Kong Yang eagerly pulled Shi Xia toward a stone wall nearby. After a few swipes of his hand against the surface, the wall rumbled and split open, revealing a series of stone chambers and a seemingly endless passageway beyond.
"This is my home!" Kong Yang stepped into the passage, enthusiastically introducing the space. "This is the main hall, that's the bedroom, and over there is where I practice my cultivation. There are plenty of other rooms too—all these chambers were dug out by my own hands. Since you can't leave anyway, you can stay here. Just pick whichever room you like and let me know."
"Uh... thanks." Shi Xia glanced at the solid stone walls on either side. Did you dig all this out yourself? Are you some kind of gopher?
"Right here." Kong Yang suddenly stopped and formed a hand seal. A flicker of flame shot out, igniting the torches along the walls, instantly brightening the dim passage. He pointed ahead. "This is where I keep the belongings of those who fell down here."
And then... she saw a mountain.
A literal mountain of jade tablets, books, and all sorts of unidentified magical artifacts, piled several meters high.
-_- #
"This is way too much!" Shi Xia gaped. Is this valley some kind of Bermuda Triangle? How many people have fallen to their deaths here?!
"I didn’t ask for them, but people just kept shoving them at me." Kong Yang gave her a knowing look.
"..." Well, she did understand. Her own bag was stuffed with similar items.
"And that’s not all! The rarer cultivation manuals and spiritual artifacts are stored further back. The Dragon Pearl is among them."
Kong Yang led her past the towering pile of treasures. Beyond it, the passage sloped gently upward, lined with square alcoves carved into the walls. Each alcove held jade tablets—just like the ones those old men had forced on her—or various magical tools.
"There was just too much stuff, so I had to dig deeper to make space," Kong Yang explained as they walked.
"..." Shi Xia suppressed the urge to facepalm. Stop talking about cultivation manuals like they're cabbages!
They walked for a full twenty minutes before finally reaching the end.
"We're here!" Kong Yang gestured toward the wall, which was studded with colorful, glowing orbs that flickered like neon lights. "Look, these are them."
"..." You absolute dragon slayer.
"Since you gave me one, I’ll return the favor. Feel free to pick any of these."
"N-no thanks." The dragons would weep.
"You don’t like them?" Kong Yang frowned, troubled. "Then how about the cultivation manuals outside? Anything I have, you can take."
Shi Xia felt an overwhelming wave of rich guy energy hit her. "Really, it’s fine. I don’t even have a spiritual root—those things are useless to me."
"Oh... right." His face fell in disappointment.
To steer him away from the gift-giving dilemma, Shi Xia quickly changed the subject. "Kong Yang, how long have you been down here?"
Kong Yang thought for a moment. "I don’t remember. It’s been ages. I was only at the Qi Refining stage when I first fell, but now... I’m probably at the Nascent Soul stage."
Huh... so at least several hundred years.
"Have you never thought about leaving?"
"There’s no way out." Kong Yang stated firmly. "The cliff is too high—without cultivation, you can’t fly up, and with cultivation, the Spirit-Devouring Formation will consume you the moment you try. This place is a death trap."
"But you don’t have to climb the cliff." She voiced the question that had been nagging at her. "You dug this entire tunnel through solid rock—why not just dig your way up?" She knocked on the stone wall. With his cultivation level, it should be easy, right?
"Shi Xia, you’ve got quite the sense of humor." Kong Yang shook his head. "This rock is infused with chaotic energy. It’s not that simple to—"
BOOM.
A chunk of stone suddenly crumbled away, revealing a patch of clear blue sky above.
Shi Xia slowly retracted her knocking hand. "Uh... looks like it worked."
Silence.
For ten whole seconds.
Kong Yang stood frozen in shock.
"Th-this... this can’t be!" He had spent centuries trying to dig his way out, only to be blocked by the chaotic energy every time. And yet, she had broken through with just a few taps. No, this must be a dream.
"So... we can leave now?" Shi Xia pointed upward.
"..." Kong Yang’s emotions were a tangled mess.
After half a month trapped at the bottom of the cliff, Shi Xia had finally found her way out—thanks to Kong Yang’s generously provided tunnel. But when she invited him to join her in exploring the vast world outside, he refused.
"Why?" Shi Xia was baffled. "Don’t you want to leave?"
"Shi Xia, you know my cultivation was entirely achieved down here. I was only at Qi Refining when I first fell."
"Yeah, I know." You already mentioned that.
Kong Yang shook his head. "The Spirit-Devouring Formation exists outside the Heavenly Dao’s jurisdiction. My cultivation here has also been outside its laws."
"What does that mean?" Those without spiritual roots don’t understand cultivation jargon—speak plainly!
Kong Yang sighed deeply. "Shi Xia, do you know that after forming a Golden Core, every major breakthrough invites a tribulation of heavenly lightning? Eighty-one bolts, with a slim chance of survival."
"Yeah, I’ve heard." Her adoptive brother had mentioned that most cultivators perished during these trials. "What does that have to do with you?"
"Everything." Kong Yang looked like he was on the verge of tears. "Because I advanced outside the Heavenly Dao’s awareness, I never faced those tribulations. But if I step out of this tunnel, I’ll be back under its laws—and all the accumulated tribulations will strike at once."
"Uh..."
"I’m at the Nascent Soul stage now. That means Golden Core, Core Formation, and Nascent Soul tribulations—243 bolts of heavenly lightning. Do you think I’d survive that?"
"..."
Shi Xia silently lit a metaphorical candle for him in her heart and patted his shoulder. "Stay strong. I’ll visit you on the first and fifteenth of every month."
"..." Kong Yang’s eye twitched. He waved her off impatiently. "Just go already. Even though the tunnel’s open, there’s still chaotic energy above. I can’t use magic to help you—you’ll have to climb out on your own."
Shi Xia hesitated, then began scaling the wall. Halfway up, she turned back. "Hey, is there anything you want me to deliver for you? A message, or an item? I’ve got experience in courier work."
"No need."
"Okay." She resumed climbing, but after a couple more steps, she glanced back again. "Are you sure? I can even deliver letters."
"I said no! I’ve been down here so long, there’s no one left outside who’d remember me."
"Alright. I’ll come visit when I can."
"You’d better not."
"Why?"
"This valley holds too many secrets. If word gets out, it’ll only bring trouble."
"Won’t you get lonely, though? Maybe you should get a pet or something?"
"Get lost!"
"..." Tch. You clearly enjoy company—why so tsundere? With a pang of melancholy, Shi Xia gripped the edge of the tunnel and hauled herself out.
"Shi Xia." Kong Yang suddenly called out.
"Huh?" She reflexively turned back.
She saw him toss something over, which flew straight into her mouth. Before she could react, she had already swallowed it.
"What was that?" Don’t just throw random things into her mouth—she wasn’t a zoo monkey.
"A parting gift," Kong Yang said with a laugh. "Alright, you can scram now."
"Wait! What was that thing?"
"Relax, it’ll only do you good." With a wave of his hand, the collapsed stone wall rose back into place, sealing the cave entrance in an instant. Before Shi Xia could even say goodbye, his figure had vanished, leaving only a final remark in her ears: "Next time, don’t fall down here again. I can’t be bothered to bury you."
"……"
The exit of the escape passage wasn’t far from the cliff’s edge. The moment she crawled out of the cave, Shi Xia felt as though she had been reborn. She took a deep breath of the free air, and suddenly, the sky seemed bluer, the clouds whiter, the flowers more fragrant, and even the giant cat in the forest—currently in the middle of biting someone—looked downright handsome.
Wait.
Giant cat? Shi Xia’s eyes widened as she stared at the enormous monster not far away, its jaws gaping as it prepared to devour a small child on the ground.
Why another giant cat? And it was even the same color as the one from half a year ago. Were yellow cat-shaped monsters standard equipment for every forest?
It couldn’t possibly be the same one.
"Big Miao?" she blurted out before she could stop herself.
Growl…
Hearing her voice, the cat turned its ferocious gaze toward her—only to freeze the moment it saw her. Its previously narrowed eyes widened instantly. Without hesitation, it dropped the child it had been about to eat and trotted over excitedly.
"Meeeooww…" Its voice practically oozed delight as it rubbed its massive head against her, nuzzling left and right.
(￣_￣)
Alright, so this wasn’t standard—it was the exact same cat.
"Alright, alright, stop looking. I know." It just wanted dried fish.
She pulled a large fish jerky from her storage pouch and handed it over. Thankfully, she had a habit of keeping food in her bag, and since the Jade Flower Sect was near the coast, fish jerky was plentiful.
"Meeeoowww~~~" The giant cat eagerly snatched the fish, its meow even more melodious than before, and even wrapped its tail around her leg in a friendly gesture.
Shi Xia rubbed its big head, exasperated. "Why are you out here bullying kids again? Aren’t you a spirit beast?"
Her cheap older brother had once told her that spirit beasts usually had masters. Unless ordered, they wouldn’t harm people casually. Back then, Hei Sha had also mentioned that Big Miao was a mountain-guarding spirit beast. Unlike ordinary spirit beasts, mountain guardians didn’t have a master but were bound to a specific territory to protect it. The reason Big Miao could roam freely was probably because the sect that had once bound it had been wiped out.
But whether it was a mountain guardian or an ordinary spirit beast, they cultivated using spiritual energy. Unless absolutely necessary, they didn’t need to eat—and consuming humans would taint their karma and hinder their cultivation. So, Big Miao’s habit of chasing people could only mean one thing: it wasn’t hunting for food. It was just bored out of its mind.
