CH 74

The path inside the cave seemed to stretch on endlessly. It was lit by strange bluish light that came from a special luminous stone embedded in the rock walls of the cave. The light was very weak and only illuminated things about a hand’s length in front of it. Chen Ziqi went closer to have a look and discovered that there were tiny words written densely on the rock walls.

“I know what this is!” Yühu exclaimed. Her fingers brushed carefully against the carvings on the walls. The words etched there was something that every member of the Suxin Sect knew – it was the instruction manual for the Taisu Wuxin Gong. On closer inspection, she realised that the instructions on the wall were slightly different from what they learned – there appeared to be some additions to it. 

“What is this place?” Chen Ziqi asked. He hadn’t wandered into the interior of the cave, but remained cautiously near the entrance. If he wasn’t familiar with something, it was likely that the thing was dangerous, and he was someone who always acted cautiously where his personal safety was concerned. He valued his life greatly, after all.

“This is the Suxin Sect’s forbidden area. It’s where the Supreme Abbess has retreated to cultivate in seclusion. But why is it in the Four Corners Ravine? Didn’t Shifu say that it was on the side of Luoyan Peak?” Yühu mused as she studied the carved words on the wall.

The Supreme Abbess was the founder of the Suxin Sect. Yühu had heard many tales about this Supreme Abbess since she was a little girl, and she knew that the Suxin Sect had a secret cave on its grounds, and that it was where the Supreme Abbess cultivated on her own.

“What’s the name of the mountain we’re on right now?” Chen Ziqi asked, looking outside. This Four Corners Ravine was formed by the steep sides of four different mountains. They’d fallen off the Heavenly Fairy Peak earlier, and the mountain that this cave was on had to be a different one. 

“Oh, that’s it – we’re at the back of Luoyan Peak!” Yühu exclaimed. Her eyes hadn’t left the words on the rock wall, and her voice became more hopeful. “Chang Qi gege, we’re saved! This cave definitely has an exit at the front of Luoyan Peak!”

“Aren’t we on a preci… pice?” Chen Ziqi hadn’t finished speaking when Yühu suddenly channeled her qi and used qinggong to run into the depths of the cave. He immediately felt that something wasn’t right. “Yühu!” he shouted. He tried to catch hold of her, but it was too late. Yühu’s qinggong wasn’t anything to speak of, but her current speed was like that of a speeding falcon.

“She’s lost control of her neili,” Dan Yi said, his voice suddenly sounding beside Chen Ziqi’s ear.

Chen Ziqi turned and saw that the little red bird, who had originally been perched on his shoulder, was now standing next to him in human form wearing scarlet robes, casually reading the words carved into the stone wall.

“Don’t read it!” Chen Ziqi exclaimed, quickly reaching out to cover Dan Yi’s eyes. He pulled Dan Yi over. Yühu had been staring intently at these words for a long time before she lost control, and Dan Yi’s Danyang Divine Martial Arts wasn’t stable – what if he also lost control of his neili?

“I’ll be fine,” Dan Yi said. Chen Ziqi’s hand was comfortably cool against his eyelids, and Dan Yi felt a sense of reluctance as he slowly pulled Chen Ziqi’s hand away. His lips accidentally brushed against the latter’s soft palm as he did so. “This is the last chapter of the Taisu Wuxin Gong’s instruction manual.”

Chen Ziqi trembled a little when those warm lips brushed against his palm. He stole a quick look at Dan Yi’s slender, well-formed lips, and he felt his heart flutter like crazy in his chest. He started trying to think of a good reason to give Dan Yi as to why they had to be intimate that very night after they got back to the Cloud Palace. If he kissed Dan Yi in a moment of passion, Dan Yi probably wouldn’t mind… right?

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The Taisu Wuxin Gong was one of the most powerful martial arts in the martial arts world, but it had a lower barrier to entry than most. This low barrier to entry meant that all the Suxin Sect disciples could cultivate it to some degree, but gongfa that had low barriers to entry always suffered from the same issue – it took a very long time to reach the higher levels of cultivation, and many Suxin Sect disciples never attained more than the third level of cultivation during their lifetimes.

“Even that old nun Wuyin hasn’t tried to cultivate this last chapter of the Taisu Wuxin Gong. Her martial arts ability is too weak, and she would lose her mind if she even tried to recite the first few lines,” Dan Yi said in an unhurried manner. He signalled to the black-clad men to copy down the writing on the rock wall, then took Chen Ziqi’s hand in his and walked deeper into the cave.

“They even brought brushes to write with?!” Chen Ziqi asked, turning back to look at them curiously. One of the black-clad men had pulled out brushes, paper and a little bottle of black ink, and they were studiously copying every word down.

“The Eagle Wing is in charge of carrying messages, so of course they all carry brushes and paper with them,” Dan Yi said blandly. Eagles and falcons were the means by which the Cloud Palace obtained information and passed information at high speed. Some messages were very complicated and had to be written down; it wouldn’t be accurate to rely solely on the messenger’s memory. 

Even after they walked deeper into the cave, they didn’t start feeling suffocated, which meant that there had to be another exit from the cave somewhere further in. This knowledge didn’t make the cave any less frightening to walk in, however – it was dark, and water dripped ominously from some unknown source.

“Yühu! Yühu…” Chen Ziqi yelled into the dark depths of the cave. He didn’t receive any reply other than the echo of his own voice. After turning two corners, it suddenly became brighter. Natural light filtered in from an opening high up on the cave ceiling, shining down on a stone door in front of them. The stone door was ajar, and it seemed that someone had already slipped inside.

The black-clad men went forward to push the door open, revealing a spacious stone room behind the door. There was a table and chairs inside the room which were all made of stone, and beautiful floral patterns were carved into the stone furniture. This place must have been where the founder of the Suxin Sect locked herself into seclusion a hundred years ago. Chen Ziqi looked all around and saw Yühu slumped in a corner. He was about to go to her when Dan Yi pulled him back.

“What’s wrong?” Chen Ziqi asked, turning to look at him. 

Dan Yi extended two fingers and brushed them hard against the tabletop. He then lifted them for Chen Ziqi to see. There was no dust on his fingers at all.

Chen Ziqi got a shock. If there was no dust, then someone must have lived here until very recently, or was still here right now! However, other than them and the unconscious Yühu, it didn’t seem that there was anyone here, nor did there appear to be a second exit. In that case…

Every last hair on Chen Ziqi’s body stood up suddenly. He slowly raised his eyes toward the ceiling, and his pupils suddenly shrank in fear. “Dan Yi!” he screamed.

An old woman with pure white hair and thin, gnarled limbs was hanging upside down from the uneven domed ceiling of the cave, staring at them unblinkingly with bright eyes. 

The moment Chen Ziqi screamed, that old witch suddenly extended her arms like a bat and flew at them.

Dan Yi took a half-step forward at once, putting himself between her and Chen Ziqi. He raised an arm to block the old witch’s blow.

“BAM!”

The old witch’s body somersaulted backward, and she leapt onto the stone table as fast as lightning. 

Dan Yi retreated a half-step back and somehow managed to steady himself. He pressed his lips together, trying to push down the qi and blood that was roiling in his body and threatening to spurt out of his mouth. He looked down at his palm and slowly clenched his hand into a fist.

The two appraised each other for a moment, and the old witch suddenly laughed in a strange manner. “Hyak hyak hyak! Where are you from, little brat? Did you know that men are not allowed in the Suxin Sect?” she said.

“We fell into the ravine by accident. We had no intention of barging into the sect. Qianbei, please forgive us if we have given offence,” Chen Ziqi said, tugging on Dan Yi’s hand and transfusing some neili into him to try and settle the roiling qi in his body. He could tell that Dan Yi wasn’t able to defeat this weird old witch, and they couldn’t take a tough stance with her.

“Hahaha, it doesn’t matter whether you had intentions or not. Since you’re here now, don’t even think about leaving!” the old witch cackled. She waved a hand, and the half-open stone door suddenly shut behind them. She slunk over to Yühu’s side, moving so quickly that her motions seemed ghostly. She examined Yühu carefully for a moment and saw that she was wearing the uniform of a third-generation Suxin Sect disciple. She looked back up at the young men. “Why are you people with one of my Suxin Sect disciples?” she asked. 

This old witch seemed to be off her rocker. Her hatred for men was plain for all to see, and Chen Ziqi and Dan Yi had to tread very carefully. Chen Ziqi inhaled sharply through his teeth as he tried to think of how to answer this question, and as he did so, Yühu suddenly woke up.

“Mmph…” Yühu pushed herself up groggily, then looked around her. When she saw the old witch squatting next to her, she subconsciously drew back in shock and looked at Chen Ziqi. “Chang Qi gege, what’s going on?” she asked.

Chen Ziqi cursed inwardly. That old witch indeed fixed her gaze on him immediately, then caught hold of Yühu’s chin. “My good child, I am Wuyin’s Shifu and your Supreme Abbess. Tell me, is that your lover?” she asked, pointing a withered finger that looked like a chicken claw at Chen Ziqi.

Yühu was frightened out of her wits and couldn’t speak. 

“Qianbei, this must be a misunderstanding. She is my younger sister,” Chen Ziqi said quickly. To prove his point further, he circled an arm around Dan Yi’s waist. “This is the one who’s my lover.”

—

The author has something to say: Mini-theatre

Birdie Gong: She won’t believe you no matter what you say 

Qiqi: Then what should I do?

Birdie Gong: You should kiss me to prove it

Old Witch: Uh, no, that’s not…

Qiqi: (—3—） 

Birdie Gong: She probably still won’t believe it

Old Witch: I believe it

Qiqi: Then what should we do?

Birdie Gong: Let’s take it one step further 

Qiqi: Oh-kay~ _(:з」∠*)_ I’m ready

Old Witch: Hello?!