Half-Blind

Please don't be foolish! Don't go!

Ji Yuan was frantic behind the statue—if something happened to these traveling merchants, he'd be next!

He could only hate that he couldn't shout out, listening as the footsteps grew fainter until they faded from his ears.

Under this intense inner struggle, Ji Yuan's eyelids twitched violently, the corner of his mouth trembled incessantly, and the little finger of his right hand actually moved slightly.

Ji Yuan sensed this change immediately, lifting his spirits from the depths of despair.

He focused on his body, finding that under the fierce mental struggle, this "Ghost Pressing Bed" had eased a tiny bit—a few fingers on both hands could now barely curl and stretch. Though slight, it was a huge breakthrough.

This sent Ji Yuan into ecstasy. The four merchants taken out were surely doomed, but if he could move and ally with these merchants, there might still be a way out.

At the mouth of the Mountain God Temple, Zhang Shilin lit only two of the torches, handing them to Wang Dong and the others. The night wind blew the flames left and right.

"Be careful, make sure to protect Young Master Lu."

"No problem, Brother Shilin!"

"Old Jin, watch yourself!"

"Don't worry, Shilin! I've got it!"

Jin Shunfu took the torch and, along with the others, assured Zhang Shilin. After all, they were traveling merchants, half-experienced mountain dwellers—this short trip wouldn't scare them.

Zhang Shilin wanted to hand the second lit torch to Scholar Lu, since he was the guide, but Scholar Lu didn't take it.

"No, no, I'm a bit afraid the torch might singe my robe. Let Little Dong take it!"

"Right, right, give it to me, hehehe..."

Wang Dong laughed and snatched the torch.

"You little rascal!"

Zhang Shilin scolded with a smile, placing the unlit torches into Liu Quan's backpack. After reminding them again to watch their footing, the group set off to dig up the Mountain King Ginseng.

Inside the Mountain God Temple, Ji Yuan's face twisted and his limbs twitched—not from illness, but from a fierce struggle to regain control of his body.

The eight remaining merchants waited until the torchlight faded into the distance before returning to the temple, their faces full of anticipation and joy.

Even if it wasn't Mountain King Ginseng, a well-aged ginseng was worth good silver. Rich folks valued their lives and spared no expense on quality medicine.

"Leader Zhang, what's wrong with this beggar?"

Someone sitting by the fire noticed Ji Yuan's strange state and cried out in alarm.

Zhang Shilin hurried over, and the other merchants gathered around, unnerved by Ji Yuan's convulsions.

"He's drenched in sweat..."

"Is it epilepsy?"

"Get a stick, pry his mouth open—don't let him bite his tongue off!"

Zhang Shilin crouched down to steady the beggar's thrashing body and shouted at the others.

Someone quickly found a suitable stick from the woodpile.

"I'll open his mouth, you shove it in!"

"Mm... mmm..."

Ji Yuan instinctively resisted—he wasn't having a seizure, and who knew how dirty that stick was!

"Hold him down for me!"

Soon, a stick was wedged crosswise into Ji Yuan's twitching mouth, clamped between his teeth.

The merchants watched for a while, then slowly returned to the fire.

Someone sighed.

"This beggar probably won't make it through the night. If that's the case, we might as well dig a grave and bury him."

"Yeah, we'll be using this temple again—better not leave a corpse here."

You bastards!

Knowing they meant well, Ji Yuan still felt a vein bulge inexplicably.

About ten minutes after the first group had left...

"Roooar~~~~~~~~~~"

A terrifying howl suddenly rang out from far away, making everyone in the temple flinch instinctively.

"Chirp chirp..."

"Flap flap flap flap..."

Countless birds in the surrounding trees scattered in panic, crying out in alarm around the temple.

At the same time, a chill wind blew through the temple door, making the fire inside flicker.

"Leader Zhang!"

"Shilin! What was that sound?"

"Wild Beast?"

Zhang Shilin's face was somewhat pale as he instinctively shrank back, gazing at the night beyond the temple doors.

"Tiger's Roar Startles the Forest... it's a Great Beast!"

"Hiss..."

A wave of sharp intakes of breath surrounded them.

"Then what about Little Dong and Old Jin!?"

No one dared to finish that thought.

Zhang Shilin clenched his fists, staring out at the temple.

"The Great Beast's roar is very far off. Little Dong and the others... should be fine, right? They've got torches with them. To be safe, everyone get your tools ready—we're not sleeping tonight!"

That tiger's roar also jolted Ji Yuan with a sharp start.

But after that jolt, Ji Yuan realized he had actually regained control of his body!

At this moment, his right hand drew back and clenched—though a bit stiff, it obeyed his will. He didn't rashly sit up, instead carefully savoring this hard-won feeling.

Then, Ji Yuan slowly opened his eyes. If he could have seen them, he would have noticed that the centers of his pupils were a lighter shade, a translucent grayish white.

The light felt faint, dim to the point of being hard to see. If not for the fact that he could still make out something, Ji Yuan might have thought he was blind.

He turned his head slightly toward the fire and his heart sank.

The fire appeared very blurry to his eyes, its glow like looking through thick frosted glass, only a limited amount of light reaching him.

His vision wasn't just a little flawed, was it...

'At least I'm not completely blind...'

Ji Yuan could only console himself with that thought.

But just opening his eyes for that moment left them feeling sore—not unbearable, but definitely uncomfortable.

"Leader Zhang, that beggar's awake!"

Though the remaining Traveling Merchants were all tense, someone still noticed Ji Yuan's movement. The voice drew everyone's gaze toward the beggar's direction, and sure enough, they saw him stirring, even turning his head to look their way.

But even Zhang Shilin had no time to bother with this unrelated beggar now. Everyone was pulling woodcutter's knives and short clubs from their baskets, gripping them tightly, their expressions taut as they kept watch on the temple entrance.

Ji Yuan had no time to dwell on his vision problem either. At this moment, his life was what mattered most. He tried to sit up, but as he pushed himself halfway with both arms, a fierce dizziness and weakness struck him.

With a "thud," Ji Yuan fell back to the ground, the back of his head hitting the floor.

"Hiss... heh..."

That hurt badly, making Ji Yuan grimace through gritted teeth.

He realized that though he could move, it was like recovering from a severe illness—no strength to speak of. None of the Traveling Merchants paid him any attention.

Ji Yuan didn't ask anyone for help. He grabbed the base of the statue beside him with his right hand and, with great difficulty, managed to sit up.