Chapter 18
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Chapter 18
Gong Wu stepped into the formation, and in the next moment, her foot fell into empty space, her arm supported by Ji Yang.
They stood before a rocky cliff, and in the distance, they could vaguely see vast fields and rising smoke from cooking fires.
Perhaps this place was still within the borders of Han, or it could have been transported to any layer of the Three Thousand Lifetimes through the formations.
Gong Wu tightly grasped her silver crane ink-dipping umbrella, and when she opened her spiritual vision, she could see a trail from faint to dense.
The claw marks of the fierce beasts were shallow in the sand and gravel, but traces of spiritual energy still lingered, leading deeper into the cave.
Ji Yang held a long sword in his hand, ignited the flames, and walked ahead.
“Brother, if you forge a spirit weapon later, what do you plan to make?”
“No chatting allowed when entering the cave.” The young man bent to fit into the narrow dark passage and after a while said, “How about a folding fan?”
Gong Wu smiled and replied, “That sounds good.”
The disciples of Moonfire Valley often ventured into the mountains and fields to gather herbs, encountering wolves and wild dogs quite often.
But the stench inside the cave was much stronger than those beasts, making people’s heads feel dizzy.
The beast cave had many forks and diverging paths, but the spiritual vision was reliable and became clearer the deeper they went.
The moment the path opened up, they both heard the angry roar of a fierce beast baring its teeth.
In the distant darkness, it looked like there were six lanterns arranged neatly, and they seemed to blink.
“Those aren’t lights,” Gong Wu retreated sharply, a chill gripping her heart, “They are eyes!!”
At that same moment, Ji Yang threw the burning flame into the air, illuminating the vast lair where a six-eyed spotted leopard crouched with an arched back in anger!
Perhaps the moment they entered the cave, it had already sensed their footsteps!
Gong Wu looked up at its massive form, shivering for the first time in her life in such close proximity to a fierce beast. She unconsciously gripped the handle of the Thirty-six Ribs Umbrella tightly.
“Six-eyed One-tail, it has only opened four spiritual orifices,” she forced herself to stay calm and used her spiritual vision to examine the leopard: “Two are on its forehead, and two are on its heart and stomach.”
Ji Yang immediately raised his sword and rushed toward the most dangerous spot.
The six-eyed leopard stared at him with all six of its eyes, roaring as it charged into battle!
In an instant, the sword energy was sharp as a blade. The young man moved swiftly and decisively, darting behind the leopard to slash downward!
Gong Wu channeled her spiritual energy, twisting her wrist to make the crane feathers on the umbrella shoot out like cold blades, with over thirty striking directly at the leopard’s face!
Caught between the two attacks, the six-eyed spotted leopard could not evade in time, and one of its right eyes was pierced by the feather blades!
With a fierce cry, the long sword pierced straight through its belly, breaking its first spiritual orifice!
The fierce beast rolled to the ground like a collapsing mountain, staggering to get back up, and its tail whipped around like an iron whip!
Ji Yang leaped to carry Gong Wu away, shouting, “Strike!”
In the dust, Gong Wu could not see her surroundings clearly, relying solely on his command to stab forward.
Two of the thirty-six ribs of the umbrella struck precisely at the leopard’s forehead, the sound of its spiritual orifice shattering echoing like glass smashing against a wall!
In excruciating pain, the six-eyed spotted leopard realized it could not survive another fight and struggled to stand, sweeping its tail around to scatter debris and dry leaves everywhere!
As soon as Gong Wu landed, she was left coughing, quickly realizing, “It’s trying to escape!”
“Don’t chase,” Ji Yang tightened his grip on her sleeve, raising his hand to create a barrier to prevent ambushes in the dim light. “We’re not here to kill it.”
Right, the rare treasure. Gong Wu recalled the riddle-like requirement from the stone wall of the Rebirth Temple, covering her mouth with her sleeve in the swirling mist, coughing, “What kind of treasure could there be here—ah!”
Suddenly, she heard a small cry, as sharp teeth pierced through her calf, sending pain shooting through her head.
How could a little cub get into the barrier!!
Did they think a cat could walk without making a sound?
In a flash, Ji Yang swung his sword down fiercely, but the cub did not release its grip, instantly getting its insides sliced by the sword energy and dying with its eyes wide open.
Gong Wu was in so much pain that she could not utter a sound, collapsing onto the ground while still holding her umbrella, only to bump against something hard.
Reaching out, she grasped a leg bone marked with bite marks.
“How deep is the injury?”
“Wait a moment,” Gong Wu gasped, stopping him, “It might be poisoned.”
“I’ll do it.”
Ji Yang had already put on deer leather gloves and pried open the beast’s head still stuck in her calf, black blood gushing down.
The excruciating pain made Gong Wu unable to sit still; she forced herself to stay awake, trying to lean against the rock wall to rest, only to bump against something round.
…It better not be a human head.
Gong Wu quickly reached back and, sure enough, found it was a partially decayed human head. She threw it away with the quickest speed of her life.
In so much pain that she felt too weak to curse, she started shivering from the cold, alternating between feelings of high fever and chills coursing through her blood.
Wait, didn’t she already have a resistance to poison…?
Could it be the lethal poison that causes a slow death due to this deadly physique?!
Ji Yang removed his gloves and swiftly checked her pulse.
“The poisonous blood is rushing toward your internal organs,” he said in a cold, low voice, “You probably have half an hour left.”
Gong Wu curled up in pain and whispered hoarsely, “It’ll be a problem if my organs dissolve.”
“Senior brother,” she took a deep breath to stay conscious, “You must kill me.”
Each time she reincarnated, she had to wait for the damaged parts to heal. Rather than enduring a painful death, she preferred a quick end to save her organs.
In the dim light, the young man before her also took deep breaths.
“The longer you hesitate, the more pain I feel,” Gong Wu could barely form complete words, “Subei, aim for my heart, one stab will do, do you understand?”
She was grateful that the sword passed down from her senior sister was both sharp and fierce; it would undoubtedly be a more painless death than sinking into the Wan Shi Pool.
“You’re on the Path of Emotionless; consider it as me giving you the chance to cultivate,” she grabbed his arm, “—Senior brother!”
The young man held the sword, looking at her in silence, his breath almost nonexistent.
When Gong Wu saw him lower his gaze, she momentarily felt a strange illusion.
Killing someone seemed like an incredibly intimate act.
The sword tip pierced through layers of fabric, broke skin, and tore through flesh and bone, causing another’s heart to burst.
Even if they were as close as siblings, they could never do such a thing.
If she had to kill him herself, she would hesitate countless times and then beg to switch to someone else.
But the pain was unbearable.
Gong Wu curled her body up, her legs gradually losing sensation from the poison’s invasion.
“It hurts.” Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, her voice trembling, “Brother, it hurts.”
Ji Yang knelt beside the girl, his hair falling over his expression, and finally whispered an apology.
He pressed down on her left shoulder with one hand, swiftly bringing down the sharp sword.
In a daze, Gong Wu saw a flash of white light, and she blissfully fell into a deep sleep.
As her last thought surfaced, the pain in her heart doubled.
My clothes!!
—Does cultivating the Path of Reincarnation mean I have to run around naked every day?
She died again.
In her peaceful slumber, Gong Wu felt her blood being cleansed, transparent and pure like a newborn.
Compared to the previous three times she had died from poison, this time the detoxifying process was much faster; before she could even enjoy her sleep, it had already settled.
Next came the healing of her heart and calf muscles, the reconstruction of her blood vessels.
Gong Wu felt like she was napping during a lunch break, able to sleep while sensing the subtle changes in those areas, her divine consciousness couldn’t help but exclaim.
No wonder he’s my senior brother; he struck with such precision.
From now on, if I need to die, I’ll come to him.
About three hours later, she awoke on a soft, warm pillow.
As she opened her eyes, she felt the object beneath the back of her neck shift slightly, and Gong Wu realized she had been sleeping on her senior brother’s lap.
Not only was her head resting on his legs, but her body was also sprawled across the fur of a massive fierce beast, which provided a comforting warmth.
Still weary, she was gently assisted to sit up.
The six-eyed Leopard had likely feigned defeat; after her death, it had returned, seeking vengeance for its cubs, only to be struck through the heart by Ji Yang’s sword, ending its life.
Ji Yang remained silent, offering her some warm water and checking her pulse once more.
…Indeed, the accumulated toxins had been completely purged.
After drinking the warm water, Gong Wu gradually regained her strength. She intended to turn and offer some words of comfort to her senior brother but was momentarily stunned by what she saw through her spiritual vision.
The halo-like radiance surrounding him had become vivid and intense, resembling the blazing sun.
“You—have you broken through?”
Was it because he killed me, or because he killed that Leopard, or both?
Gong Wu instinctively reached out, wanting to touch that crown-like light, her eyes wide with astonishment.
Ordinary cultivators could break through to the Opening Sun stage, with records indicating that the earliest to achieve this were around forty years old.
Yet her senior brother, who had just turned twenty, had already reached a level of cultivation where he could begin accepting disciples.
Even their master—their master had remained at the Jade Balance realm, and now they were only one stage apart!
Hidden Element, Insight, Glorious Light, Opening Sun, Jade Balance, Heavenly Authority…
Once he reached Heavenly Authority, the next step would be crossing tribulations to ascend to immortality.
As for the final three stages—Heavenly Design, Heavenly Pivot, and Heavenly Wheel—they represented realms beyond even immortals, realms that mortals need not concern themselves with!
Moonlight streamed down from high up in the cave, illuminating Ji Yang’s profile.
His long hair was as dark as ink, and his lips were pale.
Only when he looked at her did his eyes regain their warmth.
“At the moment I killed you, emotions surged within me,” he said in a low, husky voice, “but I ignored them.”
A family member who had grown up with him had died by his sword, yet he could not allow his emotions to surface.
When Gong Wu took her last breath, a trace of his Path of Emotionless heart emerged, as if one of the seven feelings had been severed.
—“Sorrow.”
The little girl stood up and brushed off the dust, saying briskly, “You did well.”
“It was an urgent situation. My death had its advantages, senior brother; you did nothing wrong.”
Gong Wu was relieved that he wasn’t indecisive and hadn’t wasted such a valuable opportunity.
But as she turned her head, she couldn’t help but wonder: if joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, dislike, and desire were all severed, what would a person become?
If a stone could achieve immortality, what meaning would life hold?
As she turned, she nearly stepped on two large eggs that reached almost to her knees.
“These must be snacks for two little Leopards.”
Ji Yang crouched down and gently prodded the egg, which wobbled slightly as if in response.
Gong Wu couldn’t tell if it was a snake egg or a bird egg, so she squatted down and touched it, finding it still warm.
“Wait—there are two little Leopards?!”
The young man pointed to the corner, his tone tinged with annoyance.
“It wanted to bite you, so I gave it a good thrashing and tossed it over there. Whether it explodes or drowns is up to you.”
In the southwestern corner, a pile of white bones gleamed under the light, and there, indeed, was a little Leopard.
Its mouth was stuffed with wild fruit, and its four paws were bound with vines; at that moment, it was trussed up like a crab, glaring fiercely at them.
“Meow!!”
