Where Immortals Once Walked

Below, the lava periodically burst upward in surging sprays, shooting several meters into the air like a fountain. Sparks scattered in showers of fiery gold, making for a spectacular sight.

The lava roiled ceaselessly like water, and the waves of it kept shifting from one place to another, as though some monster beneath were ramming about at will, happily bathing in a pool of fire.

The moment he saw that, He Lingchuan understood why Dong Rui had said seeing it with one’s own eyes was worth more than hearing a hundred accounts.

There had long been rumors among the people that the gods kept some unimaginably powerful aberrant creature on Mount Xu. Judging from the force and fury of this volcanic basin, that rumor might well be true.

After enduring that stretch over menacing molten rock, the grand hall at the end of the stone causeway finally came into view.

Strictly speaking, Star-Plucking Tower ought to have been called a pagoda, as it rose three stories in height.[1]

Anyone walking within it would hear their footsteps ring clearly. The floor was laid in three-colored jade, so smooth it looked as though one could skate across it.

Solemnity and austerity were the fundamental tone of the place.

And yet, the hall was strangely empty.

The eyeball spider was about to follow the young man inside when several guards suddenly poured out from within, planting their staffs and shouting, “Star-Plucking Tower is closing immediately. All irrelevant persons, disperse!”

A chorus of groans immediately came from the stone causeway.

The visitors had struggled all the way here. Some had come with sincere hearts, hoping to pay proper respects. Yet with a single sentence, the guards turned them all away.

A few went up to plead, while others tried to ask what was happening, but the gold-armored guards looked straight ahead, not even bothering to spare them a glance. They merely struck the ground once with their long staffs, and wicked spikes sprang from the tips. The murderous intent in that gesture was unmistakable.

The crowd instantly fell silent and turned back, frustrated.

As they did, they happened to brush past Ke Yanming on his way in.

The eyeball spider’s last backward glance caught sight of Ke Yanming and his party standing on the stone causeway, expressions solemn, fists clenched, and heads bowed. It was as though they were waiting for something, or perhaps paying their respects.

After that, the doors of Star-Plucking Tower shut, and the little spider could see nothing further within.

Not long after, that entire group of visitors began descending the white jade staircase.

Everyone understood what that meant: Star-Plucking Tower had been closed for an indefinite period. No one knew when it might reopen; there was definitely something happening inside.

He Lingchuan waited at the foot of the white jade stairs and first recalled the eyeball spider. He then heard several tourists, still unwilling to give up, say they wanted to stay and wait another half day.

Old Ge picked at its ear. “That’s fine by me. You can wait. We’ll be heading out first.”

“Hey, we paid!”

“Oh, were you the only one who paid? Did the other guests not pay me too?” Old Ge said impatiently. “They want to leave. If you want to stay, then you’re free to do so.” It turned to He Lingchuan and the others. “To me, it simply doesn’t look like Star-Plucking Tower will be opening today. Are you all going to just wait here?”

He Lingchuan shook his head at once.

Gao Jilin and several other guests shook theirs as well. Jiang Tao hesitated, but said nothing.

“Then we’re off.”

Old Ge led the group away.

Jiang Tao was deeply annoyed. The final stop of the day’s outing had unfortunately been closed right before they arrived. “What in the world is going on?”

“Maybe the lamp guardians are on some errand, maybe the gods are issuing a revelation, who knows?” Old Ge shrugged. “Things like this happen from time to time. Just count it as bad luck.”

Since Star-Plucking Tower had shut unexpectedly, everyone else was turning back and heading down the mountain as well, and the stream of people grew especially thick. Once again, Old Ge and the tour group could do nothing but go with the flow.

Gao Jilin noticed He Lingchuan glancing back several times and asked, “What are you looking at, Brother He?”

“I saw a high official come out from that tower over there—” He Lingchuan pointed toward the side tower beside the white jade stairs. “He was escorted by the gold-armored guards and entered Star-Plucking Tower. I don’t think he’s come out again.”

“The transport array is set in that tower,” Old Ge explained. “Anyone important enough to go up and down the mountain by array is no ordinary person. Hm, when we were just coming out, I did see some official being led up to the third floor, a serious-faced fellow.”

Ke Yanming had gone against the current. While everyone else was leaving, he had entered.

He Lingchuan’s mind stirred.

Is Star-Plucking Tower being cleared because of Ke Yanming’s arrival?

What did he go inside for?

It’s surely connected to some divine object or relic, right?

Didn’t Fushan Yue say that the Ke Family found some supreme treasure for the heavenly gods, and that was why they had enjoyed such favor for nearly two hundred years?

Could what they found back then be the object now enshrined inside?

Jiang Tao craned his neck toward the tower, his eyes full of envy. “Brother He, do you know that high official?”

He Lingchuan shook his head and said to Old Ge, “Since we can’t go in, could you just tell us about how Star-Plucking Tower is inside?”

The other guests all voiced their agreement. The descent was so crowded that they were not moving quickly anyway.

Old Ge grunted. “Everything in there is big. You need to see it with your own eyes for it to be impressive. What can words really do?” Even so, it did explain, “On the third floor of Star-Plucking Tower, the space is even emptier and wider. But right in the center stands a heavenly tome carved from qilang jade. The Heavenly Tome bears no writing at ordinary times. In other words, it’s usually completely blank.”

Heavenly Tome? He Lingchuan’s eyes flashed.

Something like that actually exists?

“The Heavenly Tome is carved of jade. No one can turn its pages. No one at all!” Old Ge emphasized that point twice. “Only when the gods send down a revelation will words appear upon it, and only then will it turn its pages of its own accord!”

The group all let out a long “ohhh.”

Gao Jilin smiled and asked, “Have you seen it personally, Mr. Ge?”

“Of course—” Old Ge glared. “not!” It grumbled and continued, “Who do you think I am, exactly? Do you seriously think that someone like me gets to stand there when the heavenly gods issue their decrees? But this is common knowledge, common knowledge! All the old officials and old residents of Lingxu City know it!”

“And what else?”

“And then there’s the tall shrine built into the stone wall at the back. From the floor of the third story, it stands three zhang, three chi, and three cun[2] high.” Old Ge clicked his tongue. “A sign that it lies three zhang and three[3] beyond Heaven!”

Jiang Tao asked, “What’s enshrined inside?”

“Something like a divine relic bestowed by the gods, I think.” Old Ge shook his head. “Visitors can only go as far as where the lamp guardians stand. No one gets close to the Heavenly Tome, much less the shrine. I only know that some divine object is worshiped there.”

He Lingchuan let out a breath.

Was divine bone amulet coveting the Heavenly Tome, or that divine relic?

Or is there some other hidden treasure in there?

Whatever it is, it clearly comes with some hidden danger.

At that moment, one of the tourists asked Old Ge, “Is that lava pool inside the doors of Star-Plucking Tower natural?”

“If it isn’t natural, then what, did someone install it later?” Old Ge shot him a glare. “Why don’t you try adding one?”

Gao Jilin rephrased the question, “Mr. Ge, you know so much. Is that lava pool something that already existed in the days of the Grand Return Sect, or did it appear only after Beijia established the Heavenly Palace?”

Old Ge thought about it, his brow ridge already prominent and now bunching up even further into a lump. “I’m not sure. Hey, what’s the point of asking that anyway? Whether the lava pool came first or later, what the hell does it matter to you?”

Gao Jilin quickly cupped his hands with a smile. “Nothing more than curiosity. I hope Mr. Ge won’t take offense.”

And so the whole group continued following the stream of people down the mountain, one slow step after another.

By the time they reached the foot of the mountain, night had already fallen.

Fortunately, the elk carriage soon arrived, picked all the guests up, and trotted briskly back toward the point of departure.

The moon had already climbed above the western buildings.

With that, the excursion was over.

The members of the tour group settled the balance of their payment with Old Ge and then scattered like drifting clouds.

The old ape leaned against the elk’s flank, working hard at counting his money.

For a moment, He Lingchuan almost saw Skinny in the gibbon.

Just as they were about to part ways, Gao Jilin invited He Lingchuan out for drinks.

He Lingchuan politely declined. “I still have some business to discuss with Mr. Ge.”

Time was precious. He had too many things to deal with.

Old Ge, still busy counting money, added, “That’s right. We’ve got business.”

Gao Jilin did not press him. “Then where are you staying, Brother He? Old Jiang and I both hope there’ll be another chance to meet.”

Since they were studying in Lingxu City, they naturally hoped to make connections worth keeping.

He Lingchuan pointed at Old Ge with a smile. “If you can find Mr. Ge, you can find me.”

It was not that he was trying to act mysterious. It was simply that if he gave his real residence away, the game would be up. His Mount Pan Residence was not the sort of place an ordinary man could live in.

Gao Jilin gave a couple of thoughtful ohs before saying, “Alright, then may we meet more often and talk more in the future.”

“Sure.”

The two sides exchanged farewells, and each went their own way.

Jiang Tao and Gao Jilin walked some hundred meters together. Once they looked back and could no longer see the gibbon, Jiang Tao flicked his sleeve irritably and said, “That fellow’s putting on airs. He wouldn’t even give us an address!”

“He must have a reason for doing so,” Gao Jilin said thoughtfully. “There’s something about him that makes me feel he’s no ordinary person. Lingxu City has too many talents coming from every direction.”

“Your judgment’s usually accurate.” Jiang Tao sighed. “For all we know, even the name he gave us was false!”

Gao Jilin laughed. “Didn’t he still leave a way to contact him?”

Jiang Tao spat on the ground. “That old ape’s no good either. Just because he’s spent a few extra decades in Lingxu City, he looks down on people from above his nose!”

“Old Ge does have some ability, otherwise why would people recommend him to us? But the way he treated He Yun also suggests there’s something unusual about the man.” Gao Jilin patted Jiang Tao on the shoulder. “Enough. Don’t be angry anymore. Let’s go drink. My treat.”

Meanwhile, He Lingchuan traveled on with Old Ge, riding another elk carriage back toward the Main City District. Halfway there, the squirrel rejoined them.

He Lingchuan was the only passenger in the carriage this time, so he took the opportunity to ask, “I heard there’s also a prison on Tianshu Peak?”

“There is, there is. It’s behind Star-Plucking Tower. It’s called Molten Palace, but idle folk aren’t allowed near.” Old Ge bundled every hundred copper coins into a string and wrapped them in oiled paper. “Anyone who goes in never comes out again.”

“Oh?” He Lingchuan felt there was something behind that tone. “And what exactly does that mean? Did you know someone who went in?”

“Not a person I knew, a monkey I knew.” Old Ge let out a sigh. “I had a nephew, ambitious as could be. Serving in the Heavenly Palace was his dream, and in the end, he actually made it in. Do you know what an honor it is for someone in Lingxu City to become a divine attendant? At first, he was only assigned to guard the Molten Palace. After that, I don’t know what work he did—he never told me, no matter how I asked. Then one day, he simply didn’t come home anymore. Mm, he’d been lodging with me all those years.”

He Lingchuan found that strange. “He never came home? So he disappeared?”

“I waited two days and then got someone to inquire at the Heavenly Palace on my behalf. The reply I got was that he’d died in the line of duty!” Old Ge sighed again. “The compensation came down quickly enough, but as for the details of how he died...” It shrugged. “A friend of mine in the Heavenly Palace told me not to ask any further.”

He Lingchuan immediately saw the problem. “If he lived, you should see the man. If he died, you should see the body. Did they let you claim his remains?”

“I found a way to bring him back.” Old Ge shook his head. “The left half of his body was gone, as if something had bitten it off.”

“A monster?” Something stirred in He Lingchuan’s heart. “Big or small?”

He was an experienced hunter himself. A wound could reveal a great deal.

The more he could learn about Mount Xu and Star-Plucking Tower’s secrets, the better.

“Must’ve been something big.” Old Ge jerked a thumb behind him. “And when I say big, I don’t mean little fellows like the two behind me.”

1. Honestly, a pagoda is just a tiered tower, but towers can also just have tiers regardless, so idk. ☜

2. This is basically 10 meters + 1 meter + 10 centimers, so 11.1 meters. I chose to translate it in this manner as it seems that it might have some significance ☜

3. Do note that this would literally still be equivalent to 11 meters. ☜