Zanxing

Chapter 124 - Thatched House (1)

"Yang Zanxing." The shouting from her ear woke her up from her dream, and then the clouds, flowers, and trees, the man and the woman all disappeared.

Gu Baiying half-knelt beside her, staring at her with a frown.

Yanxing rubbed her eyes and sat up. "Martial Uncle."

Seeing Yanxing wake up, Gu Baiying seemed to finally breathe a sigh of relief and asked her, "Can you stand up?"

Yanxing patted the dirt off her clothes and stood up. Mimi rolled in the grass ahead, getting covered in grass clippings.

"What is this...?" Yanxing looked into the distance, momentarily taken aback.

Gone was the dim, cramped stone chamber; the world opened up before them. It was a vast expanse of wilderness, covered in soft green grass, with distant mountains rolling softly in the background. A clear river wound its way down from the mountains, and the sunlight was warm and gentle, lazily settling upon their hearts.

If the secret realm of Li'er Country was filled with immortal energy and splendor, then this place exuded tranquility and warmth. It resembled an isolated mountain village, where the inhabitants were abandoned by time and thus remained forever unaware of the passage of years, preserved in this secluded space.

"This is a secret realm." Gu Baiying walked over to Yanxing.

"I know it's a secret realm," Yanxing replied, "We entered it from Li'er Secret Realm, didn't we?"

"It's not the same secret realm as before," Gu Baiying said, glancing around. "At least ten years ago, the one entered by Ziluo wasn't this secret realm."

"I see," Yanxing looked at him. "You mean this is a secret realm within a secret realm?"

The path of cultivation was long and filled with wonders, encompassing everything from the creation of the universe to the tiniest drops of dew. Within secret realms, there were spaces yet to be discovered, not entirely unique but still remarkable.

"So, we've found an opportunity that others couldn't?" Yanxing asked. "What's inside, a technique, a secret manual, a spiritual weapon, or perhaps a reclusive master living here?"

Gu Baiying was silent for a moment, then said, "I've mentioned before, some opportunities are not something everyone can bear." He stretched out his hand, revealing the silver spear in his palm. He tightened his grip on the Xiagu spear and added to Yanxing, "Hold onto your staff; we can't be sure what's here."

Yanxing replied, "Okay."

In the secret realm, hidden dangers lurked beneath the calm surface, and Yanxing had already witnessed some of them. Having learned from the example of the Golden Flower Tiger, she dared not let her guard down, gripping her Panhua staff as she walked forward with Gu Baiying.

As they walked, they encountered no danger—no ferocious beasts, no strange plants, and no people.

It felt like a paradise devoid of inhabitants, quietly and beautifully serene.

They didn't know how long they walked until they reached the end near a mountain and a river. Gu Baiying suddenly stopped, and Yanxing asked, "What's wrong?"

Gu Baiying extended his hand and reached forward. "There's a barrier."

Yanxing pondered for a moment upon hearing this, then horizontally gripped her Pan Hua staff and suddenly swung it forward. The rolling wind met an invisible, intangible barrier in the air, and her staff was forcefully rebounded.

It was indeed a barrier.

She looked up at the grayish-blue mountain before them. "Looks like this is the end."

This mountain appeared different from Wudong Mountain; while Wudong was covered in a dense forest, this mountain seemed desolate. A glance showed there were no trees or birds, just bare grayish rocks. However, it was extremely high and steep, stretching endlessly upward.

"Who set up this barrier?" Yanxing suspiciously glanced around. "It seems there are no other people here."

Gu Baiying shook his head and tried sweeping his Xiagu spear in a circle ahead, discovering that the area marked by this stone mountain was entirely surrounded by a barrier—no one could pass through, and no one could enter.

He retracted his spear and looked toward another direction. "Let's try over there."

Yanxing had no objections.

They walked along the base of the mountain for half an incense stick's worth of time. Mimi was already tired and leaped onto Yanxing, trying to return to the Qiankun bag. Yanxing tightened the bag, wanting the cat to exercise more for weight loss. Just as she was wrestling with Mimi for the Qiankun bag, Gu Baiying, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped.

Yanxing followed his gaze.

At the base of the mountain, in the endless wilderness, a giant tree stood quietly. Its trunk was thick, and the canopy was lush, but it was different from the Dragon Tooth Tree on Wudong Mountain. The branches of the Dragon Tooth Tree were tangled and grew wildly, wild and rough. This tree, though dense, appeared exceptionally gentle; from a distance, it looked like a warm, emerald cloud, heavily resting at the top.

Regardless, something different had finally appeared in this wilderness.

Yanxing felt happy and walked a bit closer to Gu Baiying, continuing until they reached the giant tree.

Yanxing didn't know what kind of tree it was; it had no flowers, and the trunk displayed a mottled dark brown hue. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the branches and leaves, sparkling like broken gold. Yanxing reached out and touched the tree bark, feeling its rough and slightly damp texture.

Suddenly, Mimi let out a loud "ow," dashing forward. Yanxing turned her head and saw a fence about several dozen meters away from the giant tree.

A fence? Did someone live here? Yanxing exchanged glances with Gu Baiying, and they both approached.

Indeed, there was a fenced area in the wilderness. Not only that, but there was also a thatched cottage enclosed by the fence.

The cottage was not large, with rammed earth walls and a roof covered in a layer of thatch. It looked a bit shabby, and the grass in the yard had been completely pulled out, likely due to frequent cleaning, making it appear very tidy. Yanxing stood outside the fence and called out, "Is anyone there?"

There was no response.

Just as she was about to call again, Gu Baiying had already walked straight in.

Yanxing: "......"

Mimi happily followed behind Gu Baiying.

Pushing open the door of the thatched cottage, they found it empty inside.

Though the cottage appeared small from the outside, it was surprisingly spacious within. It was divided into two inner rooms and one outer hall. In the larger inner room, there was only a wooden platform resembling a bed. This wooden platform looked square, and when Yanxing reached out to touch its corner, she found it sharp, suspecting it had been carved directly from a block of wood with a knife. There was no pillow or mat on it, making it feel more like a long bench than a bed.

Yanxing left the inner room and looked into the outer hall, where she saw a wooden table with a pot, two cups, and two bowls. However, the cups and bowls were made of stone, and upon closer inspection, they were crooked and had several small dents, clearly handmade and resembling something that had been roughly hammered out.

Seeing that Gu Baiying had gone into another inner room and had not come out for a while, Yanxing thought he might have discovered something new, so she followed him inside. Upon entering, she felt that this inner room was particularly different.

Though the previous room had been large and spacious, it had contained nothing but an unknown wooden structure that resembled either a bed or a bench. This room was about half the size of the last, but it was much richer in contents. There was still a wooden platform against the wall, but it was much narrower than the previous one and had a wooden pillow on it. The platform was also covered with a straw mat, making it at least a bit more comfortable to sit on.