Yu He looked at the huge tree stump on the ground, then at Xie An... her eyes filled with shock.
The tree stump was thick enough for a person to embrace, and it grew underwater with well-developed roots. It would have been quite difficult to pull out. Yu He had tried before with her Fifth Layer Inner Strength, but she had failed each time.
She didn't expect that the master would succeed immediately with a single move.
All the signs indicated that this passage could lead out.
Xie An and Yu He quickened their pace forward, while staring ahead with wide eyes, a strong anticipation welling up in the depths of their pupils.
They had been trapped here for a full four years, and they could finally get out...
The closer they got to hope, the more excited and apprehensive they naturally became.
Especially Yu He, who kept muttering words like "May the Bodhisattva protect us," hoping that the passage wouldn't be blocked again.
Although Xie An looked calm on the surface, he didn't forget to comfort Yu He. In fact, he was also apprehensive in his heart.
If this passage was also blocked, then they would really be trapped to death underground.
Even the divine power of the Eighteen Sections of Bright Jade wouldn't be able to break through a hundred-meter-thick layer of rock.
After walking for about two quarters of an hour, the passage ahead became even larger. They could walk upright, and their waists didn't have to be bent, allowing their muscles and bones to stretch out greatly.
Finally, after passing a corner, a ray of light shone in.
Yu He looked in the direction of the light, and at the end, fifty meters away... was an opening.
She could no longer suppress the excitement in her heart and exclaimed, "Master, that's the exit! The exit!"
Xie An breathed a sigh of relief, "Let's go. Let's go out and breathe some fresh air."
He carried the tree root and walked in front, feeling the surrounding light become brighter with each step he took, and feeling closer to freedom.
This feeling made Xie An feel exceptionally comfortable.
Only after having been in the darkness and despair of a predicament, and having experienced that kind of hysterical despair... would one feel how exciting it was to see the sunlight and freedom.
Finally, they reached the opening.
Xie An first threw the tree stump out, then moved half his body to the side, "Yu He, you go up first."
Yu He was stunned for a moment, not knowing why Xie An did this.
Xie An explained, "In these four years, you have suffered more than me, and faced more torment. The first ray of sunlight should fall on you."
Yu He instinctively wanted to refuse, but Xie An pulled her up. She couldn't resist, so she had to be the first to climb out of the opening.
Xie An followed closely behind and climbed out of the opening. Immediately, bright sunlight poured down on him, a little dazzling, but warm. He also heard the surrounding birdsong.
The glaring sunlight made Xie An very uncomfortable. He closed his eyes and lay on the ground at the opening in a large, spread-eagle position, listening to the birds singing and cicadas chirping in his ears, and smelling the fragrance of flowers.
The sunlight fell on his skin, warm and numbing.
All of this made Xie An feel intoxicated, peaceful, and serene.
After a long while, Xie An adapted to the strong light and slowly opened his eyes, finding Yu He sitting beside him, hugging her knees with her head buried in them, making soft sobs, her body trembling.
Xie An saw it in his eyes, but his heart ached.
A full four years!
Yu He had guarded him in that dark and hopeless place for a full four years!
Every day facing despair and torment.
Such a day was simply worse than death.
Especially for a woman in her early twenties, it was even more devastating.
Now that they were finally out and regained their freedom, it was no wonder that she was emotionally out of control.
Xie An knew that Yu He had it harder than him.
After all, Xie An felt that the four years of his seclusion had only been a few days in the Daoist talisman. He didn't feel the torment brought by time as deeply as Yu He.
Xie An sat up, slowly reached out his hand, and gently stroked Yu He's head, "Yu He, don't cry, we are free now."
Yu He wiped away her tears, then nodded heavily, and soon burst into a smile, "Let's go down the mountain and find a place to have a feast... No, we have to go change our clothes first. These are so ugly."
Xie An was in a great mood, "Then let's go down the mountain to change clothes, take a bath, and then have a feast."
He picked up the tree stump to leave, but suddenly thought of something again and lowered his head to check the surroundings. Sure enough, he saw footprints and handprints at the entrance of the cave. Although a long time had passed, subtle traces still remained.
Yu He came over to look, "How could there be handprints and footprints together... Could it be that the woman crawled out?"
"Most likely."
Xie An's expression was solemn, and he had a rough guess in his heart: This Old Madam Jin was indeed a remarkable figure in her lifetime and could have been revived. However, because he had absorbed all the Undying Qi from the woman, she was forced to revive miserably.
Without the nourishment of the Undying Qi, the woman became very weak. That's why she chose to crawl out of the passage... instead of attacking him.
This made sense.
It was a pity... that this Old Madam Jin had run away.
He didn't know if she had other ways to restore her strength after running out, or if after going out... she would harm the surrounding villages and towns.
An old monster who lived four hundred years ago ran out... Xie An always felt that it wouldn't be a good thing.
Yu He also felt a lot of pressure, "I remember that the young lady specifically asked me to pay attention to an old thing in the Corpse Refining Hall. It might be this thing... Let's go down the mountain first. After resting for two days, I'll go ask the young lady. The young lady must know the identity of this woman."
Xie An thought about it and couldn't come up with a better way, so he nodded in agreement, "Let's go down the mountain first."
Not to mention wearing ragged clothes, the clothes were all smelly and uncomfortable to wear on the body. If people saw them, they would think they were two savages... Naturally, they had to go down and tidy up before making other plans.
After walking a few steps, Xie An saw countless coffins arranged in a circular pattern around him. Although most of the coffins were broken and the lids were missing, they were still shocking.
"This is the former forbidden cemetery of the Corpse Refining Hall?"
"Yes. The roar we heard in the ancestral hall earlier came from here. Later, we encountered seventy or eighty crystal corpses rushing in... I guess those crystal corpses also came from here, lying in these coffins, and were awakened by something that night."
Xie An couldn't help but be stunned.
The scene that night was still vivid in his mind.
That night, the people from the Nanyang Demon Suppression Office had already arrived on horseback, and Xie An had even heard the sound of fighting. He only needed to wait a little longer to be rescued.
The reason why they were forced into that secret passage was because seventy or eighty crystal corpses suddenly emerged...
He didn't expect that those crystal corpses had all crawled out of the coffins here.
Xie An counted the number of coffins around him.
More than four hundred.
In other words, more than four hundred crystal corpses ran out of here that day!
A crystal corpse was equivalent to a martial artist with Fourth Layer Inner Strength. More than four hundred... even a Grandmaster of Martial Arts would have a hard time, right?
One could imagine that not only were he and Yu He in a desperate situation, but the Demon Suppression Office on the periphery... was also facing a very tragic battle. It might have been even worse than the situation he and Yu He faced.
Thinking of this, Xie An couldn't help but sigh.
What Xie An thought of, Yu He naturally also thought of, and immediately felt melancholy and worried, "I don't know if the young lady is okay..."
Xie An couldn't help but feel a little worried about Su Yuqing in his heart.
Although this woman was thoughtful and sophisticated, after spending several years together, Xie An still had a good impression of her. Moreover, she had helped him a lot, and he didn't want Su Yuqing to have an accident.
The joy of escaping was also diluted by these worries. They didn't say anything more and just hurried on their way.
Beyond the cemetery was a mass grave.
After passing the mass grave, they came to the residence of the Corpse Refining Hall.
Xie An had been to this place before and was quite familiar with it.
But the situation he saw now was very different from what it was before.
Almost all the houses had been burned down and collapsed. The entire residence of the Corpse Refining Hall had been razed to the ground, and a large number of weeds had grown on the ruins. Some trees had grown to be more than ten meters tall.
Where was there any vitality?
Walking through the ruins, one could vaguely see bloodstains on the stones on the ground.
All the signs indicated that a very tragic battle had taken place here.
The result was also very obvious—the Corpse Refining Hall had been uprooted.
Xie An said, "It seems that the battle four years ago ended with your young lady's victory. She should be fine."
Yu He nodded, "Let's go down the mountain quickly. We'll know when we go to the Demon Suppression Room to ask."
The two walked through the residence of the Corpse Refining Hall and walked towards the outside of the village.
They didn't see a single living person along the way. The miasma that had originally filled the air had also dissipated, and the plants in the entire field were growing extremely well. There were birds singing and flowers fragrant everywhere.
Just as they were about to walk out of the residence, Yu He and Xie An heard voices approaching. They both stopped at the same time, looked at each other, and then hid behind a large camphor tree, vigilantly looking ahead.
Yu He pulled out her dagger and whispered, "It might be the unsuppressed demons of the Corpse Refining Hall."
Xie An agreed, tightening his grip on the handle of his knife, while staring ahead and preparing to draw his knife to kill the demons at any time.
With the current strength of Xie An and Yu He, they wouldn't need to worry at all even if they encountered a few crystal corpses. They were just afraid that there would be a lot of them, so they hid to observe for a while.
Before long, two footsteps came.
Xie An saw two sweaty young men walking over, one carrying a hoe and the other carrying an iron shovel, with ropes and water skins hanging on their bodies.
They looked like grave robbers.
When they reached the edge of the ruins, the two picked up their hoes and iron shovels and began to dig the soil and move the stones, making "clang, clang" sounds.
The two of them dug the soil and moved stones with a clear method, not missing an inch of land, conducting a carpet search.
Because of the hot weather, their skin was tanned, and their clothes were soaked with sweat, but they didn't stop.
"Hezi, we've been digging here for more than a month. To dig through the entire Corpse Refining Hall, it will take at least half a year. Why don't you go and marry Chunlan first? Madam Li doesn't have many days left. If Madam Li passes away, Chunlan might not stay in the Li residence. She will either go to another family to be a servant, or find some other means of making a living, like washing clothes or doing odd jobs for people. How can you bear it? Marry her, and then come back to find Master, it's the same, it won't delay anything."
These two were naturally Han Li and He Chunli. Among them, Han Li advised while overturning a large stone with his bare hands.
He Chunli stubbornly said, "I know what you're saying, but without finding Master… I can't get over this hurdle in my heart. Even if… Master is really gone, I will find Master's body, so that he can be buried in peace, and then I will observe mourning for Master for three years. Only after that will I consider my own affairs."
Knowing that he couldn't persuade this brother, Han Li sighed, "Then it's up to you. Anyway, my father is already gone, and my mother is not around. The other relatives in my family, seeing that I have become a martial artist, have all come to curry favor, acting as if they are very close to me. Previously, when my family couldn't make a living, they drove me out when I asked them to borrow a斗 (dǒu) of rice. It's meaningless. I, Han Li, am all alone, and only recognize Master as my relative. I can afford to wait. At worst, I'll spend a year digging through this place."
He Chunli sighed, wiped the corner of his eye, "Don't say such sentimental words, come and lend a hand, today we have to dig through this area. We also have to guard against the patrolling Demon Suppression Guards. If we get caught, we'll get a beating and scolding at the very least. Being beaten and scolded is fine, but I'm afraid that if we get caught, we won't have the chance to come here to find Master in the future."
"Coming. I'll count one, two, three, and we'll exert our strength together."
"One, two, three, exert!"
The two of them moved the boulder together and continued to dig the soil and excavate the mountain.
Standing behind the large camphor tree, Xie An saw and heard everything clearly.
Watching the way those two disciples were working hard with sweat all over their faces, he was very moved.
Unexpectedly.
Four years had passed.
These two disciples were still thinking about their master.
Yu He, who was beside him, took out a washed-out handkerchief and handed it to Xie An.
Xie An shook his head, then walked out.
"Someone!"
"Remnants of the Corpse Refining Hall! Demonic fiend! Take this sword!"
Han Li and He Chunli immediately became very vigilant when they heard footsteps approaching. They threw away their hoes and drew their swords, slashing fiercely at Xie An.
Han Li practiced swordsmanship. The bright long sword was heavy and large. A sword strike could be described as powerful and vigorous, fully displaying the extraordinary power of the Iron Bone Realm. He Chunli cultivated a broadsword, and the power of a single strike was even greater than Han Li's sword.
Moreover, when the two of them saw a ragged fellow suddenly appearing in front of them, whose entire appearance conformed to the characteristics of a demonic fiend, they attacked without thinking.
Clang!
Xie An didn't panic at all. He raised his hands, stretched them forward with his bare hands, grasped the blade of the sword with one hand, and pinched the tip of the knife with the other.
This little bit of attack was nothing more than tickling to Xie An.
But Han Li and He Chunli were quite shocked. The two of them tried to withdraw their swords, but found that they couldn't withdraw them no matter what. The swords seemed to be clamped by two huge iron pliers.
Han Li exclaimed, "Catching a blade with bare hands, this is an expert, we can't handle it. Hezi, quickly drop your weapons and run."
Although He Chunli was stubborn, he also knew that he shouldn't be stubborn in the face of life and death, so he dropped his weapon and ran away with Han Li.
Xie An originally wanted to test the progress of these two disciples, but unexpectedly… they ran away?
But after thinking about it, this was very reasonable.
If you can't win and still insist on fighting, then you've wasted your martial arts training, and your master has spoiled you in vain.
They've matured.
Seeing the two of them running for their lives, Xie An activated the Bright Jade Skill and chased after them in one step.
Xie An himself was shocked by such speed.
After blocking the two disciples' path, Xie An wanted to continue testing these two disciples. He threw the swords heavily on the ground, "The Corpse Refining Hall's forbidden area is not a place for you to come. Tell me, what are you doing here?"
Seeing that there was no way to escape, Han Li and He Chunli panicked, but quickly regained their composure. Han Li took a step forward, blocking He Chunli behind him, "We are here to find our master. We have no intention of offending your sect."
Hmm, not panicking when encountering trouble, speaking with a proper demeanor, with a bit of the flavor of a Jianghu guest.
Xie An felt satisfied in his heart, but showed a fierce look on his face, "What is your master's name?"
He Chunli stared at the youth in front of him, feeling a bit familiar, but the person's face was ferocious, so he didn't dare to think too much, and said, "His name is Xie An. He had an accident here four years ago."
Xie An snorted coldly, "It's been four years, why are you still looking for him?"
He Chunli said, "Master treated us well, treating us like sons. I want to find Master."
After speaking, He Chunli knelt down, "If you must kill me, please give me half a year. After I dig up this land, whether I find Master or not, I will offer my head."
Han Li also knelt down: "Please, sir, be merciful."
Looking at the two disciples' firm faces and red eyes, Xie An couldn't test them any longer, "Get up and talk, your master already knows your intentions."
The two of them didn't get up. The sharp-eyed Han Li asked: "How do you know that my master knows my intentions?"
In the two people's horrified eyes, Xie An stood up, walked step by step to the two people, and gradually squatted down, "Because I am your master, you two idiots! Open your eyes and take a good look."
Hearing this, the two of them suddenly looked up, looking at Xie An in disbelief.
Although Xie An was ragged, the outline of his face was indeed very similar to Xie An's. But he was too young compared to before. Even if you looked closely… it was extremely difficult to be sure that it was the same person.
After all, in the consciousness of ordinary people, it can be understood that a face becomes old. But an old face becoming young… is very illogical.
Even Han Li and He Chunli, the two closest disciples, still stared for a long time after Xie An revealed his identity before daring to confirm that it was the same person.
He Chunli muttered, choked up, and called out, "Mas… ter!"
He murmured "Master" several times in a row, and finally threw himself into Xie An's arms, tightly hugging Xie An's thigh, and burst into tears with a "woo-wah" sound.
Han Li restrained his emotions and didn't cry loudly, but his eyes were also red. He slowly approached Xie An, hugged Xie An tightly, and called out: "Master!"
Xie An was moved by the emotions for a moment, and was also a little touched, so he kindly put his arms around the two disciples, gently patting the back of their heads, "Master is here, I'm fine. These four years have been hard on you two."
He Chunli shook his head frantically, almost sobbing, "It's not hard, as long as Master is well, that's more important than anything else."
Xie An felt very heart-warming, "Seeing that you are both doing well, Master is also relieved. Okay, okay, stop crying, Master sees that you are also martial artists in the Iron Bone Realm. There are still people here."
Hearing that there was someone else, He Chunli stopped sobbing and looked back to see Yu He standing smiling under the camphor tree. The bright sunlight shone on her face, setting off the delicate skin on her face, making it crystal clear.
He Chunli's face immediately turned red, and he was embarrassed to cry anymore, only caring about wiping away his tears.
In fact, outside, He Chunli was already a martial artist, had seen life and death, and had killed bandits, making him very majestic. But in front of his master, he couldn't control his emotions, and always felt like he was a child who couldn't grow up.
"Master's clothes are like this, he must have suffered a lot. I just happened to bring two sets of clean clothes in my bag, planning to stay here for a few days. I'll go get them for Master." Han Li slapped his forehead and hurried away. When he came back, he was carrying a bag, opened it in front of Xie An, and there were two sets of clothes, as well as dry pancakes, beef jerky, etc.
Han Li took out the pancakes and beef jerky, plus a leather kettle, and placed them on the stone in front of Xie An: "Master must be hungry, eat some rough food to fill your stomach first. When we get to the foot of the mountain, I'll treat Master to delicious food and spicy drinks. And go to the brothel to find two tender girls for Master to enjoy."
He Chunli kicked Han Li, "What nonsense are you talking about? Master is upright, how could he go looking for girls."
Han Li dodged and hummed, "You have Chunlan to accompany you, so naturally you are satisfied. But Master and I don't."
He Chunli's face was flushed, he glared at Han Li fiercely, and then said to Xie An: "Master, don't listen to his nonsense, Chunlan and I are innocent. Not as dirty as he said."
Xie An didn't reply, only caring about watching the two of them tease each other, and looking at the dry food such as pancakes and beef jerky on the stone, thinking that the two of them planned to dig here for a long time to find him.
Not long after, Han Li brought a raccoon, made a fire on the spot, skinned it and grilled it, "If Master isn't too hungry, then don't eat those dry rations first. This is a raccoon I caught this morning, I'll grill it for Master to eat."
Xie An's eyes suddenly turned a little red.
It was as if he had returned to the New Year's Eve eight years ago, in the backyard of Li's Pawnshop, on a snowy night, the three masters and disciples were still servants living under someone else's roof, so they depended on each other, surrounded the stove, eating inferior snacks, and talking…
Now that they met again, eight years had passed since then.
Each of them had achieved considerable success, and were no longer servants living under someone else's roof.
But the friendship between the master and disciples had not diminished in the slightest.
