Chapter 159 — Loneliness

Dao Yan Zhenren nodded and rose to his feet; a stir ran through the ranks of the righteous cultivators below. Dao Yan Zhenren steadied himself, and his expression gradually took on a look of firm resolve. In a clear voice he said, "Fellow cultivators, word has just arrived: a great host of beast demons has appeared on the wild plains two hundred li from Canglan Mountain, and they will be here before many days. And at the foot of the mountain, outside He Yin City, traces of beast demons have already begun to be found in scattered places."

At these words a commotion broke out at once. In an instant alarm, dread, fury, and sighs—all manner of expressions appeared on the faces of the crowd. The catastrophe that had pressed upon their hearts for days had come at last to their very door.

Dao Yan Zhenren looked at their faces, pressed both hands downward, and the clamor slowly subsided. When all around had fallen quiet, he said in a clear voice, "Fellow cultivators, the great calamity is now before our eyes, and the fate of all living things under heaven rests upon the battle we shall fight against these monstrous hordes. All of you seated here are masters of the Way, true cultivators whose hearts hold the righteous path. For the sake of all living things, when the day of battle comes, you and I must give our utmost. As the saying goes, the heart of Heaven is with us, and surely Heaven never seals every road to survival. These demon things may be rampant for a time, but they cannot endure."

For a moment the crowd was silent, then voices rose one after another: "The Zhenren speaks truly."

"Rest easy, Zhenren. With so many masters gathered here, if we fight with all our strength, overcoming the beast demons will not be so hard!"

"Exactly, exactly..."

For a time it seemed they were heartened, and the faces of the crowd slowly began to relax and brighten. After all, whatever happened, here were the three great sects, here were these masters—and further still, upon this Canglan Mountain, there was that legendary Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation, said to be unbreakable and ever-victorious. Seeing Dao Yan Zhenren's look of brimming confidence, what was there left to fear?

Beneath the gaze of countless righteous cultivators, Dao Yan Zhenren smiled slowly, exchanged a few words with them, then went with Reverend Pu Cheng, Yun Yifeng, and Xiao Yichen into the inner chamber of the Yuheng Hall. The moment they were out of the crowd's sight, Dao Yan Zhenren's face turned heavy at once, and the faces of Reverend Pu Cheng and Yun Yifeng were no lighter. The party came to a quiet room within the inner chamber, Xiao Yichen following last, and closed the door.

Dao Yan Zhenren turned to Xiao Yichen and said, "Yicai, tell us the details."

Xiao Yichen nodded and said, "Yes. This disciple was patrolling He Yin City at the foot of the mountain, and reports came in one after another throughout the day. Especially at the walls of He Yin City—with my own eyes I saw a giant bird demon appear, and from its appearance it closely resembled the 'Asura Bird,' one of the thirteen great demon beasts rumored among the beast demons these past days."

Dao Yan Zhenren exchanged a glance with the other two masters, their faces all grave. Xiao Yichen said solemnly, "Moreover, the other junior brothers who were covertly scouting the surrounding lands have all sent back word: scattered traces of beast demons were found everywhere, and thickest of all some two hundred li to the southwest. But as for the several junior brothers who went to scout beyond two hundred li—this disciple waited a long while, and no word of them has come at all."

As Xiao Yichen spoke, his expression gradually darkened. Dao Yan Zhenren's face was set like stone; beside him Yun Yifeng sighed, and Reverend Pu Cheng softly chanted the Buddha's name.

Dao Yan Zhenren pondered a moment, then nodded and said to Xiao Yichen, "It seems there is no mistake. The beast demons have truly come. Yicai," he looked at this most beloved disciple, "go down the mountain once more and tell all the disciples scattered about on reconnaissance to pull back at once, and hold a perimeter roughly within a hundred li of Canglan Mountain. And be sure to warn them: they must not cross the boundary on their own to scout, and still less must they rashly cross swords with the beast demons, lest mishap befall."

Xiao Yichen nodded, then seemed to recall something and said, "Master, what of the common folk in He Yin City?"

Dao Yan Zhenren was silent a moment, then turned and looked at Reverend Pu Cheng and Yun Yifeng. Reverend Pu Cheng pressed his palms together and bowed his head; Yun Yifeng said mildly, "As matters stand, everything must follow the Sect Master's lead. Let the Sect Master decide."

Dao Yan Zhenren inclined his head slightly in thanks, then mused a moment and said to Xiao Yichen, "The matter is indeed thorny, but He Yin City is truly too dangerous, and we truly cannot go down the mountain now to guard the people. Go down at once to He Yin City, take charge of all the Qing Yun disciples there, and tell the people of He Yin City to head north as quickly as they can—at the very least they must cross the Canglan range. At present the beast demons' greatest target seems to be us righteous cultivators on Canglan Mountain, not the common folk; thus perhaps they may be kept safe for the time being."

Xiao Yichen was taken aback a moment, but looking at Dao Yan Zhenren's expressionless face, in the end he nodded silently and said in a low voice, "Yes. This disciple will go at once."

Dao Yan Zhenren said, "One more thing. Quickly notify the other six branch heads of Qing Yun to come to Jietian Peak at once. I must see them immediately—there are matters to discuss."

Xiao Yichen nodded and said, "Yes, this disciple will go at once."

Dao Yan Zhenren sighed and said, "Take care on the road. Go."

Xiao Yichen nodded and withdrew.

********

"The Phantom Moon Grotto-Heaven?" Zhou Yixuan started, his brows drawing together, and for once a look of gravity appeared on his face. He hesitated, then said, "Why do you ask about that?"

Ming Li said coolly, "Aren't you always the one who knows everything? I've suddenly taken an interest in that cave, so I'm asking you. How much do you know about this Phantom Moon Grotto-Heaven?"

Zhou Yixuan glanced at Ming Li, whose face betrayed nothing; he could not tell what the man was thinking, and he wore an air of unfathomable mystery. They were still in He Yin City now, but the atmosphere there had changed utterly since the giant bird demon's arrival the night before—what had been mere worry had at last become fact, and under terror and crushing pressure more and more of the anxious populace had come to the brink of collapse. Now and then on the streets one saw people muttering nonsense or shouting aloud, behaving all but like madmen.

Zhou Yixuan withdrew his gaze, turned the matter over in his mind, and said slowly, "You—you're not thinking of doing something senseless, are you?"

Xiao Wan and the Wild Wolf Daoist both fixed their eyes on Ming Li, and little Gray on Ming Li's shoulder seemed to sense something too, baring its teeth at them in a grimace. Ming Li said indifferently, "What do you think I could do?"

Zhou Yixuan gave a dry laugh and said, "Truth be told, I don't know much about the Phantom Moon Grotto-Heaven either. This cave dwelling was never famous—it became known throughout the world only because a thousand years ago that Patriarch Qing Ye went into seclusion there to comprehend the Way, and because the Immortal-Slaying Ancient Sword appeared within it. But through all these years it has served only as the resting place of the ancient sword Shi Xian, and only the Qing Yun Sect Master may ever enter, so its fame has gradually faded."

Ming Li said, "Oh? Anything else?"

Zhou Yixuan hesitated, then said, "I don't care what you're planning, but that place—you'd best not go at all."