21: Chapter 21 Nighttime Intrusion into the Abandoned Forest

After deep night fell, the Taichu Sect did not mobilize all its members.

Sect Master Di Kun stood before the gap in the mountain gate, draped in his replaced black-gold Sect Master robes. The bandages on his shoulder were hidden beneath his collar, though they still elicited a dull pain whenever he moved.

The collapsed gatehouse had been temporarily blocked with wooden stakes and rubble, with empty oil jars buried on both sides, filled with herbal ash and shards of broken porcelain.

The Tower Defense Youth crouched on the ruins of the gatehouse, biting on half a piece of hemp rope while his hands stretched beast tendons into the slots of the wooden stakes.

A chunk of his hair was missing, with scorch marks against his scalp; when the wind blew, the smell of singed hair still lingered.

"Sect Master, rest assured. Whoever tries to sneak up here in the middle of the night, I'll make them experience the malice of the newbie village."

He pulled the knot, and the bags of rubble behind the wooden stakes immediately swayed. "It's just that the Materials are too trashy; don't expect it to deal full damage."

Sect Master Di Kun raised his hand and pressed down on a wooden stake. It wasn't driven deep, but it was wedged by the rubble, enough to block one round of impact.

"Don't get bogged down in a fight," Sect Master Di Kun said, looking at him. "If you discover something is wrong, retreat to the front of the Spirit Pool. The mountain gate can be repaired, but if people are lost, it will cost the Spirit Pool."

The Tower Defense Youth's mouth twitched. "Sect Master, that sounds like something a capitalist would say, but I love hearing it."

The Chuunibyou Youth walked over from the direction of the martial arts practice field, followed by about twenty odd-job Disciples.

Those odd-job Disciples held either blades or sharpened wooden sticks, and some were even carrying pottery jars with the openings stuffed with cloth.

"Rule number one!" The Chuunibyou Youth shouted, turning back.

The odd-job Disciples answered in a ragged chorus: "If the enemy comes up the mountain, pour oil first!"

"Rule number two!"

"Pour and run, don't look back!"

The Tower Defense Youth poked his head out from the gatehouse: "What about rule number three?"

A young odd-job Disciple raised his wooden stick, his voice trembling but shouting loudly: "Whoever runs around aimlessly gets their meal deducted!"

The Chuunibyou Youth nodded with satisfaction. "Very good, the military discipline of the Taichu Sect is beginning to take shape."

Sect Master Di Kun glanced at them but did not smile. He took out three Breath-Concealing Talismans exchanged from the Elementary Contribution Shop; the talisman paper was thin to the point of being translucent, with faint silver patterns along the edges.

When he exchanged them, the Sect mark on the back of his hand had grown hot, and the water light over by the Spirit Pool had dimmed slightly, which made him grip every talisman tightly.

Three of them.

Each one was a life squeezed out from the Sect's remaining resources.

The Sect Protection Elder walked to his side; the back of his blade was wrapped in black cloth, and the scent of herbs on him was dampened by the night dew.

The Life-Skill Player carried a mended cloth bag on his back, inside which bottles and jars clinked together, making a faint, delicate sound.

The Speedrun Youth had broken talismans and enemy Cultivator waist tokens tucked into his belt, while the Dark Souls Youth clutched his broken wooden sword, his face still pale, his footsteps slightly unsteady as he walked.

"Everyone is here," the Sect Protection Elder said in a low voice.

Sect Master Di Kun distributed the Breath-Concealing Talismans to the Sect Protection Elder, the Speedrun Youth, and the Dark Souls Youth, keeping none for himself.

The Life-Skill Player glanced at the talisman paper, then at Sect Master Di Kun's shoulder, his lips moving slightly.

Sect Master Di Kun spoke first: "I have the Sect Master's seal to suppress my aura; you are carrying the tools, you cannot have less."

The Life-Skill Player swallowed his words and took three small paper packets from his cloth bag.

"Demon Mastiff bone powder, Red Snake Sect Magical Artifact fragments, and re-ground Beast-Attracting Powder." He spread out the paper packets. "This Scent-Masking Powder, sprinkle it on your shoe soles and cuffs, and it can suppress the scent of humans. This Misdirection Powder, sprinkle it at forks in the road, and the Yao Beast will be led astray. And this."

He picked up a black bone splinter as thin as a needle.

"A simple lock-breaking needle. It can only be used once; it can't open high-level Restrictions, but it's enough to pry open the outer beast cages. Don't bend it; if it snaps, it will blow your fingers off."

The Dark Souls Youth reached out to take it, but the Life-Skill Player immediately pulled the bone splinter back.

"Don't you take it. Your hands are shaking right now; before you even open the lock, you'll send yourself to the grave first."

The Dark Souls Youth looked down at his hands and switched the broken wooden sword to his other side. "Fine, I'll be responsible for sending others to the grave."

The Speedrun Youth spread out the broken talisman, using the moonlight to examine the half-claw print on it. He compared it a few times with the enemy Cultivator's waist token, then used a twig to draw the mountain path on the ground.

"The Beast Taming Ground is not on the main line of the main mountain. Taking the official road will mean running into outer courtyard patrols, and taking the western slope is too slow. We'll take the old herb-gathering path, bypass the wasteland forest, cross the rubble gully, and then go down to the mountain col. That place is convenient for hiding filth, and the wind blows north, so the smell of blood won't drift to the main mountain."

The Sect Protection Elder glanced at him. "Have you been here before?"

The Speedrun Youth threw the twig away. "Never been here, but designing strongholds is all about efficiency. You need to transport Yao Beasts, avoid people, and be able to silence witnesses, so there are only a few possible spots."

The Sect Protection Elder did not refute him. He raised his foot and stamped out the lines on the ground to avoid leaving any traces.

Sect Master Di Kun turned back to look at the Taichu Sect. The broken mountain gate, the half-collapsed Ancestral Hall, and the faint light in the direction of the Spirit Pool were all pressed low by the night.

The stench of blood from the piles of corpses during the day had not yet dissipated; after cooling down, it clung to the stone steps like a layer of old, unpayable debt.

"Let's go."

The five of them went down the mountain along the side path of the mountain gate.

This was the first time the Taichu Sect had actively left since defending the mountain.

The mountain path had been loosened by the day's battle, and in many places, the stone steps had cracked, causing one to slide downward if stepped on.

The Sect Protection Elder walked in the lead, his scabbard tapping the ground from time to time to test the footing for the others behind him.

Sect Master Di Kun followed behind him, his old sword held horizontally at his waist, his gaze sweeping over every patch of tree shadows and rubble.

The edge of the Black Mist Demon Ridge was very quiet at night, so quiet that one could hear the sound of clothing brushing against withered branches.

After the Scent-Masking Powder was sprinkled on the shoe soles, there was a faint, earthy, fishy smell that covered up the scent of blood and medicinal ointment.

The Life-Skill Player would bend down to reapply the powder every few steps, his movements very light, not even letting the corners of the paper packets scrape against the tree bark.

The Sect Protection Elder suddenly stopped and turned back to look at the Speedrun Youth and the Dark Souls Youth.

"Don't let your heels land first; step on the outer edges, don't press on the center of the withered leaves."

The Speedrun Youth adjusted immediately, his toes landing in the cracks between stones, and he slid past, keeping his whole body pressed against the tree shadows.

The Dark Souls Youth was even more direct; he circled behind a fallen log, used the slope to roll down halfway, and then used his broken wooden sword to brace against the ground before landing, neutralizing the sound.

The Sect Protection Elder's eyebrows twitched.

These Disciples didn't understand proper stealth techniques, but they were remarkably good at finding blind spots in vision.

Tree trunks for cover, dead angles on slopes, shadows of rocks—in their eyes, it was like a map where they could navigate by stepping on the lines.

The Speedrun Youth even stopped every so often, turning back to use hand signals to indicate "safe," "detour," or "blocking line of sight."

Sect Master Di Kun watched their backs, the corners of his mouth pressing down slightly.

People in the cultivation world learned stealth by learning spells, footwork, and the suppression of aura.

This group of people was like they were dismantling a map.

When they reached the middle of the mountain, the Dark Souls Youth suddenly raised his hand.

Everyone stopped.

He crouched beside a patch of broken bones, using his broken wooden sword to push aside the withered leaves.

Underneath the withered leaves, half a crushed beast bone was revealed, with black marks from iron chains grinding against the bone surface, and the mud beside it had been dragged into two shallow trenches by a heavy object.

Dark sewage had accumulated in the trenches, smelling of Yao Beast feces and blood.

The Life-Skill Player pinched up a bit of mud, held it under his nose to sniff, and immediately frowned.

"Fresh marks. It hasn't been more than two days."

The Sect Protection Elder reached out to touch the tree trunk. A piece of bark had been knocked off by an iron ring, revealing the wet, white wood inside, with a few coarse, stiff beast hairs still hanging on the edges.

"A big one," his voice was even lower. "At least three zhang long."

The Speedrun Youth looked forward along the drag marks. "The route is correct. The Beast Taming Ground has transported Yao Beasts here."

Sect Master Di Kun took the black bone spike out from his bosom by half an inch, then pressed it back. When the bone spike approached the drag marks, a subtle chill came from beneath his lapels, as if an ice needle were pressed against his chest.

"Continue."

The mountain path narrowed when it reached the rubble gully, with stone walls pressing in on both sides, leaving only a white line of moonlight.

The Sect Protection Elder had everyone walk against the wall, crossing first himself. He kicked the rubble underfoot to the side, one by one, to avoid making noise for those behind him.

When they reached the bottom of the gully, a low, beastly panting suddenly came from the distance.

The sound was very light, as if muffled by cloth, or perhaps emerging from underground.

Sect Master Di Kun raised his hand, and all five of them lowered themselves simultaneously. The night wind blew from the direction of the mountain col, carrying the smell of rust, beast stench, and rotting herbs.

The Speedrun Youth lay behind a piece of rubble, listening intently for a moment, then raised his hand to signal three fingers, pointing ahead.

Three on duty.

The Sect Protection Elder slowly drew his blade by half an inch; the back of the blade was wrapped in black cloth, so there was no reflection.

The Dark Souls Youth gripped his broken wooden sword, his knuckles no longer trembling.

The Life-Skill Player took out the Misdirection Powder, pinching it between his fingers, waiting for Sect Master Di Kun's command.

Sect Master Di Kun did not rush to act. He peered out from the edge of the rubble to first observe the terrain.

Behind the wasteland forest in the mountain col, there was an enclosure covered by branches and black cloth.

A few wooden stakes were planted outside the enclosure, with air-dried beast skins hanging on them, looking from afar like ordinary hunters drying their goods.

But iron chains could be vaguely seen between the wooden stakes, the ends of the chains disappearing into the darkness, occasionally pulling taut, then loosening, making a slight clanking sound.

Three Red Snake Sect Cultivators stood on the perimeter; one was leaning against a wooden stake, one was walking around carrying a lantern, and another was sitting under a low shed, wiping a blade.

The lantern light was covered by black cloth, leaking only fragmented light, illuminating the streaks of drag marks and blood on the ground.

An iron cage was hidden in the tree shadows.

Something in the cage bumped against it, and the iron bars emitted a dull echo.

The lantern-carrying Cultivator immediately turned around, tapped the edge of the cage with the handle of his whip, and cursed in a low voice.

The panting inside the cage stopped, leaving only the screeching sound of claws scraping across the iron plate, slowly dragging out.

Sect Master Di Kun lay prone behind the rubble, his palm pressing against the hilt of his old sword.

The night dew seeped along the rock surface into his cuffs, the coldness pressing against his skin.

That enclosure behind the forest was hidden very deeply, like a piece of rotting flesh whose edge was finally exposed from the darkness of the night.

He raised two fingers and pressed them gently to the left.

The Sect Protection Elder slid out half a step, keeping to the shadows of the rocks, while the Life-Skill Player crushed the Misdirection Powder, the dust drifting with the wind toward the grass on the other side.

The Speedrun Youth lay on the ground, his fingers pointing out the positions of the three guards, finally stopping at the gap in the patrol path by the feet of the lantern-carrying Cultivator.

The Dark Souls Youth lowered his body, his broken wooden sword silently bracing against the muddy ground.

The iron cage inside the enclosure bumped again, the lantern light swayed with it, and the three Red Snake Sect Cultivators turned their heads simultaneously to look into the cage.

Sect Master Di Kun's fingertips left the sword hilt and pressed onto the sharp edge of the rubble, the stone fragments crumbling into fine white powder under his fingertips.