When dinner time arrived, Mu Qingge specially had the royal chef whom the emperor had granted to her, prepare several exquisite dishes and served fine wine to privately entertain her beloved disciple, Qin Xuanjiu.
Qin Xuanjiu had been waiting for such an opportunity to see his Master alone! As they drank together, Mu Qingge tentatively asked him why she had sent him here in the first place. Qin Xuanjiu immediately couldn't wait to say, "Master, I was just about to explain it to you in detail. Have you forgotten? You sent me here to…"
Mu Qingge handed him a cup of wine, leaned forward slightly, and smiled, "Yes, I sent you here to..."
She patiently prompted him, but the bearded pockmarked man before her was as if he had been struck in his acupoint, staring round-eyed and drawing out his words, "Yes, you sent me here to…"
This back and forth continued for a while, even though Mu Qingge usually had a good temper, Qin Xuanjiu's antics irritated her, and she couldn't help but set down her wine cup heavily, saying sharply, "General Qin, are you playing tricks on me?"
Qin Xuanjiu banged his head against the table, then fell to his knees and cried, "Master, how could I dare play tricks on you? I just don't know if I've been drinking too much recently, my memory isn't very good, I vaguely remember something, but I just can't recall it…"
When he said this, Mu Qingge had nothing to say in response. After all, everyone has a bad memory. This disciple being as forgetful as his master, no one can be blamed more than the other.
However, Mu Qingge suspected that he was deliberately hiding something, dangling it in front of her without revealing it.
In a fit of anger, the just warmed up relationship between master and disciple suddenly turned cold. Qin Xuanjiu didn't even get to taste a bite of the royal cuisine before he was unceremoniously sent away.
Feeling frustrated, Qin wanted to go and ask Su Yishui, as he remembered mentioning something to Su, hoping Su could remind him of what it was.
But when he arrived at the small courtyard where Su Yishui and others from Xishan resided, the courtyard was empty, with only a laboriously prepared Five-spice Pig Trotters still simmering on the stove…
Meanwhile, Su Yishui and everyone else, returned to prepare in the courtyard after meeting Mu Qingge during the day.
These past two days, Yu Chen, under Su Yishui's orders, had brought a lot of dry straw, and then he led the few juniors to make straw men.
After the straw men were made, Su Yishui affixed the Activation talismans Ranran had obtained from Elder Jiu to the chests of the straw men. These straw men, like the ones planting the fields below Cuiwei Mountain, could now act upon commands.
completely shatters. However, its power fluctuates like the tides with the waxing and waning of the moon. I originally planned to wait until the end of the month when its power wanes before acting. But now, people from Jiuhua Sect have also arrived, so we have to take the risk and act in the *middle of the month."
Ranran whispered, "Will its power also weaken in the middle of the month?"
Su Yishui shook his head, "The Spirit Spring will rise in the middle of the month, it will be at the peak of its powers…"
*Middle of the month is 15th, with full moon which is when the Yin is the strongest
The disciples were immediately dumbfounded, looking at each other in shock. Dealing with a normal village woman who had been mutated by the Spirit Spring was already terrifying enough, and now they had to deal with the main entity. It seemed like an impossible task!
Qiu Xier choked up, almost in tears. Fortunately, their master spoke again, "Don't worry, it's been sealed for a long time, with limited abilities and no physical form. As long as you keep your mind steady and don't get bewitched by it, everything will be fine. What you all need to do is spread out and find the location of the Spirit Spring. Once it's confirmed, I'll deal with it alone."
After he said this, the disciples all let out a collective sigh of relief.
After groping around in the dark for a while, the carriage arrived at the military platform fifty li (25km) away from Wangxiang Pass.
*里 is 500 meters
Su Yishui took out a compass similar to those used by Feng Shui ( geomancy ) masters and distributed them to the disciples, teaching them how to use it before they dispersed.
It was said that the late Emperor of Daqi had once deployed troops and generals here to stabilize the northwest for thousands of miles. So, besides its practical function, this military platform also held a particularly sacred significance. Even when the current emperor was still a Prince, he had personally come here to reward the troops.
Over the years, this place had been regularly maintained. Even though the northwest was covered in yellow sand, the wooden painted surface of this platform still looked new.
This place could accommodate a thousand troops and horses, so it was quite spacious. Besides the platform for reviewing troops, there was also a pavilion for military officers to rest. Nearby was a small kitchen where Yue'e and the other women cooked.
Holding the compass, Ranran unconsciously walked towards the pavilion.
The pavilion was built grandly and exquisitely, in stark contrast to the rough and majestic architectural style of the northwest. It seemed to have been built to highlight the grandeur of the emperor's personal expedition.
Ranran stared at it fascinatingly and said, tilting her head at the building, "Shifu, the style and carvings of this building are quite similar to the houses on our West Mountain, aren't they?"
Su Yishui glanced at her coldly, his gaze strangely fierce for some reason.
Ranran suddenly remembered what her second uncle master had said. The houses on West Mountain seemed to have been built by the little prince Su Yu, for Mu Qingge while she was out traveling, at considerable cost.
And this place… It was said that Mu Qingge had also come here with the little prince to inspect troops… Mu Qingge loved indulgence, so could it be that this tall building was also specially built by the little prince for Mu Qingge's extravagant tastes?
Ranran thought of how her master detested extravagance and waste, so she immediately stopped talking. However, from this perspective, the Emperor really valued talent! With such privileged treatment, it's no wonder Mu Qingge was willing to help him.
Just then, Su Yishui led her to the right side of the military platform. He closed his eyes suddenly, and at the same time, grabbed Ranran's slender arm tightly.
Ranran had unintentionally glanced at her master earlier. At the moment before he closed his eyes, there seemed to be a flash of red light in them. So even though her master grabbed her arm firmly, she didn't dare to struggle, only asking softly, "Shifu… Are you not feeling well?"
After a while, Su Yishui finally opened his eyes, which were as clear as they have always been. He let go of her arm, looked at Ranran's slightly reddened wrist, frowned slightly, and then asked, "Does it hurt?"
Ranran didn't want her master to feel guilty, so even though she felt a searing pain on her wrist, she shook her head and smiled, saying it was nothing.
While everyone else was unloading the straw men from the carriage, Su Yishui handed Ranran a talisman made of cinnabar and gold lines.
"If I show any signs of abnormality and the situation goes out of control, you must stick this talisman between my eyes….. No, stick it on yourself."
Ranran had her mouth half open, not understanding, "Can this talisman ward off evil spirits?"
Su Yishui nodded briefly, saying briefly, "If I'm ever controlled, you all should leave quickly."
Ranran said in a small voice, "I will never leave Shifu behind… If you're ever controlled, I'll find a chance to stick the talisman on you."
But she still felt worried, "Shifu, if even you could be bewitched, we who have shallow cultivation, won't we be even more vulnerable? I'm afraid I…"
Before Ranran could finish, Su Yishui interrupted her doubts, "Evil arises from the mind and will magnify the host's desires infinitely. Pure minds cannot be manipulated. You have a pure mind clear as a mirror, there's nothing to be afraid of?" For some reason, Su Yishui seemed very certain.
Although praised by her master, Ranran still felt something was off. If she had nothing to fear, wouldn't her Shifu, who has higher cultivation and lived in seclusion without desires, have even less to fear?
She couldn't help but feel that her master was very wary of that Soul Hosting Stone.
But her master's caution made sense. Since the demonic cultivator Wei Jiu was doing everything possible to obtain the Spirit Spring. And Mu Qingge had been targeted just for possessing it, so this Spirit Spring must be very powerful.
Just then, Su Yishui handed her an exquisite short staff with a button in the center. Su Yishui motioned for her to press it, and immediately, the staff extended like Sun Wukong's Golden Cudgel, becoming longer.
"This staff had been made by an old acquaintance of mine. The shaft is made of ancient green iron. You hold onto it for self-defense."
Ranran took the staff, about to say something, but her master went straight to the front of the military platform.
The strongest fluctuations in aura is in this spot, so it should be here.
He circled around the military platform a few times and quickly found something amiss.
The military platform was built of stones with large wooden boards on top. However, under the light of their torches and careful observation, one could see that the color of several stones in the west corner of the military platform were slightly different from the surrounding stones, obviously patched later.
Yu Chen took the pickaxe from the carriage and aimed it at those stones, swinging it down. With his natural strength, it didn't take long before the stones shattered.
When nearly half of it was smashed open, it was indeed hollow inside. When the broken stones fell in, it actually took a long while before a sound could be heard as they hit the ground, indicating how deep the hole was.
As the opening widened, the foul air dissipated, replaced by cold wind, and a whistling sound came through, sending shivers down everyone's spine.
Qiu Xier was a little scared, but fortunately, Shifu said they did not need to go down below. That dark hole was really frightening.
Su Yishui held a torch and without using the rope ladder tied to the entrance, jumped straight down.
Everyone else sat on the high platform of the military platform, waiting quietly.
Since Su Yishui went in, the howling sound from the hole seemed to lessen. Yu Chen and Yu Tong, the two siblings, squatted at the entrance, nervously waiting for their master's update.
After about *the time it would take for an incense stick to burn, Yu Chen couldn't help but stick his head in to ask, "Master, have you landed safely?"
*about 30 minutes on average
But all that came in response was the sound of whistling wind. Just as Yu Chen was about to shout again, a leisurely voice came from the hole, "I've landed, you can come on down!"
Yu Chen asked again, "Master, do you want Yu Tong and me to come down?"
The voice from the hole replied, "Everyone, come down!"
With the master's command, the rest of them climbed down the rope ladder tied to the wooden stake at the cave entrance.
First was Yu Chen, followed by Gao Cang and Bai Baishan.
After Bai Baishan descended for a while, he shouted downwards, "Master, is it safe down there?"
Soon, Su Yishui's voice came from the cave, "Hurry up, don't dawdle!"
Upon hearing the master's voice, Yu Chen sped up and was the first to land. However, when the other two landed, they were bewildered.
With torches in their hands, they looked around and found an empty cave with no one in sight. Su Yishui, for some reason, was nowhere to be found…
Meanwhile, on the surface, Ranran was originally sitting near the steps of the high platform with the third senior sister.
The cold night wind from the northwest was very chilling. Ranran, having experience guarding by the river, had bought a small hand warmer in town. She lit charcoal pieces, put them in a round copper box, then wrapped it in a thick cotton bag and tucked it into her arms for warmth.
After all, one must be fully prepared with a Shifu who likes to give surprise tests. She wouldn't be surprised at all if their Shifu decided to throw them into a graveyard to test their courage one day…
Just as she was lost in her thoughts, the master's voice suddenly came from the cave, ordering them all to go down. Their Senior Uncle Master had already gone down with the two seniors.
Qiu Xier's expression fell upon hearing the master's command. With a slightly tearful voice, she said, "Shifu, I'm feeling unwell. Can I wait here for you guys?"
"No! Come down quickly!" Su Yishui's voice became stern, and seems very impatient.
Yu Tong hurried over to the two female disciples and said, "The Master wants us to go down. It must be because there aren't enough people. Let's hurry and not hold up important matters."
Since second uncle master said so, Qiu Xier had no choice but to follow along. She could only shuffle slowly to the cave entrance and then said to Ranran, "Stay behind me. Being sandwiched between you and second uncle master will make me feel more at ease."
Ranran nodded and was the last to descend into the cave.
Because she was holding a small torch, Ranran descended a little slower than the others. By the time she landed, she shone the torch around but saw no one else.
Ranran tentatively called out, "Shifu, Second Uncle Master!"
But after calling several times, there was no response at all. The cave was eerily silent as if no one had ever been there.
Taking a deep breath, Ranran tried to calm herself down. She illuminated the cave with her torch and carefully inspected it.
The walls around the cave were damp, and further ahead was a dark passage with only the sound of dripping water. After thinking for a moment, Ranran turned around and prepared to climb back up the rope ladder. But just then, Su Yishui's voice came from behind her again.
"Come over here this way." Obviously, he wanted Ranran to enter the pitch-black passage.
However, this time Ranran didn't immediately go over. She hesitated for a moment before asking him, "Shifu, why can't I see you all? Where did Second Uncle Master and the others go?"
At this moment, the voices of Yu Tong and Qiu Xier came from the dark passage, "Hurry up and come over, it's just you left… Why are you so slow?"
Ranran hesitated and took a step forward, then asked Qiu Xier, "Third Senior Sister, it's so dark. I'm a little scared…"
Qiu Xier impatiently said, "What's there to be afraid of? Hurry up and come in!"
Ranran said "Okay" and turned around to grab the rope ladder, ready to climb up with all her strength. When she was heading into the cave earlier, Qiu Xier was so scared that she almost wet herself. Why was she now urging her on as if nothing had happened?
Ranran couldn't see anyone else and felt something was wrong. Her intuition tells her to climb up first, get Qin Xuanjiu to bring soldiers to rescue them. Otherwise, if she perished in the cave as well, they will be completely wiped out.
But as she climbed the rope ladder, she suddenly felt her body falling straight down, as if an invisible force was pulling her into the dark passage.
In the moment Ranran was being pulled down, she took out the talisman Shifu had given her, and regardless of consequences, turned herself around and struck at what was dragging her from behind.
Her Light Body Technique was now most accomplished and her body was very light. She swiftly turned in mid-air while hitting out with the talisman in one smooth move.
As the talisman struck something, there was a "crack" sound, and sparks actually flew as if something had been repelled by the talisman. With a mournful and eerie scream, accompanied by a gust of foul wind, whatever it was disappeared.
Still shaken, Ranran picked up the talisman that had been blown away by the wind and was about to continue climbing the ladder when her feet were entangled again. This time, the force and speed were even more ferocious, not giving Ranran a chance to react, and she was once again dragged into the dark passage.
The pulling force on Ranran paused for a moment, but then it began to increase again.
At this critical moment, Ranran decided to take a risk and try the Demon-Subduing Technique Shifu had taught her.
She closed her eyes, focused her mind and loudly recited the incantation while gripping the stick tightly. Her clear voice echoed repeatedly in the dark passage, gradually emitting a dim golden light. Ranran finally broke free from the pulling force and, at the same time, kicked off the cave wall and barely escaped from the dark passage.
But as she tried to climb up to the cave entrance once more, the cave suddenly collapsed, completely sealing it.
At that moment, a voice came from the dark passage again, but it was the voice of her mother, Qiao Lian, calling out, "Quick, save me! Help! Save me!"
The voice was unmistakably her mother's. Ranran's palms sweated, struggling to make a decision.
In the end, she wrapped the golden talisman around the stick, held the spring-loaded stick tightly, and then sat cross-legged on the ground, as if she were meditating back at their Xishan grass hall.
Shifu had said that demons arise from the mind. Since she was convinced that these voices were deceitful, she must not let them disturb her mind. Since she couldn't escape anyway, meditating was the best way to keep her composure!
Ranran's current meditation skill and her ability to step on lotus leaves were techniques that have advanced to a higher level. In just a moment, she entered the realm of "Returning to the Void".
Although her eyes were closed, she was already attuned with the heavens and earth, and every pore on her body could sense the subtle changes in the air.
When a gust of wind attacked, the staff with the talisman attached to it flipped along her wrist and accurately struck back. As the gusts of wind came from all directions, Ranran's wrist moved quickly, and her staff danced.
This staff, crafted by an unknown expert, had two heads that changed direction with the force. For a moment, it formed a dense web shield around Ranran, giving a sense of impregnability.
Just then, the voice that had been calling Ranran with different voices suddenly changed again, roaring like a furious beast, "Why are you so uncontrollable? I can't tempt you at all!"
This time, the voice was rough and hoarse, just like the voice Mu Yue'e used before she died.
Ranran remained silent, only gripping the staff with both hands, appearing completely focused.
The voice became increasingly frantic, akin to an enraged man cursing loudly. Strangely, when footsteps splashed through water in the dark passage, the voice abruptly stopped.
Ranran still kept her eyes closed, but when she felt someone approaching, she continued to strike with the staff.
Except this time, her staff was accurately grabbed by someone, and with a skillful move, she was pulled into their embrace.
Ranran let out a low cry and had to open her eyes.
When she looked closely, she saw that the one who had pulled her into their arms was… her Shifu, Su Yishui. However, he seemed to have fallen into water just now, so he appeared drenched from head to toe. Water was trickling down his straight nose, landing on Ranran's face.
Although her Shifu was wet, still as handsome as ever, but Ranran noticed the redness in his pupils… just like the possessed villager Mu Yue'e.
She tried to break free from his embrace but found herself tightly held by arms with an iron grip, unable to escape. She could only warily ask, "Who… are you?"
But her Shifu remained silent, his gaze… was indescribably frightening. Ranran finally understood what Qiu Xier meant when she said Shifu's gaze was terrifying. Staring into his eyes, she felt a chilling shiver to her core.
The golden talisman was still wrapped around the staff. Ranran tried her best to move her hands to the back and noiselessly removed the talisman, holding it in her hand in case of need.
Suddenly, Su Yishui lowered his head, getting closer to Ranran's face, looking as if he wanted to devour her in one bite or do something else.
Ranran did her best to tilt her head away, but her lips accidentally brushed against her Shifu's cheek… She clearly felt his body stiffen, seemingly uncomfortable by this affront…
So when her Shifu turned to look at her, she said with some tears in her eyes, "Shifu, I didn't mean to…" But after this accidental kiss, Su Yishui's grip on her seemed to loosen slightly.
Seizing the opportunity, Ranran suddenly reached out and stuck the golden talisman on her Shifu's forehead. As the talisman took effect, she could see the redness in her master's eyes slowly dissipating.