The old things I repaired have become fine

Chapter 693 Shen Le: I was kidnapped by an ancient mountain bandit?
"Shen Le!"

"Shen Le!"

"Shen Le!!!"

Professor Guo looked up in alarm and shouted. He ran as he shouted, running at a speed far beyond his years, despite being nearing retirement.

Stimulated by the bright light, Shen Le disappeared in less than a second, his eyes blinking and then opening again!
Even alien tractor beams aren't that fast!!!

Ignoring the armed threats from the soldiers, he rushed to the front of the carriage, bent down to look under it, gritted his teeth, stood on tiptoe, and struggled to lift the curtain to look inside.

He lunged forward, his upper body almost completely buried in the carriage, before finally accepting the fact with great remorse:
There was no one inside the car. No one outside, no one under the car. Shen Le hadn't hidden inside, nor had he been abducted into the car by any armored soldiers…

By the way, I'm almost jumping into the car, where are these armored soldiers?

Only after accepting the facts did Professor Guo have time to worry about his own safety. He pulled his head and upper body out of the carriage, propped himself up on the shaft, and looked around.

I don't know when, but the white light had completely disappeared, and the entire cave was pitch black. I could only see the surrounding scenery by relying on the little light from the phone screen.

The armored soldiers stood in rows and columns, close to the cave walls, while the cavalrymen on Tang tri-colored warhorses dismounted and joined the ranks.

The cold, eerie sheen on the surfaces of the stone, clay, and terracotta figurines has long since disappeared; their wide-open eyes are dull in color, and the paint applied before has faded.

The armor worn by the soldiers and the weapons they held had lost their former sharpness and brilliance; only those that Shen Le had repaired still had blades that reflected a cold glint...

Professor Guo walked step by step past these armored soldiers, carefully observing the cracked paint on the surface of the clay figurines and the dullness and brittleness of the banner fabric.

After a long while, he straightened up and let out a long sigh:

Now, at this moment, the environment inside the cave feels almost the same as when they first entered; it perfectly matches the image of a cave used for storing armor and weapons.

The chilling atmosphere, the murderous aura, the sense of imminent danger as if a blade were pressed against one's neck—all of it vanished in an instant…

Of course, Shen Le also disappeared. Thinking of this, Professor Guo was deeply troubled:

How was he going to explain this to Shen Le's mentor and the large group of teachers and students in the old house?

Oh, Shen Le came out with him once, asking him to help repair the car, and then he lost Shen Le?

He let out a long sigh, his straight back instantly bending. The precious leather carriage suddenly lost its allure; his shoes shuffled along the ground as he trudged towards the old house.

As I stepped onto the stairs and through the gate, the professors instantly surrounded me:
"How's the repair going?"

"Did you encounter any problems?"

"Who should go next? I told you I'm better at leather, so I should be the first to go..."

When a group of experts start gossiping, they're not much better than the middle-aged women shopping at the market.

The sheer scale and noise were enough to cause ripples in the central courtyard of the old house, even though the roof was not visible.

Only Professor Han, Shen Le's mentor, couldn't squeeze into the circle and stood far to the side. He finally found a gap and raised his voice to ask:

"How is Shen Le?"

He suddenly disappeared—

"what?!"

The noisy crowd suddenly fell silent. The people inside the house looked at each other, seeing the same tension and fear on each other's faces.

Professor Han's hands trembled slightly, then he suddenly took off running and rushed towards the gate of the house:
boom!
He crashed straight into the gate of the house. The gate was clearly open, and there seemed to be no physical barrier, yet it gently bounced him back.

It wasn't hard, and it didn't hurt, but I just couldn't let him leave. Running and accelerating to ram him didn't work, and using all my strength to push him out didn't work either...

"Let me out! Let me out and see!" Professor Han raised his fist and pounded it repeatedly.
"I'm going to find Shen Le! Didn't you know Shen Le is missing? — What good will his disappearance do you?"

Each blow felt like striking thick glue, slowing down very quickly and pulling out easily without causing any harm. The old house remained silent, refusing to budge an inch from his demands.

Behind him, professors, students, and secret service staff watched silently as he pounded on the door until he was panting heavily, exhausted, and collapsed against the door.

The oppressive silence lasted for a long while before someone finally spoke softly:
"Then how do we get out?"

Yes, how do we get out? A group of people were brought in by Shen Le using the old house, not by divers pulling them in one by one while wearing diving suits.

Inside the cave, there was virtually no signal, making it impossible to contact the outside world.

Both divers are outside, so should we wait for the divers to come in, or wait for the Special Affairs officer to risk diving out?

Without equipment, could one really get out of that waterway safely?
Not to mention
The crowd stirred slightly. The professors managed to remain relatively composed, but the students they had brought in were already erupting in panic.

Fortunately, before panic could take hold, a sharp "whoosh" silenced everyone's discussion.

Everyone turned around and saw a beautiful woman with flowing black hair and fluttering clothes. Except for her face, she was indeed a stunning beauty, gracefully approaching in her flowing dress, holding a microphone in both hands and patting it with her sleeve.

"Ahem, just a sound check." Beside her, another woman in a flowing dress held a laptop, typing rapidly. Her AI-synthesized voice calmly came through the microphone:
"Please don't panic or be afraid. Shen Le is fine. We all have a connection with him, and if anything were to happen to him, we would all sense it."

"This old house has rooms for resting, a laboratory, and a dining room. Please choose your direction in an orderly fashion and head to the place you need. We will notify you later if anything comes up."

Professors: “…”

Now that things had come to this, it seemed there was no other way but to believe them. Professor Han leaned back weakly, not caring whether there was a door or an empty space behind him, and simply leaned against it.

Old Meng rose unsteadily, gesturing to the side. Before his students could approach, two clay figurines had already carried a sedan chair, respectfully awaiting their arrival. Without hesitation, Old Meng sat down: "Everyone, don't panic. Take a good rest, eat when you're hungry, sleep when you're tired. —Where's the laboratory? Take me to see it!"

Thanks to his calm demeanor, the atmosphere finally calmed down. The professors quickly divided up the duty roster: one-third went to rest, one-third went to the lab, and one-third explored the ancient house.

Putting everything else aside, where is the kitchen?

How many meals could the food in the storeroom feed all of them?
Is the bedroom, and the beds in it, big enough for everyone? How many people need to share a bedroom? Will anyone need to sleep on the floor?

By keeping busy temporarily, we can suppress our worries and focus on our respective duties, striving to maximize work efficiency.

Between tasks, one can't help but look up at the sky above the old house, a sky simulated using some unknown principle:

Shen Le, where are you?
Shen Le himself didn't know where he was. When the white light shone brightly and enveloped him, he felt himself float upwards, as if he were being pulled by some force;
Then, with a blink of an eye, I was transported back to a certain memory. Standing alone amidst the overgrown weeds and desolation, as dusk settled, there wasn't a single house or light in sight…

Shen Le actually breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness he wasn't precisely transported to the end of the previous memory, and didn't have to witness it again—

The impact was just too great.

Even though the place he was standing in now was an ancient battlefield, a graveyard, he felt it was better than where he landed last time. Wait, it really was a graveyard?
Shen Le tentatively moved her foot. It felt soft and a little sticky under her feet, and Shen Le even heard a small "plop" sound.

He suppressed the chill that ran down his spine and lifted his foot to look closely. Yes, it was indeed a grave mound beneath his feet, or more accurately, a mass burial ground—

The rolling hills are densely covered with graves of varying heights.

Some were relatively sturdy, some were just hastily piled with a layer of soil, and some had been washed away by rain, dug open by wild animals, and even had the corpses inside exposed.
Just now, Shen Le happened to be standing on the edge of a collapsed grave and stepped into it.

Worse still, the body inside wasn't recently buried, nor was it completely skeletal; it was somewhere in between...

"This is too..."

Shen Le muttered a complaint under her breath, then tiptoed up and jumped off the grave mound. She looked up to identify the stars in the sky, summoned a gust of wind to lift her up, and drifted northward.

As I recall, my original goal was to keep heading north, all the way to Zhuojun and Liaodong, to see how the army that had launched three campaigns against Goguryeo collapsed...

He rode the wind, his toes barely touching the ground, and after drifting for at most twenty miles, a whistling arrow suddenly flew past him with a whoosh.

Shen Le was startled and stopped abruptly, watching the whistle arrow pass about ten feet in front of him, land gracefully, and then look in the direction from which it had come:
"Who?!"

Why did you shoot me with an arrow?!
"Master, please forgive my rudeness, Jiande." From about forty or fifty paces away, five or six cavalrymen rode up. The leader, a tall man in his forties with a dark complexion, bowed to Shen Le from afar.
“I saw from afar that you, Daoist, possess extraordinary bearing and exceptional magical abilities. I was immediately captivated and wished to strike up a conversation with you, which is why I fired the arrow to call you. I apologize for disturbing you.”

Jiande?

Dou Jiande?
Shen Le's mind raced over the name, and he couldn't help but stare intently at the man. Dou Jiande was no ordinary man; he was one of the major figures vying for power at the end of the Sui Dynasty, although in history books he often appeared as a background character.

Yes, Li Shimin's Battle of Hulao Pass was the most brilliant battle of his life, where a hundred cavalrymen defeated ten thousand troops and captured two kings in one battle. Dou Jiande was the one who lost.

Even if they're on the losing side, they're still one of the few who made it to the decisive game, and they shouldn't be underestimated at all.

At the very least, Shen Le dared not underestimate his opponent. He stopped the swirling wind around him and raised his hand in a Daoist bow:

"Of course, of course. I am Mingde, a Daoist from Xuanzhen Temple. I have been traveling the world and just happened to pass by this place. It would be nice to chat for a while. May I ask your honorable name, General? Where do you come from? And where are you going?"

"I am Dou Jiande, a follower of Brother Gao, and I started an uprising in Gaojibo nearby." Dou Jiande announced his name with great fluency.

Behind him, the cavalrymen looked at Shen Le with pride, as if expecting him to immediately bow down. Seeing that Shen Le didn't react, one of them even frowned slightly, seemingly displeased—

In fact, Shen Le was torn between "Dou Jiande? Has Dou Jiande started an uprising at this time? How many men does he have?" and was racking his brains for answers.

Before he could figure it out, he saw Dou Jiande spur his horse forward, stopping five or six steps away, and dismount.

"Where do you come from, Taoist priest? Where are you going? On your journey north, have you seen or heard anything that you could tell us country folk who live in these remote mountain valleys?"

You're not country bumpkins—you've managed to assemble a cavalry force, even if three out of six ride inferior horses. You're still quite formidable in the modern world, the kind of mounted infantry you'd call a cavalryman.

Shen Le silently complained, not moving any closer, and simply said:
"I come from Yangzhou, and have traveled the world to broaden my horizons. By chance, I've arrived here. As for what I've seen and heard, there's nothing particularly special about it. It's nothing more than the devastation of war in various places, with nine out of ten houses empty. Alas..."

"Ugh……"

Dou Jiande also sighed softly. As soon as he finished sighing, he immediately seized the opportunity to strike:
"Since you, Daoist, have such a compassionate heart and pity the suffering of the people, would you please come with me to Gaojibo for a short while and take a look at our military camp?"
If we could be so fortunate as to receive a few pointers on some magical arts, making life even a little easier for the people, the entire village would be eternally grateful for your kindness!

Wait, why are they already pulling people away?
I only agreed to chat with you guys for a bit, I didn't agree to join!

Are you guys just kidnapping people?

Shen Le was slightly taken aback, and was about to gracefully retreat when Dou Jiande grabbed him. He gripped Shen Le's wrist and shook it up and down forcefully twice.
"Immortal Master, please—"

Shen Le reflexively tried to break free. However, although Dou Jiande's grip on his hand didn't hurt, it was extremely tight, far beyond Shen Le's strength to break free.

He focused his mind slightly, silently channeling his magic, trying to break free, but the heat surged upwards, reaching Dou Jiande's hand, only to suddenly dissipate for some unknown reason.

Shen Le's heart sank, and he remembered what his senior brothers had said:
"Try to avoid entering military camps and avoid encountering officers. The aura of the army, the aura of the officials, and the aura of the dragon can all restrain us. If things go wrong, our magic will be ineffective, and we'll be dragged out and beheaded in a miserable state!"

It seems a bit too late to struggle now. Shen Le could only put on a stern face, cough, and casually flick his sleeve in feigned impatience:

"I don't like strangers getting close. — Let go, I'll walk by myself!"

After saying that, he struggled again, and this time he broke free. However, the oppressive aura still lingered around him, faint and elusive.

Shen Le had no choice but to summon a whirlwind, raising his body slightly to be level with the rider on horseback, and look around:
"lead the way!"

(End of this chapter)