45. The Secret Beneath the Alchemy Hall

It was as though he were bewitched; wherever Xie Wujie went, the Firetail Chickens followed. With no other recourse, Xie Wujie shut the door, but immediately the chicken coop erupted in chaos, cacophonous with clucking. The din stirred the two disciples who were idly passing time during their shift, making them instantly alert. Xie Wujie climbed onto the roof.

One disciple asked, "What's going on? Why are the Firetail Chickens suddenly so lively?"

"Could it be a chicken thief?" the other replied.

They opened the door and counted; none of the chickens were missing. One disciple mused, "That's odd. If there's no chicken thief, what's up with these chickens?"

"It's most likely a weasel," the other said. "Our Danxia Sect is rich in spiritual energy; it's common for wild beasts to be attracted here. Or perhaps these chickens have entered their breeding season..."

"Maybe so, but in Danxia Sect, I doubt anyone would dare steal the Firetail Chickens raised by the Grand Elder."

Xie Wujie lingered no longer in the coop and instead ascended to the second floor of the Alchemy Hall, where a disciple was fast asleep, dreaming sweetly.

"Ah Cui, don't do this... Ah Cui, I'm an upstanding man..." the sleeping disciple muttered in his dream.

Xie Wujie curled his lip in disdain and stepped past him. Inside the Alchemy Hall, he found rows of pill furnaces, and along the walls were cabinets filled with countless medicinal pills, dazzling to behold.

He glanced over the scene when, at the end of the pill chamber, he spotted an iron door sealed with a talisman, inscribed with bold characters: "Disciples Forbidden. Violators will be executed without mercy!"

Xie Wujie smiled faintly. It was forbidden for disciples, but he had plenty of Danxia Sect disciples—what harm in entering? With this thought, he carefully peeled away the seal, trying not to tear it. But as soon as he opened the iron door, he felt the ground vanish beneath his feet and plummeted downward!

It turned out that behind the iron door was a deep pit. Xie Wujie cursed inwardly, wondering who could be so malicious as to dig such a huge hole here!

Bang!

He crashed to the ground, pain twisting his features. Struggling to his feet, he realized he was underground, surrounded by oppressive darkness.

Xie Wujie took out a flashlight; his ring contained an array of tools. Sweeping the beam around, he discovered a vast stone chamber, its corners piled high with bones, the air thick with the stench of decay.

He approached one skeleton and found its hands bound with iron chains—clearly someone who had been left to die here, a tragic end.

"What is this place?" Xie Wujie wondered aloud. The silence was absolute; there was no one else in sight.

He took a few steps and saw many instruments of torture scattered about.

"Ha ha ha, it has been so long since anyone visited!" Suddenly, a hoarse voice rang out behind him. Xie Wujie spun around. "Who are you? Who's there?!"

But the voice quickly faded.

"Lad, you're here to steal pills, aren't you? Tsk tsk... Who would have guessed you'd end up here? It's been ages since I tasted flesh—now let me feast on yours!"

As soon as the words were spoken, Xie Wujie lost his footing; a vine had wrapped around his ankles and hoisted him into the air. Dangling upside-down, he saw embedded in the wall a person.

It was an old man, filthy and wild-haired, his body entangled tightly by vines that served as his limbs. Though gaunt, his eyes gleamed with sinister light.

"Hmm, the aura on you isn't that of Danxia Sect," the old man remarked.

Xie Wujie gritted his teeth. "Let me go, or you'll regret it!"

"Lad, with your paltry cultivation, you dare threaten me? Though my limbs are crippled, dealing with a junior like you is child's play! Ha ha ha!"

With that, one vine wrapped itself around Xie Wujie's throat, choking off his breath and making speech nearly impossible.

"Hmm? No, wait... Your aura is strange. Hold on! You're the heir of the Undying Phoenix!" The old man abruptly loosened the vine, dropping Xie Wujie to the floor, where he gasped hungrily for air.

Laboriously, Xie Wujie lifted his head and croaked, "Who are you? Cough, cough..."

"The Undying Phoenix's heir... Ha ha ha ha! My Immortal Longevity Sect shall have successors once more! Successors at last!" The old man's laughter became wild and frenzied.

A tremor ran through Xie Wujie's heart. He abruptly looked up. "Are you Qin Shou?"

"Ah, the Sect Leader himself graces us—I beg your forgiveness that I cannot kneel," the old man replied, suddenly courteous.

"But wait, wasn't it said you... How can this be?" Xie Wujie asked.

Qin Shou's eyes burned with hatred as he spoke through clenched teeth: "Thirty years ago, after the destruction of the Immortal Longevity Sect, the Grand Elder of Danxia Sect saved me. I thought he was benevolent, and I, Qin Shou, am no ingrate. I agreed to stay in Danxia Sect, but my cultivation was severely damaged and I could not do heavy labor, so I watched over the Treasury Pavilion. I planned to wait for the right time, to await the appearance of the Undying Phoenix heir. But that Ding Desheng harbored ulterior motives—he rescued me only to extract from me the whereabouts of the Undying Phoenix demon spirit!"

Qin Shou's voice was thick with resentment. "Of course I refused, so he destroyed my five limbs and imprisoned me in this sunless dungeon. I cried for help but none answered. Such torment exhausted me; I could only use what little cultivation remained to control vines and catch mice and insects to eat. Without that, I would long since have starved."

"So it was all Ding Desheng's plot! Elder Qin, I saw the words you left on the bed board. In that case, I'll help you escape; there's no need to remain in Danxia Sect." Xie Wujie said, "But, what do you mean by five limbs destroyed?"

"Fool, isn't your club the fifth limb?" Qin Shou scolded.

"Ah..." Xie Wujie hadn't expected Qin Shou to suffer so greatly.

"Moreover, you must stay. Danxia Sect is famed for their medicinal pills and spiritual artifacts, both highly beneficial to cultivation. Your skills are mediocre; if they learn you carry the Undying Phoenix demon spirit, they'll capture you, destroy your body in the pill furnace, and extract the demon spirit anew! You must remain and strengthen your cultivation!" Qin Shou looked at Xie Wujie. "Sect Leader, come here."

Xie Wujie hesitated, unsure of the reason, but stepped forward.

Elder Qin extended his vines and pressed them to Xie Wujie's acupoints. A steady flow of spiritual energy poured into him. Qin Shou said, "My spiritual energy is nearly exhausted, but I can still help you. I am storing spiritual energy in your acupoints; when you break through to the Golden Core, it will erupt and raise the quality of your core."

"No, Elder Qin, if you give me what little energy you have left, then you..." Xie Wujie faltered, knowing how vital spiritual energy was to a cultivator.

"For thirty years, today is my happiest day! The Immortal Longevity Sect finally has hope for revival, finally a day for vengeance! To help you is joy enough for me. May the Immortal Longevity Sect endure for all eternity!" Elder Qin roared, and a surge of indescribable spiritual energy flooded into Xie Wujie's body.

Xie Wujie hurriedly sat cross-legged and began meditating; the energy was so fierce it threatened to tear him apart. At the same moment, the Undying Phoenix aura within him radiated outward, spreading to the surface.

In the chicken coop, the Firetail Chickens suddenly grew restless, clucking incessantly.