Where Immortals Once Walked

Third Arc: Immortal Spirit II

He Chunhua raised his mandate token high and proclaimed, “I am He Chunhua, Grand Administrator of Qiansong Commandery in Jin Province, appointed Governor-General of Xia Province! We require your aid to repel the enemy. If you refuse, I will order this redwood forest cut down to block their path!”

The guardian spirit roared with fury, “You dare!”

Dawn redwood trees grew slowly[1]. The five felled already were all over a century old, and one of them was even more than two hundred years old. They were saplings that it had personally watched grow into towering trees.

“What would I not dare?” He Chunhua’s expression was impassive. “Strike me, and you will lose your place as guardian spirit of this land.”

The guardian spirit fell silent.

The truth was, the post granted by the kingdom was an easy one. Mortals rarely came to ask anything of it. What the post gave in return was a steady stream of origin energy, which was invaluable to its cultivation.

It owed its extraordinary size, which was over ten meters taller than its kindred, entirely to that origin energy. Having tasted such a gift, it had no wish to lose it.

“At most, I can hold them off for two hours and no longer than that!” the guardian spirit finally said. “You had best move quickly.”

“My thanks.” He Chunhua gave it a respectful bow, then turned and ordered the column forward.

Ahead stretched a long downward slope. The sun was blocked by mountains, plunging the road into shadow.

Milky-white fog poured out from the woods, swiftly spreading to cover the path the soldiers had taken.

* * *

On their own journey, the giant crocodiles provided another spectacle. Whenever they came upon a lagoon, they did not skirt around it like boats would. Instead, they simply lumbered straight over the sandy bar, down into the water, across the shallow bay, and back up onto solid ground, before sliding into open water once more.

Even the smallest crocodile here was over three meters long. Watching them march along the shore was like watching moving fortresses, awe-inspiring and domineering.

The men all gave thumbs-up and shouted their praise.

A lagoon was formed when silt sealed the mouth of a bay. For ordinary boats, such barriers meant long detours, searching for another way through. But the giant crocodiles simply walked straight across. The direct path saved at least five kilometers.

The other boats had no choice but to go the long way around.

The ride on the crocodiles was steady. Taking advantage of the lull, He Lingchuan closed his eyes to rest, conserving energy. He knew that another bloody fight likely awaited before the day was done.

After passing the lagoon, the banks grew thick with forest, the canopy almost arching together over the water.

Suddenly, Lian Deng blundered into a web strung across the channel, the sticky strands catching on his nose. He sneezed violently.

Just as he drew in a deep breath, a swallow darted low across the water and straight into his open mouth!

“Pah, pah, pah!” Lian Deng spat furiously, ejecting the bird.

He liked meat, but not when it leapt into his mouth alive, legs kicking and feathers clinging to his teeth.

The swallow tumbled across the crocodile’s back, rolling twice before huddling under the men’s legs instead of taking flight again. Space on the beast’s back was already cramped; everyone had to press close together.

Then two white birds came flapping headlong from opposite directions, so panicked they collided in midair and both splashed into the water.

Wu Shaoyi frowned. “Something’s not right.”

This stretch of river was a haven for birds; countless species wheeled overhead. Yet now, for reasons unknown, they suddenly retreated into the forest, vanishing from the sky.

Some even landed directly on the crocodiles’ backs, burrowing into the shadows beneath human legs.

They seemed more afraid of something else than of people.

“The sky!” He Lingchuan’s heart skipped. He remembered the strange silence the night before, when the Coordinating Army entered Immortal Spirit Village. The trees should have been alive with roosting birds, chattering in chorus, yet the air had been deathly still. It was as though every bird had been cowed by some lurking terror.

This is just like back then.

At He Lingchuan’s reminder, everyone raised their heads. Soon enough, a brigand stretched out a hand and pointed. “Over there! To the west, near the mountain ridge!”

All turned to look, and sure enough, a lone figure cut across the sky, swift as the wind.

“A red-tailed peregrine falcon!” Wu Shaoyi’s face tightened. “Not good. That’s the falcon monster that Lu Yao keeps! It reports any intelligence it acquires straight to him! He might already know where we are.”

Immortal Spirit Lake teemed with prey, and birds were a common sight. But for it to have been able to send all the other birds into such panicked retreat, it had to be a monster with real cultivation. Only the presence of a powerful predator could evoke such instinctive terror.

Lian Deng yanked out a bow, drew, and aimed at the peregrine falcon. A few breaths later, he let out a frustrated sigh and said, “Tsk, it’s no use. It’s too far. I won’t be able to hit it.”

In the meantime, the falcon had climbed higher and higher. Now, the men had to strain their eyes to even make out its silhouette.

Falcons saw far better than men. It had clearly spotted the bow drawn below, and so had risen out of danger’s reach.

At that moment, He Lingchuan thought of Hu Min in the Panlong Secret Realm.

That guy could shoot an arrow through a willow leaf a hundred paces away. I wonder if he could have brought this falcon down.

He Lingchuan himself had hunted before. He knew hawks and falcons were agile beyond belief, some faster than arrows themselves; their reflexes were sharp enough to dodge an arrow or bolt midflight. And this one clearly had cultivation on top of that.

If only he had such skill in archery, blinding Lu Yao’s “eye in the sky” would cripple him. He silently vowed to put serious time into training in ranged combat in the future.

That thought sparked another memory. His very first moments in the Panlong Illusion Realm. The unknown archer, the two arrows that had shadowed him like death itself.

He Lingchuan’s hand went to his throat. If that archer had been here, shooting this falcon down would be child’s play. Oddly enough, the thought filled him with confidence.

Around him, the men spat curses.

He Lingchuan glanced sideways. “Why does that bastard Lu seem to always be on such good terms with monsters?” First, it was the Crocodile God, and now it was a falcon monster. Compared to that, Wu Shaoyi only had a little sable for company.

No wonder the chicks back in the village coop had shivered so violently when he peeked in. They had clearly already glimpsed their nemesis in the sky.

A painful truth was now laid bare before He Lingchuan. Monsters had immense value on the battlefield. If used properly, they could turn the tides of countless situations. He Lingchuan now found himself wanting one of his own.

In the blink of an eye, the falcon had vanished into the horizon.

“It looks like it’s on the move as well,” Wu Shaoyi said grimly. “It looks like it’s heading west. It’s probably either going to report to Pei Xinyong or to Desheng Town. Either way, they’re both bad for us.”

Their plan had been to strike Desheng Town by surprise, seize horses, and use them to chase down Pei Xinyong and the state troops. But if the garrison there had been warned by the falcon, then their ambush would meet prepared defenses.

And that meant their enemy might not be five hundred men anymore, but far more.

Everyone looked at one another, at a loss for a solution.

Just then, the Crocodile God spoke up, “Are you going to Desheng Town to kill, or to steal horses?”

“Both, but the horses are the priority.” He Lingchuan patted the beast’s broad back. “Do you have a better idea?”

“There’s an abandoned town not too far ahead. There may be horses there, but only a few. Two days ago, one of my younglings saw them roaming. It ate one, and the rest bolted into the woods.”

He Lingchuan and Wu Shaoyi said almost in unison, “That’s enough.”

“Horses are creatures of habit. They’ll wander off for a while, but sooner or later, they return.” Wu Shaoyi’s gaze sharpened. “Anyway, that means that we can have a change of plans. Young Master He, you take a mount and ride after your own people. I’ll lead my men on the crocodiles and press on to Desheng Town.”

He Lingchuan blinked, then quickly understood. Wu Shaoyi meant to pin down the brigands at Desheng Town, keeping them from marching east. If Wu Shaoyi’s force of two hundred could hold off the five to seven hundred men at Desheng Town for some time, it would greatly ease the burden on the eastern front of the ongoing battle.

“Thank you.”

A surprise raid was one kind of tactic. A delaying battle was another. Wu Shaoyi had fought a lifetime of battles; this was nothing new to him. “Even if Lu Yao has found our trail, we still hold the advantage so long as what follows goes smoothly.”

Before long, the abandoned town that the Crocodile God mentioned came into view. It was only a hundred paces from shore.

He Lingchuan pressed a small paper packet into Wu Shaoyi’s hand. “This holds a dragon-tiger gold pill. Once you swallow it, you’ll be able to fight like a lion for half an hour. At that time, you’d even be stronger than you are now. But once it wears off, your body will collapse for three days. And as for... other functions, you’ll be out of commission for two months. Considering your condition, don’t take it unless you have absolutely no choice.”

Wu Shaoyi gave him a long look. “Thank you. I wish you swift success, Young Master He.”

Wu Shaoyi summoned the sable, then told Lian Deng, “You’re a local, so I need you to guide Young Master He. Take my sable with you, it’ll reassure Pei Xinyong of my sincerity.”

Lian Deng agreed. The sable hopped onto his shoulder, and together with He Lingchuan, they went ashore.

The giant crocodiles turned and swam on into the distance.

The shore here was shallow. In less than a hundred paces, they reached the abandoned town.

It had once held a hundred households, but now it lay empty, grass growing on rooftops. On one doorframe, He Lingchuan spotted the faint marks of water lines.

At some point, Immortal Spirit Lake had flooded, washing this town away. Its people had thus abandoned it to ruin.

He Lingchuan and Lian Deng crossed through and into the forest. They had barely gone a few steps when they heard snorting.

The Crocodile God was right! There are horses here!

He Lingchuan plucked handfuls of tender grass and splashed a bit of fruit wine over it from his wineskin. Holding it out toward the shadows beneath the trees, he coaxed, “Come now, little ones, come to grandpa.”

The sweet fragrance of fruit wine made Lian Deng swallow hard; what horse could resist? Sure enough, a few steeds emerged, sniffing curiously. Seeing no hostility from the men, they stretched their necks toward the grass.

They were scrawnier than the Coordinating Army’s mounts, coats coarse and legs short. But He Lingchuan was not in a position to be picky.

He fed the tallest, strongest two, and then he asked Lian Deng, “Can you ride bareback?”

These horses had likely escaped during the flood. Not to mention saddles, they did not even have a bridle on them.

Lian Deng grinned. “Of course!”

He Lingchuan did not dare give them more wine, lest they stagger. Instead, he offered apples, spoke soothing words, and stroked their necks. Soon, the horses grew docile.

It all went surprisingly smoothly.

Behind the town, a mountain road made long ago by villagers was now overgrown with vines. Leading the horses up the stony slope, they mounted and rode out.

* * *

Elsewhere, Pei Xinyong and Lu Yao rode side by side, their men trailing behind.

They had already met at Langming Cave, then turned down a side road to chase the state troops.

Why were they so sure the officials had fled this way? Simple. The sandy soil bore the trails of wagons heavy with cargo—clear, continuous tracks left only moments ago.

1. Dawn redwoods don’t actually grow that slowly, growing at a rate of about two to five feet (one to two meters) per year. ☜