When Gu Mang heard that he really did have a cousin who would come to meet him the day after tomorrow, he was both surprised and delighted.
Ever since his mind had been damaged, he rarely showed such obvious happiness anymore. His spirits even seemed considerably better because of it.
All day long, he would ask Mo Xi from time to time, “Mo Xi, what kind of person is my cousin?”
Mo Xi wanted to give him a little more anticipation, but he also didn’t want to make promises too early, so he only said, “You’ll know when you meet him.”
“Oh…”
After sitting in the inn room and playing with a bamboo dragonfly for a while, he turned his head and asked again, “Then when I meet him, what should I say to him?”
“You can say whatever you want. There aren’t any rules.”
“Then what do you guys usually say when you meet your cousins?”
“…I don’t have a cousin.” Mo Xi put down the book in his hands and looked at Gu Mang’s round, wide-open blue eyes. He reassured him, “Don’t be nervous. He’s your brother, not your enemy.”
Gu Mang looked considerably more at ease.
But it wasn’t long before he looked down at his clothes, ran over to the bronze mirror to carefully examine his appearance, then hurried back to Mo Xi and tugged on his sleeve.
“Clothes.”
“Hm?”
“I want to change into a new outfit. My cousin will be happy when he sees it.”
Mo Xi could hardly keep from laughing.
“Are you going to propose marriage?”
“What does ‘propose marriage’ mean?”
“…I was just joking.” Mo Xi stood up and said to Gu Mang, “Get some good rest at the inn. I’ve placed a defensive barrier around it, so it’s very safe. I’ll go buy you a new set of clothes.”
Gu Mang nodded repeatedly.
It wasn’t difficult to pick clothes for Gu Mang. Mo Xi knew his waist and body measurements like the back of his hand, and before long, he had come out of the finest ready-made clothing shop in Lin’an carrying a paper-wrapped package.
When he returned to the inn, he handed the package to Gu Mang.
“Go put it on and see if you like it.”
The robe was pure white, embroidered with faint, indistinct patterns of drifting clouds in snow-silk woven from ice silk. Its design was simple and elegant, with an ethereal grace.
Gu Mang had always been skilled in close combat and had previously preferred fitted, narrow-sleeved martial outfits. Later, after becoming a prisoner, he hadn’t had many decent clothes at all. He had never worn this kind of wide robe with flowing sleeves—a silver-shimmering cultivator’s robe.
He carefully stepped out from behind the screen, afraid that he might walk too carelessly and step on the hem. Then he stopped in front of Mo Xi, uneasiness flowing through his blue eyes.
“It feels… a little strange.”
His loosely tied hair was still gathered into a relaxed knot, soft black strands falling beside his cheeks and making his skin look even paler, his eyes clear and cool. Dressed in this kind of clothing, the resemblance between him and Murong Chuyi in their facial features was indeed much easier to see.
Mo Xi said gently, “It looks very good. You’re just not used to it.”
Gu Mang looked somewhat surprised.
“Really? It looks good?”
“Mm.” Mo Xi smiled. “Just wear it for a while and get used to it.”
Gu Mang nodded happily.
But before long, as though he had suddenly remembered something, he went back behind the screen and changed out of the snow-silk robe. He came back holding it carefully in both hands.
“What happened?” Mo Xi asked, slightly surprised. “You don’t like it?”
“It’ll get dirty.”
As he spoke, Gu Mang carefully folded the clothes. He picked up the brown oil paper from the table, fluttered his eyelashes as he carefully blew away the dust on it, then wrapped the clothes back up. He solemnly patted the package.
“I’ll wear it the day after tomorrow.”
Although the demonic aura had already invaded his mind, his longing for familial affection was as though it had been carved into his bones. It was there every moment, without exception.
Mo Xi watched as he placed the paper-wrapped clothes beside the bed. Not long afterward, he simply hid them beneath his pillow. A little while later, he took them back out for another secret look, reached out to carefully touch the fabric, and revealed an expression that was uncertain yet full of anticipation.
He fussed over that package of oil paper for the entire evening. The little bamboo dragonfly he had bought earlier had completely lost its favor. Even when it was time to sleep, Gu Mang still seemed unable to put his mind at ease, asking in a quiet voice every so often:
“Mo Xi, does my cousin wear clothes like this too?”
“Mm. He likes this kind the most.”
“Mo Xi, is my cousin handsome?”
“Since he’s your cousin, how could he possibly be ugly?”
“Mo Xi, tomorrow’s tomorrow is the day after tomorrow. I still have to wait another day. Can’t I see him tomorrow?”
“He has a little something of his own to take care of tomorrow. He has to finish dealing with it before he can come over without worrying.”
“Okay, then let him take care of it properly. Don’t rush him.”
“Mm.”
“Mo Xi…”
As he kept asking these questions, his voice gradually became softer and weaker. Gu Mang seemed to want to discuss more things related to his brother, but he was simply too tired. He yawned, and in the end, he mumbled Mo Xi’s name once more. Before he could say anything else, he had already drifted into a hazy sleep.
The next day, Gu Mang was still curled up beneath the blankets when Mo Xi got up early.
The busiest times in a city were the morning and night markets. Mo Xi intended to inquire about legends concerning the art of rebirth, but after asking around, he found that the townspeople had very little interest in cultivation. They knew exactly which family’s vegetables and tofu were the freshest and cheapest, but they had no idea about any great cultivators or reclusive masters living near Lin’an.
Mo Xi wasn’t particularly surprised by this result. If reclusive masters were that easy to find out about, they wouldn’t be called reclusive masters.
He made no progress regarding the art of rebirth, but an enthusiastic old woman did tell him which breakfast shop served the best food. So Mo Xi went there, and sure enough, the shop was surrounded by layers upon layers of people.
He chose a seat in the corner and said to the waiter, who had a white sweat towel draped over his shoulder, “Bring me one of everything that’s special here.”
The waiter replied energetically, “Coming right up!”
It might have sounded like an extravagant way to order, but that wasn’t entirely the case. There were only a handful of varieties at the breakfast shop, and even ordering one of everything wasn’t particularly filling for an adult man.
The cook worked quickly, and before long, the dishes were brought out one after another—
Fresh-meat wonton soup, with a clear broth and delicate filling;
Shrimp siu mai, plump and springy;
Sweet, soft, sticky osmanthus rice balls;
Smooth, rich eel noodles;
And crispy fried fish, golden-brown and fragrant. Dipped in clear vinegar, the acidity cut through the greasiness and brought out the flavor of the fish even more.
There was also Lin’an’s specialty, fried guozi. Thin as cicada wings, snow-white sheets of dough wrapped around two crispy fried dough sticks, pressed flat on a little griddle, then filled with tender scallions and spread with a thick layer of sweet bean paste. One bite gave a crisp, flaky texture from the fried flatbread, followed by the clean sweetness of the sauce.
After tasting each dish, Mo Xi ordered several more according to Gu Mang’s tastes and asked the shop to pack them up for him to take away.
As he drank his noodle soup and waited, he suddenly heard a table of townspeople beside him discussing the Yue family while eating.
A woman said, “Early this morning, Yue Juntian led everyone from the Yue family to Huntian Cave outside the city. Oh my, I had just come back from outside the city after picking some fresh wild vegetables when I ran into their procession at the city gate. It scared the life out of me.”
The muddy-footed man beside her laughed at her.
“What are you afraid of? Afraid Old Master Yue would kidnap you and make you his little wife? Old Master Yue cares about looks. You’re already past your prime, so he wouldn’t take a second glance at you. Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid.”
The woman flew into a rage.
“What about me? I’m a woman who’s past her prime but still has her charm! Eat your noodles! Stop spouting nonsense here!”
Another man at the same table laughed.
“But I heard Yue Juntian’s health has been getting worse and worse these past few years. He was all about romance and pleasure when he was young, but now he doesn’t seem to have any energy at all.”
“That’s right.” The woman said, “You didn’t see him. His face was yellow as wax, like someone who’d just been pulled out of a coffin. Oh, but his two sons are quite handsome. What a pity that one of them is crippled.”
“You mean Jiang Yexue? He came too?”
“Of course. Ever since he was driven out of the family, this is about the only occasion when he can travel together with the Yue family. After all, it’s the Huntian Cave ritual.”
There was also an out-of-town traveler sharing their table. He didn’t know much about Lin’an or the affairs of the Yue residence. He had remained silent while they chatted, but now he simply couldn’t suppress his curiosity anymore.
After swallowing his noodles, he asked, “Big brother, big sister, what exactly is this Huntian Cave?”
The woman enthusiastically explained, “It’s a mass grave.”
The muddy-legged man added, “More accurately, it’s a place where vengeful spirits are sealed.”
The traveler widened his eyes in surprise.
“Ah… vengeful spirits?”
“That’s right. This is an old legend in Lin’an. When Chonghua was first founded, Lin’an actually wasn’t part of its territory. It was controlled by a barbarian tribe. That tribe practiced evil cultivation techniques and imprisoned most of the people of Lin’an in a cave, intending to kill them and refine them into vengeful ghosts and Yin soldiers.”
“But that barbarian tribe had the ambition, but not the ability. They killed tens of thousands of people, and their corpses piled up like mountains inside the cave, while blood flowed like a pool. Those innocent dead really did become filled with resentment reaching the heavens, but they weren’t controlled by the barbarians at all. Instead, they turned on them and devoured them, then came out and wandered everywhere, killing people wherever they went.”
The traveler asked in astonishment, “What happened afterward?”
“Afterward? Chonghua sent a master artifact refiner of that time—Yue Juntian’s ancestor—to Lin’an to suppress the rampaging Yin soldiers.”
“That Senior Yue was extremely clever. He refined magical artifacts capable of driving away spirits and ultimately succeeded in sealing those fierce ghosts and Yin soldiers within the blood pool in the cave. He also formed a blood pact with them, making those vengeful spirits willing to obey the commands of the descendants of the Yue family for generations. And that cave where they were sealed came to be called Huntian Cave.”
The traveler wasn’t stupid. He immediately said, “It must have come at a considerable price, right?”
“Of course.” The woman lowered her voice mysteriously. “Let me tell you. I heard that every three years, the head of the Yue family has to offer a large portion of his spiritual energy to those Yin soldiers, and he can’t stop until he steps down.”
The traveler exclaimed, then worriedly asked, “Sister, you just said Yue Juntian is sick. Does he still have enough spiritual energy to feed those Yin soldiers?”
“Definitely not.” The woman said, “But I heard that if the head of the Yue family is in desperate circumstances, he can also choose a blood sacrifice. That means putting his blood into the pool while his relatives accompany him and kneel in worship. That can temporarily calm the agitation of the Yin soldiers.”
The traveler looked uncomfortable.
“Then how much blood would that take…?”
“An enormous amount.” The woman made an exaggerated gesture. “That’s why this kind of ritual always requires family members to accompany him. After Yue Juntian performs the blood sacrifice, his entire body becomes extremely weak. He needs his blood relatives to gather qi for him, cast spells, and so on. Anyway, it’s all that mystical stuff. Otherwise, why do you think Jiang Yexue would be allowed to go with them to Huntian Cave when he and Yue Juntian have such a terrible relationship? Everyone has their own calculations!”
The traveler wore a look of sudden realization and quickly nodded.
“I see, I see. I never knew the Yue family had so many legends surrounding them in Lin’an. If I hadn’t come here myself, I would have had no idea.”
The muddy-legged man waved his hand.
“Every feudal king has their own stories in their respective fiefdoms. They aren’t exactly secrets, but nobody knows them better than the locals. Take Lin’an, for example. We know all the little bits and pieces about the Yue family best, simply because our feudal king is Yue Juntian.”
The traveler looked interested.
“Then what other stories are there to hear? I’ll pay for your breakfast. Would you two be willing to tell me some more?”
These people already loved gossiping about this sort of secret information. Even without any benefit, they would happily grab someone and tell them all about it. Now they had happened to encounter someone who was interested and even willing to buy them breakfast, so they were even happier.
The entire table immediately became lively again as they continued chatting.
But Mo Xi remained where he was, repeatedly thinking over the details they had mentioned about the Huntian Cave ritual. An uneasiness suddenly arose in his heart.
The entire Yue family would be gathered inside that cave.
And after Yue Juntian performed the blood sacrifice, his spiritual energy would be greatly weakened.
Then there was what Murong Chuyi had learned yesterday about the truth from more than thirty years ago…
The icy, pale face of Murong Chuyi in the cemetery seemed to appear before his eyes once again.
—”After I finish the Huntian Cave ritual, I’ll go meet Gu Mang. Before then, I won’t make a move against Yue Juntian.”
Mo Xi suddenly felt that when Murong Chuyi had said those words, perhaps they had not come entirely from his heart.
And just at that moment, a sudden commotion erupted at the entrance to the busy marketplace.
The people who had come for the morning market automatically split into two groups.
A Yue family guard, covered in blood, stumbled in through the eastern city gate. Half of his face had been torn apart, bloody flesh hanging loose and frightening the nearby women and children into scattering like startled birds.
The guard dragged his legs toward the direction of the Yue residence, but he clearly already knew that he wouldn’t be able to hold on much longer.
So when he collapsed onto the ground with a heavy thud, he did not immediately try to get back up. Instead, he dragged himself forward a little, grabbed the nearest passerby, raised his head, and desperately forced out:
“Re… re…”
The passerby was trembling like a sieve from fright. The guard was stammering, and he stammered along with him.
“W-what?”
“Rebelled… Yue… the Yue family… Huntian Cave… rebelled…!!”
The moment he finished speaking, he suddenly vomited a mouthful of blood.
Then he collapsed and died.
Mo Xi shot to his feet, his expression instantly turning terrifyingly grim.