Chapter 13. His clothes were fluttering in the wind, his figure faintly discernible, as if he was an immortal

Although the Yulin bell was a rare treasure that one could carry anywhere instead of a teleportation formation, it had the same flaw formations did—it could only send people to the places they have already visited. Xu Jingxian has never set foot on the Sacred Mountain Wan, much less the Nine Layers of the Abyss. The Yulin Bell could only send them to the Stone Forest not far from the Nine Layers of the Abyss, but the rest of the distance they had to cover themselves.

After the battle that had taken place there a few decades ago, the signs of habitation, people, and animals had all vanished. Forget about villages or towns, not even a single bird flew over the place.

The rugged ground was covered with gravel. Changming was leaning on a bamboo stick, but grazed his feet nevertheless. Xu Jingxian simply wrapped withered trees and boulders with thin silk, flew over, stopped, and waited for Changming to catch up with her, resting on rocks.

Even so, she never stopped complaining and whining.

“Why is it so hot here? Is there fire underground? When I step with my feet, I feel like they will start to burn any second!”

“This road is full of stones; if I step on it, my embroidered shoes will wear out soon! If I knew it earlier, I would have asked for a palanquin!”

“Can you walk faster, ya, I have sweat on my forehead! Why are you still so irritatingly slow!”

“I’m thirsty to death, is there any water around here?”

Changming’s ears hurt from her whining, and he had no choice but to raise his head.

“Madam, you are a cultivator, not a daughter of a wealthy family, these stones won’t damage your shoes. Your thirstiness is just an illusion. Being a cultivator, you won’t die even if you don’t drink water for three days and three nights.”

Madam: he used an “accusing a woman of putting on airs” form of addressing.

Xu Jingxian pouted: “Then what should I do? I loathe this devilish place, how long is it going to take, I want to go back!”

Changming stopped and surveyed the vicinity.

“Probably, around several lis. We will be lucky if we reach the destination before sunset.”

Li: 0.5 km.

“Sunset?!” Xu Jingxian raised her voice at once, “Look at the sun, it’s hot and ruthless, and still in the middle of the sky, when will it go down! If you can fight to a draw with the Clan Master, why can’t you use the Art of flying? Go faster, or else I will beat you up!”

Changming was still calm and composed: “I was injured in the battle with your Clan Master yesterday, you saw it too. It is already good that I am still able to walk now. But it would be great if you wound me, because then I won’t need to go anymore, and we would rest for a few days.”

He left Xu Jingxian no choice. She gritted her teeth, landed on the ground, and lifted him. The thin silk flew out from her belt, fell on a somehow flat and smooth boulder, freezed there, and brought the two of them over.

Changming passed his judgment: “Why don’t you directly fly over there? Given your cultivation level, you can fly over the Stone Forest in one go without troubles.”

Xu Jingxian: “Say one more word, and I will drop you down!”

Changming actually closed his mouth.

Naturally, Xu Jingxian could fly over the Stone Forest in one fell swoop, but she wanted to spare her energy, and was also afraid of this strange, unfathomable place where an accident could happen any moment with no warning. Flying and stopping like this, they finally reached the edge of the Stone Forest, only to face a chilly fog that filled the entire sky and covered the earth, making the path ahead of them unclear.

For fear that the mist could be poisonous, Xu Jingxian, paying no attention to her embroidered shoes that could get dirty, landed on the ground with Changming, and took half a step back. Her intention was obvious—to let him go ahead to check the path.

Changming didn’t mind this and took a step forward. The two of them, one following the other, were walking for time enough to burn about half an incense stick, and then stopped almost at the same time.

Although the fog was dense, they could see the path in both directions within a step.

And within about half a step, there were no boulders and stones that made the road hard to walk—they were abruptly replaced with a steep cliff. The fog hid dangers from the eyesight of a traveller, making them believe one step could let them mount the clouds and ride the mist, let them fly to the land of immortals.

“How should we go further?”

Xu Jingxian had never been there before. The closest she had come to the Nine Layers of the Abyss was exactly the Stone Forest where the Yulin Bell took them. At that time, she had felt that this place was so unbearably hot she couldn’t linger there for a moment; now, the thick mist made it even worse. Her forehead was sweaty, and the scorching feeling in her heart became even heavier.

“Jump down. That place should be the Nine Layers of the Abyss.”

“Should be?” Xu Jingxian was suspicious of his words, “After all, have you been there or not?”

Changming: “I’ve already told you, my memories are not clear. But except for jumping down, we have no other way.”

Xu Jingxian didn’t dare to jump down without careful consideration.

No one knew what was behind the thick mist, whether there were thorns filled with poison, or if it hid evil spirits within itself; maybe these two things were mixed there, gaping their blood-thirsty mouths and waiting for them to walk right into the trap. Every matter concerning the Nine Layers of the Abyss was mysterious, and Xu Jingxian could not be sure of anything.

While she was hesitating, she heard Changming’s “I will leave first”. Unexpectedly, he actually did leap down and disappeared in the dense mist.

Xu Jingxian was stunned.

Should she follow or not?

In the end, the Yangzhen Grass was just a legend that could have nothing to do with reality, while the Master of Lingbo Peak was surely a profitable position. She had been working hard for a long time to get where she was, but this one jump could make her lose everything.

Everyone knew that the Nine Layers of the Abyss was a place of no return, with the chances of a visitor’s survival close to zero. On the other hand, she could return to her clan and tell the Clan Master any convenient story; presumably, he would never be able to hold her responsible. After all, it was him who told her to bring the man there.

Changming didn’t fall into a bottomless abyss that would have torn his body and smashed his bones. The moment he entered the fog, his movements slowed down, as if he was supported by cotton. His body became light as a feather, just like he was treading on clouds, stepping into the primal chaos.

He stretched out his hand, but didn’t find the cliff. Space around him was vast and chaotic, as if he was left completely alone, drifting in the boundless space with no aim. Changming even felt that his eyelids became heavier. The fog brought a sweet fragrance that filled all five senses, making him drowsy.

But he knew that he couldn’t fall asleep, as this dream would have had no end.

Changming took out a thin needle and placed it in an acupoint on his hand. The stabbing pain made him quiver, and he regained his consciousness.

At the same time, a white crane flew out from his sleeve, caught Changming with its back, leaned down and rushed forward.

The dense fog confused minds, and if he didn’t have the paper puppet of wisdom, he would have been affected by it.

Changming closed his eyes, letting the white crane carry him out of the sea of mist. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself on the shore of a blue sea. Far away, a sunset brightened the sky with vivid colors. The scenery was truly picturesque.

Those who had never been there didn’t expect the Nine Layers of the Abyss, a place plagued by dangers, to be so peaceful.

The still-thick fog was left behind. A partially decomposed giant whale was stranded on the coast; it turned out that the white fog was coming out from its blowhole, and the billowing smoke was turning into the phantom world. Only bones were scattered around the whale, and some talismans and weapons were lying among them. Obviously, many people took the risk to come here, but lost their lives fruitlessly here before they got to see the real Nine Layers of the Abyss.

Changming lightly tapped the crane on its head.

“Lady Xu says yes but means no. Surely, she would hate to part with me. Go and meet her.”

The white crane spread its wings and soared to the sky, quickly entering the fog.

Changming sat cross-legged and closed his eyes to rest his mind.

Very soon the white crane returned with Xu Jingxian.

Of course, Xu Jingxian had realized there was something wrong with the mist, and held her breath after she fell down. But she lost her way, and could only go around in circles. If it was not for Changming’s white crane, she would have ended up like those whose bones were scattered on the ground.

“Lady Xu, we meet again! How have you been since we parted?” Changming teased her.

Xu Jingxian realized that he had long since guessed her intention to jump down and follow him, so he sent her the white crane. But she was quite thick-skinned, and didn’t blush a bit.

“I can’t express all my gratitude, should I pay you with my body?”

“Fine, how about right here?”

Xu Jingxian choked, outplayed by him, but quickly changed the subject as if nothing happened.

“Ming-lang, look, there is a town over there!”

On the shore not far away, they saw a village with a town rising impressively, surrounded by high and steady city walls of black stone. They were way more stunning than the ones people could see in the Human Realm.

Changming: “You said it yourself, the Nine Layers of the Abyss has nine threshholds and nine strongholds. Is it strange to see a town here?”

Xu Jingxian: “It’s just that I didn’t expect to see signs of human habitation and buildings here. I thought, even if there are city walls, they would be abandoned and dilapidated. Who knew it would be so, so…”

Changming: “Majestic.”

Xu Jingxian nodded.

Only this word, ‘majestic’, could describe her feelings about what she saw.

Changming: “People and demons are mixed together here; monsters are running amok. Those who are able to survive here are sometimes even more frightening than the evil spirits. I suggest not to enter this town tonight, and rather wait here, discuss our options, and then return to this point in the morning. I know very little about the Nine Layers of the Abyss, so I need your help.”

Xu Jingxian: “I don’t know much either, only hearsays.”

Changming smiled: “Then I will ask the lady to tell me these hearsays.”

Since she had been saved by his white crane just now, Xu Jingxian’s attitude towards him improved greatly, so she couldn’t decline his request. The two of them quickly found a place to rest at a distance from the mist, and Xu Jingxian lighted a fire there. Seeing Changming sit quietly in front of the fire, she couldn’t help but complain.

“You are a grown man, yet you make this little girl work!”

“I’m not feeling well. Gathering wood consumes energy. If I lose too much strength, I won’t be able to control the puppets. And, Lady Xu, able people should do more work.”

“I’ve never seen a person who is not afraid of losing their face at all and shows themself weak all day long like you do.”

Xu Jingxian laughed at him and sat down.

When the rays of the setting sun faded down, the surface of the sea turned into a pitch-black world.

The dark night held countless dangers, but Xu Jingxian suddenly understood that Changming’s decision to stay out of the town was the right one.

They could easily fall into a trap in the town, being strangers in a strange place, but territory outside the walls was at least open, and if anything burst out suddenly, it wouldn’t be hard for them to notice it.

“The Master of Kuye Peak in the Jianxue Clan is one of those few people who have returned from the Nine Layers of the Abyss. He told us that the Owner of the First Layer of the Nine Layers of the Abyss, known as Bo Ye, is of mixed human-demon blood. His appearance is unusual, and he holds great power. There are seven winding and intertwining rivers inside the city walls altogether, so the city is also called Seven Star Rivers…”

Xu Jingxian told him everything she knew about the Nine Layers of the Abyss in whispers.

But she quickly noticed that Changming’s thoughts were wandering. Instead of listening to her, he was looking into the distance attentively.

Xu Jingxian stopped talking and followed his gaze.

The night was pitch-black, the mist was pure white.

No one knew when this person had approached them.

His clothes were fluttering in the wind, his figure faintly discernible, as if he was an immortal.

But Xu Jingxian didn’t admire it.

She hissed and got up instead, taking out the thin silk from her belt swiftly.

At such time, in such a place, how could the man who appeared out of nowhere be an ordinary person?

The more out-of-this-world and refined his appearance, the more mysterious and dangerous he was.

But Changming didn’t move.

He was still sitting near the fire the same way, looking at the man.

Every step that this person took towards them reminded Changming of how familiar they used to be.

Yun Weisi.

This name resurfaced in Changming’s memories, rolled through his throat, reached the tip of his tongue, and he mouthed it silently.

This night under the stars catching breezes of bedtime [1], after being separated by the red dust of worldly affairs and ice of lofty mountains, by boundless and indistinct chaos, and by life and death—they met again after all.

Indeed, events repeat each other in cycles.

Tn:

[1] Last night under the stars catching breezes of bedtime: the first line from Li Shangyin’s poem. This poem really describes their reunion well; it’s about two friends meeting and spending a night together (playing games and drinking wine!). If you are interested, here is the link.