52: Chapter 52 Not Surnamed Hehuan

The next morning, Lu Chen left the Sect without anyone stopping him.

It was too smooth. The Fake Sect Leader didn't stop him—not because he was letting him go, but because he was forcing him. The Shell Mother was setting a route for him: leave the Sect, depart from the Hehuan Sect, and head south to the Thousand Miasma Valley. The Shell Mother wasn't afraid of him leaving—it was afraid of him staying in the back mountain. Staying in the back mountain meant living Qi getting closer to the bottom of the well. The Shell Mother was weak.

But if he stayed in the back mountain, the Fake Sect Leader would move all the Sub-shells into the medicinal garden before the 15th of the third month. He Xiaowan's cellar wouldn't be able to hide them.

There were two paths. Walking out—the Shell Mother would be comfortable, but after the Seal loosened on the 15th of the third month, everyone in the medicinal garden would die. Walking in—the Shell Mother would be weak, but the Fake Sect Leader would act right now. This wasn't a choice; it was a damn dead end on both sides.

He walked toward the back mountain.

In the medicinal garden, He Xiaowan was flipping through that scroll of old bamboo slips. When she looked up, her face was a bit pale—not because she hadn't slept well, but because the breathing sounds coming from underground were getting heavier. The Shell Mother's panting—she could still hear it from a hundred zhang away.

"Did you find Old Third?"

"No. The word 'Wait' at the entrance of the Thousand Miasma Valley—it was covered with fresh dirt." Lu Chen placed a stone on the table. On the back of the stone was carved a new word—'Fire'. "He changed locations. He went north. He left this—"

"Fire?"

"The 'Fire' of the Love-Refining Furnace. It's not in the direction of the Inverted Tower—it's in the direction of the Xuantian Sect. He went to the Xuantian Sect."

He Xiaowan put down the bamboo slips. "Heading north from the Hehuan Sect—the first Sect is the Xuantian Sect. Old Third took this path—not to seek help, but to deliver a message. He's about to dissipate—while he still remembers the words, he's trying to get them into the hands of someone who can receive them."

What words did Old Third remember? The Shell Mother had bitten him—the Shell Mother's memory fragments might have seeped into his Sea of Consciousness. Inside the Shell Mother's fragments, there might be the Fake Sect Leader's weakness—or a loophole in the Seal—or a third method. The third method from seven hundred years ago.

But that was for later. Right now, Old Third was already on the road—he would run to the Xuantian Sect for the last time in his life. With his head stuffed with the Shell Mother's fragments—running all the way north. Dissipating piece after piece. For every piece lost—he ran slower. But he was definitely still running.

Qin Wu came out of the cellar. He had two short blades on his back—He Xiaowan's medicinal garden had medicine, but it also hid blades. The blades were old—a bit rusty. But the steel edge was still good.

"Six Sub-shells are moving," Qin Wu said. The white line on his wrist shimmered in the morning light—there were three grey marks now. Each one was very thin—but the three combined had some width. "The Fake Sect Leader's people—they are all moving toward the back mountain medicinal garden. They aren't approaching directly—they are circling. Six Sub-shells are drawing a circle."

"How big is the circle?"

"The radius is about fifteen zhang. We are at the center of the circle."

Fifteen zhang. The limit of the Shell Mother's current movement—within a hundred zhang of the well. The medicinal garden was on the edge. So the Sub-shells could only circle—they couldn't enter directly. But the circle they were drawing was shrinking bit by bit. It shrank three chi every day. In less than eleven days—before the 15th of the third month, the medicinal garden would be inside the circle.

"He Xiaowan," Lu Chen said. "That 'Jiali'—I thought it was a place name or a person's name. It's not."

He spread out the Fake Sect Leader's booklet. From the first page to the last—every page had a replaced person. Date, name, position. There was no logic—it wasn't based on rank or cultivation strength. It looked random.

But on the last few pages, a name had been painted over. It wasn't crossed out—it had been burned away with Spiritual Qi and then rewritten. The exact same name was written. Burning it and rewriting it—it wasn't a change. It was an emphasis.

"Liu Sanchuan—the Pill Chamber manager. His date is last September. But it was written three times in the booklet. Burned once and written again. The Fake Sect Leader's booklet recorded things in the order of replacement—Liu Sanchuan was replaced three times."

"The same Sub-shell—changed bodies three times?"

"Not the same Sub-shell. It was three different Sub-shells. The Shell Mother produced three Sub-shells—one after another, they replaced Liu Sanchuan. The first Sub-shell got old. The second Sub-shell cracked. The third Sub-shell—it's still in the Pill Chamber right now."

He Xiaowan froze for a moment. Then she gasped.

"Sub-shells aren't immortal—they are dying."

"Correct. The lifespan of a Sub-shell is much shorter than a human's—it's not that they are ageless or immortal. They live even shorter lives. The people who were replaced are the ones who are immortal—the empty body left behind after a Sub-shell dies can be filled by the next Sub-shell. Just like—" Lu Chen pointed to the replaced people in the booklet. "Just like these weren't replaced once. They were replaced many times. The Hehuan Sect is no longer just a Sect—it's a farm for a Shell Mother. Raise humans—plant Sub-shells—replace them—wait for the Sub-shell to die—replace them again."

So, the Fake Sect Leader's real name wasn't Hehuan.

It wasn't one person. It was a cycle. This person, the "Fake Sect Leader"—his original body was the true Hehuan Sect Sect Master. But after the Shell Mother devoured him—it produced a Sub-shell and put it into his body. That Sub-shell died. The Shell Mother produced another—and put it into the same body. The Fake Sect Leader wasn't the same person—it was the same Shell Mother reusing the same body.

The Shell Mother held the face of the Hehuan Sect Sect Master—like holding a piece of paper that was written on repeatedly. Write, then tear. Tear, then write again. It never changed the paper. It deceived everyone—only sharp people occasionally noticed, "This person's expression is different from yesterday." They thought it was mood. In reality, it was a replacement.

"There are people in the Hehuan Sect who are not surnamed Hehuan," Qin Wu said. It wasn't a question—he finally understood.

"Those not surnamed Hehuan—they aren't one person. It's the Shell Mother. From seven hundred years ago until now—it has produced countless Sub-shells. Each Sub-shell wears the body of a Hehuan Sect Disciple. The Hehuan Sect has long ceased to be a Sect—it's a shell."

He Xiaowan stood in the medicinal garden—beside her was a cluster of new angelica. It hadn't fully grown yet. She looked at those medicinal herbs. Three years of life—hiding in the cellar, watering at night, recording the changes in Spiritual Qi. She thought she was guarding the last root of the Hehuan Sect.

But the Shell Mother had been here all along. Not for three years—but for seven hundred.

"What do we do now?"

"Before the 15th of the third month—go in. Pull Big Sister out. The three Finger Bones will resonate—and reseal the well. The Shell Mother will be locked back in—and all the Sub-shells will die."

"Without the Sub-shells—what about those people who were replaced?"

Lu Chen didn't answer. He didn't know. Their bodies were empty—whether the people would return after the Sub-shells died. Or if they would become empty shells—able to breathe but unable to move. He didn't know. No one had written the answer. Li Xuanyi hadn't written it. Shen Xi hadn't written it.

Those replaced people might never come back.

"I don't care about the others," He Xiaowan said. Her voice wasn't loud—but it was very clear. "I only care about Big Sister. If Big Sister can come back—these three years will have meaning. If she can't come back—"

She stopped. She stopped for a long time. It wasn't that she couldn't continue—it was that saying it out loud would make it too serious. A person who had been hiding for three years—saying "it has meaning" was something she said to herself.

"She will come back," Qin Wu said. The third grey mark on his wrist disappeared—it didn't really disappear. It had shrunk back to its original width. There were only two left. When he gripped his blade—the white line could retract a bit on its own. It wasn't a Cultivation Technique. It was his will grinding the line. The line was changing—distinguishing what shouldn't turn into ash.

In the morning, Lu Chen walked alone to the deepest part of the back mountain. Behind a three-zhang-high boulder—was the last safe point between the medicinal garden and the bottom layer of the Cave of Ten Thousand Desires. Thirty zhang further ahead—was the range of the Shell Mother at its peak.

He spread out Shen Xi's research notes. He flipped to the chapter on Cultivating with a Grey Spirit Root in the Cave of Ten Thousand Desires.

When a Grey Spirit Root enters within thirty zhang of the Cave of Ten Thousand Desires—the rate of Spiritual Qi consumption increases. The Dantian becomes empty—but the Meridians expand. It's not a Breakthrough in Qi Refining—it's the passive expansion of the Meridians. The upper limit of Spiritual Qi storage for Qi Refining Level 6 is sixty or seventy percent of the Dantian. But within thirty zhang of the Shell Mother—the limit is stretched open. Stretched to eighty percent. Ninety percent. One hundred percent—full.

The Shell Mother absorbs living Qi. The Grey Spirit Root produces living Qi. The two form a confrontation within thirty zhang—the result of the confrontation. The Dantian is forced to expand to its limit. It's not a Breakthrough—but the ability is elevated. This is the Shell Mother's trap: give the Cultivator power—let the Cultivator indulge—and then take the body away.

But it can be used in reverse. Maintain clarity during the confrontation—use the Grey Line Meridians to lock the Sea of Consciousness—and don't let the Shell Mother probe in. A full Dantian doesn't mean being controlled. The fuller it is—the greater the intensity of the Spiritual Qi output.

The 15th of the third month. The Seal loosens. The Shell Mother prepares to break out of the shell—its power is used to the maximum. At the same time, it is only an instant away from exhaustion.

That instant is the only opportunity.

Lu Chen put away the notes. He stood up. The perception robe trembled slightly at the edge of the Shell Mother's range—the fabric was under strain. It was like resisting an invisible suction force. The ink-gold Spiritual Qi in his Dantian surged—the Grey Line Meridians moved beneath his skin. It wasn't fear—it was resonance. The Shell Mother at the bottom of the well sensed the presence of another Grey Spirit Root Cultivator. It was luring him in.

Not luring with consciousness—but luring with instinct. When a Grey Spirit Root meets the Shell Mother—it's like a magnet. Attracting each other. Repelling each other. The core of the Love-Refining Furnace is taking. The Shell Mother's core is also taking. When two things that take meet—it's not mutual consumption. It's symbiosis. Whoever learns the other's language first—whoever devours the other first.

Lu Chen touched the white line on his wrist. The grey marks had decreased from two to one and a half. Qin Wu was sharpening his blade—the blade and the line were the same—sharpen it once, and there's a little less rust. But the line isn't iron. The line is a bond. When bonds decrease—it doesn't mean the heart has hardened. It means knowing what is worth remembering, and what must be let go.

Eleven days later.

The bottom layer of the Cave of Ten Thousand Desires. That well. The Shell Mother had been locked inside for seven hundred years. Big Sister had resisted for three years. Li Xuanyi had carved his last words three hundred years ago. Three Grey Spirit Root Cultivators—three eras—all at the end of the same passageway. Someone lying down. Someone sealing. Someone walking.

tianxuan calendar, taiping Year 19, Spring. Third Month.

Hehuan Sect. Back mountain medicinal garden.

Lu Chen sat under the wisteria. The ink-gold Spiritual Qi in his Dantian pressed up to his throat. The edges of his Sea of Consciousness tingled slightly—not because he was tired. It was the Grey Line Meridians growing new branches. From Qi Refining Level 6 to 7—what was missing was no longer Spiritual Qi. It was courage. Daring to walk into the Shell Mother's thirty zhang range—not with a pen, not with a Finger Bone—but using himself to test it.

He knew the answer.

Behind the wisteria. Qin Wu was sharpening the third blade. He Xiaowan was flipping through the replica copy of the Seal's spiritual patterns. In the cellar, two old Disciples were refining medicine—not medicine for Cultivating. It was for stopping bleeding. For neutralizing poison. For stabilizing pregnancy.

Granny Ruan sent out a burst of Spiritual Qi from the back door of the Cave of Ten Thousand Desires—very short and quick. Two pulses. It meant: The shells are moving. But not attacking—they are retreating. Not giving up. It was contracting. Contracting to the bottom of the well—concentrating all the Sub-shells to prepare for a one-time Breakthrough on the 15th of the third month.

The Shell Mother couldn't wait.

It wanted to break out of the well ahead of schedule. Not the 15th of the third month—but within seven days. The cycle of the Seal loosening was accelerating—the Shell Mother was desperately grinding the Seal. Grinding away a layer every day. By the 15th of the third month—the Seal would shatter completely. It was exerting force early—so as not to give Lu Chen eleven days of preparation time.

It wasn't a Breakthrough within seven days—it was that he had to go in right now.

Lu Chen stood up. His hand was already on the sixth Finger Bone. The empty shell of the seventh one vibrated in his bosom. Shen Xi's one—resonance required three. The third key was in Big Sister's stone coffin—he had to go to the bottom layer. No eleven days. No seven days. It was right now.

"Going down now," Lu Chen said. It wasn't a question.

Qin Wu stuck the sharpened blade behind his back. The third one. The rust had been wiped clean.

He Xiaowan picked up the replica copy of the Seal. "On the right-hand side of the bottom layer entrance—the spiritual pattern wall. My Spiritual Qi will activate the spiritual patterns of the first three rows—your Finger Bone resonance will activate the ones behind."

The two old Disciples didn't stand up. Not because of fear—but their legs. One was broken. One had a ruined Dantian. But they handed over the medicine in their hands.

"For stopping bleeding. Take it with you."

The wisteria swayed gently in the wind. The sky was still bright. In the direction from the back mountain to the memorial hall—a low vibration came from the gap between the two mountains. It wasn't an earthquake. It was the Shell Mother turning over at the bottom of the well. It was the Seal cracking.

The third month—the Hehuan flowers of spring hadn't bloomed yet. All the flowers had died in the winter three years ago. Only branches remained.