close to the white porcelain statue.
Yao Xu rolled up his sleeves and said, "I just chopped down that Black Water Buddha up there, and my hands are itching for a fight. Perfect timing, let's see if these guys are also full of bad intentions?"
Yao Xu was about to make a move when Yan Chao stopped him, saying, "Wait."
Yao Xu looked at her in confusion and asked, "Peach Blossom, what are you doing?"
Yan Chao said, "These stars are just guarding the white porcelain statue inside; they mean no harm. I think I roughly know who that white porcelain statue is."
Lianxi chuckled, as if she knew what she was thinking.
Yan Chao looked at the white porcelain statue behind Xingxiu and said, "Five hundred years ago, the last crown prince of the time was Zhu Jing. Am I right, Your Highness?"
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