Volume One, Chapter Twenty-Seven: Shepherding in the Wild

“Actually, there’s another way…” Meiniang, who had been silent all this time, suddenly broke the quiet. Han Yu felt her heart sink—she’d noticed Meiniang squatting on the ground fiddling with something earlier.

“What way?” Qi Yuanxiao asked immediately.

“If earth-walking doesn’t work, we can dig a tunnel! I tried just now—we can make an escape passage. But…” Meiniang’s face showed hesitation as she spoke.

“But what?” Jin Guishan hurriedly pressed.

“But… you all have to look away. She’ll need to return to her true form to dig…” Han Yu shot Jin Guishan a glare, annoyed.

“Oh! Got it! Got it!” Jin Guishan was startled, then quickly realized she didn’t want anyone to see her true form.

So Jin Guishan hurriedly motioned everyone to turn around, agreeing not to look back unless Meiniang called. Soon, the sound of rustling echoed behind them, then gradually shifted beneath their feet, moving toward the cell door. But suddenly, it stopped. Everyone listened intently, but after a long moment, nothing more was heard.

“Oh no! Oh no! She’s injured, yet insists on pushing herself! Don’t turn back…” Before Han Yu could finish, she vanished in a flash.

Moments later, the rustling resumed beneath the ground, swiftly passing beyond the cell door. Everyone instinctively looked toward the entrance.

“Han Yu, too…” Qi Yuanxiao broke the silence first. He only said half the sentence, but everyone understood he meant “demon.”

“She’s not…” Yibing quickly protested.

At that moment, a low exclamation sounded outside the cell door. In the blink of an eye, Han Yu leapt back inside, exclaiming, “That scared me! I thought I’d die!”

“What happened?” Hong Kun hurriedly examined Han Yu from head to toe.

“I’m fine! It was a snake! A snake! The lock on the door is a huge black serpent!” Han Yu was visibly shaken.

“Is Meiniang alright?” Yibing and Fat Girl asked in unison.

“She fainted!” Han Yu pointed to the ground, then turned to Yibing, “Hey, Turtle Spirit! Come out here and help with this!”

“Tortoise Spirit! Tortoise Spirit! You little liar, breaking your word! And now you’re calling me…” The turtle, infuriated, leapt out of Yibing’s arms and landed with a loud thud.

“Who broke their word? The one outside has to be dealt with first!” Han Yu jumped onto the steps in fright.

“I won’t!” The turtle, dizzy from its fall, shook its head.

“Turtle brother, please help!” Yibing quickly scooped him up.

“Wait… wait…” The turtle kept shaking his head.

“Turtle brother, we’re counting on you!” Fat Girl pressed her finger to his forehead.

“Thank you! Thank you! I can’t stop feeling dizzy!” The turtle cast a grateful glance at Fat Girl, then glared at Yibing, “Put me down! Put me down!” Yibing spread his hands, waiting for the turtle to leap again.

“Put… me… down…” The turtle stiffened his neck, thinking, “Wasn’t the last fall hard enough? Now you expect me to jump again? This fatso!”

“Oh… oh…” Yibing nearly burst out laughing.

“Can’t you fly?” Han Yu muttered sarcastically.

“Pfft!” The turtle shot her a look and said nothing.

The turtle was clearly doing this on purpose! He moved toward the tunnel entrance at a leisurely pace, as if strolling in a garden, even turning back to glare at Han Yu before entering. Han Yu nearly cursed, but bit her tongue in the end.

It took a full tea’s time before the cell door finally gave a soft “swish.” Everyone rushed out, bracing for battle. But outside the cell, they were stunned—it was still underground!

Suspended from the cave’s ceiling was a night-glow pearl the size of a small basin, illuminating the chamber as bright as day. This place, too, was laid out as a three-courtyard compound, with flowers, trees, and side chambers arranged exactly like the Sun and Moon Temple. The only difference was the plaque above the main hall, which read “Palace of Ten Thousand Impurities” instead of “Sanqing Hall.” The cell door they emerged from was precisely where the temple entrance should be.

“A cave within a cave!” Meiniang’s voice sounded behind them, and everyone saw her leaning against the cell door.

“How did you get out?” Han Yu rushed to support her.

“Turtle Spirit!” Meiniang motioned with her lips.

“Hmph! Only because you wouldn’t let go of my shell!” Turtle Spirit shot her a look.

“Well, we still owe you thanks, Turtle Spirit!” Han Yu said, half mocking. The turtle, delighted, lifted his neck proudly.

“Can you hold on?” Jin Guishan asked Meiniang with concern. Meiniang quickly nodded—she had to, even if she couldn’t.

“Senior Brother, there are no demons in the front courtyard!” Qi Yuanxiao ran over, having already investigated with his junior brothers. Jin Guishan pondered for a moment, then turned to Hong Kun, “Senior Brother Hong, shall we check the rear?”

“Good! I’ll go ahead with Hong Peng, you and your brothers guard the middle, Biyi and her group will cover the rear!” Hong Kun nodded, suggesting the arrangement. Biyi looked displeased, wondering why she had to be rearguard.

“Senior Brother isn’t doubting you—he wants you to look after the others!” Hong Peng whispered to Biyi, who pouted without replying.

“Senior Brother Hong, our Misty Cloud Sect has a Black Tortoise Formation. It’s coordinated front and back, can attack and defend. My brothers and I will hold the formation, the others spread out within to attack. We advance and retreat together—would that be better?” Jin Guishan said in a negotiating tone.

“Oh, the Black Tortoise Formation! I’ve heard of it—an honor to see it today! Much better, yes, let’s do as you say!” Hong Kun’s face lit up with delight.

“However, there is one inconvenient request,” Jin Guishan smiled, “The formation needs seven people, but we have only six. We had planned to ask Mu to help—could Senior Brother Hong fill the seventh spot?”

“Mu? Oh, Yibing!” Hong Kun was momentarily confused, then realized Jin Guishan was looking at Yibing.

“Yibing?!” Jin Guishan nearly laughed aloud—the name was so fitting! Yibing gave an embarrassed smile.

Jin Guishan briefly explained the formation to Hong Kun, who understood he was to hold the position of the Spirit Serpent. Though puzzled, he knew not to ask further. Under Jin Guishan’s direction, everyone took their places and cautiously advanced toward the Palace of Ten Thousand Impurities.

As soon as they entered the hall, everyone froze—the altar displayed two women in gauzy robes! Their bodies were half-hidden, half-revealed, dressed yet seemingly undressed. Their arms intertwined, legs crossed, one eager, the other coy. Under the shimmering light, their lips parted slightly, voiceless yet full of meaning.

“Just your style!” Han Yu couldn’t help laughing. Meiniang, though embarrassed, had no retort.

“Hurry up!” Jin Guishan, wary of repeating mistakes, urged everyone on. Qi Yuanxiao and the others, embarrassed, quickened their pace.

Beyond the hall, a moon gate stood tightly shut, its doors adorned with two more gauzy-robed women. Jin Guishan, though awkward, stepped forward and pushed—but the door didn’t budge. Through the wall, they could glimpse a rear hall, its plaque faintly reading “Pasture Hall.”

“Just climb over!” Qi Yuanxiao said, leaping up in a flash. But as soon as he reached the wall’s top, he was forcefully bounced back by an invisible barrier. He tried several more times, to no avail.

“Don’t bother! It’s sealed by demon magic—you can’t leap over.” Seeing Qi Yuanxiao’s persistence, Meiniang pulled his sleeve.

“Hey, this door is peculiar!” Han Yu suddenly came close, drawing everyone over.

On closer inspection, the images on the doors weren’t painted—they were inlaid figures. Meiniang reached out, and found their limbs and necks could move. Hong Kun and the others coughed, stepping aside, leaving Han Yu and Meiniang alone at the door. Meiniang, intrigued, kept twisting arms and legs.

“Um… um…” Hong Kun was about to urge caution when Han Yu darted back into the hall. At that moment, he seemed to understand something and moved closer, surprising Biyi.

“This head goes here, this arm there!” Han Yu rushed back, directing Meiniang. A click sounded, and the door swung open.

“So that’s it!” Qi Yuanxiao exclaimed in admiration.

“Much worse than the Guiyuan Cave puzzle!” Meiniang laughed, glancing at Han Yu and Fat Girl. The three shared a smile, while the others remained baffled.

Hong Kun led the way this time, the hall door had no trap and opened easily. Inside, aside from a massive mural on the front wall, there was nothing else. With the earlier experience, everyone gathered to examine it.

Below the mural stretched a small river, running left to right across the wall. In the center, a small bridge crossed the banks, drawn flush with the base as if one could step into the painting. On the far side, lush grasses grew, and a dozen gauzy-robed shepherd girls were scattered among them, each with a crook, driving flocks of sheep. In the upper right, two peaks shone among clouds, one to the left, one to the right, their summits gleaming, with a golden palace perched atop one.

“No wonder it’s called Pasture Hall—shepherding in the wild!” Qi Yuanxiao showed his literary flair. Biyi shot him a glance, while the others nodded thoughtfully.

“Those two peaks look just like Yin-Yang Mountain!” Fat Girl said.

“They do! But we haven’t seen any palace!” He Lingchi agreed.

“No mechanism here!” Meiniang looked disappointedly at Han Yu, having searched in vain for anything movable. Han Yu frowned silently, turning to see Yibing fixated on the shepherd girls in the mural, his face nearly pressed to the wall.

“Staring so intently! Careful you don’t get stuck in there!” Han Yu scolded, annoyed.

“No… look, this girl seems… and the sheep have…” Yibing reached to pull Han Yu over.

“Look yourself, why pull me!” Han Yu pushed back without turning. There was a startled cry, and when she looked back, Yibing had vanished!

“Oh heavens! Where’s Yibing?!” Han Yu cried out in alarm. Everyone had been focused on the mural; at her shout, they rushed over.

“What happened to Brother Mu?” Fat Girl searched anxiously.

“I… I pushed him, and he disappeared…” Han Yu looked helplessly at Hong Kun.

“Could he have fallen out?” Hong Kun looked outside. Fat Girl dashed out.

“Hey! He’s so fat, if he fell, wouldn’t it shake the whole mountain?” Meiniang found Fat Girl’s idea foolish.

“True…” Hong Kun nodded awkwardly.

“Could he have earth-walked?” Hong Peng tried a spell, but nothing happened—magic didn’t work here.

“No, I even checked the flowerbeds!” Fat Girl returned, panting. Everyone exchanged worried glances.

“Hey! Come look at this!” Biyi, who had been standing behind, suddenly shrieked. Her finger shook, pointing at the mural. Everyone looked—on the bridge, a fat figure had appeared, anxiously peering out.

“My heavens!” Han Yu rushed over. It was Yibing, unmistakably!

“How did he get in?” Fat Girl tried to scrape him out of the mural.

“Where did you push him?” Meiniang shoved Han Yu, who pointed to the spot. Meiniang began feeling every inch of the wall.

“He said the girl seemed like… that the sheep had… and then I…” Han Yu suddenly realized, pressing her face to the wall. She had misunderstood Yibing—the shepherd girls in the mural were the young Daoist novices who had captured them, and the sheep all had human faces!

“No wonder we couldn’t find these demons—they’re all hiding inside the mural!” Jin Guishan shuddered—Master Bao Pu was truly extraordinary! They had gotten themselves in trouble this time!

“This sheep looks like Brother Ruzhen…” Fat Girl pointed tremblingly at a sheep in the painting.

“He seems thinner…” He Lingchi remarked.

“How can we rescue them?” Qi Yuanxiao looked helplessly at Biyi. Biyi closed her eyes—could it be like my Five-Colored Cave?

She meditated for a long while, nearly falling asleep, but nothing happened. Embarrassed, she opened her eyes, only to find the room empty. Looking up, she saw everyone crowded at the wall, examining something. She pursed her lips and hurried over.