Chapter 61: Passing Through the Official Road (Part 12)
There didn’t seem to be anything more worth saying about that topic. Over the next few days, the four of them mostly lived in silence.
Jiang Ji remained wary of Yan Yi and Bai Chunsheng, suspecting they were part of another trap meant to lure her in. Meanwhile, Bai Chunsheng was on guard against Jiang Ji, worried she might coax out his and Yan Yi’s true identities. The two silently clashed with hidden motives, while Yan Yi, on the other hand, calmly finished reading several storybooks he had brought along. In the end, he sighed with some longing and concluded, “It’s so pitiful to have no strength.”
Bai Chunsheng thought Yan Yi had a point. With nothing better to do these days, he started reviewing a few secret techniques Bai Jianghai had once taught him. He currently had no way to deal with Yan Yi, so he figured the best he could do was improve himself. Sooner or later, he would have to deal with either Bo Yan or Yan Jingqiu—one of them had to go.
The journey, originally expected to take at least half a month before they reached a populated city, had now been shortened to just about two days left.
That night, when He Shan—who had been sleeping deeply all this time—finally stirred a little, Yan Yi pulled the carriage over to the side of the road for a short rest.
The deeper they traveled into the mountains and forests, the fewer signs of human life there were. Most animals instinctively avoided danger, and since the group no longer suppressed their presence, no creatures dared to provoke a carriage full of powerful cultivators.
“If we go a bit deeper in, there’s a cold pool. The water is so deep you can’t see the bottom, and nothing can float on its surface,” Jiang Ji said. “A type of strange demon beast lives there—its upper body looks like a beautiful woman, but its lower half is like a fish. These beasts are extremely rare and exist in only one gender—female.”
“Once every fifty years, these beasts go into heat. They forcibly abduct men they find along the way and bring them back to mate. Once they successfully become pregnant, they eat the man.”
“If we had come here a few years earlier, we would’ve passed through that area.”
“Because if they’re not in heat, they’re actually quite gentle and mild-tempered. Their singing is especially beautiful—if we encountered them under normal circumstances, it would have been a lucky thing. But, unfortunately…”
Jiang Ji: “Judging by the timing, it should be close to the period when they go into heat.”
She glanced at Yan Yi. This “Ye Jingxing” looked very young, and while his real age was uncertain, anyone who could make her feel such pressure must possess extraordinary abilities. Besides, Jiang Ji had the nagging feeling that she vaguely remembered this Ye Jingxing from somewhere. “Let’s avoid them. They’re attracted to highly gifted men, since it increases the chances of producing equally talented offspring. It’s instinctual—very important to them.”
As soon as Bai Chunsheng heard that, he shook his little head proudly and let out a smug sigh.
Yan Yi noticed Bai Chunsheng’s reaction, and what had originally seemed like a minor concern now felt like a serious problem.
He could already picture Bai Chunsheng leaping out to ask the beasts which of them they thought was more talented—him or Yan Yi.
Even though Bai Chunsheng had lost his memory, after a few months together, Yan Yi understood him all too well.
If they were to take a detour, Jiang Ji said, “Then we’ll need to head west for a while before circling back to the official road. There’s a Toad of the Jade Palace over there that’s about to break through to Nascent Soul stage. That big toad is really lazy—it usually just sleeps in the mud. As long as we don’t make a huge commotion, it won’t bother us.”
Seeing how Jiang Ji had every detail organized so well, Bai Chunsheng couldn’t help but admire her. No wonder she had lived such a legendary and turbulent life. “Have you been here before?”
Jiang Ji paused, then forced a smile. “Yes, with someone I knew.”
Bai Chunsheng thought for a moment. “Shen Fangxing?”
Jiang Ji burst out laughing. “Brother Donghan, spelling things out so plainly isn’t always good for others.”
Bai Chunsheng laughed too. “Croak.”
“…”
He had only just laughed once before realizing how embarrassing it was, so he buried his head into his wings and stopped.
Yan Yi: “…” What on earth was this self-deceiving little thing?
After a long while, once Bai Chunsheng assumed everyone had forgotten, he timidly peeked his head back out. Meanwhile, Jiang Ji took the recently awakened He Shan outside the carriage to sit for a bit. The two of them started a fire. Jiang Ji had meals in her storage pouch preserved as if freshly cooked, and at the moment, she had already shaved meat off a roast chicken and mixed it into hot porridge as minced meat.
He Shan was sipping the hot porridge in small, delicate spoonfuls.
She had an elegant, ethereal beauty, though slightly less striking compared to Jiang Ji. Still not fully recovered from her illness, her lips were pale and bloodless, making her look delicately fragile and beautiful. Many in the Ten Thousand Demon Sect had once pursued He Shan, and Bai Chunsheng had heard bits and pieces of that. Now that something had happened to the Tianqing Sect, he wondered what had become of those admirers.
After the two finished their porridge outside, they returned to the carriage.
Jiang Ji asked Yan Yi, “When are we leaving?”
Yan Yi: “In a bit.”
With no books left to read and Bai Chunsheng refusing to let him touch him, he was now recklessly polishing the sword he had obtained from the real Ye Jingxing.
Jiang Ji frowned. “Aren’t we staying here too long? Won’t someone catch up to us?”
Yan Yi replied, “Highly likely. I don’t think I left any survivors last time, but if your status within the Tianqing Sect is high, the Tai Xu Sect will definitely try again. If another mishap happens this time and they deem the risk outweighs the potential gain, they won’t bother us again.”
“We’re close to the city. Once we reach the Treasure Pavilion and use the teleportation array to get to the southern region cities, it’ll be nearly impossible for them to act against you while you’re under the Tianqing Sect’s protection. That means their final attempt will come before we reach the city. The last day is always full of surprises—if I were them, I’d pick this time, this day, and this place.”
“You mean…” Jiang Ji understood now. The people Tai Xu Sect had sent to kill her were probably close.
It wasn’t hard to guess—they would likely be stronger than the ones like Yan Fengxing who came last time. If she were the one making the decision…
Jiang Ji thought for a moment, then said, “They’re here for me. He Shan’s cultivation is low, so they likely won’t pay her much attention. Why don’t I get off the carriage?”
Yan Yi answered without hesitation, “Alright.”
Jiang Ji glanced at Bai Chunsheng, who was blinking at her with his round eyes, nestled next to Yan Yi. Yan Yi had even draped a beautiful little blanket over him. It was hard to believe that this was the same cultivator at the Dao Stage who could fight opponents above his level with secret techniques.
But He Shan was reluctant—her tears spilled down in an instant.
Her face, already pale from blood loss, now looked almost paper-white. “Peak Master, what about you?”
“I’ll be fine. You, at the very least, must survive to reach the southern region.” Jiang Ji spoke softly.
She summoned the mountain mist and once again conjured the lantern she had transformed the night before. This time, its light was even dimmer than before. Bai Chunsheng guessed that her injuries from last time probably hadn’t healed yet. She hadn’t used much magic over the past few days, but now, the moment she did, her true condition showed.
Jiang Ji stepped slowly down from the carriage. The light from the lantern she held reflected off the vehicle, and the silver-plated six-legged puppet horses gleamed like mirrors—it looked as though many people holding lanterns were standing beside her.
She glanced back at the carriage one last time. “If I survive, can I still get back on?”
“Of course,” Yan Yi replied. “You paid for the ride, naturally you can get back on.”
“That’s good to know.” The forest mist thickened with the deepening night. Holding her lantern, Jiang Ji disappeared into the fog. From a distance, only the faint glow from her hand could be seen.
The mountains were far from quiet. The chirping of insects not yet dead still echoed, and the wind that blew in from afar rustled the leaves with a faint whisper.
It was during moments like this that Jiang Ji would sometimes recall her seventeenth year.
She had been sold, likely at the age of sixteen, to Shen Fangxing, who was traveling on business. But she had always stayed at the back of the caravan. It wasn’t until the summer of her eighteenth year that she finally saw the handsome merchant up close.
Shen Fangxing looked young. He wore a kingfisher-feather crown in the shape of a sparrow’s tail, inlaid with red jade. His hair was neatly arranged in a topknot, and across his forehead was a black and red fur forehead band edged with gold and jade. His robe was made of dark, rich brocade, and at his waist hung a flawless piece of natural jade. His features were sharp and refined, with a stern and composed expression between his brows.
The journey from the Western Region to the Middle Realm was long. That trip marked her first time in the Southern Region. A maid who had also been sold to Shen Fangxing tricked her into going to the front of the caravan, claiming there was a glowing fire tree near South Lake.
But instead of the legendary tree, which was said to shine as brightly as white flames leaping into the sky, she saw fireflies—countless ones blanketing the lake and sky. The mist that hung over the lakeside in the early morning was so dense that she could see nothing but fog and a vague, distant blur.
Across the lake stood Shen Fangxing, surrounded by the fireflies. He seemed to be in the middle of a serious discussion with his subordinates about their next journey. His face was stern. That morning’s fog was just as thick as tonight’s.
Maybe it was just as well—her path to cultivation had begun by that foggy lake and now seemed destined to end in a mist just like it.
She walked slowly along the narrow path, lantern in hand. Suddenly, the sound of a sword slicing through the air rang out behind her. With sharp reflexes, she drew the soft sword hidden at her waist and, like a silver snake darting through a hole, swiftly deflected the attack.
A ring of flames ignited abruptly within three meters of Jiang Ji, dancing and crackling in the dark. The firelight revealed the identity of her attacker—Lin Zeming.
His face was twisted with malice. His lips were thin and cold, and his pupils were unusually pale. Though his features were regular and his appearance handsome and striking, the first reaction most people had upon seeing him was fear rather than admiration.
He was a traitor of the Tianqing Sect, once He Shan’s junior and also a disciple under Shen Fangxing. Being the youngest, Jiang Ji had seen him a few times before and remembered him as obedient and well-behaved. She had even heard Shen Fangxing praise him as a natural-born cultivator.
Who would have guessed that beneath that appearance lay a heart full of barbed rebellion?
Behind Lin Zeming were several familiar faces. In fact, some of Jiang Ji’s old wounds had been inflicted by these very people.
They were the ones who had guarded the Abyss after Shen Fangxing fell into Yuren Mountain, to prevent his return.
Lin Zeming seemed to notice her shock and sorrow. He smiled. “You must be wondering why we’re here, right?”
Still smiling, he added, “Well, it’s because Shen Fangxing is already dead.”
“There’s not even a sliver of a chance for him to come back. The life lamp he left at Shicui Mountain has gone out.”
“Do you know what that means? It means complete annihilation—body and soul.” Lin Zeming spoke slowly and deliberately. “I’m really puzzled… how did Yan Fengxing and Han Fengchen die at your hands? Where are your helpers?”
“If you don’t want to die, you’d better call them out now,” he added arrogantly.
Jiang Ji responded coldly, “Deal with me first, then we’ll talk.” As she spoke, she thrust her sword toward Lin Zeming’s face. He sneered, waited until she could clearly see his movement, then sidestepped it with ease.
The two exchanged more than a dozen strikes in quick succession.
Jiang Ji knew Lin Zeming wasn’t fighting with full force—he was guarding against possible reinforcements.
The others around him made feints to assist in the assault. The flames encircling her grew hotter, crackling louder and louder, like fabric being torn apart. The fire clung to nearby trees like silk or satin. Yet despite the grandeur of the blaze, it emitted no heat. Instead, a biting cold radiated from it. Fog condensed on the leaves and froze, layering them in ice.
At first, these men had underestimated the flames. But the longer the battle dragged on, the more that chilling cold became unbearable.
Amid the fire and darkness, Lin Zeming still looked down on her with disdain. “I really thought you were heartless. But as soon as you saw me, you decided to go all out. What’s the matter? Hearing that Shen Fangxing is dead… does it hurt more now? Why bother caring about a man that cold and ruthless?”
Jiang Ji clenched her teeth but stayed silent. She didn’t want to provoke this lunatic. Her attacks grew faster and faster, but Lin Zeming evaded every one of them.
It made her increasingly anxious.
Just as she was trying to think of a way to deal with him, Lin Zeming suddenly leaned in close and whispered by her ear, pausing between each word: “You. Are. Done.”
A thunderous boom exploded behind her. The blast of light was linked to a Nascent Soul cultivator’s self-destruction—powerful enough to engulf the entire mountain.
Someone had self-detonated.
The explosion wasn’t just overwhelming in sound and terrifying in light—it brought Jiang Ji an indescribable pain.
She didn’t need to look. She already knew the skin and flesh on her back had likely been blown apart.
Her mind could no longer process anything. In the haze of her fading consciousness, she thought she saw that same fog again, that same blue lake. Shen Fangxing stood at its edge. When he sensed her gaze, he turned slightly toward her and gave her a gentle smile.
Maybe back then, Shen Fangxing hadn’t smiled at her at all. It had been several centuries and then dozens of years more—Jiang Ji couldn’t remember clearly anymore. But now, she felt that he must have smiled.
Whether he had or hadn’t didn’t matter.
Suddenly, Jiang Ji wanted to run after him. She wanted to ask Shen Fangxing whether he had ever loved her. But she hesitated, because that too didn’t matter. Shen Fangxing loved everything in this world, and at the same time, loved none of it. Jiang Ji didn’t want his love—she wanted his favoritism.
But that was the one thing Shen Fangxing could never give.
The death that should have come on schedule didn’t arrive as expected. Jiang Ji crouched on the ground, panting heavily. The mountain fire around her gradually extinguished—after all, it had been ignited by a peak Dao stage cultivator burning his own life force, along with the soul flame of a Nascent Soul cultivator’s willing self-detonation. Bai Chunsheng was utterly exhausted.
Fortunately, he had been preparing himself during this time in case Yan Jingqiu ever recovered.
Yan Yi sheathed his sword.
Lin Zeming lay on the ground, split in half by Yan Yi’s strike. Yet, instead of blood, the crack in his body slowly unraveled into a wooden puppet woven from strands of grass and wood. Lin Zeming still wore that mocking, half-sneering expression, as if this outcome didn’t surprise him in the least. He turned his head to look at Jiang Ji.
Lin Zeming asked, “Hey, tell me—what exactly is the path Shen Fangxing cultivates?”
Jiang Ji, furious to the point of laughter, snapped, “Why would I tell you?”
“I figured it out without you saying anything,” Lin Zeming replied. “It’s the Path of Ruthlessness, isn’t it? Was that so hard to guess? Yet you still insisted on hiding it.”
“It’s not.” Jiang Ji couldn’t hold back and rebuked him harshly.
“Ohhh—” Lin Zeming dragged out his tone.
“Hahahaha.” His laughter was completely devoid of joy. “Then it must be the Path of Affection? So that’s how it is.”
“Thanks, Yuhan Peak Master,” Lin Zeming added with biting sarcasm.
Jiang Ji retorted sharply, “That’s why you’ll never become sect leader, and why the elders will never acknowledge you. You don’t understand Shen Fangxing at all. You’re nothing but a beast.”
Lin Zeming actually laughed, his expression turning even more sarcastic. “You think I’m doing all this just to become sect leader, so I—Forget it. There’s no point explaining it to you.”
Just as he finished speaking, the grass and wood patterns that had been spreading from his wounds reached his head. The “Lin Zeming” on the ground transformed into a grass-and-wood puppet woven with strands of rope.
Bai Chunsheng resumed human form, still wearing his mask. He walked over and kicked the puppet. “It’s not his real body—just a grass-and-wood stand-in.”
Jiang Ji said, “That was to be expected. After seeing what happened to Yan Fengxing and Han Fengchen, Lin Zeming would’ve been extremely cautious.”
“If it were anyone else, I wouldn’t speak so definitively. But Lin Zeming—he might seem fanatical and extreme, but in truth, he’s meticulous and calculating. If someone really thought he was just some madman, that would be the end of them,” she said. “He’s been like this ever since he began cultivating. Whatever he planned to do, he would mentally rehearse it hundreds or thousands of times before taking action. That’s how he handles even small matters, let alone something as major as trying to kill me. He hates me to the core, has long wanted to get rid of me, but he’s also afraid this might be a trap set by Shen Fangxing before his death.”
“What a coward.”
Jiang Ji lifted her head and saw Yan Yi standing upright not far away. She had originally thought that Bai Chunsheng must’ve used some secret technique to defeat Yan Fengxing and Han Fengchen. But based on the outcome of the fight against Lin Zeming, it was clear that Yan Yi had played the key role.
That made her all the more curious—who exactly was Ye Jingxing?
Jiang Ji clenched her fists with effort and then braced herself against a nearby tree root to barely manage standing up. “I didn’t expect you to come back to save me,” she said. She had thought that Yan Yi’s earlier words meant they didn’t want to get involved, which was why they told her to get out of the vehicle.
Bai Chunsheng gave a vague chuckle—truthfully, Yan Yi had exactly that intention: “…”
Yan Yi didn’t care whether their enemies were strong or weak, nor what consequences might come later. He simply believed that one should handle their own affairs—like dealing with their own enemies.
Besides, every time Jiang Ji mentioned Yan Jingqiu, Bai Chunsheng’s reaction sparked a twinge of jealousy in Yan Yi. Even though he knew it was his own fault, he still felt unsettled.
At first, Bai Chunsheng had not supported rescuing Jiang Ji. He had carefully weighed the pros and cons.
First of all, it really had nothing to do with them. If any cultivator from the Tai Xu Sect grew suspicious, they could easily find someone skilled in tracking and use a soul-mirroring spell. The Yan family was a major branch family within the Tai Xu Sect. If word got to Yan Jianhang, Yan Yi’s true identity would be exposed instantly.
At that point, Yan Jianhang would take Yan Yi away, and Bai Chunsheng would be sent back to the Ten Thousand Demon Sect. Then, wouldn’t he fall right into Bo Yan’s hands? And when Yan Jingqiu eventually recovered, Bai Chunsheng would be wishing for death.
So of course, Bai Chunsheng had supported Yan Yi’s decision not to get involved.
But then he reconsidered—and realized it wouldn’t work. The whole reason he and Yan Yi had come to the Southern Region was to find the inheritance of the White Phoenix Clan. But that inheritance was located on Xu Clan territory. And now, that piece of land had been seized by the remnants of the Tianqing Sect to serve as the site for their new sect.
In other words, if he and Yan Yi wanted access to the inheritance, they’d have to get into the Tianqing Sect.
But now that the Tianqing Sect was under siege and its remnants were as jumpy as startled birds, there was no way they’d openly accept new disciples—especially not two unknowns.
With that in mind, just as Bai Chunsheng was lazily pondering how he could sneak into the Tianqing Sect after Jiang Ji left, he saw He Shan.
—Wasn’t this the perfect opportunity?
He really was an idiot.
Huge shoutout to @_nyanmaru_ on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.
