Two more days passed before the Young City Lord Cui once again led a party out of the city.
Morning was still quiet. Before the peddlers weaving through the streets and alleys could raise their crisp cries, the pounding of hooves woke all of Dongxun City ahead of them.
The paper crane suddenly caught fire without wind, alerting Ren Yijue, who was playing chess against himself, that business had arrived.
In the little courtyard, Ren Yijue tossed a chess piece into the bowl with a clear clink, swept up his outer robe, and hurried off to find Qian Xuelang so they could leave the city together.
The spirit horses were certainly magnificent, but the dozen-odd riders had not taken to the skies. They could hardly avoid leaving hoofprints in the mortal world. Following the trail, the two pursued them all the way into a mountain near Dongxun City.
Ren Yijue had plainly done more homework than Qian Xuelang. “This mountain is called Qingping Mountain. The qing comes from its being green in all four seasons. As for ping, there are several explanations. Some say the mountain itself resembles a screen, hence Qingping; others say it stands behind Dongxun City like a natural barrier, and that is how it got the name.”
Anyone who did not know better might have thought the two of them had come for a spring outing.
Qian Xuelang merely said, “The spiritual qi here is quite dense.”
“It is precisely because the spiritual qi is abundant that spirits and monsters flourish here.” Ren Yijue smiled faintly. “If human presence were what flourished, then what grew from it would be evil spirits and resentful thoughts.”
In principle, all things born between Heaven and Earth ought to have their own freedom and leave one another alone.
Unfortunately, once living things developed sentience, distinctions arose with it.
Monsters and spirits, mortals and cultivators each had their own rules, customs, and standards of conduct, and many of those inevitably contradicted one another. When that happened, there was little to do but see whose fist was bigger.
The two had drawn close enough to hear the neighing of spirit horses and the Cui disciples talking. They seemed to be searching for a monster somewhere in the mountain that had injured people.
Since there was no immediate danger, the two did not go any closer, lest they be discovered.
Qian Xuelang suddenly said, “When I was eight, several monsters coveted the bustle and prosperity of the human world and broke into a city. They ate quite a few mortals before cultivators killed them.”
Ren Yijue did not know why he had brought it up, but followed his lead all the same. “Did that frighten the eight-year-old little Jade Beauty?”
“No.” Qian Xuelang shook his head. “I felt nothing at the time. Later, when I thought about it carefully, for the mortals it was a calamity that struck them for no reason; for the monsters, it was merely a matter of filling their stomachs after amusing themselves; and for most cultivators, slaying monsters and eliminating evil was only right.”
“Each had its own way of surviving, yet together they produced a bitter outcome,” Qian Xuelang said. “But the world has always been this way. People eat beasts, beasts eat people, people eat people, beasts eat beasts. It was so centuries and millennia ago, and it will still be so centuries and millennia from now.”
He spoke as though it were merely an idle observation and did not seem to want an answer.
Ren Yijue was silent for a while. Only after a moment did he say, “The Heavenly Dao is indeed like that. But perhaps it is precisely because it is so that one wants to change something.”
“Change what?”
“I do not know either. Perhaps… the ties of fate? If not for Mister Feng’s compassion, I would never have met the Jade Beauty, and the Jade Beauty would never have come down from the mountain, would he?” Ren Yijue said softly. “Those hands of yours can change the fates of many living beings. Perhaps the Jade Beauty, too, is waiting for someone to change him.”
Hearing this, Qian Xuelang unconsciously felt the urge to smile, only to suddenly think: So this is the kind of thing I must let go of.
The heart that had begun to waver immediately cooled again.
As the two were speaking, hoofbeats suddenly sounded in the distance and gradually receded. Ren Yijue could not help sounding helpless. “These children are young and strong. They really can run.”
Humans had human qi, monsters had demonic qi, and talismans naturally had corresponding tracking arts. Dongxun City had a great many inhabitants and naturally could not permit monsters to attack the city, so every year disciples were sent out to clear the surrounding area while gaining practical experience at the same time.
The two moved through the mountain forest at just the right distance, neither too close nor too far, trailing a little behind the mounted party. After somewhat less than half an incense stick’s time, the riders finally stopped, and an older disciple said, “Strange.”
The Young City Lord Cui’s voice held laughter, as though he was long accustomed to this. “Shensi, what is strange this time?”
Elio’s Notes: Cui Shensi’s name (慎思) evokes “careful thought.” The chapter title 慎思多忧 turns that into wordplay: “careful thoughts, many worries.”
The other disciples could not hold back their amusement either and burst into laughter. It seemed this disciple named Shensi was habitually so cautious that he had become one of the party’s rare sources of entertainment.
Cui Shensi said, “We have already pursued it deep into Qingping Mountain. According to the villagers nearby, this beast ate several people, yet fled in a panic when they struck at it with hoes and rakes. That suggests it only recently developed sentience. There are plenty of wild animals in the mountains. If it only wanted to fill its stomach, why travel so far down the mountain for no reason just to attack villagers?”
The Young City Lord Cui snorted coldly. “These creatures gain the slightest bit of sentience and immediately develop wicked thoughts, wanting to come down the mountain and taste human flesh. It has happened plenty of times before. What is strange about that?”
“That may be so,” Cui Shensi said, “but judging by where the talisman points, something still feels wrong to me.”
The Young City Lord Cui sounded helpless. “What is wrong now?”
“Judging from the demonic qi… this creature cannot have only just developed sentience,” Cui Shensi said. “It is deliberately leading us into the mountain. Perhaps I am only overthinking it.”
The Young City Lord Cui gave a thoughtful hum, accepting his reasoning. “Whether or not you are overthinking it, if something is unusual, there is no harm in being careful.”
At his order, the entire party went on alert. He had five people exchange their weapons for long spears and another five for bows. Only after the formation had been reorganized did he squeeze his horse’s flanks and charge onward toward the source of the demonic qi.
Watching from behind the leaves, Ren Yijue could not help admiring them.
The mounted party came and went like the wind. Before long, they found the beast in a valley. A large white tiger with black markings lay there, its long tail swaying as though idly passing the time. The instant it sensed human presence, a pair of cold blue eyes slid toward them, and it rose to its feet.
The black-marked white tiger suddenly opened its jaws. Thinking it was about to roar, the Young City Lord Cui immediately tightened his reins and shouted, “Everyone, stay sharp!”
The dozen-odd disciples lowered themselves over their saddles and stroked their horses’ necks to keep the spirit horses from panicking. To their surprise, the tiger merely gave a light yawn without so much as exhaling forcefully. It looked as though it were toying with them.
The Young City Lord Cui barked, “Prepare the net!”
Four Cui disciples unfurled a great net glowing with spiritual light and cast it over the black-marked white tiger from head to tail. Weaving back and forth, they soon had the beast securely caught and bound within it.
Five more advanced with spears to prevent the white tiger from escaping, while another five drew their bows and nocked arrows, ready to pierce its body.
Fourteen people, fourteen mounts, moving without the slightest disorder, as though they were one body.
Ren Yijue smiled faintly. “This tiger monster has quite a temper.” Then he sensed something wrong, and his expression abruptly changed. “No!”
The spiritual net had wrapped around the black-marked white tiger, yet the tiger neither bent its knees nor struggled free. Instead, its body suddenly began to swell. The disciples holding the net immediately found it harder to restrain, and the spear riders rushed in to help, each grabbing a corner of the net.
Ren Yijue pressed down Qian Xuelang just as he was about to act, sprang out from hiding, and shouted in horror, “Quick, scatter—!”
The tiger monster swelled larger and larger. Its hide could not withstand the pressure, and blotches of red seeped through its fur. By the time the five spear riders drew close, the beast had grown to more than three times its former size. Before anyone could react, it exploded.
Ren Yijue had barely shouted his warning when he grabbed the shoulders of the Young City Lord Cui, who was about to step forward, and Cui Shensi beside him, then retreated at speed. The spirit horses beneath the two let out long neighs, but they were too slow to escape and were instantly engulfed by the bloody mist.
Nine Cui disciples and eleven spirit horses did not even have time to scream. The instant the bloody mist touched them, they burst apart. The three who survived by sheer luck had their faces drenched in a thick layer of warm blood.
“Cangyuan.”
A languid voice sounded from within the bloody mist.
“Did you miss me?”