Chapter 140 - 113: Midnight Trek in the Mountains

Autumn rain lingered, mountains shrouded in mist.

"Master, be careful, it’s slippery."

The Attendant Student held an umbrella, trying to offer support to the young man.

"Ah~ no need!"

The scholar waved his hand nonchalantly, looking at the wet and slippery mountain path, wiping the sweat from his brow, and smiled, "Teacher often said that breaking through ten thousand volumes of books is second only to traveling ten thousand li; truly, he did not deceive me."

"The landscape of Shan State indeed differs greatly from that of my home in Ezhou. Even though the Divine State has been unified for thousands of years, the customs and sentiments of the people in Qin and Chu territories still vary starkly."

"Simply copying from books won’t do. If one is to govern a place, one must intimately observe and understand the local sentiments..."

The Attendant Student expressed his admiration, "Master, you will certainly make a good official in the future."

"Good official?"

The scholar looked toward the North, sighed, and said, "The capital is full of the powerful and noble. A hundred years since the founding of our dynasty, the great clans and families have already taken shape. Without support, my journey to the capital this time is most likely to end in vain."

Beside them walked an old man dressed like a hunter.

The scholar and his companion spoke in their hometown accent, which the hunter could barely understand, but he didn’t ponder on it too much and instead watched their surroundings with vigilance.

Seeing this, the scholar quickly changed to the National Language and asked, "Old Uncle Wang, is there danger here?"

"Danger? It’s much more than danger!"

The hunter snorted coldly, "You young fellow, leaving the main path to take these secluded byways, for such a little amount of Silver it’s hardly worth it."

The scholar smiled with a sense of resignation and shook his head, "Having passed through Shangluo, how could I not visit Tianzhu Mountain? In the past during the Song Dynasty, Shao Anle once lived in seclusion here. The grand view of clouds like a sea and golden mountains touching the sky is something I’ve long yearned to see..."

"I don’t understand what you’re saying!"

The hunter pointed ahead and whispered, "All I know is that the back mountain is far from peaceful."

"There are herbalists who go up the mountain and get utterly confused, losing their way. If they’re lucky, they might find their way back out, but if not, they just disappear!"

The Attendant Student swallowed hard, obviously scared, "There are ’Ghost Walls’ on the mountain..."

"Shut up!"

The hunter shouted angrily. Seeing the Attendant Student turn pale, he softened his tone and hummed, "Have you forgotten what I’ve told you?"

"Remember, it’s Lord Qingfeng!"

"Oh, it’s Lord Qingfeng who creates the wall."

The Attendant Student quickly corrected himself, remembering the hunter’s previously mentioned taboos.

The scholar almost laughed out loud but seeing the hunter’s expression, forced himself to hold it back and turned his head towards the dense forest in the distance, musing, "Legend has it that during the Tang Dynasty, Mage Luo lived in seclusion here; naturally, there would be some mysteries."

While speaking, he took out a turtle shell and some Copper Coins from his bosom, shook them a few times, and scattered them on the ground.

The hunter suddenly showed great respect, "Master, do you know spells?"

Pride flashed in the scholar’s eyes, but he humbly smiled and said, "I’ve only studied some divination techniques. On this journey into the mountains, I’ve been consulting the hexagrams and have turned misfortune into fortune without fail."

"Hmm... the second line changes, the Earth position is secure..."

Counting on his fingers, the scholar calculated silently in his heart. Then, he packed up the turtle shell and Copper Coins and smiled, "Rest assured, this mountain trip will be smooth sailing!"

...

Night fell, and dense fog enveloped the woods.

The group had completely lost their way in the mountains.

The Attendant Student, carrying a lantern, looked around in panic, his voice trembling, "Mas, Master, your divination wasn’t accurate..."

The scholar’s legs were trembling as well, but he still spoke defiantly, "Don’t worry, it’s just foggy in the mountains. We’ll rest for the night and then tomorrow..."

"If we wait until tomorrow, we might be gone!" Old Uncle Wang, the hunter, couldn’t hold back his anger, "You city folks have no sense of what’s good for you. Do you really think hunkering down will keep you safe?"

"By midnight, something will drag you off a cliff!"

As he spoke, he bowed and shouted toward the dark, dense forest, "The path to heaven is broad; each may take his own side. No grudges from the past, no enmities in recent days. If there is any offense, I hope for your leniency..."

He shouted this sincerely three times.

Then, he took out three thin sticks of white thatch from his body, kept one for himself, and handed one each to the scholar and the Attendant Student, speaking seriously, "Each person takes a stick. Take the path on the left, every three steps tap the stick on the ground—don’t speak and don’t look back!"

"Invoking Lady Mao?"

The Attendant Student’s eyes lit up, "Old Uncle Wang, are you also from Ezhou? We often worship Lady Mao in our region."

The scholar smiled, "Sacred thatch for warding off evil and praying for blessings—our Chu region venerates thatch. As the National Language says, in the past King Cheng made a covenant with the Dukes at Qi Yang..."

Hunter Old Wang was nearly driven mad by the two of them, suddenly pulling out a woodcutting knife and growling lowly, "Stop your prattling, or none of us will make it out. I’ll kill you myself before that!"

The scholar and the Attendant Student hastily shut their mouths.

Seeing this, the old hunter hummed and reminded them again, "This is a method passed down from my ancestors. Remember, no matter what is called from behind you, don’t turn around, and don’t answer. Just hold onto the clothes of the person in front of you."

"Remember, if you turn around and answer, and someone goes missing, I won’t look for them! Fate determines life and death, don’t blame others!"

With that, he stepped forward and led the way.

In such an atmosphere, the scholar and his servant were clearly frightened, kept silent, and followed the old hunter on the path to the left, tapping the ground with the thatch every three steps.

Walking this way, the two of them sensed something was off.

They kept feeling like someone was behind them, blowing cold breath on the back of their necks. It was hazy, and there seemed to be whispers...

Their legs softened in fear, trembling as they trod, but fortunately, they remembered the hunter’s words and didn’t dare to disobey any of the taboos, following him dutifully.

Perhaps the old hunter’s method was effective; in less than the time it takes three sticks of incense to burn, the dense fog among the surrounding trees began to clear a bit, and they could see the landscape change in the distance.

A corner appeared ahead. On a huge rock, there were four big characters "Magnificence of Tianzhu" left by someone at some time, although the script was weathered, and the cinnabar red paint had fallen off, one could still make out the vigorousness of the calligraphy.

Between several huge rocks stood a half-person-tall shrine, the Divine Statue of the Mountain God was weathered, and the stone altar in front had also accumulated much dust, evidently not worshiped for a long time.

"May the Mountain God bless us..."

The old hunter sighed with relief, hurried forward, and took out the incense and candles he had prepared in advance, lit them with sincere heart, and bowed down in worship.