Pan Shi took the lead, with Yang An in the middle holding the Light Wheel. Pan Yu stayed close beside him.
The three of them maintained this formation, bypassing the village's main road. They chose what looked like a usable wilderness path that hugged the cliff face.
The night was dark, but thankfully, the Buddha's Radiance in Yang An's hand served as a light source, allowing him and Pan Yu to follow closely behind Pan Shi.
But in the deep, surrounding darkness, there was only silence. Even their softest footsteps seemed to echo endlessly in their ears.
The entire village was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
All three were nervous, but they feigned composure. None of them knew if the others were truly calm; they each assumed the person next to them was, and drew courage from that assumption.
They walked like this for about a quarter of an hour. Maintaining a brisk pace, they soon made their way from the village entrance to its edge.
Seeing that they would be out of the village shortly—just a few hundred more steps and they would be on the main road to the Xiyue River—Pan Shi breathed an inward sigh of relief.
The decision to head for the Xiyue River early had been the right one, he realized. They had arrived before any other cultivators, perfectly avoiding any chance of running into them.
But they weren't completely out of the village yet, so it wasn't time to celebrate. Pan Shi could only continue to quietly lead the way.
They walked a little further. Still, nothing happened.
But just then, Pan Yu, who was at the very rear, suddenly spoke in a low voice.
"Senior Brother..."
Her voice was as faint as a buzzing mosquito, but in that environment, it was startlingly clear.
Both Pan Shi and Yang An stopped and turned to look at her, confused.
"What's wrong?"
"I... I have a bad feeling..."
Pan Yu stammered, subconsciously inching closer to Yang An.
"What did you find?"
Pan Shi asked at once. Yang An's stomach clenched with nerves.
"No, I didn't find anything. I just have a bad feeling."
"..."
Hearing Pan Yu's words, both Pan Shi and Yang An were rendered speechless.
They had both been on edge, and Yang An had even instinctively reached for his waist, where a small knife was hidden, ready to draw his own blood at a moment's notice.
And then Pan Yu had to go and say something like that.
"Just keep walking and don't be so jumpy."
Pan Shi couldn't help but chide her under his breath, preparing to move on.
But seeing that neither of them believed her, Pan Yu hurriedly added:
"I've seen a movie, and there's a line that goes: 'The moment you think you're safe is precisely when you're in the most danger!' I think that's what's happening to us right now..."
"..."
'Honestly, if she weren't a woman, I'd stuff a gag in her mouth,' Yang An thought.
She was just asking for trouble. In a situation like this, saying something like that was basically just jinxing them. And just like that, an ominous feeling began to stir in Yang An's own heart.
'So this kind of feeling is contagious!'
Of course, Pan Shi had no idea what Pan Yu meant by "movie" or "line," but that didn't stop him from understanding the second part of her sentence. He immediately rolled his eyes.
"Shu—"
Pan Shi was about to tell Pan Yu to shut up, but the word died on his lips as his voice came to an abrupt halt.
In the darkness, another figure had appeared beside them at some unknown moment.
At that exact moment, Yang An, standing next to Pan Shi, saw with perfect clarity as a violent tremor ran through Pan Shi's entire body.
The very air seemed to freeze, plunging them back into silence.
"Heh heh!"
"You were right, little missy. Trying to sneak past here... you really don't take this Daoist Master seriously."
The instant the strange voice spoke, Yang An and the others instinctively fell back without a second thought.
By the light of the Buddha's Radiance in Yang An's hand, they finally got a clear look at the stranger who had appeared out of nowhere.
He wore a filthy, tattered Daoist robe, his hair hung down to his waist, and his face was caked in grime. His back was hunched, and he leaned on a straight tree branch for support.
Though they couldn't make out his features, one thing was certain: this newcomer was trouble.
So Pan Yu's words had come true, and so quickly that it had caught them completely off guard.
'What a jinx!'
The man had appeared with startling suddenness, but Pan Shi remained composed. He clasped his hands and bowed to the newcomer.
"May I ask which Fellow Daoist you are? I am a disciple of the Meat Tree True Master of Sansong Mountain. We are merely passing through and mean no offense."
As the saying goes, "you don't hit a smiling face." By announcing his identity and his Mountain Gate first, Pan Shi was hoping to de-escalate. If there was no prior enmity between them, most would show some courtesy. It all depended on whether the man would play along.
"Heh heh."
But upon hearing Pan Shi state his affiliation, the hunchbacked Daoist just let out a bizarre cackle.
"This Daoist Master doesn't care if you're from Sisong Mountain or Wusong Mountain. If you had passed by openly, I might have pretended not to see you. But sneaking around like this? Clearly, you have no respect for me. Today, this Daoist Master is going to have to teach you a lesson!"
Clearly, the hunchbacked Daoist wasn't buying it.
Pan Shi's expression darkened. The man was making it clear he intended to attack them.
"We are strangers, Fellow Daoist. Why must you make things so difficult for us? Why not just pretend you never saw us? It's always best to leave things on good terms. What do you say?"
"What are you dreaming of, kid? Now that this Daoist Master is standing right in front of you, you think I'd let you leave so easily without getting a little something?"
"What do you want?"
Pan Shi stared him down, his own tone growing sharp.
He knew now that the man had them in his sights, like a dog with a bone that wouldn't let go until it had devoured its prize.
The Daoist chuckled again. He pointed his branch at Pan Yu, who was next to Yang An, his gaze fixed on her waist.
"Little missy, if this Daoist Master isn't mistaken, that's a Small Sumeru Bag, isn't it?"
Unsettled by the Daoist's repulsive stare, Pan Yu immediately covered the Small Sumeru Bag hanging from her waist. In an instant, she knew exactly what he wanted.
The Small Sumeru Bag had been a gift from her doting martial uncle. An ordinary cultivator would never have access to such a precious item. Within Sansong Mountain, you could count the number of people who possessed such a treasure on one hand, and the same was true for other places.
It was safe to say that if an ownerless Small Sumeru Bag were to appear, it would incite a feeding frenzy among cultivators, who would fight over it like starving wolves.
"No, no! You're mistaken! This is just a sachet!"
Pan Yu tried to hide it in a panic, but anyone could see she was a terrible liar.
"Hand it over. Hand it over, and this Daoist Master will let you go. If you don't... well, then I'll just have to come and take it myself. And this Daoist Master won't be responsible for whatever happens next."
The Daoist cackled as he spoke, slowly advancing on Pan Yu.
Yang An's scalp tingled with fear as he stepped in front of Pan Yu, but the Daoist completely ignored him. He didn't even spare him a glance, as if he wasn't there at all.
It was clear the Daoist was sure he had them in the palm of his hand.
And just as the Daoist was closing in, Pan Shi, who had been standing to the side, finally made his move.
"Big words! Let's hope you don't choke on them!"
Since the man had made his intentions perfectly clear, a conflict was unavoidable. Pan Shi decided to throw caution to the wind.
"Fellow Daoist Yang, please look after my junior sister!"
With that, Pan Shi shot forward, charging at the Daoist.