Immortals and Demons Forever

Chapter 11: A Visit

A disciple serving as a caretaker at Songzhu Monastery rushed in. “Brother Hua, Brother Hua, something terrible has happened! Just now, someone said…” The disciple who had rushed in saw Cheng Yao about to leave and suddenly stopped mid-sentence. “Speak up! What’s going on? Why are you so flustered? Junior Sister Cheng is one of the masters of Songzhu Monastery—is there something you can’t say in front of her?” Bi Hua, fearing her junior sister might take it the wrong way, snapped sharply. “Someone just said that Su Mu has returned to the mountain.” “What did you say?” Bi Hua immediately leapt to her feet. “Did you see it with your own eyes? How is that possible?!” “He’s already reported to the Elder in charge of the Outer Sect. The higher-ups thought he was dead, so they crossed his name off the roster. Just now, the Elder went to report this to the Elders on the Main Peak. Rumors are spreading like wildfire, and many people have even rushed over to the Outer Sect to check it out. There’s absolutely no mistake!” “That’s wonderful! Junior Brother Su Mu is still alive—heaven has eyes!” Cheng Yao was beside herself with excitement. “Senior Brother, let’s go see him right away!” “Oh, oh… Right, right. He’s survived this great ordeal—he must be blessed. We should definitely go see him. I’m truly happy for him. Haha, that’s wonderful!” Bi Hua remained skeptical deep down. How could he still be alive? On what grounds? How could this good-for-nothing pretty boy have such a thick skin—that even the Demon-Drinking Barrier couldn’t take his life? Lu He also looked as if he’d seen a ghost. “Let’s go!” Cheng Yao couldn’t wait any longer. By now, the Outer Sect was in an uproar. A man who had been declared dead had suddenly returned, alive and kicking, and the Outer Sect disciples were all rushing toward Su Mu’s quarters to gawk at the spectacle. His response to the steward was simple: he truthfully explained that he’d gone to the back mountain to gather herbs. By the time he realized something was wrong at the cliff’s edge, it was already too late. Just then, two Royal Beasts were locked in a fierce battle in the air; one, wounded, flew away toward the foot of the mountain. Risking his life, he leaped onto the beast’s back and was carried a great distance away. Apart from the final part, everything he described had actually happened; explained this way, there were no obvious inconsistencies. He could vividly describe what the back mountain looked like when the Demon-Drinking Barrier descended, including what the Sovereign Beasts looked like; no matter who he told, no one doubted him. He’d answered the same questions countless times along the way, so he gradually stopped offering explanations. Back at the familiar cottage, as soon as Su Mu walked in, he saw a person lying on the bed, wrapped tightly in bandages. “Da Fu, what happened to you?” Su Mu’s expression changed instantly, and he rushed forward. “Mu Ge! Is it really you? I’m not dreaming, am I? Thank God, sniffle, sniffle…” Qian Dafu’s large head was completely wrapped up, with only his nostrils and eyes visible, and he suddenly burst into tears. “I’m not dead—not a single hair is missing. Why are you crying?” “I’m just so happy!” Su Mu clasped Da Fu’s chubby hand, too moved for words, a lump forming in his throat. This guy had been beaten to a pulp before, and while he’d always just whined shamelessly and begged for mercy at the top of his lungs, he’d never once shed a tear—yet now he was crying like a baby, which showed just how deeply he cared for him. “All right, all right. What exactly happened? How did you get hurt so badly? Who did this to you?” “Mu Ge, don’t ask. It’s just a minor injury—nothing to worry about. Now that you’re back and I see you, I feel so much better—nothing hurts anymore. You’re my only friend out here at the Outer Gate. If anything happened to you, I’d have no one left.” Su Mu gripped his hand tightly. “Da Fu, we’re… brothers for life.” Suddenly, a commotion erupted outside. “Junior Brother Mu, are you there?” Su Mu recognized Senior Sister Cheng Yao’s voice and hurriedly replied, telling Da Fu to lie still and not move, then got up to greet her. The door opened, and three people walked in. As soon as Su Mu saw the person standing next to Senior Sister Cheng Yao, he froze in his tracks. Cheng Yao rushed over excitedly and gave him a thorough once-over from head to toe. “Junior Brother Mu, how are you feeling? Are you hurt?” “Thank you for your concern, Senior Sister Cheng. I’m fine—just a bit shaken up. I guess I got lucky this time.” Su Mu didn’t step forward to greet Bi Hua; when they lived together at Songzhu Monastery, this senior brother had never once given him a proper glance. Deep down, Su Mu was a proud and haughty person. Since the other person looked down on him, why should he go out of his way to be friendly when he wasn’t welcomed? Thankfully, Senior Sister Cheng Yao had been there for him, taking great care of him over the past year. Otherwise, that year of hard work and endurance would have been spent living in humiliation every single day. Bi Hua cleared his throat and took two steps forward. “Junior Sister, you’re getting way too worked up. I told you—now that everyone’s back, what could possibly go wrong? Look, Junior Brother Mu looks much better than he used to.” “That’s true! Junior Brother Mu, are you feeling better?” As soon as Cheng Yao looked at him, she was taken aback. In the past, Su Mu’s face had always been pale, with a faint dark aura between his brows, but now his face was rosy and his complexion was better than it had ever been. “Hmm, I drank quite a bit of the King Beast’s blood and ate its meat. Maybe that’s helped improve my constitution a bit.” “I see. I just heard about your ordeal. You’re really something—King Beast meat is incredibly nourishing. To have had the good fortune to eat it… perhaps this Demon-Drinking Barrier is actually a stroke of luck for you.” “Senior Sister, I’d like to ask you for something,” Su Mu said suddenly, his expression turning serious. “Saying ‘ask’ sounds too formal. Just tell me—what do you need?” “I need a bottle of Bone-Strengthening and Body-Nourishing Pills. My good friend has suffered multiple bone injuries and is in desperate need of medicine.” “Mu Ge, I’m really fine. You don’t have to go to such lengths…” Qian Dafu hurriedly explained that he knew Su Mu’s character very well. The outer-sect disciples all mocked him as a kept man hiding behind women; no matter how hard or difficult things got, he never once took the initiative to ask Senior Sister Cheng Yao for anything. For example, not long ago when he went to the back mountains of Misty Peak to gather herbs—if he’d just opened his mouth, never mind one Eight-Leaf Qi-Nourishing Herb, even ten of them, Cheng Yao would have sent someone to deliver them that very day. “Shut up!” Su Mu was just asking for some medicine so that Da Fu could recover quickly—it was no big deal at all! “Alright, I’ll have someone bring it to you later. Is one bottle enough?” “That’s enough.” Cheng Yao glanced at the heavily bandaged, heavyset man on the bed. “By the way, an outer-sect disciple once came to Songzhu Monastery to report that Junior Brother Mu hadn’t returned from gathering herbs on the back mountain. That person wasn’t you, was it?” As for a third-rate outer-sect disciple like Qian Dafu, Cheng Yao had no idea what his name was. “Y-yes, that was me.” “Then how did you end up injured like this?” Bi Hua’s expression shifted slightly, and Lu He, standing behind him, hurried over. “Oh my, Senior Sister Cheng, he’s the one who came looking for Brother Hua that day! Hey, chubby junior brother, I saw you running off to another peak to find an elder that day—how did you get hurt like this? You didn’t happen to trip and fall because you were rushing too hard, did you?” Qian Dafu nodded frantically. “Right, right. I really did trip and fall by accident. Floating Cloud Peak is so steep, and I’m just clumsy—when I get flustered, I panic and lose my footing.” “Take good care of your injury and be more careful in the future. You’re lucky you didn’t suffer any serious injuries this time. Here are three Bone-Cleansing Pills. Take them. Once you’ve recovered, work hard at your cultivation so you can enter the Inner Sect as soon as possible.” Lu He kept his eyes fixed on him. “Thank you, Senior Brother, for the gift. I’m truly touched!” Qian Dafu looked as if he were about to burst into tears.