Killing Intent

"Crack!!"

A knife hacked through the bushes, followed by a foot stepping in. After several more swings, it finally cut a path through the grass ahead.

"Big brother, c-can we take a break?"

Xu Tong slapped a mosquito off his arm and looked up at the sun. His clothes were drenched with sweat. The weather here was bizarre. During the day, it was as hot and stuffy as an oven, making it hard to breathe.

At night, it turned damp and cold. Even wrapping himself in a quilt wouldn't keep him warm.

Yang Zixuan said nothing. At the rear, Zhang Hu shoved Yang Guanjin hard. "You bitch, did you give me the wrong directions on purpose? This is obviously the middle of nowhere. Where's this Ascension Bureau you keep talking about?"

"I don't know what the Ascension Bureau is, either. I only know there seems to be an ancient city in these mountains. That's all."

Yang Guanjin's eyes reddened, and she looked so aggrieved she seemed on the verge of tears.

Xu Tong watched from the side. He glanced at Yang Guanjin, and a flicker of amusement passed through his eyes. Then he immediately resumed his exhausted act, bending over and panting heavily as if another few steps would make him throw up.

"Let's rest for a while."

Seeing how utterly exhausted Xu Tong was, Yang Zixuan finally spoke and let everyone rest beneath the trees.

"Big brother, what exactly is the Ascension Bureau? Why was Old Man Zhou so set on finding it? Now we're stuck suffering along with him!"

He plopped down on the ground and asked as if complaining.

Yang Zixuan raised an eyebrow, signaling Zhang Hu to explain.

"We're not sure, either. We only heard Old Man Zhou mention it once. The Ascension Bureau is..."

"The Ascension Bureau, as the name suggests, has something to do with immortals. Throughout history, from Zhang Daoling to the Four Heavenly Masters—Ge Xuan, Xu Xun, and Sa Shoujian—and even Laozi, the Daoist patriarch, and the great master Zhang Sanfeng, they cultivated the Dao and refined elixirs. Do you know what they were seeking?"

At the Forest Farm office, Zhou Huasheng, his face bruised and swollen, looked at Captain Wang and the others and spoke with feigned mystery.

"What were they seeking? To become immortals, obviously. It's all feudal superstition, a bunch of superstitious nonsense."

The officer beside Captain Wang slapped the table, his thick eyebrows raised as he denounced it righteously.

But Zhou Huasheng responded to his righteous speech with a look of utter disdain, then added, "Ignorant!"

"You!"

The young officer couldn't hold back his fist. Zhou Huasheng had just been beaten black and blue, yet he still dared to act so arrogantly.

Fortunately, Captain Wang reached out and held him back. Patiently, he asked, "Then what do you think they were after? If not immortality, what else?"

"Heh."

Zhou Huasheng tilted his head, smoothed his thick hair, and pointed at the pack of cigarettes on Captain Wang's desk.

Captain Wang nodded and motioned for the officer to hand him a cigarette. Then he stepped forward and lit it himself.

"Haaa... phew..."

The cigarette tip glowed and dimmed. A cloud of smoke slowly drifted from Zhou Huasheng's mouth. Watching it waver before him, he smiled scornfully.

"In 1888, Darwin gave science its definition. Science was officially born then. By now, that makes a mere 102 years—barely a century. But what our ancestors passed down has a history of thousands of years. Isn't it ridiculous to use a hundred years to dismiss thousands?"

"Hmph!"

Captain Wang snorted and sat down, signaling for Zhou Huasheng to continue.

"They weren't seeking life. They were seeking death!"

"Death?" The officers exchanged glances. They couldn't understand what was so difficult about seeking death. If you wanted to die, why bother cultivating the Dao?

"There's no such thing as eternal life. How could our ancestors not have known that? But what they sought was a higher form of immortality, beyond matter and life itself, an eternity of the spirit. That's what an immortal is."

Zhou Huasheng grew increasingly animated. He brought the cigarette to his lips and took a deep drag.

"Whether it was Laozi, the founder of Daoism, or Zhang Daoling, the founder of the Celestial Masters, they were both seeking death. But this death wasn't an end. It was a beginning. Whether through disintegration or ascension, at the moment of death, the essence, energy, and spirit accumulated over a lifetime merged into one and broke through the limits of heaven and earth. That's what it means to become an immortal."

Watching the ethereal smoke leave his mouth, Zhou Huasheng became lost in it for a moment.

Then he changed the subject. "But not everyone can reach that level, so there's a shortcut: the Ascension Bureau. It uses the Eight Trigrams and feng shui to borrow the power of heaven and earth and create a formation. That's the Ascension Bureau. They say there's a chance to become an immortal within it."

"You've talked all this time and still haven't gotten to the point. So we just go into the mountains and look for a hole? I don't have time for this. Just tell me: can you lead us to them or not?"

Captain Wang had lost patience. He had no interest in immortals or strange tales. Whether they were dead or alive didn't matter to him. He only wanted his gun back.

Even though it was unlikely that the group from last night had taken it in the chaos, he wouldn't give up as long as there was even the slightest chance. Otherwise, the law would show him no mercy!

"Well..."

Zhou Huasheng lowered his head, his eyes darting about, then grinned. "I can. I understand the Eight Trigrams and feng shui. I don't know the location, but as long as we find where the Golden Dagger appeared, and you bring someone who knows the way, we can set off today and find it for sure."

That was exactly what Captain Wang had been waiting to hear. He slapped the table. "Get Old Bart. He's looking for his daughter, isn't he? We'll go into the mountains together. We leave today!"

"Just over that mountain up ahead."

On the other side, Yang Guanjin pointed toward the mountain and told Xu Tong and the others.

"That far?"

Looking at the distant peak, Xu Tong's mouth twitched. It felt like he'd climbed more mountains in this trip than he had in his entire life. He couldn't help covering his forehead.

Yang Zixuan and the others were looking tired, too. They turned to her with suspicion. "That far? Did your director have nothing better to do than hike all this way to find the Golden Dagger?"

Yang Guanjin sighed. "Every year, he goes deep into the mountains to look for suitable seedlings. We often try to talk him out of it, but he always says that in life, you have to leave something behind for the next generation."

Even Yang Zixuan was moved by that. Xu Tong, however, furrowed his brow but said nothing.

"There's a Mountain God Temple up ahead. We can rest there. We'll be able to cover the rest of the distance tomorrow."

Everyone was truly exhausted. The mountains were full of snakes, insects, rats, and ants, and cold gusts of wind kept blowing through at night, making it difficult to sleep.

So when Yang Guanjin suggested it, no one hesitated. They nodded and set off toward the Mountain God Temple she had mentioned.

It wasn't far. It was just a stone temple standing in an orchard in a mountain ravine.

The temple had long since fallen into disrepair, and wild fruit trees grew around it.

"Let's stay here for the night." Yang Zixuan looked around the temple and, once he was sure there was nothing suspicious, finally relaxed.

The Mountain God Temple was tiny, and the stone statue inside had been so badly damaged that its original appearance was unrecognizable. They found a sheltered spot and took some food from the Prop Catalog to rest.

Yang Guanjin sat farther inside, keeping her distance from Yang Zixuan and the others.

Xu Tong picked up a block of compressed biscuits and walked over to her, holding it out.

"Thanks!"

Yang Guanjin took it with a cold expression and stuffed a few bites into her mouth. Xu Tong then smiled and offered her a bottle of water.

She accepted that, too, but refused to say a word to him.

Xu Tong narrowed his eyes and sat on a rock beside her, looking deeply moved. In a low voice, he said, "Tell me, how could a selfless, fearless old man like the Old Farm Director get so obsessed with a Golden Dagger?"

At that, Yang Guanjin's pupils constricted. She bit through her lip, and a bright red bead of blood seeped from the corner of her mouth.

"I... maybe..." She lowered her head and stammered, at a loss for what to say.

Just as sweat began to bead on her forehead, Xu Tong suddenly reached out with his thumb and gently wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth. His scornful gaze suggested he had already seen through the truth. He patted her forehead and got up to leave.

Watching Xu Tong's back, Yang Guanjin's expression shifted between light and dark. She slowly lowered her head and gnawed at the biscuit in her hand, but she could barely conceal the killing intent in her eyes.

"Ugh, this place is awful. There are so many mosquitoes. I should've brought more bug spray."

That night, Zhang Hu frantically slapped a mosquito on his body. He sat up and started complaining again.

"Go to sleep if you're going to sleep. If not, get out and take watch. Quit your damn yapping."

Xiong Tao lay in front of the campfire, eyes half closed. It was impossible to tell whether he was asleep or not. Hearing Zhang Hu complain, he frowned and spoke.

Zhang Hu seemed to have an instinctive fear of Xiong Tao. Their boss, Yang Zixuan, was at least reasonable, but Xiong Tao was a real brute. If he said he'd beat you up, he wouldn't hesitate for a second.

So Zhang Hu pouted and stood up, walking outside. When he stepped out of the Mountain God Temple, he saw nothing but darkness. He couldn't even see his own hand in front of him.

The open mountain wilderness had an air of mystery about it, as if the unknown stretched endlessly around him. It made him feel as though he could get lost out there.

That terrifying emptiness washed over him, and Zhang Hu couldn't help shivering. He shook himself, undid his belt, and stood to one side to relieve himself.

"What demons or monsters? One piss from me and you'll have nowhere to hide!"

Muttering to himself, Zhang Hu tensed up and watched the yellow stream arc three yards through the air and splash onto a tree branch. He couldn't help feeling pleased with himself.

But before he could pull up his pants, a black shadow suddenly darted across the branches in front of him.

"What the hell is that?!"

Zhang Hu jolted and hurriedly reached for his pants. But as soon as he did, a warm gust brushed the area below his crotch. He looked down and saw a dark face baring sharp fangs at him. Its mouth suddenly opened, and it lunged for Zhang Hu's family jewels.