Chapter 213: Playing In The Mountains

The men on horseback all had vicious looks on their faces, with bows and arrows on their backs and blades at their waists. They had begun shouting abuse from a distance, acting extremely arrogant and overbearing.

Sha Lifei immediately took offense. His eyes widened as he cursed right back, "What godforsaken road did you little bastards crawl out of? If you're going to roam the jianghu, don't you know enough to keep that filthy mouth of yours in check?"

Judging by their clothing and equipment, those men were obviously no ordinary commoners. Li Yan and the others also watched them coldly as killing qi slowly radiated from their bodies.

"Stop!" Apparently realizing that they were not easy targets, the man raised a hand to halt his subordinates. He swept a cold gaze over them and asked in a deep voice, "Which road do you gentlemen walk?"

Sha Lifei snorted. "We come from the Land of the First Emperor, the Guanzhong Plains. Our eyes are sharp and our minds are clear; we know the rules of the jianghu. We're not the sort to make ourselves unwelcome!"

The man narrowed his eyes. "We are families of the rivers, eating from the Five Lakes and the Yangtze, worshipping the Patriarchs of Raft, Drum, and Oar."

Old Zhang's pupils contracted as he warned them in a low voice. "They're from the Raft Sect!"

Seeing Old Zhang’s expression, a mocking sneer appeared on the man's lips. He could not even be bothered to continue exchanging jianghu cant and barked, "Since we're fellow travelers of the jianghu, there's no need to fight and spoil the peace. Turn your boat around and leave!"

After everything he had seen along the way, Li Yan already had a poor impression of the Raft Sect. Hearing that only irritated him further. He said coldly, "We're only passing through. Whatever you're doing is none of our concern. Get lost!"

A vicious gleam flashed through the man's eyes. "You're courting death!"

At his side, his subordinates immediately drew their bows and nocked arrows, actually preparing to turn them into human pincushions.

In response, Sha Lifei grinned and stopped talking. Inside the cabin, Lu San was playing with his little white fox. Without even glancing up, he patted the Demon Gourd beside him and a swarm of venomous hornets came buzzing out.

Of all who had eaten the Earth Dragon's flesh a few days earlier, the one that had consumed the most was neither the little white fox nor the hawk, but the Demon Gourd.

It was already a demon with cultivation. Earth Dragon flesh, which greatly replenished blood and qi while also containing yin killing qi, was an exceptional tonic for it.

Lu San had cut off a full ten or so jin of meat, and the Demon Gourd had devoured all of it. Now its interior was packed densely with pupae. Not only had all the venomous hornets lost in the battle been replenished, the venom they possessed had become even more vicious.

Their venom was a yang toxin. Once stung, whether human or animal, the victim would suffer unbearable stabbing pain, as if a red-hot steel spike had been driven into their flesh.

"AAAAH!"

Before those men could even react, they were stung and knocked to the ground, screaming as they rolled about in agony. Even their horses panicked and fled.

Of course, the hornets did not kill them.

After the venomous hornets returned, Sha Lifei spat, "Pah! Bunch of useless idiots!"

He leaped onto the riverbank, and strode over to them. Their faces had already swollen up like steamed buns, and they were howling in pain.

Sha Lifei grabbed one of them by the head and cursed, "We gave you a way out and you spat in our faces. Speak! Why were you blocking our path?"

The man was in unbearable pain and knew those people were not to be trifled with. He no longer dared spout nonsense and, with his swollen tongue making his words a little hard to understand, he said, "It was an order from... from those up there. We were told to guard this place. They said there are evil things in the mountains and no one's allowed through."

Sha Lifei revealed a look of suspicion. "What evil things? This isn't some trick you people cooked up yourselves, is it?"

"N-no..." The man's face twisted in pain as he pleaded, "Sir, we were only ordered to stand guard here. We haven't seen any brothers from the sect. Two days ago, an escort agency from Yuzhou forced their way through. The next day, a whole bunch of charred corpses and wrecked boats floated down from upstream."

Seeing the murderous glint in Sha Lifei's eyes, the man hurriedly struggled upright and began kowtowing. "Sirs, we're just small fry! We don't know anything! Please show mercy!"

Sha Lifei hesitated briefly and looked back toward the deck. There, an expressionless Li Yan simply drew a finger across his throat.

In response, Sha Lifei immediately drew his blade. Cold flashes of steel flickered as he ended their lives one after another without the slightest mercy.

His blade had become noticeably faster than before.

Although Sha Lifei lacked exceptional talent, Li Yan already had one foot through the threshold of the Jin Transformation Realm and had developed his own insights into martial arts.

He often sparred with Sha Lifei, who had spent many years at the peak of the Light Jin Realm. He was standing right at the doorway of the Dark Jin Realm. Through their spars, Li Yan had practically kicked him through it by force. Though the Dark Jin Realm would likely be the limit of Sha Lifei's achievements, he had at least learned to use hidden force, increasing his combat strength.

On the deck, seeing the confusion in Old Zhang's eyes, Li Yan pointed at the right bank. "There are more than ten bodies buried over there. They haven't been dead long."

Old Zhang immediately understood what had happened. "These bastards were intercepting and murdering merchants too. Good riddance!"

Then, seeming to think of something, he said, "The Raft Sect has certainly become a mixed bag over the years, with plenty of vicious and overbearing people among them, but they still shouldn't have stooped to doing the work of river bandits..."

Realization suddenly dawned on him. He looked toward the distant mountains. "Those so-called evil spirits! It's members of the Raft Sect playing tricks in the mountains!"

"It's possible." Wang Daoxuan stroked his beard and shook his head. "When Senior Zhang described it earlier, this poor Daoist already found something strange about it. Phosphorescent fire rising from the water and igniting upon contact with people doesn't sound like a spell. It sounds more like some sort of trap."

"A trap?" Now that Wang Daoxuan mentioned it, Old Zhang also realized something was wrong. Furious, he cursed, "No wonder every divination I performed gave auspicious signs, and when trouble actually came, even dog's blood and cinnabar were useless! So it was people causing trouble all along. It has to be the Raft Sect doing something in those mountains! What the hell are they up to?"

Li Yan looked into the distance and shook his head. "Whatever they're doing, we have to pass through this waterway. Everyone rest early tonight. We set out at dawn tomorrow. If any fool blocks our way, we'll kill them and keep going."

They had already spent two full days traveling by boat, and none of them had slept particularly well. Everyone was mentally exhausted. After burying all the corpses, they made camp along the riverbank. They lit a bonfire, cooked fish soup, and warmed some crispy rice cakes over the flames. After they had their fill of dinner, everyone crawled into their tents.

After briefly settling his mind and focusing his spirit, Li Yan fell asleep. With Lu San around, every animal within several li served as a sentry. There was no fear of a surprise attack, so Li Yan was spared the need to stand night watch.

The only thing they were worried about was the Raft Sect launching a nighttime assault. After all, the Raft Sect was both a jianghu organization and a facsimile of a mystic sect. Aside from the strange arts practiced by its raft bosses, who came from all across the land, the sect's mystic arts were also quite formidable.

Fortunately, no one disturbed them throughout the night.

***

At dawn the next morning, the first faint light appeared in the sky.

The boatmen used wooden buckets to draw water and extinguish the bonfire.

Li Yan and the others were also feeling refreshed. They quickly packed up their tents and luggage and placed everything back inside the boat. Then, they took out their respective weapons and began maintaining them.

If their suspicions were correct, a fierce battle would be unavoidable once they entered the mountains.

Before long, the boat once again set off through the morning mist. It did not take long for them to enter the mountains, and Li Yan finally understood why this waterway was so remote and rarely traveled.

The mist along the river had already been thick, but it became even denser after they entered the mountains. Visibility was poor beyond thirty zhang. The river also became narrower and more turbulent, while towering cliffs rose on both sides, with jagged rocks scattered everywhere.

From time to time, the cries of apes echoed down from the cliffs. Through the dense fog, they sounded like mountain ghosts wailing.

Whoosh!

The hawk plunged through the mountain mist and circled along both sides of the mountains. After making several passes back and forth, it flew into the boat cabin and began chirping urgently at Lu San.

Lu San frowned, walked onto the deck, and said quietly, "There really is something wrong up in the mountains. There are some pits and tunnels, with mountain paths outside them. No one has come out for now.

"Also, those monkeys in the mountains are all cursing. They say someone killed their king and stole their wine!"

Sha Lifei immediately understood. "The Raft Sect is secretly mining in the mountains. Strange. Since when did they start doing this sort of business?"

As he spoke, his eyes suddenly lit up. "Could they have found a gold mine?"

At the mention of it, everyone's eyes lit up. After all, given the wealth of the Raft Sect, probably only a gold mine would tempt them into taking such risks and even murdering people to conceal what they were doing.

Sha Lifei smacked his lips and whispered, "We've already fallen out with them anyway. Why not hit them hard? In the end, it's ill-gotten wealth. It belongs to the people with the biggest fists."

Li Yan was tempted as well after hearing him. They required far too much money for their cultivation. With no sect or school supporting them from behind, they had to obtain everything themselves.

At the side, Old Zhang’s heart was pounding as he listened. Most of the time, people traveling the jianghu valued harmony in their dealings. Even if things occasionally got pushed too far and someone ended up killing another person, it would usually end up in some sort of uneasy peace.

However, those people he was ferrying were clearly somewhat different. That night on Azure Dragon Mountain, he had vaguely heard thunder booming from the mountain. Afterward, they had come back with a cultivator covered in blood, as well as those packages that reeked heavily of blood. Then, earlier, on the riverbank, they had attacked without hesitation or mercy. Now, they were even considering robbing the outlaws!

Every one of them was ruthless. How did they resemble lofty masters of the mystic sects in the slightest? Then there was the taciturn Lu San, who could actually understand the speech of birds and beasts. Old Zhang had truly never heard of anything like it...

Of course, he was an old hand of the jianghu and knew better than to say anything unnecessary.

Just then, one of the boatmen suddenly stared at the river beneath them and shouted in a low voice, "Master Zhang, something's wrong with the current!"

Old Zhang took one look and immediately paled slightly. "There are submerged rocks beneath the river! Stop the boat!"

At his command, the boatmen immediately sprang into action. Some threw the anchor overboard with a splash, while others hurled grappling hooks attached to hemp ropes toward massive rocks on either bank. The anchor crashed into the water, churning up murky waves. The thick hemp ropes on either side wrapped around the rocks and pulled taut.

The wooden boat quickly came to a stop in the middle of the river.

In his mind, Li Yan couldn't help but praise their skill.

Anchors had naturally existed for a long time, and even the Exploitation of the Works of Nature contained methods for forging them. But ordinary merchant vessels could never afford equipment of this quality, much less those grappling hooks. No wonder these men dared navigate such dangerous waterways.

At the same time, this was no time for idle talk. Li Yan turned toward Lu San. "Quick, find out what's beneath the river!"

Lu San immediately went to the side of the boat. Forming a hand seal with his left hand, he slapped the water with his right. Under the astonished gazes of the boatmen, a large school of fish soon gathered. The fish circled the wooden boat twice before rapidly diving beneath the surface. Before long, they resurfaced and began swimming in circles from side to side.

Lu San's expression turned grave and he muttered softly, "The riverbed ahead is covered in huge rocks. There are quite a lot of them."

"Someone deliberately put them there!" Old Zhang's face darkened. "This old man has traveled this waterway many times! I can't speak for everywhere else, but this stretch was definitely flat before."

Li Yan frowned. "Where did the incident happen when you came through before?"

Old Zhang replied, "Not far ahead!"

Li Yan immediately understood. "Brother Lu San, check around those submerged rocks and see whether there are any hidden mechanisms."

Lu San nodded and immediately formed another hand seal before slapping the water. The school of fish began darting wildly through the river, rushing toward the submerged rocks.

Bloop, bloop!

Bubbles suddenly rose from the water ahead. Soon, blue flames erupted from the surface, accompanied by gushing oil that immediately caught fire.

"That's Dragon Fire!" Sha Lifei's eyes lit up as he hurriedly said, "I read about this in some books. During the chaos at the end of the Tang Dynasty, when wars raged everywhere, some alchemists from Jiangzuo devised a mechanism called Dragon Fire.

"It can spray flames from beneath the water and destroy passing ships. It was incredibly mysterious, but the construction method was supposedly lost long ago. I never expected anyone would still know how to make one."

Just then, a hawk cried out from the sky.

Lu San immediately pointed toward the hillside on the right and yelled in panic, "Several people are coming from over there. They're carrying something big too."

The mountain was shrouded in dense fog. None of them possessed a vision related divine ability, but the hawk's eyesight was extraordinary and could see much farther.

An ominous feeling rose in Li Yan's heart. He said grimly, "Don't hold back. Take them out first!"

With that, he formed a hand seal and flicked his little finger. In an instant, yin winds howled around them. A straw effigy flew from the leather pouch at his waist, caught the wind, and soared toward the mountain.

Lu San moved even faster. He slapped the Demon Gourd, and the venomous hornets flew out, plunging into the thick fog. Screams soon came from the mountainside.

The straw effigy rode the wind and arrived shortly afterward. Li Yan closed his eyes and observed what was happening through the effigy.

There, a group of men dressed in white robes could be seen. Their clothing was covered in white dust, and their faces were concealed behind masks. Under attack from the venomous hornets, they were screaming and rolling across the ground, flailing wildly with both hands. A bamboo tube as thick as the mouth of a bowl lay fallen beside them. A hemp rope extended from its rear, though Li Yan could not tell what kind of device it was.

The venom of the hornets was vicious, and the pain it caused could drive a person mad. One man lost all reason after being stung. He immediately grabbed the bamboo tube while another man pulled the hemp rope behind it.

In an instant, blue flames mixed with burning oil sprayed outward. It resembled a fire dragon breathing flames. Many of the hornets turned to ash, but the man's companions suffered even worse.

He swung the fire tube around wildly, spraying everywhere. Several people nearby were struck, their entire bodies engulfed in flames as they screamed and tumbled down the mountainside.

Splash!

Seeing a burning man plunge from the cliff into the river, Old Zhang immediately became alert. "Quick! They have firearms! Pull back!"

Li Yan's expression also changed abruptly as he recalled the straw spirit.

"It's a Nether Torch! I'll go up the mountain and hold them off. You assist me!"

With that, he took out a pair of Jia Horse Talismans from his robes and tied them around his legs. He stepped according to the ritual pattern and formed a hand seal. "Nuogao! Six Jia, Nine Chapters; The Heaven is round and the Earth is square. Four seasons, five elements; sun and moon display their radiance. The Big Dipper opens the way as gods and spirits avoid my path. The Azure Dragon supports the chariot while the White Tiger bears the talisman. Dazzle everything before me and inauspicious things, be gone..."

As the incantation began, yin wind immediately surged around his body.

Hidden force erupted through Li Yan's legs. He launched himself forward as the wind whistled around him. Empowered by both hidden force and the Jia Horse Talismans, he actually cleared more than three zhang in a single leap.

He landed atop a massive rock on the cliffside, and leaped off two more rocks in quick succession as he disappeared into the dense fog.

"H-he flew..." One of the boatmen stuttered as he stared dumbfounded at the disappearing figure. The sight before him had already exceeded everything he could comprehend.

Meanwhile, Li Yan moved at incredible speed, the wind roaring past his ears as he raced up the mountainside. Before long, he found the group.

The bamboo tube had already exhausted its flames, while the man who had accidentally harmed his companions had been stung nearly to death by the remaining venomous hornets. He lay motionless on the ground.

Li Yan hurried forward and split the bamboo tube open with a slash.

Sure enough, the mechanism inside was extremely familiar. These people knew how to construct Nether Torches, but their craftsmanship was insufficient, so they had simply enlarged the design and used a bamboo tube instead.

Crude though it was, it saved both materials and effort.

Also, the Dragon Fire from earlier was likewise something that had only appeared during the chaotic final years of the Tang dynasty.

Could these people perhaps not be from the Raft Sect after all?

Boom, boom, boom!

While he was pondering this, the sudden sound of drums came from the distance. The rapid drumming filled him with irritation and unease. Even the hornets began flying erratically, nearly turning on Li Yan.

Fortunately, Lu San sensed something was wrong and immediately recalled them into the Demon Gourd.

Li Yan, meanwhile, looked into the distance with a dark expression. Another group of white-robed men was coming along the steep mountain path, carrying Nether Torches with them.

At their head walked a foreign monk dressed in red, beating a hand drum. The drum was ancient, with bronze bells embedded around its rim. Its surface was decorated with patterns carved in Tibetan silver and adorned with agate, turquoise, and other ornaments, making it brilliantly multicolored.

The foreign monk had a thick reddish beard covering his face, faintly blue eyes, and a balding head. He walked barefoot through the mountains while continuously chanting an incantation.

"Om, benza, samaya, zaza."

The sound was eerie, like demonic notes boring directly into the mind.

Then Li Yan's eyes widened in shock. Behind the monk, crimson smoke rose into the air, and within it floated the hazy image of a deity. Though indistinct, its outline could still be clearly seen.

It was a woman with pitch-black skin, blood and grease streaming from her mouth. She brandished a spear topped with a human head, wore a garland of skulls around her neck, and had still-beating hearts as ornaments. Venomous snakes also coiled around her body!