Piaohai Mountain
Legend has it that this demi-plane was created by a Corpse Daoist Master. Within lies a majestic, thousand-zhang-tall peak. The world is shrouded in mist, obscuring both sun and moon, and countless coffins drift around the mountain.
The coffins are filled with the corpses refined by that Corpse Daoist Master long ago, hence the name: Piaohai Mountain.
"After you enter Piaohai Mountain, just act according to the plan. I will enter afterward and secretly protect you. As for the Flower Moon Hall Master, you don't need to worry. Our Master will personally keep an eye on him.
If he holds back, so be it. But if he dares to make a move, this pile of crap... ahem, this crime, will be pinned on him for good." Having nearly blurted out his true thoughts, Zheng Yi quickly coughed a few times to cover his slip.
"Don't worry, Senior Brother. I will remember the Master's instructions. I'll be going now."
Qi Yun cupped his fist to Zheng Yi, then crushed an orange-yellow, goose-egg-sized Jade Talisman in his hand.
This Jade Talisman was the key to entering Piaohai Mountain.
The moment it was crushed, the order hidden within activated. The void above Qi Yun's head abruptly tore open. A great hand, seemingly forged from pure gold, reached out, snatched him up, and retracted in an instant.
The moment Qi Yun was gone, Zheng Yi's expression turned cold and indifferent.
With a flip of his hand, he produced a seashell-shaped Communication Jade Talisman, identical to the one he had given Qi Yun.
Zheng Yi injected a wisp of True Qi into the Jade Talisman. It immediately floated into the air, emitting a shimmering light and faintly transforming into a pair of calm, indifferent eyes.
"Master, the bait has been cast," Zheng Yi said softly and respectfully.
"Yes. Proceed as planned. Keep the boy alive until that old scoundrel makes a move himself. No matter what, we have to bait him into acting personally.
Wei Master from the Internal Inspection Department is right here at my estate.
This time, we'll catch him red-handed, with irrefutable proof!"
"Yes!"
Zheng Yi bowed in acknowledgment. He retracted the Communication Jade Talisman, took out a Talisman Order for Piaohai Mountain, and crushed it in his hand.
…
The moment he was snatched up by the great golden hand, Qi Yun felt the world spin as countless kaleidoscopic streaks of light flashed before his eyes.
In his daze, he seemed to be looking down upon the entire Taixu Mirror Heaven.
'Could it be that these Shiyi Realms aren't inside the Holy Sect's Taixu Mirror Heaven?'
The thought had barely formed when Qi Yun felt the ground rise to meet his feet. He had landed safely.
The feeling of solid ground beneath his feet settled his Heart and Spirit. A frigid, foul wind, reeking of rotting coffin wood and dense Corpse Qi, blasted him in the face, making his skin tingle numbly.
'So this is... Piaohai Mountain?'
A thousand-zhang peak of bone pierced the gray mist, stabbing straight into the dim sky.
The entire mountain was jagged, like the spine of a colossal beast, its pale surface a blinding white.
Countless coffins hovered in the churning sea of mist, a sight so dense it made one's scalp tingle.
Thin-walled coffins oozed dark yellow corpse oil. Bronze sarcophagi were covered in a ghastly green patina. A massive nanmu wood coffin was bound in layer upon layer of jet-black chains as thick as a child's arm.
From the edge of a half-open stone coffin, a purplish-blue arm hung limply. Dark red moss spread from beneath its withered fingernails, growing like a network of blood vessels.
A swirl of Yin Wind swept past. Twelve Copper-Horned Golden Coffins, each carved with the head of a ferocious beast, were linked head-to-tail, rotating slowly in the mist. From the gap of one coffin lid, a shriveled knuckle suddenly twitched, gripping the edge tightly, as if it would shove the heavy lid aside at any moment!
From deep within the mist came the sharp scraping of chains against rock, mingled with the groans of compressed wood.
The entire mountain seemed to be breathing like a living creature.
'Wu Tao's letter told me to head to the northern face of Piaohai Mountain and rendezvous with him as soon as I entered the Secret Realm.'
Qi Yun took out a Compass to get his bearings. After taking a deep breath, his gaze hardened with resolve.
'Whether I can escape this quagmire all depends on how this goes.'
'But whether I succeed or not will depend on the outcome of the struggle between those two Foundation Establishment Masters.'
He formed a hand seal and chanted an incantation. With a surge of True Qi, Qi Yun's body flickered and transformed into a wisp of Clear Wind. He plunged into the depths of Piaohai Mountain, speeding toward the location from Wu Tao's letter.
…
The forests of Piaohai Mountain were dense and oppressively dark.
A faint miasma filled the air, enough to make an ordinary person gravely ill with a single breath.
Even a Qi Refining Realm Cultivator like Qi Yun had to constantly circulate his True Qi to prevent the miasma from seeping into his body.
As he moved swiftly, he saw that the mountain was pockmarked with countless caves, large and small. From the depths of a few, faint lights—eerie blue, ghastly green, or dark red—shone out, as if silently tempting greedy treasure hunters.
'Piaohai Mountain is a relatively stable Shiyi Realm, and it's been explored by many Outer Mansion Disciples over the years.'
As he sped along, several strategy guides he had bought at a high price from his fellow disciples flashed through Qi Yun's mind.
'The treasures here are mostly hidden in two types of places.
One is these mountain caves, but nine out of ten are empty!
Moreover, some people, upholding the Demon Sect 'virtue' of 'If I can't have it, neither can you,' have filled the empty caves with vicious traps just to screw over anyone who comes after.
The second is those locked coffins in the sky! The really good stuff is said to be inside them.
But opening a coffin is like opening a blind box. The moment you get the treasure, the 'rightful owner' inside will immediately awaken.
If you don't have real skill, not only will you not get the treasure, you'll be dragged inside by the corpse for a 'close encounter'.'
Piaohai Mountain had long been captured by the Holy Sect and had been explored by at least several hundred Holy Sect Disciples. Aside from deliberately set traps, all the dangerous areas within had already been identified.
'And the most valuable things in all of Piaohai Mountain are those twelve Copper-Horned Golden Coffins.
The rumor is that they contain Copper Armor Corpses at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, all having undergone Sacrificial Refinement with Black Witchcraft by that Corpse Daoist Master.
Once they awaken, I fear only a Foundation Establishment Master could possibly suppress them.' Qi Yun glanced up at the twelve Copper-Horned Golden Coffins suspended over the summit. Even from this distance, he could feel a bone-chilling Corpse Qi that seemed to prickle at his nostrils.
After cautiously but swiftly crossing nearly half of Piaohai Mountain, Qi Yun reached the desolate, gloomy northern foot of the thousand-zhang peak.
The ground was covered in jagged scree, and a forest of bizarre rock formations created a natural labyrinth.
Qi Yun hid in the shadow of a massive boulder, concealing his aura. His gaze cut through the thin mist, locking onto a figure at the edge of the rocky labyrinth.
'Wu Tao…'
His colleague, whom he hadn't seen for over half a year, stood right there. Qi Yun watched him from above, his expression calm.
Wu Tao looked much better than he remembered. He wore a well-fitting cultivator's robe with a sword at his waist, and his every movement carried the faint, composed air of one who walked the path of cultivation. He was like a different person from the dejected figure he had been in the mortal world.
'He's alone. That means the Flower Moon Hall Master's disciple is hiding somewhere else.'
From his high vantage point, Qi Yun took in the entire rocky expanse below. He didn't rush to show himself, but remained where he was, waiting.
'I have to wait.'
'Wait until all the fish that I, the 'bait,' am supposed to lure have arrived.'
'Only then will my own meticulous plan truly begin.'
…