Chapter 205: A Mountain Suspended, A River Submerged (19)
When Zhang Wubing hurried out of his room, there was still a look of guilt on his face.
He didn’t even know what was wrong with him. He had clearly discovered a rotting corpse in the river, and that should have been enough to put him on high alert.
But somehow, inexplicably, once he returned to his room, he forgot everything. All he wanted was to dive into the soft bed and fall asleep.
It was as if his brain had rejected all things that might stress or upset him, erasing any memory that might’ve put him on guard.
It wasn’t until he heard the repeated cries for help that Zhang Wubing suddenly snapped out of his drowsy comfort.
Then, when his memories came rushing back, he broke out in a cold sweat.
How could this happen… When Brother Yan left the cottage, he had specifically reminded him of something important. Zhang Wubing had always remembered Brother Yan’s words clearly and knew well that the only way to survive was to cling to Brother Yan and do exactly as told.
But this time, he had completely forgotten.
If it hadn’t been for Bai Shuang’s scream, Zhang Wubing felt he might’ve just slept right through it all, completely forgetting the danger around him.
Still confused and alarmed, he rushed toward Bai Shuang and Zhao Zhen, asking with concern how they were doing.
Zhao Zhen quickly tried to calm him. “Director, I’m alright. That… gentleman got to us just in time and saved both me and Bai Shuang. We didn’t get hurt.”
“But… the staff aren’t doing so well.”
Zhao Zhen pointed toward the room he had just come from, and briefly explained what had happened to Zhang Wubing and the others who had come out after hearing the commotion.
Zhang Wubing was stunned. He hadn’t expected something like this to happen to the crew.
The staff who had been in other rooms and escaped the incident quickly ran to check on the people who had fainted.
When they saw the varying degrees of injuries on the unconscious crew members, cries of shock rang out in the room.
Someone shouted for the medical kit, someone else called for a flashlight, and another asked for help lifting a person so they could bandage them properly.
The entire room descended into chaos, people running in all directions.
By the time Zhang Wubing had dealt with matters upstairs and came down, Ye Li had already left the stairway landing and taken a long stride to the sofa in the living room, standing right in front of Lu Xingxing.
Ye Li’s tall and slender figure, lit only by a flashlight, cast a large shadow over Lu Xingxing. Even though he didn’t say a word, his presence was overwhelming, making it hard for anyone to treat him casually.
Lu Xingxing, entirely engulfed in Ye Li’s shadow, looked both confused and afraid. He had no idea what Ye Li was planning.
“Mas… Master Aunt, ha… haha.”
Lu Xingxing awkwardly scratched his nose, trying to discreetly wriggle out from under the blanket. Sitting upright on the sofa with his hands and feet neatly together, he looked as obedient as a grade-schooler in class.
He instinctively shrank his neck, insisting to himself that it was because of a draft blowing through, definitely not because he was scared.
“So, uh… Master Aunt, do you need something?”
His smile looked more like he was about to cry. “If there’s anything, just say the word.”
Those who had never seen this side of Lu Xingxing before were caught off guard.
Everyone in the music industry knew Lu Xingxing had a bad temper and was notoriously hard to handle. He was always described as brash and impulsive—no one had ever mentioned he could be this well-behaved.
People started eyeing Ye Li more curiously, trying to guess who this man could be to make Lu Xingxing so terrified. Was he from Haiyun Temple?
Ye Li had never shown any emotion toward anyone except Yan Shixun. He was as cold and expressionless as a statue.
But now, when he looked at Lu Xingxing, his gaze was filled with naked disdain.
Ye Li: If this junior hadn’t been so weak, I would have already thrown the cottage at him and gone off to find Shixun myself.
“You’re this weak, and you still call yourself a Taoist?” Ye Li asked in a low, cold voice.
Lu Xingxing: “???”
Master Aunt, did you come all the way over here just to insult me?!
But Lu Xingxing didn’t dare to say any of that out loud. He pursed his lips, his handsome face puffing up in anger like a pufferfish.
“I mean… I haven’t officially completed my training yet.”
He muttered gloomily. “It’s not like everyone can be a monster like master uncle…”
Even though his voice was barely a whisper by the end, Ye Li still heard him clearly. His sharp gaze swept over, making Lu Xingxing hiccup in fright. Thinking fast, he scrambled to twist his words around.
“…A monstrous talent, I mean. Master Uncle is someone with the Evil Spirit Bone Transformation. No one with that trait has survived for centuries, and yet master uncle did. He’s a once-in-a-generation prodigy. I’m just a tiny spark of light; how could I ever compare to the brilliance of the sun and moon?”
Lu Xingxing forced out his sweetest smile, doing his best to look sincere. “You’re just used to being around someone like master uncle, so naturally, I pale in comparison.”
Internally, he was grumbling. Even among all the young Taoist apprentices at Haiyun Temple, he was considered exceptionally gifted. But how could ordinary talent compare to someone as freakishly gifted as that? It was impossible.
If Yan Shixun was the benchmark, then only Taoist Li and Li Chengyun in the entire world could be considered real Taoists. The rest of them might as well quit.
Ye Li stared directly at Lu Xingxing, as if trying to see through his very soul. After a long pause, a rare hint of amusement flickered in Ye Li’s usually cold eyes. Though still clearly disapproving, he found Lu Xingxing slightly more tolerable now.
Most people lacked self-awareness and didn’t know their place. But Lu Xingxing, despite being a bit dull, at least had some sense of self-knowledge. His respect for Shixun came from the bottom of his heart and soul.
That made Ye Li feel he was at least somewhat acceptable.
“Come here,”
Ye Li said in his deep, gravelly voice, motioning for Lu Xingxing to step forward.
Although confused and a little afraid that Ye Li might hit him—just like how Yan Shixun had beaten up Jing Xiaobao—Lu Xingxing didn’t have the courage to argue. So, dragging his feet, he shuffled up to Ye Li step by reluctant step.
He then saw Ye Li lift his arm, his long, slender fingers swiftly forming hand seals with a graceful, ancient rhythm. The movements were filled with a profound and mysterious beauty that left Lu Xingxing mesmerized, as if waves were crashing through his heart.
It wasn’t like he had never seen Taoists form hand seals before—his master and grandmaster were both leaders of their respective generations, so he had been lucky enough to witness many powerful techniques. He had even seen his grandmaster summon flying sand and rolling stones with just a gesture.
But compared to what he was seeing now, all of those paled into insignificance.
It was as if, in Ye Li’s hands, the sun, moon, and stars spun freely, embodying the very essence of heaven and earth.
This… this!
What kind of person had Yan Shixun found to be his wife?! Lu Xingxing had known he wasn’t ordinary, but he hadn’t expected this level of extraordinary.
It felt like a bolt of lightning had struck him, electrifying his entire brain.
By the time he regained his senses and looked at Ye Li again, his eyes were filled with even more awe and fear.
He instinctively held his breath, afraid of disturbing Ye Li.
And then, to his astonishment, he felt a powerful force suddenly descend upon him. It was like a towering mountain had slammed down onto his shoulders—and now he had to carry it.
Lu Xingxing turned to Ye Li in shock, only to see the other slowly lower his arm.
“I’m lending you my power temporarily. I’m also leaving this place in your hands.”
Ye Li lowered his gaze and looked at Lu Xingxing. Word by word, he asked, “Can you handle it?”
Even though Ye Li was speaking more calmly than he did with most strangers, Lu Xingxing still felt a bone-chilling cold seep into him.
He felt like he was slowly freezing into a statue, every hair on his body standing on end.
That expression on master aunt… it was clearly saying, ‘If you can’t, I’ll kill you.’
The thought alone made Lu Xingxing shiver. He hurriedly nodded, stumbling over his words in his haste: “Master aunt, you can count on me! I’ll protect everyone here. You go after master uncle—just leave everything to someone reliable like me. Nothing will go wrong, I promise!”
Although Lu Xingxing didn’t have much confidence in himself, the moment he felt his body—so light it no longer felt human—and the power Ye Li had temporarily lent him, he suddenly felt like he could do it.
—Even if he couldn’t, could anyone really doubt the strength of his “master aunt”?
Lu Xingxing could now clearly see that Ye Li obviously had feelings for Yan Shixun. It was just that his master uncle, who had inherited the proud, single tradition of Haiyun Temple, hadn’t realized it himself yet.
In that case, with Yan Shixun around, why should he worry about his “master aunt” turning against him?
Patting his chest and making firm promises, Lu Xingxing was already daydreaming happily—once they got back, he could tell his master and grandmaster all about this.
Lu Xingxing was never one to hide his emotions. Just one glance from Ye Li, and he could tell exactly what Lu Xingxing was thinking.
But Ye Li didn’t mind. He was happy to let things develop on their own and had no intention of explaining anything.
When Zhang Wubing walked over, he happened to hear Lu Xingxing saying that Ye Li was about to leave. He was instantly shocked.
“No way! We’re counting on Lu Xingxing? If he’s our best bet, then there’s no such thing as reliable anymore.”
Zhang Wubing carried over the same habits he had from working with Yan Shixun—instinctively charging toward Ye Li’s side. “Brother Yan’s not here, and if you leave too, then we’re completely screwed!”
Ye Li gave him a cold look.
Zhang Wubing slammed the brakes instantly, frozen on the spot, not daring to take another step closer.
Ye Li emotionlessly withdrew his gaze and turned to walk out.
The others instinctively reached out, as if trying to stop him, but none of them dared to actually step forward.
The cottage’s door creaked open. A cold, damp mountain wind blew straight into the living room with a howl.
Ye Li’s long brows furrowed slightly as he sensed something. He lifted his eyes to look toward the village.
Under the cover of darkness, he saw rotting corpses slowly making their way toward the villagers’ homes.
The howling wind masked the faint scraping sounds of the corpses moving.
Some of them bent over, crawling under the raised floor of the small wooden cottages. Others clambered over fences into yards, silently tucking their bloated, pale bodies into corners of the homes.
The villagers seemed to be sound asleep. No one noticed the hideous dead bodies now hidden behind their cabinets, under their floors—every overlooked nook and cranny had a corpse tucked inside.
Ye Li silently withdrew his gaze, choosing not to interfere.
Karma would run its course. That was all.
Bang!
The wooden door slammed shut.
Lu Xingxing instantly collapsed onto the sofa like his bones had been pulled out.
“That scared the hell out of me.”
He reached back to wipe the cold sweat off his back and let out a long breath. “I really thought I was going to get beaten up.”
Zhang Wubing kept sneaking glances at Lu Xingxing with hesitant eyes. “Are you… sure you can handle this?”
“Maybe we should bring that guy back.”
Zhang Wubing said earnestly, “He’s terrifying, yeah, but if he’s on our side, I feel safe. We’d definitely be fine. But you, Xingxing…”
Lu Xingxing’s mouth twitched: Director Zhang, you really don’t have to be that honest, you know.
Still, when Lu Xingxing turned his head, the sleepiness that had come from resting was already blown away by the cold wind from when Ye Li opened the door. He felt much more awake now.
The power Ye Li had lent him temporarily also cleared his mind.
He realized something was wrong with the fact that he had fallen asleep at all.
It was strange. He had chosen to stay in the living room specifically to keep himself alert, so he’d be the first to notice if anything went wrong.
And the living room was freezing. The wooden structure of the small cottage let in drafts from all sides.
The open space couldn’t retain any heat at all—he shouldn’t have been able to fall asleep in a place like that.
—Who would willingly sleep somewhere so cold it made you shiver? It’s the warm, safe places that make people let their guard down and get drowsy.
But even though Lu Xingxing had constantly reminded himself to stay vigilant, he had still dozed off without any defense.
And…
“I forgot… a lot of things earlier.”
Lu Xingxing stared blankly as he spoke. “But I even forgot that I had forgotten.”
Zhao Zhen, who had just come downstairs, was startled. He rushed over and asked urgently, “You forgot things too?”
He held out an old notebook toward Lu Xingxing, his expression grave. “I found this in one of the rooms upstairs.”
Zhao Zhen should’ve forgotten the notebook even existed. Right after he left the room, he had already forgotten he ever found it.
But when Ye Li used his power—when the pitch-black beast tore the rotting corpses apart—in that instant, Zhao Zhen had suddenly, vaguely remembered many things.
Like looking through frosted glass soaked in water—still blurry, but he could just barely make out some shapes.
“It’s not just your memory that’s off. Mine is too. And it’s not just us… Even the hiking group that stayed here years ago experienced the same thing. It’s just that—”
Zhao Zhen paused before continuing, “It seems all of them are dead.”
As soon as he said that, a chilling silence fell over the living room.
Lu Xingxing reached out in surprise to take the notebook. After flipping through it quickly, his expression grew serious as well.
“It’s the same situation as ours.”
He looked up and met Zhao Zhen’s gaze. “The notebook keeps mentioning something being wrong with the water. Every time something happened to them, it was after they got close to the river.”
“But I played in the river this afternoon, why am I fine?”
Zhao Zhen was equally puzzled.
But just as Zhao Zhen was racking his brain, Lu Xingxing suddenly seemed to realize something. He quickly lowered his head and began rummaging through his pocket.
He pulled out a pitch-black object and held it in her palm.
Zhao Zhen asked in confusion, “What is that?”
Lu Xingxing’s hand trembled slightly. “Do you remember, when we were outside the mountain, the owner of the guesthouse gave us each a traditional folk charm? This is it.”
Zhao Zhen looked at the charred remains in his palm, a gasp catching in his throat.
He remembered very clearly how those handmade charms had been brightly colored, woven with beautiful threads—vivid and eye-catching.
But now, all that remained was this pile of blackened ash…
“Maybe it protected me, that’s why I’m okay.”
Lu Xingxing then asked, “Which staff members upstairs were the ones who had the incident?”
As Zhao Zhen listed their names and physical descriptions, Lu Xingxing’s expression grew even graver.
“I was playing in the water then. You were on the shore the whole time and didn’t touch it, but I brought back a big bottle of river water. I originally meant to give it to Brother Yan, but they stopped me halfway and said they were thirsty.”
Lu Xingxing’s face stiffened, a trace of guilt flashing through his eyes. “They all said they were thirsty, so I gave them the water.”
“If there really is something wrong with the river water, then the reason those staff members went crazy—like you saw—is probably because of that.”
He slumped down and buried his face in his hands. Frustrated, he muttered, “I shouldn’t have given it to them… If they hadn’t taken the water and I had given it straight to Brother Yan instead, maybe he would have noticed something was off and could’ve stopped everything from happening.”
Zhao Zhen was silent for a moment. Then he walked over and gently patted Lu Xingxing on the shoulder. “It’s not your fault. You gave them the water because they looked thirsty. None of us could have imagined there would be a problem with the river water.”
“But that folk charm…”
Zhao Zhen glanced at the charred mess Lu Xingxing had tossed aside and recalled their time before entering the mountains. “Isn’t Nan Tian really knowledgeable about this kind of thing? Let’s go ask him what this is and why it might’ve protected you.”
Lu Xingxing gave a lifeless reply. His usual proud and radiant demeanor was completely gone.
He could endure the scolding from his master and grandmaster because he knew she hadn’t lived up to their expectations.
But what he couldn’t accept was that he had violated his own principles—and harmed lives he was supposed to protect.
Those staff members’ incidents… had been caused by him, indirectly.
Zhao Zhen noticed something was off with him.
He grabbed his shoulders with both hands and looked his straight in the eyes. “Lu Xingxing, Brother Yan and that gentleman are already gone. Right now, only you can protect us. Do you understand? Lu Xingxing, you’re not a child anymore!”
“I don’t understand all this stuff about whether you’ve officially completed your training or not, but Lu Xingxing, someone out there is waiting for you to protect them.”
Zhao Zhen’s words hit like a heavy hammer, snapping Lu Xingxing out of his guilt. He wiped his face and tried to pull himself together.
“You’re right. Master Aunt entrusted his power to me temporarily. I can’t let him down.”
Lu Xingxing nodded solemnly. “I want to prove to my Master Uncle and Master that I’m someone worthy of responsibility.”
The mistake had already been made, but from this moment on—no one else could be harmed!
Since Master Aunt had left this place in his hands, then even if the sky came crashing down, he had to hold it
up himself.
Lu Xingxing gritted his teeth and made up his mind.
Seeing Lu Xingxing regain the proud demeanor he usually had, Zhao Zhen also broke into a smile.
Because the spot they were standing in happened to be within the main camera view in the living room, viewers watching the livestream could see everything happening.
The audience, who had been on edge due to most of the split screens going dark, finally felt a bit relieved.
[As long as they’re safe, that’s all that matters!]
[Everyone had just gone off to wash up and get ready for bed, and then one split screen after another started shutting off. When I heard the shouting through the main screen, I was this close to freaking out. Can the show crew please ask the brothers and sisters to keep their screens on?]
[Something’s off. I can’t get in touch with the production team. There’s supposed to be someone in charge of the livestream platform, but none of my messages are even being read.]
[I saw Xingxing napping on the couch earlier like a little piglet—almost made me explode! I wanted to crawl through the screen and shake him awake. But hearing what Xingxing and Zhao Zhen just said… was there more to him sleeping than it seemed?]
[What the hell… Did someone drug the water or something? Is this one of those scam inns?]
[Why isn’t Brother Yan here?! I’m so worried!]
[I used to really like Longevity Village. A lot of travel blogs said it’s great for relaxing and healing, but now… it’s feeling a bit creepy. I’m kind of scared…]
[You’re not alone!]
Unlike Lu Xingxing, Zhang Wubing still felt like his brain was a total mess—he could remember some things, then forget others a moment later.
But he still remembered that he was the director, and he was responsible for everyone’s safety. So he clenched his jaw and forced himself to stay focused, repeating key information in his mind over and over to try and remember it.
Lu Xingxing gave the muttering Zhang Wubing a sympathetic glance before turning and rummaging through his heavy backpack, pulling out two talismans and handing them to him.
Only someone who had experienced the helplessness of being unable to remember anything could understand how painful it was.
“My master gave these to me before I left.”
Lu Xingxing reminded him, “Director Zhang, you didn’t take the folk charm the hostess gave us. We still don’t know what it really is or what it does, but just take these talismans as a substitute for now—just in case.”
The group quickly discussed their next steps in the living room and then split up to take action.
Lu Xingxing went to one of the rooms on the first floor, hoping to get some clear answers from Nan Tian.
But as soon as he pushed the door open, a chill shot through his heart.
The window facing the river had somehow been pushed open, and a damp, icy mountain wind was blowing in from outside, lifting the corner of the snow-white bedsheet.
The room was eerily quiet. On the white walls and floor in the corner, there were faint traces of ash—left behind by Ye Li’s power earlier.
…There had been an evil presence here.
Nan Tian was lying on the bed, hands folded neatly over his abdomen, eyes closed.
On his chest were several stalks of chrysanthemums—yellow and white.
It looked like the peaceful corpse of someone laid to rest in a funeral hall.
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