Chapter 31: Chapter 31 Yizhuang Chapter 31: Chapter 31 Yizhuang Editor: Atlas Studios From Luoxia City to Yuqing Mountain, the journey is not a short one. After Su Mo returned home a while ago, he brought back over 400 taels of silver, which allowed Uncle Fu to pick out two good horses in the city.
Even if one were to travel day and night at full speed, this stretch of road would take at least half a month to traverse.
If one were to travel by day and rest at night, and encounter some delays along the way, one would need to prepare for a month’s journey at the least.
A few days into the trip, it was smooth sailing.
Apart from occasionally encountering some robbers on the path, there were no major incidents.
As for those robbers…
They fled as soon as they saw the Bright Silver Spear in Yang Xiaoyun’s hand.
Some who recognized them came over to greet and curiously asked why Yang Xiaoyun had not led a team with flying banners?
After knowing that this trip was just accompanying the Ziyang Escort Agency, they all looked at Su Mo with strange expressions.
However, with Yang Xiaoyun’s reputation preceding them, they naturally wouldn’t make things difficult, thus they were allowed to pass through smoothly.
As for the lurking danger hidden in the dark, there was no trace of it…
…
…
On this particular day, the two were nearing Funiu Mountain.
This area was desolate with rare human activity, yet it was an inevitable route to Yuqing Mountain.
No matter which way one detoured, it would only add unnecessary distance.
The two of them intended to quickly pass through Funiu Mountain’s territory, but unexpectedly, a heavy rain caught them off guard.
The people were not bothered, but the slippery road in the rain could cause the horses to fall, which would truly be distressing.
Left with no choice, they had to seek shelter from the rain.
However, this region had once been the site of continuous fierce battles and disputes in Jianghu, resulting in many deaths.
The ordinary people living here, to avoid getting caught in the crossfire, had to flee and scatter in all directions.
Later on, it was continuously rumored that too many people had died in this area, and that the unappeased spirits of the deceased lingered in the human world, causing misfortune.
Regardless of whether the rumors were true, the existence of such tales indeed deterred people from returning to reside here.
Now, due to years of neglect and disrepair, this place was mostly dilapidated buildings and ruins; finding a piece of tile to shield oneself from the elements was not an easy task.
Fortunately, a little further ahead, they spotted a relatively intact building hidden among the trees.
However, when they approached it, Su Mo and Yang Xiaoyun paused momentarily.
“Yizhuang?”
Such places are generally used to store coffins.
For those who die in foreign lands and wish to return to their roots, they often send a letter or a verbal message before death, asking their families to come and retrieve their bodies for burial.
But in the meantime, these bodies cannot be interred, nor can they be laid to rest just anywhere.
They would be taken to Yizhuang for temporary placement.
However, there are also people who die too suddenly to send a message back.
After death, their bodies would also be placed in Yizhuang for a while. If no one claims them after a long period, they would ultimately be buried in mass graves.
Unexpectedly, even though no one lived around Funiu Mountain anymore, this Yizhuang was still relatively intact.
Yet at this moment, the sight inevitably made one’s heart feel heavy.
However, Su Mo and Yang Xiaoyun, both skilled in martial arts and traveling Jianghu, did not believe in ghosts and spirits.
Thus, although they found it somewhat unexpected, they did not take it too seriously.
They simply led the horses into Yizhuang.
Yizhuang was not small, and there was a porch at the entrance. Half of the porch was collapsed, but it was still just passable.
Past the porch was a courtyard overgrown with weeds, battered by the rain, leaning in all directions.
It was clear that this charitable hospice had not been taken care of for a long time.
On both sides of the courtyard were the east and west wings, but both were empty. The roof tiles above were incomplete, with many leaks. It was not suitable for people to stay, but horses could be barely accommodated.
The main hall in the center was originally a shrine, with an offering table and plaques, but now the table was also dilapidated, and the plaques were askew and covered with dust.
On one side of the main hall, there were several coffins. However, due to the spaciousness, it didn’t feel cramped but rather gave off an eerie and desolate vibe.
Yang Xiaoyun went to the backyard to take a look and found that all the rooms there had collapsed. The two simply dismantled some broken wood and set up a spot in the middle of the main hall, lit a fire, and warmed up the dry food they had bought when passing through the market town earlier, making do with a meal.
After being well fed and watered, the sky outside had also darkened.
Su Mo stretched his limbs and came to the front of the main hall: “How long will this rain last?”
“This rain came suddenly; it won’t last long. It should stop tonight… but if we want to leave, we’ll still have to wait until tomorrow.
“It’s inconvenient to travel at night, especially with the roads being wet and slippery.”
“It seems that tonight we can only make do for a stay within this hospice.”
Su Mo smiled lightly: “Old rules, you rest first, and you take over in the second half of the night.”
“Alright.”
Yang Xiaoyun did not hesitate at all.
When two people are out and about, they must be careful in strange environments. This hospice is remote, which is quite reassuring, but there are also dangerous opponents lurking in the dark, who knows when they will jump out and cause trouble?
Therefore, during the day they travel, and at night the two of them always take turns to rest.
Whether in the wilderness or within an inn in a town, it is the same.
Yang Xiaoyun said rest and rested; over the years of traveling, she had trained herself to do so.
Time waits for no one, and people like them can’t afford to indulge in drowsiness. In crucial times, if you can’t sleep, a small moment will pass in the blink of an eye.
Therefore, this time she closed her eyes, able to fall asleep as soon as she said.
Soft snores arose quickly, entwining with the sound of the rain outside in the quiet hospice.
Su Mo, however, sat cross-legged and silently circulated his Inner Strength.
The Longxiang Wisdom he obtained was at the state of Great Perfection. On the day he obtained it, he had already converged all his Inner Strength and made it his own. Since then, he’s been able to use it as naturally as moving his arms, with no failure.
He was now silently cultivating the Inner Strength of the Ziyang Sect.
It is named the Bright Sun Heart Technique!
This Inner Strength does not count as the peak within the Ziyang Sect but is certainly not ordinary.
It cannot be compared with the sect’s divine skill, the Nine Purple Fierce Sun Burning Sky Technique, but it has its unique aspects.
Because of the Longxiang Wisdom, the meridians and acupoints within his body were almost all opened. When his Inner Strength circulated, the cultivation speed of this Bright Sun Heart Technique was fast.
Originally, he was only at the Third Level of Cultivation, but now he was only one step away from the Ninth Level of Perfection.
His ears twitched lightly, and Su Mo suddenly opened his eyes.
At this time it was deep into the night, yet unexpectedly a fierce wind began outside the window, howling violently.
The horses placed in the side rooms also emitted a series of tense neighing sounds.
The air seemed to faintly carry a sound…
Listening attentively, it turned out to be a series of faint crying sounds.
The voices were heart-wrenching, overlapping, coming together like a curtain.
At first, it sounded as if it was in the far distance, but in the blink of an eye, it seemed to reach beside the ear, intrusively drilling into the head.
Su Mo’s eyes flashed slightly, but he remained composed and spoke softly:
“I wonder which master would be here pretending to be a god, playing such a joke with us two who are just wandering martial artists at the bottom of Jianghu.”
His voice was not loud, yet it was propelled with Inner Strength; in an instant, the surrounding ghostly cries were all silenced.
