Dan Tie

Chapter 162 Snowflakes Drift, North Winds Roar

Wang Yang’s feet froze. His body instinctively shivered…

This voice…

Why did it sound vaguely familiar?

For some reason, Wang Yang’s mind flashed back to the terrifying scene from that night…

Could it be…

Has that monster returned?

Logically, Wang Yang should have fled immediately at this point.

But humans are often such peculiar creatures…

Perhaps because tempting fate wouldn’t trigger it, or perhaps to prove he wasn’t insane.

Wang Yang, as if possessed, walked into the abandoned building.

Soon, Wang Yang saw what was happening.

The familiar half-human, half-flower…

The familiar blood-stained branches…

The familiar tattered corpses…

Oh, wait.

This time there was one more corpse than last time…

"Slap, slap, slap—!"

Wang Yang slapped himself hard several times, even swelling his own face!

It wasn’t an illusion.

It was real!

It was truly the same monster from last time!

And it had eaten more people!

And its manner of eating was even more terrifying than before!

Hearing the sound of the slaps, Zi Yu slowly turned its head…

Or rather, its entire head of flower petals turned…

“Oh… it’s you again…?”

Petals, full of fangs, gently opened and closed, still stained with scraps of flesh.

As Zi Yu spoke, a few pieces of meat slid down, about to fall to the ground.

A thin, thorny vine extended from a petal, coiled the meat back, chewed it haphazardly a few times, and swallowed it…

No screams, no cries.

Wang Yang’s eyes rolled back, and he collapsed onto the ground…

"Bang—!"

"Hahaha… still… so timid… hiccup…"

Zi Yu let out a burp, laughing heartlessly.

However, Zi Yu also realized that this place wasn’t very concealed, so it quickly sped up its eating.

After finishing, as usual, it swallowed the blood-stained soil from the ground, then transformed into human form and carried Wang Yang away.

The next morning.

An outer disciple opened his eyes.

He rubbed his temples in distress.

Ever since Senior Brother Wang Yang had tormented him last time, he had been having nightmares.

He often dreamt that he would wake up to find Senior Brother Wang Yang lying in his bed, screaming and grabbing his shoulder, shouting about monsters…

This had severely impacted his sleep quality, making it impossible to cultivate properly.

“I need to find a way to resolve this, otherwise I’ll go mad before Brother Wang does…”

The outer disciple muttered, preparing to get dressed and get up.

As soon as he reached out, he felt something was off about the texture!

Why did it feel a bit soft and warm?

Puzzled, he lowered his head to look…

His entire being instantly soured!

Holy crap!

How did Senior Brother Wang Yang get into my bed again?

Am I still dreaming?

"Slap, slap, slap!"

After a series of slaps, he had no choice but to accept the reality.

He wasn’t dreaming…

Senior Brother Wang Yang had indeed ended up in his bed again…

Fortunately, Wang Yang wasn’t awake this time. He quietly snuck out to report it.

Not long after, True Lord Zi Yun arrived with several elders.

True Lord Zi Yun frowned and sent a stream of true qi into Wang Yang’s body.

“Mmm…” Wang Yang slowly woke up: “Where am I… Monster! The monster has appeared again!!!”

“Wang Yang… are you having a nightmare?” True Lord Zi Yun asked cautiously.

“Sect Master?” Wang Yang paused, then exclaimed excitedly, “Sect Master! The monster from last night has appeared again! And this time it ate two people! I saw it with my own eyes, it’s absolutely true!!!”

“Alright, alright, I understand.” True Lord Zi Yun sent another surge of true qi to stabilize his emotions. “Then take us to where you discovered the monster.”

Although he suspected Wang Yang was likely experiencing an episode, True Lord Zi Yun was willing to believe him one more time.

And so, Wang Yang led everyone to the abandoned building.

True Lord Zi Yun and the elders carefully scanned the area, still finding no residual demonic energy.

Unless a truly powerful great demon had been here, it would be impossible to escape their detection.

The problem was…

Frankly speaking, powerful great demons wouldn’t even bother with them…

Moreover, any great demon that could escape their senses would be at an unfathomable level of cultivation.

Unless a cultivator actively attacked them, they wouldn’t stoop to casually eating people anymore.

After all, the more evil they committed, the harder their future heavenly tribulations would be.

Only those minor demons lurking below the Nascent Soul realm would engage in such undignified behavior.

As for the disturbed soil on the ground,

That was easily explained.

The so-called monster was merely a hallucination Wang Yang saw, and his struggle with the hallucinated monster would inevitably leave some traces.

It was just that Wang Yang's combat power wasn't very high; otherwise, he might have even demolished the surrounding area.

True Lord Zi Yun glanced at Wang Yang meaningfully.

What was coming, had finally arrived!

Had the medicinal effects of Second Elder, hidden within him, finally erupted completely?

Had their Zi Yun Sect been cursed?

Why were those skilled in alchemy so ruthlessly tormented?

Never mind!

The priority now was to deal with Wang Yang’s problem!

“Wang Yang, rest assured, this Sect Master will thoroughly investigate the matter of the monster!”

True Lord Zi Yun said with a serious expression:

“By the way, I’ve observed some progress in your cultivation recently. There’s a place that can help you break through.”

“Sect Master, I think you’re tricking me!” Wang Yang replied firmly. “None of you believe me, you all think I’ve lost my mind!”

After understanding the situation, Wang Yang was now extremely vigilant.

Furthermore, after repeated stimuli and a broken heart, Wang Yang had adopted a "what the heck, I give up" attitude!

“You’re overthinking it!” True Lord Zi Yun gently patted his shoulder, secretly channeling true qi. “This Sect Master keeps his word. I will definitely investigate thoroughly! And none of us distrust you; we all believe everything you say is true!”

“That’s right!” the elders chimed in. “Wang Yang, don’t worry!”

For some reason, Wang Yang suddenly felt that the Sect Master and the elders’ images had become much more imposing.

It was as if they were emitting a peaceful, holy light.

They looked incredibly sincere, not at all like they were trying to deceive him.

Could it be…

Was I really overthinking things?

“Wang Yang, leave the search for the monster to us.” True Lord Zi Yun secretly sent another surge of true qi. “During this time, you should focus on breaking through. Although alchemists don’t have high cultivation requirements, if one’s cultivation is insufficient, they cannot refine higher-level elixirs, can they?”

“That’s true…” Wang Yang mumbled vaguely. “If one’s cultivation is insufficient, one cannot precisely control the furnace temperature or fuse the medicinal ingredients…”

“So, you should take this opportunity to break through,” True Lord Zi Yun coaxed. “Don’t think too much about it.”

Throughout the entire process, Wang Yang was in a dazed state.

When he came to his senses again, he found himself in a cave in the back mountain.

“Wang Yang, this cave is one of the most spiritually rich treasures in our sect,” True Lord Zi Yun said with a kind smile. “Cultivating here will make your breakthrough twice as effective.”

“Sect Master… I…” Wang Yang felt something was amiss, but couldn’t quite recall what it was.

“Just go in with peace of mind!” True Lord Zi Yun gently pushed him inside. “Ordinary people don’t have the privilege of coming here. It’s only because I see your contributions to the Zi Yun Sect in alchemy that I’m making an exception for you!”

After saying that, True Lord Zi Yun and the elders all gave Wang Yang a look that said, ‘We have high hopes for you, keep it up.’

“Thank you, Sect Master and esteemed elders, for your guidance,” Wang Yang bowed and walked into the cave.

After Wang Yang’s figure completely disappeared, True Lord Zi Yun quickly formed a hand seal.

A barrier silently appeared, sealing the cave entrance tightly.

“Sect Master…” The Seventh Elder, who was closest to Second Elder, felt a pang of unease. “Is it really appropriate to confine Wang Yang in a place meant for serious offenders…?”

“I’ve already deactivated the tormenting formations inside,” True Lord Zi Yun said helplessly. “Besides, do you have a better solution?”

“That’s true…” The Seventh Elder could only acquiesce.

In their eyes, Wang Yang’s mental state clearly followed in Second Elder’s footsteps.

They were mere mortal cultivators; they couldn’t possibly decipher Second Elder’s ‘underworld medicinal effects’…

“Everyone, don’t think too much about it. We’re just letting Wang Yang be alone for a while, so he doesn’t accidentally harm other disciples in the sect.”

True Lord Zi Yun retracted his hand seal.

“As long as my precious disciple returns from the Imperial City, this matter can be smoothly resolved?!”

“Sect Master is absolutely right!”

Upon mentioning Ye Fan, the elders were filled with confidence!

Now, everyone in the Zi Yun Sect placed immense trust in Ye Fan; in their hearts, he had become an omnipotent being!

Even if someone were to later claim that Ye Fan had a child, their first reaction wouldn’t be doubt, but curiosity about whether it was a boy or a girl…

Before leaving, True Lord Zi Yun took out a stone tablet and erected it at the cave entrance.

Although this was where the Zi Yun Sect confined serious offenders, because the Zi Yun Sect was relatively peaceful, this place hadn’t been used for a very, very long time.

So long that most disciples didn't even know it existed.

Even if they passed by, they would mistake it for an ordinary mountain cave.

True Lord Zi Yun manipulated his true qi, and several large characters appeared on the stone tablet.

“Dangerously Forbidden Area, Do Not Approach!”

A few hours later.

Wang Yang temporarily paused his cultivation.

His true qi was running a bit low; he needed to take some medicine.

As he took out a pill and was about to eat it, Wang Yang finally remembered why something felt off earlier.

Apart from taking elixirs, cultivators in seclusion also needed to absorb energy from spirit stones.

The Sect Master knew he didn't have many spirit stones himself, so he should have prepared some for him, right?

“Perhaps the Sect Master forgot,” Wang Yang muttered, walking towards the cave entrance. “Besides, the Sect Master is an elder; as a junior, it’s not good for me to trouble the elders with my concerns.”

Wang Yang’s pleasant mood vanished completely upon reaching the cave entrance.

Why was there a restriction at the cave entrance?

Why wasn’t he allowed to leave?

Was I…

Confined???

At this moment, Wang Yang’s heart sank to the bottom once more.

His entire being felt like it was plunged into a cold abyss!

So…

Everything that was said before was just a lie…

Just to trick me into coming here and confining me…

From beginning to end…

They never believed me…

They all thought I had lost my mind, that I had gone crazy…

“Let me out!” Wang Yang frantically pounded on the restriction at the cave entrance, shouting with all his might. “My mind is fine, I’m not crazy!”

“Bang—!”

“Bang—!”

“Bang—!”

However, no matter how much he shouted and pounded, he received no response…

Half an hour later.

“No—!”

“No—!”

“No—!”

Accompanied by roars, Wang Yang collapsed on the ground in despair.

His mind was blank, his eyes gradually lost focus.

He saw no hope…

In his ears, a faint melody drifted.

Melodious.

Sorrowful.

“Snowflakes flutter, the north wind howls…”

“The world is vast and boundless…”

“A sprig of cold plum stands proud in the snow…”