RIIDMDR chapter 140

Nan Xu recognized the symbols and writings on the cliff that resembled painted runes. He had seen them last autumn while picking jujubes. He vaguely remembered that they were grayish-black, but he didn’t know why their color had changed.

“Have you been there before?” Nan Xu asked.

Xu Ji nodded. “Not long after we moved into the mountains, our people chose this place to build houses and settle down. I was worried about the nearby beasts’ lair and feared we would be harassed frequently, so I patrolled the area. At that time, I was also surprised by the incomprehensible writing on the cliff face. However, since our tribe was the first to settle there, I didn’t think much of it. Half a month ago, while picking wild mushrooms nearby, I inadvertently passed by that spot again and saw that the writing had turned blood red. It was shocking, so I came up the mountain to ask the owner if it was some kind of omen.”

Nan Xu pondered for a few seconds. He tried to recall the symbols and writing he had seen before, but it was all too confusing. So much time had passed. He couldn’t identify it based on that tiny bit of memory from back then.

Nan Xu shook his head and glanced at Tingchuan, who was still focused on washing the flower petals. Tingchuan seemed oblivious to his gaze. Unable to do anything else, Nan Xu nudged him with his elbow. “Hey, do you know what I mean?”

Tingchuan looked up, his peach-blossom eyes meeting Nan Xu’s as if to say, Is this how you address me? You need something from me, so why can’t you say something nice?

In front of Xu Ji and his son, Xu Le, Nan Xu’s face flushed slightly. He straightened his back, coughed lightly, and said with feigned seriousness, “Why aren’t you answering my questions? Do you think my face has the answer written on it?”

These words were reminiscent of something Nan Xu had heard as a child while sitting outside Hope Elementary School’s classroom. Back then, the teacher had scolded students not paying attention in a similar way.

Nan Xu didn’t realize he was scolding a great demon as if he were a child, while Xu Ji was already feeling extremely uneasy. The nine-tailed fox demon was at the pinnacle of the fox clan’s cultivation, and its noble bloodline was beyond question. Xu Ji had always been careful when dealing with them. After all, Tingchuan was a highly powerful demon in the demon realm, and Xu Ji was afraid the owner had offended him with such words.

Unexpectedly, Tingchuan didn’t even frown when he heard Nan Xu’s words. He simply chuckled and let the matter drop.

“Those patterns are on the cliffs on both sides of the main peak and on the cliffs of the four mountain ranges to the east, west, south, and north. The strokes and shapes are all different. Xu Ji must have seen one of them on the main peak. That pattern turned red last year,” Tingchuan said.

Nanxu still didn’t understand. “What does that mean?”

Tingchuan shook his head but continued, “I discovered it half a month after you took Zhixing to find the medicinal spring. When I went to the summit again last autumn, I found that the great array had disappeared without a trace.”

Although Tingchuan didn’t explicitly say so, something in Nanxu’s mind suddenly clicked, and he had an instant realization.

Nan Xu seemed lost in thought. Meanwhile, Xu Ji didn’t understand a word. However, the disappearance of the mountain array shocked him for a long time. In the demon realm, everyone knew that anyone who stepped into the Zhuyu Mountain array would never survive, regardless of their cultivation level. It was a nightmare for almost all demons. Therefore, despite its rich resources and spiritual energy, no demon could settle in Zhuyu Mountain. If it weren’t for the owner’s appearance and if their canine clan hadn’t been desperate, they wouldn’t have risked settling there.

Yet this very array had vanished without a trace.

Before Xu Ji could think further, Nan Xu spoke up: “There shouldn’t be any problems. If anything changes, I’ll tell you to leave, and I’ll try my best to keep your clan safe.”

These words reassured Xu Ji considerably. He didn’t want to be ungrateful and run away in times of trouble, especially given how well Nan Xu had treated his canine clan. However, he was the canine clan chief, and the war with the wolf clan had already weakened them considerably. He could act out of loyalty for a moment, but he couldn’t make the same choice for his people.

“Then thank you for your care, owner,” Xu Ji said, with a hint of dejection in his voice.

Seeing his hesitation, Nan Xu pretended not to notice and stood up. He said to Xu Le, who was eavesdropping on their conversation from a nearby swing, “I’m going to collect eggs. Do you want to come, Lele?”

Xu Le immediately jumped off the swing and ran to Nan Xu’s side. “Yes, I want to go!”

Nan Xu picked up a small bamboo basket lined with dry grass for collecting eggs. Curious, Xu Le took the basket from Nan Xu and followed him while carrying it.

Tingchuan took all the chickens to the nearby mountains during the day. Only two hens remained in the coop, clucking and attempting to lay eggs. Another hen sat persistently in the nest, incubating the eggs day after day. Nanxu had remarked previously that this hen was peculiar, perhaps overflowing with maternal love. However, Tingchuan glanced at it and said, “It’s a lazy hen, unwilling to move. This fat one will only be good for soup later.”

Tingchuan had a special cooking plan for every chicken he raised. Nan Xu could only laugh and sigh. So far, Tingchuan hadn’t let anyone else eat even one. While Nan Xu was recovering and had no appetite, Tingchuan quietly slaughtered a chicken to cook for him. After finding out, Nan Xu was distressed, regretting and enjoying the fragrant drumstick until he burped. Then, he forbade Tingchuan from killing any more chickens.

Before Nanxu could touch the chicken, Xu Le had already collected a basket of eggs. He was about to reach under the hen incubating them when Nanxu swiftly pulled him back. At that moment, the hen pecked at the spot where Xu Le’s hand had been moments before.

Seeing this, Xu Le was initially startled, then relieved. He stood close to Nan Xu, clutching a basket of eggs and fixing his large, dark eyes on the hen, wary.

Nan Xu patted Xu Le’s back reassuringly. “It’s alright. It’s been guarding those eggs for days. It’s very protective. If we don’t take them, it won’t attack you.”

Xu Le nodded but kept his distance from the hen.

Back in the kitchen, Nan Xu cracked the eggs into a bowl and added flour and sugar. He stirred until the mixture turned white. He added sifted flour and stirred the mixture further. Finally, the mixture was poured into a specially made ceramic container and placed in the wood-fired oven in the yard to bake.

Xu Le didn’t know what Nan Xu was cooking, but he was certain it would be delicious, so he worked extra hard to help. As a half-grown demon, he had boundless energy, which saved Nan Xu a lot of effort.

Half an hour later, the egg cake was baked. When Nan Xu opened the oven door, a sweet, cloying aroma instantly filled the entire courtyard and was carried by the breeze into the forest. Every demon who smelled it couldn’t help but smile.

Sweets certainly make people happy. This sweetness was completely different from Chinese pastries, and the aroma of eggs added a unique flavor. It was a delicacy that Xu Le had never tasted before, and it instantly filled him with joy.

Nanxu picked out some hot food and handed it to Xu Le. Xu Le was about to put it in his mouth, but then stopped himself and ran to Xu Ji, obediently handing it to his father.

Xu Ji was repairing the broken doghouse. Tingchuan’s doghouse, even worse than Nanxu’s carpentry skills, had only lasted a short time, which was quite remarkable. Guan’er sat to the side, casting a grateful glance at Xu Ji.

As the sun began to set, Xu Ji thanked Zhixing again and arranged a date for him to come down the mountain. Then, he left with Xu Le. Nanxu packed all the freshly baked egg cakes for Xu Le to take back and share with his tribe.

Reluctant to leave, Xu Le waved to Nanxu from a distance, as if they wouldn’t see each other again for a long time.

That night, as Nan Xu was drifting off to sleep, he suddenly recalled the conversation from earlier that day. After he safely emerged from the great formation, it vanished, and the writing on the main peak’s cliff face changed color. If Tingchuan hadn’t connected these events, Nan Xu would never have realized their connection.

Tingchuan had clearly noticed this from the beginning, so why hadn’t he told him?

Puzzled, Nan Xu asked the question. Lying beside him, Tingchuan didn’t keep him guessing. “When I first discovered these things, the timing was different. Only recently did I piece the connections together. I suspect this might be a kind of restriction you once set. I don’t know how different you are from your past self, nor do I know if you’ll regain those memories. Since you don’t remember, telling you earlier would have only troubled you.”

“How come you understood it so recently?” Nan Xu asked again.

Tingchuan paused. “A few days ago, I noticed that the symbols and characters on the cliff face on the other side of the main peak had also changed color.”

Nan Xu had never entered the second great formation and immediately doubted his previous guess. Just as he was about to speak, he met Tingchuan’s gaze and froze.

No, that’s not right. Although he hadn’t entered the second grand formation, Tingchuan said he’d noticed the change recently. Recently, only one thing had happened to Nan Xu: he had gained spiritual power and was slowly merging with his spiritual space.

Therefore, the change in color wasn’t related to the grand formation in the mountains, but rather to his transformation.

After receiving the memory from the grand formation, the writing on one side of the cliff turned blood red. After merging with his spiritual space, the writing on the other side of the main peak changed color as well.

Nanxu suddenly felt a strange sensation rush to his brain. Tingchuan hadn’t fully explained why he was concealing this information because if he had thought of this, he wouldn’t have left the remaining four peaks unexplored.

However, Tingchuan didn’t want to keep him in the dark and chose to reveal his conjecture in this covert way. Nan Xu looked at Tingchuan again and saw that his gaze remained fixed on his face, never wavering.

“Are the other major formations located on the four peaks to the east, west, south, and north?” Nan Xu asked.

Something flashed in Tingchuan’s eyes: a mixture of regret and relief—a complex blend of emotions.

“Yes,” Tingchuan replied in the quiet, dimly lit room.

Then, deep thought filled the room. Nan Xu stared at the ceiling; the experience of entering the formation the last time was still vivid in his mind. There hadn’t been many dramatic or perilous events, yet every seemingly insignificant detail could have cost him his life. He might not have felt anything while inside the formation, but recalling it afterward left him with a lingering fear.

Tingchuan didn’t want him to take risks again, which is why he silently dissuaded him. However, Nanxu couldn’t bring himself to pretend he didn’t know this.

He had no idea what would happen after breaking all four great formations. If he were the little demon from back then—the only one who knew the final outcome of the Heavenly Cave during those days and nights—then he would have to retrieve those memories. Exploring the remaining four formations was the only possible way for him to achieve his goal.

If he were still alive back then, would he still be lazing in the mountains, running a small inn with poor business? Or would he be exploring other paths and facing another struggle?

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