8mi Chapter 15 Fragments of the Demon Wolf's Memory
Chapter 15 Fragments of the Demon Wolf's Memory
As dusk faded, the two returned to the abandoned cellar, their steps treading on the slippery path strewn with pine needles and moss. The vines hanging at the entrance still bore the dew of the night, leaving a cool, damp touch as they brushed against their shoulders. Su Qingyao entered first, fumbling for a tinderbox in her bosom. With a gentle blow, a tiny flame timidly lit, illuminating her dust-covered yet still delicate profile. She bent down and lit the old oil lamp in the recessed stone wall. The dim, yellowish light, like spilled beeswax, slowly spread, bathing the small, square earthen chamber in a warm, gentle glow.
In the light, a half-bundle of dry grass was piled up in the corner, laid out fairly neatly; on the stone platform, a few rough earthenware bowls and cups held some water, and nothing else. Su Qingyao took out an oil paper package from her bag, untied the rope, and inside were several pieces of coarse grain cakes mixed with wheat bran, the edges already hardened. She handed one to Lin Yan, then pushed the water bag over, her voice carrying the weariness of a day's journey, yet still gentle: "Use these haphazardly for now, to tide you over. Today's ordeal has taken a toll on your energy and blood; you mustn't weaken your foundation."
Lin Yan took the cake. It felt rough to the touch, but he didn't mind, chewing it slowly with water. The coarseness of the wheat bran melted on his tongue, mixed with the faint earthy smell of the water. The taste wasn't exactly pleasant, but it brought a real sense of fullness, a warm feeling that settled comfortably down his throat into his stomach. The two sat facing each other by the stone table, neither speaking, only the soft sounds of chewing and the occasional crackling of the oil lamp wick could be heard. The silence wasn't awkward; rather, it possessed a peaceful tranquility born of survival and mutual dependence.
After finishing his dry rations, Lin Yan moved to the innermost part of the cellar, found a slightly dry corner, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing. His newly advanced peak Body Tempering cultivation was still surging and active within him. The gray-black Devouring Spirit True Essence flowed gurgling through his expanded meridians, like a spring stream nourishing newly cultivated fields. Wherever it passed, his muscles, bones, and skin felt a slight numbness and comfort. Even the deep claw mark on his shoulder, which revealed the bone, felt warm and healing under the nourishment of this True Essence.
However, he felt little joy at the breakthrough. The peak of Body Tempering and the Profound Realm seemed to be separated by only a fine line, but in reality, they were worlds apart. Ordinary martial artists, without great opportunities, great perseverance, and the aid of precious elixirs, often spent ten years in vain even glimpsing the beginning. He relied on his Spirit Devouring Body, taking the perilous shortcut of devouring demons and plundering their essence. Although his progress was rapid, he had just swallowed the demonic power of two demon wolves, and his dantian was already full. If he forcibly absorbed more, he feared that the mixed demonic energy would backfire, disrupting the foundation of his true essence, resulting in more harm than good. What he needed most at this moment was not more "resources," but rather time to settle, refine, and an "opportunity" that could help him break through that invisible barrier.
Where did this opportunity lie? He vaguely felt that the answer was hidden in the strange cave deep within the Canglang Mountain. Lin Yan calmed his mind, suppressing the turmoil caused by the life-or-death struggle during the day, and instead focused his inner vision, carefully sorting through the fragmented and chaotic pieces of memory in his mind—the remnants of the resentment and fear left behind by the demon wolf he had devoured before its death. They were blurry, disjointed, and filled with the pungent smell of animal instinct. They needed to be pieced together patiently, like piecing together broken pieces of ancient porcelain, bit by bit, to gather and identify them.
The first thing that clearly appeared was the scene at the entrance to the wolf den. The memory carried the unique way of perception of demon wolves, emphasizing scent and outline: on the sunny side of the main peak of Canglang Mountain, vines intertwined like a giant net, and waist-high shrubs were so dense that they were almost impenetrable, completely obscuring the entrance of a naturally formed cave. If it weren't for the figures of a few blue-furred demon wolves that suddenly appeared and disappeared among the nearby rock crevices, anyone passing by would have thought it was just an ordinary, desolate mountainside. On the gravel beach outside the cave entrance, about a dozen demon wolves stood or lay down, but none of them relaxed. Their sharp ears were like blades, constantly turning towards the direction of the wind, their nostrils flaring, alert to any unusual scent in the air—this was the first and outermost sentry post set up by the wolf king.
Following the memory deeper into the cave, the scene inside suddenly opened up. The cave's vastness far exceeded expectations, likely hundreds of feet in circumference, resembling an underground palace. Stalactites hanging from the ceiling were as dense as a forest, and water droplets condensed on the tips of the stones dripped down, making a monotonous but clear "tap, tap" sound in the silence. The stone walls were covered with eerie green fluorescent moss, the faint light emitted not enough to illuminate the entire cave, but casting ghostly shadows on the jagged rocks and the swarming wolf shadows. The ground was covered with a thick layer of dry grass and tattered animal hides, accumulated over countless years, where hundreds of demonic wolves huddled together, their fur of varying shades and auras of varying strengths, the weakest only at the early stage of body tempering, the strongest already at the late stage. In the center of the wolf pack, a stone platform about three feet high, roughly carved from a single piece of dark blue rock, stood abruptly. The surface of the platform was worn smooth and faintly gleamed with the oily sheen of years of being trampled on—that was the throne.
On the stone platform, lounging lazily, sat the Bloodfang Wolf King. Its shoulders were nearly ten feet tall, its frame imposing. Its silver-gray fur was not smooth, but rather stood upright like short halberds, gleaming with a cold, metallic sheen in the dim light. Most intimidating were its exposed fangs, a strange dark red, as if they had been soaked in blood for years without being washed clean. Its pair of dark golden vertical pupils were half-open, their gaze sweeping over the crouching wolves below, devoid of any warmth, only the pure, apex-of-the-food dominance and control. At this moment, it was gnawing on a section of the thick shinbone of an unknown monster. The cracking sound was particularly jarring in the silent cave, followed by the teeth-grinding hissing of forcefully sucking out the marrow. The wolves below the stage dared not look up, nor move an inch, even their breathing was deliberately slowed—this was the ironclad rule of the wolf pack: the king reigns supreme, and life and death are decided by him. Lin Yan, from the fragments of his memory, caught the aura flowing around the wolf king, a far more solid and violent aura than that of a Body Tempering Realm cultivator, and judged in his heart: the Bloodfang Wolf King had indeed stepped into the early stage of the Profound Realm, and was definitely not at the peak of Body Tempering.
Deep within the main cave, another narrow passage meanders towards an even more secluded place. The passage is only wide enough for one person to pass sideways, but at its end lies a completely different world. While not as spacious as the main cave, this space is permeated with a rich, invigorating spiritual energy. In the center of the cave, a pool of water lies quietly in a natural stone basin, about three zhang in diameter. The water is not clear, but rather a milky white, like cow's milk. A mist, almost solidified, rises from the surface, and when inhaled, one feels a sense of lightness throughout the body. This is the spiritual spring.
However, the spiritual spring had an owner. A semi-transparent, crimson light membrane, resembling an inverted giant glass bowl, shrouded the entire surface of the pool. Flame patterns flowed ceaselessly across the membrane, radiating a scorching heat. The membrane wasn't completely insulated; occasionally, extremely faint milky-white spiritual mist escaped, only to be greedily devoured by the several demonic wolves waiting nearby. Beneath the membrane, deep within the pool, a much larger crimson shadow lay prostrate. Even through the barriers of memory and the barrier, Lin Yan could feel the chilling pressure and intense heat emanating from that shadow—the Fiery Demon Tiger, a powerful demon in the mid-stage of the Profound Realm, had submerged its body at the bottom of the spiritual spring, seemingly using the spring's power to nurture or refine something. The wolf pack and the demonic tiger maintained a strange and fragile balance, with this barrier as the boundary: the demonic tiger monopolized the core of the spiritual spring, while the wolf pack absorbed the scattered spiritual energy from its edges.
The final piece of the picture, however, caused Lin Yan's body temperature to plummet to freezing. In another narrow corner of the cave, several relatively small, but with exceptionally cold and cunning eyes, demonic wolves were surrounding a messy area. Scattered on the ground were several human corpses, all shriveled like rotten wood, their faces contorted, their deaths gruesome. These demonic wolves, using their claws and teeth, with an almost ritualistic solemnity, channeled their demonic power, carefully forcing out the last remaining, dark red essence of blood and qi from the dried corpses. Then, they mixed, squeezed, and condensed this resentful death energy with the wisps of milky white spiritual energy they had painstakingly drawn from the cracks in the spiritual spring's barrier... Finally, between their claws, it slowly condensed into irregular, dark red crystals about the size of a fingernail, each radiating an alluring spiritual energy and an eerie blood-red glow.
Blood Crystal!
Lin Yan abruptly opened his eyes, a chilling glint flashing within them. His knuckles cracked as he clenched his fists on his knees, a surge of murderous intent, a mixture of anger and icy chill, rising from the depths of his heart. So this harmful substance was obtained in this way! Forged from the blood and souls of living beings, fueled by the essence of heaven and earth's spiritual springs! No wonder it was so impure, possessing both demonic and spiritual energy, so alluring to low-level cultivators—it was essentially a shortcut to cultivation built on human lives!
"How was it? Did you 'see' any key points?" Su Qingyao's voice came from her side, filled with concern. She had finished regulating her breathing, and her face had regained its color. She was leaning against the stone wall, gently wiping the blade of the short sword with a plain handkerchief in her hand, but her gaze was fixed on Lin Yan's slightly heaving chest and cold profile.
Lin Yan took a deep breath, suppressing the surging anger in his heart, and recounted everything he had seen and felt, from the secrecy of the wolf den entrance, the distribution of the wolf pack inside the cave, the Blood Fang Wolf King's early stage of cultivation, the strange balance of the Flaming Demon Tiger monopolizing the spiritual spring and sealing it with a barrier, to the horrifying truth that the blood crystal stone was refined with human blood and the spiritual spring. He explained each thing to her in detail.
Su Qingyao initially listened intently, but when she heard that the Bloodfang Wolf King had reached the Profound Realm, her delicate brows furrowed slightly. Upon learning the method for refining blood crystals, her slender fingers gripping the short sword tightened abruptly, her knuckles turning white, and her lips losing some color. After a long pause, she finally managed to utter a low murmur through clenched teeth: "...utterly depraved!" Her voice was filled with barely suppressed grief and trembling. After a moment of silence, she gave a bitter smile, tinged with helplessness: "A wolf king at the Profound Realm, a mid-stage great demon, plus hundreds of tempered demon wolves... let alone the two of us, even if the entire Demon Suppression Division of Black Stone Town were to come out in full force, it would be like throwing eggs against a rock, only increasing casualties."
"Therefore, we cannot defeat them by force, but only by strategy." Lin Yan stood up and paced slowly in the cellar. His old boots made a soft rustling sound on the loose soil, which was particularly clear in the silence. "From that memory, it seems that a very fragile balance exists between the Wolf King and the Demon Tiger. The Demon Tiger occupies the core of the Spirit Spring, but seems to have something to hide, so it remains dormant; the Wolf King covets the treasure of the Spirit Spring, but is wary of the Demon Tiger's strength and can only sip the scraps. This balance seems stable, but in reality, it can be completely disrupted by just a slight breeze."
"You mean... using one tiger to devour another?" A sharp glint suddenly flashed in Su Qingyao's eyes, like a star in the dark night. She stood up, the oil lamp casting her flickering shadow on the earthen wall. "The Wolf King has long thirsted for the spiritual spring, simply because he fears the power of the demon tiger. If we can find a way to eliminate this fear, or make the demon tiger reveal an 'opportunity'—for example, temporarily weaken it, or put it in some kind of 'dilemma'—this cunning and greedy beast, the Wolf King, will never let such a golden opportunity pass! When the two tigers fight, one will surely be injured, or even both will be severely injured!"
"That's exactly right." Lin Yan nodded, but the worry between his brows had not yet dissipated. "The difficulty lies in how to make that mid-stage Profound Realm demon tiger 'reveal its secrets'? To it, our strength is no different from that of ants. Let alone weakening it, even slightly disturbing it would be difficult to do so."
Su Qingyao didn't answer, but turned and took out an old book carefully wrapped in oilcloth from deep within her bag. Unwrapping the oilcloth revealed a yellowed and fragile cover with the four characters "Demon-Slaying Manual" written on it in ancient handwriting. Her fingertips lightly swept across the pages, finally stopping at a certain spot, and she turned it to Lin Yan: "Perhaps we don't need a direct confrontation. Think about it carefully. The demon tiger sealed the spiritual spring with a barrier, while it itself was deep in the pool, like a hibernating creature. This situation is not like an ordinary guard, but more like... using the abundant life force of this spiritual spring to heal some kind of heavy old wound, or to refine some important thing. In either case, it must be extremely sensitive to external disturbances at this moment, and its own condition is not perfect either."
Lin Yan recalled the slumbering state of the demonic tiger in that fragment of memory. He felt a blockage in his spiritual energy flow, and his breathing was slightly labored. "Even so, how can that barrier be broken? And how can the 'intrusion' be delivered to its face?"
"No need to break through the barrier, nor to get close." Su Qingyao lightly tapped a complex herbal combination diagram on the page of the book, with a small annotation beside it: "This substance is called 'Disruptive Spirit Guide.' It is not a poison, but rather a concoction made from several rare and exotic flowers and herbs with potent medicinal properties that can stimulate the souls of demonic beasts. When burned as incense, the smoke is colorless and odorless, and can penetrate most non-targeted spiritual energy barriers. When demonic beasts smell it, their five senses become confused for a short period of time, their ferocity increases exponentially, their rationality is greatly reduced, and they are extremely prone to frenzied attacks on any living creature they see. Furthermore, their own demonic power circulation will also become sluggish and disordered as a result."
She paused briefly, her gaze intense: "If we could send this 'Divine Chaos Guide' into that barrier, allowing the demon tiger to inhale its energy during the crucial moments of healing or refining..."
"Then we'll try to lure the wolf pack closer to the spirit spring at this time, and even have them attack the barrier," Lin Yan interjected, his mind already clear. "The frenzied demon tiger, seeing its territory invaded, will surely attack. The wolf pack, caught off guard, will also fight back desperately. A fierce battle will naturally ensue."
"Excellent!" Su Qingyao smiled slightly, seeing that he understood immediately. She quickly turned the page and pointed to another simple diagram. "This is 'Demon-Attracting Incense.' The recipe is simple, but it's a mixture of several herbs and spices that low-level demon wolves crave, giving them an irresistible attraction. We can quietly light this incense near the path leading from the wolf den to the spirit spring, drawing some of the demon wolves, especially the more aggressive ones, towards the spring. At the same time, we need to find a way to accurately deliver 'Disruptive Spirit Guide' into the barrier. This item might be able to help us."
As she spoke, she took out three neatly folded talismans from her inner pocket. These were not ordinary yellow talismans, but rather a pale blue, cool-to-the-touch paper of a different kind. She gently unfolded one of them, revealing intricate and exquisite runes. The lines drawn with silver cinnabar were fluid and subtly shimmering with spiritual light, completely different from the ordinary boundary-crossing talismans Lin Yan had seen in the market, whose strokes were somewhat stiff and rough. "This boundary-crossing talisman is something I created myself, based on common styles sold outside, combined with some ancient talisman essence recorded in the fragments of my family's scrolls. Although its grade is not high due to material limitations, its effectiveness in penetrating this type of barrier that mainly seals spiritual energy should be several times stronger than the ordinary ones circulating in the market. I'm confident... about 60-70%." Her tone was calm, yet it exuded an undeniable confidence, stemming from the certainty of her repeated study and verification of her own knowledge.
Lin Yan stared at the faintly glowing patterns on the talisman, sighing inwardly. He had long noticed that Su Qingyao possessed exceptional talent in various miscellaneous fields such as array formation, talisman crafting, and herbal identification. She was quick-witted, often able to apply her knowledge to new situations, and her skills were superb. In contrast, her close-combat martial arts, though diligently practiced and meticulously executed, lacked a certain agility and flexibility, appearing rather plain and even somewhat rigid. Compared to her talents in other areas, it was indeed only mediocre. This realization deepened his evaluation of the woman before him.
"Even so, the risks are still enormous." Lin Yan pondered, laying out the possibilities he had considered one by one: "Will the 'Chaos-Inducing Spell' take effect in time? How many wolves will be lured away? In its frenzy, will the demon tiger attack indiscriminately and endanger our hiding place? If its injuries are not serious, or if the refining is nearing completion, what should we do if it quickly suppresses the medicinal effects and launches a counterattack?"
Su Qingyao put away the talismans and scrolls, her expression solemn: "Your thoughts are thorough, and your words are all crucial. Therefore, this matter must be meticulously planned and adapted to changing circumstances. I will prepare the 'Disruptive Spirit Spell' immediately. We are still missing two main ingredients: the Crimson Sun Flower and the Bone-Eating Grass. Both are potent substances, but they should not be difficult to find in the Canglang Mountains. The materials for the 'Demon-Attracting Incense' are complete, and it can be made tonight. Tomorrow we will enter the mountains to find herbs, scout the route, and select the location to set up the incense array and throw the talismans. The day after tomorrow is the third day that Chen Fuhai has given us, and we must take action."
She paused, then looked at Lin Yan: "This journey is fraught with danger, a near-death experience. But if successful, it will not only resolve the problem of the human sacrifices in Blackstone Town, but you might also... be able to use this opportunity to glimpse the Gate of Profound Understanding."
Lin Yan met her gaze, which was clear and open, revealing only the resolute determination to face danger side by side and a clear understanding of what she needed. He slowly nodded: "It's worth the gamble." Not only for the opportunity to devour the Wolf King Demon Tiger's spiritual core and break through to the Profound Realm, but also to completely sever this sinful chain of using humans to refine stones. Chen Fuhai, Zhao Mang, and their ilk are nothing more than mosquitoes and flies parasitizing this chain; the wolf's den is the root of the problem.
"The Crimson Sunflower prefers sunlight and often grows in crevices on the east side of cliffs; the Bone-Eating Grass prefers shade and is often found in piles of decaying leaves at the bottom of shady streams. Tomorrow we will split up to search, which will be more efficient, but we must be careful and use whistling as a signal to call out to each other at any time." Su Qingyao began to make detailed arrangements, her words clear and organized.
Lin Yan had no objections. The two then fell silent. Su Qingyao went to a corner and retrieved various medicinal herbs and utensils. By the dim light of the oil lamp, she began preparing the "Demon-Attracting Incense." Her movements were practiced and skillful; she ground, weighed, mixed, and wrapped the herbs meticulously, her expression focused, as if she were creating a fine work of art. Lin Yan, meanwhile, sat down again, no longer regulating his breathing, but instead repeatedly outlining each step of tomorrow's actions in his mind, deducing various contingencies and countermeasures.
Outside the cellar, the night wind swept across the hills, carrying the faint howls of wolves from the distant mountains, long and mournful. The light of the oil lamp cast the shadows of the two men onto the uneven earthen wall, sometimes overlapping, sometimes separating.
Suddenly, Su Qingyao spoke softly, breaking the silence: "Lin Yan, do you know why I'm so determined to solve these demonic problems and refine these talismans and medicines that may not be of much use?"
Lin Yan looked up.
She didn't turn around, continuing her work with her head down, her voice calm yet seemingly carrying immense power: "My Su family ancestors also took it upon themselves to eliminate demons and bring peace to the people. My father, on the other hand, served as a Doctor in the Demon Suppression Division of Qingzhou Prefecture, responsible for managing classics, understanding history, and acting as an advisor to officials. Although his salary was meager, he devoted his entire life to studying ancient texts and experimenting with various methods to exorcise demons. He said that demons are powerful and often cannot be defeated by one person or one sword; one must rely on the right time, place, tools, and ingenuity. The ideas behind the 'Disruptive Spirit Guide,' 'Demon-Attracting Incense,' and even the improved 'Transcending Realms Talisman,' all originated from his incomplete notes and my limited exploration... He always said that the path of protecting the Dao is not only about courage and strength, but also about using this method." She raised her finger to her forehead, and in the candlelight, a glint of light seemed to flash in the corner of her eye, so fast that it seemed like a trick of light and shadow.
"He passed away too soon, unable to witness me create my first effective talisman." She took a slight breath, her tone regaining its resolve. "I know this path is difficult. But if everyone gives up because of the difficulty, or stands idly by because of their own weakness, how will the even weaker ordinary people cope? My martial arts skills may be mediocre, but having inherited this family tradition and spirit, I want to use it to do what I can."
Lin Yan listened silently, a slight ripple stirring within him. He had walked alone all this time, seeking only survival and power; he had never considered grander concepts like "protecting the Way" or "bringing peace to the people." But Su Qingyao's words were not condescending preaching, but rather a heavy, heartfelt conviction, a responsibility seemingly disproportionate to her slender shoulders. This reminded him of the villagers who had died unjustly, of the faces of people like Chen Fuhai, and of the cold, dog-eat-dog world.
"This road is indeed treacherous," he said slowly, his voice low in the small room. "But since we've already embarked on this journey, there's no reason to back down. Chen Fuhai, Zhao Mang, and this wolf-nest monster will all have to pay the price." He was willing to personally collect that price.
Su Qingyao finally turned her head and looked at him. Their eyes met, and a faint but genuine smile appeared in her eyes, like ice cracking and spring water thawing. "Okay." She only said one word, but it weighed a ton.
No more words were spoken; the unspoken understanding was there. Lin Yan closed his eyes, a warm pulse emanating from the Soul-Devouring Mark on his chest, gradually synchronizing with his heartbeat. Devouring, growing stronger, breaking boundaries, achieving immortality… this was the path he had chosen, fraught with thorns and bloodshed. And now, on this lonely path, it seemed as if a faint lamp had appeared, offering mutual illumination.
As the long night drew to a close, the oil lamp burned down to its base, its flame flickering ever weaker. Su Qingyao had already fallen asleep by the stone platform, her breathing soft and even. Lin Yan kept watch over the dim room and the dying lamp until the first faint, pale light of dawn broke through the eastern horizon.