Chapter 157 The Yellow Soil Ridge (2/2)
Our first stop was the Eastern Qing Tombs. It was the first time Edelweiss was here and we thought of bringing her to have a look. But we were flabbergasted when we paid for the entry tickets. ”A whopping 162 yuan per person?!” Chongxi was so immensely vexed that he gave the ticket collector a seething glare when we went in, as if meaning to say, ”What a daylight robbery is this!?”
Anyone at first glance could instantly appreciate the auspicious terrain of the Tombs. I could feel the rich divine aura swirling around with abundance. This was exactly where the dragon leys of the ranges of Mount Yan concentrated upon. With such bountiful divine aura in these grounds, one could have wondered how did the Qing Empire ever decay and decline. But I knew full well that it was Master Six who had checkmated the Empire and doomed them. At first, the Imperial Household was fully aware that their dragon leys were all well beyond China Proper. Many of their remains were initially interred near their home domain of Manchuria. But most people might not realize that dragon leys had perishable lifespans; there would come one day when their powers would dwindle and die. This prompted the Qing Empire to locate a secondary site for the burial of deceased members of the Imperial Family: the Eastern Qing Tombs. Little did they know that the dragon leys there would later be severed by Master Six, effectively smothering the life out of the suffocating Qing Dynasty?
We sauntered around the Tombs for three to four hours and left during noon. We stopped at a restaurant for a brief recess before heading towards the Yellow Soil Ridge.
We reached our destination at two in the afternoon. Despite the translucent mists of winter, it was the brightest hour of the day. The entire Yellow Soil Ridge was a vista of pure white. In another season, this area would have been filled with the lush deep green of the dense boughs of the fruit trees blanketing the terrain. But it was the cold season and there was not even anything green in our sights. With my Spirit Sight, however, I could see the strands of demonic aura drifting lazily around the snowy dunes, indicating the presence of the many demons and entities lurking in silence.
Fortunately for us, the landscape was hardly too treacherous for amateur hikers like us. ”Let's go up!” I beckoned to my companions and Edelweiss, only for Chongxi to yell, ”WAIT! NO! I've been afraid of mountain hiking ever since the avalanche at Inner Mongolia!” I shook my head, exasperated. ”What a killjoy! What else are we doing here if not climbing up the hills?!” At last, the rest of us worked together and dragged Chongxi upwards.
Halfway uphill, our initial fervor and zeal slowly exhausted. Edelweiss and Lin Feng were leading ahead, while I and Chongxi were panting for our breaths, several meters behind. As we heaved and puffed, I looked at the backs of my fiancée and Lin Feng. ”Perhaps it is high time I begin working out. All this climbing and hiking seems to tell me how old I am!”
We stopped at intervals to rest, with Chongxi and I quietly rejoicing that the grounds there were relatively flat. But Chongxi required so many stops, that it was almost sundown by the time we reached the peak. I collapsed to a seat under a tree, panting hard. Over my shoulders, Chongxi was already lying on the ground, too tired to walk anymore. Then Lin Feng asked suddenly, ”Errr... Shiyan, what are we here for actually?”
I waved off his question, gesturing for him to wait while I catch my breath. Beside me, Edelweiss casually pulled a drag on her cigarette. Looking neither tired nor flustered, she answered loudly in my place, ”We're here to not only survey the terrain here for the upcoming battle, and also to make contact with the foxes here to find out more information. So there's that.” A loud, and mildly surprised ”Oh!” came from Lin Feng as he sniggered impishly. ”You've come a long way, Edelweiss! Shiyan must have been teaching you a lot!”
I threw a glare at Lin Feng, still heaving for breath while Edelweiss giggled. ”I've learned almost nothing from him! It's his mother who's been teaching me all these. It was good she did too, else I would have long been frightened to death when a fox appeared before us yesterday, kneeling and talking in human language!” It must be the old fox spirit whom I had sent to apologize and seek penance from Mother yesterday. It must have found her when she was shopping with Edelweiss.
We rested at the crest of the hill for some time until the sky was almost dark. With a quick look at my watch, I said, ”All right! It's time we prepare. Lao Tao and the others should be coming any time now.” I spun and was about to look around, when I almost crashed into someone!
I staggered backward. Recovering from my shock, I looked and breathed. ”Lao Tao?! Since when did you come?!”