After Swapping Identities With My Archenemy - Chapter 39

Chapter 39: The Yellow Springs Road

Chu Lianxue checked Jiang Huaiyi’s pulse and rubbed her nose guiltily.

“It was just a rush of blood to the heart from sudden agitation. She’ll be fine now that she’s coughed up that bit of stagnant blood.”

Surely she wasn’t actually driven to this by the two of us? Chu Lianxue looked at Jiang Huaiyi lying on the bed, her brow furrowing. She couldn’t believe a person could be that fragile.

Shen Wensi wasn’t truly angry. Watching the color slowly return to Jiang Huaiyi’s face, she knew the collapse had nothing to do with the bickering pair.

In this eerie environment, the group fell into a rare silence, watching over Jiang Huaiyi. Her skin warmed, and her condition stabilized. It seemed the “heart-fire” had indeed been released with the blood; her breathing was now steady and calm.

Chu Lianxue stared at the jade pendant. She hesitated, but finally couldn’t help herself. She pulled Shen Wensi aside and whispered, “Are you two for real?”

Shen Wensi kept a cold, expressionless face, not even glancing at her. She simply took a sip of tea, her mind drifting to Jiang Huaiyi’s usual demeanor.

She cleared her throat. “What are you talking about?”

Chu Lianxue looked at her with a complicated expression. “Why did you give her the jade pendant our Martial Uncle gave to you?”

The entirely clueless Shen Wensi: “…”

Once the words were out, Chu Lianxue found it easier to continue. She spoke fluently now: “If you two really want to be together, your Senior Sister won’t oppose you. But aren’t you moving a bit fast? Do you really know what kind of person she is?”

“You didn’t even bring her back for a visit. I suppose I’ll have to help you write the official announcement to the sect. Even though you’re an expert at writing documents, as your ‘maternal family,’ Martial Uncle and I have a right to know. I know children eventually outgrow their guardians, but still…”

Listening to the increasingly wild assumptions, Shen Wensi finally realized what was happening. Her mask of indifference broke, replaced by rare shock. She gripped her teacup tightly, speechless.

She couldn’t let this go on. She coughed twice to interrupt Chu Lianxue. “It’s not what you think.”

Chu Lianxue froze, thought for a moment, and then her eyes widened even further. “You haven’t… already eloped or made a secret vow, have you? You were always such a good kid! How could you do something this big without consulting us?”

Her tough face began to crumble into a look of heartbreak, her eyes glistening.

Shen Wensi slammed the teacup onto the table. “No! Stop overthinking!”

She couldn’t handle Chu Lianxue and felt like giving up entirely. She glanced at the bed, seeing Jiang Huaiyi beginning to stir. She squeezed out a final sentence: “Actually… she’s the wealthiest person in Rong City. It’s complicated. I’ll explain everything once we’re out.”

On the bed, Jiang Huaiyi sat up. As Shen Wensi approached, the girl’s hollow eyes regained their spark. Just as Jiang Huaiyi was about to speak, Shen Wensi gave a tiny shake of her head.

Jiang Huaiyi closed her mouth.

Her Master had vanished. It likely wasn’t an issue with the spiritual barriers of this “Minor Yin Precinct.” Souls are the only substance that can penetrate the Three Realms; if her Master hadn’t truly disappeared, Jiang Huaiyi should have been able to find her.

The moment she woke, her mind became sharp. No wonder her Master hadn’t visited her dreams since she acquired that jade piece. The source of her restlessness and lack of appetite over the past few days was finally clear. She had just been too busy to realize it.

As Chu Lianxue prepared to press for more answers, a distant bell tolled. The sound was like a hollow echo in a deep valley, striking heavily against everyone’s soul. Each peal was louder than the last, making their consciousness feel as if it were ascending through the clouds.

Their minds went blank. When they breathed in, the air no longer smelled of blood but was fresh and pleasant. After the ninth toll, everyone snapped back to reality.

The sky had turned light, and the rain had stopped. They looked at each other, momentarily forgetting their previous questions. Stepping outside, they found the sky was a murky yellow, as if covered by a thick layer of silt. The world was bright, yet it carried an oppressive, decaying atmosphere—like a permanent twilight where life was fading away.

Street vendors began their cries again. Since it was morning, the streets weren’t nearly as crowded as the night before. This was the start of a new day, the end of the dark.

The mist outside the town had vanished, revealing a winding path leading straight into the heart of the settlement. The ground was muddy from the rain. The entrance they had used yesterday was now a massive city gate.

The plaque faced outward. People trying to leave were being blocked; there was simply no option for “exiting.” Only those entering from the outside could see the name on the plaque.

Jiang Huaiyi and Shen Wensi walked ahead. When Jiang Huaiyi turned back to ask her Senior Sister a question, she froze. The grand mansion was gone. And with it, the other three people had vanished.

She instinctively grabbed Shen Wensi’s hand. “Where are they? Where did they go?”

Shen Wensi calmly pulled her sleeve back. “They were likely teleported to other corners. Don’t worry, we’ll find them later.”

Jiang Huaiyi’s attention was caught by a commotion at the city gate. She pulled Shen Wensi closer to listen.

“Why won’t you let me out!”

An old woman in simple clothes was stopped by guards. The two guards stood nearly two meters tall; with a light shove, they sent the woman stumbling back. Luckily, someone behind her caught her.

The guards wore armor, but they didn’t carry swords. Instead, thick black iron chains hung from their waists, ending in large, wicked hooks. One strike would tear flesh from bone. Jiang Huaiyi shuddered at the thought. She had only ever seen such hooks in the hands of the Wu Chang (Impermanence) Lords. She wondered why these guards had them too.

She got her answer soon enough.

Hearing the old woman’s protests, the guards’ expressions turned vicious. They gripped their chains and barked, “You think this is a place you can just come and go as you please?”

“You think the Yellow Springs Road is easy to walk? You’re dead now, yet you still dream of going back? Get lost before we kill you a second time!”

The old woman didn’t back down. She stood her ground and began to curse. “You took my money! Why won’t you let me out? I just want to go up and see my children! What’s wrong with that?”

“Taking money and not doing the job! Don’t think you can be unreasonable just because you’re ‘officials.’ You took several of my large gold ingots!”

A crowd gathered, jeering in support. “That’s right! How can you take money and do nothing?” “The lords are bullying commoners like us!”

Seeing the crowd grow, the guards laughed. They stepped forward and delivered two sharp slaps to the woman’s face. “We took your money because we deigned to look at you. Why should your ‘tribute’ buy you a favor? Who do you think you are?”

The old woman was furious. Despite her fear after being hit, she tried to scream another insult. At that moment, someone in the crowd gave her a push. She stumbled forward, falling right in front of the guards.

The guards’ faces shifted instantly. Shouting was one thing; “assaulting” an official was another. There was no turning back now.

In a flash, the guards raised their chains. With lightning speed, the hooks swung out, sinking into the old woman’s left and right eye sockets.

With a blood-curdling shriek, the woman’s form twisted violently. Her normal appearance melted away, transforming into a green-faced, fanged monster. The guards bound the creature, sinking the hooks into her shoulder blades and hanging her from the city wall.

The ghost wailed for a moment before hanging limp in the air, lifeless. The onlookers scattered like startled birds. The muddy road instantly returned to its original state.

Jiang Huaiyi silently withdrew the foot she had been about to step forward with. She turned to see Shen Wensi looking completely unbothered, which annoyed her slightly. It was as if Shen Wensi had known this would happen.

The old woman was about the same age as her Master. Jiang Huaiyi had almost rushed in to help. Luckily, the incident ended before she reached them.

However, they had gathered vital information. This place truly was the “Minor Yin Precinct” the weasel mentioned. It even had a Yellow Springs Road. Was the plaque on the gate labeled Fengdu City?

She wasn’t familiar with the geography of the underworld, having never been there in person, but she remembered her Master mentioning the general layout.

As they walked, the road became difficult to navigate. Jiang Huaiyi, preoccupied with her Master’s disappearance, didn’t pay much attention to her footing. She only heard Shen Wensi mutter a complaint under her breath: “Low-quality imitation.”

“What?” Jiang Huaiyi asked, not hearing clearly.

Shen Wensi shook her head and remained silent.

Jiang Huaiyi didn’t press her. The priority was finding her Senior Sister, figuring out the exit, and then searching for her Master. Since the crowd had gathered at the gate, that must be a potential exit, otherwise they wouldn’t have risked so much to try it.

The guards could be bribed; clearly, that woman just hadn’t paid enough. Even the residents here didn’t know the proper way out.

Jiang Huaiyi wiped the remaining blood from the corner of her mouth. A bold idea suddenly formed in her mind. She grabbed Shen Wensi and turned around.

She was going to ask those two guards directly: how exactly do they get out of here?

Support