The glimmer of light in the thorn nest
The air in Qixia'ao is still filled with a strong, almost viscous, bitter medicinal smell of mugwort, calamus, and quicklime.
Three consecutive days of burying the bones, burning herbs day and night, and fumigating to remove the filth were like three arduous battles, finally suppressing the sweet, rotten stench that lingered in the valley like a maggot clinging to the bones.
However, the price of victory was a pervasive deathly silence and shocking ruins.
Sunlight struggled to penetrate the thin mist above the valley, illuminating the scattered figures among the ruins.
Under Yang Sijian's concise and powerful hand gestures, they silently and orderly cleared away the rubble and debris, or carefully identified and collected wild herbs with cleansing properties from the rampant weeds along the stream.
Each swing of the tools stirred up fine dust, adding to the arduousness of the reconstruction against the backdrop of medicinal scents.
At the mouth of the valley, in a makeshift shed constructed from rotten beams and tattered tarpaulins, the light was dim.
Ling Zhan was facing a map made of coarse linen, which was spread out on a table. Yang Sijian, whose hair and beard were both white, was facing the map.
The map was drawn with charred tree branches, the lines rough yet clearly marking the terrain, streams, cleared auspicious spots, filthy areas, and preliminary planned defense points.
Her eyes were bloodshot from days of hard work, and her brows were furrowed with a deep sense of gravity.
It seemed to bear the weight of the entire valley.
But her back was straight, and her gaze swept over every line on the map that might hide life or death.
"lady."
A guard, blending seamlessly into the shadows, silently approached the shed, his voice barely audible. "The dense forest in Qingzhou where the master and the children are hiding is over twenty li from here. The forest is deep, damp, and cold, with miasma lurking in the air... The children are young and weak; their cries are fading, and they may not be able to hold on much longer. I request permission to lead a team of capable men to their aid!"
Ling Zhan has not yet answered.
Master Xuan Chen, who had been standing quietly in the corner of the shed, seemingly blending into the shadows, slowly opened his slightly closed eyes.
He stroked his long beard, his voice deep yet carrying a certainty of understanding the earth's veins.
"After three days of cleansing, the foul air in the earth's veins has subsided, and life is gradually returning. Children are the purest and most yang beings in the world, and their vigorous vitality can counteract the lingering gloom and deathliness of this place, bringing a glimmer of life. It's alright, you can receive them."
Ling Zhan's eyes suddenly narrowed, and without the slightest hesitation, he decisively gave the order.
"Prepare the horses! Three fast horses to lead the way! The carriage will follow, carrying a leather bag with thick cushions, filled with warm water, clean cloths, and wound medicine! Liu Quan, you're coming with me!"
Her gaze swept over Yang Sijian. "Mr. Yang, the coordination within the valley is temporarily entrusted to you. Continue the cleanup according to the method we agreed upon."
"Don't worry, Madam," Yang Sijian replied in a deep voice.
A fortified camp deep within a karst cave.
The ancient rocks isolated the area from the outside world's noise and most of the natural light. Only the fluorite, which was specially polished and scattered on the cave walls, emitted a faint, cold light, barely dispelling the thick, inky darkness.
The air was filled with the unique, cold scent of rocks.
The dampness of groundwater, and a faint, almost imperceptible scent that was a mixture of extreme exhaustion and fear in a young child.
This place is much drier and safer than the surface forest, and the supplies are sufficient to sustain them, but the days of frantic escape and the oppressive feeling of the confined space have still exhausted even the weakest children.
The twenty-odd children, the youngest of whom was only three or four years old, had exhausted their last bit of strength to cry.
They huddled together like a group of frightened little animals on a makeshift bed covered with thick blankets and animal hides.
The faint, intermittent sobs, like the buzzing of mosquitoes, carried a heartbreaking despair.
Several infants, still in their swaddling clothes, had their faces turned blue and purple, and could only utter intermittent, weak whimpers like dying kittens.
"沈厌" describes a state of utter disarray, where one's former dashing and debonair demeanor has been utterly crushed into dust.
His once magnificent brocade robe was now unrecognizable, stained with mud and bits of grass, and torn in several places by sharp rock edges, revealing the equally filthy lining underneath. The jade crown that held his hair up was askew and about to fall, and a few strands of hair, soaked with cold sweat, clung tightly to his pale, bloodless forehead.
At that moment, he was using all his strength to clumsily hold a little girl who was crying so hard she was almost unconscious, her face flushed and burning.
His trembling fingers pinched a small, clean corner of soft cloth, carefully dipping it into the last bit of precious warm water from the water pouch, trying to moisten the child's dry, cracked lips covered with tiny bloody cuts.
His expensive brocade cuffs were already soaked and stuck together with the child's tears, snot, and vomit.
It smelled sour and rancid, but he was completely oblivious.
"Sweetie... sweetie... don't cry... drink some water... to soothe your throat..."
His voice was hoarse and dry, like sandpaper scraping, each word carrying a forced gentleness and a pleading patience on the verge of collapse. In his bloodshot eyes was an intense, unyielding pain and profound helplessness.
His only two bodyguards and caregiver, Aunt Wang, were also struggling on the edge of their limits.
A guard held an infant who had cried himself to sleep, his throat emitting low, broken, and out-of-tune lullabies, his eyes staring blankly at the dark cave ceiling.
Another guard, sweating profusely, was trying to change the wet, cold clothes of a little boy who had lost control of his bladder in fright. His movements were stiff and clumsy from exhaustion.
The experienced Aunt Wang knelt on the cold, rocky ground and scooped out finely ground rations from a sealed earthenware jar—part of the camp's reserves—mixed with warm water, and fed it bit by bit, extremely slowly, to a thin boy who was so hungry he was only left with instinct and kept biting his own fingers.
Despite the relatively safe environment and sufficient supplies, the atmosphere remained as oppressive as solidified lead, filled with suffocating despair and a palpable anxiety that threatened to overwhelm them at any moment. The children's fear and exhaustion did not stem from immediate hunger and cold; the food and warmth stored inside the cave were sufficient to sustain them.
Rather, it stemmed from the turbulent journey, the shock, and the immense shadow of losing their homes and loved ones.
His weary gaze laboriously swept over the innocent faces, now dulled by fear and sorrow. His heart felt as if it were being gripped and twisted by a cold, iron hand, and a suffocating pain, along with an overwhelming sense of self-loathing, surged through him.
Useless… I am utterly useless! I couldn't even protect these weakest lives! Just then—
Da...da da...da da da...
A faint, yet strangely familiar sound, like the beating of hooves on a heart drum, pierced through the thick rock barrier.
The sound, growing louder as it approached, clearly entered the cave!
The sound was coming from the direction of the cave entrance!
Shen Yan suddenly looked up, her heart almost leaping out of her chest!
He struggled to push aside the stalagmites and drooping vines obstructing his view and looked in the direction of the sound—
A familiar figure appeared like a lightning bolt piercing the darkness, riding into the cave entrance through a carefully disguised gap, just wide enough for one rider to pass through!
Ling Zhan!
She brought only two personal guards, Liu Quan and another skilled fighter. The three of them, on horseback, were like three sharp arrows tearing through the shadows, heading straight for the entrance to the Earth Core Camp!
The horse's hooves pounded the solid ground outside the cave, kicking up dust. Despite the dust and weariness of the journey, her sharp aura remained undiminished!
An indescribable surge of joy, mixed with a deep, overwhelming sense of guilt and shame, surged up like magma to the top of Shen Yan's head! He swayed, and almost using both hands and feet, he staggered to his feet, holding the child, and stumbled forward to meet him.
"Ah Zhan!"
His voice was dry and trembling, tinged with a sob and vulnerability he himself was unaware of, like a drowning person clinging to a piece of driftwood, "You...you came in person...I...I'm so sorry...I..."
Ling Zhan nimbly dismounted, his movements clean and efficient.
She did not immediately respond to Shen Yan's broken confession. Her gaze swept across the scene like a cold searchlight—the children's miserable state in a relatively safe environment, the guards' exhaustion, Aunt Wang's forced composure, Shen Yan's disheveled appearance, and the child's cries in her arms.
Her brows furrowed, a cold glint flashing in her eyes. Without the slightest hesitation, her clear and forceful command instantly broke the chaotic stalemate: "Liu Quan! Immediately put the child in the carriage! Make sure to cushion everything, and be extremely gentle! Check for any fever or external injuries! Aunt Wang, prepare warm water, towels, and medicine powder!"
With a sense of reassurance, he said, "There is a temporary shelter in Qixia'ao; it's safe!"
Liu Quan and another guard, as if receiving a military order, quickly stepped forward.
The child in Shen Yan's arms seemed startled by Ling Zhan's cold yet powerful aura, bursting into an even louder wail, its small body struggling and twisting in his embrace. Shen Yan frantically patted and soothed the child, his eyes fixed on Ling Zhan with an almost desperate sincerity and a desperate entrustment: "Ah Zhan, I'm sorry... so sorry... I've dragged everyone down, and especially these children..."
He glanced around at the frightened children, his voice filled with tearing pain and piercing self-reproach, "If it weren't for protecting me, this useless burden... you... you could have handed me over much earlier, more safely... when you couldn't hold on any longer..."
Ling Zhan looked at his bloodshot, sunken eyes, his pale, haggard face covered in dirt, and the way his tattered clothes and disheveled appearance were, yet he still clumsily and lovingly held the child tightly...
It seemed as if this clumsy yet incredibly sincere flame had scorched a tiny but real crack into my heart.
She paused for a moment.
In that brief moment, complex emotions surged and settled in her deep, still eyes.
Finally, she stepped forward, her movements carrying an unexpected, instinctive skill, and naturally reached out to steadily take the crying and struggling little body from Shen Yan's arms.
Her fingertips quickly and precisely probed the child's forehead and neck.
Feel the body temperature and pulse to confirm that there is no abnormal high fever or acute illness.
At the same time, her deep, steady voice rang out, directly crushing Shen Yan's self-sacrificing thoughts.
"Stop with your useless ideas."
Her sharp gaze swept over Shen Yan's face, which was filled with pleading and despair. Her tone was firm and unwavering, "Qixia'ao is our fortress for now. Magistrate Chen is two-faced and greedy, but what he wants is still in our hands. He won't be foolish enough to sell his position just yet. As for the infamous reputation of this 'epidemic zone',"
A cold smile curved her lips. "It's a natural barrier that outsiders dare not easily tread."
The baby's crying in her arms miraculously subsided under her steady embrace and gentle, rhythmic patting.
All that remained were sobs of grievance.
Ling Zhan carefully handed the quiet child to Aunt Wang, who was standing by with bated breath. His gaze returned to Shen Yan's face, carrying a hint of scrutiny, but also a subtle softening caused by the genuine sense of responsibility that Shen Yan was showing at that moment.
“Take the children and come with me into the valley. Aunt Wang knows what to do. You,” she paused, looking at the lingering anxiety and unfathomable weariness in Shen Yan’s eyes, and added, her tone a weighty promise that clearly reached everyone present: “Take care of yourself. As long as I, Ling Zhan, have a breath left, not a single child here will be missing!”
“Qixiaao…”
Shen Yan subconsciously repeated the name, the shadow of the epidemic area instinctively making him frown, a trace of resistance flashing through his heart. However, Ling Zhan's words, "Not a single one will be missing," were like the most blazing beam of light in the cold winter, carrying an undeniable and solid power, instantly dispelling most of the gloom and panic in his heart, pulling his taut, on the verge of collapse nerves back from the edge of the precipice.
He watched Ling Zhan nimbly mount his horse, his back straight as a pine tree, and then watched the children being carefully carried by Liu Quan and Aunt Wang onto the thickly padded carriage as if they were rare treasures—their faint cries were gradually calming down under professional and gentle soothing.
A mixture of extreme exhaustion from surviving a disaster, deep-seated fear, and an indescribable warmth stemming from trust and entrustment slowly welled up in his cold heart.
He walked silently, almost dragging his leaden legs, to Ling Zhan's horse and whispered, "You have dozens of Asura Guards; food supplies alone will be a problem."
“You’ve forgotten that I have the mountain peak, and the produce of the cloud fields is enough to feed all of us.”
Chen Yan fell silent and walked toward the carriage.
Instead of riding a horse, he climbed back into the carriage filled with the scent of children, continuing to watch over those tiny lives. The wheels rolled over the solid ground outside the cave entrance with a dull thud, carrying the last hope as it slowly drove away from this hidden underground sanctuary, heading towards Qixia'ao, a place filled with the smell of medicine and the unknown.
Inside the carriage, Shen Yan leaned against the wall and closed his eyes wearily.
Ling Zhan's last words and gaze echoed repeatedly in his mind. "Not one will be missing... I have Yun Tian."
This promise is like a brand.
He suddenly remembered that Ling Zhan had mentioned unintentionally that when Daoist Xuan Chen was traveling in his early years, he had discovered a huge natural cave system deep in these vast mountains. It was hidden deep underground, with an extremely secret entrance, an underground river providing water, and the caves were dry and well-ventilated, even containing simple stone chambers left by previous inhabitants.
Ling Zhan valued its absolute secrecy and secretly dispatched his most loyal Shura Guard confidants to spend several months transforming it into a backup safe house and training base, stockpiling a considerable amount of food, medicine, weapons, and winter supplies, codenamed "Earth Core Fortress".
That was Ling Zhan's true escape route, one that could handle the worst-case scenario.
Qixia'ao, perhaps, is just a smokescreen, or even a deliberate attempt to evoke the image of an "epidemic area"?
The thought flashed through his mind, but it inexplicably eased the tension in Shen Yan's heart a little.
Ah Zhan... in the end, she was a master strategist.
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