Thousand Dusts Ferry Me - Chapter 6

Around midnight, all beings in heaven and earth were deep in slumber. Yun Qing and Fu Xue, dressed in black and carrying a lantern and two heavy packages, arrived at the back mountain of Huayang Sect.

Wind lingered in the deep valley, and the rugged mountains cradled the moon. Fu Xue looked up at the mountain’s silhouette and brushed away a strand of hair disturbed by the wind. She exhaled softly, then raised the Six-Path Sealing Bell.

Dong, dong, dong.

“Shining with the sun and moon,

Carried by the ranks of stars.

Compassionate clouds, Dharma rain,

The six paths heed this decree. Command!”

The dense undergrowth rustled, moving from a distance toward them. Soon, a sleek yellow weasel emerged from the bushes.

The weasel’s small eyes shone like bright stars. Upon seeing the two women, it stood up and bowed three times.

Fu Xue returned a fist salute and asked, “Have you ever seen a person like this?” She then described her master’s appearance, “Or have you heard of him? His name is Le Chenzi.”

The weasel shook its head.

The two sister disciples hadn’t been hopeful anyway.

They had only learned of their master’s whereabouts at Fuzhong Mountain, where a few creatures had seen Le Chenzi, but only knew that he had left Fuzhong Mountain for an unknown destination.

Besides that, Fu Xue had inquired many times along their journey, but found no clues.

Fu Xue said to the weasel, “Please lead us into the mountain, avoiding people. We want to go to Lanji Palace.”

Huayang Sect had nine palaces winding throughout the entire Huayang Mountain. Lanji Palace was one of the nine and the residence of Huayang Sect’s young master, Jiang Baiyu.

Upon hearing Fu Xue’s words, the weasel turned and leaped into the mountain, stopping every few steps to check if the two were following.

The night was deep and dew-heavy, with dense vegetation. The two pushed through branches and leaves along the way, getting covered in dew. Their wet clothes clung coldly to their skin—that feeling, tsk!

Thus, they would stop occasionally to cast spells to dry their clothes.

It was pitch black under the thick trees, with only their lantern swaying like a ghost fire.

Fu Xue kept tightly gripping Yun Qing’s robe. Knowing her nervousness, Yun Qing made small talk. “Fu Xue, do you know the name of the Huayang Sect young master’s younger brother?”

“Huh? I’ve never heard he had a younger brother.”

“Heh.”

Fu Xue asked curiously, “Then what do you think his name is?”

“Well, since the older brother is called ‘Jiang Baiyu’, the younger brother must be called ‘Jiang Heigou’.”

(TL: Jiang ‘Baiyu’ (white fish), Jiang ‘Heigou’ (black dog))

Pffft—Fu Xue laughed, “Senior sister, haha, he must have a younger brother!”

The weasel, hearing their conversation, covered its mouth with its front paws and made a few squeaking sounds, as if laughing.

Thanks to Yun Qing’s distraction, Fu Xue’s tense nerves relaxed a bit. By the time the eastern sky began to turn white, they finally arrived outside Lanji Palace.

Yun Qing placed the items she had been carrying on the ground and opened them to check. Fu Xue watched silently, not daring to ask—she knew her senior sister was going to use skills learned from that wordless book again.

Cinnabar in the southwest, copper coins in the north, black and white stones in the northeast.

The formation’s name: Dream Submersion.

Given the size of Lanji Palace, Yun Qing would normally need to arrange a large formation to encompass the entire palace.

But lacking sufficient materials, she dispersed eight small formations to surround Lanji Palace, setting the focal point at their feet.

“I truly am a genius,” Yun Qing muttered, then drew her sword, inserted it into the focal point, knelt on one knee, and prayed with lowered head and closed eyes.

Soon, the surrounding air seemed to quiver slightly, then began to flow gently in the night breeze.

Yun Qing opened her eyes, feeling somewhat fatigued, and saw Fu Xue kneeling before her. Puzzled, she asked, “Why are you kneeling?”

“I don’t know. I saw you kneel, so I felt awkward standing.”

“…” Yun Qing had to admit that her junior sister could be a bit dim-witted at times.

She helped Fu Xue up and asked, “How do you feel?”

“I feel very calm inside, a bit happy, like I’m having a wonderful dream.”

“A dream full of braised pork hock?”

“Yes!…No, no, senior sister, you’re teasing me again.”

Yun Qing laughed, “Let’s go, senior sister will take you robbing.” She wasn’t worried about Fu Xue being hypnotized, as Fu Xue wore a special clear-mind sachet she had made.

The two climbed over the wall into Lanji Palace and found everyone inside fast asleep. Yun Qing picked up a palace lantern with engraved patterns and filigree and remarked:

“This fish really knows how to enjoy life.” She discarded their original lantern and carried the filigree lantern forward.

There were some formations arranged in Lanji Palace, but Yun Qing could see through them at a glance. She found it strange, “Why are the formations here so carelessly arranged?”

Fu Xue was more perplexed. “Where are they careless? They seem quite dangerous to me.”

The two passed through an immortal terrace and entered the main hall, where an eight-foot-tall statue stood.

The statue wore a tall hat and broad ribbons, had an immortal, Taoist demeanor, held a sword in its right hand and a lotus flower in its left, with a faint smile on its face. It was none other than the founder of Huayang Sect, Huayang Zi Wen Zhongming.

Yun Qing bowed once to Wen Zhongming’s statue, saying, “Excuse me!” Then she picked up the filigree lantern and passed through the great hall to the back.

Fu Xue asked, “Senior sister, this place is so big, do we need to search slowly? It’s almost dawn.”

“No need.”

Yun Qing had observed along the way and already knew that Lanji Palace was arranged according to the Eight Trigrams layout. So she led Fu Xue forward, bypassing two side halls and an immortal terrace, then crossing a lotus pond to find a sleeping chamber.

Pushing open the chamber door, they tiptoed into the main room. Yun Qing raised the filigree lantern and saw a man lying on his side on the bed, his back to them, with a pile of black hair and white clothes draped over him.

She reached out to touch him and knew they’d found the right person—the fabric of his clothes was extraordinarily fine, silky smooth and soft to the touch, with subtle embroidered patterns, indicating his noble status.

She handed the filigree lantern to Fu Xue, bent down, and pulled a large black sack over the man, then hoisted him onto her shoulder.

“Senior sister, let me.”

“No need, you lead the way.”

Yun Qing dropped a letter on the bed, then turned with the man on her shoulder. At the door, she saw a golden incense burner on a shelf and casually picked it up, tossing it to Fu Xue, “Keep this.”

Their return journey was uneventful.

At the palace gate, they no longer climbed the wall but simply opened the main door and walked out boldly.

The east was already turning white with dawn. Fu Xue wore the nervous, excited expression of someone who had just done something mischievous. “Senior sister, this way. I remember the path we took.”

Yun Qing, carrying the man with strong strides, walked for a while, then suddenly sniffed the air several times.

Fu Xue stopped and asked, “Senior sister, what’s wrong?”

Yun Qing felt a faint lotus fragrance lingering in her nostrils, mixed with the dawn’s moisture. The scent was so subtle that it seemed to come and go intermittently.

She sniffed the air sharply a few times, then slowly turned her head toward the man on her shoulder, taking a whiff.

Even through the sack, she could confirm that the man inside was the source of the fragrance.

Yun Qing laughed softly, “This pretty boy even wears scented powder to bed, quite the fastidious one.”

Fu Xue, thinking of the two gate guards, drew out her voice. “Eee—”

Yun Qing sniffed again. She had to admit, the fragrance smelled remarkably good, just the right subtlety, elegant and ethereal. She would like to get some for herself someday.

The two sneaked down the mountain, and by then it was broad daylight.

They couldn’t return to their original inn, so they found an abandoned thatched cottage in the countryside. The cottage had gaps in all five sides (including the roof) and was completely empty, with early morning sunlight streaming onto the mud walls.

Yun Qing set the sack against the earthen wall, positioning the person inside to sit on the ground. She knelt on one knee and untied the sack.

Fu Xue gently patted her chest, vigilantly looking around outside as if there might be pursuers. Standing outside, she asked through the window, “Senior sister, when will this person wake up?”

“Hard to say, depends on his cultivation level.” Yun Qing opened the sack and saw the man’s face. The sight made her raise her eyebrows.

Fu Xue saw her senior sister’s raised eyebrows through the window and asked curiously, “What is it, senior sister?”

“Nothing, just thinking this person is quite beautiful. If he weren’t Jiang Binghe’s son, he could indeed be my fiancé.”

Pffft—

A man’s laugh.

Yun Qing was startled and looked closely. She saw that although his eyes were still closed, his lips were curved in a smile, his pale pink lips slightly parted in laughter, revealing a glimpse of white teeth.

Yun Qing knew he was awake and immediately pulled out the rope from the sack to bind his hands. The pretty boy didn’t resist, allowing her to do as she pleased.

As she tied him up, she said stiffly, “Stop pretending. If you’re awake, open your eyes.”

So he slowly opened his eyes. In the sunlight, his bright, deep eyes gazed at her with a smile.

Fu Xue drew her sword and rushed into the cottage, “What’s happening? Is he awake?”

Yun Qing gestured downward, indicating she needn’t hurry.

Fu Xue then sheathed her sword.

Yun Qing tied a secure knot around his wrists and asked, “Your name is Jiang Baiyu?”

“Hm.”

In a moment of confusion, Fu Xue blurted out, “Your younger brother is called Jiang Heigou.”

Jiang Baiyu: “…………???”