96 Going up the mountain
◎Our home. ◎
Ying Jianhua had once imagined what Dengxian Mountain, the number one immortal sect in the world, would look like. According to Du Zhijin's description, it had endless peaks, and even if one were accidentally sliced off by sword energy, it wouldn't matter. Therefore, it must not be on the mainland of Kyushu, because every mountain here has an owner and cannot be squandered at will.
He preferred a secluded paradise on an overseas island, surrounded by water on all sides. The island would be a place of rolling mountains, lush vegetation, and playful birds and flowers—a true Shangri-La. After hearing his idea, Du Zhijin kept him in suspense for a moment: "Hmm...you'll see for yourself."
His guess wasn't entirely wrong; Mount Dengxian was indeed overseas, but that was a place no ship could reach. Looking down from the sword, the vast expanse of water shimmered with golden light, the sky and water merging into one color. A person within it was like a grain of sand in the ocean, insignificant and unimaginable.
However, this extraordinary sight was not the most surprising to him. Du Zhijin placed his hands in front of his chest and formed a hand seal. A white light burst forth, and then the calm sea began to surge, as if countless untamed divine steeds were galloping from the seabed, splashing waves a hundred feet high, covering the sky and reflecting the sun.
Suddenly, darkness enveloped everything as the giant wave completely obscured the sun. This was the first time Ying Jianhua had experienced anything like this; a slight panic gripped her, and she instinctively grabbed the sleeve of the person in front of her.
Then he heard a low laugh, and belatedly realized he was annoyed. He let go of her hand in shame and anger and turned his head to the side.
Feeling the force pulling on his sleeve disappear, Du Zhijin blinked, his mind shifting as he changed his hand seals. Suddenly, the previously straight waves became erratic, even deliberately emerging from both sides of the sword. Another wave, comparable in height to a mountain, crashed in, enveloping Zuilan and the two people above it in a pincer attack. Zuilan let out a long cry, as if as a warning, and then the wave surged forward, the sword wobbling, he stumbled, and unexpectedly fell forward, landing in a familiar embrace.
Du Zhijin's cheerful voice came from above: "You wouldn't let me hold your hand just now, but now you're throwing yourself into my arms. Young Master Ying, you change your tune so quickly."
These past few days she'd been calling him "Amo," and Ying Jianhua had gotten used to it. But now, suddenly she called him "Young Master Ying"... He realized that her flirtatious behavior earlier was intentional. He straightened up abruptly, glaring at her and demanding, "Where did you learn all this stuff?"
He discovered that she was no longer the dullard she used to be; she had started to go astray!
Under his menacing gaze, Du Zhijin nervously touched the book hidden in his clothes and pretended to be calm, saying, "No... I'm self-taught and have extraordinary talent."
Before leaving, she made a special trip to the city's bookstore to buy the latest issue of the "Overbearing Immortal" series! There's nothing like that in the mountains.
Seeing his disbelief, Du Zhijin had no choice but to change the subject: "Hey, Amo, look! The mountain gate is open!"
After the storm subsided, a rainbow slowly rose from the horizon where the sky met the water. The clouds were radiant, the sea shimmered, and layers of beautiful light spread between the sky and the sea, both intense and gentle.
Above the colorful ribbon, a mountain peak rises abruptly into the sky, seemingly holding up the sun, inspiring awe and fear. Further up, halfway up the mountain, clouds and mist swirl, and there stands an ancient stone gate, with two characters carved on its left and right sides: "Easy to Handle".
"Ordinary" originally meant commonplace, but the disciples in the sect were all extraordinary people.
He suddenly realized that even if ordinary people stumbled upon it, they would probably think it was just a mirage and miss it. But if they persisted in pursuing it, they might have the opportunity to join the immortal sect.
Du Zhijin urged Zui Lan to carry them through the clouds to the mountain gate. As Ying Jianhua wondered how to open the heavy stone door, she summoned Xingyue, and together with Zui Lan, they shrunk their twin swords to the size of index fingers and embedded them into the groove on the right side of the stone door.
The two swords fit perfectly into the groove, and then the door opened, revealing a quiet, winding path that led nowhere.
Her homeland was so close, yet she hesitated. Ying Jianhua glanced at her questioningly, then noticed... that she had blushed, a rare occurrence for her.
He immediately remembered being tricked earlier and snorted, "Miss Mu, you change your expression very quickly."
Du Zhijin's cheeks flushed even more. She rubbed her face as if to encourage herself, and after a moment she finally made up her mind and said to him, "Amo, this is... my home."
He was taken aback by these words, his face blank for a moment. Just as Du Zhijin was inwardly annoyed that he might have said something wrong, his lips moved.
"You're wrong. From now on, this is our home."
She froze, then smiled and nodded emphatically: "Yes, our family."
————
“My master, also known as the Venerable Gu Zhang, was a recluse, so there was no one else within a fifty-mile radius, and it belonged to her alone. Also, because I was her only disciple, after she passed away, there were only us here.”
Fifty li in radius? Ying Jianhua gestured to himself in his mind and was surprised to find that it was actually the size of a county town.
His home used to be just a narrow room, but now it has become a city.
After entering Dengxian Mountain, Du Zhijin stopped using her sword and started walking. As she walked, she introduced the mountain to him, but her introduction was rather rambling, just saying whatever came to mind: "There's a hot spring on that mountain. You can soak in it when you feel cold in winter; it's said to cure all diseases. The mountain behind has several caves. My master said they're all just gray rocks inside, nothing special, but they're cool in summer, perfect for escaping the heat. The mountain on the left is lush with grass and forests, full of plants, and in spring, it's covered in wildflowers, quite a delight. As for that barren mountain on the right... well, you should probably avoid it if you don't have anything else to do."
"Why?" Ying Jianhua asked with interest. He could tell that Du Zhijin was not secretive and wanted to tell him everything good, which made this one mountain that was forbidden to approach seem particularly out of place.
Upon hearing this, a complex expression appeared on her face, specifically three parts anger, three parts annoyance, and four parts helplessness. This made Ying Jianhua even more curious: who exactly was this person who could render the number one swordsman helpless?
He met him very soon.
Du Zhijin sighed, "Don't even mention it. That's Monkey Mountain, inhabited by a bunch of unruly monkeys. Every time we run into them... Hey! Don't pull my hair!" As soon as she finished speaking, a yellow figure darted out of the woods, plucked a lock of her hair with lightning speed, and then quickly darted back into the forest, moving so fast that it was impossible for the human eye to catch it.
However, Du Zhijin still recognized who the newcomer was—her nemesis, the monkey from Monkey Mountain.
"Ha, it seems they've grown quite bold while I was away." The joy of returning to her homeland with her Daoist companion was immediately overshadowed by the appearance of these monkeys. She ground her back teeth, drew her sword, and chased after them, returning in no time with a sword in one hand and a monkey in the other.
Even the monkey wouldn't stay still in her hands, baring its teeth and brandishing its claws, truly deserving the title of "mischievous monkey."
Finally, someone was willing to listen to her grief and indignation. Du Zhijin said impatiently, "Look! This is the guy! I remember him. He has a bald patch on his forehead. He's called Baldy."
When "Baldy" heard her call him that, it opened its mouth and started howling and cursing, making Du Zhijin wonder if it was using all the knowledge it had to curse her.
Ying Jianhua actually found the little monkey's fluffy texture rather cute, but the bald patch detracted from its overall appearance, so she asked, "How did it get bald?"
She suddenly stopped talking, while the little monkey cried out even louder!
He glanced at the indignant monkey, then at the guilty man, and suddenly a thought popped into his head: "Could it be that you're the one who made him bald?"
"Squeak!" The monkeys readily agreed as soon as he suggested the possibility.
Stared at by four eyes—one from a human and one from a monkey—Du Zhijin's momentum waned. He slowly lowered the hand holding the monkey and muttered a defense for himself, "That was an accident... I had just obtained my two natal swords and wasn't quite attuned to Xingyue Zuilan yet. I accidentally swung the swords." "Squeak! Squeak squeak squeak!"
When the monkey was reminded of its sad past, it struggled more violently, accompanied by loud squeaking and even a faint sob.
Is she crying?
Ying Jianhua was greatly shocked. As expected of a monkey from the immortal sect, it had even gained sentience.
"So, it turns out you were in the wrong. You plucked its fur out, that's one mistake; you nicknamed it 'Baldy,' that's another. You should apologize to the bald... cough, monkey, both morally and logically."
He almost got carried away and shouted "bald man" too, but luckily he stopped at the last moment, otherwise it would have been another round of human-monkey war.
Du Zhijin really wanted to say that they had retaliated quite a bit over the years, but he felt that saying it would damage his image, so he could only loosen his restraints, bow and clasp his hands, and reluctantly say to the monkey, "Brother Monkey, I'm sorry."
The monkey turned its head away from her, refusing to look at her, and let out a loud "squeak," clearly showing that it didn't appreciate her gesture.
"Look, Amo! This mischievous monkey is pushing his luck!" Finally finding an opportunity to expose the monkey's true colors, she quickly said.
Ying Jianhua thought for a moment, then raised the monkey's paw with one hand and held Du Zhijin's hand with the other, placing them together one above the other: "Alright, we've been neighbors for many years. Today I'll be your witness. From now on, no one is allowed to call the monkey by its nickname, and the monkey is not allowed to grab anyone's hair. Let's settle our grudges here. Shake hands and make peace, shall we?"
The monkey glanced at the man, and the man glared back at the monkey. Although they were still resentful, for some reason they didn't lash out and instead obediently "shaked hands and made peace."
That evening, because they had returned in a hurry, the two stayed in the room Du Zhijin had lived in as a child. The small bed was already too narrow for an adult, let alone two, so Du Zhijin offered to sleep on the floor. But—
She looked at the person on the bed, lightly dressed and with tender eyes, and silently put away the bedding on the floor.
They're already in relationships, why are they sleeping on the floor! Why are they meditating! Are they even women anymore!
Ying Jianhua thought that since there was no one within a fifty-mile radius, he could do whatever he wanted. However, just as he put his arm around Du Zhijin's waist, the voice of an uninvited guest sounded from outside the window.
"Squeak! Squeak!"
monkey?
He gritted his teeth, suddenly regretting his actions during the day. That monkey was ungrateful!
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