“If it’s an immortal, wouldn’t meeting one be a good thing? Why do all of you seem so terrified of it?” Xu Muchan asked strangely.
The guide said dismissively, “Humans are humans, immortals are immortals. They’re not the same thing.”
Xu Muchan said, “I already thought the name of this lake was a little strange. ‘Zhenxian,’ meaning to suppress immortals. Usually, the things that need to be suppressed are evil entities. Yet here, you’re suppressing an immortal. From the sound of it, this immortal doesn’t seem any different from an evil entity.”
The guide was immediately rendered speechless. He grunted and sputtered for quite a while before finally saying in a muffled voice, “Anyway, this is what the adults have been saying since I was little. As for why, who knows? No one’s actually seen an immortal.”
Xu Muchan glanced at Zhenxian Lake in the dusk and thought that might not necessarily be true.
Perhaps someone really had seen an immortal here a very long time ago. It was just that whether they were gods, immortals, or evil entities, they were all different from the legends.
To ordinary people, they were equally dangerous.
That was probably why the lake had been given such a name.
The group found a sheltered spot on higher ground upstream from the lake and set up camp. Xu Muchan started a fire, took out a small pot, and boiled water to make instant noodles. Wei Xilou sat beside him, while Huang Ying quietly sat opposite the two of them.
As for the guide, he took a hemp rope with bells attached and tied it around the trees surrounding the campsite, forming a circle. That way, if any wild animals entered during the night, the bells would serve as an alarm.
Once the campsite was set up, the water in the pot had boiled as well. Xu Muchan tore open the instant noodle packages, poured the noodles and seasoning into bowls, added hot water, and handed a bowl to the guide.
The guide thanked him and accepted it. As he warmed his hands against the scalding stainless-steel bowl, he glanced at Wei Xilou and Huang Ying, then asked tentatively, “Little brother, why did you only make two bowls? Aren’t the two of them eating?”
He had noticed it yesterday. All the convenience food this young man had prepared was for two people. But even without counting him, there were still three of them.
Xu Muchan held his bowl and took a sip of the hot broth to warm himself. “They don’t like this kind of food. They already ate compressed biscuits.”
The guide frowned and secretly glanced at the two of them. He muttered to himself that they had been together the whole way, and he certainly hadn’t seen either of them eat anything.
But after working in this line of business for so many years, he had seen plenty of strange people and strange things. The guide suppressed his curiosity, gave a dry “Oh,” and did not continue digging for answers.
The old forest was freezing cold, and there was practically no signal anymore. With nothing to do after dinner, everyone crawled into their sleeping bags.
Xu Muchan had brought a double sleeping bag. During the day, Wei Xilou had carried it on his back. Now, after spreading it out, Xu Muchan had just crawled inside when the person beside him followed him in.
A pair of somewhat cold hands reached over naturally, wrapping around Xu Muchan’s waist and pulling him slightly into his arms.
Xu Muchan pushed against him somewhat unhappily and complained in a low voice, “You’re a little cold.”
Wei Xilou didn’t know whether he understood him or not. He did not move away, but instead gathered Xu Muchan’s slightly cold hands together and tucked them beneath his clothes.
When his fingers suddenly touched cool skin and felt the distinct lines of muscle, Xu Muchan’s fingers curled slightly. He instinctively wanted to pull them out, but Wei Xilou was holding him too tightly. After trying twice without success, he could only give up. He adjusted himself into a more comfortable position, rested his forehead against Wei Xilou’s shoulder, and gradually fell asleep.
After carrying a heavy load and traveling a long distance during the day, Xu Muchan practically fell asleep the moment his head touched the pillow at night.
During these two days in the mountains, if nothing else, the quality of his sleep had been excellent. Half asleep and half awake, Xu Muchan felt as though someone was pushing him. He opened his eyes groggily, only to meet Wei Xilou’s dim, faintly red eyes.
Xu Muchan was just about to speak when cool fingers sealed his lips. Immediately afterward, Wei Xilou’s body moved closer, covering him completely, and Xu Muchan was held tightly in his arms.
He was about to struggle when his ears caught a strange sound.
Xu Muchan froze, pricking up his ears to listen to the extremely faint noise.
The sound was coming from the direction of Zhenxian Lake. It seemed to be the sound of wings flapping, like some kind of large bird.
Xu Muchan lightly scratched Wei Xilou’s palm with his fingertips, signaling him to loosen his hold a little. Then he held his breath, carefully tilted his head, and looked toward the rear with the corner of his eye—
The first thing he saw was a pair of snow-white wings.
But those wings did not belong to any bird. They grew from human bodies.
Two people, one tall and one short, stood beside Zhenxian Lake. They were completely naked, without a single piece of clothing, and the snow-white wings extended from their shoulder blades. Judging from their folded length, when spread out, they should have been at least two or three times their height.
The proportions of the two people were also extremely strange. They had slender bodies and abnormally long limbs. At first glance, they looked like elves or angels from Western legends. But upon closer inspection, their skin resembled that of people with albinism, while their fingers and toes were also deformed to varying degrees.
What exactly were these things?
Xu Muchan glanced again at the two sleeping bags not far away. Huang Ying and the guide had shown no reaction at all. Clearly, these unfamiliar visitors had not woken them.
Another sound came from the lakeside. The two people seemed to have discovered the campsite and were now walking toward it.
Xu Muchan’s body tensed, but he kept his eyes closed and did not move.
The two people walked around the bells and entered the campsite. One of them seemed curious about them, bending down to examine each person carefully before saying in a strange tone, “Why have mortals come in again?”
The other person said, “These mortals are still so ugly.”
As he spoke, his face happened to be turned toward Xu Muchan. Only then did Xu Muchan realize that these two people, whose backs looked like those of elves, actually had bird heads in front.
Calling them bird heads wasn’t quite accurate. More precisely, they looked like chicken heads. It was just that both their skin and feathers were pure white, so at first glance they seemed more like some kind of bird.
Their eyes were a faint red. Only when the wings behind them spread open did Xu Muchan realize that they weren’t wings at all, but a pair of longer, folded, deformed arms growing from their shoulder blades. The white feathers on those arms seemed to have been artificially made and worn over the arms, creating the appearance of wings.
The two people rummaged around the campsite, seemingly very curious about the sudden appearance of several mortals. From time to time, they would exchange a few words in those strange tones.
Xu Muchan remained completely still. Only after they had finally satisfied their curiosity and left the campsite did he quietly turn his head to look—
The arms behind the two people were flapping. Their enormous white “wings” carried their slender bodies as they glided across Zhenxian Lake and entered the other side of the forest.
Before dawn, Xu Muchan woke the guide.
“What’s over there?” Xu Muchan pointed in the direction the two people had left the previous night.
The guide took a look and said, “That’s the Snow Hollow. You don’t actually want to go over there, do you? You can’t go there. People die there.”
Seeing that the fear and resistance on his face did not seem fake, Xu Muchan said, “Tell me what the situation is first.”
The guide said, “It’s a huge depression in the terrain, like a deep pit. There are dense trees and lots of water inside, and it’s full of strange rocks. Even if you go in during summer, something can happen if you’re not careful. Now it’s winter, and there’s a thick layer of snow accumulated inside. In the deeper places, the snow can bury you completely. You can’t see the path at all, and there are many strange rocks underneath. If you accidentally step into a gap and break a bone, you won’t even be able to crawl out. You’ll be completely helpless.”
Xu Muchan asked, “What’s behind the Snow Hollow? Is there any way to go around it?”
Seeing that he still seemed unwilling to give up, the guide sighed. “Little brother, I’ll tell you the truth. I’ve been a guide for so many years, and no one has ever gone over there. The terrain around the Snow Hollow is complicated and dangerous. Who knows how many people and wild animals have died in there? We locals generally don’t go that deep. Even if we do venture that far in, we won’t go anywhere near the Snow Hollow.”
“Even if you pay me more this time, I’m not going. I’m only responsible for guiding you, but if you insist on going there to get yourself killed, I’m not going with you. You can even keep the rest of the payment.”
Seeing how strongly the guide reacted, Xu Muchan thought for a moment before taking a step back. “I want to go over and take a look. How about this? You stay here and wait. If I haven’t come out after five days, leave and then call this number and get someone to come find me. If I come out after five days, I’ll pay you the rest of the money as agreed. How about that?”
Hearing this, the guide’s attitude softened considerably, though he still did not approve. “You really want to go in?”
Xu Muchan nodded.
Seeing how determined he was, the guide sat down on the sleeping bag and said, “Fine. I’ll wait here for you for at most a week. If you haven’t come out by then, I’m leaving.”
Xu Muchan had already begun packing. He also gave him a number. “After you leave, just contact this number for me.”
It was Yan He’s number. If there really was something strange here—something that even he, his brother, and Huang Ying together couldn’t handle—then this would at least serve as a warning to the research institute.
After giving the guide his instructions, they divided up the supplies, and Xu Muchan headed toward the Snow Hollow.
After walking far enough away, Xu Muchan finally looked at Huang Ying. “Two very strange-looking people came to the lakeside yesterday. They might have something to do with what you discovered before.”
Huang Ying looked confused. “People came to the campsite last night?”
She wasn’t human, so naturally she didn’t need to sleep. She had merely closed her eyes to fool the guide and prevent him from becoming suspicious.
“I didn’t hear anything at all last night.”
Xu Muchan’s expression became more serious. “I think those two people are very strange. They don’t really seem like the evil entities I’ve encountered before. In any case, let’s all be careful.”
Huang Ying nodded.
As they spoke, the three of them had already reached the edge of the Snow Hollow. Looking at the dense white sea of trees, Xu Muchan took a deep breath.
“Let’s go.”
Just as the guide had said, the terrain of the Snow Hollow was extremely complicated. The thick accumulated snow completely covered the ground. If Xu Muchan had truly been an ordinary person, there was no way he could have crossed this place.
Fortunately, none of the three people in this group were human. So although it was troublesome, after spending an entire day and night, they finally crossed the enormous depression and reached the other side.
Huang Ying closed her eyes and sensed for a moment before saying in surprise, “Those auras that disappeared before have appeared again.”
She pointed in one direction. “Over there.”
From then on, Huang Ying led the way, while Xu Muchan and Wei Xilou followed behind.
After walking for roughly another half a day, Huang Ying stopped beside a rock covered in snow.
“It’s here. The aura inside… is terrifying…”
She was clearly frightened and took a few steps back.
Xu Muchan also sensed a strange aura ahead that made him uncomfortable. He turned his face toward Wei Xilou, who had also furrowed his brows, and asked softly, “Brother, you feel it too?”
Wei Xilou nodded.
The three of them were just preparing to continue when Xu Muchan suddenly stopped. He paused beside the large rock and reached out to brush away the snow covering its surface.
Three crookedly carved characters appeared on the rock—
God Village.
When those two people had spoken last night, they had called them “mortals.” Xu Muchan stared at the three large characters carved into the rock for a long while before continuing forward.
“We should have found the right place. Be as careful as possible.”
The three of them continued forward.
Beyond the large rock was a fairly wide and flat road. The road was still covered in snow, while many snowdrifts of varying heights were scattered randomly along both sides.
The snowdrifts were different in size and shape, appearing abruptly across the ground and looking somewhat strange.
Xu Muchan’s heart stirred. He signaled Huang Ying not to move, then carefully approached one of the snowdrifts and reached out to brush away the accumulated snow.
As expected, the layer of snow on the surface wasn’t very deep. Once it was brushed away, the structure underneath was revealed—it was actually a house made of wood.
The house was just very strange. There were no doors or windows on any of its sides. There was only a skylight on the roof that resembled a door.
The skylight wasn’t locked. Xu Muchan held his breath and carefully opened it, completely exposing the inside of the wooden house—
The interior was actually not that different from rural homes from many years ago, except that it was even more primitive and rustic. Tables, chairs, and benches were placed along the walls, and there was even a wooden kettle and cups carved from wood on the table.
The bed, which took up the most space, was in the middle of the room. Sleeping on it was the chicken-headed winged person Xu Muchan had seen the previous night.
Only, while sleeping, the pair of wings attached to the arms behind them had been removed. It was now possible to clearly see that the deformed arms, twice the length of their bodies, were folded behind them like wings, taking up half the bed.
Perhaps because the skylight had been opened and let light inside, the person on the bed moved slightly, as though they might wake at any moment.
Xu Muchan carefully closed the skylight and walked toward the other snowdrifts.
These chicken-headed people were clearly nocturnal creatures. Judging from their albino-like skin and the fact that their houses had no doors or windows, Xu Muchan suspected that they were unable to tolerate sunlight, which was why they had developed the habit of being active at night and sleeping during the day.
This deduction made him relax somewhat. After cautiously examining several more snow-covered houses, he discovered a wooden tower and a well in the center surrounded by the snowdrifts.
It had snowed recently, and everything in the mountains was covered by a thick layer of snow, concealing its original appearance. The wooden tower in God Village was similarly buried beneath the snow, and Xu Muchan almost mistook it for a tree.
But when he noticed something strange and brushed away the snow on the surface, he discovered that it was a wooden tower.
And it was an extremely familiar hexagonal wooden tower.
Even the well in front of the wooden tower looked remarkably familiar.
A tingling sensation like an electric current climbed from the soles of Xu Muchan’s feet all the way to the top of his head. He touched the body of the wooden tower and said with absolute certainty, “This was built by imitating the Ascension Tower in the old residence.”
And that well, once the snow was brushed away, turned out not to be a well at all, but a huge bronze cauldron half-buried in the ground.
It was precisely the same huge cauldron that Wei Xilou had used to hold the Black River water the last time Xu Muchan returned to the old residence.
“Why would something from the Wei family’s old residence appear here?”
Xu Muchan turned to look at Wei Xilou. Wei Xilou was also frowning, his gaze lingering on the huge cauldron in front of him for a long time.
Xu Muchan thought again of those strange-looking chicken-headed people.
Among the five animal forms of the Five Wuchang Gods, there was also a chicken. Was that merely a coincidence?
Seeing that it was getting late, and faint rustling sounds were gradually coming from within the snowdrifts, Xu Muchan didn’t dare stay any longer. He signaled Huang Ying, and the three of them quietly withdrew.
Only after they had moved far away from God Village did Xu Muchan hold Wei Xilou’s hand and glance back.
He turned his face forward again and said softly, “Brother, I think someone is trying to imitate your ascension to immortality.”
There were too many suspicious points about God Village. There were twenty or thirty snowdrifts in the village, and Xu Muchan didn’t dare risk staying there, so he chose to leave overnight.
After crossing the Snow Hollow, they returned to Zhenxian Lake on the fourth day.
The anxious guide’s eyes widened when he saw them emerge. “How did you get out? I waited here for days without hearing anything. I thought something had happened to you.”
Xu Muchan had no time for small talk. He shook his head and said, “Let’s get out first. We’ll talk afterward.”
The group followed the same route back.
Once they were out, Xu Muchan immediately contacted He Yunyi and told her about his discovery.
“Someone wants to ascend to immortality?” He Yunyi’s tone over the phone was hesitant, clearly not completely convinced by Xu Muchan’s words.
He Yunyi’s reaction was within Xu Muchan’s expectations.
The Wei family’s old history could not be brought up. The moment he did, it would involve his brother. Seeing that she was only half-convinced, Xu Muchan couldn’t explain too much and could only give her a rough set of coordinates.
“If you don’t believe me, send someone to take a look and you’ll know.”
He Yunyi remained full of doubts over the phone, but she still agreed to send people to Panlong Ridge to investigate.
Xu Muchan hung up and sorted through his chaotic thoughts before making a voice call to Wei Yao.
Wei Yao’s voice sounded weak and listless. “Xu Muchan?”
Xu Muchan got straight to the point. “Have you gone back to Yundong?”
The moment this subject came up, Wei Yao could complain for three days and three nights without getting tired. He immediately became energetic.
“I’ve been back for several days. You have no idea how crappy the place we’re staying at is. The house leaks even in the middle of winter, there’s no air conditioning, and the only way to keep warm is to shiver… My grandpa even said something about this ‘tempering the mind and strengthening the body’ crap… Just thinking about how I have to stay in this godforsaken place until after the New Year makes me lose all motivation to live…”
“By the way, why did you suddenly call me? Didn’t Old Wen say you went to Panlong Ridge for a vacation? You finished having fun already?”
Xu Muchan patiently waited until he finished complaining before asking, “Did you go to the Wei family ancestral tomb?”
“Of course. Our old Wei family ancestral grave is pretty impressive, though it’s creepy as hell,” Wei Yao said.
Xu Muchan said, “I remember there were several boxes of books in the underground storage room before. Can you check whether they’re still there? If they are, take some pictures for me.”
Wei Yao was shocked. “How do you know there’s an underground storage room in our Wei family ancestral grave? Have you been there before?”
Xu Muchan gave a quiet “Mm.”
Over there, Wei Yao had already turned on his camera, though the image was shaking so badly that it was blurry.
“Wait. Everything from the underground storage room has been moved upstairs. My dad said all the valuable things were transferred away long ago. The stuff left behind isn’t worth much, but they’re all things passed down by our ancestors, so they moved everything into the house and put it all together. They’re planning to move it into the ancestral house after it’s rebuilt. I’ll go find it for you now.”
The camera shook for a while before becoming steady again.
Wei Yao entered a crude cement room and pointed his phone camera around at the boxes inside.
“Here, these are all of them.”
He covered his nose and opened the lids of the boxes. After sweeping the camera over them one by one, he remembered to ask, “What do you want to look at these for?”
“Slow down a little. See if there are any genealogies, handwritten notes, diaries, or anything like that.”
The reason Xu Muchan had suddenly thought of searching through the Wei family’s records was because the wooden tower and well in God Village had reminded him of the Wei family’s ascension ritual.
This ascension ritual had been worked out by the Old Master of the Wei family based on what had been recorded in the handwritten notes of one of their ancestors. In theory, after Wei Xilou ascended to immortality, everyone in the Wei family had died, leaving only Wei Ting, who had been studying away from home and knew nothing about what had happened. Therefore, no one should have known about this ascension ritual anymore.
But judging from those neither-human-nor-ghost chicken-headed people in God Village, the wooden tower that was practically identical to the one in the Wei residence, and even the huge cauldron that had apparently been taken directly from the Wei family, it was obvious that someone was trying to imitate the Wei family’s ascension ritual.
And those chicken-headed people were very likely people who had undergone ascension.
From the situation in God Village, they clearly hadn’t successfully ascended to immortality like Wei Xilou had, but they were no longer human either.
It was just that Xu Muchan didn’t know what had happened in between. Although their attempt at ascension had failed, they continued to live in their deformed forms deep in the isolated mountains, calling themselves immortals and drawing a clear boundary between themselves and “mortals.”
The only place to find the answers to all of this was in the Wei family from a hundred years ago.
But unfortunately, the two times he had returned there had been too brief, and there were many things he hadn’t had time to figure out. And Wei Xilou, who might have known the truth, was now mentally incapacitated.
Xu Muchan’s expression was solemn as he scanned the boxes one by one, trying to find some clues.
Wei Yao was still chattering away. “They’re all books I can’t understand, and account books…”
“Is there an envelope in the box on the left? Check and see if there are any letters inside…”
“Wait a second. I’ll find somewhere to put my phone.”
Wei Yao found a place to prop up the phone, rolled up the sleeves of his down jacket, and began rummaging through the boxes. The boxes had been preserved quite well and hadn’t suffered any moisture damage. Although the envelopes inside had faded and yellowed, they were still in relatively good condition.
Wei Yao carried all the letters out and spread them across the table, opening them one by one.
“They’re all written in Traditional Chinese characters. They’re making my head spin.”
He picked up one letter and carefully deciphered it, reading it aloud to Xu Muchan.
“Reverend Zhang, respectfully addressed. The Wei family has now suffered a calamity that has wiped out the entire household, and the situation is critical. We humbly ask that Reverend Zhang travel to the Wei residence in Yundong so that we may discuss together how to avoid this disaster. To demonstrate our sincerity, five hundred taels in travel expenses are enclosed with this letter. There will be further generous compensation afterward. We sincerely hope the Reverend will spare some time to come…”
“What is this? The Wei family suffered some great disaster, so they’re paying money to call in reinforcements?”
Wei Yao casually picked up another letter. The contents were similar to the previous one, except that the recipient and the amount of compensation were different.
“This one is pretty much the same as the previous one…” Wei Yao muttered before picking up another letter.
But after looking through several more, he found that the contents were all more or less the same. He said to Xu Muchan through the video call, “The rest of the letters are basically the same. Do you still want to look at them?”