Volume One, Chapter Nineteen: The Cave of Primordial Return

Before Yibing could even turn his head, a cacophony of ghostly wails and wolfish howls erupted from all directions, the chilling wind rising in an instant. In the blink of an eye, their companions fell with startled cries. Looking up, Yibing saw the sky teeming with shadowy figures—monsters with bared fangs and twisted grins everywhere he looked. The survivors were immediately locked in combat with the attackers. Taken utterly by surprise, the various sects and schools had no chance to form ranks or coordinate; chaos reigned, and each fought for themselves.

Yibing and Fat Girl fought as they retreated, trying desperately to find their scattered Misty Cloud Sect disciples. But the darkness was so thick they could not see their own hands before their faces; searching was near impossible. Somewhere ahead, they vaguely heard Jin Guishan shouting commands. Fat Girl grabbed Yibing and dashed toward the sound. Suddenly, a blue-faced, tusked brute blocked their path. Just as the fight broke out, a sinister wind swept in from behind. Hanyu cried out in alarm and leapt from the satchel, but her injuries were not yet healed; she stumbled and fell as soon as she landed. A spiked club came crashing down at her head—escape seemed impossible. But at that crucial moment, a rush of black mist, tinged with an exotic fragrance, surged from the side and forcibly shoved their foe away.

“You wretched hussy! Still alive, are you?” Hanyu looked up and saw, to her astonishment, the seductive Seven-Tailed Fox. The fox maiden glanced back with a dazzling smile. “So, fellow traveler, you survived as well?”

“Hey! You vixen! I called you to share the spoils, but you turn coat on me instead?” Under the moonlight, a gaunt, bloodless brute with long sideburns brandished his club and cursed.

“Jade-Faced Lord, I don’t care about the others, but don’t you dare lay a finger on this little fatty!” The fox maiden brandished her black fox staff, thick black smoke billowing from its tip.

“Heh, is that so?” Jade-Faced Lord’s brows drew together. “I’ll send your chubby lover straight to the next world!” He swung his spiked club at Yibing. The fox maiden hastily parried, and the two became locked in fierce combat.

Fat Girl, meanwhile, managed to fight her way closer. She had seen the Seven-Tailed Fox before and, though surprised, kept silent since the fox maiden was clearly protecting Yibing. The white-robed girl was a stranger, but for some reason, Fat Girl felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity with her.

“Let’s attack together!” Hanyu smiled at Fat Girl, then leapt back into the satchel on Yibing’s back.

“You’re…” Fat Girl stared in astonishment.

Under Hanyu’s direction, Yibing, Fat Girl, and the fox maiden formed a three-pronged formation, advancing and retreating in unison, covering each other. For a time, they held their own against the two monsters. But the fox maiden was visibly unsteady; that last exchange had exhausted her, her wounds hardly healed.

“She won’t hold much longer! Time to make a run for it!” Hanyu whispered urgently into Yibing’s ear. Yibing feinted with his sword, then grabbed Fat Girl and the fox maiden and bolted. Before Jade-Faced Lord and his tusked companion could react, the trio had vanished. The two monsters cursed in unison, “That fat fellow runs like hell!”

“I told you to get ready to run... Ugh…” Hanyu jabbed Yibing in the head with her forepaws in frustration. Yibing simply thought she was urging him faster and sped up even more, darting down any path he could find, raising dust even in the darkness.

“Hey! Hey! Stop running!” Hanyu tugged hard on Yibing’s ears with her forepaws, finally making him come to a halt. Fat Girl was so exhausted her tongue lolled out, and the fox maiden’s gossamer gown was nearly blown clean off.

“Ooh, darling, if you want to undress me, just say so—no need for all this fuss…” The fox maiden pouted playfully, gasping for breath as she hastily smoothed her clothes.

“Up ahead… there… there’s a cave…” Yibing gasped, pointing toward a patch of dense forest not far off.

Hanyu leapt out of the satchel and took the form of a white-robed girl. She had just scouted the area and seen no sign of any cave, but when she followed Yibing’s pointing finger, she saw a shimmering opening, haloed in faint light, flickering in and out of view among the trees.

“You and Sister Zhao go… investigate!” Hanyu’s voice trembled.

“Why don’t you go, little vixen, instead of sending my darling?” The fox maiden, just approaching, stopped short in shock; a moment ago, there had definitely been no cave here.

“Vixen?!” Hanyu called back without turning. The fox maiden grumbled, “Alright, I get it…”

Yibing and Fat Girl approached cautiously. As the halo dimmed, the wavering entrance became more and more real, and by the moonlight they could clearly see three large characters carved above it: “Origin-Returning Cave.”

“This is the Origin-Returning Cave!” Yibing exclaimed, turning anxiously to Hanyu, who frowned but said nothing. The fox maiden glanced at her, then explained to Yibing, “The Origin-Returning Cave is a legendary immortal’s grotto. It’s said that an ancestor of the True Armor Sect attained immortality here, so the place is infused with the purest spiritual energy. Many cultivators have tried to find it, hoping to use the cave’s aura to achieve enlightenment. But no one has ever found it—not even disciples of the True Armor Sect, who have searched in vain!”

As she spoke, a chill wind rose not far behind them—the pursuers were closing in.

“Perfect, we can hide from those monsters inside!” Fat Girl blurted.

“Fat girl, you and I are monsters too…” The fox maiden glanced at Hanyu’s glare and rolled her eyes. “Why are you glaring at me? Fine, fine, I’m a monster, you’re half-immortal. Happy?”

The ghostly howls drew nearer. The fox maiden stamped her delicate foot. “Husband, carry the little vixen inside—quickly!” Before her words had faded, she was turning to head back into the fray.

“You’re not going anywhere! We’re not finished here!” Hanyu yanked her back.

“What do you want to finish?” the fox maiden snapped.

“Let’s just try it first! Maybe the immortals will sense your good deeds and won’t…” Fat Girl said suddenly.

“Yes, let’s try—we’re not here to plunder treasures. If Heaven is watching, we won’t be punished for this,” Yibing added, grabbing the fox maiden’s hand.

The fox maiden had been holding on through sheer will; truth be told, she could barely move now. She would never have risked this if not for Yibing and the others. With their urging, she finally agreed to try, tugging her clothes to cover as much skin as possible.

So, with Yibing and Fat Girl leading, Hanyu and the fox maiden followed closely as they crept toward the cave. Sure enough, as they neared the entrance, the opening began to tremble violently. Suddenly, two golden-armored celestial guards appeared before it—then vanished—then reappeared—again and again, a dozen times before finally disappearing for good.

“What does that mean? What does it mean?” Yibing wiped sweat from his brow. Hanyu and the fox maiden’s robes were soaked through as well.

“It probably means we can go in…” Fat Girl said, a bead of sweat glinting on her nose.

Hanyu was the first to test the entrance with her foot. Seeing no reaction, she strode forward bravely, as if marching to her doom. No one dared breathe until she took another safe step; only then did they all exhale in relief.

The fox maiden bit her lip anxiously. Hanyu, after all, was different from her. But seeing everyone’s hopeful faces, she screwed her courage up, closed her eyes, and leapt inside.

“Wow…” The others’ exclamations nearly frightened her soul out of her body.

She opened her eyes to find Hanyu watching her with mocking amusement. The fox maiden’s chest heaved with rage. “Little vixen, what are you laughing at?”

“Oh, big vixen, am I not allowed to laugh?” Hanyu retorted.

“Alright, enough, stop arguing,” Fat Girl said, her cheeks flushed as she looked at the two. “Can’t you call each other something else?” Hanyu and the fox maiden glared at each other but fell silent.

They looked around. Inside the cave, it was as bright as day, though there was no sign of torch or lamp. The smooth, mirror-like walls stretched straight ahead, the passage ending in a fork to left and right. Hanyu was about to move forward when a startled cry came from behind.

“The… the entrance… it’s gone…” Yibing pointed in panic. Sure enough, the shimmering entrance had vanished.

“Then we can only go forward,” Fat Girl said, unconcerned.

“Hmph, as long as I’m with my husband, so be it! Just one eyesore to deal with…” The fox maiden slipped her arm around Yibing’s, glancing sidelong at Hanyu.

“Eyesore, is it?” Hanyu rolled her eyes. “This is an immortal’s cave—best be careful…” The fox maiden felt a chill run down her neck.

A fierce argument broke out between Hanyu and the fox maiden over whether to go left or right, but in the end Fat Girl made the decision: left. The passage widened as they went, and after less than a hundred paces, they emerged into a spacious hall. There were seven exits in the walls, and in the center, a green stone table drew the eye. On its surface, a shallow, circular depression begged curiosity.

Exhausted, Yibing plopped down on it, Fat Girl quickly sitting beside him. Hanyu and the fox maiden exchanged a glare, then both leapt onto the table. The moment they touched the surface, it felt as if a thousand needles jabbed their backsides.

“Ow! My butt!” Both cried out, tumbling to the floor, sending Yibing and Fat Girl scrambling off as well. They gingerly touched the table a few times and tried sitting again, but felt nothing sharp.

“You two sit; we’ll just take a break here…” muttered the fox maiden. “This place is infused with spiritual energy—no wonder us fox and rabbit spirits can’t sit there.”

“Hey, what does your old flame want, anyway?” Hanyu swiftly changed the subject.

“What old flame?”

“That Jade-Faced Lord!” Hanyu’s tone was mocking.

“Bah! He’s not fit to be my old flame—I’m a married woman now…” The fox maiden’s anger turned to delight as she winked at Yibing, who turned away, blushing, while Fat Girl shook with laughter.

“A few days ago, while I was healing, a little demon brought a message: Jade-Faced Lord was inviting all the monsters for an important meeting. I had no intention of going, until I heard it was at Flat Horse Mountain—where my husband would be—so I hurried to find you!” She batted her eyes at Yibing.

“Tch, just admit you wanted to see your sweetheart, no need for excuses…” Hanyu muttered. The fox maiden pretended not to hear and continued, “Who knew, as soon as I arrived, I found out they were plotting to ambush the cultivators attending the assembly. I wanted to warn you, but there were too many skilled people—I couldn’t get close!”

“You just couldn’t be bothered, could you?” Hanyu teased without looking up.

“Will you ever stop?” The fox maiden was truly annoyed this time. Hanyu shrugged and said no more.

“There are so many experts in the True Armor Sect, and they dare try this?” Fat Girl interjected.

“True Armor Sect? I think they’re in league with the monsters!” the fox maiden sneered.

“Don’t say that!” Fat Girl protested, flustered; after all, her Misty Cloud Sect had deep ties with the True Armor Sect.

“You’re a monster, aren’t you?” The fox maiden didn’t care and pressed on, “I’m not making this up. Last night, I tried to warn you, but halfway up the mountain, I saw Jade-Faced Lord talking to a young Taoist—it looked like that Ye Boyang who spoke on stage today. I didn’t dare get closer, so I turned back.”

“Now that you mention it, I did wonder why, as soon as we entered the woods, all the True Armor Sect disciples vanished…” Hanyu mused.

“Maybe you were mistaken…” Fat Girl’s objection sounded weak. At first, getting separated in the woods was plausible, but for the disciples to remain unseen through all the fighting—that was suspicious.

“What would True Armor Sect gain by colluding with Jade-Faced Lord?” Yibing scratched his head.

“Isn’t it obvious? They’re using the monsters to weaken the other sects—clearing the way for themselves to dominate the world!” Hanyu rolled her eyes.

“Why would a cultivator want to dominate anything?” Yibing shook his head, baffled.

“Haven’t you seen the ‘True Armor Method’?” Hanyu chuckled.

“When you entered the forest, you couldn’t use spells or fly—that was all Jade-Faced Lord’s doing. If the True Armor Sect hadn’t tipped him off, how would he have known your path?” The fox maiden gave Fat Girl a sympathetic look. “We’d best focus on getting out of here. Who knows how your fellow disciples are faring…”

“What do you mean?” Fat Girl’s round face turned green.

“The True Armor Sect wants fame, the monsters want profit. Jade-Faced Lord is trying to capture cultivators to absorb their spiritual power and boost his own. If your sect siblings are caught, they’ll suffer—especially your senior sister…”

“What’ll happen to her?” Fat Girl leapt from the stone table.

“…She may end up as his captive bride…”

“That can’t happen! We have to get out, quickly!” Fat Girl turned to Yibing, her mind tormented by visions of He Lingchi veiled in crimson bridal robes.