91 - Dungeon Growth Log

Xia Ge used a chicken leg to cover her mouth, looking bewildered: "…What's this?" Chu Yao replied, "Isn't this yours?" Xia Ge gazed at the charred fragment: "What is this thing?" "It seems to be a toy," Chu Yao said, "It looks quite similar to the one by your waist. Is it yours?" "It's not," Xia Ge blinked, "My puppet has always been this one, it hasn't been changed." Chu Yao silently looked at the small doll hanging by the youth's waist. The doll had a beaming smile, wearing a delicately crafted robe of red maple, with lifelike features that bore a slight resemblance to the youth enthusiastically gnawing on a chicken leg. Chu Yao remarked, "Last time, it wasn't this one." Last time at the tavern, the doll Xia Wu Yin had on him was different from this one. "It's this one," Xia Ge finished gnawing the chicken leg and wiped her hands, "I just changed its clothes and gave it a new look." Chu Yao stared at her. "Don't you know? This doll can have its appearance changed." Xia Ge carefully wiped her hands clean, then took the doll from her waist to show her, "This look is better than the last, right?" The beaming doll swung back and forth in front of her. Chu Yao reached out to take it, but the youth withdrew her hand, "Hey hey, you can look but not touch!" Chu Yao conceded, "It's very beautiful." Xia Ge proudly declared, "It has to be beautiful! Anything made by the senior sister is bound to be outstanding." Chu Yao asked, "Can you show it to me?" Xia Ge hesitated. Seeing Xia Ge's reluctance, Chu Yao offered, "I'll treat you to roast goose next time." Xia Ge still seemed hesitant. Seeing a glimmer of hesitation in Xia Ge's expression, Chu Yao added, "And three jars of bamboo leaf wine." "…You can't bribe me!" Xia Ge's expression shifted, "Even if you offered me a hundred jars of bamboo leaf wine, I wouldn't let you see it!" How could I show something crafted by the senior sister so easily? Chu Yao: "..." Are you selling yourself? Feigning ignorance, Xia Ge asked, "Why do you want to see it?" Chu Yao didn't hide her intention: "A few days ago, there was a trace of a puppet master discovered on the Sword Peak." Xia Ge: "..." Well, it's hard to continue acting now! Steadying herself, Xia Ge asked, "Do you suspect me?" Chu Yao looked at her with clear eyes, "Is it you?" Xia Ge replied, "How could it be me? I'm a law-abiding disciple of the Lingxi Peak…" Before she could finish, Chu Yao muttered to herself, "Even if it were you, it wouldn't matter." Xia Ge was taken aback. Chu Yao lowered her voice, "If it were you, I'd just open another jar of wine." Xia Ge remained speechless. "…What nonsense are you talking about, Chu Shijie? How could it be me?" Feeling a bit guilty, Xia Ge handed the little puppet to Chu Yao, "Take a good look, it's just a little puppet. Puppetmastery is a forbidden art in the Fengyue Continent; I'd never dare practice it, even if I had a hundred times the courage." Chu Yao took the puppet. The doll in her palm was carved from white wood, its eyes made of crystal-clear black gemstone, its smile radiant. Its black hair was tied with a soft green ribbon, and it wore a robe of red maple intricately detailed to the point where even the leaves on the cuffs looked lifelike. After probing it with her aura, she found it was merely a piece of carved white wood with a protective spirit array, no hidden mechanisms—just as Xia Ge had said, it was merely a small puppet. Xia Ge giggled and asked, "Does it look good?" Chu Yao returned the doll, "It's beautiful." "But Chu Shijie seems a bit disappointed?" Xia Ge asked, puzzled, "Why?" Chu Yao sighed, "I believed it was yours, but you said it isn't." "…" Xia Ge's expression wavered slightly, "I've always been an honest person." Chu Yao replied, "But my intuition never fails." Xia Ge responded earnestly, "Your intuition might never fail, but in this world, if everything were as simple as 'I believe you are,' wouldn't it be chaotic?" "I don't mean any harm." Chu Yao stood up, gazing at her intently: "I just wanted to say thank you to that person." The flickering campfire crackled as dry branches were consumed. Xia Ge avoided her gaze, silently returning the doll to her waist, "…Oh? Really?" "Yes." "And… besides thank you, I wanted to tell her," Chu Yao gazed at her, "Being a puppet master isn't something to fear." There was a long pause as Xia Ge stared at the leaping flames, awkwardly commenting, "…Chu Shijie, why are you looking at me? I'm not the puppet master you're talking about." "Whether you are or aren't," Chu Yao said firmly, her eyes reflecting the fire's dance, "The path is beneath your feet." "As long as you remain yourself, I will stand by your side." = = Sword Peak. The giant bat incident was still fermenting, and all the peaks were investigating thoroughly, especially Sword Peak. Dusk had given way to night. The guards were also conducting inspections. "Where are Qian Duo, Gao Han, and Sun Zhu?" Li Liu held a ledger, questioning a nearby person. Ye Ze stood nearby, his brows furrowing slightly at the mention of these names. These three had been the ones who harassed him when he first arrived, only to be disciplined by Chu Yao later on. However, after being reprimanded, instead of restraining themselves, these three became even more bold, as if they had someone's backing, acting with impunity in everything they did. The disciple, upon hearing the names, hesitated: "They…" Li Liu pressed, "Given the sudden incident with the giant bat, everyone must be checked. What's their status?" The disciple, no longer concealing anything, answered, "They were badly beaten up… Their injuries are quite severe." Both Li Liu and Ye Ze were momentarily taken aback. Li Liu remarked, "How odd. They were disciplined? I always thought they were the ones doing the disciplining." The disciple shook his head and whispered to Li Liu: "You may not know this, but they bullied people on orders from someone… But this time, they seem to have messed with the wrong person, hitting a steel wall." "Really? On orders? What do you mean?" Li Liu, always interested in gossip, inquired. The disciple shook his head again: "That I do not know." Li Liu said, "Alright, got it. When were they injured?" The disciple replied, "Just yesterday." "Okay, noted. Thanks." Once the disciple left, Ye Ze asked, "Who's behind them?" Li Liu clicked his tongue, "Who knows?" Chang Nian approached after his inspection, "Are you done here? You're taking forever." Li Liu replied, "Finished, finished. Let's go eat." Ye Ze followed behind the group, but he couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching him from the shadows. However, when he looked back, there was nothing. "Ye Xiong, hurry up," Li Liu called to him. "Why are you waiting for him?" Chang Nian said impatiently, "Hurry up, I need to find my brother later." "I understand," Ye Ze responded, glancing back once more before finally leaving. = = Ye Ze returned to his dormitory, and though it was late, he couldn't sleep. His mind was a whirl of Xia Wu Yin's nonchalant lies and the eerie bell sound from that night. Unable to fall asleep, he changed into a different set of clothes and noticed the broken corner of jade dragon ornament on the table. He picked it up, hesitated for a moment, then fastened it to his waist, took his sword, and went out. No one noticed, but as he stepped outside, a beautiful silver butterfly perched on a tree began flapping its wings, following him. He wasn't heading to just any place; his destination remained Sword Peak's mountain prison. Despite the thick bramble woods and patrolling guards, Ye Ze avoided detection this time and hid behind a shrub, observing the patrol. The bell sound had stopped. Ye Ze stayed hidden for a while, but the stringent defense made it clear he wouldn't be able to get inside. Who was imprisoned here? Why such tight security? And what was that strange bell sound? Realizing he wouldn't make any progress, Ye Ze decided to return, but accidentally stepped on a dry branch. "Who's there?!" The guards immediately sensed something was wrong. Unable to evade them, Ye Ze found himself surrounded. "You again!" Recognizing Ye Ze, the previous guard became hostile, "What are you doing here again? Could you be the spy hidden on Sword Peak!?" "He's been here before?" "Yes, he was here before!" "…" The guards' gazes became even more menacing. Without panic, Ye Ze replied, "I…" "I asked him to come." All eyes turned suddenly to see, under the hazy moonlight, a girl in a light blue and white robe, silver butterflies fluttering at her sleeves, soft hair framing her bright eyes. She walked through the branches, slowly standing beside Ye Ze with a butterfly perched on her shoulder, a faint smile on her lips, "I'd heard Sword Peak's mountain prison held a remarkable individual, and that demonic cultists were targeting her, so I sent someone to investigate." Ye Ze was stunned, "…Chu Yi?" The patrol disciples recognized Chu Yi, their brows knitting slightly, "What is a child like you doing here?" With a light chuckle, Chu Yi said, "It's usually quite dull, so I need to find some entertainment. If I inadvertently disturbed you all, I'll bring some good wine tomorrow as an apology." "…Tsk, fine, fine. Since you put it that way, I'll give you a pass this time," another patrolling disciple responded. "But don't do this again. The demonic cult is lurking, and we have tasks to handle." Chu Yi replied, "Naturally." After dismissing the patrol disciples, the two of them walked away, one after the other. Ye Ze, following behind, walked for a while before he couldn't hold back any longer. "You..." He started to speak but then didn't know how to continue, falling silent. Chu Yi, walking ahead, turned her head slightly at his words, her voice sweet and soft. "Your name is Ye Ze, right?" Ye Ze was slightly stunned, "…Yes." Chu Yi chuckled lightly, "My memory must be failing me. I should have asked you that before." Just as Ye Ze was about to say something, Chu Yi continued, "But… this time, it's a bit different." "The last time, I asked your name out of curiosity." Chu Yi stopped, her silhouette under the moonlight and the shadows of trees seemed faintly unreal. She turned her head slightly, her almond eyes reflecting the moonlight, "This time, I want to ask, are you that Ye Ze from the Ye family of Gucheng?" Ye Ze's pupils contracted slightly at her question. "Shh... don't be nervous." Chu Yi smiled gently. The black of her almond eyes was cloaked in the soft moonlight, concealing the madness deep within. She spoke softly, "This way, I can know who you truly are." After a brief silence, Ye Ze decisively denied, "I'm not." Chu Yi said, "Don't worry, I have no other intentions." After speaking, she continued walking ahead, and after some hesitation, Ye Ze followed. "What were you doing at the mountain prison?" Chu Yi asked casually as if engaging in idle chatter. Ye Ze paused for a moment before answering frankly, "I wanted to know who was inside." Chu Yi replied, "Only Chang Lan should know that." She paused, then chuckled lightly, "Perhaps Chang Nian also knows." Ye Ze looked at her. Chu Yi turned back, her voice gentle, "If you want to know, I can help you." Ye Ze responded, "No need." "Why not?" Chu Yi looked at him. After a while, she spoke with a semi-vague smile, "Afraid of owing me a favor?" Finished speaking, Chu Yi walked slowly to stand in front of Ye Ze. Her height made her lift her head slightly to look at him, her voice tender. "Brother." Instinctively, Ye Ze took a step back, but the girl tugged on his collar. Under the moonlight, her almond eyes were filled with the moon's glow, hiding the darkness deep within. Brother? Ye Ze was a bit shocked. He heard her low murmur, "Brother, you never need to feel like you owe me." "Don't call me brother," Ye Ze turned his face away. After a pause, he asked, "…Were those three done in by you?" He was referring to Qian Duo and the other two. Chu Yi chuckled, "Brother really is clever." Ye Ze: "..." "So…" Chu Yi's voice lowered, "Brother, if you want revenge." "Being alone must be very lonely, right?"