Poisoned

One morning, Patriarch Baoxue opened her eyes. The aura around her had drawn inward and settled, with not the slightest trace of spiritual radiance leaking out.

Shen Hui was sitting on a rock not far away, carving a short flute from a willow branch.

Seeing Baoxue awaken, he asked casually:

"Has Patriarch's cultivation stabilized?"

Baoxue nodded, jumped down from the bluestone, and stretched her arms and legs.

Though she was small in stature, every gesture she made carried a calm, weighty bearing.

The two sat on a rock beside the pool and chatted idly when Lu Huan's shout suddenly came from the riverbank:

"Come look!"

Shen Hui and Baoxue exchanged a glance, rose, and hurried toward the riverbank.

Lu Huan stood barefoot in the water, pointing at the river's surface.

The river was clear and shallow, with aquatic plants swaying gently.

Yet countless dead fish floated on the surface.

Large and small, their silver scales reflected the morning light, glaringly bright.

Several crabs also lay askew beside the cracks between the rocks, their pincers and legs half-open and utterly motionless.

Shen Hui crouched down, scooped up a handful of river water, and brought it to his nose.

There was a faint, astringent smell in the water. It was nearly impossible to detect without careful sniffing.

He frowned and looked upstream.

The stream wound out from a valley to the west. Its current was not strong, yet a layer of murky grayness faintly clouded it now.

"Let's check upstream."

Patriarch Baoxue stepped out first. Her robes fluttered as she skimmed lightly along the riverbank.

Shen Hui brought Lu Huan along, with Hu Cheng close behind.

They traveled against the current for three or four li. After rounding a mountain spur, the view suddenly opened up.

Fields appeared on both sides of