Yan Budu was dead, the soft fish monster on the pipe fell into the grass, and his heart sank into darkness.
Then the darkness shattered, and the two of them were left with nothing.
The magic circle stopped working, and the hillside graves disappeared. The scene in front of him changed from Zongwu Mountain to Huilian Mountain, and below him were only rolling clouds and a bottomless abyss.
The inner demon returns, the headlights are lit, and the white thorns reappear.
The transparent stone platform was about to collapse. Yin Ci used the last bit of strength to hold Shi Jingzhi and rolled back to the edge of the cliff. Shi Jingzhi was still staring blankly into space, as if he was trying hard to recall something.
When the two of them landed on the ground, Yin Ci failed to turn Shi Jingzhi into a cushion. He fell sideways, his back hitting the stone, and his head was buzzing.
In the memory of Zongwu Mountain, Yan Budu left behind countless crucial clues.
For example, he really did hide the visual flesh; for example, even if there are countless maps, he still needs a "key"; for example, Yan Budu really had contact with a fairy - that man was a great hero after all, and he would not mistake a mortal who drank the fairy wine for a fairy.
But at that moment, Yin Ci was unable to think deeply about those clues.
The spider mole on Yan Budu's chest was the size of a copper coin and dark blue in color, exactly the same as Shi Jingzhi's.
The two are extremely talented, obsessive and lustful, and are born with the same rare and strange disease. Could it be a coincidence
Yin Ci had also seen Yan Budu's appearance when he was in the state of "determining his desire".
More than 20 years ago, Kushan Juyi Valley. Before his death, his dumb man was covered with blue and black blood, his mouth and nose were bleeding black blood, and he had a high fever. Even the slightest touch would cause him to scream in pain.
I once had a high fever when I was young, and after the fever, these things appeared.
... Could this also be a coincidence
How can it be.
Yin Ci was lying on the edge of the cliff. He did not get up immediately, nor did he allow Shi Jingzhi to get up. He put one arm around Shi Jingzhi's waist, holding him firmly on his body.
Shi Jingzhi stared at Yin Ci blankly, with a dazed look on his face.
Shadow's hand waved, trying in vain to grasp the white thorn. The thorn was covered with sharp thorns, and the stinging pain from the outside was pressing in from all directions, but Yin Ci had no intention of letting go.
The two spent a month together in their state of mind, but outside, only a few sticks of incense had passed. The sun's position hadn't changed much, the sky was clear, the breeze was cool, and everything was the same as before.
Yin Ci watched Kong Shi pass away coldly, and the devil did not save him. Having seen everything in the world, he thought he was used to staying out of it. Unexpectedly, he was hit by the past now, and his throat suddenly became sour, blocking thousands of words.
It turns out that his "human heart" has not yet had time to rot completely.
Yes, he had thought about it. If his dumb child had survived, it would have been just as big as this. Who could have expected that the random thought at the beginning would become a reality at this moment - with the strange disease as the lead and fate as the thread, he seemed to have caught the ghost of 24 years ago.
However, there are still a few doubts. The mute had seen his face before, but Shi Jingzhi did not recognize him. He saw with his own eyes the mute's remains being eaten and chewed into pieces, but Shi Jingzhi was standing there. Yin Ciwen would not be easily fooled, and Shi Jingzhi's origins were a mystery and his humanity was broken, which must have been deliberately done by someone.
What exactly is Yanbudukou's "fixed desire"? Who is hiding behind his "strange disease"
Yin Ci closed his eyes, and when he spoke again, his tone returned to normal. He confirmed the last question word by word -
"You said you had a high fever when you were three years old, and then you got this strange mole. How much do you remember about the time you had the high fever?"
Shi Jingzhi frowned, "I don't remember much, even the things before the high fever. I only heard about the high fever from others."
Afterwards, without Yin Ci's reminder, Shi Jingzhi continued speaking on his own.
"Now it seems that his symptoms are quite similar to those of Yan Budu... But I have never heard of the term 'fixed desire'. He definitely knows more about this disease than I do."
It's a pity that Yan Budu had already been buried in the mountains, and now I'm afraid his body cannot be found.
Shi Jingzhi had probably thought of this as well. Although he was excited about the new clues, he remained calm and did not become ecstatic.
"Aci, we're fine now, just let me go first." Shi Jingzhi patted Yin Ci's arm.
But Yin Ci did not let go.
It doesn’t matter if there is no clue from Yan Budu. It doesn’t matter if Shi Jingzhi can’t remember his past.
The person was already by his side, and he would always find a way to find out the truth of the past. Yin Ci held Shi Jingzhi's head with one hand, and his five fingers dug deep into his black hair, pressing him into his arms.
He lay like that between heaven and earth, gazing straight at the sky.
Being dumb was not a game for him to kill time. That child was more like a nail, nailing the last bit of his soul to the human world. Although Yin Ci did not think that "living like this" was a blessing, it was much better than being deeply mad and indulging in killing.
He had made an unfulfilled promise to the mute, and now he had a chance to make amends.
The world was in chaos, and in the dark, he once again touched a corner of destiny. His heart, which had been silent for many years, shrank again, causing a dull pain.
The young boy was innocent, there was no way he was being played with intentionally. So no matter who was behind this, if they dared to snatch the boy from him by deception, they would have to pay the price.
If it was a mortal, he would kill him. If it was an immortal, he would make him fall into the mortal world.
Once he was pressed into his arms, Shi Jingzhi finally realized that something was wrong with Yin Ci: "What's wrong with you?"
"I'm thinking about Master's illness." Yin Ci was still looking at the sky.
"We can talk about it later. If you are tired, you can rest here first. I have to go see Su Si and Yan Qing... Ah Ci?"
"Yes." Yin Ci did not loosen his arms, "With the help of you and me, and the clues we have, we will definitely be able to find out the truth about this strange disease."
After saying that, Yin Ci lowered his head and gently brushed his lips across the top of Shi Jingzhi's head. His eyes passed through the person in front of him and looked at the shadow from twenty years ago.
You are dumb, and you can't express your wish anyway. I promise you to be free from worries and fears, and live a hundred years.
Yin Ci curled up the corners of his mouth.
Just as Shi Jingzhi asked in his heart, he could really be that "immortal who sends people on their last journey".
"... Shi Jingzhi, I promise you a life without worries and fears, and a life of a hundred years."
He wanted to fight against fate again - he didn't just want him to live a few more years, he wanted him to die of old age.
Shi Jingzhi took a deep breath and pressed his forehead.
The moment he heard that, his head was aching again, as if something was trying to break out of its shell but couldn't find a way, causing his head to swell and hurt.
So he could only grimly get away with it: "Good disciple, you don't need to live to be a hundred years old, ninety-nine is enough."
Yin Ci's eyes were complicated, and he let go of him with a smile: "That's fine."
An hour and a half passed.
The master and his disciple boiled snow, one tried to heal the other, and finally they woke up the two unconscious servants.
Yan Qing and Su Si's inner demons did not disappear, but at least they returned to normal. However, their wounds were real, and the situation of Kushan Sect became even worse.
Su Si was still groaning as he touched his wound. When Yan Qing woke up, he saw the pale thorns all over the ground. He thought he was still dreaming, so he simply closed his eyes, turned over and continued to faint.
Seeing those ghost eyes again, Shi Jingzhi felt complicated.
After a while, Sect Leader Shi cleared his throat and said in a dignified tone: "... Yan Qing, if you don't get up, I will deduct your monthly salary."
Yan Qing suddenly sat up in shock, his back straighter than Shi Jingzhi's flagpole.
Seeing that everyone was awake, Shi Jingzhi put his hands behind his back and started to act like a big shot again: "Aci and I have already defeated the two masters of anger and ignorance, you don't have to worry about it anymore. But the Buddha Heart Formation is a hindrance. After you have rested well, we can go to Jianchen Temple as soon as possible and take a break."
Yan Qing nodded obediently, and treated Su Si as usual, as if the inner demon scene had never existed. However, Su Si scratched his head, and glanced at Yan Qing from time to time, his face flushed red.
In the end, his vigilance still defeated the idea of "being honest for a while": "Master, what are those things all over the floor? Can you at least explain it to me?"
Shi Jingzhi looked friendly and said without hesitation: "The remains left by the two masters of anger and stupidity."
Yin Ci was stunned for a moment, then let himself laugh out loud. He was so distracted that he only thought about the mute and almost forgot about his fox skin.
How nice, he couldn't help but think.
Although Shi Jingzhi was broken, he was not depressed or passive. He was still as full of life as before. He could still hold his hand and leave a little light behind.
There's still time for everything.
The sun sets and the night passes without incident.
The magic that Yan Budu had planted had stopped, and apart from the various inner demons, there was nothing else to block the four people's way. The mountain road was long, and Shi Jingzhi took the opportunity to talk about his state of mind and explain the purpose of this trip.
The surroundings were peaceful and all the disciples were there, so Master Shi was relieved. However, compared to Shi, his disciple had undergone some subtle changes -
Since leaving the magic circle, Shi Jingzhi always felt that there was something wrong with the way Yin Ci looked at him. The Buddha Heart Formation took effect again, and his disciple's inner demons did not move, but his eyes did not darken again.
But whenever they were on the road, Yin Ci would still grab his wrist in a natural way, holding it neither lightly nor heavily. From this point of view, the matter of "disciple regaining sight" seemed to be just his own illusion.
However, this feeling was so comfortable that Shi Jingzhi didn't want to ask and just let the other party lead him.
Yan Qing had not experienced the state of mind of that month, and was still getting used to the current situation. He supported the half-snake-tailed Su Si, and felt something strange: "Since we have got the clue, why do we still have to go up the mountain?"
"Although Ah Ci and I have seen the cave and the desolate tomb, Zongwu Mountain is so huge that it is impossible to search every inch."
Shi Jingzhi's tone was light.
"Master Kongshi is a famous monk in Jianchen Temple. Over the years, Jianchen Temple has never given up searching for his remains. When it comes to the location of the final battle between Yan Budu and Kongshi, no one knows it better than Jianchen Temple."
"That's right." Yin Ci took the initiative to add, "And there is one thing I am very concerned about - Yan Budu took Master Kongshi's sword away, but did not bring it back to the grave. Yan Budu never does useless things..."
"… There is probably a secret on that stone sword. Besides, he placed the clue at the entrance of Jianchen Temple. We got the clue and walked back halfway. No matter how we look at it, we seem to be missing something."
Shi Jingzhi smiled and continued the conversation.
"This is about Yan Budu, no matter how subtle the clue is, it's worth a try."
Hearing these words, Su Si paused. He looked at Shi Jingzhi's back, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Ah Si?" Yan Qingzheng was pulling him up the stairs and was the first to sense something was wrong.
"I ran away for a while." Su Si frowned slightly, "Let's go to Jianchen Temple first... Don't worry, I won't hide anything from you anymore."