Mu Qingyan floated on his back in the warm spring water, his young, supple body as relaxed as possible. He was utterly exhausted after struggling against the raging currents for nearly an hour. Though he had always been tough and fearless in the face of strong enemies, he found himself powerless against nature’s overwhelming force.
A few more moments in the turbulent hot spring, and he would have passed out. Fortunately, the water had carried them to a calm, wide stone crevice.
Mu Qingyan gripped a soft, limp hand in his right palm, their hands bound tightly together with a strip of cloth. Cai Zhao floated beside him, still unconscious. He had to keep her nose and mouth above water. During the earlier turmoil, he could only hold her tightly. Only now did he dare let her float freely, though they remained tied together. He checked on her every few moments.
When the endless hot spring water had come roaring towards them, they had both gripped the Blazing Sun Blade stuck in the ice wall to steady themselves. However, the current was too strong, and Cai Zhao quickly realized the blade couldn’t support both of them. Without hesitation, she let go, allowing the current to sweep her away.
Mu Qingyan understood her intention. He had come this far for her—searching for the Snow Scale Dragon Beast to save Qian Xueshen. Though she hadn’t said it, he knew she felt guilty.
But thinking and doing are different things. Survival instinct is human nature. In the fierce, roaring current, to let go so easily—Mu Qingyan didn’t know what to say to the girl.
Almost the moment Cai Zhao let go, his hand moved faster than his thoughts and grabbed her. The massive, chaotic water flow hit them, tossing them about like a small boat in a vast ocean. Huge ice blocks and rocks battered them as they were swept along.
Mu Qingyan used one hand to deflect oncoming ice blocks, but his body still took many heavy blows, not to mention countless minor scrapes. The relentless current overwhelmed them. Several times, Mu Qingyan nearly let go, but he couldn’t bear to release the small, soft figure in his arms.
In his daze, he thought that for such a pure-hearted, upright girl as Cai Zhao to die here wouldn’t be too unjust.
As the hot spring began to recede, Mu Qingyan watched their floating bodies slowly sink. The surrounding stone walls, smoothed by the water, came into view. The pool must not be deep, as their bodies soon touched the bottom, leaving only a few shallow, clear springs around them.
He didn’t know where they were, but not only was the spring water warm, but the surrounding rocks were also pleasantly heated.
After laying Cai Zhao on a flat stone platform, Mu Qingyan untied the heavy bundle from his shoulder. Four small, blue-eyed, white-furred creatures immediately poked out their round heads, curiously looking around.
Mu Qingyan had thought they wouldn’t survive this ordeal, but the white-furred hounds proved hardier than he imagined. They had obediently hidden in the fur bundle, even paddling with their tiny paws at times.
The four little beasts whimpered softly. Knowing they were hungry, Mu Qingyan took out an oil paper package from his waist pouch, only to find the dry rations had turned to mush. Shaking his head, he spread the oil paper on the stone platform. The four little creatures immediately rolled over, wagging their tails and lapping up the food mush.
He patted their heads. “No parents to care for you, you’ll have to grow up tough.”
After settling the girl and the four beasts, Mu Qingyan finally tended to himself.
Using a small pool of clear water as a mirror, he untied his thick, long hair and wrung it out. He removed his dripping outer robe, revealing a flat, firm, fair chest beneath his inner garment. His muscular shoulders and arms bore over a dozen bloody scratches.
The water mirror reflected a young man with clear, sharp features—a high nose, thin lips, and handsome yet cold countenance. A blood streak ran from his fair left temple to between his brows, adding a touch of severity.
In such a situation, the priority should be removing wet clothes and lighting a fire to dry them, to avoid illness on top of injury.
He couldn’t make a fire, but the wet clothes had to come off quickly.
So, Mu Qingyan studied Cai Zhao with his chin propped up, hesitated for a moment, then reached out to pull her waistband with a solemn expression. To his surprise, the band didn’t budge.
The girl’s slender waist was bound by an intricate belt, beautiful but difficult to undo. To accommodate the Blazing Sun Blade in its hollow core, Ning Xiaofeng had specially made this four-finger-wide gold-threaded jade belt for his daughter. Jade buckles linked together, interwoven with fine gold threads in an ingenious structure.
Mu Qingyan felt from left to right, then right to left, unable to find even the main clasp.
After several more attempts, his handsome, usually impassive face began to sweat. The four little beasts had finished their food and were curiously raising their heads to watch.
A soft giggle echoed in the stone cave. Mu Qingyan looked up alertly to see the unconscious girl had opened her eyes.
Her eyes were large, dark, and full of mirth.
“I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t hold it in anymore,” Cai Zhao said, sitting up with a chuckle. “It’s just a waistband, brother, yet you look more troubled than when facing that ice-crystal giant snake. You’re even sweating—truly admirable!”
“For a young lady to laugh like this while someone’s trying to undo her belt—that’s equally admirable,” Mu Qingyan sat straight as a mountain, his face seemingly calm—but only seemingly.
“Undoing a belt is nothing. I was planning to wait until you started removing my clothes before opening my eyes to give you a real shock, but I couldn’t hold back my laughter,” Cai Zhao said as she began wringing out her clothes.
Mu Qingyan frowned. “There are still differences between men and women. Aren’t you afraid at all?”
“In matters of life and death, who cares about such distinctions? If I had woken up first, I would have removed your wet clothes too,” Cai Zhao replied matter-of-factly.
Mu Qingyan’s gaze inexplicably wavered for a moment.
With a click, Cai Zhao pressed somewhere on her belt, and two jade buckles popped up, loosening the belt.
Mu Qingyan maintained his composure. “… Your mother’s craftsmanship is remarkable. This belt is truly ingenious.”
“Oh, please,” Cai Zhao chuckled. “The ingenuity of this belt isn’t in the jade buckles, but in its hollow core. The buckles themselves are just slightly modified versions of common butterfly clasps.”
A thought occurred to her, and she asked suspiciously, “You’ve never even seen a butterfly clasp before? Could it be that you’ve never…”—Could the young demon lord’s life be so dull? Unbelievable.
Mu Qingyan’s face darkened. He reached out and pinched her ear. “Haven’t you heard of ‘don’t speak of improprieties’? You dare say anything that comes to mind. If you keep talking nonsense, I’ll head straight for Luoying Valley as soon as we get down the mountain.”
Cai Zhao was surprised. “Why go to Luoying Valley? Are you planning to raze it?”
“No, I’m going to destroy all the bookshops and theater troupes in Luoying Valley,” Mu Qingyan said, one hand gripping her arm, the other pinching her ear. “Instead of learning good things, you spend all day reading such rubbish!”
Cai Zhao covered her ear, protesting, “What did I say? I haven’t said anything yet! Ouch, ouch, let go first, please!”
Mu Qingyan released his grip and rested his head on the girl’s thin shoulder. “In your mind, do you think we all live decadent lives in golden palaces with meat and wine pools?”
Cai Zhao’s neck tickled from his warm breath. She tried to push his head away but couldn’t. “It’s not just in my mind, it’s what everyone thinks. The demon realm is full of beautiful women and nightly revelry—get off me, you’re heavy!”
Mu Qingyan continued to nestle in the crook of her shoulder, mumbling, “Actually, the demon realm isn’t always the same. It changes with its leader. When Nie Hengcheng was in charge, everyone was aggressive and ambitious. Now with Nie Zhe, people have lost their drive and only seek pleasure.”
After a moment of silence, he curiously looked up. “Why aren’t you saying anything?”
Cai Zhao sighed, “What do you want me to say? ‘Nie Zhe’s leadership is great, the less ambitious the demon realm is, the better, don’t be ambitious at all, let’s all just indulge in pleasure’?”
Mu Qingyan snorted, “You never forget your identity, do you?”
“It’s not that I want to remember, it’s that the world never forgets one’s identity,” Cai Zhao sighed softly. “Let’s change the subject—what did you take from Duan Jiuxiu when you attacked him?”
Mu Qingyan narrowed his eyes, resembling a fierce beast. “You saw that?”
“I did.”
“What do you think I took?”
“The manual for Qi Nong’s Divine Palm Technique,” Cai Zhao said with a friendly smile. “Don’t be stingy, brother. Let’s take a look.”
Mu Qingyan stared at her for a moment—this was Cai Zhao, capable of giving him the last chance at survival, yet occasionally eyeing him with suspicion.
He took out Qi Nong’s silk handkerchief from a hidden compartment in his waterskin. Cai Zhao examined it, finding half the characters had been washed away. “Is this Nie Hengcheng’s divine skill manual? What a pity so many characters are illegible.”
“If you could read it clearly, would you want to practice it?” Mu Qingyan asked.
Cai Zhao raised her head proudly. “I wouldn’t. If this skill was so powerful, how did Nie Hengcheng die at my aunt’s hands? I’d rather practice my aunt’s techniques!”
Mu Qingyan chuckled, “You have a point. However, Nie Hengcheng never fully mastered this skill.”
Cai Zhao was curious, “How do you know?”
“If he had fully mastered it, even if your aunt used her life-risking Celestial Demon Disintegration Technique, she couldn’t have defeated Nie Hengcheng.”
Cai Zhao sat up straight. “How do you know so much about this?”
“Because I’ve read this manual,” Mu Qingyan said slowly. “It’s called the ‘Purple Subtle Heart Sutra,’ passed down by our demon ancestor two hundred years ago.”
Cai Zhao was shocked. “What? Nie Hengcheng’s divine skill is your Mu family’s hereditary technique?”
Mu Qingyan explained, “I didn’t know Nie Hengcheng was practicing the ‘Purple Subtle Heart Sutra’ until I saw the remnants on this handkerchief.”
Cai Zhao’s mind was in chaos. “How is this possible? If Nie Hengcheng could dominate the world with this skill, why didn’t your Mu family practice it yourselves?”
“Because it became impossible to practice,” Mu Qingyan said gently, helping to wring out her wet hair. “According to records in the Nine Provinces Treasure Pavilion, only the first two generations of sect leaders successfully mastered the ‘Purple Subtle Heart Sutra.’ Its power was said to be immense, capable of changing the color of the sky and stopping rivers when mastered.”
“You’re exaggerating! It’s just a martial art technique, why would it change the sky and stop rivers?” Cai Zhao scoffed.
Mu Qingyan smiled and continued, “However, from the third generation onward, the ‘Purple Subtle Heart Sutra’ became increasingly difficult to practice. More than one Mu family member became crippled trying to master it, their meridians destroyed.”
“The eleventh generation leader finally deduced the reason based on historical records—the world two hundred years ago was vastly different from later times. Without abundant spiritual energy and treasures, what was once possible became impossible. Since then, no sect leader has attempted to practice the ‘Purple Subtle Heart Sutra.'”
Cai Zhao was puzzled. “But Nie Hengcheng practiced it, didn’t he? His power increased dramatically, and he didn’t become crippled.”
Mu Qingyan raised his head thoughtfully. “True. So I guess Nie Hengcheng found a way to practice the ‘Purple Subtle Heart Sutra.'”
“It must be the Snow Scale Dragon Beast’s saliva,” Cai Zhao mused. “Unfortunately, I didn’t know there was a snake den under that snow house. I hid the ice bottle with the saliva nearby, but I don’t know if it’s still there after all that commotion with the giant snake.”
Mu Qingyan glanced at her. “You don’t need to test me. Even if we had the Snow Scale Dragon Beast’s saliva, I wouldn’t dare practice the ‘Purple Subtle Heart Sutra.’ It has four levels, each a formidable barrier. The saliva is only the key to the first level. What about the other three? Nie Hengcheng might have known the secrets to the first few levels, but he still ended up half-dead without fully mastering it.”
“Besides, my father warned me repeatedly. If the ‘Purple Subtle Heart Sutra’ could be practiced, why didn’t so many brilliant Mu family members throughout history attempt it? Our ancestors’ warning, ‘Never practice it,’ must have a reason.”
Cai Zhao sighed and returned the handkerchief to Mu Qingyan, who crushed it to powder in his palm. “Alright, let’s focus on how to get out of here,” he said.
As Cai Zhao removed her outer garment, she lamented, “What a shame about my Blazing Sun Blade. I wonder where it ended up. And Qian Xueshen, I hope he’s still alive…”
Suddenly, they heard footsteps approaching from afar.
The stride was steady and confident, with no attempt at stealth.
Mu Qingyan and Cai Zhao immediately became alert as a white-clad woman in her twenties came into view.
Her skin was pale, her features delicate. She showed no surprise or alarm at seeing the two as if she were simply visiting neighbors. She spoke casually, “You’re awake? The hot spring water has receded. You two don’t need to stay here anymore. Come out and follow me.”