Blood Cliff?

Fortunately, there had already been a bit of flat ground beneath the cliff, and after Buck Teeth descended, he had carved out a little more. Everyone had enough room to stand, making it easier to keep their footing than on previous trips. Even so, the torrential rain and cascading mountain torrents poured down incessantly, making the ground slick. They had to grip the ropes clipped to the cliff face with one hand to brace themselves, swaying back and forth in the deluge. "Eight mountain demons emerging at once—a rare sight in this world! In all my life, this is the only time I've ever seen it." Liu Zhen's voice rang out through the rolling thunder. "As for the danger, you brothers are all seasoned hands; I don't need to spell it out." "Let me reiterate the rules." "All eight of us must swing our blades at the exact same moment! Strike down at the exact same moment! Sever the roots at the exact same moment! Not a hair's breadth off!" Liu Zhen continued, "Only if all eight blades strike as one can we sever their connection and destroy the mountain demons simultaneously. If there's the slightest mistake, all eight will take flight at once. Even with Sir Ning here to ensure nothing goes disastrously wrong, we brothers would still become quite famous across the realm." Several of the men chuckled at once. Yet their eyes were cold and sharp. After all, no one wanted that kind of fame. "Half a shichen left." Liu Zhen said, "Wrap yourselves tight, and don't let the rain freeze you to death. Wait for my command." The burly men backed against the steepest part of the cliff face, tucking themselves into the recess. The rock face overhead formed an overhang, sheltering them from the cascading waterfall above, though there was no escaping the driving rain hitting them head-on. One after another, they pulled out the raincoats tucked into their shirts and wrapped them around themselves. Just as Xu Yao finished wrapping his, he looked over and found that Zhang Sanping and Buck Teeth had already wrapped their heads completely. The two of them leaned against each other and pressed flat against the rock face, their four legs locked into a stable, interlocking bridge—and were already snoring... They truly knew how to seize every spare moment to rest. Resting on such a narrow ledge seemed as natural to them as routine habit. Liu Zhen was clearly accustomed to the sight as well. Turning to the others, he said, "Whoever's tired, shut your eyes for a bit. Big Fatty, you sleep too. When the time comes, I'll wake you." Xu Yao was completely baffled. *Sleep? I really can't pull that off!* Right at the edge of a sheer cliff, where a single misstep meant plunging to a gruesome death, with a torrential storm raging overhead—how on earth could they just fall asleep? Nearby, Ning Weiyu narrowed his eyes as he watched how the men slept, clearly reminded of something. A look of warmth showed in his eyes. He produced a jade vial from his robes, poured out eight cold-dispelling pills, and handed them to Liu Zhen. "One for each of the brothers, to keep out the cold." "Many thanks." Liu Zhen did not stand on ceremony. Taking the pills, he and Xu Yao swallowed one each first. Then, carrying the rest, he went to each man in turn. The burly men didn't even open their eyes, snoring right through it. Liu Zhen merely brushed a pill against their lips. Each man instinctively licked his lips, swallowed the pill, and continued snoring without missing a beat until every pill was gone. Ning Weiyu watched the entire process with rapt attention, his eyes wide. One person doing so naturally would be one thing, but all of them doing it so effortlessly? A name suddenly sprang into Ning Weiyu's mind. Only after feeding the last pill did Liu Zhen pause, realize what had just happened, and snap his head around to look at Ning Weiyu. Ning Weiyu cupped his hands, his tone solemn. "Warriors of Blood Cliff?" Liu Zhen gave a bitter smile. "Just mountain patrollers." Silence fell. He clearly had no desire to pursue the topic. Ning Weiyu said nothing more, though a touch more respect surfaced in his eyes. Xu Yao could tell that his attitude had become noticeably warmer. He could not help but wonder: *Blood Cliff... what is that?* Confusion filled Xu Yao's mind. Yet neither of them brought it up again, and the atmosphere remained quiet. Xu Yao had no choice but to swallow his questions. The storm poured down with abandon, weaving the sky and earth together behind a solid curtain of rain. Xu Yao held out for nearly half a shichen. Thanks to that pill, a comforting warmth spread through his belly. At last. "Get ready!" With just that single shout from Liu Zhen, the heavily snoring men snapped their eyes open at once. A blade-sharp gaze carrying chilling killing intent burst forth in an instant. Yet it vanished just as quickly. Without moving their bodies, they blinked, and their expressions cleared, returning them to the look of ordinary, sturdy mountain patrollers. Then, one by one, they untangled their locked legs, deftly shook out the stiffness in their limbs, and stood up. They held their sheathed blades at the ready. Looking at this band of men, Xu Yao felt an inexplicable, magnificent impression—as if gazing upon an impenetrable, towering mountain range. "Draw blades!" "Strike!" With a roaring shout, just as Xu Yao saw the pure qi surging upward, peach blossoms burst into bloom amidst the storm on the branches, and a peach swelled and ripened in a flash— All eight blades fell simultaneously! Thunder shook the heavens. The blades passed through like slicing rotten wood. "Pluck the peaches!" With a demon peach in each man's hand, broad grins broke across every face. In that single instant, the solemn, stern atmosphere evaporated completely. The towering mountain range vanished, leaving only eight ordinary men beaming with squinted eyes and happy faces. Three of them, who were single, ate theirs right on the spot. Buck Teeth and the others with families carefully tucked theirs away, faces glowing with delight, suddenly finding the storm far less miserable. Liu Zhen handed his demon peach to Buck Teeth. "Take it back for your little girl." "Much obliged, Boss! Come New Year's, I'll have Erya kowtow to you a few extra times." Buck Teeth grinned, his teeth jutting out. "Forget it, forget it. You call that thanking me? You're just eyeing my kowtow money!" Liu Zhen grumbled with feigned disgust. "You bet!" Buck Teeth stowed it away cheerfully. Xu Yao carefully wrapped his demon peach as well, hanging it at his waist. His face beamed with joy. Counting this one, he had five to take home, plus an apricot. His parents' complexions had improved noticeably, and Xu Yao felt delighted inside. Off to the side, Ning Wuxia stared fixedly at the demon peach at Xu Yao's waist with her pretty, wide eyes, gulping down a mouthful of saliva. Seeing that Xu Yao still didn't spare her a single glance, she stamped her foot, turned away as if unbothered, and looked up at the sky, muttering, "Hmph, as if I care." Yet Xu Yao was helpless: *Your brother won't allow it. Even if I wanted to give it to you, I wouldn't dare.* Ning Wuxia puffed out her cheeks, stewing in her own sulk. After she had brooded for quite a while, Xu Yao finally looked over. *He finally noticed I'm mad.* Delight sparked in Ning Wuxia's heart, and she puffed out her cheeks even harder, wearing a face full of displeasure. Xu Yao scratched his head in bewilderment, asking blankly, "...Sir Ning... you look rather unhappy. Why are you upset?" Ning Wuxia was speechless. She nearly exploded on the spot. *Why am I upset? Do you really have no clue at all?!* Baring her small teeth, she said fiercely, "I'm not mad! I'm thrilled! I'm so happy I can hardly contain myself! Truly magnificent!" "Oh." Xu Yao didn't look at her; his eyes were already glued to the roots. "The pure qi is receding into the roots," Xu Yao alerted Liu Zhen. "Brothers, get to work!" Liu Zhen rallied. "Right away!" the men replied. Ning Wuxia was left dumbfounded, so exasperated she could have blown bubbles from her nose. Over by the roots, Liu Zhen worked in high spirits. "Since becoming mountain patrollers, this is the very first time all the brothers on an outing have worked together like this. Feels a bit strange, doesn't it?" The men burst into laughter. Nearby, Ning Wuxia felt as if she were about to puff up into a toad. The sturdy men worked swiftly, unearthing all eight roots in no time. Xu Yao hastily seized the opportunity and focused his vision. Streams of cool, refreshing qi surged into his eyes at once. The soothing relief in his eyes, the ease spreading through his limbs, the crisp clarity in his mind, and the sense of spiritual purity brought him immense joy. This time, Xu Yao had truly reaped a massive harvest. As eight streams of pure qi flooded his eyes, his head instantly felt swollen and tight. It was too much! Xu Yao also felt as if he were about to puff up into a toad. He quickly began circulating his cultivation. With his previous experience, he reined in his wild excitement and channeled the pure qi slowly into his meridians stream by stream, guiding it throughout his body. The sensation of qi grew stronger and stronger. At first, it had merely been a loose thread darting through him; once the thread passed through air, air remained air. Now, it gradually felt as though the thread had grown a tail, stretching longer and longer. Eight streams of pure qi joined behind the tail one by one. By the seventh stream, it already felt like an unmistakably distinct silk thread. Extremely faint, like a single strand of hair, it circulated. With the eighth stream, the thread fully formed. From head to toe came a sense of complete connection; just as the head of the thread reached the Yongquan point at the sole of his foot, the tail was just setting out from the crown of his head. Xu Yao stood in the pouring rain. Lightning flashed and thunder rolled across the sky, yet within his own mind, he distinctly felt a storm of thunder and lightning raging just as fiercely. Like a bolt of lightning cleaving through a murky, chaotic sky, A profound sensation—of stone cracking open to gain insight, of sheer ignorance turning into sudden enlightenment—welled up spontaneously from within!