Xie Bai lifted his eyelids and glanced towards the direction of the Peacock lake. The water was still blue, startlingly so, and amidst the night-colored sand sea, there was a strange and eerie beauty. The gently undulating sand dunes half concealed the surroundings, making it impossible to see where the sound was coming from.

In such a desolate place, near a lake that appeared deeply sinister at a glance, how could there be any normal people? Just thinking about it was impossible.

He quietly stared in that direction, holding his breath. One hand pressed down on the small black cat that was still licking his fingers, while the other hand pressed against his lips, making a shushing gesture.

The little black cat was very intuitive. It blinked and then bent down to hug his arm completely. Its slender tail clung to his wrist, showing no signs of movement or sound.

Glancing down at it, Xie Bai didn't pay it any more mind. He had indeed inherited the fearlessness from Yin Wushu, daring to venture anywhere alone. But now, his physical condition was extremely poor. There was not a bit of warmth gathering inside him, and he couldn't even conjure up a fire in this state. In such a situation, disregarding everything and going to check the situation alone wouldn't be courageous, it would be foolish.

However, in such times, his constitution turned out to be the best cover.

Xie Bai enveloped himself and the little black cat in the cold air emanating from his body, masking their breath to the lowest level, almost blending with the cold sand.

As expected, as they completely concealed their breath, the faint and elusive voice of the woman gradually disappeared, and the entire sand sea fell silent once again.

Nevertheless, Xie Bai did not relax his vigilance entirely. He discreetly moved his gaze, carefully observing the surrounding scenery while aligning it with the compass, all the while keeping an eye on the situation by the lake, in case of any unforeseen circumstances.

After mentally calculating, he finally determined the direction of the ghost gate, which happened to be towards the direction of the Peacock lake. However, given his current condition, he couldn't summon the black mist to open the Yin Gate. He needed to adjust his breath a bit longer.

Just as Xie Bai was about to close his eyes and gather some strength, the previously quiet Peacock lake suddenly churned up a huge spray of water, splashing directly towards Xie Bai's direction. The once fading female voice suddenly resounded again, mixed in with the sound of splashing water, like a captivating rhythm.

 

Xie Bai furrowed his brows, which were already covered with a thin layer of frost, and simply raised his hand to send out a burst of cold air, instantly freezing the water mist into frost, which fell down with a rustling sound.

However, after that, an even larger spray of water, like a net under great tension, enveloped him before Xie Bai could send out the second wave of cold air, wrapping him and the cat into the Peacock lake.

In the split second when he entered the water, Xie Bai actually felt somewhat amused— the temperature of the Peacock lake was slightly higher than that of the sand, so falling into the lake in his frozen state actually felt slightly better than before.

Without a word, Xie Bai immediately reversed the flow direction of his internal breath the moment he touched the water.

In the blink of an eye, all the residual heat in the Peacock lake surged towards him, swiftly absorbed into his body through his limbs and veins, not a single bit wasted.

With his presence, the entire Peacock lake became turbulent, the water swirling madly, and centered around him, forming a huge vortex.

The low humming sound paused slightly, then grew louder, and besides the initial female voice, four or five other voices joined in, male and female, like a multi-layered ensemble, with highs and lows, ethereal and uncertain, inducing a sense of confusion and dizziness in the listener.

Xie Bai was already shivering from the intense cold, and with the loophole provided by this chanting, for a moment, he really felt his consciousness becoming unclear.

However, even though his consciousness was somewhat muddled, he still didn't stop absorbing every bit of warmth.

The temperature of the entire Peacock lake plummeted, and within a moment, ice began to form at the edges, spreading thicker and thicker towards the center where Xie Bai was.

Amidst the churning water and the enchanting low chanting, Xie Bai suddenly saw several dark fish tails flung out of the water, the same color as the Peacock lake, emitting a eerie glow in the night.

Beyond the South Sea were the merfolk, dwelling in water like fish.

The merfolk was evil by nature, skilled in enchanting with their singing. Even powerful spirits would suffer if they fell into the hands of merfolk. The merfolk's singing could evoke the deepest desires in one's heart, weaving the most beautiful dreams... Unless one truly had no desires, otherwise they would inevitably fall under its spell.

However, with so many falling under its spell, there naturally emerged a countermeasure— that is, when the merfolk sang their enchanting melodies, one should go along with it, sinking into the dream first, and when the merfolk thought they have succeeded and relaxed their guard, seize the opportunity to counterattack.

However... How could merfolk, who should be in the sea, appear in such a place?

This was Xie Bai's last question before his consciousness faded.

In fact, this was the second time Xie Bai had encountered merfolk, so he knew what he would dream of... And this dream was not entirely false, but mostly consisted of events that had truly happened...

*

As he expected, after the eerie blue lake disappeared, it was replaced by a room he was once very familiar with.

By the window, there was a small stove on the floor, burning something unknown in the hearth, emitting a gentle crackling sound, with no smoke and not irritating to the throat.

On the stove, there was a clay pot bubbling with something inside, exuding a faint bamboo fragrance, along with the warm hot air, floating around the room.

It was the mid-winter of the Year of Bingshen (NT: Monkey year), the sixty-second year that Xie Bai had lived with Yin Wushu. In the twelfth month, the largest snowfall in over a decade had accumulated thickly for many days, rows of long and short stalactites were hanging from the eaves like inverted cones.

Xie Bai was standing by the stove, bending over to lift the lid of clay pot slightly, and a rush of hot steam poured out from the crack.

After securely closing the lid again, he sat back in the chair by the window, picked up the book he had laid down, intending to continue reading. But before he could read a couple of pages, his gaze fell on the nearby couch— Yin Wushu was sitting there with his eyes closed, leaning against it, his broad shoulders draped in a large robe, his elbows resting on the soft armrests, his long and slender fingers curved lazily, supporting his head, his long black hair hanging loosely on the couch, looking very relaxed, as if taking a nap.

However, Yin Wushu was not actually napping, but undergoing a major refinement.

Anyone with spiritual power would notice at a glance that Yin Wushu was surrounded by layers of golden threads, exerting heavy pressure.

This kind of refinement, in his own words, was "getting older, needing occasional self-adjustment to maintain the best condition." In Xie Bai's view, it was like taking a long nap every ten years or so, lasting from six to eight days each time.

During the refinement period, Yin Wushu would completely isolate himself from the outside world, sealing off all his senses to avoid disturbance.

Before each refinement, he would instruct Xie Bai: "If I wake up halfway, just close the door and lock it from the outside, go elsewhere for a couple of laps and come back after brewing a pot of tea, about the time for a cup of tea should be enough, no matter what, don't stay inside."

As for the remaining time, Xie Bai had to stay in the house, using a small stove to boil water in the clay pot prepared by Yin Wushu in advance, carefully cooking it, from the moment Yin Wushu closed his eyes until he finished refining, always maintaining a state of boiling but not overflowing.

However, despite the instructions, Yin Wushu didn't always wake up halfway through.

In the sixty-plus years that Xie Bai had been with him, he had accompanied him through five refinements, and only twice had Yin Wushu awakened for a moment around the third day. Following his words, Xie Bai promptly locked the door and went out to the courtyard the moment Yin Wushu opened his eyes, returning after a cup of tea, and Yin Wushu had already closed his eyes again, and everything in the room was as before, as if he had not done anything other than open his eyes.

This refinement was the same as before. After briefly opening his eyes on the third day, Yin Wushu remained motionless until now, which was already the sixth day. At this time in the past, he should have finished the refinement.

Xie Bai glanced at Yin Wushu every two lines he read, almost always paying attention to his movements. The moment he woke up, following the routine, he poured a bowl of water boiled in the pot for him to drink.

Just as Xie Bai had finally turned another page of the book, a gust of wind suddenly rose outside the window in the courtyard, and the half-closed carved window beside him, somehow not closed tightly, was pushed open with a "squeak."

A handful of dry leaves by the window were blown down, floating into the room and lightly touching the invisible golden threads visible only to practitioners. In the blink of an eye, they shattered into powder, forming a small pile on the ground.

Xie Bai's eyebrows twitched, and he set the book down again, closing the window firmly before decisively pasting another talisman on it, locking it securely.

Just as he turned around, intending to sweep away the pile of dry leaves, Yin Wushu, who was sitting on the couch, suddenly opened his eyes.

"Awake?" Xie Bai calculated the time and said, "Why did it take half a day longer than last time?"

As he spoke, he picked up a celadon bowl placed there, scooped up some water from the clay pot, stirred it with a spoon, and let it cool for a while before walking to the edge of the couch, raising his chin and saying, "Since the golden threads aren't retracting, how should I hand this over?"

Yin Wushu looked up at him, neither retracting the golden threads immediately nor speaking.

His gaze was too focused, the dark eyeballs obscured by the blocked light, inexplicably emitting a sinister vibe, completely different from his usual lazy gaze with a hint of mischief.

Xie Bai was stunned by the gaze, feeling that something was off, and couldn't help but pause, his hand holding the bowl, as he asked, "What's wrong?"

Yin Wushu still didn't speak, just narrowed his eyes slightly.

Something was wrong!

Xie Bai suddenly realized: Yin Wushu hadn't finished his refinement at all at this moment. He just opened his eyes again before it was completed!

He remembered Yin Wushu's instructions earlier and immediately shut his mouth, not saying another word, and turned to leave.

But at this moment, Yin Wushu, who had been silent all along, suddenly made a move. His gaze shifted, and his left hand hanging by his side suddenly lifted, and with a flick of his five fingers, Xie Bai felt a sharp pain in his shoulders as he was forcefully pulled in front of Yin Wushu.

Caught off guard, Xie Bai's knees hit the edge of the couch with a loud "bang." The impact landed squarely on the soft tendon of his knee bone, causing his lower leg to twitch uncontrollably. His feet softened, and he knelt heavily on the couch.

 

Translator : DarNan