Chapter Fifteen: Stealing the Soul
The newcomer was precisely Zhuo Bufan, the preaching disciple they had seen earlier atop the mountain!
At this moment, Zhuo Bufan wore a gentle smile as he looked at Yuan Shan and said, “Junior brother, you’re being reckless. The sect’s rules are strict and expressly forbid internal conflict. If there’s a dispute, you can file a case at the Hall of Law or issue a challenge at the Martial Peak. Should you fight in private and cause serious injury or death, I believe I need not elaborate on how the Hall of Law’s enforcers would handle it, do I?”
A cold sweat broke out on Yuan Shan’s forehead. He hurriedly replied, “Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother Zhuo. I acted on impulse, truly just a moment’s folly! I’ll take my leave now.” With that, he hurried off with the two other Danmai menial disciples beside him.
Watching Yuan Shan and his companions flee in embarrassment, Zhuo Bufan then turned to Liang Yan and the others, his smile as warm as a spring breeze. He asked, “May I inquire, junior brother, what is your honorable name?”
Liang Yan saw how approachable he was and couldn’t help but feel some goodwill toward him. Chuckling, he replied, “You’re too kind, Senior Brother Zhuo. My name is Liang Yan.”
Zhuo Bufan nodded. “So it’s Junior Brother Liang. Just now, I saw you, with only second-stage Qi Refining cultivation, hold your own against three opponents. You didn’t lose ground in the slightest. It appeared you were using some formation technique?”
Liang Yan’s heart skipped a beat—this man’s perception was truly sharp. Yet outwardly, he remained calm and said, “Senior Brother Zhuo, your insight is remarkable. I am in awe.”
Zhuo Bufan smiled. “No need for caution, junior brother. Though I am not a member of the Formation Branch, I am quite fond of formation arts. Observing your actions, it seemed you treated the three of them as components of a grand formation, their energies linked together to create a formation of their own?”
Knowing there was no point in hiding, Liang Yan simply replied, “That’s right. I used the three of them as formation flags to form the Three Talents Earth Formation. While it bears the name of a formation, it doesn’t possess the true wonders of one—it merely manipulates their attacks to make them contradict one another. If they were more advanced or had the slightest knowledge of formation arts, my trick would not have worked.”
Zhuo Bufan, having his suspicions confirmed, seemed quite astonished. He murmured, “Formations can be deployed not only by oneself, but also against others... So that’s how it is.”
Liang Yan noticed his sudden realization but didn’t know what he was thinking, nor did he want to interrupt. After a while, Zhuo Bufan came back to himself and, with an apologetic clasp of his hands toward Liang Yan, said, “Thank you, junior brother, for sharing so openly. I reside at Emerald Bamboo Peak—perhaps in the future we will have the chance to exchange insights.” He looked at Liang Yan with a meaningful glance, then took his leave.
The bamboo grove was left with only the three from the Formation Branch.
Liang Yan glanced at Sun Qianli and said, “Let’s take Brother Li back first.”
Li Dali had been badly injured earlier and, suffering heartbreak as well, had fallen unconscious. Sun Qianli nodded silently, and together with Liang Yan, supported the unconscious Li Dali between them as they made their way to the menial disciples’ dormitory.
By the time they had settled Li Dali in his room, dusk had already fallen. After a careful check, they found his injuries were severe but not crippling; his greatest wound was to his state of mind, explaining his deep faint. Relieved, Sun Qianli glanced at Liang Yan and said, “Brother Liang, you hide your strength well—you’re already at the peak of the second stage of Qi Refining. It seems laughable that we called ourselves seniors before. Please don’t take offense.”
Liang Yan merely smiled. “You’re too polite, Brother Sun. Who in this world is without secrets? Let’s keep each other’s confidences.”
A faint flicker of surprise flashed through Sun Qianli’s eyes, but he feigned puzzlement and asked, “Oh? And what might Brother Liang be referring to?”
Liang Yan waved his hand. “Just idle talk. There’s no need to take it seriously, Brother Sun. Since Li Dali will be all right, I’ll return to my room to rest.” With that, he turned and left for his own quarters.
Sun Qianli watched Liang Yan’s retreating back, his eyes narrowing slightly, deep in thought...
The next day, Li Dali awakened, looking dispirited, but still came to thank Liang Yan personally. Liang Yan comforted him for a while, and though Li Dali nodded in agreement, from the depths of his eyes Liang Yan could see a deep sense of loss.
After Li Dali left, Liang Yan gazed at the burly man’s helpless figure and couldn’t help but think: It’s said mortals are happier in ignorance, but in this world, strength is the only respect. The grand path is merciless—if you are weak and powerless, sooner or later someone will trample you, leaving you unable to protect even your meager happiness. I am living proof of this truth.
Liang Yan sighed inwardly: “All living beings suffer; only by swimming against the current and mastering great powers can one attain true freedom.” With this thought, his resolve on the path deepened.
Life seemed unchanged. The three continued their routine of reporting at dawn before the bamboo tower, receiving their daily tasks, and going about their chores. As for Liang Yan, he would, as always, finish his duties around noon and head to the tower to study formations. Thus, several peaceful days passed.
One night, Liang Yan was meditating cross-legged in his room. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and murmured, “So, you couldn’t resist any longer.”
Just then, outside in the courtyard, a figure dressed in black night attire was sneaking around, glancing over his shoulder. After confirming nothing was amiss, he darted off in a certain direction. Not long after he departed, Liang Yan’s figure appeared at the courtyard gate. Squinting, he quietly followed.
The man in black twisted and turned through the sect grounds, heading east, then west, never in a straight line. Liang Yan, patient, kept his distance. His cultivation of the Hunhun Technique had made his senses and movements far sharper than ordinary people’s—he could tail from afar without losing track or being detected.
After about half an hour, the man in black stopped in an open woodland. With hands clasped behind his back, he sighed, “We’re all fellow disciples here, no need to hide. Come out.”
Hiding behind a tree, Liang Yan was startled. How did he spot me? But he remained motionless, watching and waiting.
The man in black waited for a while, and when no one responded, he turned toward a particular spot and said angrily, “What? Must I invite you out?”
Liang Yan noticed that the man’s gaze was aimed elsewhere, nowhere near him, and instantly understood—what a sly fox.
Indeed, after waiting with no reply, the man relaxed and turned away, this time heading straight toward his destination without any more feints. After about a quarter of an hour, they arrived at a gray cliff face.
The man in black searched along the cliff to the east for a few yards, brushed aside some vines and vegetation, and revealed an inconspicuous cave entrance. He ducked inside.
Though the entrance was small, the cave within was unexpectedly spacious. It was not pitch dark, either—in the depths glimmered a faint light. The man in black moved confidently through the cave until he reached the source of the glow.
The soft yellow light illuminated his long, pockmarked face—he was none other than Sun Qianli, the Formation Branch’s menial disciple!
He looked somewhat excited. Before him was a spring bubbling with a gentle flow. If one looked closely, the water emanated a dense spiritual energy, and the faint yellow glow came from the mouth of the spring.
Taking a deep breath, Sun Qianli was about to reach into the spring when a voice sounded from the darkness, “Oh? A natural spirit spring.”
Sun Qianli’s pupils contracted. He spun around in alarm and saw a tall, thin youth in gray robes—Liang Yan.
“Who would have thought Brother Liang enjoys tailing people?”
Liang Yan glanced at him and sighed, “With such cultivation, why did Senior Brother Sun stand by when Li Dali was in danger?”
The spiritual energy in Sun Qianli’s body, stimulated by the spring’s abundant aura, now revealed his true cultivation—he was at the third stage of Qi Refining.
Sun Qianli’s face reddened. Instead of answering, he retorted, “When did you notice, and how?”
Liang Yan smiled. “Though you appear frail, your blood and energy are extremely robust—something I couldn’t fail to notice. With a constitution like yours, how could you be so exhausted after a day’s labor, always needing to return early to rest? Clearly, you spend your nights awake.”
Sun Qianli nodded. “Since you’ve discovered this, I have nothing to hide. Hmph! It wasn’t that I didn’t want to help Li Dali, but the other side had powerful backing—it would have been unwise to provoke them.”
He added with some complaint, “Li Dali is too stubborn. Doesn’t he know that in this world, strength is everything? If you succeed in cultivation, what sort of woman couldn’t you attract? Weakness only invites others to step on you. If I’d revealed my power, it would have drawn the attention of those with ulterior motives. Our Formation Branch steward, Wang Yuan, secretly withholds our spirit stones and pills. If anyone asked, how could an ordinary first-stage disciple, without resources, advance to the third stage?”
Liang Yan nodded inwardly. Such caution was not without reason. If Sun claimed he had no other secrets but this spirit spring, Liang Yan would not believe it. At the very least, his ability to hide his cultivation was not something a low-level disciple should possess—he clearly had some treasure. Liang Yan himself bore a heavy treasure and thus understood the need for caution.
Seeing Liang Yan silent, Sun Qianli assumed he had other thoughts. Though he was at the third stage, he’d seen Liang Yan fight and was not certain of victory, so he tested, “Now that you know, what do you propose? Are we to fight over this spring?”
Liang Yan replied at once, “There’s no need for that. This spirit spring would be of great use to me as well—why not share it?”
Sun Qianli nodded, “Those who find it share it—so it should be. How about this: you take the odd days, and I take the even?”
Liang Yan shook his head and smiled. “No need for such trouble. I know a Spirit-Guiding Formation that can split the spring’s energy into two streams, each directed elsewhere. With such abundant aura, it’s enough for us both to cultivate at once.”
Sun Qianli was delighted. “Is there really such a formation? That’s wonderful!”
“But,” Liang Yan added, “setting it up will require some materials that aren’t easy to come by.” He listed what would be needed.
“Leave it to me,” Sun Qianli said at once. “You set up the formation—leave the materials to me.”
After coming to an agreement, they decided that Sun Qianli would cultivate at the spring that night while Liang Yan scouted the area before heading back.
The next evening, Sun Qianli arrived at the cave with the materials as promised. Liang Yan was impressed by his efficiency—this man was no ordinary menial disciple.
Taking the materials, Liang Yan quickly set up the formation. Soon, the spirit spring’s aura was split in two, each stream flowing to different sides of the cave. In the darkness, Liang Yan and Sun Qianli each sat cross-legged, beginning their cultivation.
Liang Yan closed his eyes and circulated his energy, savoring the spring’s abundant aura pouring into him—every aperture in his body felt comforted. Secretly delighted, he thought, “With such ample spiritual energy, this is even more effective than using spirit stones. It won’t be long before I can attempt to break through to the third stage of Qi Refining.”
Just as he was rejoicing, a strange thread of violet suddenly appeared in the spring’s flow and shot into his body. The moment it entered, he felt as if plunged into an ice cellar, cold to the marrow. He opened his eyes in shock, glancing at the spring.
After some time, as he wondered if he’d imagined it, another violet thread flashed from the spring, instantly merging into his body, that bone-piercing chill washing over him again. Now thoroughly alarmed, Liang Yan stopped cultivating and instinctively looked toward Sun Qianli.
Though the cave was dark, Liang Yan’s six senses were sharp—by the faint glow of the spring he could see Sun Qianli, who sat motionless, eyes closed in meditation, appearing perfectly at ease.
“How strange!” Liang Yan thought in bewilderment. “Am I the only one who can sense this?”