Chapter 8

Turning around to look back, Xiao Yi couldn’t help but stare in shock.

Did he see the snake’s tail? Yes, he saw it. The several feet long snake’s body behind him was directly overlooked by Xiao Yi’s gaze. All he could see was a cave entrance about the size of a palm-shaped tree canopy right in front of him.

Tsk! This snake even has a cave! So big! Xiao Yi imagined. He listened carefully, but only heard the sounds of birds and insects in the valley; there was no movement inside the cave.

He sniffed, moving his nose, and caught a faint whiff of a strange fragrance from somewhere.

It would be good if Xiao Nu were here, for an extra means of self-defense. There shouldn’t be any other snakes in the cave, right? Thinking this, he no longer hesitated, used his hands and feet to push off, and leaped towards the cave entrance.

The stone cave seemed to be naturally formed, about two zhang deep, and it only took a few steps to reach the end. Looking around, he saw another cave entrance on the right. Xiao Yi walked over quietly, peering inside. What he saw was a stone room about one zhang in size, with obvious signs of carving, and dim light inside. A stone bed about a foot higher than the ground occupied half of the room.

On the flat stone bed, there was a mound, as if something was there. Looking around, he saw nothing unusual. Unable to contain his curiosity, Xiao Yi approached the stone bed.

Bending down to take a closer look, Xiao Yi was startled and jumped back a step. He patted his chest, shook his head, and sighed in relief.

Looking again, Xiao Yi couldn’t help but widen his eyes in shock. On the stone bed lay a skeleton that was already severely decayed. The clothes and some of the bones had turned to dust. It seemed the owner of the skeleton had been dead for a long time, Xiao Yi thought to himself. I wonder who this is and how they ended up in such a hidden cave. Did they come up here like I did? But how did they die here? This is such a secluded place; whether they are dead or alive, no one would know!

The fear was gone, and Xiao Yi started to daydream again.

"Is there something else?" Next to the skeleton was a small brocade pouch.

Xiao Yi reached out and gently picked it up, then looked around the stone room carefully. There was nothing else in the room besides the skeleton, so he left the room and returned to the outer cave. Using the light from the cave entrance, he held the brocade pouch up to his eyes and examined it closely.

The brocade pouch, about the size of a palm, was made of an unknown fabric. It had a black base with golden threads woven densely. When he turned the pouch, a faint light, like a talisman, shimmered on its surface.

The pouch’s opening was tied with a thin golden silk ribbon. Xiao Yi tried to open it, but the ribbon was tightly knotted and wouldn’t budge. He touched it, feeling the soft, light, and thin material, and it didn’t seem to contain anything.

After pondering for a while, Xiao Yi couldn’t figure it out. Feeling that this finely crafted item must be valuable, he put it in his pocket.

This person is very strange. I wonder why they ended up in such a predicament, with nothing else but this small brocade pouch. It’s interesting! Well, I should think about how to get down after retrieving the arrow. I’m not as agile as a squirrel to jump from treetops, and it’s about seven or eight zhang high! Unless I want to die.

Xiao Yi came to the cave entrance and glanced at the large green snake, which was about a foot thick and a zhang long, with fine scales covering its body, coiled around the tree trunk. He climbed back onto the tree trunk extending from the cave, bent down, and reached for the arrow, pulling it out with force and throwing it into the cave. Then he untangled the snake from the tree trunk, letting it slide down on its own. Soon, he heard a muffled thud.

Patting his hands, Xiao Yi jumped to the cave entrance and sat down, resting his chin on his hand, his expression changing.

How do I get down? I should have used a thinner but stronger vine. Sigh! It’s all because of my carelessness!

Xiao Yi, with a worried look, blamed himself. In this short while, he hadn’t been idle. Once he calmed down, he felt his limbs were tired, his mouth was dry, and his stomach growled.

If I could get down, I should go back to the mountaintop and stew the wild mountain goat Uncle Lao Lu gave me! Thinking of the aroma of the mutton, Xiao Yi’s stomach growled again.

A strange fragrance wafted to his nose. Is it the smell of mutton? No, this fragrance is familiar.

Xiao Yi shook his head and suddenly remembered the fragrance he had smelled when he first came up. Yes, it’s the same fragrance, but it’s even stronger now. He couldn’t help but take a deep breath, and the fragrance made him feel comfortable all over, even alleviating his fatigue.

Xiao Yi couldn’t help but sniff the air, trying to find the source of the fragrance. The fragrance seemed to be nearby, perhaps from the tree in front of him? He got up and, for the first time, took a good look at the palm-shaped tree.

The thick trunk of the tree extended deeply and firmly from the crevice in the cliff wall, with branches curling like a hand covering the cave entrance, and dense, emerald-green leaves. The increasingly strong fragrance was coming from the branches and leaves.

Climbing carefully onto the tree trunk, Xiao Yi stood steady and pulled apart the branches and leaves, searching for the source of the strong fragrance near the tree canopy. A small, thumb-sized, purple-red fruit appeared before his eyes.

Earlier, under the dense branches and leaves of the tree, Xiao Yi hadn’t noticed any fruit.

Enticed by the fragrance, Xiao Yi couldn’t help but lick his dry lips, showing a greedy and gluttonous demeanor.

Reaching out, he picked the fruit and held it in his hand. Still greedy, he continued to search the branches and found six more fruits of the same size, all green. Holding the red fruit in his hand, he temporarily lost interest in the green ones and eagerly returned to the cave to sit down.

Holding the fruit with his fingers, he examined it closely. The fruit was a lustrous, purple-red, and when held up to the light, it looked like a gem, even more translucent, with a faint white glow that Xiao Yi couldn’t see. The strong fragrance filled his nose, penetrating his lungs.

Such a fragrant fruit must be delicious. No matter what, I’ll try it. Xiao Yi thought. He extended his tongue and lightly licked the fruit.

"Hehe!"

Xiao Yi laughed at his own caution. He put the fruit to his mouth and gently bit it. Unexpectedly, the fruit melted in his mouth, and before he could taste it, a cool, fragrant sensation instantly slid down his throat into his stomach.

Rubbing his stomach in surprise, Xiao Yi thought to himself, This fruit is so strange! But then, a warm current rose in his stomach, and the warm current turned into a ball of fire burning and colliding in his chest and abdomen. The fierce flames, like a fire dragon, tore and bit at his body, trying to break through his flesh.

A thunderous sound echoed in his ears.

"Ah... It’s bad... This damned fruit! It’s all because of my greed!"

With a scream, the tearing pain in his chest and abdomen made Xiao Yi groan and go mad. His face contorted, and sweat poured down his face.

Trembling all over, Xiao Yi clenched his teeth. The raging fire in his abdomen collided more fiercely, gnawing and tearing at his internal organs and every meridian, burning every bone in his body.

The unbearable pain made Xiao Yi dizzy, and his consciousness gradually blurred.

Am I going to die? Will my master know if I die here? Will I turn into a pile of dust? Will I never practice the Xuan Yuan mantra again? Xuan Yuan mantra... Xuan Yuan mantra... Wood and Metal unite, Water rises, Fire subsides, and delusions cease... In a daze, he mumbled the familiar mantra and gradually fell into unconsciousness.

...In a daze, Xiao Yi felt himself leave his body, and the unbearable pain gradually faded away...