The light in the water dungeon was dim.
Perhaps because of Xin Hexue’s earlier attitude toward Zhou Shanheng, Hen Zhen didn’t dare to be too harsh with him, afraid that if he starved or exhausted the man to death, Xin Hexue would expend his spiritual power to save this poor scholar.
Zhou Shanheng’s condition didn’t seem too terrible.
The torch on the wall flickered.
In Zhou Shanheng’s eyes, all he could see were blurry shadows of light. His eyes had been damaged by Hen Zhen earlier, and though Xin Hexue had passed spiritual power into him, his eyesight was not yet fully recovered.
He struggled to see through the dimness, and his eyes, which were open for too long, felt dry, painful, and sore.
Even so, Zhou Shanheng never closed his eyes. He was afraid that if Xin Hexue came again, he would miss it.
He still maintained the same posture as when the young man left yesterday, with his back against the stonewall of the water dungeon, eyes lowered.
It seemed that all the vigor and spirit he had before setting out had been worn away.
Zhou Shanheng clutched the red thread tightly in his hand. The thread had been soaked by the blood in his palm, then dried, then soaked again. It was completely stained with blood, the dark red nearly turning black.
The firelight swayed as if stirred by wind.
Zhou Shanheng, whose eyes had not closed, couldn’t see clearly, but he was very sensitive to light and shadow, and immediately sensed something had changed.
He grabbed the railing. The wooden splinters pierced his palm, but Zhou Shanheng didn’t notice at all, his full attention focused on the path leading into the water dungeon.
His voice was hoarse and filled with hope. “Hexue?”
Yesterday, Xin Hexue had treated his wounds and only stayed briefly. Before leaving, he told him to take care and didn’t say much else.
Zhou Shanheng thought of that vicious snake demon. No one could know what the demon might do if he went mad. Worried for the young man’s safety, Zhou Shanheng was constantly anxious. Moreover, the harsh environment made it impossible for him to rest.
Whenever he closed his eyes, the scene of Xin Hexue being threatened by the snake demon reappeared in his mind.
If not for him, Hexue would never have allowed himself to be threatened.
It was as if a nameless fire had been lit inside his chest, burning all his organs to ashes.
Zhou Shanheng was just an ordinary, born and raised in Xushou Village. The only things that had ever troubled him were his parents’ health, the harvests in the fields, and the grand path of the imperial examinations.
Matters of demons and spirits were too far away from him.
He had thought that after passing the imperial examination and establishing a career, he might, like most men in the world, start a family.
To rise from a peasant’s hut in the morning to the emperor’s court by night…that was the ideal of all poor scholars.
Among the great joys of life, the most precious were none other than success in the imperial exams and the wedding night in the bridal chamber.
Until then, based on what he had seen and heard, the most prosperous path he could envision was passing the imperial examination, becoming an honest official, marrying a gentle wife, and after decades of service, retiring to his hometown, returning to his roots.
But something went off track before the exam.
In his twenty-five years, Zhou Shanheng had never felt such an overwhelming stir in his heart, and the person who stirred it was a young man.
A gentle, beautiful, and kind youngan, elegant in speech and appearance, talented and clever.
Even a stone man would be moved by someone like that. Even an iron man would fall in love.
Except for the fact that they were both men, Xin Hexue’s presence filled in all of Zhou Shanheng’s imagined traits of a future wife.
Male love had flourished in the previous dynasty, so relationships between men were not unusual in Dacheng. But talking about starting a family with another man was still something astonishing.
For the first time, Zhou Shanheng thought that if he could spend the rest of his life with Xin Hexue, it would probably be the greatest fortune of his life.
That’s why, when they confessed to each other at Huifu Temple and tied the red thread together, Zhou Shanheng felt an unprecedented happiness.
They would always be together, and he would always treat Xin Hexue well.
Zhou Shanheng believed this firmly.
But good times didn’t last long. In the blink of an eye, he never saw Xin Hexue again.
He ran to every inn in the city, searched every street and alley like a headless fly, but still found no trace. Xin Hexue had vanished into thin air, as if he’d never set foot in Jiangzhou or appeared in his life at all.
Only then did Zhou Shanheng realize that besides the name and surname the young man had told him, he knew nothing else about him.
He clung to hope, thinking perhaps Xin Hexue had received a letter from home with urgent news, and in a hurry to return, hadn’t had time to say goodbye and had already gone back to the capital.
The Xin family in the capital…
It was like a carrot dangled in front of him. Grasping this clue, Zhou Shanheng packed his things after the release of the ranking list in September and headed for the capital ahead of time.
Unexpectedly, what awaited him near Mount Buzhou was a hellish imprisonment.
In the end, it all came down to him being too weak. If not, Xin Hexue wouldn’t have been dragged into this.
Zhou Shanheng clutched the red thread in his palm so tightly it nearly became part of his veins and embedded into his skin.
Suddenly, he thought of the monk who had stopped by the Zhou house for water while passing through Jiangzhou that summer…
Du Zhi.
The shadows flickered, light and dark alternating.
Zhou Shanheng gripped the bars tightly. Though his eyes were still healing, his light gray pupils could vaguely make out the figure approaching. Joy and anxiety mingled in his voice. “Hexue? Are you alright?”
Xin Hexue slowly stepped forward but didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he silently inserted a key into the lock of the water dungeon.
The key he took from Hen Zhen was of course not just one key for the water dungeon, but three keys in total. Using the torches on the wall, Xin Hexue matched the key to the lock.
With a “clack”, the iron lock opened and dropped heavily onto the damp ground.
The water dungeon had no windows on its four walls, and the only airflow came from the entrance and a high skylight.
In the damp environment, Xin Hexue lowered his voice and coughed softly.
Zhou Shanheng asked anxiously, “Are you sick?”
Xin Hexue shook his head. “I’m fine.”
He stepped into the water dungeon, his cloud-walking shoes landing on the soaked straw. It was unclear whether the dampness came from water vapor or blood. Ignoring the harsh conditions, Xin Hexue used another key to unlock the shackles binding Zhou Shanheng’s hands and feet.
A bamboo scroll case was then shoved into Zhou Shanheng’s arms.
Xin Hexue said quietly, “Your things.”
Zhou Shanheng had sharp hearing and, from the shifting shadows, instinctively stepped forward.
The two walked out of the solitary cell.
Zhou Shanheng: “Are you leaving?”
Xin Hexue paused, then said softly, “Ziyue-ge, I thought you knew…I am a demon.”
He slowly turned around, maintaining a distance from Zhou Shanheng, not too close, not too far. It was just right to observe his expression clearly, but at the same time, given that Zhou Shanheng’s eyesight was still recovering, the other party wouldn’t be able to detect anything unusual.
He stood there, in the dim corner.
Sunlight from outside the water dungeon shone in, covering the hallway between the two people like fragmented gold.
Zhou Shanheng felt the long-lost sunlight on his body.
In his blurred vision, light and shadow mixed. The young man stood in the darkness, and it felt as if he was separated from him by a vast distance.
Xin Hexue’s voice was so light that it seemed like it could be scattered by the breeze. “Humans and demons walk different paths.”
Zhou Shanheng took a step forward. “I don’t care that you’re a demon.”
Xin Hexue lifted his eyes. “Aren’t you afraid I’ll hurt you?”
“What difference does it make, human or demon?” Zhou Shanheng pursed his lips into a straight line and he said softly, “There are humans who commit crimes and atrocities, and there are demons like you, who are benevolent and kind.”
“If not for your help, my mother might’ve died already.” Zhou Shanheng lowered his head. “You lent me thirty taels of silver to buy medicine. I already owe you once. And now you’ve saved me again…I owe you far too much.”
His eyes dimmed and his shoulders became tense, as if burdened with a thousand emotions.
“Hexue, I owe you two lives.”
Zhou Shanheng poured out his heart and his words didn’t disappoint Xin Hexue. So the ending from the original script, where the poor scholar, fearing the koi demon’s identity, joined forces with the great monks of Taichu Temple to seal the demon in the An Ning Tower, could probably be avoided now.
Xin Hexue’s eyes curved slightly with a hint of joy.
He stepped closer to the poor scholar and placed his palm on Zhou Shanheng’s shoulder, his voice low and soft like rain dripping from the eaves, “Ziyue-ge once saved me. One life has already been repaid.”
Xin Hexue lifted his hand and stroked Zhou Shanheng’s jawline. His fingers slid down his neck in an ambiguous way until Zhou Shanheng was so nervous that his body stiffened and his ears turned red. Then he slowly said, “As for this life, since I saved it, you must cherish it well, understand?”
His hand dropped, and he turned to leave.
Zhou Shanheng asked anxiously, “When did I save you?”
Xin Hexue replied, “Didn’t you save a white koi carp during the drought in Jiangzhou?”
Zhou Shanheng was struck with realization.
No wonder, no wonder…
No wonder he hadn’t found any guest named Xin Yao in all the inns and lodgings of the city.
The young man’s true form had been in the water vat in his courtyard all along, never far from him.
And later, when he released it back into the rivers, it disappeared.
Xin Hexue had never lied to him. It was just that because of his identity as a demon, there were things he couldn’t easily reveal…
The shadows that had clouded Zhou Shanheng’s heart were completely dispelled.
[Zhou Shanheng love value +15]
Carrying the bamboo scroll case on his back, he followed Xin Hexue obediently like a tail.
But just as they stepped outside the water dungeon door, Xin Hexue looked down at the floodwaters already surging up to the mountain stronghold. The entire mountain trembled as if a dragon stirred beneath it. Birds cried out, and crows scattered above the pine forest.
Golden light bathed the sky, and Buddhist chants echoed through the trees.
The situation was very serious.
Xin Hexue narrowed his eyes slightly, turned back to Zhou Shanheng and said, “Go up the stone steps here and go to higher places, and ask the monks for help in time.”
Then he brushed his hand across Zhou Shanheng’s eyes, infusing a bit of blessing. The healing process sped up, and Zhou Shanheng’s vision became much clearer.
He wanted to take Xin Hexue’s hand but hesitated, and finally only touched his sleeve gently. “Where are you going?”
Xin Hexue planned to use Zhou Shanheng to draw attention and buy time. The monks of Taichu Temple would prioritize the lives of mortals.
He explained, “Ziyue, the ones attacking the stronghold are high monks from Taichu Temple. I’m a demon, do you understand?”
Zhou Shanheng: “But you saved me.”
Xin Hexue shook his head. “To the monks of Taichu Temple, a demon is still a demon.”
He brushed off Zhou Shanheng’s hand. “I’m just leaving first. I’ll find you again.”
Zhou Shanheng was silent for a long time. He tightly gripped the red thread in his palm and handed one end to Xin Hexue. “Take care of yourself.”
Xin Hexue’s eyes flickered. The red thread reminded him of that monk named Du Zhi. He had seen the red thread buried in his own wrist, and its other end was on Du Zhi.
Fortunately, the thread was something he had requested from the Yue Lao Tree for help, and it allowed him to sense the other side unilaterally. He could find Du Zhi’s location.
But Du Zhi wouldn’t be able to detect fluctuations from his side if he deliberately sealed the direction.
After sending Zhou Shanheng off, Xin Hexue followed the red thread’s pull.
To the north.
Xin Hexue looked northward. The distance was far, and the signal was faint and vague.
Since the monk who had come was not Du Zhi, only the national monk Liao Yi could orchestrate such a grand scene.
Hen Zhen was no match for Liao Yi.
His target must not die, at least not until he maxed out the love value.
Now Xin Hexue needed outside forces to stir things up. Zhou Shanheng alone wasn’t enough.
Xin Hexue pulled the red thread from his meridians and snapped it halfway.
At the moment of being snapped, the red thread’s magic leaked. Du Zhi could immediately detect the fleeting magic and pinpoint Mount Buzhou.
Shrinking the earth into inches was one of the high monks’ techniques.
Hen Zhen had practiced dual cultivation with him last night. If Du Zhi arrived in time, he might sense his aura on Hen Zhen.
Whether Du Zhi, whose love value was at 100, would be furious and join forces with Liao Yi to destroy Hen Zhen completely, or, upon sensing his spiritual power on Hen Zhen, deliberately let him go…
He didn’t know.
He had lost the memories of his previous interactions with Du Zhi and had only seen him after following the red thread, so he only knew his face and name.
He was gambling, gambling on this 100% love value, and on Du Zhi’s character and choices.
As for Hen Zhen…
He had a strong life force, so he should be able to survive, right?
Otherwise, this might turn into a love story between a person and a ghost.
………
Before the floodwaters completely submerged the stronghold, Xin Hexue finally found Bu Jincheng’s bag containing his official documents in the warehouse. He flipped through it and confirmed that the name written on the document was correct.
There were many other treasures in the warehouse. Xin Hexue found a treasure pouch among them, this was equivalent to a storage space and could even be absorbed into the danxin within the body.
It was very convenient, especially at this moment. The flood caused by Hen Zhen was too big and had already drowned the stronghold. The dilapidated temple located around a bend at the foot of Mount Buzhou was of uncertain condition.
Xin Hexue would transform back into his true form to escape, but he needed to return to the dilapidated temple first to check the situation and find a chance to return the bag to Bu Jincheng.
He placed the bag into the treasure pouch, then absorbed the treasure pouch into his danxin, ensuring that the official documents wouldn’t be ruined by the flood.
Xin Hexue descended along the waterfall in the mountains.
The golden light on the horizon grew even more dazzling. Buddhist chants curled through the air, and one by one, Sanskrit characters floated in the sky, forming a barrier that prevented the flood from spreading. It forcibly shaped the flood into a towering wall of water, restraining it on Mount Buzhou, unable to spread to the surrounding mountains, let alone surge toward the outskirts of the capital.
The flood was controlled so perfectly that as Xin Hexue swam to the stream near the dilapidated temple, he discovered that the surrounding area had not been affected in the slightest.
He looked back toward Mount Buzhou. Under the clear sky and warm sunlight, the floodwaters turned into strands of steam within the Buddhist light.
The green mountains were lush and dripping with color, white mist curled and floated, and a faint golden glow shimmered.
The scene was quite magnificent.
The snow-white koi followed the stream back to the hot spring behind the dilapidated temple and swam into the spring from the inlet.
The originally clear pool became dark, even crimson in color, and had a strong smell of blood.
Xin Hexue immediately sensed something was wrong and flicked his fishtail…
In a flash, a predator at the bottom suddenly shot out, and with lightning speed, its crimson mouth swallowed the little fish whole.
The white koi blinked.
So dark ah O.o?
