Chapter 70 – The Sixth Hour

The water flowed silently.

Chou Bodeng’s pale face was faintly visible amidst the red robes and inky water. They felt as if they were facing a forgotten, solitary soul from millennia ago, one that had drowned in the depths of history, as still as an illusion. Lu Jing suddenly felt afraid. He ignored the churning of his qi and blood and swam towards him with all his might.

Four ripples converged.

Bang!

Lu Jing collided with Lou Jiang halfway, and Monk Budu collided with Half-Diviner.

The four of them looked at each other, only then realizing that their reactions were nearly identical. They had all rushed over in a hurry to confirm if Chou Bodeng was still alive.

As they got closer, they discovered that the chill around Chou Bodeng was sinister and bone-piercing. His suspended posture was also exceptionally abnormal, like a pale, unsheathed longsword standing in mid-air. If they approached rashly, they would be wounded by its sharp aura.

Monk Budu clasped his hands together and recited scriptures at a rapid pace. The scriptures transformed into golden shackles, layering one after another upon the Clarity Seeds. The karmic obstruction in the water gradually dissipated, and the black mist slowly stopped seeping from Chou Bodeng’s fingertips and robes. Finally, Monk Budu’s eyes flew open, and he let out a sharp cry.

The other three felt a rumbling in their ears, as if a host of vajras were shouting in unison.

In that moment, the meat-and-wine-loving monk seemed like a Buddha incarnate.

The golden light receded completely.

Chou Bodeng finally relaxed from his tense, suspended state. Monk Budu checked his pulse.

“Thank goodness,” Monk Budu said. “Benefactor Chou is unharmed.”

“I told you so,” Lu Jing said with a sigh of relief. “A scourge lasts for a thousand years. A scourge like Young Master Chou, the likes of which has never been seen before and will never be seen again, is clearly destined for a long life… Oww!”

Lou Jiang set the hand that Ying Yuqiao had broken, snapping the bone back into place with a particularly swift and clean motion. “You have Bone-Growing Pills, right? Take one yourself.”

“Couldn’t you have given me a heads-up before setting my bone?” Lu Jing’s face was contorted. He grimaced as he fished out a pill and swallowed it. “You’re so rough…”

Lou Jiang gave him a hostile look.

Lu Jing wisely swallowed the last three words, “old mother,” and changed the subject, asking Monk Budu, “How is Young Master Chou?”

Monk Budu pointed to the Bodhi beads on Chou Bodeng’s wrist. “This string of Bodhi beads is called ‘Clarity Seeds.’ I imagine you’ve heard of them. They once sealed the Undying City for three days.”

Lu Jing, Lou Jiang, and Half-Diviner all showed expressions of surprise.

Before Monk Budu had said it himself, they had never imagined that the string of Buddhist beads in his hand was the “Clarity Seeds.” The Buddha had bestowed many Bodhi beads, and basically all the vajra protectors and seventy-two high Zen masters of the Buddhist Sect had a string. But the “Clarity Seeds” were different. Their status in the Buddhist Sect was equivalent to the Star-Pushing Plate in Ghost Valley and the Taiyi Sword in the Taiyi Sect.

Eleven years ago, the Undying City, located in the southernmost corner of the Twelve Continents, was nearly devoured by the Great Wilderness. The only reason it was able to hold out until Elder He of the Taiyi Sect arrived with the Taiyi Sword was because Zen Master Mingjing of the Buddhist Sect, who was guarding the Undying City at the time, summoned the Buddhist beads “Clarity Seeds” and opened a golden bell shield to protect the entire city.

The Clarity Seeds hung high for three days, sealing the Undying City for three days.

Three days later, Zen Master Mingjing died of exhaustion, and the Bodhi Clarity Beads were returned to the Buddhist Sect by the Taiyi Sect. Since then, it was never heard that anyone in the Buddhist Sect had gained the recognition of the Clarity Seeds.

…To think that in the end, they chose Monk Budu. It was probably like Zen Master Wuchen, they must have been blind.

“No wonder the Buddhist Sect kept the matter of the Clarity Seeds choosing a master a secret,” Lu Jing couldn’t help but say. “This is like a fresh flower stuck in cow dung, a precious saber paired with a rogue.”

“Benefactor Lu, your words are one-sided. The rogue doesn’t want the precious saber either,” Monk Budu said with a pained expression. “These Clarity Seeds are the greatest treasure of the Buddhist Sect. They’re impressive enough, but they don’t listen to this humble monk’s commands. If I could just trade them for any of the seventy-two holy beads, this humble monk could go on a killing spree, you know?”

“So you admit you’re a rogue,”

Lou Jiang added mockingly, but his mood was far from as relaxed as it appeared on the surface. Unlike Lu Jing, he was not ignorant about the Clarity Seeds. Although it would be difficult for Monk Budu to truly unleash the power of the Clarity Seeds with his cultivation and state of mind, the Bodhi Clarity Beads themselves were a supreme treasure that naturally suppressed karmic obstruction. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to protect the city for three days when the Great Wilderness was devouring the Undying City.

But even the Clarity Seeds couldn’t completely lock down the karmic obstruction on Chou Bodeng.

“There’s bad news,” Monk Budu’s tone shifted. “Given Benefactor Chou’s current condition, the Clarity Seeds can no longer suppress him for two hours… In forty-five minutes, Benefactor Chou’s karmic obstruction will completely erupt. Benefactor Lou, is forty-five minutes enough to reach the Obscure Wind Acupoint you mentioned?”

As Monk Budu asked this, Lu Jing and Half-Diviner looked around.

“Are we just going to keep swimming down?” Lu Jing asked, pointing to the pitch-blackness below. “Forty-five minutes… can we even reach the bottom? Let me just say, if we go another ten or fifteen kilometers deeper, my Water Repelling Pills will wear off.”

Lou Jiang didn’t answer.

He took out a six-hole ocarina and played a strange melody. The well wall seemed to have been specially designed to gather and transmit sound, and the sound waves converged like a horn, rapidly traveling downwards. Lou Jiang played it three times, each time slightly different, before stopping.

“A Dragon Fish is coming to take us down,” Lou Jiang said, putting away the bone flute. “No one can swim down directly either. There’s a formation in the Yinglong Pond.”

“That’s good,” Lu Jing said with a sigh of relief. “This young master almost thought I’d beat Young Master Chou to it and pop like a meat flower.” He looked around. “Why did your Mountain Sea Pavilion build such a large pool? Couldn’t you just drain the rainwater into the sea?”

“Benefactor Lu, you are unaware,” Monk Budu interjected to explain. “Although Zhunan is located on the water, it is in fact an arid city. The seawater is bitter and salty, undrinkable. The nine cities are far from the continent, and there are no great rivers. This rainwater is therefore sweet dew, exceptionally precious, so every drop must be saved.”

Lou Jiang confirmed Monk Budu’s statement.

The nine cities of Zhunan, carried on the back of the Black Tortoise, were man-made.

When the founding masters and Grand Elders of the Mountain Sea Pavilion drew up the plans for Zhunan, they considered the feng shui conditions of being surrounded by the sea with no rivers and few quiet springs. When building the city, they deliberately constructed the nine cities with a high center and low periphery, and used the streets as a network of channels. Once it rained, the rainwater would flow along the carefully planned drains, converge at the city gate water gates, and flow through the culverts into a giant reservoir called the “Yinglong Pond.”

“A similar Yinglong Pond is built at every city gate, with the part above the water level disguised as a tide-watching tower,” Lou Jiang explained. “Only this Yinglong Pond connects to a sea spring in the Azure Sea, and the spring connects to the wind cavern.”

Half-Diviner let out a sound of surprise. “Brother Lou, you know a lot.”

“You mean to say, you’re wondering how I know so much, right?”

Lou Jiang was direct, which made Half-Diviner a little embarrassed. “Alas, this humble Daoist was just a little curious.”

“He already said it, didn’t he? I’m Young Pavilion Master Zuo’s armor, Young Pavilion Master Zuo’s sword,” Lou Jiang said, pointing at the unconscious Chou Bodeng. “But, the Young Pavilion Master doesn’t have the authority to command me directly yet. So strictly speaking, I am currently a hidden sword in the Pavilion Master’s hand. In fact, every Pavilion Master of the Mountain Sea Pavilion has had such a hidden sword. It was an agreement made long ago, one in the light, one in the dark, to mutually supervise each other so that their original intentions are never forgotten.”

The others’ hearts stirred. They remembered Lou Jiang had previously said that the Pavilion Master knew his parents, and that Lou Jiang had even ridden on his neck as a child. It was easy to imagine that only a very good relationship would make the master of a pavilion like Zuo Liangshi willingly squat down and let a child ride him like a horse. So…

Lou Jiang’s father must have been the one who had made the agreement with Zuo Liangshi to be one in the light and one in the dark, right?

Lou Jiang looked down at the dark shadows in the depths of the Yinglong Pond and said no more.

Lu Jing changed the subject. “The water in your Yinglong Pond is quite clear. I thought collected rainwater would be very dirty.”

“The formation on the black iron gate of the culvert is for purifying dust, and the Dragon Fish raised in the pool also have the function of cleaning the water,” Lou Jiang said, mustering his spirits. “The water that ordinary disciples and all the fishermen outside Zhunan city use for daily life comes from the Yinglong Pond, so naturally it can’t be dirty.”

“I see.”

Lu Jing nodded, intending to show he understood. But perhaps because it had been a while, the effect of the Water Repelling Pill was starting to wear off. As soon as he opened his mouth, a mouthful of cold pool water rushed in. In a panic, he held his breath, puffed out his cheeks, and flailed his arms wildly. Seeing this, Lou Jiang hurriedly came over and cast a temporary Water Repelling Art on him.

“Did I get one of my brother’s pills by mistake?” Lu Jing was still in shock. “What kind of crappy pill is this, it almost killed me…” He was still shaken, so he simply poured out the rest of the Water Repelling Pills and took them all in advance for good measure. Just as he was about to throw the pills into his mouth, Lu Jing’s movement suddenly paused. He smacked his lips and frowned. “Old Mother Lou, the water you usually drink is a bit bitter. This taste is a bit… a bit familiar…”

“Bitter?”

Lou Jiang was stunned, a vague feeling that something was wrong.

Before he could ask Lu Jing, the water in the depths of the Yinglong Pond stirred. Then, a silvery light rose from the darkness of the pool, like a row of silver lanterns.

“Wow!” Lu Jing exclaimed. “Is that a Dragon Fish! How beautiful!”

It was a creature somewhere between a dragon and a fish, twelve meters long, slender and graceful. Its entire body was transparent, and its silver skeleton was clearly visible. The light emanated from its skull and spinal joints, like a string of lights. As it swam in the dark water, it looked like a long, silver ribbon of light.

The Dragon Fish was very fast, and in an instant, it was almost upon them.

Lu Jing was just about to ask Lou Jiang if the Mountain Sea Pavilion sold this kind of Dragon Fish; he wanted to buy a couple to raise in the pools of the Medicine Valley. But when he turned his head, he saw that Lou Jiang’s face was as pale as if he had seen a ghost.

“Get back!”

Lou Jiang, though in the cold pool, suddenly broke out in a heavy sweat. He shouted, grabbing Lu Jing and swimming desperately towards the stone wall.

Boom—

The silver light spread out in a circle. The Dragon Fish turned abruptly, its tail churning the pool water, its transparent fins as thin as blades. If they had still been in their original spot, even if they hadn’t been slammed against the stone wall, they would have been sliced into human meat strips by the hard bones on its fins.

“I say!” Lu Jing, having narrowly missed the fins, was pale with fright. “This welcome is a bit too enthusiastic, don’t you think! Lou Jiang! Did you play the wrong tune? Or is it just really grumpy from waking up!”

“Impossible! Dragon Fish are gentle creatures. Even if I played the wrong tune on the bone flute, they would never harm anyone!”

“Gentle creatures?” Lu Jing turned to look at the frenzied Dragon Fish, which was ramming into everything. “If this can be called ‘gentle,’ my eldest brother could be considered a living Bodhisattva!”

Lou Jiang dragged him by the collar, kicked off the wall, and shot forward to the left, narrowly missing the fish’s head as it crashed heavily into the stone wall. “You said the water was a bit bitter just now, right!”

“Right!” Lu Jing answered, then his face suddenly changed. “I remember! I remember!”

“Say it!”

“It’s Tu Xu Seeds! There must be Tu Xu Seeds in this water!” Lu Jing roared at the top of his lungs. “I’ll stake the ten-thousand-year reputation of the Medicine Valley on it! I would never mistake it! I used to throw this stuff into my brother’s teapot every day as a kid!”

Lou Jiang’s figure froze, a bone-deep chill crawling up his spine.

The water churned, the sound of it roaring. A silver light enveloped them from above as the Dragon Fish crashed towards the frozen Lou Jiang and Lu Jing beside him. Monk Budu, carrying Chou Bodeng, was unable to move, and Half-Diviner was far on the other side. Just as it seemed Lu Jing and Lou Jiang were about to meet their end in the deep pool, Half-Diviner held the Star-Pushing Plate in his left hand, and the fingertips of his right hand touched the dark beads on the outer plate, pushing them along the grooves.

The dark beads shifted, moved.

Yin and yang suddenly reversed.

The water suddenly rolled back, and the Dragon Fish retreated to its original spot, frozen in the moment of its turn.

“Run!”

Half-Diviner shouted.

Lu Jing, in turn, grabbed the soul-struck Lou Jiang and shot forward with all his might. He had just paddled and kicked his way a few dozen meters when the dark beads on the Star-Pushing Plate clicked back to their original positions. The water came crashing down, and the Dragon Fish slammed into the stone wall where the two had been, creating a deep crater.

This impact was extremely fierce, and it seemed to have stunned the Dragon Fish itself. Its long body swayed, causing the pool water to rock back and forth, the light and shadow making the surroundings flicker between bright and dark.

The group took the opportunity to regroup.

“Half-Diviner, you’re amazing!” Lu Jing praised effusively. “Can you do that again? This time, let’s be more direct. Just send it back to the sea spring, don’t let it out. We’ll find another way!”

“Brother Lu, don’t joke!”

Half-Diviner, bleeding from all seven orifices, clutched the Star-Pushing Plate that had flown back to him. He glanced at it, and the silver light from the Dragon Fish illuminated the plate’s surface. Everyone saw the pointer sweep past the You hour.

There were less than six hours left until the fall of Qing Province.

“Do we have to take this thing out?”

Monk Budu asked. He had produced a Dragon-Subduing Pestle from somewhere and was holding it in his hand, looking as fierce as could be. It seemed this bald donkey was not just a meat-and-wine monk but also a violent martial monk.

“If we take it out, how are we supposed to get down to the wind cavern?” Lu Jing retorted. “Besides, can you even take out a big guy like this?”

Monk Budu was about to say that even if he couldn’t, he had to try, when he saw a second and then a third silver light rising from the bottom of the Yinglong Pond.

“…” Monk Budu released the Dragon-Subduing Pestle. “This humble monk will first chant a passage of the Rebirth Sutra for myself and you gentlemen.”

Half-Diviner was aghast. “Bald donkey! Bald donkey! You’re giving up so soon?”

“At a time like this, unless a divine soldier descends from heaven or a hero comes to save the damsel in distress, there is only a dead end!” Monk Budu clasped his hands together, his eyes tightly shut. “A divine soldier descending from heaven, a hero saving the damsel in distress, those are scenes from storybooks! Life and death are impermanent. Please look upon it with detachment!”