Chapter Nine

The Jiu-ling Peak mountain range is a vast expanse of overlapping ridges and peaks, with countless nameless mountains gathering to form a continuous, undulating landscape. A series of white lights flickered through the wooden house, and Lin He slowly opened his eyes, his consciousness hazy, as if he had just awakened from a deep slumber. He lay on a hard bed covered with a mat of dried grass. The cabin was dark, damp, and covered in moss, emitting a foul odor, while the ground was riddled with uneven dirt pits.

Sounds of wood being chopped echoed from outside. Lin He slowly sat up, and a sharp, stabbing pain instantly radiated from his right leg! Touching the source of the agony, he realized his joint was injured. Enduring the intense pain, he slowly stood up, unsure of his current location.

He pushed open the wooden door, which creaked on its hinges, and the sight that met his eyes left him stunned! He was surrounded on all sides by cliffs that pierced the clouds. The ground was lush with various grasses and trees, a sea of vibrant green as far as the eye could see. In the frequently drought-stricken kingdom, this place felt like a fairyland, leaving Lin He to wonder if he was even still alive.

Not far away, under a large tree, an old woman sat wearing tattered clothes, swinging an axe to chop wood. A pile of already-chopped logs lay beside her.

Lin He limped toward her. As he drew closer, he realized with shock that she was blind. Her white hair was disheveled, her face a web of wrinkles with no flesh visible, and she emitted the same foul odor as the cabin.

Just as Lin He was about to speak, she said, "You're awake?"

"Did you save me?"

Hearing his voice, the old woman narrowed her eyes. "Oh, you're quite young!" She added, "You fell from the mountain top. I saw you were still breathing, so I picked you up and brought you home."

Lin He immediately asked, "Is there anyone else? Am I alone?"

The old woman continued chopping wood. "There are others!"

Lin He’s eyes brightened. "Where are they?"

The old woman replied in a steady tone, "People fall down here every day. Some are dragged away by wolves, but there are still many human bones at the foot of the mountain. You can go and try to identify them; maybe they are still there!" She tilted her head, curled her lip, and snorted.

Realizing he was being teased, Lin He stopped asking. Time was tight; his priority was to find Senior Deng. He cupped his hands in a salute: "Thank you for saving my life, but I have urgent matters to attend to. Once I have finished my task, I will return to repay your kindness!"

As Lin He took a step, a surge of pain shot through his knee. The old woman laughed, "I've lived here for twenty years, and every day I've thought about climbing out. I’d like to see how a cripple climbs the Jiu-ling Peak!" Lin He ignored her, picked up a wooden stick from the ground to support himself, and limped away.

At the Fu-shou Mountain Stronghold, San-qiu Dao roared, "You are going to be the death of me!" San-qing Feng stroked his father’s back and said, "Father, it was dark that night; I couldn't tell if it was a sleeping potion or the withered corpse poison!" San-qiu Dao pointed at the unconscious Tao Zhiming on the bed and scolded, "He saved my life by curing this poison years ago, and you went and poisoned him!"

San-qing Feng sat on the edge of the bed, pondered for a moment, and suddenly stood up. "Father! There was another person poisoned that night!"

San-qiu Dao glanced at him sideways. "Who?"

"He Yu-yun's female disciple! And she knows the 'Nine Heavens of Desire Sound'!"

San-qiu Dao turned his head and cursed, "Are you stupid? The Nine Heavens of Desire Sound is immune to the five poisons!"

San-qing Feng’s eyes widened: "Father, you are getting senile. The Nine Heavens of Desire Sound can not only heal oneself but also help others reshape their meridians!"

San-qiu Dao squinted in thought. San-qing Feng walked to his father’s side and whispered, "Father, I know you are worried about Deng Yang-feng, but according to my inquiries, she is just an ordinary village girl. Deng Yang-feng doesn't know her at all, and He Yu-yun has been dead for a long time!"

Hearing this, San-qiu Dao’s face brightened. He kicked his son and laughed, "If only you used your brain to help your father more often!"

San-qing Feng said, "I will go discuss the capture with Prince Zhong the Second right away!"

Back in the Jiu-ling Peak valley, night had fallen. Lin He, leaning on his stick, limped back toward the cabin. The valley was completely sealed off by cliffs, the lowest of which still reached the clouds. Given the steep, soft nature of the cliffs, even if his leg weren't broken, his current cultivation level would make climbing out with his bare hands a pipe dream.

It was no wonder this place felt like a fairyland. His knee pain intensified, and the howls of wolves echoed through the valley. Lin He dared not delay; if he encountered a pack of wolves, he would have no chance of escape. He had no choice but to return to the blind old woman’s hut and plan anew.

Guided by moonlight, Lin He reached the cabin. The door was open, and even from outside, he could hear sounds of agonizing moans. Realizing something was wrong, he stumbled inside. In the moonlight filtering through the doorway, he saw the old woman from earlier, gasping in pain on the bed.

She was drenched in sweat, her lips blackened, clearly suffering from poisoning. Lin He knew the symptoms well. Without hesitation, he walked to the bedside, dropped his stick, and, enduring the pain in his knee, hoisted her right arm onto his shoulder. With great effort, he pulled her up, took off his boots, climbed onto the bed, and sat cross-legged behind her, preparing to use the Nine Heavens of Desire Sound to reverse her meridians.

As he prepared to channel his energy, the old woman muttered something. Lin He couldn't hear clearly and leaned in, placing his ear close to her.

"...take... me... to... the... eastern... cave."

Lin He frowned and asked, "The cave in the east?" She nodded with great difficulty.

Lin He climbed off the bed, struggling through the pain. He picked up his stick, stooped over, and with one hand on the stick and the other gripping her thin, bony hands, he tried to straighten his back. A stabbing pain shot through his knee, forcing him to let her go.

Clutching his knee, the heart-wrenching pain made it impossible to stand. He suddenly remembered something and fished the three remaining silver needles from his clothes. Mu Xiang-ming had said these were coated with a numbing agent; perhaps they could provide temporary relief.

Lin He pricked his joint with a needle. The agonizing pain immediately subsided significantly. He adjusted his posture, hoisted the old woman onto his back once more, and limped out the door.

Wolves howled continuously from the mountains. The moonlight bathed them, draping them in a veil of white light. Lin He breathed heavily; having not eaten all day, he felt feverish and weak, but his consciousness was sharp. He knew exactly how much distance he had covered and how much time had passed.

Upon reaching the eastern cliff, after a brief search, Lin He found a small opening! It had been covered by the old woman with dried grass, which is why he hadn't noticed it earlier.

He pulled away the grass to reveal an opening eight inches wide. Inside, it was pitch black. He bent down to enter and found a dark tunnel. At the far end, a faint blue light shimmered.

How could there be light in a cave at the bottom of such a deep valley? Lin He carried the old woman toward the blue light, knowing this was where she needed to go.

After walking a few steps, a peculiar fragrance drifted out. Lin He immediately felt an indescribable comfort—a sensation that reached deep into his soul. It was an addictive feeling that made one forget all troubles and pains, filling his body with a primal, beast-like strength. He no longer felt hunger or pain; his entire body felt incredibly light.

As he drew closer to the light, his pace quickened. He heard the sound of flowing water, and the temperature inside the cave rose unexpectedly.

Passing through the tunnel, he found himself in a vast chamber! The peculiar fragrance was even more concentrated here. The ceiling was embedded with blue, glowing jade stones, like stars in the night sky, leaving Lin He in awe. The most eye-catching feature was a cold pool not far away, emitting heat and a deep blue glow, as if signaling that it was the heart of the cave.

Lin He walked toward the cold pool and was amazed to find that the fragrance emanated from it. The water was incredibly clear. When Lin He looked down, a wave of fear, as if falling into an bottomless abyss, gripped his heart. The pool was terrifyingly deep, bottomless! The blue light originated from deep beneath the water.

At this moment, the old woman spoke weakly: "Stone... bed... the stone bed..."

Lin He looked around and saw a dark, brownish boulder nearby, shaped like a bed. He understood her intent, walked to the boulder, helped her sit on it, adjusted his position, and sat behind her.

The stone was warm! Sitting on it, he felt his meridians begin to flow more slowly. But the priority was to purge the poison from the old woman. He sat cross-legged, placed his hands against her back, closed his eyes, and began to channel his energy.

He remembered what his mother had told him when she taught him the Nine Heavens of Desire Sound as a child: The reason the Nine Heavens of Desire Sound could resist all the poisons of the world was that those who practiced it possessed meridians different from ordinary people. To master it, one had to begin in childhood; the older one grew, the stiffer their meridians became, making it increasingly difficult to practice.

Tears welled in Lin He’s eyes.

"Mother... where are you?"