Raising his head from the crook of his arm, Mo Dashan lay curled on the ground, breathing heavily as if trying to soothe the pain in his body. After a long while, he painfully dragged himself up from the earth.
His gaze did not fall on Ning Yin’s face.
Hunched over and lowering his head, his eyes rested only on her waist. His deep voice was slightly hoarse as he cupped his hands together and said, “Thank you, Immortal.”
“Seeing injustice and drawing the sword to help—it’s just a small favor.”
Mo Dashan said no more.
Dragging his injured leg, he hobbled over to the unconscious Luo Qingshan, checked his breath, and only then sighed in relief.
He turned back toward Ning Yin and hesitated before asking, “My Young Master… what about him?”
“Don’t worry. He won’t die.” Ning Yin squatted down and moved the two legs that Luo Qingshan would never use again.
“His legs are broken, but it’s not like he can use them anyway. What I don’t understand is, after all he’s done to you, why do you still endure his beatings and insults?”
Mo Dashan remained silent.
Ning Yin sat beside him, looked around, and sighed. “We’re all trapped here in Jiuyi Mountain. Whether we can make it out alive is still uncertain. I saw clearly just now—if it weren’t for you, he would have died countless times under the beasts’ claws. You protect him with such desperation. I’m guessing there’s more between you two than just master and servant, right?”
Mo Dashan did not answer, but instead muttered, “How do you know my family is from Mo Village? And that I have a younger brother and sister?”
“You answer my question first, then I’ll tell you how I know.”
After a long silence, Mo Dashan quietly said, “Half a year ago, an Immortal Master passed through Mo Village and said I had a Spiritual Root. But when I arrived at the Soaring Cloud Sect, I found I hadn’t awakened any root. The Immortal Master was mistaken. On my way down the mountain, I met the Young Master. He gave me a secret manual and a Low-grade Spirit Stone every month, saying that even without a Spiritual Root, I could cultivate by following the manual. The Young Master was the one who gave me the chance to walk the path of cultivation. This kindness is profound—I must repay it by bringing him safely out of Jiuyi Mountain.”
“You can cultivate without a Spiritual Root? What kind of secret manual is so mysterious?”
Mo Dashan said nothing.
“Don’t take it the wrong way, I’m just curious. In the entire Jiu Zhou Continent, there isn’t a single manual that lets someone without a Spiritual Root cultivate. How did he do it? Could it be…” Ning Yin gripped Mo Dashan’s wrist tightly, closed her eyes, and sent a thread of her Divine Sense into him.
Moments later, she opened her eyes, shocked. “Mo Dashan, he lied to you—you do have a Spiritual Root!”
Ning Yin returned to Yan Hanzhou’s side.
Looking at the tall, silent figure not far off, Yan Hanzhou asked softly, “How is it?”
“I’ve told him about the Spiritual Root inside him. Some things are better left unsaid for now—he needs to calm down and think it through.”
“Hmm.”
The night passed without incident.
When the clouds began to tangle on the horizon, the disciples of the Heavenly Evolution Sect who had gone scouting returned, accompanied by Ye Shangqiu.
“Any luck finding the path?”
Ye Shangqiu panted, “Don’t mention it. Not only did we fail to find the way, but the Immortal Master and I almost got lost in the forest ourselves. There’s definitely a powerful Demons and monsters presence in Jiuyi Mountain setting up an Array. Otherwise, how could we have failed to notice even a trace of it?”
“What should we do then?” Many cultivators present panicked at Ye Shangqiu’s words.
“Even several Immortal Masters can’t do anything? Does that mean we’re trapped here to die?”
“Which Demons and monsters wants us wiped out? Jiuyi Mountain has been peaceful for hundreds of years—why today—”
“The book ‘Jiuyi’ records that a thousand years ago, a demon beast suddenly appeared in Jiuyi Mountain. No one knew where it came from, only that it was incredibly powerful, and all the mountain’s Demons and monsters obeyed its command.”
“This current situation is probably its doing. The Demons and monsters act openly, while we are in the dark. At this point, the only way is to remain calm and wait.” Li Chengge spoke gravely.
“Whatever the demon is, since it went to such lengths to set up the Array, it will attack again. Everyone, stay alert. Preserve your strength and prepare for a life-or-death battle.”
Among those present, only Li Chengge and his two junior disciples were from the Heavenly Evolution Sect; the rest were wandering cultivators.
Naturally, all obeyed Li Chengge’s orders without question.
Ning Yin glanced at Yan Hanzhou and whispered, “Looks like the Jiuyi Mountain boss has made its move. But I don’t understand—shouldn’t it have appeared after Si Heyu and the others entered Jiuyi Mountain?”
“Why is it showing up so early? That demon’s cultivation is very strong, and it commands a horde of Demons and monsters. Even Si Heyu, a Nascent Soul stage cultivator, and his companions had a tough battle.”
“Without the Lingxiao Immortal Lord’s Treasure they found here, they wouldn’t have been able to defeat it and escape unscathed. We need to be careful.”
Yan Hanzhou’s expression turned serious as he looked toward a certain direction in the distance. “They’ve already arrived.”
No sooner had he spoken than the ground shook, the forest trembled, and everyone’s faces changed drastically. They drew their swords and formed battle formations.
In moments, countless sharp, hoarse roars echoed through the woods.
A flood of half-human, half-beast Demons and monsters charged out from the dense forest.
The cultivators stood back-to-back, or formed groups of three, quickly forming defensive lines to fight off the oncoming Demons and monsters.
A cultivator’s sword pierced the chest of the wolf demon at the front.
Scalding demon blood splattered all over his face and head.
Yet the wolf demon seemed to feel no pain.
Before dying, it used its last strength to swipe its claws, carving three deep, bone-exposing wounds across the cultivator’s chest, blood gushing out.
“Ah—”
On the other side, another cultivator was struck like a hammer blow, screaming as he flew back and slammed into a thick tree trunk, his fate unknown.
Even worse, one cultivator was grabbed simultaneously by several sharp claws.
He barely managed to scream before his body was torn apart by the immense force.
Limb fragments and gore scattered across the ground in an instant.
Amidst the bloody chaos, Ning Yin glimpsed through the battling Demons and monsters to see Mo Dashan carrying Luo Qingshan on his back, desperately fighting off the surrounding beasts.
Truly blindly loyal to a fault.
That bastard Luo Qingshan had deceived and abused him, yet Mo Dashan still risked his life to protect him.
Was he suicidal?
Ning Yin slashed at the arm of a Demon in front of her.
Warm demon blood sprayed everywhere.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mo Dashan kicked violently by a beast, flying backward.
The beast’s claws already reached for Mo Dashan’s head.
Ning Yin gritted her teeth.
The Splendor Sword in her hand flashed like a meteor, stabbing the beast’s vital point.
After it crashed to the ground, she snapped her head around and shouted fiercely at Mo Dashan, “Are you suicidal?! What’s so worthy about that bastard Luo Qingshan that you protect him? Can you get a grip?! There are so many Demons and monsters here. Do you have to die before you stop?”
“Ning Yin! Watch out—” From the midst of the Demons and monsters, Yan Hanzhou’s voice rang out in a mix of anger and fear.
Before Ning Yin could react, a cold, biting evil wind blew straight into her face.
Her vision darkened.
A massive claw covered in scales suddenly grabbed her around the waist and dragged her deep into the forest.
In an instant, the Demons and monsters carrying Ning Yin retreated as mysteriously as a tide, vanishing into the woods.
Yan Hanzhou did not hesitate to give chase.
“Yan Dao-young…!” Ye Shangqiu bit his teeth and drew his sword to follow as well.
When Ning Yin regained consciousness, she found herself lying on a cold stone slab.
Looking around, she faintly saw that she was inside a deep cave.
Damp, cold air seeped from the rock walls, filling the space with an eerie and sinister aura.
Alarm bells rang in her mind.
Silently, she summoned the Splendor Sword.
The cold hilt gripped tightly in her palm, the circulating sword energy dispelled some of the chill and fear at her core.
She forced herself to calm down.
The Demons and monsters had killed so many cultivators but captured no one except her.
There had to be a reason.
If there was something that set her apart from the others… Ning Yin’s eyes landed on the Cangming Ring on her finger.
She had killed the snake demon and, together with Yan Hanzhou, broken the seal on the treasures.
Now three treasures were on her person.
In the story, Si Heyu and his group fought the Jiuyi Mountain boss precisely because they broke the seals and found the treasures.
Could it be that triggering the Jiuyi Mountain boss was tied to finding the Lingxiao Immortal Lord’s relics?
But that boss was so powerful.
How could she fight alone?
She could barely handle the snake demon with a desperate struggle.
If she really confronted the Jiuyi Mountain dungeon boss, could she survive three moves?
While Ning Yin pondered, a black-robed figure shrouded in thick demonic energy appeared silently before the stone slab like a ghost.
Dark, swirling magic surrounded the figure—clearly someone long sunk into demonic corruption.
A low voice came from beneath the hood, “You broke the seal? Where are the treasures?”
Ning Yin took half a step back without showing any trace of fear.
Her throat moved as she forced herself calm, “Who are you? If I give you the treasures, will you let me go?”
The black-robed figure said nothing.
After a moment, a pale hand extended from the sleeve.
Wise is he who knows when to retreat.
Ning Yin never fought hopeless battles.
She pulled the three treasures from the Cangming Ring. “The Dan Medicine, the Divine Dragon Cover, and the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls—all here.”
Two deep eyes glared from beneath the black hood, voice cold and dark. “The ring on your hand—is it the Cangming Ring?”
Ning Yin’s heart tightened. “I found this treasure somewhere else, not here in Jiuyi Mountain. You want it too?”
The black-robed figure’s demonic aura suddenly surged, and he shouted fiercely, “Hand it over!”
“This Cangming Ring has already accepted me as its master. Even if I wanted to give it to you, you couldn’t use it. It’s a treasure of the Lingxiao Immortal Lord. He said a thousand years ago it would be left for a destined person of later generations to claim…”
“Destined person of later generations? You’re not worthy!” The black-robed figure laughed bitterly, voice chilling to the bone. “Hand over the Cangming Ring, and I might spare your life!”
Fine, fine. Whether she gave it or not, death was certain.
Ning Yin tightened her grip on the Splendor Sword.
“So you want to fight?” The black-robed figure sneered coldly. “Too bad. Neither your cultivation nor the sword in your hand poses any threat to me.”
With a flick of his sleeve, the Splendor Sword suddenly flew from Ning Yin’s hand and deeply embedded itself in the stone wall, trembling uncontrollably.
Ning Yin’s palm burned fiercely.
Before she could recover from the shock of losing her sword, pain and suffocation overwhelmed her.
Her throat cracked with an audible sound as a pale, icy hand clamped around it like iron tongs.
The black-robed figure leaned in close.
The swirling demonic aura almost touched her face.
She had no chance to fight back.
Cultivation levels mattered—a Nascent Soul stage being like a towering tree to a mayfly.
Facing a Demons and monsters above Nascent Soul, Ning Yin had no chance at all.
Just as her vision blackened and her consciousness began to slip into endless darkness, the black-robed figure suddenly uttered a short questioning sound: “Hmm?”
The hand choking her loosened slowly.
The figure leaned in even closer, nearly face to face.
Amid the swirling demonic aura, a cold glare fixed on Ning Yin’s pale face.
He hesitated and asked, “Have we met somewhere before?”
Ning Yin collapsed to the ground, bent over, coughing violently.
Although the boss’s way of striking up conversation was crude—
“Yes, I also feel like you look familiar. Have we met before?”
The black-robed figure’s gaze grew heavy as he searched his mind in vain for a clue.
Still suspicious, he flicked his sleeve, vanishing instantly with the treasures he had taken from Ning Yin.
He activated several hidden Forbidden Spells, passing through the dark corridor, and finally entering an even more secret chamber.
If Ning Yin were here, she would be surprised to see that the jagged stone walls surrounding the cave were inscribed with several golden runes, flowing just like the snake demon’s cave.
Reaching a slightly flat stone platform in the center, the black-robed figure waved his sleeve, and an ancient, heavy treasure box carved with strange patterns appeared out of thin air.
He carefully placed the Dan Medicine, the Divine Dragon Cover, and the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls into the chest one by one.
Having done this, he surveyed the golden runes flowing around him and let out a low sigh that echoed hauntingly in the silent cave.
“A thousand years… I have waited in this Jiuyi Mountain for a thousand years.”