Chapter 36 — The Fiend
劍問蒼天 · Page 2 of 6
The Wheel of Rebirth Bead that Facheng had summoned still shed its golden Buddhist radiance over them all. At the front, Qi Hao, to guard against the worst, now raised the ** Mirror as well. The two treasures shone in mutual reflection, and so they walked on a while longer—until Qi Hao, who had been leading all along, suddenly stopped and held up a hand toward those behind him. "Wait."
Everyone halted at once.
All around was stillness, without a whisper of sound.
The light of the Wheel of Rebirth Bead and the ** Mirror gradually brightened. There before them, the cavern ahead abruptly split into two forked paths, both deep and dark as pitch, leading they knew not where, like the gaping maws of demons. And between the paths, at the very center of the fork, stood a massive stone stele fully six men tall, carved with four great characters in blood-red:
The Way of Heaven is with me!
Li Xun of the Fenxia Valley gave a cold snort and said angrily, "Demonic cult fiends, daring to claim the Way of Heaven for themselves!"
Facheng, however, knit his brows and studied the stele for a while longer. "When I came, I once heard my honored master, the Venerable Pucheng, say that eight hundred years ago the demon cult did indeed have such a stele in this cavern, but that it was then split open with a single swordstroke by an immortal of our righteous path, wielded with vast divine power. Seeing it again today, how is it whole and unmarked?"
At this, Yan Fei of the Fenxia Valley, who had kept silent all this while, suddenly spoke: "Look at the stele, a quarter of the way down—is there not a seam?"
Her voice was soft and alluring, and hearing it sent a stir through the heart. Moreover, the Canglan Sect disciples were all hearing Yan Fei speak for the first time, and each felt a private wonder. They stepped up for a closer look, and indeed there was a faint crack there, slanting upward, dividing the whole stele in two. The grain of the stone along the seam showed a dim red, though one would never notice it without a careful eye.
Qi Hao nodded and said to Yan Fei, "Junior Sister Yan is keen-eyed indeed."
Yan Fei smiled faintly, lowered her head again, and said no more.
Qi Hao looked at the stele a moment longer, then turned to the company. "Since this stele has been repaired by someone, it is plain enough that the demon cult fiends are most likely here, about some business not fit for the light of day. We've come to the right place."
Facheng continued, "Senior Brother Qi speaks sense. As things stand, this cavern is thick with danger, and here before us is our first problem: these two forked paths—which do we take?"
Qi Hao pondered briefly. "Senior Brother Facheng, you said just now that your master, the holy monk Pucheng, once spoke to you of this place. Did the venerable one ever mention these forkings?"
Facheng nodded. "My honored master did speak of them, but he had it from the patriarchs of the generation before him. It is said that in the great war between righteous and demon long ago, there were demon cult lairs beyond both of these paths. As for how things stand now, he was not at all certain."
Silence fell. After a moment, Qi Hao glanced at the three others of his sect and said to Facheng and the rest, "In that case, I say we divide our forces. We four of the Canglan Sect will take the left fork and scout it; you, Senior Brothers Facheng and Fajing, with the two of the Fenxia Valley, take the right. If you meet demon cult fiends, give a long whistle as warning. How does that sound?"