That shriveled, ice-cold hand was like a pair of iron pincers, gripping Lin Wan's wrist so hard her bones ached. What made her heart pound even more was the hoarse warning from the old beggar.
Dig a grave?How could he know the mad thought that had just sprouted in her heart—one that wasn't even fully formed yet?!
A chill shot madly up her spine. Lin Wan jerked her wrist, trying to break free.
The old beggar looked half-dead, yet his strength was terrifying. His claw-like fingers did not move at all. His cloudy eyes locked onto her as he repeated,
"Can't be tainted… can't be touched… can't be dug… baleful qi reaching the heavens… karma too heavy… you can't bear it…"
His voice was as hoarse as a broken bellows, carrying a strange cadence. It didn't sound like a warning—more like a… cursed prophecy.
"Let go of me! What nonsense are you talking about!"Startled and furious, Lin Wan felt the little bit of resolve she had just gathered get smashed to pieces by this sudden, eerie encounter. She struggled desperately, even using her other hand to pry at his grip.
Maybe her resistance finally worked, or maybe the old beggar ran out of strength—his bony fingers suddenly loosened.
Caught off guard, Lin Wan stumbled backward from using too much force, staggering several steps and nearly sitting down on the ground, looking utterly disheveled.
Breathing hard in fright, she looked up again, only to find that the old beggar had already curled back into the shadows beneath the rocks. His head drooped, his hands tucked into his ragged sleeves, returning to that half-dead, half-alive state, as if everything just now had been nothing but an illusion.
Only the clear red marks around her wrist and the lingering cold proved that it hadn't been a dream.
Some of the disciples passing by noticed the commotion and cast curious or disgusted glances over.
"That beggar's gone crazy again?""Who knows, he's been疯疯癫癫 for years.""Who's that girl? New here? Why'd she get tangled up with that old lunatic?""Doesn't look very bright…"
The whispers drifted over. Lin Wan's face burned. She tugged down her sleeve to hide the red marks on her wrist, lowered her head, and didn't dare look at the old beggar again, though her heart was pounding like a drum in her chest.
Can't be tainted? Can't be touched? Can't be dug?
Why?
Was it because Xiao Ji, the Immortal Lord, had died in some strange way and his grave was terrifying?Or because… once she tried to approach the truth, it would bring her a fatal disaster?
Had that old beggar really seen something?Or was he just a madman spouting nonsense?Or… was someone trying to stop her from investigating and using him to warn her?
Bai Chen's face flashed through her mind, sending a chill through her.
She shook her head hard, forcing down the chaotic thoughts.
No matter what lay ahead, she had no way back.
Having lived again, if she shrank back just because of a mysterious warning, then what was the point of her rebirth?
She took a deep breath, suppressing the tremor in her heart, straightened the equally shabby coarse-cloth dress on her body, and stepped onto the white jade stairs leading up to the mountain gate of Yunmiao Sect.
The steps soared high, as if they had no end. Clouds and mist swirled around her, and the clear cries of immortal cranes swept overhead.
From time to time, well-dressed inner-sect disciples flew past on flying swords or rode on immortal cranes, their movements elegant and free, the wind they stirred fluttering her hair and the hem of her clothes. More were outer-sect disciples and menial workers like her, walking on foot, all hurrying along with tired faces.
This body was obviously weak from lack of training. She hadn't even climbed a third of the way before she was already panting, her calves going soft. The tiny trace of spiritual power in her dantian was barely worth mentioning.
After much effort, she finally reached the huge platform at the mountain gate. A magnificent white-marble archway stood before her, engraved with the three bold, soaring characters Yunmiao Sect, faint spiritual light flowing over them.
Under the archway, steward disciples were in charge of registering and checking those coming and going.
Lin Wan walked over nervously. She had no identification at all—the pitiful bit of luggage and a few low-grade spirit stones she owned had been left behind on that mortal carriage earlier.
The one in charge was a serious-looking young man in the green robes of an outer-sect steward. He looked her up and down, frowning slightly.
"Name? Which department? Your token?"
"Disciple Lin Wan. I… I'm an outer-sect menial from the Spirit Herb Garden."She tried to recall her identity from this time in her previous life, her voice a little shaky."My token… I accidentally lost it."
The steward made a few strokes on a jade slip in front of him, apparently checking the records. His expression grew even more impatient.
"Spirit Herb Garden menial Lin Wan. Three days ago you took leave to go down the mountain to visit family, but you failed to return on time. You've already been marked absent once! And now you come back and even lose your token? You've really got some nerve!"
Lin Wan lowered her head and didn't dare make a sound. In her previous life, she really had been returning from a family visit, distracted by a mess at home and delayed on the road, only to be severely punished by the supervisor when she came back.
"Go in! Go report to the menial supervisor and take your punishment yourself! Next!"The steward waved his hand impatiently, shooing her away like a fly.
As if granted amnesty, Lin Wan hurriedly ducked her head and passed through the archway.
The instant she stepped inside, a surge of天地灵气 far denser and purer than outside washed over her, lifting her spirits slightly. But at the same time, more gazes fell on her.
Her dust-covered appearance, even carrying grime from the carriage, looked utterly out of place in this immortal land. The passing disciples—outer and inner alike—cast at her looks of indifference, disdain, or barely concealed contempt.
Clenching the hem of her clothes, she forced herself to ignore those gazes and headed toward the area where the outer-sect menials lived, following her vague memories.
Along the way, news of "Lingxi Sword Venerable" Xiao Ji's death was almost everywhere.
"Have you heard? The Discipline Hall and the Council of Elders have already preliminarily determined that Sword Venerable died for the sect. They're going to add more posthumous honors!""What's the use of that? He's already dead… but hey, those洞府,法宝, and private hoards he left behind…""Shh! Keep your voice down! Are you trying to get yourself killed? That's not something you can covet!""I'm just saying… but it's really a pity. I heard Sword Venerable was the number one handsome man in the cultivation world when he was young—just too cold in personality…""Cold? That was aloofness! He had the capital for it! But speaking of which, now that he's gone, the sect's power balance is bound to reshuffle…""Exactly. Those true-disciple senior brothers and sisters have been moving around a lot lately…"
Some of these discussions carried regret, some were pure gossip, but more than anything, they held indifference—and interest in shifting power and the redistribution of resources.
Lin Wan felt wave after wave of cold spread through her heart.
So this was the sect Xiao Ji had given his life to protect?Once the man was gone, even the tea turned cold.
She hadn't even heard a few sincere words of mourning.
As she was walking, a burst of noise came from ahead.
A group of disciples were gathered in front of a huge white-jade notice wall, pointing and whispering.
Lin Wan's heart stirred, and she squeezed over as well.
On the wall was a newly posted obituary—plain white background, black characters, cold and concise—announcing that Lingxi Sword Venerable Xiao Ji had fallen in battle against the remains of the Demon Venerable in the Far Northern Ice Plains. A few formulaic lines of condolence followed, stating that a memorial hall would be set up in the Hall of Fallen Heroes in three days for disciples to pay their respects.
Yet in front of the notice, the atmosphere was anything but mournful.
A slick-haired outer-sect disciple pointed at the obituary and laughed with his companions.
"Hey, brothers, in three days when they set up the memorial hall in the Hall of Fallen Heroes, wanna go check out the excitement? Maybe we'll even run into some inner-sect senior sisters we never get to see!"
His companions burst out laughing. "Good idea! Maybe we can even get our faces recognized by some big shots!"
"But honestly, it's not bad that this Sword Venerable is dead. His Lingjue Peak is one of the places in Yunmiao Sect with the densest spiritual qi! Now that it's empty, maybe even us outer-sect disciples can get a little benefit and cultivate on the scraps there?"
"Keep dreaming. That kind of good stuff will never reach us…"
The unbearable words rang out clearly.
A surge of rage shot straight to Lin Wan's head, burning through her limbs until she was trembling all over.
Almost without thinking, she rushed forward and shouted sharply at that slick-haired disciple,
"What nonsense are you spouting?! Xiao Ji Immortal Lord died for the sect, and you—you dare be so disrespectful!"
Her voice, sharp and shaking with anger, sounded especially jarring in this area.
The noise instantly stopped.
Everyone turned in surprise, their gazes focusing on this suddenly appearing, poorly dressed, sallow-faced little menial.
Being scolded in public, the slick-haired disciple's face couldn't hold. He flew into a rage from embarrassment, looked Lin Wan up and down, and sneered.
"Oh? And who do we have here? Isn't this Junior Sister Lin from the Spirit Herb Garden? What, didn't go dig around in the fields today, so you came here to meddle in your seniors' business?"
His companions chimed in with jeers.
"Yeah, just a menial, acting all high and mighty!""What, did you secretly fall in love with that dead Sword Venerable too? Tsk tsk tsk, a toad lusting after swan meat—take a look at yourself!""Even dead swan meat is still swan meat, hahahahaha!"
The shrill laughter stabbed into Lin Wan's ears like icy spikes.
She was shaking with rage, her face deathly pale, her lips trembling, yet she couldn't say a single word.
A crushing sense of helplessness and grief nearly drowned her.
Just as she was about to collapse, a gentle, clear voice—like a spring breeze—suddenly sounded from outside the crowd.
"What is all this noise about?"
The onlookers parted like a tide.
A tall, slender figure in moon-white inner-sect robes embroidered with cloud patterns slowly walked in.
His face was as refined as jade, his brows warm and gentle, a faint, spring-like smile at the corner of his lips.
It was Bai Chen.
His gaze swept over the scene. He first cast a cool glance at the outer-sect disciples who had fallen silent, then finally settled on Lin Wan, pale-faced and trembling.
Just the right amount of surprise and concern appeared in his eyes as he spoke in a voice so gentle it seemed to drip with warmth:
"Junior Sister Lin Wan? Why are you here?Did someone wrong you?"