Qing Yi dangled from the cliff face, the vines he clutched abrading his palms until they bled. He looked up, his gaze fixed on the cliff top mere meters away, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
Gritting his teeth, he exerted every ounce of his strength to climb. Just as his fingers grasped the edge of the cliff, and victory seemed within reach, a figure wearing a Rakshasa mask suddenly appeared before him.
The figure crouched on the cliff top, looking down at Qing Yi with a gaze full of mockery.
"Look what I've found, a rat from Lin Yuan?"
The tone was derisive, laced with malice.
He extended a hand, prying open Qing Yi's fingers one by one from the cliff edge. He reveled in the thrill of toying with his prey, of holding it in the palm of his hand.
A flicker of despair crossed Qing Yi's eyes. He looked at the man above him. As the man began to pry open his fingers again, Qing Yi suddenly seized the man's wrist and, simultaneously, released his grip on the vine.
A flash of panic crossed the man's eyes. Before he could react, his body, along with Qing Yi's, plummeted downwards.
The people of Yaowang Valley possessed a certain madness—a stubbornness, an unwillingness to yield. If they were to die, they would drag their enemy down with them!
So it was with Qing Zhu, and so it was with Qing Yi!
...
Although Qing Yuan was no longer in immediate danger, she still could not be moved.
Nan Shiying thus left Qing Zhu and Shi San to care for Qing Yuan, while she, along with Situ Kong, Xiao Man, Ying Shi, and Ying Shi, followed the clues left by Ying Yi.
A roar descended from above. Nan Shiying looked up, watching two figures entangled as they fell from the sky, landing heavily before them.
Nan Shiying looked up at the cliff top.
Then she looked down at the two individuals who had fallen and were now almost pulped.
Xiao Man stepped forward to examine them. The one lying on the bottom was a bloody mess, but the one on top was still recognizable.
Xiao Man recognized the familiar appearance of the person before her and turned to Nan Shiying.
"It's Qing Yi!"
Nan Shiying fell silent for a second, then said, "Bury the person here first and mark the spot."
"Yes!"
Ying Shi and Ying Shi quickly dug a deep pit, buried Qing Yi, and marked the location. Nan Shiying looked up at the cliff top.
Why had Qing Yi fallen from above?
After the incident, why hadn't he gone down the mountain, but instead gone up?
Nan Shiying mused for a moment, then stopped dwelling on the questions. After burying Qing Yi's body, she searched the black-clad man. In his possession, she found a map and a packet of powder wrapped in oxhide paper.
She opened the map first and glanced at it. It was not a map of Lin Yuan. Judging by the place names, it seemed to be a map of Liao Jiang.
On the map, several locations were circled in cinnabar. Nan Shiying handed the map to Situ Kong. Situ Kong looked at it but couldn't make heads or tails of it. He scratched the back of his head and said, "Young Master, I can't figure it out!"
Xiao Man peeked over, her tiptoes extended. She pointed to the center enclosed by the circled locations and asked Nan Shiying, "Brother, is this where that marketplace is?"
"I remember when we went to the Akali Corridor, I heard the locals say this place was called the Land of Divine Burial. Legend has it that the Heavenly Maiden returned to nothingness here!"
Heavenly Maiden?
Heavenly Maiden!
Nan Shiying conceived of a possibility, and her breathing quickened.
If the central area was the marketplace, then, according to the map, one of the circled locations was Changming Mountain. Were they performing a sacrificial ritual centered around the Land of Divine Burial?
Nan Shiying furrowed her brow. She put the map away. She then squeezed the packet of powder wrapped in oxhide paper in her hand and brought it to her nose to sniff.
Through the oxhide paper, Nan Shiying detected a faint fragrance, one that seemed to echo the scent in the mist.
So this was the poison that created the fog?
Nan Shiying dared not open the oxhide paper. Even diluted countless times, this poison could still induce hallucinations in people. Its potency was so great that even Nan Shiying dared not face it directly.
Nan Shiying held the poison powder and looked towards the place where Qing Yi had been buried.
So, Qing Yi had risked climbing because he discovered the mist was coming from the mountaintop?
...
The mountain paths of Changming Mountain were rugged, but there were also smoother sections.
Entering the mountain from Lin Yuan, one reached the mountainside, where there stood a dilapidated temple. Judging by its architectural style, it was likely several hundred years old.
Ying Yi saw the black figure enter the temple.
He did not follow but hid in the shadows.
Inside the dilapidated temple, there were seven people.
"Where is Mie?"
They all wore Rakshasa masks, but the person who spoke had a spider-like pattern on his mask. He looked up and asked the newcomer.
The black figure replied, "He's dead!"
"Dead?"
"He was left to bleed out, hanging from the treetop. I saw his suffering, so I sent him to meet the Heavenly Maiden!"
His nearly ruthless words did not elicit an angry retort from the others. The man with the spider pattern on his mask nodded and praised, "You did well!"
"And the others?"
The man scanned the surroundings and inquired.
They had set out as a group of ten, and now only seven were present. Besides the deceased Mie, two others had not arrived.
"We don't know!"
The others shook their heads.
The man did not ask further. Instead, he said, "Today, we must kill all the rats from Lin Yuan. We only have one day. Tomorrow morning, we must leave Changming Mountain."
"Leave via Liao Jiang?"
"No, we will descend the mountain from Lin Yuan and then take a boat back to Liao Jiang!"
"Alright, now go search the mountain immediately. Make sure to exterminate all the rats from Lin Yuan!"
"Yes!"
The group responded and quickly left the dilapidated temple. Only the man with the spider pattern remained. He turned towards the statue behind him and knelt down piously.
His gaze towards the statue was fervent and fanatical.
"Lord, your glory will once again shine upon the earth. The world will once again prostrate itself at your feet, worshiping you, and acknowledging you as the sole truth in this world."
"Your devout follower vows here to awaken you from your slumber!"
Ying Yi stood in the treetops, looking at the statue inside the temple through a hole in the roof. His pupils contracted.
The statue had a human body, a spider's face, and four spider legs on each side of its back. In its left and right hands, it clutched human legs, and beneath its feet lay a human head. It was ferocious and terrifying, resembling a demon.
This was what these people believed in?
A monster?
Madmen, they were a group of utter madmen!
A flicker of apprehension crossed Ying Yi's eyes. He didn't know if such monsters truly existed in this world, but he absolutely could not let these madmen leave Changming Mountain.
Ying Yi retreated. He chose a direction and pursued one of the individuals who had just left.