Chapter 309: The Stone Statue on the Mountain

The next morning, just as the sky was beginning to brighten, three carriages slowly moved away along the Official Road outside the east gate of Xiangu County...

Xiao Zongting and Ximen Yong stood beneath the city wall, watching the carriages depart.

The biting cold wind of early morning stirred their sideburns, and in that instant, they both seemed to have aged significantly.

The three carriages had become three black dots in the distance. Ximen Yong turned his head to look at Xiao Zongting and said, "Children and grandchildren have their own fortunes. Brother Xiao, I hope you don't mind my presumption! Might I invite you to my home for a drink?"

Xiao Zongting said, "I was just thinking of having a drink with you, brother, to ease the gloom in my chest. You beat me to saying it!"

As he spoke, Xiao Zongting laughed heartily twice.

Ximen Yong also laughed and said, "Brother Xiao, please!"

"Please!"

Xiao Zongting and Ximen Yong boarded the Ximen Mansion carriage together. Shi Kang drove the carriage, and it rumbled away toward the Ximen Mansion.

A thousand miles away, inside a certain Yougu deep within the Changliu Mountain Range.

This narrow valley was surrounded by cliffs and was extremely precipitous; even monkeys skilled at climbing found it difficult to traverse this gorge.

Yet the bottom of this valley was lush with vegetation and verdant, making it a rather secluded place.

On a stone table at the bottom of the valley, covered in withered moss, an old man with white hair and a long beard sat before the table, staring at the Black and White Endgame on it, lost in deep thought.

This old man was Lv Yinlin, an Ancestor of the Taiyi Sect, an old monster of the Nascent Soul Realm.

Although this person had lived for over a thousand years and his hair and beard were gray, his complexion still held a faint rosy hue, showing no signs of decay.

Just as he was struggling with the endgame, the sound of rustling footsteps came from not far away in the Yougu.

Lv Yinlin did not look up, still staring at the chessboard on the stone table. Only when a figure walked out from beside a withered tree did he look up and say, "Qingzhu, where have you been these past few months? Why didn't you come to see your grandfather?"

Seeing the old man, Lv Qingzhu smiled slightly, walked over, and said, "Grandfather, I went down the mountain. I went out to gain some experience."

"Is that so?" Lv Yinlin looked at Lv Qingzhu with interest and said, "What insights did you gain from this experience?"

Lv Qingzhu's expression was cold and desolate as she said, "No particular insights. I just feel that the bustling world is nothing more than a fleeting dream."

Lv Yinlin was taken aback.

Lv Qingzhu had a naturally isolated nature; he had seen that long ago.

When Lv Qingzhu was thirteen, he had created the Cold Plum Sword Art for her specifically to use this sword art to nurture her isolated nature.

In Lv Yinlin's view, only by being cold and isolated could one cast aside the trivialities of the mortal world and focus entirely on the Dao!

This was his expectation for Lv Qingzhu!

Although Lv Qingzhu was a woman, Lv Yinlin hoped that her Dao Heart would be as firm as iron!

He even hoped that one day, she could inherit his mantle!

"Qingzhu, I am very comforted that you have such an realization!" Lv Yinlin stroked his beard, nodded gently, and said, "The mortal world is but a dream, a mere illusion. It is just that the ordinary people trapped within it cannot see their own self-imposed constraints and various affectations."

"Qingzhu, remember your grandfather's words. Whatever people do is futile; one can only cultivate. Under the Great Dao, all things of the mortal world are decay. Your grandfather has cultivated for over a thousand years. How many fellow travelers have turned to white bones? The past is but smoke."

Lv Qingzhu squatted beside Lv Yinlin, smiled sweetly, and said, "Grandfather, I have always wanted to ask you a question. After cultivating for a thousand years, Grandfather, are you happy?"

"Happy...?" Lv Yinlin's gaze shifted; this question seemed to prick him.

He seemed not to have heard this word for a very long time. He seemed to have forgotten what happiness was.

Seeing Lv Yinlin's dazed expression, Lv Qingzhu suddenly flipped her hand and handed something to him.

Lv Yinlin looked down; it was an xun with a polished surface.

Lv Qingzhu smiled and said, "Grandfather, could you play a tune for me to hear?"

Lv Yinlin took the xun and said, "Did you buy this down the mountain?"

"Yes," Lv Qingzhu said. "In an antique shop in a remote place."

"To think there are still such old things in this world!" Lv Yinlin sighed, then grasped the xun with both hands and placed it to his lips.

A simple and elegant melody began to ring out within the quiet valley.

Lv Qingzhu rested her head on Lv Yinlin's lap and gradually closed her eyes.

This xun only had that deep, simple quality when Grandfather played it...

As Lv Yinlin played, Lv Qingzhu's question kept surfacing in his mind.

A thousand years of cultivation—was he happy?

He remembered that he must have been happy once, but that seemed to be a very long time ago...

In the deathly silence of the darkness, a light cough suddenly came, followed by the sound of heavy gasping.

Yang Zhen's head throbbed with pain, as if it were about to split open.

He gasped in the darkness for a long while, his chest heaving violently.

His memory then returned bit by bit.

"You... didn't kill me?"

Yang Zhen stood in the darkness, as if asking the empty void, or perhaps asking himself. He touched his chest, where a wound had already scabbed over.

Yang Zhen's eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness, and he could vaguely make out that this was a small, cramped room.

His heart stirred, and he searched his body, soon pulling a Fire Folder from the inner pocket of his robe.

Yang Zhen opened the Fire Folder and gently blew out a flame.

Under the glow of the fire, he suddenly felt that this four-walled earthen room looked somewhat familiar.

"This is..."

Yang Zhen suddenly remembered; this was the cave where Xie Lei and Xu Ruhu had died.

Yang Zhen suddenly shouted, "Duan Rong!"

But the surroundings were silent; no sound answered him.

Yang Zhen took the Fire Folder and walked out, following the passage until he reached a cave entrance.

Yang Zhen stood there, seeing the faint daylight shining in from the cave entrance.

Yang Zhen extinguished the Fire Folder in his hand and climbed out from the cave entrance.

He immediately discovered that he was already at the bottom of a dry well.

It was indeed that underground cave of Xie Lei.

Yang Zhen gave his body a heave, braced his hands against the well walls, and climbed up.

Yang Zhen jumped down beside the well mouth and saw the dawn light faintly glowing; it was the time of early morning.

He breathed in the slightly damp, fresh air, feeling quite like a man reborn.

Yang Zhen's eyes turned slightly red.

He had not expected that Duan Rong would let him go.

Yang Zhen wondered, if they had swapped places, would he have let Duan Rong go?

Yang Zhen touched the wound on his chest again, and many memories of the past surged into his heart.

He knew that there was only one reason Duan Rong did not kill him: out of consideration for their brotherhood.

Duan Rong's dark, honest face flashed through Yang Zhen's mind.

Yang Zhen chuckled and muttered to himself, "You brat... you went soft on me? Acting like a woman? Dawdling around, and even hiding me in that cave..."

Though Yang Zhen was cursing with his mouth, tears streamed uncontrollably from his eyes.

No matter what Duan Rong had done, he could never betray Duan Rong again.

Yang Zhen jumped out of this old residence of Xie Lei, went to the street to eat two large bowls of breakfast, then went home to change his clothes, and headed to the Ya Men to report for duty.

Yang Zhen walked into the Constable room, giving Zhu Baogui and Liu Kui a start.

"You still know how to show up? I thought you were dead?" Zhu Baogui looked at Yang Zhen with a face full of astonishment.

"You're the one who's dead! It's early in the morning, can't you say something auspicious?" Yang Zhen glanced at Zhu Baogui and calmly sat down at his own desk.

"Yang Zhen, Head Constable Xie is gone. How about it? Come work for me?" Seeing Yang Zhen sit down, Zhu Baogui's eyes rolled, and he asked.

Yang Zhen's martial arts were decent, he was steady, and he was diligent in his work; Zhu Baogui really wanted to take him in.

Yang Zhen glanced at him without speaking. Xie Daohan was dead, and he would have to return to a team sooner or later; Zhu Baogui was a decent choice.

Seeing Yang Zhen not speak, Zhu Baogui knew he had agreed.

Just then, both Zhu Baogui and Liu Kui stood up and walked outside.

Yang Zhen looked at the two and said, "What are you doing? Where are you going?"

Zhu Baogui said, "New rules! Every morning, go to the front of the main hall to report for duty!"

Seeing Yang Zhen's confused expression, Zhu Baogui explained, "The new Head Constable has already arrived; his name is Ding Xingxing."

Yang Zhen's expression shifted. "A new Head Constable?"

"Also, yesterday was Head Constable Ding's first roll call, and you weren't there. You'd better think of an excuse to explain it to Head Constable Ding in a moment," Zhu Baogui said, then stepped out of the Constable room.

Yang Zhen immediately got up and followed him to the front of the main hall.

The crowd stood in formation, and not long after, they saw a middle-aged man with a square face and large eyes walk in front of them, gripping his blade. He scanned the crowd with an arrogant gaze and said, "Is everyone here?"

"Everyone is here," a few voices sounded from the crowd.

Ding Xingxing's eyelids twitched. He looked at the three rows of eighteen men; there were no vacancies. Indeed, everyone was there.

Ding Xingxing's gaze hardened, and he said, "Who is Yang Zhen?"

Yang Zhen stepped out of the line, cupped his fists, bowed slightly, and said, "Subordinate Yang Zhen, greetings to Head Constable Ding!"

"Why were you absent from yesterday's roll call? Do you look down on this Head Constable?" Ding Xingxing's eyes fixed on Yang Zhen; he wanted to kill the chicken to scare the monkey.

Yang Zhen said, "This subordinate would not dare! It is only because Head Constable Xie met with misfortune that this subordinate felt depressed and drank heavily for several days, missing the roll call. Since I was absent on the first day of roll call, I have disgraced the dignity of my superior; I am willing to accept thirty strokes of the cane!"

As Yang Zhen spoke, he knelt on one knee, his face calm and devoid of any fear.

Ding Xingxing's heart skipped a beat. He looked at Yang Zhen carefully and thought: This brat has courage and insight, and it is rare that he also possesses loyalty toward his old superior.

Ding Xingxing said, "You are quite sensible. These thirty strokes will be recorded for now; if you make a mistake in the future, they will be punished together! How about this, Yang Zhen, you will follow me from now on; I am just in need of a runner."

Upon hearing this, Yang Zhen immediately cupped his fists and said, "Thank you for your cultivation, Head Constable Ding!"

Many people in the crowd looked at Yang Zhen with strange expressions.

Had his ancestral grave been smoking black smoke? Two consecutive Head Constables had chosen him as their follower.

Zhu Baogui cursed inwardly, "Isn't this poaching my talent?"

The Changliu Mountain Range, stretching over two hundred miles, was the location of the Taiyi Sect's mountain gate.

Within it were layers of mountains and peaks like clouds, valleys were everywhere, and the climate was nine parts yin to one part sunny; many places were filled with miasma and poisonous insects.

That Changliu Mountain was originally sparsely populated, and the Taiyi Sect had strict orders forbidding commoners from entering the mountains, with violators treated as traitors.

Therefore, even in the outer ranges of Changliu Mountain, there were no signs of hunters or woodcutters.

However, on a certain mountain path this day, there were four black dots climbing with difficulty.

It was precisely the group of four led by Duan Rong, who had traveled a long distance to arrive.

Duan Rong and his group had first arrived at Shenyun Prefecture together with the group led by Zhu Qunxiang.

Unexpectedly, as soon as they arrived at Shenyun Prefecture, they were summoned by people from the Dali Temple and interrogated for three consecutive days. What they were asked about was the ambush they encountered by the Filthy Blood Sect in the wilderness of Xiangu County.

Shenyun Prefecture was the capital of Qingzhou, and the Dali Temple had overall authority over all criminal cases, large and small, within the territory of Qingzhou. Regardless of the size of the case, they had the power to review and re-examine them.

Three days later, the four of them were released. However, Zhu Qunxiang, Lu Qingfeng, and Wang Shanshan were temporarily detained within the Dali Temple.

After Duan Rong and his group left the Dali Temple, they immediately took their documents to the Shenyun Prefecture government office to exchange them for their Sect Cloud Tokens.

Their detailed information and portraits had already arrived at the Shenyun Prefecture office, and the Sect Cloud Tokens had been prepared in advance. After verifying their documents and appearances, the government office exchanged the Sect Cloud Tokens for them.

It was just that Xiangu County was remote, and they had encountered an ambush and interrogation, so the main force of Registered Disciples entering the mountains had already left several days prior.

Duan Rong and his group had no choice but to head to Changliu Mountain on their own.

The Changliu Mountain Range stretched over two hundred miles, with clusters of peaks and miasma everywhere; finding the location of the Sect's mountain gate was quite difficult.

Fortunately, the government office had given them a map, allowing them to follow the map to find their way!

The few of them had no choice but to take the map, shoulder their luggage, and set off on the road.

Who told them to arrive so late?

The group walked to a mountain ridge, and Duan Rong, holding the map and looking at the fog-filled valley before him, fell into deep thought.

"This... which way should we go?"

Ximen Kankan leaned in and said, "Let me see."

Ximen Kankan took the map and asked, "Where are we now?"

Duan Rong pointed it out to him and said, "Here."

Ximen Kankan knitted his brows, looking at the map, then at the mountain path appearing and disappearing in the thick fog before them.

Xiao Yu and Shen Mizhi stood to the side, wiping the fine sweat from their foreheads.

Xiao Yu said, "Have you two figured it out yet?"

Ximen Kankan scratched his head, looked at the mountain path to the east, and said, "It should be this way."

Duan Rong frowned and said, "Are you sure?" He felt they shouldn't go that way.

Seeing Duan Rong questioning him, Ximen Kankan immediately said in a certain tone, "I'm sure, it's this way. Look at the map, isn't this mountain ridge drawn here the same as this one?"

Duan Rong took a look; he felt Ximen Kankan was just guessing blindly, but Xiao Yu and Shen Mizhi had already started walking in the direction Ximen Kankan pointed.

With the thick fog before him, Duan Rong was not entirely certain either, so he immediately followed.

The group walked along the ridge in the thick fog for a while, when suddenly a strong wind rose, and the dense fog was blown away in just a few breaths.

The mountain path ahead suddenly opened up.

As soon as Duan Rong saw the road, he called out, "Look, we went the wrong way. And you were patting your chest saying it was this way!"

Xiao Yu and Shen Mizhi also gave Ximen Kankan a reproachful glare.

Ximen Kankan was covered in sweat, and his face could not hold its composure.

"Look at you people, you don't know which way to go, do you? I pointed out a path for you. With such thick fog, we have to try and fail. As soon as you find out it's wrong, you start blaming me. Next time I won't care anymore. You are burning bridges after crossing!"

Duan Rong said, "What burning bridges? This is discarding the millstone after the donkey is done, okay?"

Ximen Kankan wiped the heavy sweat from his forehead and said, "Isn't that the same meaning?"

Duan Rong kept a straight face and said, "Of course it's not the same meaning. You are the donkey, not the bridge."

"You're the donkey!?" Ximen Kankan immediately jumped over, wanting to hit Duan Rong.

Duan Rong dodged to the side and avoided it.

Xiao Yu said urgently, "Stop messing around, you two! Take advantage of the lack of fog and hurry up. We'll get lost again in a moment."

Ximen Kankan looked at Duan Rong, who was a stone's throw away, and said, "Duan Rong, I'm only sparing you this once for Xiao Yu's sake."

Duan Rong was just about to smile and retort at Ximen Kankan again, but his smile suddenly froze on his face; he saw that as the thick fog on the distant mountain peak dispersed, it revealed a huge face.

That face was a massive stone carving sculpted from the entire mountain peak.

What shocked Duan Rong the most was that he had seen this face before.

It was the face of the statue of Immovable Wisdom King.

In other words, that mountain peak amidst the layers of mountains in the distance had been carved into a huge statue of Immovable Wisdom King, using the entire mountain body as the base.

Duan Rong immediately thought that the mountain statue, like the statue he had drawn, was constructing a Mandala.

It was just that this Mandala was so huge, actually using a mountain body as the image!

Such a large statue, such a large Mandala!

When practicing the Womb Treasury Sutra, what kind of overwhelming pressure would the divine shadow that enters the Spirit Sea possess?

What kind of powerful Divine Soul could withstand such terrifying pressure?

"Duan Rong, what are you dazing off for? Hurry up and move..."

Xiao Yu and the other two had already returned a distance along the path they came, but when they suddenly looked back, they found Duan Rong still standing there in a daze.

Duan Rong gave a response and came back to his senses; he raised his eyes to look, only to see that the huge stone face had already been covered by thick fog once again.

(End of this chapter)