Chapter 43 — The Blood-Dripping Cave

Bili and Zhang Qingyue looked up together, and saw that behind the curtain of water, the stone wall that had once been seamless and impossibly hard was retreating backward as a single whole, slowly, but at last revealing a new opening.

Zhang Qingyue stared blankly as the secret cave opened, his heart stirred with excitement, with a little fear, and yet, deep down, in a way he was reluctant even to admit to himself, with curiosity as well.

This was the stronghold of the Demonic Cult for eight hundred years. What in the world might lie inside?

Bili walked slowly up onto the bank and came to stand beside him, her eyes rippling with light, brimming over with a smile. Zhang Qingyue glanced at her: skin like snow, a beauty unmatched, and at the edge of her cheek a glistening droplet slid gently down and fell, almost as if landing upon his heart.

He gave a start, not daring to look again, and turned his head away. "Congratulations," he said in a low voice.

Bili seemed taken aback for an instant, but the smile in her eyes did not diminish in the least, and her voice carried a touch of tenderness as she said, "That was all your careful attention." Zhang Qingyue, for some reason, found his mouth a little dry and his face a little hot. He took a step to the side, unconsciously putting a bit more distance between himself and the woman, and said, "Then aren't you going in to take a look?" Bili watched him, and suddenly smiled faintly. "You seem a little afraid of me?"

Zhang Qingyue shook his head at once like a rattle drum. "No, no..."

Bili studied him for a long while, then nodded, though the smile still lingered on her face. "Then let's go in together!"

Zhang Qingyue was startled. He hesitated, then said, "No, that's not—this is your Demonic Cult's territory, it'd be better if you went by yourself..." Bili gave a little snort. "And if there's a way out inside, does that mean you still won't go in?"

Zhang Qingyue was stumped for a moment, scratched his head, and said, "Well, I suppose so. Then—then let's go!"

Bili smiled, nodded, stepped back into the water, passed through the curtain, and walked into the cave. Zhang Qingyue hesitated a moment, but in the end followed after her.

It was a deep, dark tunnel. The stone walls along the sides had noticeably fewer of those glowing things than the outer passage; though the way could still just barely be made out, it was very dim.

Zhang Qingyue and Bili walked very carefully. After all, in eight hundred years this was the first time anyone had come here, and there was no telling whether those old monsters and old devils of the Blood Refining Hall had left behind any particularly vicious wards.

The way was peaceful enough, with no mishaps. Only the passage was quite winding, deep and long, and gradually sloped upward. By Zhang Qingyue's rough reckoning, he and Bili had probably already reached the heart of the mountain.

As he was pondering this, Bili, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped. "We're here," she said quietly.

Zhang Qingyue's heart jumped. Looking ahead, he saw a thread of bright light shining in from the end of the tunnel, where a large stone chamber was faintly visible. The two exchanged a glance, and Bili took the lead, striding toward it.

As they drew nearer, they could make out the chamber more clearly. It was round, with the tunnel opening into its center, and opposite them, amazingly, another passage stretched further inward—so this was not the only end.

On the left side of the chamber stood two enormous stone statues. One had a kindly face and gentle eyes, standing with a smile, its robes carved so vividly they seemed to stir in the wind—somewhat resembling a Buddhist Guanyin Bodhisattva.

The other was utterly different: hideous and vicious, with a black face and demon horns, eight arms and four heads, and even a trickle of blood carved at the corner of its mouth, enough to make anyone who looked upon it shiver.

In front of the two statues was a stone table, with an incense burner upon it and several bundles of incense and candles beside it, all thickly coated in dust. In eight hundred years, it seemed no incense had ever been burned here.

As for the far end of the chamber, there were only a few prayer mats, tossed carelessly on the floor, and nothing else.

Zhang Qingyue took it all in, and as he was wondering at it, he saw Bili's expression turn solemn. She stepped forward, picked up a prayer mat, shook the dust from it, and placed it before the stone table beneath the statues. Then she took up the incense and candles from the table, struck a flame with the firestone from her bosom, lit them, and set them in the burner. She walked back to the mat and knelt down, her face full of reverence.

In the stone chamber, thin wisps of smoke rose slowly as she bowed low to the ground.

Zhang Qingyue stood behind her, and heard her voice echo through the chamber.

"Holy Mother of the Dark and Bright, Heavenly Slayer Ming Wang, your disciple of the forty-third generation of the Holy Cult, Bili, reverently pays homage. The Holy Cult has met with calamity and long lain in decline; countless followers have shed their blood and risked their lives, each falling to rise after, that the Holy Cult might rise again. I pray only that the Holy Mother and Ming Wang take pity on all living things, grant us blessing, raise up the Holy Cult once more, deliver all beings, and bring us together to ascend to the utmost bliss of undying joy!"

Zhang Qingyue thought for a moment and understood: these two statues must be the wicked gods worshiped by the Demonic Cult. He could not help a cold laugh, turned his head away, and did not look upon them again.