Thousand Dusts Ferry Me - Chapter 45

Yun Qing was startled for a moment and turned her head to look.

Jiang Baiyu had been outside the cave checking the situation, confirming that the demons wouldn’t find them anytime soon. When he returned to the cave, he witnessed Yun Qing’s breakdown and loss of control.

His heart ached quietly.

Such a proud and clear-minded person she was, whose face would light up brilliantly when she smiled, now had red eyes, gritted teeth, and was in extreme pain.

He walked over, bent down, and gently pressed on her shoulder, saying softly, “Yun Qing, protect me while I work.”

When Yun Qing heard this, she seemed to grasp at a lifeline, her eyes radiating light.

She released Fu Xue and stood aside, staring intently at him.

Her gaze was so intense that Jiang Baiyu felt somewhat uncomfortable under her scrutiny.

He sat cross-legged, laid Fu Xue down, holding her wrist with one hand to transfer his spiritual power to keep her barely alive, while his other hand gripped the knife in her chest and quickly pulled it out.

Fu Xue’s body jerked, and fresh blood spurted from her chest.

Yun Qing tensed with anxiety, but trusting Jiang Baiyu, she said nothing and simply stood guard silently.

Clang——

Jiang Baiyu tossed the knife aside. He made a hand sign to clear the blood from Fu Xue’s chest, then with one hand still holding her wrist and the other resting on his knee, he closed his eyes and began to channel his energy.

Moments later, his chest, at the position of his heart, began to glow.

It was a faint, soft, somewhat sacred light. The light started as a small point, then gradually expanded until it finally transformed into a tangible object, revealing one corner first.

As more of it emerged, Yun Qing was astonished to discover that it was actually glowing lotus petals.

The ivory-white petals were pure and smooth like jade at the base, gradually taking on a very pale yellow color toward the tips.

The closer to the petal tip, the deeper the yellow became, until at the very tip, it was as yellow as a ginkgo leaf.

The entire petal resembled that small patch of sky when viewing the sunset from above the clouds, transitioning from white to yellow.

More and more petals emerged, followed by the stamen, then the other half of the petals…

Finally, it fully emerged from his chest and floated before him.

It was a lotus flower slightly larger than a man’s fist.

The petals, transitioning from white to yellow, were full and soft, with dense golden stamens. The entire lotus flower radiated rich spiritual energy and vitality.

Yun Qing stared at it wide-eyed.

The lotus patterns commonly seen throughout the Huayang Sect, the lotus held in Wen Zhongming’s statue, the unusually abundant lotuses on Huayang Mountain, the faint fragrance from Jiang Baiyu’s body, and the lotus fields blooming in autumn on Jade Ring Lake…

All these things converged to a single point at this moment.

So this was the answer.

Cheng Suiyan had already been stunned into a statue-like stillness.

The lotus flower hovered in the air like a lamp, even brighter than the nearby campfire. It illuminated Jiang Baiyu’s handsome, calm profile before slowly descending.

When it was about an inch above Fu Xue’s chest, it stopped.

Then, the light from the lotus broke into tiny specks that eagerly flowed toward Fu Xue’s chest.

Fu Xue’s deathly pale face visibly regained some color, and her previously weak breathing gradually became more noticeable and strong.

Yun Qing covered her mouth, tears streaming down her face.

The treatment continued for over fifteen minutes. The lotus’s light gradually dimmed until finally, it resembled an oil lamp flickering in the wind, nearly extinguished.

Jiang Baiyu drew the lotus back into his heart, released Fu Xue’s wrist, and said, “She’s fine now, just asleep.”

Yun Qing walked over, crouched beside him, and reached out to touch Fu Xue’s forehead.

Finding salvation in desperate circumstances, sunshine after the storm—so this was how it felt.

Her emotions were like a small boat tossed in towering waves, from great sorrow suddenly turning to great joy.

She broke into a smile through her tears.

Jiang Baiyu, looking at her smiling face still glistening with tears, thought to himself, to smile is good.

Cheng Suiyan also let out a long sigh of relief and silently slipped the protective jade turtle back into Fu Xue’s hand.

Jiang Baiyu tried to stand up by pushing on his knees but collapsed back down. Yun Qing saw him wavering and quickly grabbed him, letting him lean on her shoulder.

His expression showed unprecedented exhaustion, his eyes half-closed, dense eyelashes casting shadows on his face.

Yun Qing suddenly felt a pang of sympathy. “Thank you for your hard work, Baiyu.”

Jiang Baiyu rested quietly on her shoulder and shook his head slightly at her words. “It’s nothing.”

She said, “Rest for a while if you’re tired.”

Jiang Baiyu made a sound of agreement and, leaning against her, closed his eyes and fell asleep.

This was his first time sleeping in ten years.

……

After Jiang Baiyu fell asleep, Yun Qing gently laid him down.

She set up an invisible formation and two defensive formations around the cave, then said to Cheng Suiyan, “Stay here and keep watch. I’m going out for a while.”

“What are you going to do?” Cheng Suiyan asked.

His demeanor was dejected, his voice weak and listless.

Yun Qing knew why he was in low spirits, but she had no time to comfort him now. She simply walked toward the exit, tossing back a sentence as she reached the cave entrance. “I’m going to try a new formation.”

Actually, the original plan for tonight was just to scout and make contact—fight if possible, retreat and regroup if not. After all, almost all the formations she knew required advance preparation.

But plans couldn’t keep up with changes, and things had gone wrong in the middle.

However, now they were back to square one.

……

Small demons were still scattered throughout the mountain, searching.

In the middle of the night, these small demons hadn’t gotten their meat soup and had lost many companions. They were full of resentment, kicking trees and beating grass as they wandered aimlessly.

Yun Qing had always had good hearing and could detect these small demons’ movements from afar, avoiding them in advance.

She arrived at a depression to the northeast of the clearing, about two li away from it. She dug a hole three feet deep and buried amber, mutton-fat jade, azurite, turquoise, and cinnabar.

Each of these gemstones needed to be at least one jin in weight and particularly pure.

To collect these fine gemstones, she had spent all her money and borrowed quite a bit from Jiang Baiyu and Cheng Suiyan.

After covering the soil, Yun Qing knelt on the ground, supporting herself with her sword as she bowed her head in prayer.

This formation required prayers twice—once during setup and once during activation. The two incantations were different, like exchanging secret codes.

The incantation was more complex than those for other formations and needed to be adjusted according to the terrain, which could produce variations in the formation.

After finishing all this, Yun Qing stood up, wandered around, and casually caught a small demon.

She beat the demon until it agreed to take her to see the golden-haired hound.

The small demon didn’t dare refuse and led her, all bruised and swollen.

On the way, they encountered several other searching demons who, upon seeing Yun Qing, beat the drums and gongs, shouting cries of battle. Impatient, she stabbed one to death with her sword, frightening the others into scattering.

With this, news quickly spread to other demons, and the golden-haired hound came personally to capture her.

Yun Qing held her sword, her eyes red with rage, and said hatefully, “Golden-Haired Dog, give me back my junior sister’s life!”

The golden-haired hound flew into a rage and raised his knife to strike.

Other demons naturally also raised their weapons to attack.

Yun Qing, fueled by anger and hatred, wielded her sword even faster and more fiercely than usual. Surrounded by killing intent, she fought against many opponents without being at a disadvantage.

After several exchanges, the golden-haired hound, having injured his foot earlier, found himself increasingly at a disadvantage due to his limited mobility.

He stopped, and like before, he removed the small drum from his waist. After the drum expanded, he began to beat it while chanting an incantation.

Boom, boom, boom.

Yun Qing’s expression became confused, and her movements slowed. She seemed to realize something, shook her head, and her gaze cleared somewhat, but only momentarily before becoming confused again.

The golden-haired hound sneered, “Without that pretty boy playing his sword for you, let’s see how long you can hold out!”

Boom, boom, boom.

Yun Qing held her head, looking extremely pained, and her swordplay became chaotic.

The other demons all wore weasel skull accessories that could resist the drum’s spell, so only she was mentally disoriented.

She clutched her head and slashed wildly for a while. The demons seized the opportunity, rushed forward in a group, knocked her down, and bound her with ropes.

The golden-haired hound put away his drum and laughed, “With such high cultivation, she must taste delicious.”

Don’t Be Hasty came forward and asked, “Big brother, shouldn’t we catch the other two as well? The dead one looked tasty too—why not dig her up and eat her?”

“One at a time. Let’s eat this one first, to avoid complications.”

Without the drumbeats, Yun Qing’s eyes regained their clarity. She looked at him coldly, “Aren’t you afraid I’m bait?”

The golden-haired hound laughed heartily. “Little one, you’re really too young. If you were truly bait, you wouldn’t have asked so openly.

To be honest, I was a bit concerned earlier, but after hearing you say that, I’m reassured. Brothers, go heat the oil cauldron! Since we can’t cut this little woman, we’ll fry her through!”

The demons dragged Yun Qing back to the clearing, cheering and laughing.

Don’t Be Angry and Don’t Be Hasty led others to set up a fire and heat the oil. By now, the bright moon had moved westward, and the orange-red flames happily licked the pitch-black bottom of the cauldron under the pure white moonlight.

The golden-haired hound began beating his small drum again. Without the incantation, it was just a normal drum, though its sound traveled farther than most.

The Linglong Mountain was riddled with countless caves, many interconnected. When he beat the drum, other demons in the caves heard the sound and gradually came out, gathering in the clearing.

The golden-haired hound held a cup of wine and excitedly said, “Brothers, this young woman may be young, but her cultivation is profound. Can you guess why?”

“Big brother, why?”

“What else could it be? It must be because her merits are deep!”

“Aoaoao!”

“Eat her, and we’ll all increase our cultivation! Today, everyone gets a share of this human meat!”

“Aoaoao, long live big brother!”

“Later, save a bowl of soup for Brother Tiger’s grave. If he hadn’t killed that woman, this little woman wouldn’t have lost her senses and walked into our trap. Besides Brother Tiger, all our other fallen brothers get a share too!”

“Big brother is wise! Big brother is righteous!”

Yun Qing quietly watched the cheering demons, glanced at the boiling oil cauldron nearby, and asked, “Is everyone here now?”

“Everyone’s here,” the golden-haired hound answered, then immediately realized something was wrong—why was this little woman asking such a question again? He angrily cursed at her, “Stinky girl, still putting on an act when death is at your doorstep.”

“Good that everyone’s here,” Yun Qing said.

She had gone to great lengths to put on this act, all because she didn’t want to let even one demon escape.

At some point, the wind had risen.

The flames beneath the cauldron flickered wildly in the wind, trembling violently as if frightened. Her face appeared even more stunningly beautiful in the flickering firelight. Her dark eyes shone incredibly bright.

The golden-haired hound saw her lips moving.

In that moment, he had a dangerous premonition—an instinct from his animal nature.

Before he could react, he suddenly felt the ground shake.

An unprecedented, surging power was gathering beneath her feet.

And the ropes on her body had already loosened and fallen to the ground.

Emperor Xi’s Wordless Book held that all things in heaven and earth contained their own unique power, with the powers of heaven, earth, wind, thunder, water, fire, mountain, and marsh being the strongest.

One could choose to temporarily amplify one’s own power by relying on a certain power based on the current environment. This amplification could reach a hundred or even a thousand times, but the greater the amplification, the more severe the toll on oneself, and the more exhausted one would be afterward.

Yun Qing chose to work with her surroundings, relying on the power of the mountain to amplify herself.

The formation name: Mountain Reliance!

At this moment, she felt the cultivation in her blood surge, as majestic as gazing upon a high mountain, as turbulent as towering waves, giving her an impulse to destroy everything.

She slowly rose into the air, her black hair flying, her bright red skirt fluttering wildly. She looked down at him expressionlessly, her eyes calm and steady, as if looking at a bug about to die.

The golden-haired hound was so oppressed by the powerful aura emanating from her that he could barely breathe. His golden eyes were filled with shock, his body instinctively trembling with fear.

He stared at her wide-eyed. At such a moment, even just saying something required mustering all his courage.

“Who exactly are you?”

“The one who will kill you.”