Chapter 6: A Heart Set on Seeking Immortality and the Dao

Go to Guangyi Commandery and look for you? The thought passed through Niu Youdao's mind only once. He was far too cold to think about it seriously, and he had no intention of seeking her out anyway. He had no interest in those government troops. He watched them leave until he was certain they were truly gone. Only then, teeth chattering, did he laboriously climb back onto the bamboo raft.

It had almost been better in the water. The moment he came out and the cold wind hit him, the sensation was exquisite in the worst possible way. It was even colder. His whole body shook violently, his teeth clacking nonstop. He was freezing and starving. He almost wanted to jump back into the river. The water might even feel warmer. But he knew that would be no different from slowly boiling a frog in warm water. By the time he realized something was wrong, he would probably no longer have the strength to climb back out.

He took out his fire striker, intending to warm himself, only to find that it too had been soaked through and was useless.

Then he noticed the roasted fish lying on the raft, the one from which he had taken only a few bites. He snatched it up and, with ten stiff fingers trembling around it, began biting into the fish. He needed energy. It felt as though every trace of heat in his body had already been consumed. The cold seemed to rise from his very bones, and his whole body was gradually turning rigid. All around him was desolate wilderness, without the slightest sign of habitation where he might seek help.

Before long, he realized things were getting worse. Sensation throughout his body was fading, and drowsiness was beginning to drag him down. He knew perfectly well that he could not sleep. This was his body numbing itself. If he fell asleep in this condition, he would never wake again.

His gaze turned toward the bank. He wanted to bring the raft ashore, but his body was already too stiff with cold to obey him. His consciousness sank despite himself, slipping steadily toward darkness. Just as he was about to lapse into sleep, he seemed to dream that he had leaned against a furnace. His back suddenly became scorching hot, shocking him awake.

He scrambled upright and froze in astonishment. Steam was pouring from the soaked padded clothes on his body. He was no longer cold. One point on his back in particular was burning hot, and waves of heat kept flowing from it through all his limbs and bones, driving away every trace of chill.

Only moments ago he had been frozen stiff. Now he was gradually becoming so hot that he felt dry and restless. He found it strange only briefly before a thought occurred to him. The source of that heat was precisely one of the acupoints into which Dong Guo Haoran had driven a protective talisman.

That explained it. At the same time, he found it almost unbelievable. Dong Guo Haoran's control of internal force could actually produce an effect this wondrous? The realization only strengthened his desire to visit the Shangqing Sect and see it for himself. To call it a heart set on seeking immortality and the Dao would not be an exaggeration.

The heat soon became uncomfortable. He tried to regulate his breathing and guide the flow, but this body did not yet have the foundation for it. There was no true qi within him to direct, no minimum basis for circulating power through the body. Mere thought was useless. Then there was the question of whether this body was even suited for cultivation. In the language of cultivators, it came down to one's innate constitution. Not everyone was suited to Qi Refinement; in fact, most people were not.

The reason lay in differences between individual bodies. Qi cultivation placed strict demands on the arrangement of the body's meridians. Meridians were like the branches and trunks inside a human body. The main trunks were broadly similar from person to person, but the subsidiary pathways might differ considerably, just as trees of the same species did not necessarily grow into the same shape.

In some people, even the major internal pathways could differ. There were people whose hearts were located on the opposite side of the chest, after all. A person whose innate constitution was poor, whose physical conditions were unsuitable, was not necessarily incapable of practicing qi arts at all. They could still cultivate simple qigong or breathing methods intended to prolong life. But profound cultivation methods with complex requirements for the circulation of qi would be beyond them.

Eventually the heat became so uncomfortable that Niu Youdao splashed cold water over his face and even opened the front of his clothes to let the freezing wind blow against him. His ragged padded jacket continued steaming, and his skin had turned red.

While clearing the arrows from the raft, he noticed the token the female general had shot over. It was a small, round plaque of dark red material. One side was carved with a phoenix spreading its wings in flight. The other bore a single character: nan, meaning "male."

"Small Seal Script..." he murmured, staring at the writing with bewilderment.

The people of this world actually used Small Seal Script? Given the work he had once done, he was naturally familiar with the script and could read it without difficulty. What puzzled him was that the people here spoke standard Mandarin, yet their writing was Small Seal Script. Compared with the world he knew, the combination felt strangely disordered. But thinking about it from the perspective of this world, perhaps it was his former world that was disordered instead. Which side was the strange one? He had no answer. He could only remain perplexed.

By now, the bamboo raft had entered a stretch of mountain rapids. The current surged swiftly, sending the raft pitching and bucking. Niu Youdao snapped back to attention and hurriedly hauled in the string of little fishing traps trailing behind. He still had a long journey ahead, and they might prove useful again. There was no point letting them be destroyed in difficult water.

He took up the bamboo pole and braced left and right through the turbulent river gorge. With the front of his clothes hanging open, he faced the winter wind while spray burst around him, wrestling against current and waves. His movements were practiced and sure. He clearly had experience handling this kind of situation and remained calm despite the danger. The scene was magnificent, turbulent, and perilous.

After clearing the rapids, the water calmed again. Niu Youdao collapsed from exhaustion and grabbed one of the dead fish on the raft, eating it raw. Above the mountain ridges hung a bright moon.

There was something of the feeling of "The apes on either bank cry without end; the light boat has already passed ten thousand mountains." The bamboo raft drifted out from among the mountains. Golden dawn rose over the horizon, and Niu Youdao found a place to go ashore.

The heat in his body was gradually fading, and the chill began to return. He found a suitable patch of ground, swung the hoe until he had dug himself a shallow earthen shelter, gathered dry wood and dragged over dead timber, then started a fire by friction. He lay down on the heated kang platform and fell asleep.

When he woke, he set out again. There was brilliant sunlight amid the cold wind, and over desolate nights a river of moonlight shone. Sun and moon kept him company. Where the current ran fast, he used the bamboo pole. Where the water seemed calm and almost dead, he worked his crude wooden paddle.

The journey was grueling, but he found pleasure in it all the same. His wealth of practical experience was enough to deal with the cruelty of the natural world.

Several days later, the river looked calm on the surface, yet its current was extraordinarily fast. One glance told Niu Youdao there had to be a drop ahead, something like a waterfall. Sure enough, before long the distant roar of falling water reached him. He reckoned this should be the waterfall Dong Guo Haoran had mentioned.

Looking around, he could faintly see magnificent mountains and forests in the distance. Dong Guo Haoran's instructions had been brief but clear. Presumably that was the place of rare natural grace he had spoken of. Niu Youdao immediately seized the wooden paddle and rowed with all his strength. Battling the current, he finally managed to reach the bank.

With enormous effort, he dragged Dong Guo Haoran's body ashore. Then he stood and watched the bamboo raft race away downstream. Not far off, its far end tipped sharply upward before the whole raft, still carrying its pile of firewood, plunged over the drop and vanished.

Niu Youdao drew the woodcutting knife tucked diagonally behind his waist and cut several branches and vines nearby. From them he built something like a crude stretcher. He placed Dong Guo Haoran's body on it, braided the vines into a hauling rope, looped it over his shoulders, lifted one end of the stretcher by its handles, and began dragging it away.

Shoulders pulling, hands straining, he struggled onward. After torturing himself deep into the mountains, he eventually reached terrain so steep that dragging the stretcher any farther became impossible. He dropped it to the ground, collapsed beneath a tree like a dead dog, untied the bamboo tube at his waist, and gulped down some water.

Then he suddenly raised his voice and shouted, "Anyone from the Shangqing Sect around here?"

He called several more times, but the forest gave no response. He was preparing to rest for a while and then abandon Dong Guo Haoran's body while he searched alone when something suddenly struck his face with a hiss, stinging sharply. Niu Youdao immediately drew his woodcutting knife and scrambled to his feet, scanning the surroundings.

Hiss!

Something struck his face again.

He looked up and only then saw a young man in gray standing on the branch of a large tree, though Niu Youdao had no idea when he had appeared there. A long sword was strapped across the young man's back. Looking down coldly from above, he barked, "Where did you wild brat come from, shouting your head off here?"

Niu Youdao's eyes lit up. Delighted, he asked, "Are you from the Shangqing Sect?"

The young man said, "How does a wild brat like you know about the Shangqing Sect?"

That answer alone told Niu Youdao he had found the right place. He tucked the woodcutting knife back into his belt, hurriedly pulled aside the filthy cloth wrapped around the body on the stretcher, and revealed Dong Guo Haoran's face.

Pointing, he said, "Him. Know him? Dong Guo Haoran. He told me to come find you."

The young man's face changed drastically the moment he looked. He dropped from the tree in a flash, hurriedly inspected the body to confirm the identity, then pulled out a signal arrow, aimed it at the sky, and triggered it. A flare of fire and smoke shot upward with a shriek and burst into sparks overhead.

Before long, more than a dozen people came skimming in above the nearby treetops. One after another they flipped through the air and landed. Niu Youdao blinked repeatedly. Every one of them had impressive qinggong.

The newcomers all stepped forward to confirm Dong Guo Haoran's identity. Then someone shouted, "Quickly! Report this to the sect!"

A figure immediately flashed away and vanished into the forest. The others stared at Niu Youdao and formed a ring around him, eyeing him like tigers watching prey. Yet no one asked him anything. He did not have to wait long. More figures began arriving with rustles from the forest, vaulting through the air and landing one after another.

In the end, Luo Yuangong, Su Po, and Tang Susu all came after receiving the news. Tang Yi and Wei Duo arrived as well. More and more people followed until several dozen had gathered. Nearly all of the Shangqing Sect's inner disciples were now present. After each had confirmed Dong Guo Haoran's corpse, they looked from one another to the body, their expressions grave.

While Niu Youdao observed their reactions, his gaze lingered on Tang Yi a little longer than on the others. The girl stood out even in a crowd. She was seriously beautiful, almost like an immortal maiden. He merely appreciated the sight. He had no other thoughts at present. More importantly, the way these people reacted made one thing clear: Dong Guo Haoran truly had held a high position in the Shangqing Sect.

Luo Yuangong crouched beside the body and examined the injuries. Then he stood, looked at Niu Youdao, and asked, "Little brother, were you the one who brought him here?"

Niu Youdao nodded. "Yes."

Luo Yuangong inclined his head. "You've gone to considerable trouble. Can you tell us exactly what happened?"

"I'm from Small Temple Village, three hundred li from here. When soldiers and bandits looted our village, I hid in a little temple in the mountains..."

Niu Youdao calmly recounted the general course of events. As for the ancient bronze mirror, he followed Dong Guo Haoran's instructions and said nothing. Until he knew which one of these people was Tang Mu, he would not mention it carelessly. But when he reached the part about Dong Guo Haoran accepting him as a disciple, the expressions of quite a few inner disciples gradually changed.

Tang Susu reacted as if someone had stepped on a cat's tail. A sharp light flashed in her eyes, and she cut him off with a furious shout.

"How could Dong Guo Haoran casually accept some wild village brat as his disciple? Nothing but lies! I'll kill you!"

She did not merely say it. Her palm struck out for real. Powerful palm force howled through the air, sending violent gusts in every direction.

"Junior Sister!" Luo Yuangong and Su Po cried out in alarm, but it was already too late to stop her. Neither had expected Tang Susu to attack without warning, much less open with a killing blow.

Some among those present could probably guess her purpose. Tang Mu was gone, and he had passed the Sect Leadership to Dong Guo Haoran! Niu Youdao was horrified. He was not entirely without discernment. After all, he too had once been a practitioner of internal arts. The power of this palm was terrifying. It had not even reached him yet, but the pressure alone was already squeezing the breath from his lungs. If it struck him head-on, he would probably die on the spot.

At such close range, against an attack this violent, there was no chance of dodging. Not with his present body. Even if he still possessed the strength of his former life, he could not have escaped it. Inwardly, he cursed eighteen generations of the old woman's ancestors. He had never imagined that coming to the Shangqing Sect would mean delivering himself to his death. And after he had gone through all that hardship to bring Dong Guo Haoran's corpse here as a show of sincerity!

In truth, Dong Guo Haoran had never told him to bring the body. Once Niu Youdao reached the Shangqing Sect, they naturally would have sent someone afterward to retrieve it. He had brought all this suffering upon himself solely because he wanted to demonstrate sincerity.

[End of Chapter 6]