As autumn gave way to winter, the children had already spent two months at Zhufeng Academy. The initial excitement of novelty had faded, replaced by a routine of punctual rising, cultivation, midday rest, evening meals followed by diligent practice, and timely sleep. The young disciples gradually shed their naivety, adopting the habits and demeanor befitting true disciples of an immortal sect.
In November, the academy saw its first snowfall. Along with the sudden onset of bitter cold came Hu Jiapin’s announcement: in ten days, there would be a test on the Five Elements Foundation Immortal Techniques. As before, it would be a competition where the weak would be eliminated; those who failed the test would be expelled from the academy without exception.
Although everyone had been mentally prepared for this, they hadn’t expected the test to come so soon. Suddenly, everyone felt at risk. The cries of the children who had failed the test and been sent away still echoed in their ears. Each person wished there could be a hundred hours in a day for cultivation.
Since two disciples had left that day, their number had been reduced to sixteen. The casual three-person groups formed at the beginning could no longer be maintained. Hu Jiapin seemed to have no intention of reassigning groups, and since the Five Elements Foundation Immortal Techniques practiced over the past month didn’t require group cultivation, the children gradually forgot about the trio system.
Early this morning, heavy snow was falling again outside. Li Fei used his Fire Elemental Immortal Technique to surround himself and ward off the cold as he flew on his sword toward the training grounds. Being immortal and learning immortal techniques did have its advantages; for instance, when winter came, there was no need for bulky winter clothes. A simple application of an immortal technique allowed one to walk naked through ice and snow without feeling cold.
This morning was Master Mo Yanfan’s first sword class. Upon arriving at the training grounds, Li Fei saw the ground covered in white snow. The disciples who had arrived earlier had already taken the initiative to borrow winnowing baskets, iron shovels, brooms, and coarse salt from the female demons to clear the training grounds of snow.
At first, Li Fei had wondered if Master Mo Yanfan’s fist and sword techniques were simply martial arts, but it turned out to be exactly that – teaching fist techniques and sword techniques. It was said that fist and sword techniques were ways of cultivating the body. Immortals not only needed to refine their crucibles but also maintain strong and healthy bodies to withstand the cultivation of higher-level immortal techniques in the future.
As the hour of Mao struck, Mo Yanfan’s snow-white figure appeared at the training grounds. Compared to other capricious teachers who loved to be late, Master Mo was the epitome of an excellent teacher. He was never late, never scolded unnecessarily, and even took sick leave when unwell. The children loved his classes the most, especially the girls.
“Ah, no matter how you look at him, he’s like a painting. Every movement is so beautiful,” Bai Li Gelin stared at Mo Yanfan dreamily. Her girlish heart had been completely captivated by this handsome teacher as cold as ice and snow. “If only I were a few years older…”
A female disciple beside her laughed, “Even if you were a few years older, it wouldn’t be our turn. Have you forgotten about that Master Lin You…”
After living and cultivating together for two months, the disciples became familiar with each other. Bai Li Gelin had an outgoing personality and easily made many friends. All the girls were close to her and joked around without restraint.
Bai Li Gelin looked around curiously, “Hasn’t she arrived yet? Usually, she should be here by now, right?”
This was one of the major rumors at Zhufeng Academy. That smiling young-looking Master Lin You often arrived late for her classes, sometimes by an entire hour. She had a bad temper and often punished them by forbidding meals. Yet her moods were unpredictable, and no one could figure out her standards. Even Lei Xiuyuan and Ji Tongzhou had suffered at her hands.
Ironically, this habitually late and ill-tempered Master Lin You would always appear punctually at the training grounds for Master Mo Yanfan’s classes, whether it was at the hour of Mao in the morning or Wei in the afternoon. She would just stand there watching, without saying a word, until the class ended, then leave silently. Everyone guessed she had a secret crush on the handsome Mo Yanfan. Although they looked similar in appearance, their actual age difference was vast – like mother and son or even grandmother and grandson in the outside world. It seemed unlikely that Mo Yanfan would be willing to lower himself to an older woman, so she watched him, as he taught his class, with Master Mo always maintaining a calm and indifferent demeanor, seemingly unconcerned.
“Look, she’s here!” someone pointed to a corner. Sure enough, right on time, Lin You’s lotus-colored figure appeared in the corner of the training grounds.
“Why the commotion?” Mo Yanfan’s cold, clear voice rang out, and the children instinctively fell silent. “Let’s begin. Take your positions.”
The first and sword class was much more interesting than cultivating and refining crucibles for these ten-year-old children. They were still at an age where they loved to move around, so everyone was excited whenever it was time for Master Mo Yanfan’s cultivation class.
Li Fei practiced with his stone sword, but the sword technique felt soft and powerless. It was probably just for body training. In close combat, this dance-like sword technique would likely result in the sword being snatched away before even making a move.
Just as he reached a turning point in the routine, a disciple behind him suddenly cried out, “Ah! You’re bleeding!”
The children were startled and turned around to see Lei Xiuyuan’s sleeve covered in blood stains, with half of it soaked through. Although they had been cultivating for a few months, children were still children, and the sight of blood frightened them. They couldn’t help but cry out, “Master! He’s injured! There’s so much blood!”
Mo Yanfan walked over and grabbed Lei Xiuyuan’s hands, only to find both hands and arms tightly wrapped in bandages. The bandages were now soaked with blood from top to bottom, a sight that even shocked him. He immediately asked, “What happened? Who hurt you?”
Lei Xiuyuan lowered his sleeves and said calmly, “It’s nothing, I did it myself. I’ve been feeling unwell lately, and there’s a folk remedy from my hometown. Bloodletting can help when you’re not feeling well.”
Mo Yanfan remained silent for a moment, then unwrapped the bandages from his hands. He saw that Lei Xiuyuan’s hands, palms, and arms were covered in deep, long wounds, clearly made by a sharp object. He frowned, “Tell me the truth, who hurt you? This is the academy, you have nothing to fear.”
Lei Xiuyuan took out a small short knife from his pocket and smiled, “Master, look, it was me. It was my first time bloodletting, so I was nervous and made a few extra cuts. It won’t happen again.”
Seeing that he insisted on not telling, Mo Yanfan let it go. He called for the female demons to clean and dress his wounds again, then waved his hand, kindly giving him the day off.
Bai Li Gelin snorted, “There’s not a word of truth in what he says! I’ve never heard of any bloodletting treatment in Gaul!”
If it wasn’t a folk remedy, then who had hurt him? Could it have been one of the academy’s teachers? It didn’t seem likely; the teachers wouldn’t do something that harmed others without benefiting themselves. Could it have been other disciples? That was impossible too; everyone knew Lei Xiuyuan’s aptitude, and picking on him would only be asking for trouble.
Could it have been self-inflicted? The events surrounding this person were always so mysterious and incomprehensible. Li Fei couldn’t figure it out no matter how hard he tried.
That night, Li Fei woke up thirsty in the middle of his deep sleep. As he got up to feel for the teapot, he suddenly heard a faint sound of a door opening in the courtyard, followed by a series of footsteps – who would be going out at this hour? He went to the window and peeked out, only to catch a glimpse of a slender figure flashing past the far gate, unsure if it was Ji Tongzhou or Lei Xiuyuan.
Li Fei’s curiosity was piqued, and his drowsiness completely vanished. He immediately put on his outer robe and silently pushed open the door to follow.
The moonlight was clear tonight, bright enough to make the surroundings seem like daytime. As soon as Li Fei left the gate, he saw someone walking slowly on the stone path, with unsteady steps, as if sleepwalking. The person wore a white undergarment with long hair flowing loose, and blood stains on the sleeves – it was Lei Xiuyuan!
Li Fei was both curious and surprised. He didn’t dare make a sound, and fortunately, his bare feet made no noise on the ground. He followed slowly behind, and surprisingly, Lei Xiuyuan didn’t look back once. Given Lei Xiuyuan’s usual level of alertness, something seemed off.
After leaving the large courtyard of the disciples’ quarters, they came to the open space where they had once practiced sword flying. Li Fei noticed that although Lei Xiuyuan’s steps were weak and unsteady, he was moving quite fast. He quickly crossed the open space, heading in the direction of the cliff at the edge of the island.
Suddenly, he stopped abruptly, as if waking from a dream, looking around in terror. Then, unable to support himself, he half-knelt on the ground, fumbling in his pocket for a while before pulling out that small short knife. Li Fei bit his lip hard, watching in horror as Lei Xiuyuan violently stabbed himself in the arm. Blood spurted out, splattering everywhere. He seemed to be fighting an invisible nightmare, silent but terrifying.
Lei Xiuyuan trembled as he continued to search his pocket, finally pulling out a thin sheet of letter paper. He crumpled it into a ball with all his might and threw it towards the bottom of the cliff – there was no wind tonight, yet the crumpled letter spun in mid-air and steadily fell back at his feet. He threw it again, and it returned. He kept throwing, and it kept coming back. On the last attempt, the letter suddenly unfolded from its crumpled state. As if bewitched, Lei Xiuyuan no longer touched the strange letter. He slowly stood up, his steps becoming unsteady again, and slowly walked towards the cliff.
It looked like he had been put under some kind of spell! Was he using the knife’s pain to resist the nightmare spell? Li Fei was horrified to realize that his actions seemed to indicate he was about to jump off the cliff. He could no longer watch silently and called out, “Wait! Lei Xiuyuan!”
The thin figure seemed to shudder but continued to move forward, slowly and laboriously, as if being forced.
Li Fei ran over and grabbed his collar, pulling him back and causing him to fall hard on the ground. They rolled several times, but he struggled to get up, seemingly still determined to jump off the cliff. Li Fei threw himself on top of him, pushing him back down. Feeling him struggle violently, Li Fei simply sat on him and raised his hand to slap him hard – his master had said that someone under a nightmare spell needed a hard hit to wake up.
Lei Xiuyuan coughed violently from the slap, coughing for a while before finally lying on the ground exhausted, his wet eyes staring at her without saying a word for a long time.
“Are you awake?” Li Fei asked.
His voice was a bit weak but still ice-cold: “…Get off me.”
“You were about to jump off the cliff just now,” Li Fei told him the fact, “You were under a nightmare spell.”
“Get off, you’re hurting my chest.”
Li Fei looked at him suspiciously, wondering if the spell hadn’t been broken yet. He cracked his fingers, ready to give him another hit.
The boy beneath her suddenly sat up forcefully, grabbing her arms and pushing her off with a twist. Li Fei found herself gently falling to the ground. She saw him bend down to pick up the letter, and she said again, “There’s something strange about that letter!”
Lei Xiuyuan said nothing, stuffing the knife and the letter back into his pocket, apparently intending to go back to sleep as if nothing had happened. Li Fei was a bit annoyed and got up to grab him: “Explain what’s going on! Otherwise, I’m taking you to the teachers right now!”
He forcefully shook off her hand and said coldly, “This is my business, it has nothing to do with you.”
Li Fei got angry. She stepped forward and punched him on the head. Lei Xiuyuan never expected her to act so quickly, and the punch made him see stars. He staggered, almost falling, but was suddenly grabbed by his clothes. Her hand rummaged through his pocket, and in an instant, she had taken both the knife and the letter.
“Give them back!” He grabbed her wrist, but this despicable girl mercilessly slapped his wounded arm, causing him to let go in pain. After all this commotion, he seemed tired and simply sat on the ground, sighing, “Were you raised by bears?”
Li Fei cautiously retreated a few steps, tucking his short knife into her sleeve. Then she carefully unfolded the letter – who knew what mysterious tricks he was up to? If it was harmful to the academy, this letter would be crucial evidence.
She lowered her head to look at the letter, and Lei Xiuyuan’s urgent cry rang out: “Don’t look!”
The letter was densely covered with many characters, but each character seemed to be alive, wriggling like a tadpole. As soon as these moving characters entered her eyes, Li Fei felt dizzy, and her body seemed to be out of her control. Just like Lei Xiuyuan earlier, she began walking towards the cliff step by step.
Her body was forcefully embraced, and then everything spun around. When Li Fei came to her senses, she was lying on the ground, and Lei Xiuyuan silently took the letter from her hand and folded it.
“Consider tonight’s events as just a dream,” he said, putting the letter back into his sleeve.
Li Fei suddenly sat up, exclaiming, “Someone is trying to kill you!”
Lei Xiuyuan remained silent.
She urgently asked, “Who is it?! Why don’t you tell the teachers?”
He said calmly, “I can’t speak about this matter, nor can I say anything. This is the art of word spirits.”
Word spirits? She seemed to have heard of that somewhere.
Lei Xiuyuan suddenly smiled, as if mocking himself. His wet eyes looked at her quietly, seeming both troubled and helpless, as if there was a layer of mist inside: “This matter started because of you… Well, it’s my fault for not being cautious enough.”
He was about to leave again, and Li Fei hurriedly caught up with him: “Wait, Lei Xiuyuan! What do you mean it started because of me? You’ve been deceiving me for so long, and now you’re about to be killed without explanation, and you say it’s because of me! Don’t you think you should explain clearly?”
“I told you, I can’t say.”
He suddenly tilted his head to listen for a moment, then quickly grabbed Li Fei’s sleeve: “Come here! Someone’s coming!”
Li Fei was pulled into the bushes by him. Seeing that he was about to cover her mouth again, she glared up at him angrily. He had to put his hand to his lips, making a gesture for silence.