Entering the Spiritual Void: Chapter 121 – An Unexpected Ambush

The writing on the jade tablet was small, and since they were galloping at high speed, Gao Yunxiang could not see it at all. He continued to charge forward. Li Hao grew anxious, forgetting that the blood-red ink was highly toxic; upon contact with skin, it would immediately seep into the body and cause unconsciousness. He swung the jade tablet toward the back of Gao Yunxiang's neck. The red ink, still wet, splashed directly onto Gao's neck.

Gao Yunxiang suddenly felt as if he had been bitten by a louse. He swatted at it, shuddered involuntarily, and fell from his horse, instantly losing consciousness.

This unexpected event terrified Li Hao and alarmed the others. They reined in their horses, jumped down, and asked in a flurry of voices, "What happened?"

"Quick! My second brother has been struck by an enemy's sneak attack!"

"Be on guard against the villains taking advantage of this!"

Li Hao quickly wrote on the jade tablet: "Senior sister, Second Brother has been poisoned by my ink. Please quickly prepare an antidote for him."

Meng Biyu did not have time to ask why Li Hao had done this; she hurriedly pulled out a medicine bottle, removed the stopper, shook two pills into her palm, and called out, "Sister Yifei, come help me!"

Yang Yifei leaped over in a single bound and asked, "Tell me what to do!"

Meng Biyu replied, "Use both hands to cup his cheeks firmly and force his mouth open."

Yang Yifei obeyed. As she pried Gao Yunxiang's mouth open, Meng Biyu placed the antidote pills into his mouth and said, "Let go, and pinch his nose."

With his nose pinched shut, Gao Yunxiang could not breathe, forcing air to enter through his mouth.

A gulping sound was heard as the pills were swallowed. Yang Yifei then pressed her palm gently against Gao Yunxiang's abdomen.

Seeing that the medicine had been swallowed, Meng Biyu stood up, glared at Li Hao, and scolded, "What has gotten into you? Why would you poison Second Brother for no reason?"

Li Hao lowered his head and wrote on the tablet: "I was wrong." He then explained that Gao Yunxiang had spent two hundred taels of silver at the inn on his behalf, and that he felt deep shame that his own affairs had forced his brother to spend money. He wanted to explain to his brother that he would repay him in the future.

Meng Biyu snapped, "Enough! Don't write any more. I understand everything. Don't act so recklessly again!"

Li Hao wrote back on the tablet: "Yes."

After swallowing the antidote, Gao Yunxiang soon regained consciousness. He opened his eyes to see Yang Yifei squatting before him, rubbing his abdomen. He hurriedly sat up and asked, "Was Luo Mingyuan taken away?"

Yang Yifei flashed her pearly white teeth and said, "Why so nervous? No villains came at all."

Gao Yunxiang said, "Are you laughing at me for falling off my horse?"

Yang Yifei replied, "My face is covered tightly; how do you know I'm laughing at you?"

Gao Yunxiang retorted, "If you weren't laughing, I wouldn't have had the good fortune to see your beautiful, white, and tiny teeth."

Yang Yifei pursed her cherry lips and said, "We just escaped a calamity, yet you're already spouting nonsense. Have you no shame?"

Gao Yunxiang asked, "What exactly happened?"

Yang Yifei said, "I'm starving. Get up and mount your horse; we'll enter the town to eat, and you'll understand then."

Li Hao walked over to Gao Yunxiang, hung his head, and wrote on the tablet: "Second Brother, please forgive me."

Gao Yunxiang laughed, "Third Brother, don't take it to heart. We've all been fighting hard all night, and we're famished. Let's get on our horses, enter the town, and fill our stomachs first."

After having breakfast in the town, they continued their journey. Not long after setting out, they noticed someone tailing them. After traveling about thirty miles, they arrived at the mouth of a valley. Gao Yunxiang pulled on his reins and turned back, saying, "Let's rest here for a while before moving on."

Yang Yifei dismounted and walked up to Gao Yunxiang, whispering in his ear, "Did you spot any suspicious characters?"

Gao Yunxiang replied, "I noticed them, but I can't tell which factions they belong to."

Yang Yifei whispered back, "There are both righteous and evil sect members. The righteous include people from the Hengshan Sect and the Beggar Gang; the evil ones are from the Lion Altar of the Hundred Sects. I suspect they have an ambush set up in the valley and intend to attack us."

Gao Yunxiang said, "In the world of martial arts, fighting is as common as eating—it's unavoidable."

As soon as he finished speaking, Meng Biyu walked over and said with a smile, "Second Brother, Yifei, I hope you don't mind me interrupting your private conversation."

Yang Yifei reached out to grab her face, saying, "Big Sister, I respect you, but if you speak rudely, I'll have to get rough."

Meng Biyu knew she was just posturing. She ducked her head, stepped forward instead of back, wrapped her arms around Yang Yifei's waist, and giggled, "If you dare get rough, I'll snap your willow waist."

Gao Yunxiang laughed aloud, "Stop fooling around. We need to discuss serious matters."

Meng Biyu said, "You take her then," and with a push of her hips, she sent Yang Yifei flying toward Gao Yunxiang.

Gao Yunxiang opened his arms and caught her in his embrace, saying, "Yifei, let's discuss whether to take the water route or the land route to the Heavenly Blade Pavilion."

Yang Yifei replied, "Where is the Heavenly Blade Pavilion? I have no idea. You're asking the wrong person."

Meng Biyu asked, "What are the water and land routes like?"

Gao Yunxiang said, "The water route will take two days to reach the Heavenly Blade Pavilion."

Meng Biyu frowned, "I get seasick. That sounds like a very long journey. If we encounter headwinds while traveling upstream, the boat won't be able to move, which would be infuriating."

Yang Yifei added, "I don't think traveling by boat sounds fun either."

Gao Yunxiang continued, "If we take the land route, the path from here to Shimen is easy, and the mountains are not treacherous. From Shimen to the Heavenly Blade Pavilion, however, the route is filled with dangerous mountain passes."

Yang Yifei said, "High mountain peaks and beautiful scenery—that sounds fun. I suggest the mountain route."

Meng Biyu agreed, "Viewing more scenery adds meaning to life. Climbing to a peak and looking down at the landscape, seeing the smoke rising from farmhouses—how often in life can we see such things? I agree with the land route."

Gao Yunxiang nodded, "If no special circumstances arise, we shall take the land route."

Meng Biyu asked, "Since we are traveling with Luo Mingyuan, it's inevitable we'll face trouble along the way. If an incident occurs, how will we fight? Who will guard him? We should assign roles beforehand to avoid chaos."

Gao Yunxiang immediately designated Mo Dao and Meng Biyu to guard Luo Mingyuan, while the others would handle the fighting. He added that the guards should remain aware of the battle and immediately provide support if anyone was in danger.

Having decided on the route and the division of labor, they mounted their horses and continued forward.

This mountain valley was extremely treacherous. In its narrowest parts, it could only accommodate one rider at a time; anyone coming from the opposite direction had to stand aside to yield. On both sides were sheer cliffs so high that one could not see the tops. In some places, it felt like a tunnel—narrow at the top, wide at the bottom, and prone to strong winds. Traders feared this path, as it was cold in the winter and stifling in the summer.

Taking a detour would add an entire day to the journey. Many traders, greedy for a shortcut, had their goods stolen or even lost their lives to bandits. The valley was littered with bones, making it a terrifying sight.

Gao Yunxiang led the way, with Mo Dao bringing up the rear. They had not traveled even a mile into the narrow valley when a deafening explosion erupted in front of them, shaking the earth and mountains.

Debris and soil rained down from the cliffs like hail, so thick that nothing could be seen. While the people could crouch in the recesses of the cliff walls, the horses could not hide and neighed in pain as they were struck by falling rocks.

As the falling stones subsided, Mo Dao crept forward to investigate. He saw that the path ahead was blocked by massive boulders dislodged by the explosion. While a person might risk leaping over them, the horses could not.

Mo Dao turned back, intending to retreat from the valley to reconsider. Suddenly, another massive explosion echoed from the entrance! The resulting debris and soil were less than the first, but after this blast, the path was blocked there as well.

After a moment of silence, a voice called out from afar: "If you want to live, hand over our leader immediately. Otherwise, we will burn you all to death in this 'Valley of No Return.'"

Mo Dao raised his voice and shouted, "If your leader is going to perish with us in the 'Valley of No Return,' we have no regrets!"

He then signaled to the others, "We must abandon our horses for now. Grab Luo Mingyuan and follow me! Don't panic."

Jiezhenzi said, "Leave the devils to me. You all prepare to fight."

The enemy called out again, "You have nowhere to retreat. We have piled enough dry grass and firewood on the cliff tops to burn your bones to ash. Thinking you can use our leader's life as leverage is a grave mistake."

Mo Dao replied, "You speak of brutality, but we are not afraid. If you want to negotiate, we certainly won't easily give up the trump card we hold."

The enemy asked, "What do you want? State your terms."

Mo Dao said, "Clear the blocked valley entrance, and we will hand over the hostage once we reach the top of the valley."

The enemy cursed, "Kid, you're counting your chickens before they hatch!"

Mo Dao replied, "You were the ones who invited me to set the terms! I set the price, and you decide whether to accept."

The enemy was no fool; they had indeed laid a perfect trap. Besides the massive amounts of firewood and fuel on the cliff tops, they had explosives—dynamite packed into bamboo tubes with fuses. Though crude, they were lethal. The valley entrances were not only blocked by rocks but also reinforced with dry brush, explosives, and heavily armed guards.

To an outsider, trapped in such a tight spot, it would be impossible to escape without the supernatural transformations of the Monkey King. However, to someone with supreme martial arts, the perspective was different; they could use advanced light-foot techniques to leap out and catch the guards off guard. The only problem was the narrowness of the valley, which limited their range of motion.

Mo Dao observed the situation through a gap and sighed inwardly, thinking: A hero with no room to display his strength—what can be done?

The enemy replied, "Send one person to bring our leader out, and we guarantee not to harm a hair on his head."

Mo Dao turned to carefully observe the cliff walls, thinking: Any of us trapped here could use the Gecko Technique to climb to the top. But in broad daylight, every move would be seen by the guards, leaving little chance of success. He decided to stall and buy time, saying, "You value your leader too cheaply!"

The enemy roared, "You're spouting nonsense!"

Mo Dao said, "We are all nobodies. If one of us were to be traded for your leader, wouldn't that demean your leader's status and inflate our own?"

After a moment of silence, the enemy asked, "Kid, let me tell you! Dreaming of using our leader as leverage is just that—a pipe dream!"

Mo Dao replied, "What do you mean by leverage? Your leader is the greatest martial artist of our time, without equal in the past or future, wouldn't you agree?"

The enemy replied, "That is true." Mo Dao continued, "He has written treatises on martial arts. Are you aware of this?" The enemy answered, "Yes." Mo Dao asked again, "Do you know where his works are kept?" The enemy answered, "We do not."

Mo Dao said, "Besides his lifelong love for wine and women, do you know what else your leader was fond of?" The enemy answered, "We aren't quite sure."

Mo Dao then said, "Luo Mingyuan spent his life collecting rare treasures—there is nothing he does not possess." The enemy asked, "Kid, where did you hear that?"