Cherry Blossoms Upon a Wintry Sword

Chapter 36: Things in the mountains

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Although Xiliangshan Road is steep, there is a main mountain road that can take horses and wagons. Following this mountain road, you can climb over the mountains and reach the Central Plains area opposite. However, because of the complicated conditions in the mountains, there are occasional accidents on the mountain roads, especially in the rainy season in summer, when the soft rocks washed by the rain and the torrents often block the roads. In such a situation, it is more troublesome, and the caravans can only organize their own personnel to clear the road.

Fortunately, it was only early summer at this time, and there was not much rain. The carriage entered Xiliang Mountain along the mountain road. The surrounding scenery gradually became desolate, and finally only the dense forest was left.

Because of Mo Zhaocai, the journey is not lonely. Every day I can listen to him talk about strange things, and the journey is quite interesting.

What worries Lin Rufei is that as they go deeper and deeper into Xiliang Mountain, Gu Xuandu's condition seems to be getting worse. He seldom appeared on weekdays, and only spoke up once in a while. Lin Rufei thought he was unwilling to say it at first, but when he suddenly appeared in front of him one day, he was shocked to realize that Gu Xuandu's figure was actually It has faded a lot, and you can almost see the scene behind him through his body, it's almost... as if it is about to dissipate.

"Senior, are you alright?" Lin Rufei asked at an opportunity.

Gu Xuandu said, "It's not a big deal."

Before Lin Rufei let go of his breath, he added feebly, "It's just that he's dying."

Lin Rufei: "..."

Gu Xuandu said, "Just kidding."

Lin Rufei seriously thought that this sentence was a joke.

Gu Xuan saw Lin Rufei's dignified expression, and stopped teasing him, saying, "There is something on Xiliang Mountain that suppresses me more. The closer I get to that thing, the weaker I will be."

Lin Rufei heard the words, but remembered what Gu Xuandu had said to him before going down the mountain. He hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "Senior want this?"

Gu Xuandu turned his head to look at him. He didn't speak for a long time. Just when Lin Rufei thought he would not answer, he casually said: "Not yet, your body can't support it."

This is very clear. He really wants what is hidden in Xiliang Mountain, but in Lin Rufei's current state, there is no way to get it.

"After that, I will become weaker and weaker, and I won't even be able to show up, but it doesn't matter, your maids' cultivation base in the five realms is enough, and ordinary people can't touch you." Gu Xuan said lazily, "It's good to go out of the mountain. already."

Lin Rufei wanted to say something else, but Gu Xuandu's figure instantly faded, and it seemed that he could no longer maintain it. Lin Rufei was a little worried, but he didn't seem to be able to help much with Gu Xuandu. Just thinking about it, there were footsteps behind Lin Rufei. He turned to look, but Mo Zhaocai looked blank. He said, "Young Master Lin, who are you talking to?"

Lin Rufei said, "No one, is there anything?"

"Sister Fuhua made fresh food, let me come and call you." Mo Zhaocai said, "Let's go back?"

Lin Rufei said, "Okay."

It was already dark, the floating flowers lit a bonfire, took out the cooking utensils, and made hot food. Mo Zhaocai likes it very much, and eats it with relish. Lin Rufei has something in her heart, so she doesn't know what to eat.

"It's getting dark today, so be careful." Mo Zhaocai's mouth was bulging, and he said vaguely, "Beasts and bandits are prone to haunt at night, at least one person should be arranged to watch the night... The bonfire must not be extinguished. "

The maids arranged a vigil, while Lin Rufei simply washed and entered the carriage.

He couldn't sleep, sitting in the carriage, randomly selected a miscellaneous journal, and read it by candlelight. The wind was strong in the middle of the night, and the trees in the mountain forest rustled, and the wind horn sounded like a mournful ghost crying. Mo Zhaocai was already asleep in the corner. He pouted his buttocks and snored lightly. He didn't look good when he was sleeping. It was the first time that Lin Rufei saw someone sleeping in this position... But being able to sleep so soundly was very enviable.

Lin Rufei really couldn't sleep. After staying up for a long time, she was barely drowsy. She closed her eyes for a while, but heard a strange sound from outside the carriage. This sound was wailing and screaming at first, and it was obviously more than one person, intermittently, and the back of the person who heard it was cold.

Lin Rufei was awakened by the sound, raised her hand to open the curtain of the carriage, and saw Fuhua and Yurui who were facing the enemy.

"Master, why didn't you sleep?" Fu Hua asked in a low voice.

"I was woken up just after I fell asleep." Outside the carriage, the miserable human cries for help and screams became more and more clear, accompanied by the whistling mountain wind, which looked particularly terrifying, Lin Rufei said, "Where is the voice coming from. "

"It's nearby." Fu Hua said, "Do you want to go over and take a look?"

Lin Rufei pondered for a moment, but before she spoke, Mo Zhaocai, who had been sleeping well, suddenly jumped out, her face was full of horror, he said, "You can't go, you can't go, you won't be able to come back if you go. !"

"Why, do you know what happened?" Fu Hua frowned at him.

"It's either a mountain bandit or a beast, and the cries of so many people must be a big caravan. They can't resist, then something must have happened." Mo Zhaocai seemed to feel a little cold, and put his arms on his chest. Shivering, "Besides, there are other things in Xiliang Mountain..."

Lin Rufei said, "What?"

"I don't know." Mo Zhaocai said, "Most of the people I've seen are dead, and those who haven't died are crazy. I've seen that lunatic, and he's no longer a normal person..." He seemed to be frightened by his description. , there was even an indistinct cry in his voice, "Let's really not go."

Fuhua looked at Lin Rufei, indicating that she still obeyed Lin Rufei's orders.

"Let's go and have a look." Lin Rufei hesitated for a moment, "If it's just an ordinary mountain bandit, maybe I can help, but safety comes first, if you really see something that you can't deal with, don't panic and come back immediately. "

Fu Hua heard the words and said yes, turned around Yu Jian and went to the place where the voice came from.

Mo Zhaocai's face was pale, and he was talking to himself nervously, looking so scared that he wanted to dig a hole and bury himself directly.

Yu Rui was also uneasy, biting her lower lip, Lin Rufei became the calmest one among them, he walked to the edge of the bonfire, raised his hand and licked some firewood inside, the moist firewood entered The fire made a slight crackling sound, making the fire even bigger.

Floating flowers went quickly and came back quickly, but when she came back, her face was very ugly, and there was no blood on her lips. She saw Lin Rufei calling out to the son with a trembling voice.

It is rare to see a prudent floating flower with such an expression. Lin Rufei knew that the situation there must be unusual, and he said, "Don't worry, speak slowly."

"A lot of people died over there." Fu Hua said, "It seems that a large caravan was in trouble... But... But..." She swallowed heavily and said in a trembling voice, "When I went, everyone was almost dead. It's gone, but I saw neither bandits nor wild beasts..."

Mountain bandits seek money, and if they kill people, they will definitely not leave directly. Beasts eat meat, and their bones will definitely be eaten. But according to Fu Hua, what the suffering caravan encountered was neither mountain bandits nor beasts. , but... something else.

"Nothing?" Lin Rufei asked with a frown.

"No." Fu Hua trembled, "And... and... "

Lin Rufei said, "And what?"

Fu Hua said: "And all the people's eyes have been gouged out, whether they are alive or dead."

Everyone fell into silence immediately, Mo Zhaocai was the least timid, and had already started crying and wiping his tears, mumbling in his mouth to tell you not to see it, now it's alright, if you see something you shouldn't see, what will you do after that

According to Fu Hua's description, when she got there, the slaughter had come to an end, there were dead caravan members everywhere, and there were a few alive, whose eyes had turned into bloody holes, lying on the ground with a weak breath. The mourning, even if you think about it, you won't be able to live for long.

This picture is too strange and bizarre, and Fu Hua didn't dare to stop and turn around, and hurried back.

"I haven't noticed any information about other suspicious people around. Either that person's cultivation base is far higher than mine, or... there is something else." Fu Hua said in a low voice, "Sir, what shall we do next? Do it."

Lin Rufei pondered for a moment: "Let's take a look when it's dawn."

It was already midnight, and it was about an hour or two before dawn.

When something like this happened, everyone couldn't sleep well, so they chatted around the bonfire.

Mo Zhaocai said that the strange legends of these things on Mount Xiliang have been going on for a hundred years, and there are news every year, but it is true and false, and no one can tell. But he would rather believe it or not. He has always been in awe of these things on the mountain.

"I don't think this trip is going well. Why don't we go back first and leave after a few days." Mo Zhaocai whispered, "Otherwise, if something goes wrong..."

Lin Rufei said, "But isn't it harder to walk in the mountains in the rainy season?"

Mo Zhaocai sneered: "It's hard to walk, but it's better than losing your life."

In midsummer, it is the rainy season of Xiliang Mountain. At that time, the mountain is not only hot, but also frequent flash floods, which is even more dangerous.

Lin Rufei said: "Let's talk about it when it's dawn." He wanted to ask Gu Xuandu's opinion, but when such a thing happened, Gu Xuandu didn't show up, and it was not a good situation.

So several people waited until dawn.

After dawn, the voices of those people have completely disappeared.

Fu Hua bit her head and went to see it again. When she came back this time, the panic on her face turned into a dazed look, and said, "Young Master... all gone."

Lin Rufei: "Huh? Gone?"

"Yeah, there's nothing left." Fu Hua wondered, "Not only is there no body, but you can't even see blood..." She even questioned herself first, "I-I'm not mistaken, right?"

Everyone looked at her speechlessly, Mo Zhaocai touched his nose and said, "It's definitely not wrong to read it wrong. It is estimated that someone cleaned up the body..."

Floating Flower said: "Why do you need to clean up?"

Mo Zhaocai said, "In order for people to continue on that path?"

Lin Rufei sat silently by the side, and when they were almost done discussing, she said, "Let's go and have a look."

A few people followed carefully to the place where the accident happened last night. Sure enough, as Fu Hua said, there was no trace in the mountains and forests, as if the terrifying mourning last night was just their hallucination. Lin Rufei walked around the side of the road and saw no body or blood, but she still found some clues. He bent down and lightly stuck a smear of soil with his fingers, saying, "There used to be a bonfire here." Although the bonfire had been removed, there were still some traces of charred wood hidden in the soil.

"So I'm not mistaken?" Fu Hua said.

"No, something must have happened here last night." Lin Rufei looked around. The dense forest blocked most of the sunlight. Although the weather was sunny at this time, there was no hot dryness, but a hint of coolness. This kind of coolness will make people feel very comfortable on weekdays, but at this moment, it is full of ghosts.

"Sir, what should we do?" Yurui asked in a low voice.

Mo Zhaocai said, "Go back, go back, if you don't go back, you won't be able to walk this way..." He seemed to have thought of something, and suddenly he became energetic, and said to Lin Rufei, "Master Lin, otherwise Let's not take the high road and bypass this way, it is safer."

Lin Rufei said, "Do you know any other way?"

"Of course, I am very familiar with Xiliang Mountain and know all the roads, but the road is a bit narrow, and the carriage cannot pass through, so the caravans can't walk on weekdays." Mo Zhaocai said, "But although there are no people walking, But there are also advantages, that is, there are not many people who know the road, and it is not easy for accidents." He said, "Those things did not attack us, the targets were large caravans, and we were easily implicated when we walked on the road..."

Lin Rufei pondered: "Do you often take that road?"

"I don't go very often, but I happened to go there last month." Mo Zhaocai said, "It's just a little off. It can pass horses, but it's definitely safer than the main road."

One of the reasons why Xiliang Mountain is prone to accidents is that there is only one avenue, and the caravan has no other choice. If you want to attack the caravan, you only need to block the avenue. There are few of them, the goal is not obvious, and they are not afraid of ordinary beasts, so taking the path is actually a good choice.

"Alright." Lin Rufei agreed with Mo Zhaocai's proposal. If he went down the mountain now, I'm afraid he would have to wait until the rainy season is over and the autumn is cool before arriving in the Central Plains.

Moreover, seeing that Mo Zhaocai was so afraid of death, and would not joke about her own life, Lin Rufei agreed to his proposal and said that she would just go down the road.

Fu Hua and Yu Rui also stabilized their emotions and were no longer panicked. Although the maids have arrived, they grew up on the Kunlun Mountains, and they have never seen any bloody scenes, so they were only scared yesterday. However, they adjusted fairly quickly, and when they hit the road again, they were no longer afraid.

The carriage could not be used, so it was only possible to ride a horse.

Considering that the maids were all little girls, Lin Rufei asked Mo Zhaocai and herself to ride a horse, Mo Zhaocai was the little one sitting in front, and Lin Rufei was holding the reins behind him.

Mo Zhaocai was small, but he was carrying a large package. Lin Rufei asked casually what was in the package.

"Oh, it's just some things I need for my daily routine." Mo Zhaocai said, "I don't have a place to live. These guys who eat are all on their backs."

Lin Rufei blinked and said, "For example, that wooden shield that can resist all sharp blades?"

Mo Zhaocai's expression froze.

Lin Rufei said, "Is there any more? I'll make two more."

"It's gone, it's gone." Mo Zhaocai smiled embarrassedly, "It's a family heirloom..." When he mentioned the four words family heirloom, he was glared by Fu Hua next to him, so he had to lower his voice and said weakly. , "Of course, if the son really wants it, I can look for it again."

Lin Rufei said, "Can you give me something cheaper this time?"

Mo Zhaocai sneered: "You are my old customer, how can I dare to accept your money?"

Lin Rufei smiled half-smile.

Everyone followed the path that Mo Zhaocai said, and did not encounter any strange things. But this Mo Zhaocai is really powerful. This trail is almost covered by the weeds next to it. He can still find it accurately, which is worthy of his claim that he grew up on Xiliang Mountain.

The mountain is high and the road is far away. After walking for a day, the surrounding environment does not seem to have changed much, except that the forest is denser, and it almost seems to have entered a huge maze.

For ordinary people, this will always feel a little uneasy, but Fuhua and Yurui are both sword cultivators, so they don't feel that way.

Lin Rufei was very worried about Gu Xuandu's state all the way. It wasn't until night that he found another corner and called Gu Xuandu out.

At this time, Gu Xuandu's situation became more serious. He was almost on the verge of becoming transparent, his expression was sullen and drowsy, and when he saw Lin Rufei, he still didn't forget to joke: "Scared last night?"

Lin Rufei said, "What happened last night has something to do with what you want?"

"It probably has something to do with it." Gu Xuandu said, "But you don't have to worry too much, that thing won't hurt you. What's more troublesome is that other people who want to get it."

Lin Rufei pondered: "Can I be of any help?"

Gu Xuandu slowly shook his head.

Lin Rufei: "I can't help you at all?"

Gu Xuandu said: "I can't help."

"You lied again." Lin Rufei said, "You said that that thing wouldn't hurt me, how could I be of no help at all?"

Gu Xuandu was at a loss for words, and immediately shook his head: "It's too dangerous for you now."

Lin Rufei thought for a moment: "I want to try it."

Gu Xuandu frowned: "Don't be so stubborn, there will be a long time in the future..."

Lin Rufei said, "That thing is very important to you."

Gu Xuan stopped talking. He looked at Lin Rufei with some distress, as if he didn't quite understand how the young master of the Lin family, who was so easy to coax on weekdays, became so troublesome at this time, but he was in a very bad state. The shape is already very reluctant, and there is no time to reason with Lin Rufei in detail, so after tangled for a long time, he can only squeeze out a sentence: "You are not allowed to go."

Lin Rufei said: "Just try, if the situation is not right, I will give up immediately." For some reason, he had a feeling that that thing was very important to Gu Xuan.

Gu Xuan looked helpless and wanted to say something, but his figure had begun to fade, and even his voice was blurred. He said a very vague word and disappeared. Vaguely, Lin Rufei seemed to have heard the word Mo in this sentence, Mo, Mo family? Don't make money? Or don't do anything? Lin Rufei thought about it for a long time, but couldn't come up with an accurate answer.

Gu Xuandu disappeared completely, and Lin Rufei was not used to it for a while without his constant company.

He returned to the maids and saw that Mo Zhaocai was nibbling on the big bones roasted by floating flowers with relish. The bone was bought from the bottom of the mountain. It had been marinated long ago and kept in the ring. It was taken out at this time, and some spices were added. After it was cooked, it was served as dinner. Lin Rufei had never been interested in meat food, she just ate a little and gave the rest to Mo Zhaocai.

Mo Zhaocai really likes gnawing on bones, his face is full of tears, and he doesn't know how he did it. He just gnawed a bone clean, and even licked the oil flower seed, before he reluctantly put it down. . After putting it down, he noticed the dumbfounded eyes from the side, and felt a little embarrassed at once, and whispered: "Laughing at the joke, the dishes made by Sister Fuhua are really delicious, I haven't eaten such delicious meat for a long time. , couldn't hold back for a while..."

Fu Hua smiled and said, "I also brought some. Let's bake it together at noon tomorrow. The weather is hot, so I can't keep it for too long."

"That's really great." Mo Zhaocai said, digging a hole and burying his beloved big bone stick. Lin Rufei looked at him and thought that this child was quite cute, that is It seems that the identity is not as simple as he shows it, if the word Mo in Gu Xuandu's mouth refers to him, it will be more noteworthy.

After dinner, while Mo Zhaocai was going to the forest to have a puppy, Lin Rufei told Fuhua and Yurui to pay more attention to this little guy.

Fu Hua nodded, but still had some doubts, saying that Mo Zhaocai didn't have a trace of sword energy in his body, could it be possible to toss out any flowers.

Although Lin Rufei didn't know what secrets there was in Mo Zhaocai, it was always good to pay more attention.

Mo Zhaocai solved the problem and came back, squatting beside the campfire and poking the dirt with a stick.

It was getting late, and everyone was tired from not sleeping all night yesterday. It's just that there is no carriage and can only sleep on the ground. Fu Hua has long thought of this, took out the rope, pulled three hammocks by the trees next to them, and put soft cushions on them.

It was the first time that Lin Rufei slept in such a hammock. He was lying on the bed and saw a bright full moon floating in the dark sky, with pale clouds scattered around the full moon.

Drowsiness welled up in Lin Rufei's heart, he slowly closed his eyes and fell into a long-lost dream.

In the dream, it seemed that someone was shouting and screaming. The blood gradually covered the entire field of vision. Lin Rufei woke up abruptly, and there was a sharp cry of floating flowers in her ears: "Young Master—Young Master, run away—"

Lin Rufei sat up from the hammock and saw Fuhua and Yurui who were fighting bloody battles with swords, as well as the blood-colored balls flying all over the sky.

He looked carefully, only to find that those blood-colored circular objects turned out to be bloody eyeballs, staring at the spreading black pupils, frantically attacking the two maids. And Mo Zhaocai, who was sleeping beside him, was shivering in the corner of the wall. When he saw him awake, he let out a cry: "Master Lin - come with me quickly - they won't last long!"

Before Lin Rufei could react, Mo Zhaocai ran to his side and grabbed him: "Quick, run!"

Lin Rufei said, "Floating flowers—"

"Young Master, go first! We will come later!" Fu Hua responded.

Lin Rufei knew that staying here at this time would be a drag, so she had to take a step and run away with Mo Zhaocai.

The author has something to say: Gu Xuandu: It doesn't seem to work...

Lin Rufei: What can I do to keep you from disappearing

Gu Xuandu: Marry me

Lin Rufei: Leave a piece of clothes before you disappear, and I will make a tomb for you.

Gu Xuandu: ? ? ? ? Thank you to the little angel who voted for the king or irrigated the nutrient solution for me~