Nightwatcher-Chapter 459: A House Deserted

# 459. A House Deserted

After channeling qi into it, the Earth Book fragment lit up with a murky gleam. The light flowed like water, igniting one talisman after another.

Xu Qi’an and Luo Yuheng leapt onto the stone disc in perfect sync. In the next instant, the murky light silently swelled, engulfing the two of them and carrying them away from the stone chamber.

Once again surrounded by utter darkness, Xu Qi’an’s body tensed instinctively, as if facing a formidable foe. He couldn’t help but recall the last time he had silently “died” in this place.

He remembered that terrifying, overwhelming pressure.

At that moment, he felt a soft tap on his arm from a horsetail whisk, and Luo Yuheng’s voice echoed in his ear, “Stay behind me!”

The whisk tapped him again, as if signalling that it was safe to follow.

*It’s too dark, I can’t see a thing. If I were to reach out, would I end up groping my little aunt’s arse? Surely I’d be instantly killed…* With such thoughts swirling in his mind, he walked slowly onward.

The corridor was silent and long. After walking for a full quarter of an hour, Xu Qi’an’s heart tightened in anticipation of that dreadful breathing and the crushing pressure like Mount Tai.

But there was nothing ahead. All was calm and still.

*Hmm?*

Without revealing his thoughts, he kept walking alongside Luo Yuheng. A few minutes later, a faint but pure golden light appeared ahead.

*This was where I “died” last time,* Xu Qi’an muttered inwardly, halting in place.

He trusted Luo Yuheng’s abilities. If there really was danger, his aunt would be more than capable of handling it.

*Besides, this was just her avatar... Wait, if even her avatar couldn’t deal with it, then wouldn’t my real body be doomed?* As that thought struck him, Xu Qi’an froze.

While his mind wandered, he suddenly saw golden light radiating from Luo Yuheng’s body. It was bright but not blinding, illuminating the surrounding darkness.

His little aunt turned her head. Her exquisitely beautiful features seemed like a golden statue as she said calmly, “There’s nothing unusual here, just a monk.”

*Nothing unusual?!* Xu Qi’an was stunned again.

*What happened to the terrifying pressure? The dreadful breathing?*

Still confused, he followed Luo Yuheng toward the golden light imbued with Buddhist aura.

As they approached, they saw a spacious chamber ahead. At its centre was a stone bed and a bronze cauldron. Beside the bed was a fractured abyss.

On the stone bed sat a burly, imposing monk in meditation. Above his head floated a golden bead, about the size of a fist.

His eyes were shut, and all signs of life had long since vanished.

*Master Hengyuan...* Xu Qi’an’s chest throbbed with sharp pain, as if something tore inside.

Scenes from Hengyuan’s past flashed through his mind: his awkwardness when asking for silver, his earnest care for the widowed and lonely in the Welfare Hall...

Luo Yuheng studied the golden bead for a moment and said, “A *sharira*[^1], condensed from a Second-Rank Arhat’s fruit of cultivation.”

After a pause, she looked at Xu Qi’an. “He’s only in a state of false death.”

*False death...* The wave of grief roiling in Xu Qi’an’s heart suddenly halted. He exhaled in relief, then asked:

“The sharira relic signifies the Arhat fruit, but there’s no way Hengyuan is a Second-Rank expert.”

Unless Hengyuan had been hiding his true identity as a top-tier Buddhist master, but that was clearly impossible.

Luo Yuheng mused, “Five hundred years ago, Buddhism flourished in the Central Plains. This relic likely came from that era. As for how he obtained it, either he’s the reincarnation of an Arhat, or he acquired it through some fortuitous encounter.”

Xu Qi’an frowned. “I’ve heard that Arhats are immortal.”

*After saying that, he silently grumbled, Buddhism’s cultivation system is far more stable than the Daoist one. The three Daoist sects are all walking crooked paths.*

Luo Yuheng gave him a sidelong glance and said lightly, “In Buddhism, the fourth rank sadhu lay the foundation. They must make grand vows, the greater the vow, the higher the fruit of attainment.

“Depending on the fruit, they become either Arhats or Bodhisattvas. Once the fruit is formed, it cannot be changed. In other words, an Arhat remains an Arhat and cannot become a First Rank Bodhisattva.

“To break this limit, the Arhat must reincarnate and cultivate anew, forsaking everything from this life. Whenever an Arhat reincarnates, the Buddhist sect will do everything to find him, implant his former sharira into him, and protect his path.

“Five hundred years ago, when Confucianism led the campaign to eradicate Buddhism, the monks were driven westward. This sharira is likely from that time. So this monk probably stumbled upon it through fate, he may not be an Arhat’s reincarnation.”

*So this is Hengyuan’s secret. This is why Daoist Jinlian entrusted him with the Earth Book fragment... Regardless of whether he’s a reincarnated Arhat or someone who obtained the sharira by chance, Hengyuan’s future potential is immense... Could the sharira have shielded Master Hengyuan from danger?* Xu Qi’an suddenly understood.

At the same time, he recalled that Arhat Du’e had once called him a Buddhist Son.

Could Du’e have suspected that he himself was the reincarnation of an Arhat?

As these thoughts ran wild, Luo Yuheng extended a finger and lightly touched the relic.

She used a Daoist secret technique to awaken the soul; it had no offensive capabilities.

The sharira rippled with a gentle halo.

A few seconds later, Xu Qi’an heard a heartbeat stir in Hengyuan’s chest. Blood began to flow again. Another dozen seconds passed before the monk’s eyelids trembled open.

“Sir Xu? National Teacher?”

Looking around in confusion, Hengyuan saw Xu Qi’an and Luo Yuheng, who was radiating brilliant golden light.

“Master, your luck is truly remarkable!” Xu Qi’an laughed.

Hengyuan had just opened his mouth to speak when he suddenly jolted, like a startled cat. He turned sharply toward the bronze cauldron, there was no one there.

The bristling “cat fur” slowly settled. Hengyuan exhaled softly, the tension on his face easing.

Hengyuan’s reaction gave Xu Qi’an a vague sense of dread. After choosing his words, he briefly explained how he discovered the secret passage and summoned the National Teacher.

Then he asked, “What did you encounter here?”

Only then, after verifying the details of Xu Qi’an’s account, did Hengyuan truly believe these two were real.

He immediately swallowed the sharira, pressed his palms together, and began to recount:

“The day I was taken by King Huai’s agents, they used a teleportation formation at the Duke of Pingyuan’s estate to send me here. This place, this place...”

At this point, an expression of deep horror spread across his face. “There’s an evil being living here.”

*An evil being?!*

Xu Qi’an’s expression shifted, the muscles along his spine tightening, his hairs standing on end.

“He tried to devour me, but because of the sharira, he failed. Yet even the sharira couldn’t stop him. Sooner or later, he’ll refine it. To oppose him, I entered a deathlike state and fully activated the sharira.” Hengyuan looked deeply troubled.

“What did he look like?” Xu Qi’an asked quickly.

“He gave me the same feeling as the demon Daoists of the Earth Sect. His gaze was full of malice, just one glance made me feel like I was falling with him into depravity. Violence, greed, lust... all sorts of wicked thoughts surged forth. That’s why I chose to enter a ‘nirvanic’ state. Without it, I couldn’t have maintained my true self in the face of his influence.” Hengyuan spoke with lingering fear.

*It really is another incarnation of the Earth Sect’s Daoist Leader!* Xu Qi’an instinctively looked at Luo Yuheng and saw her looking at him as well. Both revealed a look of sudden understanding.

"Then where is he?"

Xu Qi’an swept his gaze around the stone chamber and spotted something unusual. The secret chamber was sealed, with no passage leading to the surface.

He immediately looked towards the abyss on the right side of the stone bed, suspecting the man was down there.

Hengyuan frowned. "Just now, I felt the pressure outside suddenly vanish..."

He too turned his gaze to the abyss.

Luo Yuheng lightly soared into the air and descended into the depths.

About five minutes later, she returned riding a golden light. For the first time, Xu Qi’an saw pure fury in her eyes, in her expression.

"National Teacher?" he called out cautiously.

"It's safe below," Luo Yuheng said expressionlessly.

*What could be down there that made her look so grim?* Xu Qi’an, full of doubt, sought her opinion. "I’d like to go take a look."

Her exquisitely shaped mouth curled in a cold sneer. "As you wish."

Xu Qi’an leapt into the abyss, free-falling. After a dozen or so seconds, a loud boom echoed as he slammed into the bottom.

*Martial artists really are crude, no grace at all...* he grumbled internally, only to hear another loud crash behind him. Hengyuan had also slammed down.

*Warrior Monks are just as crude!* Xu Qi’an added in his heart.

Unaware he was being mocked, Hengyuan opened his mouth and released the sharira. Soft, solemn golden light burst through the darkness, revealing the scene below.

Xu Qi’an's face froze.

In every direction lay bones, skulls, ribs, leg bones, arm bones, piled into one idiom: corpses as mountains.

It was impossible to estimate how many had died here. Over the years, their remains had built up into a vast mound of white bone.

These were the people whom the Earl of Pingyuan had abducted from the capital and nearby areas over the past forty years.

Men, women, even children.

They had been sent beneath the Imperial Palace, above the dragon ley, and slaughtered here. Their lives taken for some unknown reason.

*Forty years. How many had died here...* Xu Qi’an’s facial muscles twitched as he hissed through clenched teeth, "Bastard!"

It was as if he had returned to Chuzhou, to Zheng Xinghuai’s memories, watching helpless commoners fall like weeds.

"Amitabha..."

Hengyuan pressed his palms together, bowing his head and chanting the Buddha’s name. His large frame trembled uncontrollably.

A man who held compassion in his heart was now overwhelmed with towering rage, the wrath of an evil-subduing Vajra.

He trembled not from fear, but from fury.

Long after, Xu Qi’an calmed himself and looked to a spot that wasn’t covered by bones. There lay a large stone disc, carved with twisted, strange runes.

That teleportation array, was it the only way out?

Had the Daoist Leader of the Earth Sect escaped through it?

Why did he leave, and why now? Was it my last intrusion that alerted him?

"National Teacher."

He looked up and called.

Golden light descended. Luo Yuheng hovered in mid-air, looking down at them, at the abyss, at the mountain of bones.

She said coolly, "Your last entry probably alerted him. He chose to flee. Throw me the Earth Book fragment. I’ll teleport to the other end to investigate. You two return to Earl Pingyuan’s estate and wait for me."

The other end of the formation might be a trap.

She was just an avatar, if it was lost, it didn’t matter. As long as she severed the link to her true body in time, she could avoid the Earth Sect’s pollution.

Xu Qi’an took out the Earth Book fragment, guided it onto the stone disc with his qi, then channelled energy into it from afar.

A dim light flickered, igniting the runes and activating the teleportation array.

Luo Yuheng turned into a beam of golden light and entered the array. The moment she touched the glow, her body vanished, teleported away.

Xu Qi’an retrieved the Earth Book fragment and fled the chamber with Hengyuan, racing down the corridor, then teleporting back to the Earl of Pingyuan’s estate.

The two exited the chamber, emerged from the rock garden, and with time to spare, Xu Qi’an told Hengyuan about the connection between Emperor Yuanjing and the Daoist Leader of the Earth Sect, the hidden case behind it all.

He also told him that Daoist Jinlian was the good thought of that very Daoist Leader.

Hengyuan was silent for a long time before sighing. "So that’s how it is. I’d always wondered how Daoist Jinlian could resist a Rank two cultivator’s evil thoughts. By the way, how did you come to possess a Earth Book fragment, Sir Xu?"

Xu Qi’an’s expression remained unchanged. "Erlang’s at war in the north. He left Number Three’s fragment with me for safekeeping."

*Master Hengyuan, you’re the last person I can bluff...*

Completely trusting, Hengyuan nodded without a trace of suspicion.

They waited in the back garden for some time until a strand of golden light, invisible to the ordinary eye, flew over and landed on the rock formation.

Luo Yuheng stood atop it, lightly shaking her head. "The other side is an uninhabited residence in the inner city."

*An uninhabited residence? Not the palace, but a vacant estate?*

Xu Qi’an fell silent.

*The Earth Sect Daoist Leader was gone, so decisively. Where had he gone? Could he have been so startled by me that he fled?*

*Or… did he go to the palace?*

*And the Jianzheng? Does the Jianzheng know he’d left? Would the Jianzheng just stand by if he entered the palace?*

Seeing him silent for so long, Luo Yuheng asked, "Another dead end?"

Xu Qi’an shook his head, then nodded. "That Earth Sect leader’s avatar must have withdrawn. Perhaps I alerted him with my first exploration. But what I don’t understand is, he left in such haste and didn’t clean up his tracks."

Hengyuan frowned. "Maybe, for the Earth Sect Daoist Leader, his goal has already been achieved. What happens in the capital no longer concerns him."

Xu Qi’an looked at him. "How do you know his goal is achieved? Still, if he no longer cares about Emperor Yuanjing, then yes, he could walk away without a second thought."

Xu Qi’an rubbed his face and exhaled deeply. "Forget it. I’ll go straight to the Jianzheng."

Now that the Earth Sect Daoist Leader had fled, there were no more clues. Without his personal confession, Xu Qi’an’s deductions remained just that. But that didn’t matter.

The mountain of bones beneath the palace was conclusive proof.

Duke Wei was gone. He could only turn to the Jianzheng. Hopefully, the Jianzheng wouldn’t refuse to see him like last time.

"Looking back now, the Jianzheng must have known about all this. Otherwise, how could it be so coincidental? Last time, just as I planned to investigate the dragon ley, he suddenly didn’t want to see me. But I still don’t understand why he turned a blind eye to it all," he murmured.

Luo Yuheng frowned. "It is indeed odd."

Just as Xu Qi’an was about to speak, he felt a slap to the back of his head. Rubbing the spot, he pulled out the Earth Book fragment.

Number One’s Fragment had initiated a private chat with Number Three.

*I really want to slap back. What would it feel like to slap a goddess on the back of the head...* he grumbled inwardly as he chose to accept.

【ONE: I’m at Xu manor. Return immediately.】

【THREE: What is it? Oh, I rescued Hengyuan.】

Huaiqing didn’t respond for a long while. Eventually, she replied, puzzled:

【Are you unhurt?】

She meant, did you really rescue someone with no danger at all?

【THREE: Indeed, no real danger. I’ll explain in person. What did you need me for?】

【ONE: There’s a problem with your case. We’ll talk at the estate.】

…

PS: This conversation took nine hours.[^2]

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[^1]: A term for buddhist relics, [link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%9Aar%C4%ABra)

[^2]: The author is probably being cheeky