Chapter 884: 【Cave Encircling Annihilation】(Part 1)

Hu Xiaotian said, "The mountains are high and the emperor far away; you wanting to stand guard is your business, but I need to rest properly." He ate his fill and walked toward the resting stone house, discovering there was no bed, only two futons—conditions were indeed harsh.

Qi Dainei followed him inside, not because he was close to Hu Xiaotian, but because being alone outside made him uneasy; he felt Split Cloud Valley had an indescribable eeriness. Since Hu Xiaotian had been here before, he must know the situation inside very well, but this bastard simply refused to tell him; in any case, staying closer would give him backup.

Hu Xiaotian had thought Bu Wu would most likely come again, but that night passed uneventfully without wind or waves—not even Bu Wu, not even a ghost's shadow. Hu Xiaotian even woke up in the middle of the night to secretly observe the cave where Bu Wu first appeared, finding no movement at all.

Actually that night neither Qi Dainei nor Hu Xiaotian slept soundly; Hu Xiaotian worried Bu Wu might show up at any moment, while Qi Dainei was spooked by Hu Xiaotian's scare. But after a peaceful night, Qi Dainei thought Hu Xiaotian was deliberately spouting alarmist nonsense to frighten him.

For six straight days it was the same—aside from the monk who came at set times to deliver meals, no one else came to Split Cloud Valley.

Qi Dainei had not forgotten the emperor's orders; each day at the appointed time he went to the cave of the Longevity Buddha to offer incense, he also obeyed Monk Tongjing's instructions, never entering any cave without permission. Thinking that enduring just one more day would finish the emperor's task, this miserable duty finally ended, and Qi Dainei's mood eased considerably.

During those six days and nights, they hardly communicated; Hu Xiaotian either slept or meditated to cultivate, and he did nothing particularly noteworthy.

For Hu Xiaotian, coming to Split Cloud Valley was not a bad thing—here no one disturbed him, and he had nothing in common with Qi Dainei. Moreover, he despised Qi Dainei's character, so he couldn't be bothered to talk to this bastard; it was perfect for him to devote himself entirely to cultivating his internal energy. His biggest problem was controlling the vast and mighty internal energy of Monk Yuan Kong; he didn't even dare hope to convert all these alien true qi for his own use—his first thought was self-preservation. Only by controlling these external true qi could he avoid the danger of backlash.

Over these six days Hu Xiaotian devoted himself entirely to training, using the Void Great Law to spiral-divide his surging, ocean-like internal breath into wind and cloud, then disperse it into his body's eight extraordinary meridians. Although he knew that deeper practice of the Void Great Law would bring greater future risks, for him this was the only option for now—first resolve the urgent matter, later, when he meets Master Yuan Mu, he hopes the master will show compassion and heal him.

Sunrise, sunset. Qi Dainei waited until nightfall to return to their resting stone house, seeing the monk had already delivered dinner, but Hu Xiaotian was not inside the room; just then he noticed Hu Xiaotian crawling out of the Dustless Stream, wet, wearing only a pair of shorts, and in his hand he held a carp over two feet long.

Hu Xiaotian laughed, "Not bad, not bad—today I'll use you as a starter." He split the carp open on the riverbank, removed the scales, and washed it clean. Turning to Qi Dainei he said, "Why are you standing there like an idiot? Hurry up and gather firewood to roast the fish."

Qi Dainei also hadn't seen meat for days, and though he really wanted to feast, he still felt a bit guilty, whispering, "Commandant Sir, this is Heaven Dragon Temple."

"What's wrong with Heaven Dragon Temple? It's just the two of us here—if word gets out, it'll be you who's informing on us!"

Qi Dainei found it both laughable and exasperating, thinking they weren't real monks anyway; he turned around, gathered some dry twigs nearby, lit a fire on the spot, and once the fire was ready, Hu Xiaotian had cleaned the carp, skewered it on a stick, and handed it to Qi Dainei to help roast.

After the carp was roasted, Hu Xiaotian split it in two, not shortchanging Qi Dainei. Of course this bastard had ulterior motives—killing was my doing, but indulging in meat was something we both did, violating the temple rules, so we're both culpable.

The two sat by the fire eating roasted fish; since arriving in Split Cloud Valley they had never experienced such harmony.

Qi Dainei said, "Tomorrow night we won't need to stand watch in Split Cloud Valley."

Hu Xiaotian nodded and said, "The roasted fish is good; if we had wine it would be even better."

Qi Dainei said, "When we return to the capital, I'll treat Sir Hu to a good drink."

Hu Xiaotian chuckled leeringly, gazing deeply at Qi Dainei, who felt a creepy sensation under Hu Xiaotian's stare: "Sir Hu, why are you looking at me like that?"

Hu Xiaotian said, "Qi Dainei, we're old acquaintances; you should know something of my temperament—I repay kindness double, but if anyone schemes against me… hehe…"

Qi Dainei trembled, "Sir Hu, what do you mean? Surely I've done something to cause your misunderstanding."

Hu Xiaotian said, "Whether it's a misunderstanding, we both know it deep down—when I was summoned to the palace, you clearly knew we were to come to Heaven Dragon Temple, so why hide it from me?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "Isn't it a misunderstanding that we all understand in our hearts? When I was first summoned into the palace, you all clearly knew to come to Tianlong Temple, so why hide it from me?"

"Even if the emperor barred you from speaking, after arriving at Heaven Dragon Temple those guards openly obeyed but secretly defied me, opposing me at every turn; I was sent out by the emperor's order to investigate, yet you spread rumors that I couldn't endure the temple's austerity and thus fled."

Qi Dainei said, "Sir Hu, I swear on heaven and earth I never said such a thing—it's just those guards spouting nonsense."

Hu Xiaotian snorted coldly, "Everyone's sensible; honest people don't do sneaky deeds. I also know you're acting on Mu Rongzhan's commission, which is why you're targeting me everywhere."

Qi Dainei gave a wry smile, "How dare I, a subordinate, target Sir Hu?" Sweat beaded on his forehead.

Hu Xiaotian said, "You'd better not—otherwise I guarantee you won't leave Heaven Dragon Temple alive."

Hu Xiaotian said: "You'd better not have, otherwise I can guarantee you won't leave Tianlong Temple alive."

Qi Dainei's spirits plummeted instantly, and even the fragrant roasted fish suddenly became hard to swallow.

Hu Xiaotian finished the roasted fish and was the first to return to the stone house.

Qi Dainei sat alone by the campfire outside for a long while, then silently returned to the stone house, lay in the corner, hesitated, and whispered low, "Someone said Sir Hu won't be able to go back."

Hu Xiaotian startled at those words. The person Qi Dainei referred to could only be Mu Rongzhan—who else would it be? Hu Xiaotian didn't press further; Qi Dainei's feelings must be utterly conflicted, and if Hu Xiaotian pursued the question he might get nowhere. He needed to make Qi Dainei recognize his own strength, to convince him that he could stand against Mu Rongzhan, before Qi Dainei would tell him everything he knew.

Hu Xiaotian wondered what Mu Rongzhan was up to—why such hatred toward him? By rights he had done nothing to offend him, and he was on excellent terms with Murong Feiyan; could it merely be because he was involved with her daughter? Or perhaps the "old emperor" at Heaven Dragon Temple was really Hong Beimo in disguise, and Mu Rongzhan already knew the truth? Yet why did he say Hu Xiaotian couldn't return? Was Mu Rongzhan planning to strike him, or was it Hong Beimo? Hu Xiaotian felt he had no grudge against Hong Beimo either!

Hu Xiaotian immediately overturned that thought—perhaps Qiqi's trust in him had already alerted Hong Beimo. Could it be that Hong Beimo now harbored murderous intent toward him? If so, then bringing him to Heaven Dragon Temple was a trap.

At this moment Qi Dainei stood up, opened the door and stepped out, feeling the urge to relieve himself. Outside he saw a black shadow flit into the opposite cave. His heart jumped— that cave was clearly the one they guarded day and night with incense—and he shouted loudly, "Who goes there?"

Hu Xiaotian was also startled awake by that shout, hastily rushing outside. Qi Dainei didn't dare approach rashly, pointing at the cave and saying, "Someone went in!"

Hu Xiaotian said, "Are you seeing things?" He also felt uneasy inside. If Bu Wu had come, there would likely be trouble.

Qi Dainei said, "I definitely saw it, no mistake. Should we go check it out?"

"If you want to go, you go—I'm not going!" Hu Xiaotian refused to invite trouble voluntarily.

Qi Dainei certainly didn't dare go alone either, but he was still worried: "Sir Hu, if they're harming the Buddha statue…" Before he finished, a clang came from the cave's direction, like a heavy object striking stone.

Qi Dainei's face changed, and Hu Xiaotian also frowned; the sound sounded like they were truly destroying that Longevity Buddha statue. If the statue were destroyed, the emperor's investigation would entail a death penalty—since the mishap occurred on their watch, blame would be unavoidable.

Hu Xiaotian said, "Come on, let's go look!" The two hurried toward the cave.

They leapt over the small river, arriving at a spot about three zhang from the cave, and saw firelight leaking from inside.

Hu Xiaotian suddenly felt a sharp wind behind him; he shoved Qi Dainei aside and stepped back—swish! swish! —two feathered arrows shot from the opposite cliff aimed at their backs. Thanks to Hu Xiaotian's timely detection they missed, striking the cave's stone wall, where the arrowheads sparked against the rock.

Hu Xiaotian suddenly felt a sharp wind behind him; he shoved Qi Danei aside with one hand and stepped back a step. Whoosh! Whoosh! Two feathered arrows shot from the opposite stone cliff, aiming at their backs, but because of Hu Xiaotian's timely discovery, they missed the target, striking the stone wall of the cave, and the arrowheads burst into several sparks upon hitting the stone wall.

Qi Dainei was startled; though his martial skill wasn't weak, compared to Hu Xiaotian he lagged considerably—if not for Hu Xiaotian shoving him aside, he wouldn't have noticed the incoming dark arrows at all.

Hu Xiaotian whispered, "Take cover in the cave!" Speaking, he already darted inside with a quick step, and Qi Dainei hurriedly followed his footsteps.

Before Hu Xiaotian could steady his footing, a black shadow lunged at him from ahead—it was the Longevity Buddha statue that Chu Fufeng had been sponsoring, now lifted and hurled at him.

Recommendation: Zhujiang Lao Yan's "Bandit Camp", book number 3484394—it's a time-travel story, but the protagonist has lost his memory;

He is a hero, yet he favors romantic entanglements;

He has worn National Army uniforms, eaten Eighth Route Army rations, with a single goal: to beat the living daylights out of those damn Japanese!

His name is Thus character: Thus character: Yetufei, a bandit chieftain who doesn't remember his past, leading his bandit camp, he has forged a legendary iron-blooded anti-Japanese saga!

. /Book/Welcome all brothers and sisters to come show support. (To be continued~^~)

Welcome, brothers and sisters, to come and show your support. (To be continued... ^~^)