Chapter 43: The Enigmatic Cave Dwelling of Qianmen Mountain

Early morning, in the city beside Qianmen Mountain.

Lian Yueying herself hadn’t quite realized it, but the sense of security bestowed upon her by the Tuoshan Sect was akin to that of home. Now, embarking on her first long journey, a ripple of unease was inevitable in her heart.

Fortunately, the journey had been relatively smooth thus far, with no sightings of anyone from the Qinglin Sect.

Having settled her bill and departed the inn, Lian Yueying found the streets sparsely populated due to the early hour; only a few scattered pedestrians were about, and most shops remained shuttered. Lost in thought, she walked out of the city.

Ever since she had learned of the upcoming inner-sect competition, she had been constantly pondering the extent of her combat prowess and identifying her weaknesses.

‘For sustained battles, I have spirit talismans.

True Talismans can thwart an opponent’s attempt at a decisive strike.

Command Talismans, when used subtly, can conceal my moves, or openly, they can establish a defensive position.

Moreover, during a recent sparring session with Senior Brother Ouyang, I discovered that the Sea Convergence Art allows for “Sea Uplift,” effectively compensating for my lack of a decisive killing blow.’

When the Sea Convergence Art was channeled through her Dantian Sea of Qi, it could instantly flood her entire body with a torrent of spiritual energy, drastically enhancing her spells—a technique Lian Yueying had dubbed ‘Sea Uplift’.

Its might was undeniable; the Grand Momentum Blade, unleashed through this method, was potent enough to force even Ouyang Xiu into a swift retreat.

Yet, Lian Yueying did not allow herself to become complacent.

‘The spiritual energy fluctuations emitted by this technique are far too obvious.

Anyone would know something significant is about to happen.

I must deploy it at the opportune moment.’

The more she experienced, the more she recognized her own deficiencies, and the act of rectifying these shortcomings formed a virtuous cycle. Standing at the foot of Qianmen Mountain, Lian Yueying’s sole purpose was to address those very insufficiencies.

Finding herself alone, Lian Yueying retrieved the painting, only to discover, upon comparison, that it seemed subtly different.

Presuming the angle might be off, she swiftly leaped through the forest canopy, circling Qianmen Mountain, until she eventually paused at an angle that bore a striking resemblance.

The resemblance was uncanny, almost identical, save for the absence of a cave at the marked location.

‘Given that it’s an immortal’s cave dwelling, it wouldn’t be easily discovered; there must be an illusion array at play…

If I were to establish a cave dwelling, I would surely shield it with layers upon layers, preferably enveloping the entire mountain, lest I return from an outing to find my home gone.’

Just as this thought crossed her mind, Lian Yueying reached the mountainside.

However, even from the marked spot, gazing at the mountain face, she could discern no difference between this area and any other.

After a moment of scrutiny, Lian Yueying cautiously extended a hand to touch the mountain.

‘It certainly feels like stone.

It looks like stone, and it feels like stone.

Could this painting be a fake?

Yet, that person truly claimed to have sought out an immortal’s cave dwelling.’

Unwilling to give up, Lian Yueying moved slightly away from the mountain, retreating to the edge of the cliff, where half her foot dangled precariously in the air, allowing her to view the mountain’s full expanse.

Before her arrival, she had meticulously prepared, consulting local gazetteers to learn that the mountain was named Qianmen—Front Gate—not merely because it served as a gateway to the State of Liang, with the front-line encampment not far off, but also because, amidst the continuous mountain ranges, this particular peak stood exceptionally tall with a flat summit, resembling a towering door panel.

After several rounds of observation, the loose soil and rocks beneath her feet had long since caught Lian Yueying’s attention, yet she remained lost in thought, staring blankly at the mountain until the ground gave way beneath her, prompting her to react only as she was about to plummet.

Executing the Wind Affinity Art, her hand instinctively gripped the cliff edge, and with a slight exertion of force, she completed a front flip, landing gracefully on the ground. It was in that fleeting moment of inversion that she perceived something amiss.

‘It’s too perfectly regular.’

Upon her initial encounter, everything had seemed perfectly rational; even prolonged observation hadn’t raised any suspicions.

However, with the world momentarily inverted, Lian Yueying finally realized the mountain’s overly precise and uniform structure.

After a brief moment of contemplation, Lian Yueying unleashed a Verdant Edge Shuttle, sending it hurtling towards the mountain.

A wooden shuttle, when striking ordinary rock, would typically penetrate instantly and pass right through.

However, Lian Yueying sensed something amiss and, guiding the wooden shuttle to return and strike the same spot repeatedly, it finally exploded.

‘Hollow?

No, it must be a single, massive stone slab, or rather, a stone door?’

Though the surface still appeared to be an ordinary mountain face, Lian Yueying, tracing the path of the wooden shuttle’s attack, indeed found it hollow.

The spot where the shuttle had repeatedly struck, upon a gentle push, crumbled into a small hole.

Next, Lian Yueying carefully activated a Spirit Glow Talisman and inserted it into the small hole, peering inside through the opening.

Illuminated by the talisman’s light, she saw a sizable stone chamber with a central pit, and two skeletons resting against the stone wall nearby.

‘So, this stone slab is a mechanism?

Not only is there an illusion array, but also some kind of Qimen Dunjia—this is a bit tricky…

No, why should I follow his design?’

Lian Yueying stepped back several paces, conjured several spirit talismans into Verdant Edge Shuttles, and sent them flying towards the stone slab, carving out a hole wide enough for two people in the blink of an eye.

Passing directly through the illusion array, she distinctly felt the damp chill within the stone chamber, a place that clearly hadn’t seen light in an age.

Lian Yueying scanned her surroundings and finally spotted a mechanism handle nearby.

Despite the damaged stone door behind her, she still chose to activate the mechanism.

With a grinding sound of stone against stone, the stone door slowly ascended, and the illusion array vanished in its wake.

External light flooded in, rendering the surroundings far less eerie.

The two skeletons had lain there for an unknown duration; one bore a crossbow bolt piercing its skull, while the other lay collapsed nearby, its cranial and thoracic bones tinged with a faint purple hue.

‘Mechanisms? And poison?

Is this truly an immortal’s cave dwelling?

By all appearances, it seems more like the tomb of a mortal master of Qimen Dunjia.’

Despite her suspicions, even the simplest illusion array would require the touch of a cultivator.

Lian Yueying glanced back at the now wide-open entrance, then conjured a simple illusion array of her own, ensuring that from the outside, it would appear indistinguishable from the mountain itself.

One layer of protection was far from sufficient, so Lian Yueying also left spirit talismans as an alarm.

Furthermore, she manipulated earth spiritual energy to slowly raise a wall of rock and soil where the stone door stood, both to deter outsiders and to prevent the door from abruptly falling.

With her preparations complete, Lian Yueying lit a torch and, controlling two Spirit Glow Talismans, sent them ahead and behind, venturing deeper into the cave.

The torch served to test for oxygen; although Lian Yueying could hold her breath for an extended period, she still required air.

The stone tunnel was not long; after walking only a few zhang, another stone chamber appeared.

Just as Lian Yueying wondered if there might be mechanisms, she heard a rapid succession of sounds: stone bricks sinking, gears turning, and arrows whistling through the air.

However, how could mortal mechanisms possibly harm a cultivator?

Having seen the skeletons at the entrance, Lian Yueying had long since drawn spirit talismans, clutching them firmly.

At this moment, they instantly transformed into three Mountain-Bearing Shields, safely encasing her.

Pressing onward, she found that poison gas, spiked boards, and collapsing floors were all rendered useless.

Only the ground spikes managed to jab at her protective golden light, yet they failed to diminish her spiritual energy in the slightest.

Lian Yueying practically waded through the field of mechanisms, passing through the next stone tunnel.

The surrounding area was scattered with tables, chairs, and chests.

The tables bore only teapots and cups, with dust patterns in a few spots differing from the rest, while the chests themselves were conspicuously empty.

‘Perhaps that person acquired something from this very place.’

Looking upwards, she saw a total of nine cave openings, four above and five below.

‘It seems there are still mysteries of Qimen Dunjia contained within them, but I don’t understand them, nor do I intend to study them.’

Lian Yueying dispatched nine spirit talismans, each seeking out a different opening.

Before long, they had explored to their respective ends, yet only one talisman had triggered something.

‘It can’t be that only one of them is a death trap, can it?’

Lian Yueying proceeded in one of the ‘safe’ directions, making her way directly to the end.

The moment she stepped into the small stone chamber, her path back was instantly blocked by three rising iron bars, and crossbow bolts simultaneously flew from all directions.

Lian Yueying parried them all and then severed the iron bars with her Grand Momentum Blade before finally emerging.

Returning to the fork in the path, Lian Yueying shed her slight disdain and began to re-evaluate.

‘It is indeed ingenious; even cultivators in the early Qi Condensation stage would find these mechanisms dangerous.

However, the cave’s owner, having designed so many mechanisms to deal with mortals, surely wouldn’t have neglected to design some for cultivators.

Could it be…’

Lian Yueying seemed to have an epiphany.

She approached the only cave that had triggered a response, but instead of entering directly, she observed it from the entrance.

‘The spirit talisman that came here triggered something.

However, mechanisms typically require living beings to trigger them; a reaction to a spirit talisman would indicate it’s meant for cultivators.

Therefore, can I assume this is the correct path?’

Lian Yueying dared not advance rashly.

She first cast an Earth Spike towards the ground; seeing no mechanisms triggered, the entire stone chamber appeared to be empty.

Yet, casting a spell produced spiritual energy fluctuations, and Lian Yueying distinctly felt that a nearby stone wall was peculiar.

This was the most peculiar stone chamber Lian Yueying had encountered.

She still refrained from entering, instead manipulating a spirit talisman to approach the stone wall, and the strange sensation returned.

This time, she could discern a unique spiritual energy fluctuation, yet the talisman could only adhere to the stone wall, unable to advance even an inch.

‘The vast world is indeed full of wonders; unfamiliar things are truly ubiquitous.’

Unable to decipher these phenomena for the moment, Lian Yueying cautiously positioned her Mountain-Bearing Shield before her, then unleashed a Verdant Edge Shuttle towards the peculiar stone wall.

The moment it made contact, the stone wall offered no resistance, emitting a soft ‘pop’ as it transformed into a cave entrance, with a faint light even emanating from the distance.

‘Is it an illusion array?

And one that can block physical objects?’

Lian Yueying’s eyes widened.

She did not enter immediately; instead, she turned back to the initial cave entrance, lowered the stone door, and walked outside.

Through her own array, she observed the mountain face remained entirely intact.

This time, she carefully probed it with her senses, only to find not a single trace of spiritual energy fluctuation.

An illusion array, at its core, was a formation, and would not behave like a stone door.

Therefore, Lian Yueying stood outside, dissolving the earth and stone wall.

Using her Object Manipulation Art, she controlled stones to press the mechanism inside the cave.

After several attempts, she finally discovered that the illusionary light would slowly appear as the stone door opened and closed.

An illusion array should instantly spread, much like the formation Lian Yueying herself had set.

However, the stone door before her reminded her of something else.

The refraction and reflection of light, akin to a mirage.

Yet, such a mirage, capable of shifting at will, most likely had spiritual energy driving it from within.

‘How curious.

The cultivation world truly is fascinating.

Just two hundred li from the sect, there are so many things I’ve never seen before.’

Perhaps for those who specialized in deciphering formations, this would be extremely troublesome, but Lian Yueying both relished and feared such unknowns.

This was, after all, the primary reason she had embarked on the path of immortality, yearning for the vast and wondrous world.

Restoring everything to its original state, Lian Yueying returned to the stone chamber, only to find the stone wall had reverted.

Of course, the restoration of the illusion array was no obstacle.

Lian Yueying cleared her path with spells, maintaining utmost vigilance as she passed through the small opening, gradually drawing closer to the light.

Perhaps having lingered in darkness for too long, the light that greeted her after traversing the long tunnel caused Lian Yueying to squint slightly.

Her pupils dilated before returning to normal, allowing her to thoroughly survey her surroundings.

Before her lay a colossal stone chamber, roughly half the size of the Tuoshan Sect’s main plaza and three people tall.

Looking up, faint sunlight filtered through from above, illuminating the space and making the chamber feel less lifeless—truly a hidden grotto within a grotto.

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