Chapter 8: A Specialty in Mutually Assured Destruction.
The path ahead was a series of dilapidated stone steps, scarred with the marks of weapons. In the gaps, one could see the large bones of beasts, clearly the mounts of other clans. Occasionally, human bones were visible; evidently, when those cultivators invaded Jiuyi Mountain back then, the casualties were not few.
Yan Jingyu frowned slightly, looking again at Liao Chen’s figure. A realization slowly dawned on him. “Your purpose in coming to Hutian was to destroy the teleportation array, so that Jiuyi Mountain could never be known to the world again?”
If that were the case, Yan Jingyu could understand. Even if one’s entire clan was annihilated, no one would want their ancestral grounds to be made public, to become a secret realm for others to explore.
“You know too much.” This time, Liao Chen’s tone wasn’t casual. He turned his head to look at him. Yan Jingyu’s heart tightened as he heard him continue, “The entrance to Jiuyi Mountain is protected by a formation. I need to seal your sight and hearing, lest you learn the method to break it and it becomes a future problem.”
“…I’m already like this. How could I possibly harm you?” he said subconsciously. “Besides, everyone knows the entrance to Jiuyi Mountain can only be opened with the heart’s blood of a phoenix. This is completely unnece—”
Yan Jingyu’s world suddenly plunged into darkness. He couldn’t hear or smell anything, as if his entire being had been locked in a sealed cage—
A familiar cage.
He forced himself to remain calm, standing in place, feeling as if time around him had slowed to a crawl. He knew that if Liao Chen wanted to take him inside, he would surely come and pull him. But he waited for a long time, and the other man never came.
“Liao Chen?”
No one answered.
Yan Jingyu clenched his fingers, waited patiently for a while longer, and then spoke a second time, “Liao Chen?”
He knew he was speaking, but he couldn’t hear even a whisper of his own voice.
This is Liao Chen’s revenge…
The thought had just surfaced when it was immediately dismissed. If Liao Chen truly wanted revenge, he could have taken his five senses and thrown him anywhere. There was no need to go to such great lengths to bring him here.
He’s being cautious.
Having figured this out, Yan Jingyu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He had already become like this, yet Liao Chen not only sealed his five senses but also left him here while he went to open the entrance alone.
Was he afraid he would cause trouble? Or was he afraid that his five senses hadn’t truly been taken away? Or was he worried he would find some other way to remember the path?
Yan Jingyu couldn’t help but wonder again just how deep a psychological scar he had left on Liao Chen back then to make him so paranoid.
He stood for a while, then began to grope his way to the side. His remaining sense of touch became his only reliance.
He first touched some prickly deadwood, then a smooth stone wall. As he tried to walk in that direction, he suddenly realized something was wrong. It didn’t seem to be an ordinary stone, but rather the skeleton of some animal.
Yan Jingyu pulled his hand back and stood blankly for a while. Finally, he felt a tug. He tilted his head slightly, his vacant eyes staring blankly at the other person. He didn’t know if the other had said anything, because he couldn’t hear a thing, but he had already started to follow him forward again.
The path under his feet seemed to grow more difficult. Yan Jingyu stumbled along, feeling as if every step could be a misstep. Then, a lurch, and he felt himself being caught just in time, bumping into the other’s body. He blinked. “Are we there yet?”
He didn’t hear Liao Chen’s answer, but next, the path under his feet clearly became easier. From time to time, he would feel his feet leave the ground, as if he were being lifted forward. After about half an incense stick’s time like this, Yan Jingyu finally heard a voice again. “…How does it feel to have your five senses sealed?”
His vision was still pitch black. Yan Jingyu knew this was because the sealing spell hadn’t completely dissipated. He said casually, “Consider it a rehearsal. It was fine.”
Liao Chen first frowned, then glanced at him again. Yan Jingyu remained calm and composed, but his foot suddenly tripped on something, and he pitched forward.
A crisp sound echoed as flesh met the ground.
This time, Liao Chen did not catch him.
He raised an eyebrow, watching as the person who had been so calm just moments ago lay there in a daze. After a long moment, he slowly picked himself up. A corner of his mouth lifted. “You’re right. Your soul-fire is about to be extinguished. In a little while, your body will become aware and will successively shut down your five senses to prolong the time before your soul is extinguished. At that time, you will truly be nothing more than a walking corpse.”
Yan Jingyu’s eyes were still vacant, his face smudged with dirt, but his expression gradually turned to anger. “You did that on purpose.”
“I’ve already released the seal. You were just careless.”
As he spoke, he casually stuffed a Mind-Clearing Pill into his mouth. “I never noticed before. You get angry so easily.”
“…” Yan Jingyu didn’t say anything. He had fallen so unexpectedly that his arms and palms were throbbing with pain, as if they had been struck by something sharp. He sat on the ground, sulking, and waited for his vision to return. After about a quarter of an hour, the darkness before his eyes finally receded. What came into view was a scene of ruins, with broken walls and remnants everywhere.
No wonder the path was so difficult just now…
Yan Jingyu stood up and found that he was in a long corridor. Green vines clung to the top of the corridor, and below, one could see toppled stone pillars and a damaged floor everywhere.
“Is this the Phoenix King’s Palace?” Yan Jingyu patted himself down while looking around. “Where is the Divine Wutong Tree?”
“Isn’t there a piece inside your body?”
“You even figured that out.” From the moment he learned his identity, Yan Jingyu knew he couldn’t hide his little secrets from him. He followed the other’s footsteps. “If this thousand-year-old Wutong is gone, could the Primeval Spring have also been carved up and taken away long ago?”
Liao Chen didn’t answer directly. “What happened to your physical body? Why did you need to use the divine wood to recast it?”
“Are you really going to restore my original appearance?” Yan Jingyu also didn’t answer directly. “If I can’t cultivate no matter what, won’t you have wasted your efforts?”
Liao Chen’s tone was cold. “So you need to be determined.”
Yan Jingyu followed him as he twisted and turned, walking through the ruins for a long time before the view finally opened up. Surrounded by mountain walls, a deep spring, as blue as jade, was most intense in the center. In the middle was a small platform, clearly built by the phoenix clan of the past.
“This is the Primeval Spring…”
“It can restore your original appearance and also cleanse your meridians and marrow,” Liao Chen said. “Who knows, by the time we leave, your meridians might be cleared.”
Yan Jingyu’s eyelashes fluttered. Just as he was about to step back, he was grabbed again. The two of them continued along the narrow path over the spring. The further in they went, the thicker the water vapor became, and a cold air rushed to meet them. Yan Jingyu became more and more resistant. “I heard this is very painful.”
“It will be a little painful,” Liao Chen gave him no chance to resist, directly pulling him onto the central stone platform. “It’s just at the beginning. It will be much better after you get used to it.”
Yan Jingyu’s gaze shifted to the indigo water in the center. He was suddenly met with a face that was both strange and familiar. He was stunned for a moment, then abruptly lifted his head, feigning ease. “I know, but you have to give me some time to prepare. You must have more important things to do here. Why don’t you go take care of your business first?”
“I do have important things to do,” Liao Chen said, still holding his arm. “But I must watch you get in the water with my own eyes.”
“…” You really have nothing better to do. Yan Jingyu said amiably, “Actually, I think I’m fine as I am now. I don’t think I’m that ugly. I’m going to die soon anyway, so I don’t care what others think of me…”
“You must be recognized by Qin Zhongyou.”
“Why are you so insistent on me being recognized by him?”
“Only by letting them know you are still alive will you understand that there are still people in this world who care about you. Only then will you live well for them.”
Yan Jingyu looked into his eyes. Liao Chen continued, “And only then will you have the motivation to pick up a sword again, and I will have the chance to kill you with my own hands.”
“…” Are you really sick in the head? Yan Jingyu was a little annoyed. “I told you, I’m already in your hands. You can kill me whenever you want. There’s no need to waste time like this…”
Liao Chen suddenly grew impatient. “You’re like a dead pig that’s not afraid of boiling water!”
With a splash, water flew everywhere. Yan Jingyu was pushed into the spring.
It was as if a sharp blade had sliced him open from his ankles upwards. The intense pain made his face turn deathly pale. He reflexively tried to climb onto the bank, but a hand firmly pressed him down.
“Yan Qi, you were never a coward, nor are you someone who gives up easily. Back then, you could risk your life to oppose me for the sake of those unrelated people. Why do you now lack the courage to set foot on the immortal path again? Are you going to let your enemies roam free and let the souls of your entire clan die with grievances?”
Yan Jingyu was trembling all over from the pain. He looked up at Liao Chen, his pale face like a jade plaque from which water dripped. His long, dark hair fell from his shoulders, and amidst the wetness, a few strands of silver could be faintly seen.
Liao Chen’s eyes moved slightly, and the pressure from his palm lessened. Yan Jingyu gripped the stone wall of the bank, his open eyelashes stained with water, his voice trembling. “It really hurts…”
Liao Chen’s face darkened. He abruptly pushed him back in, his voice gloomy. “You waste—”
Yan Jingyu choked on several mouthfuls of water. After struggling for a long time, he was finally let go. He coughed heavily for a while, then lay weakly on the bank, panting.
The black boots left the bank. Liao Chen looked coldly at the trembling figure in the pool. “There is a Qiankun Pouch here. I will put some Bigu Pills and some clothes inside. You’d better soak for the full time. Otherwise, when I’m done with my business, I will not spare you when I return.”
Not long after Liao Chen left, Yan Jingyu crawled out of the pool in a wretched state. He tentatively reached out to touch the edge of the stone platform and, as expected, met with a barrier. Yan Jingyu withdrew his hand and walked over with unsteady steps to rummage through the Qiankun Pouch. Inside were some pills and clothes, a decent amount, and also a mirror.
Water dripped from Yan Jingyu’s chin as he held the mirror up to his face. It clearly reflected his current appearance. He then turned his head to look at the pool. On the surface of the indigo water, another face was clearly reflected.
That was his original appearance…
“Yan Qi—!”
Liao Chen’s voice suddenly cut through the air, filled with a thick, hostile aura. Yan Jingyu jumped, startled, and quickly threw himself back into the pool, immediately grimacing in pain.
He turned his head and saw a small, transparent figure staring at him sinisterly.
…It was Liao Chen’s elemental clone.
A round, bun-like face, a short, small body. It was actually quite cute, but its gaze was truly terrifying. Yan Jingyu had never imagined that the fiend would actually leave behind a clone to monitor him…
He pursed his lips and sat obediently in the pool, not moving a muscle. The child-like Liao Chen stared at him for a while, then slowly leaned against a nearby stone step and sat down. It was so short that it was clear Liao Chen had been too stingy and had given it too little power. A single stone step could serve as a small stool. The little Liao Chen sat leaning against it, his eyes half-closed, as if he were about to meditate.
“Before Jiuyi Mountain was sealed, countless cultivators had already come here to plunder.” As Liao Chen had said, the pain was indeed slowly subsiding, but it was almost negligible. He tried to figure out Liao Chen’s true purpose in coming here to distract himself. “Are there any treasures left that they couldn’t take?”
Little Liao Chen said coldly, “Mind your own business.”
You can mind me, but I can’t mind you, is that it? Yan Jingyu suppressed his anger and picked up the mirror again to look at his face. To the naked eye, there didn’t seem to be any change, but the stinging pain in his bones and flesh was a clear reminder that he was about to come face to face with his former self.
The reason Yan Jingyu didn’t want to restore his original appearance was, in the end, that he was unwilling to face his former self. His self of a hundred years later was too wretched. He had no idea how to face the high-spirited youth of the past, nor how to face his former best friend…
The elemental clone monitoring him finally disappeared three days later. Yan Jingyu first saw a flash of red light in the forest ahead, followed by a sharp cry of a phoenix. Immediately, the clone that had been guarding him was recalled, and the air around him suddenly began to flow again. Liao Chen had even withdrawn the barrier around the stone platform.
Yan Jingyu stayed quietly in the pool, waiting patiently for a while longer.
The water in the spring seemed to have stopped its transformation of his body. The pain had completely disappeared, replaced by a comfortable temperature. Soaking in it was quite pleasant.
He glanced again at the spot where the red light had flashed and thought for a moment.
Whatever Liao Chen was trying to get, it was clear that it wasn’t going smoothly. It was almost impossible for him to leave this place on his own, but if Liao Chen were to meet with an accident… tsk, then Yan Jingyu wouldn’t mind dying here with him.
He quickly climbed out of the water, took some clothes from the Qiankun Pouch and put them on, hung the jade pendant and the Qiankun Pouch on his waist, and hopped on one foot while putting on his shoes, running towards the place where the red light had flashed.
Liao Chen wanted to kill him, and he wanted to kill Liao Chen just as much. If he saw Liao Chen fall into the water, he would definitely pick up a stick and hit him a few times. Not kicking him while he was down would be a disservice to the torment Liao Chen had put him through recently.
In any case, he had already become like this. Yan Jingyu had no intention of going back. If he could drag Liao Chen down with him… that would be great!
Between him and Liao Chen, it was a specialty in mutually assured destruction.
Yan Jingyu sprinted all the way, taking two more Bigu Pills and some other pills on the way. Just as he was about to reach his destination, out of breath, he was suddenly stopped in his tracks by a hurricane.
The wind blew past him, and a giant tree instantly fell behind him, but Yan Jingyu was unharmed.
He looked down and saw the feather-shaped jade pendant on his waist.
He paused.
The situation inside seemed a bit chaotic. Yan Jingyu thought for a while longer, then found a large boulder to sit on. It would be better to wait until the battle had subsided before going over.
He didn’t want to end up getting himself killed instead of Liao Chen…
He waited for five days. The Bigu Pills had run out. Yan Jingyu circled the perimeter again and again, unable to figure out what Liao Chen was doing inside.
If this continued, he would starve to death before Liao Chen came out.
The last Bigu Pill was placed in his mouth. Yan Jingyu’s gaze once again turned to the depths of the giant forest. After some hesitation, he stepped in.
The jade pendant emitted a silent glow, allowing him to pass through the barrier unhindered.
Yan Jingyu immediately saw a large patch of green, covering the entire ground. These plants were of the climbing vine variety, their shape somewhat like trumpet creepers. There were countless flower buds on them, some already as red as flames, others withered and dry, but all the flowers were tightly closed, not blooming.
…It was the Qiwu flower.
It was said that the phoenix clan had a Divine Wutong Tree, with no flowers or leaves. The Qiwu was the companion flower of the Wutong. With their adornment, the divine wood had life and vitality. Otherwise, from a distance, it would just be a dead tree. The branches of the Qiwu were soft and could only climb other trees to survive. Now that the divine wood had been carved up and taken away, the Qiwu could only lie helplessly on the ground.
There were clearly many other trees around, but they only circled here, their buds covering the ground, yet none of them bloomed, as if they were stubbornly waiting for their old master.
“I heard that when the Qiwu flowers bloom each year, it is the mating season of the phoenix clan.” Yan Jingyu stepped inside, teasing casually, “After losing the divine wood, the Qiwu would rather wither than bloom. Doesn’t that mean the phoenix clan is going to die out?”
His gaze swept around, and he finally saw Liao Chen’s figure. His long hair was loose as he slowly stood up, a strange light blooming in his deep, dark eyes.
Belatedly, Yan Jingyu followed his gaze and looked behind him—
In the places he had passed, the Qiwu flowers, which had been silent for two hundred years, were like clusters of fiery trumpet creepers, dazzlingly red, vying to bloom.
