Yellow Bell Measures Time, Asking the World of Spring and Autumn

Yellow Bell Measures Time, Asking the World of Spring and Autumn

The Scholars behind Qiu Shuijing felt their scalps prickle.

Though the youth named Su Yun wore a smile full of sunshine, that very smile seemed all the more gloomy and terrifying within this deathly Ghost Market.

A boy of thirteen or fourteen, and blind at that, had actually mingled among a group of Fox Demons, following an old fox to school and study!

Following Fox Demons to school would have been one thing, but how had he entered Heaven Gate and made his way into the Ghost Market?

The Tianmen Ghost Market stood high in the sky. Ordinary people could not even see the path to Heaven Gate, much less enter the Ghost Market beyond it.

How had a little blind person climbed into the sky and come here?

If he had entered the Ghost Market through Heaven Gate, he certainly could not have escaped the notice of Qiu Shuijing and the others. If he had not entered through Heaven Gate, could there be another path into the Ghost Market?

Even stranger, he had set up a stall in the Ghost Market just like the Ghosts and Gods here!

Could it be that he was not among the living at all?

If he were alive, why would the Ghosts and Gods of the Ghost Market tolerate him setting up a stall here?

Yet if he were dead, how could he be standing before them so vividly alive?

The Scholars itched to seize that little fellow with his harmless smile and study him inside out!

Just then, a Scholar suddenly had an epiphany and cried out, "I know! He's a Human Demon!"

The moment those words were spoken, even Qiu Shuijing's body jolted.

Human Demon!

A Spiritual Ability attached itself to a human body, becoming a demon that extinguished human nature!

This youth named Su Yun had first studied alongside Fox Demons, and now he had appeared in the Ghost Market. Neither Ghosts and Gods nor Fox Demons regarded him as an outsider. Could he truly be an incomparably wicked Human Demon?

Qiu Shuijing suddenly lowered his voice. "The Tianmen Ghost Market has a fourth rule: mind yourself, and never ask about anything else! Sometimes, asking too many questions can get you killed."

The Scholars were inwardly awed. The Tianmen Ghost Market probably had no fourth rule. Qiu Shuijing was warning them not to meddle out of concern for their safety.

"Are you teachers from the city?" the blind youth asked with a smile.

"Yes," Qiu Shuijing said, giving the youth named Su Yun a long look.

He froze for a moment, then suddenly felt as though a great weight had been lifted. "He isn't a Human Demon."

He had seen Su Yun's Spiritual Abilities.

Su Yun's Spiritual Abilities were faint and subtle. The Scholars' Celestial Eyes could not detect them, and even Qiu Shuijing had to look closely before he could see them.

Su Yun's ability was exceedingly strange, like a Great Yellow Bell that rotated without cease.

This Yellow Bell was unlike any other. Its interior seemed to be composed of interlocking rings, with gears joining one ring to the next.

The gears on the upper ring were large, while those on the ring below were small. As a result, each lower ring rotated far faster than the one above it.

The Yellow Bell had seven rings in all.

The first ring was nearly motionless. The second rotated extremely slowly. The third turned more than ten times faster than the second, yet it too was very slow.

The fourth ring of the Yellow Bell was more than ten times faster than the third, though its rotation was still not quick.

By the fifth ring, its movement was easily discernible.

The sixth ring moved three to four hundred times faster than the fifth, while the seventh spun three to four hundred times faster than the sixth. In the blink of an eye, it could revolve dozens of times!

"This is..."

Qiu Shuijing was astonished. He immediately guessed the purpose of Su Yun's Spiritual Abilities. "His Yellow Bell is used to tell time. The first ring is years, the second months, the third days, the fourth double-hours, the fifth characters, the sixth seconds, and the seventh hu."

A thoughtful look appeared on his face. "I understand his purpose. He uses the markings on each ring of the Yellow Bell to calculate where he has walked. But ordinary people would never use hu to keep time. Seconds would already be sufficient."

Those whose eyes could not see had difficulty walking. They needed someone to lead them or a cane to probe ahead, but this youth named Su Yun used neither a cane nor a guide.

The reason he could move about freely was because he was intimately familiar with all the terrain around him.

Yet knowing the terrain alone was not enough. He needed a measure of time, using time and his own walking speed to determine where he had arrived.

"The fact that he uses hu to tell time means every one of his movements is incomparably precise! In places he knows, it is impossible for him to lose his way!"

Qiu Shuijing thought even further. If the Yellow Bell were used in battle, then every movement made by this youth named Su Yun would inevitably be extraordinarily accurate, without wasting the slightest bit of strength!

"At such a young age, he has cultivated Spiritual Abilities and reached the Spirit Nurturing realm. His talent is exceptional, but it is a pity he is blind. For a blind person to learn anything is countless times harder than for others."

Qiu Shuijing sighed inwardly. In his eyes, Su Yun was a promising talent, perhaps even more gifted than the Scholars behind him. Yet blindness meant that no matter how great Su Yun's talent was, he could never achieve anything.

"This Yellow Bell is so intricate. How did he cultivate such Spiritual Abilities?" Qiu Shuijing was deeply curious.

Such a complex Yellow Bell was precise beyond measure, allowing not the slightest mistake. Even Imperial Court officials in charge of the calendar might not be able to cultivate Spiritual Abilities like this, much less a child.

He grew increasingly curious about the youth named Su Yun.

"Su Yun, Tianmen Town in Tianshiyuan, thirteen years old. Something happened to his family when he was seven. Seven years old, that is, six years ago. Six years ago, Tianmen Town..."

Qiu Shuijing's expression shifted slightly. He glanced once more at Su Yun, then led the Scholars deeper into the Ghost Market.

The Ghost Market was enormous. Many people had once tried to find its end, but no one had ever managed to explore it all in a single night.

Qiu Shuijing had also intended to explore the Ghost Market this time, but after seeing Su Yun, he no longer had the mood for it.

He found the Spiritual Ability of that great figure and had the Scholars go ask, each in turn, about the great figure's final wish.

Qiu Shuijing stood to one side, silently listening as the great figure's Spiritual Ability spoke of his final wish, his heart filled with endless emotion.

He knew this great figure. Not only did he know him, but they had once shared a deep friendship, enough to call each other close friends.

Later, because of a minor matter, they discovered that their ideals differed, and gradually drifted apart.

Though their ideals differed, he bore no resentment toward this great figure, only respect. That was why he had brought the Scholars here to fulfill the great figure's unfulfilled wish.

"...This treasure of mine is called the Floating World Lead Bloom Brush. It was refined over my lifetime. There is only one requirement for taking it: swear to repay the nation unto death."

When Qiu Shuijing heard the great figure's Spiritual Ability speak those words, a smile appeared on his face, though his heart felt faintly sour.

Even in death, his old friend still could not let go of this country.

The two of them had both chosen the path of saving the nation. Their aims had been the same, but their methods of achieving them had differed. That difference in ideals had led them to part ways.

Yet when it came to that sincere, wholehearted desire to serve and save the nation, Qiu Shuijing felt that his old friend had been purer.

As for himself, by middle age, every trace of ambition had already been worn away. He had fled the Eastern Capital in disgrace and hidden himself here in Shuofang City.

Voices came from behind him. Qiu Shuijing composed himself and turned to look. Other people had arrived at the Ghost Market, several dozen of them appearing one after another.

Heaven Gate had likely opened its market, and the powerful clans of Shuofang had also sent people here to try their luck. As for Tianshiyuan, after that calamity, it no longer had any great clans or prominent families.

By the latter half of the night, the Scholars had all gained something. Qiu Shuijing ordered them to leave first, saying, "Go to Tianshiyuan Station and return to Shuofang City ahead of me. I may remain here for some time."

The Scholars departed.

Qiu Shuijing watched them disappear into the distance before returning to Heaven Gate and reentering the Ghost Market.

He stopped far away and watched the youth named Su Yun.

Su Yun noticed nothing. The items he sold were all Grave Goods from tombs, but compared with the treasures of the Ghosts and Gods, his wares were ordinary things, not treasures at all, and of little use.

Those who came to the Ghost Market seeking treasures merely glanced at his stall before walking away.

The night deepened, and the Ghost Market gradually emptied.

Su Yun began packing his things. He rolled up his stall, stuffed it into a basket, slung it over his back, and headed deeper into the Ghost Market.

Qiu Shuijing silently followed the youth.

Before they knew it, they had reached the depths of the Ghost Market.

Viewed from the ground below, the Ghost Market was a resplendent divine city, vast beyond sight, with no end in view. Yet as one walked within it, the deeper one went, the dimmer and more colorless the surrounding buildings became.

The ground beneath their feet also grew softer, as if they were walking upon clouds and mist.

Even Qiu Shuijing began to hesitate. The Ghost Market was too vast. If he continued following this youth and failed to return in time, would he not be buried in the Ghost Market?

The thought had barely crossed his mind when Su Yun suddenly stopped.

Instead of continuing along the street, the little blind person turned into an alley on the left.

Qiu Shuijing raised his brows. The alleys were the most dangerous places in the Ghost Market!

They contained unimaginable remnants from ancient eras, things that could not be explained. More importantly, the alleys twisted and turned, their paths complicated as a maze. No one had ever managed to emerge from them!

Qiu Shuijing hesitated for a moment, gritted his teeth, and followed the little blind person into the alley.

The houses on either side of the road gradually ceased to resemble houses. Instead, they increasingly resembled burial mounds.

Combined with the night, the mounds merged into the darkness, leaving only vague outlines visible.

A cold wind howled, accompanied by the wails of Ghosts and Gods. The surroundings grew ever more terrifying.

Ahead, little blind Su Yun could not see the scene around him. He merely relied on his footsteps and the rotation of the Yellow Bell to identify his position and route.

He had clearly been here before, and more than once. He proceeded as smoothly as if on familiar roads, without the slightest hesitation.

"Only a blind person like Su Yun, who has cultivated a Yellow Bell, could remember such complex terrain!" Qiu Shuijing was secretly shocked.

The paths within the Ghost Market were incomparably intricate, full of countless forks, and every fork was nearly identical. Eyes could be easily deceived.

Only Su Yun could have felt out a path through the Ghost Market!

Suddenly, Su Yun stopped beneath a large willow tree before a desolate grave.

Qiu Shuijing's heart stirred. He saw the blind youth grasp a "willow branch" with both hands and swing downward. He actually slid all the way down along the "branch," quickly vanishing from sight!

"That isn't a willow branch! It's an Immortal Rope!"

Qiu Shuijing was startled. He hurried forward and looked down, only to find a hole beneath the willow tree, two feet square and pitch-black, with a chill wind blowing out from within.

The "willow branch" Su Yun had grabbed was actually growing in the wind, allowing the youth to cling to it as he descended deep into the hole.

Looking carefully, the "willow branch" was a hemp rope as thick as an egg. It was precisely the Immortal Rope Qiu Shuijing had mentioned.

Qiu Shuijing hesitated briefly, then suddenly clenched his teeth and grabbed the rope as well, sliding down into the hole.

He had slid only six or seven feet when the space beneath him suddenly vanished!

Qiu Shuijing clutched the rope tightly and looked down. He was hanging high in the air, the hemp rope swaying in the wind, his body rocking unsteadily with it.

He looked up and saw the Ghost Market directly overhead. The hemp rope hung down from that hole.

"This Immortal Rope is the Spiritual Ability of some powerful expert..."

He relaxed and slid down along the willow branch. Yet curiosity rose in his heart. "The Immortal Rope was clearly prepared for Su Yun. Who, then, prepared it for him?"

He was deeply puzzled. "And that Yellow Bell was not something Mister Wild Fox could have taught him. Su Yun must be hiding some secret!"

Qiu Shuijing slid downward through the sky for a long while before his feet finally touched solid ground.

He looked up and froze. He stood beneath a crooked willow tree no more than two zhang tall, with a rope hanging from its crooked trunk.

There was also a desolate grave beneath the tree.

Just now, he had slid down from the sky by holding this very rope!

"This hemp rope is that Immortal Rope, and this willow tree is the graveyard willow anchoring it! I clearly slid downward for several li, so why was the drop only two zhang after I landed...?"

Veins bulged across Qiu Shuijing's forehead. Su Yun was blind and could not see such a bizarre sight, so he had never considered such strange questions.

But Qiu Shuijing could see. Instead, these strange things disturbed him and threw his mind into disorder.

"Perhaps being unable to see is not a weakness. It may even become an advantage."

Qiu Shuijing examined the desolate grave under the tree. Its tombstone had already fallen over, clearly untended for many years.

"The person buried in this grave must have been a great figure! The Immortal Rope should be his spirit weapon. Why did he look after a little blind person like Su Yun?"

The east was gradually brightening. The night was about to pass.

The youth named Su Yun walked ahead with the basket on his back. Mist rose before them, and within it stood a massive archway with five gates, carved with dragons and phoenixes, splendid and ornate.

Yet the archway had fallen into disrepair. Untended for years, it looked as though it might collapse at any moment.

Qiu Shuijing followed the youth closer and looked up. By the faint light before dawn, three ancient red characters entered his sight.

Tianmen Town.

"So this is the famous Heaven Gate, said to have been carved by master craftsmen in imitation of the Heaven Gate of the Tianmen Ghost Market."

The thought had barely formed when a cool sea breeze suddenly dispersed the mist beyond Heaven Gate. Tianmen Town, built atop the sheer cliffs along the coast of the North Sea, appeared before him like a city floating upon the sea!

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