That night, the camp was formed into a semicircle based on the mountain. Five Nuanyu carts were on the inside, and two baggage carts blocked the gap. The shafts of the carts faced each other and were connected with thick hemp ropes. The cart drivers and guards were divided into three groups of four people on duty for two hours each. The rest of the people crowded in the middle of the array of carts and slept with their backs against the cargo boxes. Nuanyu radiated heat, and the cart body blocked the wind, so it was not cold.
For dinner, I cooked a pot of porridge with the supplies in the car and mixed it with some wild fruits picked along the way. The guard captain Yang Scarface refused to allow hunting wild animals, saying that the smell of blood would bring trouble. He sprinkled a circle of insect repellent powder around the perimeter of the camp, and the yellow-white powder drew intermittent lines on the ground.
Qin Tiexin After drinking three bowls of porridge and eating two Linggu cakes, I was only seventy percent full.
After the meal, the snoring gradually started. After a long day's journey, I was exhausted.
Qin Tiexin didn't sleep. He sat cross-legged on the mountain wall, closing his eyes and running the Hunyuan Jue. The Spiritual Qi in the mountain was thicker than in the labor area, and the wood attribute was particularly strong, penetrating into the meridians. Running two Lesser Celestial Circuit, the chest and abdomen felt warm.
Yang Scarface raised his knife while patrolling, and his boots made a rustling sound on the gravel. He paused as he passed Qin Tiexin - the young man sat as steady as a stone, breathing evenly, and there were very faint Spiritual Qi fluctuations all over his body. Yang Scarface shook his head and continued walking. He has been an escort for twenty years and has seen many monks. It is rare for someone to be calm at such an age.
On the other side, Li Yun had laid out a blanket. Seeing Qin Tiexin practicing, she pursed her lips and sat up to adjust her breath.
The night guards were whispering beside the fire. The younger ones said they were cold, while the older ones scolded them, "You're still shouting "cold" when you're guarding a warm jade car? Why didn't I see you shouting when you took off your clothes when I went to the brothel last month?"
Several people chuckled.
Two hours passed.
Qin Tiexin After completing the exercise, his meridians were slightly swollen, and he was still a little short of the fourth level of Qi refining. When he opened his eyes, it was completely dark, and the night shift was changed to the second shift. New firewood was added to the fire, making a crackling sound. Li Yun fell asleep at some point, and the blanket was tightly wrapped, leaving only the top of his hair exposed.
It's half past midnight.
Qin Tiexin stood up and moved his muscles. When he twisted his waist, his spine made a slight noise; when he stretched his arms, his shoulder blades rubbed against each other. When he was halfway stretched, his ears moved.
Rustling.
The sound was thin and came from the forest. It wasn't the sound of wind.
He turned to look into the darkness.
As the sound got closer, it turned into a rustling sound, like countless things crawling across fallen leaves.
The night guard also heard it. The tall and thin man held up the torch and shined it towards the edge of the forest, and the flames went out.
At the edge of the fire, a black-scaled snake poked its head out of the grass, its triangular head raised, and it uttered words. Then the second, third... densely packed, the snake's body twisted, and its scales reflected the dark light.
"Snake!" the tall and thin man shouted, his voice tight, "There is a snake!"
The camp suddenly woke up.
The men stood up - knives, sticks, and fire sticks. They held the torches high and saw the snakes coming from all directions. Black, brown, and green snakes, small ones more than a foot long, big ones nearly ten feet, all rushed towards the camp, and the snakes' bodies made a rustling sound when they rubbed against the ground.
The insect-repelling pink circle was run over by the first blue-striped python. It paused, as if it was disgusted with the powder, but when the snakes behind pushed it, it raised its head and hissed, brazenly crossing the line.
Then the second and third items.
"The black-scaled snake is not poisonous!" Yang Scarface roared, rushing to the edge of the camp, "Behead! Don't let me get close! The coachman lights the torch!"
The guards formed a formation, five people in a row, and the light of their swords flashed in the fire. The driver grabbed the burning firewood and waved it. Snakes were afraid of fire, but there were too many of them, so they came one after another. Some snakes scurried under the torches and attacked people's legs.
Qin Tiexin I saw a black-scaled snake scurrying to my feet. I raised my foot and stepped on it. There was a click. The snake's head was flattened and its body was still twisting.
"Help." He said to Li Yun, who had just climbed up, in a calm voice, "Save your energy."
Li Yun's face turned pale, but she did not retreat. She made a seal with her hands, and three ice spikes were formed out of thin air. Each one was half a foot long, with a cold light shining at the tip. They shot out in a swish, piercing the three snakes seven inches. The snake's body was nailed to the ground, and its tail was still twitching.
Qin Tiexin didn't draw the knife - Edgeless was too big to cut the snake smoothly. He connected the points with both hands and basically released Law Technique one after another.
In the fireball technique, a large ball of flames smashed into the pile of snakes with the fist, causing a crackling sound and a burning smell.
The wind blade, the transparent air blade sliced obliquely, broken snakes one after another, and blood splashed on the grass blades.
Ground stabbing technique, where earth and rocks protrude, and the sharp points pierce the snake's belly.
Vine technique, ivy sprouts from the ground and wraps around the snake's body, tightening it tighter and tighter.
They all start with Law Technique, which consumes less energy and is enough to deal with ordinary snakes. His technique is neat, and the interval between each Law Technique is only half a breath.
Li Yun's ice thorns were more accurate, nailing each snake's head. Her breathing became heavier and sweat appeared on her forehead, but her technique was not messy, and every time she cast the spell, she hit the snake's head exactly as it did.
There is an endless stream of snakes.
The guards were tired of cutting with their knives, and snake corpses were piled up to their ankles under their feet. The blood was mixed with mud, making it slippery to step on. Two of the guards' boots were bitten through, and blood oozed out, but it was not poisonous and needed to be bandaged.
Yang Scar shouted while slashing, "Hold the line! Don't let it go! Laowu, left!"
The head of the Feng family hid behind the car, his face turning blue. Feng Ming huddled in the tent and shivered, with the curtains drawn tightly.
Qin Tiexin scanned the battlefield. There were too many snakes, and they didn't seem to gather naturally. While releasing Law Technique, he retreated to the fire, grabbed the burning firewood, poured spiritual power into it, and the flames shot up and turned into fire spears.
He waved the fire spear, and the flames stretched into an arc, forcing the snakes in front to retreat. The heat wave hit his face, and the snakes retreated one after another.
"Li Yun, the ground is frozen!" he shouted.
Li Yun understood and pressed her hands on the ground. The cold air spread, and thin ice formed on the ground around the edge of the camp, spreading quickly. The snakes climbed up and skidded, slowing down, and some twisted in place and were unable to move forward.
Taking advantage of this gap, the guard took a breath and slashed harder.
The battle lasted for more than two hours.
When the sky turned gray, the last few snakes were hacked to death. The ground was covered with snake carcasses, piled half a foot thick in places. The blood was mixed with mud, and the fishy smell hit your nose. The smell of burnt smell made you gag.
No one spoke, only breathing heavily. The guards were holding knives, sweat dripping down their chins, and some had trembling arms - they were cutting snakes.
Yang Scarface took a few breaths with the knife in his hand and began to count the people. They were all alive. The two feet that were most seriously injured were the ones that were bitten and had torn strips of cloth to wrap them up. He walked up to Qin Tiexin Li Yun and handed over his hands. "Thank you two immortal masters."
Qin Tiexin waved his hand and walked to the edge of the camp to see where the snakes were coming from. The forest was dark and silent. He bent down and picked up a dead snake, opened its mouth and looked - the teeth were ordinary and non-venomous.
Qin Tiexin asked the head of the Feng family. There has never been a situation where snakes actively attacked before, so the problem should have occurred before they came.
He looked around for a moment, then turned and entered the cave.
There were still gray-white embers from the bonfire left by the previous wave of people in the cave. He squatted down and pushed away the ashes with his hands.
There is a layer of yellow powder underneath, as fine as flour, with a light aroma.
Qin Tiexin Twist it up a little, rub it on your fingertips, and smell it closely - it has a special fragrance, sweet and fishy, like bean curd mixed with honey.
"Captain Yang." he shouted.
Yang Scarface came over and saw the powder, and his expression changed. He squatted down, grabbed a handful and took a closer look, then leaned closer to smell it, and his face sank.
"Snake Spirit Grass." He said in a deep voice, "Grind it into powder."
"Snake lure?"
"Specialized for attracting snakes." Yang Scarface grabbed a handful of powder and let it flow from his fingers. "This substance is dried and ground into powder. It has a light smell, but it dissipates quickly when exposed to heat. Snakes love it most. In the past, medicinal collectors used it to lure snakes to take out their bile. The dosage is small - a small amount on a fingernail can attract dozens of snakes."
He looked at the warm jade car outside the cave. "Our car is getting hot, which will stir up the medicinal powder buried here. The smell will waft out, and snakes will come from miles around."
The head of the Feng family came over with an ugly face. "Is someone harming us?"
Yang Scarface dusted off the powder on his hands and said, "The people who planted the Snake Spirit Grass predicted that we would stay in this cave - this is the first common place to stay when entering the mountain. In previous years, the team stayed here. It is also predicted that the warm jade car will generate heat, which can stimulate the properties of the medicine."
He stood up and said, "Snake not only kills people, but it also consumes our physical strength and energy. We have to change our route."
"Change the route?" The head of the Feng family was stunned for a moment.
"There may be an ambush ahead of the original road." Yang Scarface looked at Qin Tiexin Li Yun, "Two immortal masters, what do you think?"
Li Yun looked at Qin Tiexin. She had used up nearly half of her spiritual power and her face was a little pale.
Qin Tiexin stared at the pile of yellow powder, silent for a moment. "Change."
"Which one should I change?" The head of the Feng family said anxiously, "I have never walked the other roads!"
"There is a trail." Yang Scarface said, "I have walked through it before, and it is almost passable but passable. We need to start immediately - before the other party thinks we need to rest."
Patriarch Feng gritted his teeth. "Okay! I'll listen to you!"
"Pack up now and set off before dawn." Yang Scarface turned around and greeted everyone, "Move quickly!"
***
A mile away, in the shade of the hillside.
Two masked men stood in the shadow of the tree, looking in the direction of the camp. The tall one was thin, the short one was stocky. They were both wearing gray-brown clothes, similar to the color of the rocks.
"The snakes have retreated," the short man said, his voice muffled behind his mask.
"Just wear them down." The tall man's voice was hoarse, like sandpaper grinding wood, "According to plan, they should speed up on the same path. There is a second salute in the canyon ahead."
"What if they change the route?"
"Change the route?" The tall man sneered, "How dare that coward from the Feng family? Besides..." He paused, "It would be better to change the route - that small road is a dead end."
The short man turned to look at him. "Did the third master arrange it?"
"Yeah." The tall man nodded, "The original path to the canyon was a clear move, and forcing them to change their route is the real purpose. If you walk into that small road, you can't get out."
He turned around and said, "Send a message to Third Master, saying that the fish has been caught in the net."
The short man nodded and took out a yellow talisman from his pocket. The paper was old and painted with cinnabar patterns. He touched the talisman with his fingertips and injected spiritual power. The paper ignited without fire and turned into a wisp of green smoke, drifting northward and disappearing in the morning fog in the blink of an eye.