Day and night tour

Chapter 458 Cliffside Stone Tablet
"How could that newcomer possibly know this secret?"

Zhou Xuan was quite surprised.

In just a few days, almost overnight, Huangyuan Prefecture inexplicably appeared next to Jingchuan Prefecture.

These two prefectures, which were originally thousands of miles apart, suddenly merged and became neighbors.

Zhou Xuan had also paid attention to this matter. He felt that the merger of the two prefectures involved the will of the Jing Kingdom; otherwise, such a big thing could not have been accomplished.

It's somewhat unbelievable that such a grand contest of power could be known by a newcomer who hasn't even joined the Bloodwell Society.

"I also think it's not very reliable, but that newcomer kept repeating the same sentence—'Life and Death Cliff.' If you don't believe me, you can go to the Life and Death Cliff."

Where is the Cliff of Life and Death?

Zhou Xuan asked.

"I don't know, you'll need to ask in person."

"Alright."

Zhou Xuan then asked, "Recently, have any members of our Blood Well Society gone mad?"

At the Blood Well Gathering, Zhou Xuan pushed two people to the forefront: the first was Li Chengfeng, and the second was Si Yu'er.

Li Chengfeng was extremely busy. He was the patrolling deity of Mingjiang Prefecture, and recently Mingjiang Prefecture had experienced many ups and downs. After rebuilding one-third of the prefectural city, everything was in need of reconstruction. Whether it was the prefectural government or the patrolling deity office, everyone was incredibly busy.
Therefore, the responsibility of managing the daily affairs of the Blood Well Society fell on Si Yu'er's shoulders, while Zhou Xuan happily acted as a hands-off manager.

"No, although this period has been a turbulent time, it has actually been the most comfortable period of everyone's lives."

Si Yu'er said sincerely.

The people in the Blood Well Society are all Blood Well Spirit Communicators, and each of them is the most precious prey in the Well Kingdom. They live a life even worse than the Fox Clan.

The fox clan is at least a large clan, and within the clan there are powerful figures like the King of Xishan.

What does a Blood Well psychic have? Aside from madness, they probably have nothing.

Therefore, these spiritual mediums had to conceal their identities day and night, fearing that they would be exposed and captured or kidnapped. Every night, no matter how soundly they slept, they had to keep one eye open and one eye closed, and at the slightest disturbance, they would think about running away.

"Now everyone doesn't have to hide like before. They can play freely and relive all the wonderful moments they didn't get to experience before."

"Very good, very good."

Zhou Xuan then asked Si Yu'er, "Where is that newcomer you mentioned now?"

"Oh, Sesame Paste, Reed Grass, and I used our senses to form a large net, searching for the signals of the other Blood Well Spirit Communicators almost around the clock. That newcomer sensed our signal and sent us a 'membership application'."

"Your perception has become so strong?"

Zhou Xuan asked.

"It's all thanks to the ginseng from the Snow Mountain Fox Clan that it's so effective. Most people in the clan have seen a breakthrough in their incense offerings after consuming it."

Si Yu'er proudly patted her chest and said, "For example, I have already advanced to the Sixth Incense Stick level."

"Not bad."

Zhou Xuan was very pleased, with a fatherly mentality of letting his own pigs root for cabbages, and said, "Then I'll go and take a look inside your perception network."

At this point, Zhou Xuan closed his eyes and pushed his perception to its limit.

The things around him began to appear ethereal.
At the same time, he also sensed something like a piece of silk floating in the sky above Mingjiang Prefecture.

When his senses collided with that "silk," he entered a certain hall.

Inside the hall, some people were chatting.

Zhou Xuan recognized the voice of the person chatting; it was Sesame Paste.

Sesame Paste's disguise had long been exposed by Zhou Xuan; she was none other than the owner of "Bai Le Men," the number one nightclub in Mingjiang Prefecture.

At this moment, Sesame Paste was complaining, saying, "God is so unfair! Why did the Metropolis get repaired during the reconstruction, but not my nightclub first?"

"These past few days, many people have been in high spirits and are particularly willing to spend money at nightclubs. Why didn't I catch such good business? How much money am I losing?"

To be honest, capitalists and ordinary people don't have much in common.

The other members didn't pay much attention to "Sesame Paste" and were all chatting about the programs that had been playing on the radio recently.

Some people lamented, "Alas, Mingjiang Cinema has been rebuilt, but—it's still not open. I really want to go see a movie. Before, we had to hide and never had a chance to watch a movie. Now that we're not hiding anymore, we still don't have a chance."

"Why are you in such a hurry? Have you heard that today, Zhou Xuan, the chief scholar of Mingjiang Prefecture, is going to use a book to completely rebuild Mingjiang Prefecture? Once the rebuilding is completed, we will be back to the decadent and pleasure-seeking Mingjiang."

"Hey, I heard Zhou Xuan is one of our Blood Well Society members?"

Some people have already started inquiring about Zhou Xuan's background; clearly, these are people who don't attend meetings often.

Sesame Paste proudly introduced, "This Master Zhou Xuan is a very important figure in Mingjiang Prefecture. However, in our Blood Well Society, he is just a high priest under the High Priest."

That's right, Zhou Xuan's identity has been exposed, but only half of it. He once saved Sesame Sauce, so Sesame Sauce guessed that Zhou Xuan was the High Priest under the High Priest of the Blood Well Society.

She never imagined that this so-called high priest was the same person as the high priest of the Blood Well.

Seeing that everyone was having a great time chatting, Zhou Xuan realized that this newly established "perception network" was actually a virtual social platform in Mingjiang Prefecture. People would come here to chat when they had nothing to do, adding some fun to their lives.

"If Zhou Xuan is such an outstanding figure, then how powerful must our Blood Well Society's High Priest be?"

A very unfamiliar voice rang out.

He had barely finished asking his question when Sesame Paste said with a smile, "Da Niu, no one knows just how powerful the High Priest is, but all you need to know is that behind him is the Heavenly Venerable! The Blood Well Heavenly Venerable!"
The Heavenly Venerable is omnipotent, and so is the High Priest.

Upon hearing this, almost simultaneously, everyone said with utmost piety, "Praise be to the Heavenly Venerable, praise be to the High Priest."

Zhou Xuan got goosebumps all over. He coughed and said, "How have you all been lately?"

These words, which were clearly meant to be "friendly," silenced everyone online, like a homeroom teacher suddenly walking into a noisy classroom.

After a while, Sesame Paste hurriedly replied, "High Priest, you've arrived?"

"I came to see you all, and also to meet the new members of the Blood Well Society."

Zhou Xuan remained gentle, which eased the tension among the crowd. They joked with the "newcomer," saying, "Aniu, you're lucky to have met the High Priest so soon after arriving."

"What are you waiting for? If you have something to say, just say it to the High Priest."

A Niu was a hunter in the mountains of Huangyuan Prefecture; he was an honest man.

Unlike other worldly psychics who were sharp-minded, he hadn't even thought of such a basic trick as "using a pseudonym".

"High Priest, my name is Zhao Aniu. I am a hunter from the mountains, from Huangyuan Prefecture. Recently, my madness has been getting worse and worse. I have come to beg you for help."

Zhao Aniu?
Zhou Xuan only heard it once, but he could roughly guess that this name was his real name.

"Are there really such innocent psychics in this world?"

After thinking to himself, Zhou Xuan said, "Zhao Aniu, saving your life is easy, but I heard from Si Yu'er that you know the secret of the merger between Huangyuan Prefecture and Jingchuan Prefecture?"

"Yes! It's related to the 'Cliff of Life and Death'."

Tell me in detail.

Zhou Xuan immediately used his perception to form a shield, trapping Zhao Aniu and providing him with a secluded and safe private space so that only he could hear Aniu's voice.
This was not difficult for Zhou Xuan, whose perception had been elevated to a new level.

However, his perception had not yet been activated. Under Sesame Paste's lead, the people in the gathering disconnected one after another and went offline on their own initiative... Their understanding surprised even Zhou Xuan.

"Wow, these members are pretty good at getting things done."

Zhou Xuan smiled. In the entire network of perception, only he and Zhao Aniu remained.

“Go ahead and speak. Everyone else has left, so there’s no need to worry about being overheard.”

Zhou Xuan advised.

“Hey,” Zhao Aniu quickly said, “The Cliff of Life and Death is a place I stumbled into when I was a child. There are twelve stone tablets inside. Those stone tablets are mottled and have prophecies written on them.”

"Those prophecies are constantly changing, but I don't recognize most of them; they're written in 'Bawen' (a script used in ancient Pakistan)."

"Ba script? The script of the Ba people?" Zhou Xuan asked.

It's quite a coincidence that the two leaders of the Ba people—Wan Guiyi and Wan Zangshan—were not killed by Zhou Xuan, but both died because of him.

"Yes."

Zhao Aniu honestly replied, "My ancestral home is Dongba County in Huangyuan Prefecture. I am also a Ba person. However, my family moved away from our ancestral home a long time ago, several generations ago. We really don't know much about the Ba people's writing system."

As for those prophecies, they were obscure and difficult to understand; it was not that I couldn't recognize their contents.

Then Zhao Aniu continued, "When I was six years old, I fell into the Life and Death Cliff Cave while hiking in the mountains. I could only recognize the words 'Life and Death' carved on the cave entrance. I didn't know anything else."

"And then?" Zhou Xuan asked.

"Later...later I always felt that there was a voice calling to me from inside the cliff cave, so I went there three or four more times. But one time, my grandfather found out and scolded me, saying that the cliff cave was the residence of the 'Heavenly God' and that I should not go there if I had nothing to do."

Zhao Aniu said honestly.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Xuan asked, "What is the Heavenly Lord?"

"This is how we Ba people refer to our gods."

Zhou Xuan then asked, "What is the connection between the Cliff of Life and Death and the merger of Huangyuan Prefecture and Jingchuan Prefecture?"

"The day after Huangyuan Prefecture and Jingchuan Prefecture merged, I went to the Cliff of Life and Death again..." "You're lying. You haven't been to the Cliff for so many years. Why did you suddenly go this time?" Zhou Xuan questioned.

“High Priest, Ah Niu dares not lie. I did go. It was because some outsiders entered the mountains a few days ago. I was hunting at the time and was hiding in a tree, waiting for my prey to fall into the trap.”

At that time, I overheard those outsiders talking about going to find the Cliff of Life and Death.

"Didn't they spot you?" Zhou Xuan asked.

“Master, I am a spirit medium of the Blood Well. My ears and eyes are extremely sharp. I can hear their voices, but they may not be able to hear mine.”

Zhao Aniu continued, "When I heard those people looking for the cliff cave, I thought... could I lead the way to the Cliff of Life and Death and earn some silver?"

After I made up my mind, I went to the cliff cave to make sure I could find the way.
When I arrived at the cliff cave, I saw that the prophecies on the twelve stone tablets had turned blood red.

Of the hundreds of words in Pali, I only recognize four.

"Which four?" Zhou Xuan asked.

“Huangyuan, Jingchuan,” Zhao Aniu said.

Zhou Xuan thought for a moment and then asked, "The Ba people originated from Dongba County in Huangyuan Prefecture. It's reasonable that you, a Ba person who migrated from your ancestral homeland, are unfamiliar with the Ba script but recognize the characters 'Huangyuan' in it."

But how do you know the name 'Jingchuan'?

"High Priest, my mother is Huang Yuan, who fled here when there was a flood in Jingchuan. She is from Jingchuan Prefecture. My grandfather taught me how to write the characters 'Jingchuan' in Ba script when I was a child."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Xuan noticed that although Zhao Aniu was not good with words, his responses were fluent and he showed no sign of guilt. Zhou Xuan was inclined to believe that these things were true.

He then asked, "So, you see the words 'Huangyuan' and 'Jingchuan' written on the prophecy, and you suspect that the prophecy on the stone tablet is related to the secret of the merger of Huangyuan and Jingchuan?"

"Exactly."

Zhao Aniu thought for a moment, then said, "High Priest, there is something I must tell you. I only learned that Zhou Xuan is your High Priest after I joined the Blood Well Society."

I have heard that Zhou Xuan killed two leaders of the Ba people, but... please rest assured, although I am a descendant of the Ba people, I will not hold a grudge against you, Master, because of this."

Zhou Xuan almost laughed out loud; this Ah Niu was quite sincere.

Then he heard Zhao Aniu say, "Moreover, I should thank that gentleman. If he hadn't killed the fish monk in Huangyuan and shared the fish with us, my mother's illness would never have been cured."

"Have you ever eaten the fish monk from Huangyuan Prefecture?" Zhou Xuan asked.

"Yes, yes, I was the first one to go get the meat."

When Zhao Aniu mentioned it, Zhou Xuan remembered it.

When he arrived at the Fish-Cutting Platform, he didn't see who had grabbed the fish first, but he heard people around him talking about how the person was a young hunter who was very skilled.

"Many of the details match up."

Zhou Xuan then asked, "Is your mother's illness cured?"

“I was fine then and could walk again. It was because of the fish that the master gave me that my mother recovered. I no longer had to go to the Cliff of Life and Death to earn money to guide those outsiders to pay for my mother’s medical treatment.”

Zhou Xuan nodded, marveling at Zhao Aniu's incredible luck—if what he said was true, what good people could those who went to the Cliff of Life and Death be? They were probably all disciples of various sects, with considerable influence.

A blood well spiritist who dares to deal with these people in the wilderness will never know how he died.

"I understand. If in a couple of days I send a high priest and a human walker to have you lead them into the Cliff of Life and Death, would you be willing?"

"Of course I'm willing, as long as you can cure my madness."

"The madness needs Buddhist energy to cure it. I have plenty of Buddhist energy on hand. Wait here, and Si Yu'er will contact you in a while. Give her the specific location, and she will personally deliver the ginseng to you."

After Zhou Xuan finished speaking, amidst Zhao Aniu's profuse thanks, he severed the connection with the blood well network.

Then, Si Yu'er went in to register Zhao Aniu's information and other matters.

……

“Brother Xuan, Zhao Aniu lives on Mudi Mountain in Huangyuan Prefecture.”

"Ah."

Zhou Xuan said to Si Yu'er, "Go to the Bureau of Divine Travel, get a ginseng root, and send it to Zhao Aniu."

"it is good."

“Don’t go alone. Ask the Coffin Maiden to go with you.” Zhou Xuan added, “By the way, tell the Coffin Maiden that when the fish monk’s flesh and blood were distributed in Huangyuan Prefecture, the first hunter to come out and take the meat should be thoroughly investigated for me… to see if his background is clean. This hunter is very likely Zhao Aniu.”

"okay."

Si Yu'er accepted the order and left first.

As soon as he left, Yun Ziliang asked, "Xuanzi, did that person really know the mystery of the merger of Huangyuan Prefecture and Jingchuan Prefecture?"

"I might not know. By the way, Old Yun, do you know of a 'Cliff of Life and Death' in Huangyuan Prefecture?"

"do not know."

Yun Ziliang added, "However, there are many strange and wonderful places in this world. It's normal that there are some things I don't know. Huangyuan Prefecture is a strange place."

"Then I'll go take another look in a few days. Right now, the priority is to rebuild Mingjiang Prefecture."

After Zhou Xuan finished speaking, he walked towards the door.

"It's still early, are you going on stage now?"

"The stage isn't even set up yet, where am I supposed to go on stage?" Zhou Xuan said.

"Then what are you going to do?"

"Things might get serious tonight. I'll go to Huifeng Medical College and ask for a talisman."

As Zhou Xuan spoke, he went to Little Turtle Mountain within the medical school to find the Taoist priest there.

This Taoist priest, setting aside his other skills, possessed an extraordinary talent for feigning filth.

……

The city gates of the capital were wide open as usual.

Merchants, laborers, farmers coming to town to sell their goods, hunters, and tourists came to play, in an endless stream.
A three- or four-year-old child with a small braid looked like she had been separated from her family, but she was not intimidated and swaggered into the city.

After entering the city, the child's steps became even more firm, and he walked towards the southeast as if the wind was blowing through his feet.

Within the vast capital city, Dunjia Mountain lies in the southeast direction of the city.

Within the capital city, there were more than one child like this; there were as many as eighteen in total.

These eighteen children entered in batches through the six city gates and then gathered in a dilapidated temple at the foot of Dunjia Mountain.

Dunjia Mountain used to have some small temples and monasteries.

These small temples mainly try to capitalize on the fame of Dunjia Mountain's incense offerings. Some pilgrims from other places are pulled away by the Taoist priests and monks in these small temples to donate money for incense.

The Taoist priests of Dunjia Mountain turned a blind eye to this kind of thing—after all, some of them had received benefits from the small temples and monasteries at the foot of the mountain.

However, later, Dunjia Mountain began to rectify its practices, and small temples and shrines at the foot of the mountain were set up one after another. Over time, these parasitic temples and shrines fell into disrepair.

In one of the deserted temples, the eighteen little children, after a gust of mountain wind blew by, were reduced to a bloody mess, writhing mass of flesh.

The flesh and blood eventually coalesced, forming a greasy butcher.

Once the butcher's figure had reassembled, he pushed open the door of the abandoned temple and said with a sneer, "My incense has been distributed among eighteen people, and none of them will be able to activate the ancient tree's golden bell."

This was his method of avoiding the "Ancient Tree and Golden Bell" in the capital city.

With this method, he truly achieved freedom within the nine prefectures of the Jing Kingdom, able to go wherever he wanted.

"Puff, puff, puff"

A sound of flapping wings came from the sky.

The butcher looked up and saw a flying paper crane.

He flicked his finger, and the paper crane fell to the ground. He picked it up, unfolded it, and began to unravel it.

The paper crane was actually a family letter, signed "Zhao Youting".

The letter was simple, containing only two or three sentences: "Yunniang, take Cai'er and Huanbao and hurry up, there is a killing spree at Dunjia Mountain today."

Looking at the letter, the butcher couldn't help but chuckle and said, "Oh dear, there are some capable people in Dunjia Mountain. Zhao Youting saw through my plan. It's just that the Calabash Taoist is too arrogant and doesn't believe I dare to come and cut down the gates of Dunjia Mountain."

He tucked the letter into his clothes, fetched a basin of water from a nearby stream, and picked up a blue stone. He then began sharpening his butcher knife in the deserted temple, making a clanging sound...

……

"What, seventy or so pieces of filth? You're going to put in that much filth?"

The Taoist of Guishan asked Zhou Xuan.

He realized that it was fine if this master didn't come to see him for a long time, but when he did, it was with those rather difficult tasks.

"Just tell me if it's okay."

Zhou Xuan, leaning against the temple gate of Guishan Taoist Temple, said, "Whether I live or die tonight depends on how well you manage to feign filth."

(End of this chapter)