Volume One, Chapter Twenty-Seven: Tending Sheep in the Wilderness

“There is actually a way…” Meiniang, who had been silent all this while, suddenly broke the hush. Hanyu’s heart skipped a beat; she’d noticed earlier that Meiniang had been crouched on the ground, fiddling with something.

“What way?” Qi Yuanxiao asked immediately.

“If earth-melding won’t work, we can still dig a tunnel! I tried it just now; it’s possible to dig our way out… but…” As Meiniang spoke, a troubled look crossed her face.

“But what?” Jin Guishan quickly pressed.

“But… you’ll all need to look away. She has to return to her true form to dig…” Hanyu shot Jin Guishan an irritated glare.

“Oh… alright! Alright!” Jin Guishan was startled at first, then quickly understood she simply didn’t want anyone to see her true form.

He promptly motioned for everyone to turn around and insisted that unless Meiniang called for them, no one was to look back. Soon, a rustling sound came from behind, then gradually shifted to beneath their feet, approaching the cell door. Suddenly, the noise ceased altogether. Everyone craned their ears, listening intently, but after a long while, nothing happened.

“Oh no… that fool’s injured and still insists on showing off! Don’t turn around—” Hanyu’s warning was cut short by her sudden disappearance.

The rustling beneath the ground resumed, passing directly under the cell door. Instinctively, everyone glanced toward the door.

“Miss Hanyu as well…” Qi Yuanxiao was the first to break the silence. He didn’t finish his sentence, but everyone knew he meant “demon.”

“She’s not…” Yibing blurted anxiously.

Just then, a startled cry sounded outside the cell, and in the next instant, Hanyu leapt back into the room. “I was scared to death! Scared to death!”

“What happened?” Hong Kun hurriedly examined her.

“I’m fine! It was a snake! A snake! The lock on the door was a huge black snake!” Hanyu’s face was pale with fear.

“Is Meiniang alright?” Yibing and Fatty Girl asked in unison.

“She fainted!” Hanyu pointed at the ground, then turned to Yibing. “Hey, you turtle spirit! Come out here and handle this!”

“Divine Turtle! Divine Turtle! You little liar—said you wouldn’t call me that anymore!” The turtle spirit shot out from Yibing’s arms and landed on the ground with a thud.

“I didn’t break my word! You only get your reward after you take care of the thing outside!” Hanyu retreated up the steps in fright.

“I don’t care!” The turtle, still dizzy from the fall, protested.

“Turtle brother, help us!” Yibing quickly scooped him up.

“Wait… wait…” The turtle shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts.

“We’re counting on you, Divine Turtle!” Fatty Girl pressed her finger gently to his head.

“Thank you! Thank you! I can’t even stop spinning…” The turtle gave Fatty Girl a grateful look, then glared at Yibing. “Put me down! Put me down!” Yibing quickly opened his hands, waiting for the turtle to leap again.

“Put… me… down…” The turtle craned his neck, thinking, “Wasn’t the last fall bad enough? And you expect me to jump again, you fat oaf!”

“Oh… oh…” Yibing barely stifled a laugh.

“Can’t you fly?” Hanyu muttered sarcastically.

“Hmph…” The turtle rolled his eyes at her but said nothing.

The turtle was clearly dragging things out on purpose! He crawled toward the tunnel entrance at an agonizingly slow pace, pausing after each step. Just before entering, he shot another glare at Hanyu. She was so angry she wanted to curse, but after opening her mouth, she forced herself to stay silent.

After the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, they finally heard the cell door click open. The group rushed out, ready for battle, only to be stunned by what they saw: outside the cell was still underground.

A giant luminous pearl hung from the arched ceiling, flooding the cavern with light as bright as day. Here, too, were three courtyards in succession, with flower beds, trees, and side rooms laid out exactly like the Sun and Moon Monastery. The only difference was the main hall’s plaque, which didn’t read “Three Pure Ones Hall,” but rather “Palace of Myriad Impurities.” The door they emerged from was situated precisely where the monastery’s main gate should have been.

“It’s a cave within a cave!” Meiniang’s voice sounded behind them; she was half-leaning against the cell door.

“How did you get out?” Hanyu hurried over to support her.

“The turtle, of course!” Meiniang gestured with her mouth.

“Hmph! Only because you clung to my shell for dear life!” The turtle shot Meiniang a disgruntled look.

“Well, we should still thank you, Divine Turtle!” Hanyu replied with exaggerated politeness. The turtle, however, was thoroughly pleased, stretching his neck in pride.

“Are you alright?” Jin Guishan looked at Meiniang with concern. She nodded quickly—she had to be alright, whether or not she truly was.

“Senior brother, there are no demons in the front courtyard!” Qi Yuanxiao rushed over, having already scouted with his juniors. Jin Guishan thought for a moment, then turned to Hong Kun. “Senior Brother Hong, shall we check the rear?”

“Good! Hong Peng and I will go in front. You and your fellow Daoists hold the center, and Biyi and the others guard our rear!” Hong Kun nodded eagerly. Biyi pouted in dissatisfaction—why was she always at the back?

“Senior brother isn’t worried about you; he just wants you to look after the others,” Hong Peng whispered in Biyi’s ear. Biyi pursed her lips but said nothing.

“Senior Brother Hong, our Wuyun Sect has the Black Tortoise Formation, which coordinates both attack and defense. My brothers and I can hold the formation’s core, with everyone else deployed as attackers. We advance and retreat together—wouldn’t that be better?” Jin Guishan suggested tactfully.

“Ah, the Black Tortoise Formation! I’ve heard much of it; to see it today is a rare honor! Certainly, let’s do as you say!” Hong Kun’s delight was obvious.

“But… one small request!” Jin Guishan smiled. “The formation requires seven people, but we have only six. Originally, Brother Mu would have joined us. Might I trouble Senior Brother Hong to take his place?”

“Brother Mu? …Oh, Yibing!” Hong Kun was momentarily confused, but when he saw Jin Guishan looking at Yibing, he understood.

“Yibing?!” Jin Guishan nearly burst out laughing—the name was too fitting. Yibing smiled sheepishly.

Jin Guishan quickly explained, and Hong Kun realized he was to hold the position of the Spirit Snake. He still had many questions but knew not to ask more. Under Jin Guishan’s command, everyone took their places and advanced cautiously toward the Hall of Myriad Impurities.

As soon as they entered, they froze in astonishment: on the altar were two women in diaphanous robes, their bodies visible beneath the sheer fabric. The two entwined their jade arms and crossed their pale legs—one eager, one coy—lips slightly parted, their silent allure somehow even more pronouced.

“Just your style!” Hanyu couldn’t help but laugh. Meiniang, embarrassed, had nothing to say in her defense.

“Keep moving!” Jin Guishan, now wiser for his troubles, urged the group onward. Qi Yuanxiao and the others blushed furiously and quickened their pace.

Beyond the Hall of Myriad Impurities, a tightly shut moon gate awaited them, with two more diaphanous women depicted on its panels. Jin Guishan, embarrassed, stepped forward and pushed, but the door didn’t budge. Peering over the wall, they could see another rear hall with a plaque reading “Hall of the Wild Pastures.”

“Just climb over!” Qi Yuanxiao offered, leaping for the wall. But the moment he reached the top, an invisible force flung him back down. He tried again, to no avail.

“Don’t bother! Enchanted barriers—you can’t leap over them.” Meiniang grabbed his sleeve to stop him from trying again.

“This door is odd…” Hanyu approached for a closer look, drawing the others with her. On closer inspection, they saw the women on the door weren’t painted but inlaid, their limbs and necks movable. Meiniang reached out, discovering she could twist arms and legs. Hong Kun and the others coughed awkwardly and stepped aside, leaving only Hanyu and Meiniang at the door, Meiniang gleefully manipulating the figures.

“Ahem…” Hong Kun was about to intervene when Hanyu darted back into the hall. Suddenly, comprehension dawned on him, and he, too, moved closer, much to Biyi’s surprise.

“This head goes here, and this arm there!” Hanyu returned, giving directions. At the sound of a click, the door swung open.

“So that’s how it works!” Qi Yuanxiao exclaimed in admiration.

“Not nearly as clever as the Origin Cave’s puzzle,” Meiniang laughed, sharing a knowing look with Hanyu and Fatty Girl. The three exchanged smiles, while the rest remained baffled.

This time, Hong Kun took the lead. The door to the Hall of the Wild Pastures opened easily—no tricks there. The hall was empty save for an enormous mural on the far wall. Cautious from earlier experience, they all gathered around to examine it.

A small river ran across the base of the mural, from left to right. In the center, a tiny bridge spanned the water, painted at the base of the wall so that it looked as if one could step right into the scene. Across the river, lush grass and scattered herds of sheep were tended by a dozen or more shepherdesses, all in thin robes, each wielding a crook as they guided their flocks. In the upper right corner, two mountains rose amid drifting clouds, one topped with a golden palace.

“No wonder it’s called the Hall of the Wild Pastures—shepherding sheep in the wild!” Qi Yuanxiao, always eloquent, commented. Biyi gave him a sidelong glance; the others nodded in agreement.

“There’s no mechanism here…” Meiniang said, disappointed, as she searched the mural. Hanyu frowned in thought, saying nothing—just in time to see Yibing staring at the shepherdesses, his face pressed nearly flush with the wall, eyes gleaming.

“Staring hard enough? Careful your eyes don’t get stuck!” Hanyu snapped irritably.

“No, it’s just… look at this woman, she seems to be… and the sheep, too, has…” Yibing tried to tug Hanyu over.

“Stare all you want—why pull me?” Hanyu pushed him away without even looking. There was a cry, and when she turned, Yibing had vanished.

“Heavens! Yibing?!” Hanyu cried out in alarm. The others rushed over.

“What happened to Brother Mu?” Fatty Girl searched anxiously for Yibing.

“I… I just pushed him, and he disappeared…” Hanyu, at a loss, turned to Hong Kun.

“Could he have fallen outside?” Hong Kun hurried to the door. Fatty Girl dashed out after him.

“He’s so fat—a fall like that would have shaken the mountains!” Meiniang remarked, finding Fatty Girl’s worry a bit silly.

“True enough…” Hong Kun nodded sheepishly.

“Maybe he earth-melded?” Hong Peng tried a spell, but nothing happened; magic was useless here.

“No! I even checked the flowerbeds!” Fatty Girl returned, breathless. Everyone looked at each other, silent.

“Hey! Come look at this!” Biyi, who had been standing at the back, suddenly shrieked. Her finger trembled as she pointed at the mural. Looking where she indicated, they saw that a fat figure had appeared across the river in the painting, anxiously peering out from the wall.

“My god!” Hanyu dashed over. Who else could it be but Yibing?

“How did he get in there?” Fatty Girl tried to scratch him out of the mural, desperate to pull him free.

“Where did you push him?” Meiniang nudged Hanyu aside. Hanyu quickly pointed out the approximate spot. Meiniang began to feel carefully over every inch of the mural.

“He said the woman seemed to be… and the sheep looked like… then I…” Hanyu suddenly realized her mistake, pressing her face to the wall. Indeed, she had misunderstood Yibing: the shepherdesses in the mural were the very same junior Taoist nuns who’d captured them, and the sheep all had human faces!

“No wonder we couldn’t find those demons—they’re hiding in the mural!” Jin Guishan shuddered. That Master Bao Pu was truly someone to be reckoned with. They’d been far too reckless this time.

“This sheep looks like Brother Ruzhen…” Fatty Girl pointed shakily at one sheep in the painting.

“He looks thinner…” He Lingchi added softly.

“How are we going to save them?” Qi Yuanxiao asked Biyi helplessly. Biyi closed her eyes—could it be the same trick as the Five Colors Cavern?