Chapter 91: Phantom in the Depths

The underground river widened in some places and narrowed in others, shaping all manner of strange scenery beneath the earth.

Its terrain came in a thousand forms, bizarre and fantastical in ways seldom seen on the surface. Where stalactites gathered thickly, forests of stone shoots rose from the ground while jagged fangs hung downward from above, magnificent enough to make a person feel as though he were standing inside the maw of some monstrous beast. In certain places, torchlight struck the stone and scattered into dreamlike colors.

"This whole underground river was carved out by groundwater. The reason some sections are wide and others narrow has to do with how easily the surrounding rock dissolves under water erosion. Where the stone dissolves more readily, years and years of flowing water naturally widen the channel. Narrow stretches are simply where the rock is harder to dissolve..."

"A blessed grotto? You're imagining too much. These stalactites form because water containing carbon dioxide seeps through limestone and dissolves the calcium carbonate inside. You wouldn't understand even if I explained the details. Put simply, water seeps into the limestone and dissolves part of it. When the drops fall and the water evaporates, the dissolved material hardens again. Drop after drop, over thousands upon thousands of years, it accumulates into this. If you don't believe me, look carefully and see whether water is dripping from the tips of those stone shoots..."

Shang Shuqing had occasionally marveled at some of the underground formations they passed. Niu Youdao could not bear hearing such an intelligent woman remain so ignorant about something this basic, so he casually explained a little.

He walked in front, pointing here and there as though it were nothing. Shang Shuqing, following behind, was visibly moved. She looked at the back of his head with complicated eyes.

"Master Dao, you know so much. You even understand how changes like these happen underground. If the opportunity arises, I hope Master Dao won't disdain Qing'er for her ignorance and will teach me more."

Know so much?

At the rear, the corner of Yuan Gang's mouth twitched. He muttered inwardly, Why don't you ask him about changes in the heavens while you're at it?

"Do I really know that much?"

Niu Youdao laughed and shook his head. This was just basic common knowledge, wasn't it? But there was no point explaining that. The more he explained, the more questions it would raise. He probably should not have opened his mouth in the first place. They walked on for who knew how long. Shang Shuqing gradually slowed. She was exhausted.

The real problem was that she had been forcing herself to walk quickly the whole way just to keep pace with the three men. Blisters had already formed on the soles of her feet, burning with every step.

"Watch the ditch!"

Niu Youdao warned her. When he turned back to check, he noticed something strange about the way she was walking.

"Did you twist your ankle?"

Shang Shuqing did not mention the blisters on her feet.

She forced herself to endure and said, "No. I'm simply not used to walking on this kind of ground."

They continued for another stretch. In the end, the woman was panting, fragrant sweat covering her face, and plainly looked as though she could walk no farther.

When they reached a suitable spot containing another large cache of torches, Niu Youdao finally called for a rest.

Niu Youdao, Yuan Gang, and Yuan Fang still had plenty of strength left. This amount of walking was nothing to the three of them.

In truth, Niu Youdao had wanted to carry Shang Shuqing on his back and keep moving, but she refused no matter what he said, even invoking the propriety that men and women should not touch one another casually. Niu Youdao could only give up. They were not in any urgent hurry, so if they had to travel slowly, then so be it.

What he did not know was that, from Shang Shuqing's perspective, being held around the waist had already gone far beyond what was proper.

When they descended into the well earlier, if Niu Youdao had not suddenly done it without warning, she would at most have allowed him to hold her hand while helping her down. How could she casually allow a man to embrace her like that? Being carried on his back was even worse. Spread her legs and lie against him? Press her chest against his back? She could hardly bear the thought herself. Naturally, she would rather die than agree.

How to put it?

Niu Youdao could understand the ideas women of this era held regarding chastity and propriety. Even so, he still added silently to himself: Master Dao isn't interested in you in the slightest! Perhaps Shang Shuqing simply had never walked such a difficult road in her life.

This was nothing like an ordinary journey over flat ground. They were climbing up and down, jumping and scrambling constantly, and it had worn her out completely. After finding a relatively clean corner and sitting down, Shang Shuqing soon tilted her head and fell asleep. The underground air was chilly. Niu Youdao took a spare garment from a bundle and draped it over her. She did not react at all. She was sleeping deeply.

Judging by how exhausted she looked, she probably would not wake for quite some time. Niu Youdao therefore arranged watch shifts, mainly to make sure the torches did not go out and to maintain basic vigilance.

They had encountered nothing dangerous anywhere along the underground route so far, but some minimum caution was still necessary. Niu Youdao would take one shift alone. Yuan Fang and Yuan Gang would take the other together.

Trust was trust, but Yuan Fang had not yet reached the point where Niu Youdao could completely let down his guard around him.

Pairing Yuan Gang with him was also a precaution against the possibility that, while everyone slept, the old bear might suddenly decide to deal with them all. Yuan Gang's shift came first. Niu Youdao sat cross-legged nearby, closed his eyes, and regulated his breathing.

He did not know how long had passed when, in the midst of perfect mental clarity, he suddenly sensed a thread of cold. It was not a normal chill. Ordinary cold enveloped the body as a whole.

This was different: a faint wisp drifting past, so subtle it almost seemed nonexistent, yet capable of seeping through the pores and suppressing the vitality within. Niu Youdao had felt this kind of cold before, inside ancient tombs when something unclean was present. His eyes snapped open. At almost the same moment, Yuan Fang leaned close. Seeing the way Niu Youdao had suddenly opened his eyes, he knew Master Dao had sensed it too.

He whispered beside his ear, "Master Dao, there seems to be a yin spirit here. Just now, when I opened my Dharma Eye, I saw something flash through the corner. Sneaking around like that, I doubt it means us well."

Niu Youdao quietly recalled the sensation he had just experienced. It was stronger than anything he had ever felt in an especially yin-heavy place before. Whatever was here had plainly developed into something substantial. It was no ordinary wandering soul. Put more plainly, it had already become a ghost.

"Take a look around."

Niu Youdao gave the order. Yuan Fang nodded, turned, lit several torches in quick succession, and threw them in different directions, including across the river. Then he took another torch himself and drifted away to search the area. Niu Youdao looked around. In a place this dark, the first thing that came to mind was illumination.

A cultivator's Dharma Eye could see farther than an ordinary person's, but that still depended on the presence of light. In absolute darkness, it was not much use either. He tilted his head toward the torch cache.

Yuan Gang immediately took a garment from one of the bundles, walked over to the stored torches, and used brute force to snap several of them into pieces.

He wrapped a pile of broken torch heads inside the garment. The full-length torches were too long to carry conveniently, so he made a bundle out of the shortened pieces and strapped it to his back. Niu Youdao rose with his sword and walked over to Shang Shuqing. Only then did he discover that the woman seemed to be trapped in some nightmare. Tears were streaming down her face in her sleep.

That ugly face was covered in tears, her expression desolate and helpless beyond description. She was exhausted enough to sleep like this and still weep in her dreams. Who knew how much sorrow she kept buried in her heart?

"Commandery Princess. Commandery Princess..."

Niu Youdao called twice. She did not wake. So he reached down and lightly slapped her cheek twice. Shang Shuqing jerked upright in alarm and stared blankly at Niu Youdao. A moment later, she seemed to realize she had been crying. Embarrassed, she raised her sleeve and wiped the tears from her face. When she stood, she noticed the garment that had been covering her and recognized it as Niu Youdao's. Warmth stirred in her heart, along with a trace of shyness.

"Master Dao, did I sleep too long?"

Niu Youdao noticed immediately that she was placing her feet awkwardly against the ground.

"You can't keep walking. I'll carry you."

How could Shang Shuqing accept such intimate contact? She hurriedly shook her head.

"My feet are fine. I can walk."

"You're overthinking it."

Niu Youdao surveyed the surroundings as he spoke.

"Something has its eye on us. If you insist on walking slowly, you'll drag everyone down."

"..."

Shang Shuqing froze. Only then did she notice that Yuan Fang was gone and several torches had been thrown far into the darkness. Before long, Yuan Fang drifted back from another direction.

"Master Dao, I don't know where it hid."

"There's no point wasting time here. Move!"

Niu Youdao tilted his head and held his sword out toward Shang Shuqing. She paused, then reached for it. The moment she took the sword, Niu Youdao used the motion to pull her bodily toward him. He paid no attention to her embarrassment.

Once she was close, he turned around, hooked both arms beneath her thighs, and lifted her directly onto his back. He had promised Shang Chaozong that as long as he remained standing, Shang Shuqing would be safe. Among the people here, he was the strongest. The posture was mortifying. The roots of Shang Shuqing's ears turned scarlet instantly. She did not dare let her upper body rest against his back.

Instead, she held Niu Youdao's sword against his shoulder and used it to brace herself away from him. Then Yuan Gang casually handed her a burning torch. She had no choice but to accept that too. The group quickly departed.

Aside from Shang Shuqing now riding on Niu Youdao's back, they retained their previous formation, with Yuan Fang still leading. Yuan Fang and Yuan Gang each carried two burning torches.

Without Shang Shuqing slowing them down, the speed of the three men increased by far more than a little. The flames streamed in the rushing wind. Melted torch oil dripped down in burning beads.

Afraid of letting it fall on Niu Youdao, after all the repeated leaps and landings, Shang Shuqing finally had no choice but to lean forward against his shoulder. For her, the change was more than merely an increase in speed. Traveling this way was naturally far more comfortable than walking herself. They soon reached the next torch cache. It was completely empty.

Yuan Gang stepped into the hollow in the wall, rubbed a hand over the oily residue, brought his fingers to his nose, and smelled them. Then he looked back.

"There were torches here."

Still leaning against Niu Youdao's shoulder, Shang Shuqing said, "That's impossible. These are emergency reserves. They normally aren't used without authorization, and even if someone used them, it would be reported. Unless outsiders took them away."

"Keep moving!"

Niu Youdao tilted his head. The three men immediately pressed forward again. They passed two more torch caches in succession. Both were empty. By now, the torches in their hands were almost burned out.

Niu Youdao looked around, then suddenly said, "Old Bear, pay attention to the river."

Yuan Fang immediately shot toward the water and ran across its surface in rising and falling strides. Just as Niu Youdao expected, Yuan Fang quickly discovered torches floating downstream from farther upstream. The logic was simple. According to Shang Shuqing, every storage point along the route should contain torches. Judging from the previous caches, there should have been at least a thousand in total. Even if someone had removed them, carrying every single one away would have been inconvenient.

And given the abnormalities they had already discovered, if someone had only recently started sabotaging the route, the easiest method would simply be to throw the torches into the river. Yuan Fang scooped up two and drifted back. He held them near the burning torch in his hand and tried to light them. They hissed and crackled. Having been soaked through, neither would catch.

"Someone's trying to leave us blind. Better not let this monk get his hands on them..."

Yuan Fang threw the wet torches aside and swept his gaze around the darkness. A violent edge had appeared in his face. By now, anyone could see that someone meant them harm. There was no other reason to destroy the torch caches and deliberately place them at a disadvantage. Someone was plainly targeting them.

[End of Chapter 91]