After all sounds had completely faded and quite some time had passed, Ji Yuan suddenly slumped against the Deity Statue, all strength leaving him as sweat poured down like it cost nothing.
The exertion he had just spent felt like running several five-kilometer cross-country races back in college. Ji Yuan did not even have the strength to move a finger now, only leaning against the Deity Statue and gasping like a dead dog.
The sight left Zhang Shilin and the others at a loss. They had been celebrating their survival just moments ago, but now they panicked.
"Master, Master, are you all right?"
"Water..."
"Water, water, water! Hurry and get the Master some water!"
Zhang Shilin and the traveling merchants scrambled about in confusion. Some fetched towels, some fetched bamboo cups, while others stood nearby fanning Ji Yuan with their clothes.
"The water's here, it's here! Master, drink!"
Zhang Shilin had originally intended to hand the bamboo tube to Ji Yuan, but seeing that he was only gasping and did not raise a hand, he carefully brought the tube to Ji Yuan's lips and tilted it.
"Gulp... gulp... gulp..."
Ji Yuan had already drunk his fill in one wild bout of drinking, yet Zhang Shilin was still too nervous to let go. Ji Yuan's mouth was plugged by the bamboo tube, and his limbs were powerless.
Damn it, have some situational awareness!
Ji Yuan could only hold his breath and close his mouth. Only when he saw water spilling out did Zhang Shilin realize that the Master no longer wanted to drink, and hastily pulled the bamboo tube away.
"Hiss... whew..."
Ji Yuan let out a long breath and recovered somewhat.
Seeing this, Zhang Shilin and the other traveling merchants all breathed sighs of relief as well. Then, as though suddenly remembering something, Zhang Shilin dropped to his knees before Ji Yuan.
The other traveling merchants followed suit.
"Thank you, Master, for saving our lives! Thank you, Master, for saving our lives! We kowtow to you, we kowtow!"
"Thank you, Master, for saving us!"
"Thank you, Master..."
The remaining eight traveling merchants knocked their heads to the ground with solid thuds. They were not merely putting on a show.
Ji Yuan felt terribly awkward at being kowtowed to. Even a bow had always embarrassed him growing up, much less so many people kowtowing to him.
"Get up, quickly. Stop kowtowing. It would already be good enough if you don't blame me for not being able to save Wang Dong and the others..."
Those were Ji Yuan's true feelings. He had seen plenty of cases in his previous life where a small favor earned gratitude but a great one earned resentment. Rather than let the traveling merchants brood over it and bring about some unforeseen change, he might as well lay it out plainly himself.
Sure enough, once those words were spoken, the traveling merchants all froze. They exchanged glances, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward.
They did not dare admit it, but that did not mean they had not thought it. In truth, even Zhang Shilin had wondered whether Wang Dong, Jin Shunfu, and the others would not have died if the Master had acted sooner.
The traveling merchants' silence proved Ji Yuan's guess. He was not Huang Laoxie, fond of doing as he pleased and tormenting himself. Doing good deeds did not necessarily require people to keep remembering his kindness, but neither did he want to leave misunderstandings in people's hearts.
Ji Yuan was thinking a little too far ahead. What if someone among them grew more resentful the more they thought about it afterward? What if the families of the dead held that resentment forever? Perhaps they might even fear the fierce tiger would blame him.
"It wasn't that I did not want to save those four just now. It was truly because I could not divide myself. You all heard what that Tiger Spirit said—how could turning death into life be something simple? When the Ghost Servant came, I was at a critical juncture and could not move a single muscle!"
Making up a lie once was a lie, and making it up twice made no difference. Ji Yuan simply spun a tale, intending to make it sound even more serious.
"To save you, I spared no effort in expending my own cultivation to break free from my predicament. Unfortunately, those four had already left. In my current state, it is already a blessing beyond measure that I managed to keep you alive."
Combined with Ji Yuan's present appearance, those words were quite convincing, leaving Zhang Shilin and the others deeply ashamed.
"Heh, be more careful in the future. In the deep mountains and old forests, if you encounter some handsome scholar or beautiful woman at night, none of that is normal."
Ji Yuan's earnest advice was meant for the traveling merchants, but in truth, it was also a reminder to himself.
"Thank you, Master, for your guidance! Thank you, Master, for your guidance!"
"Thank you, Master!"
"Master, are you hungry? We still have some food."
"Stop calling me Master this and Master that. Just call me Mister..."
Ji Yuan felt that the word Master made him sound like some charlatan. Lord Lu, the Tiger Spirit, had used a far more appropriate form of address.
As for food, although he knew his body was weak right now, he truly had no appetite at all.
That night, even though they knew the danger had gone far away, no one dared sleep. Except for Ji Yuan, who was exhausted beyond measure. He swore that he had merely wanted to lie down and rest for a while, yet he fell asleep within seconds.
At daybreak the next day, the traveling merchants, who had spent the night trembling with fear, could no longer sit still and rose one after another to prepare to leave.
Zhang Shilin and the others took out the luggage of the other four and placed it into their own baskets, hanging the empty baskets beneath theirs.
"Ah... Little Dong is gone. How are we supposed to explain this to Uncle Wang..."
"Yeah, Old Jin still had two children at home... and now this... ah..."
"Liu Quan and Li Gui had not even married yet. They were so young..."
"We should help look after their families more in the future!"
"Yeah, that is all we can do..."
The traveling merchants sighed and lamented. With daylight upon them, their fear had eased considerably, leaving only a sorrowful atmosphere.
Zhang Shilin walked behind the Deity Statue. That master was still sleeping soundly, covered with a garment and a straw raincoat. Zhang Shilin and the others had draped them over Ji Yuan after he fell asleep.
As expected of a master. No one had dared sleep last night, and they had even held in their urine. Only those with supreme skill and great courage could sleep so peacefully.
"Master, M-Mister, Mister Ji, we are leaving. What do you plan to do, Mister?"
Ji Yuan was terribly exhausted and vaguely heard someone calling him.
"Mister, we are leaving. Do you have any instructions, Mister..."
"Ah... stop bothering me... what a nuisance..."
Still asleep, Ji Yuan scratched an itch on his face with one hand and waved the other as if swatting flies.
"Shilin, don't disturb Mister's sleep!"
"Yeah, Leader Zhang, Mister has been living here for a month already! Now that it's daylight, let's hurry down the mountain!"
"Brother Shilin, Mister is already chasing us away. Let's go!"
Zhang Shilin had originally wanted to bid him farewell in person, and preferably ask for something like a protective talisman, but now he did not dare disturb him any further.
After hesitating for a moment, he took out a bag of dry flatbread and steamed buns, as well as a bamboo tube filled with water, from his basket and carefully placed them beside the Mountain God Statue.
"Let's kowtow to Mister before we leave!"
"Mm, right."
"That makes sense!"
"Good!"
Together with Zhang Shilin, the traveling merchants gathered beside the Mountain God Statue, knelt, and kowtowed twice toward the sleeping Ji Yuan.
"Knock knock knock knock..."
"Ah, what the hell are you making so much noise for..."
Ji Yuan rolled over and cursed.
"Oh no, Mister is angry! Hurry, hurry, let's go!"
"Go, go, go!"
"Hey, wait for me."
"Shh, keep it down!"
The traveling merchants hurriedly shouldered their baskets and left the Mountain God Temple that had terrified them out of their wits. In their hearts, they secretly resolved that they would never again take the road through Niu Kui Mountain.
With the sun high in the sky, Ji Yuan stretched and woke up inside the temple.
"Heh-ahh... I slept... so comfortably!"
The surroundings seemed a little too quiet. Ji Yuan rubbed his eyes and looked around. Though his vision was terribly blurry, he could tell it was already daylight, yet something felt wrong.
Wait! Where was everyone? Where had they all gone?
Holy shit, shit, shit, shit, shit! That damned Zhang Shilin, you bastards left me behind!
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