Chapter 112: Thread of Sky Pass (Part I)
Chapter 112: Thread of Sky Pass (Part I)
Grunt grunt!
The ox cart team moved slowly on the three-zhang wide road, and Tang Jinbiao naturally followed the team quietly.
After a night of rest, Tang Jinbiao’s mental state had improved greatly. Although he had suffered greatly before, after all, he was a Body Refiner, and he recovered in just one night. Of course, the main reason was that this hunger wasn’t to the point of exhaustion; if he had starved another seven or eight days, it probably wouldn’t have been so easy to recover.
Grunt grunt!
The ox cart team moved forward slowly, but today’s atmosphere was unusually tense. The guards held their breath and concentrated, with hands never leaving their swords, to deal with any sudden incidents.
Finally, we’re almost there!
Tang Jinbiao raised his head to look ahead and couldn’t help but whisper softly.
Although he couldn’t see the specific situation clearly, Tang Jinbiao could still follow the broad road under his feet and see far ahead, about seven or eight li away, a small hill that had slightly protruded.
That small hill was only about a dozen zhang tall, but since it was a giant boulder with steep cliffs, although not high, it was still very conspicuous.
Brother Tang, ahead is the Thread of Sky Pass. Be careful yourself later!
Captain Wang, who had been walking beside Tang Jinbiao, also saw the stone mountain that had risen from the ground; his expression turned serious, and he spoke up.
Okay!
Tang Jinbiao nodded. In his heart, he had decided; since he had received their care, if he could help in any way, he wouldn’t refuse.
Ahead is the Thread of Sky Pass. Everyone, prepare for battle! If we don’t encounter bandits, it will be our luck. If we do, it’s not the first time we’ve been out; we know what to do!
Captain Wang, seeing Tang Jinbiao understood, announced loudly.
Understood!
Yes, sir!
The guards in front responded loudly one by one, and their expressions became even more serious.
It seems that ahead must be a dangerous place.
After seeing the determined expressions on everyone’s faces, Tang Jinbiao understood and didn’t say anything more. He just lowered his head and quietly followed along toward the front.
Grunt grunt!
The cart team did not stop and continued moving at that unhurried pace.
Perhaps the progress of this cart team was just like the progress of life: knowing that the road ahead was difficult, but to reach the goal, it kept moving forward.
…
After one shichen, the cart team had arrived in front of the Thread of Sky Pass.
Grunt grunt!
The cart team became even quieter.
Whoosh whoosh!
Gusts of chilly wind blew out from the valley; even during broad daylight, it made people feel somewhat gloomy and cold.
At this moment, Tang Jinbiao finally saw clearly: the Thread of Sky Pass was indeed one giant boulder that had risen from the ground, or more specifically, a stone mountain.
This stone mountain had a height of over a dozen zhang. This height didn’t mean much to Tang Jinbiao; similarly, to most Cultivators, it didn’t mean much. But in the eyes of Mortals, it was still not short, especially since this stone mountain was formed entirely from one monolith, with both sides of the cliff standing at ninety degrees.
Fortunately, through years of wind and rain erosion, the cliff surface became pockmarked with countless tiny holes, so that people with decent agility could still climb up. Naturally, countless years ago, that rock must have been very smooth.
Similarly, the original ten-meter-wide path had narrowed greatly to only about three meters, just wide enough for the carts pulled by two big water buffaloes to pass through.
Peering into the valley that was about three meters wide, one could not see the end at all. Only at a spot a hundred meters ahead did a stone wall suddenly appear, clearly marking a sharp bend.
However, after the caravan arrived at the entrance to Thread of Sky Pass, it did not enter immediately but halted at the mouth of the valley.
“Old Two, Old Six, Old Seven, Little Nine, step forward, all of you!”
Captain Wang slowly walked towards the front of the caravan and called out loudly.
“Yes!”
“Present!”
As soon as Captain Wang’s voice trailed off, four young men of about the same age stepped out from the caravan right away.
Although these young men were only around twenty, each face bore traces of hardship, clearly showing they had weathered rough times for some years.
“You few, scale the cliff and scout ahead. If there’s any trouble, light signal flares!”
Captain Wang’s face turned serious, and his once fearsome scar now looked rather dashing.
“Yes!”
“Aye!”
“Orders received!”
Hearing Captain Wang’s command, the young men answered heartily one by one, then promptly split into two groups and climbed up along the cliff.
Clack clack clack!
These young men were indeed skillful; they ascended using only the small pits on the cliff face eroded by rain as handholds.
The cliff was about thirty meters high, and in a short while, they reached the top. After waving to those below, they vanished from everyone’s sight.
“Ma Wu, Li Qi!”
Even after seeing those men disappear above the cliff, the caravan still did not advance. Instead, Captain Wang kept calling.
“Present!”
“Present!”
No sooner had the words been spoken than two thirty-something men instantly emerged from the caravan and answered loudly.
“You two, take some brothers along and scout the road ahead!”
Captain Wang showed no hurry at all, directing matters in an orderly way.
“Yes!”
“Understood!”
The two men named Ma Wu and Li Qi responded decisively, then pointed to several young men and summoned them. Together, they trotted into the canyon.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Their movements were extremely swift; in a flash, they covered dozens of meters, charging towards the canyon’s bend.
“Those remaining, stay vigilant and stand by in place!”
The group of about forty or fifty people had more than ten leave straightaway, decreasing them by a significant portion. Yet, out of caution, the group still did not proceed.
“Yes!”
“Yes!”
The remaining people did not feel relieved; instead, each wore a serious and attentive expression.
Moo!
Moo!
At this moment, the old buffalo too seemed infected by the tense atmosphere and unexpectedly began calling out.
Seeing the atmosphere grow intense once more, Tang Jinbiao’s emotions stirred as well. Honestly, this was the first time he had encountered such a situation.
In his previous world, he had not even engaged in adventures. As for this world–although he had been in it for over a year (or four years), he had experienced many bizarre and peculiar events–his impressions of those were not deeply ingrained except during the confrontation with the Azure Dragon. Then, he had felt a sense of crisis, but because the danger from the Azure Dragon was far too intense, it numbed him, leaving little lingering trauma afterward.
It was like a spring: within a certain limit, the more it stretched, the greater the elastic force; yet upon exceeding the limit, it didn’t bounce back but instead broke.
This paralleled human setbacks and pressure: moderate frustration and pressure spurred advancement, but beyond a certain threshold, it failed. Humans were not springs, but the outcome was identical—numbness or annihilation; in either case, the meaning of setbacks and pressure vanished.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The eerie mountain wind blew constantly from the valley.
Though dark and cold, no one felt chilled, because nobody cared about it anymore.
“Not right!”
For unknown reasons, that frigid valley wind didn’t unsettle Tang Jinbiao internally; rather, the highly vigilant feeling from this group made him uneasy.
…
A quarter-hour later, atop the cliff, four figures flickered several times before hopping down.
“Reporting to Captain Wang, everything is normal!”
“Everything is normal!”
The instant those four young men descended, they voiced their announcement loudly.
“Good, you performed well. Rejoin the formation!”
Captain Wang spoke, a slight touch of relaxation easing across his face.
“Yes!”
The few men responded and retreated into the ranks.
After these men returned to the crowd, the guards showed a bit more ease on their faces, but there was no slackening of their caution or tension.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The ominous wind within the valley kept blowing nonstop.
This wind held no trace of bloodshed or combat spirit—only cold persisted.
“Not right, not right, something is definitely wrong!”
Tang Jinbiao deeply furrowed his brows and began surveying the surroundings intently.
His Spiritual Consciousness might not be as sharp as a Cultivator’s, but now he was at the mid-stage of the First Rank of Body Refining. His strength roughly matched an ordinary Qi Condensation cultivator at the sixth or seventh layer. Furthermore, due to his higher-level techniques and identity as a Body Refiner, he could contend with Qi Condensation cultivators at the eighth or ninth layer.
Although he hadn’t sensed any danger right now, a hidden unease seemed buried inside that he could feel but couldn’t grasp.
…
Another quarter of an hour later, they saw only a white figure dashing rapidly toward them from the valley.
“Reporting to Captain Wang, all is normal! Brother Ma Wu and Seventh Brother Li are already waiting ahead!”
That person arrived in front of the convoy shortly after and shouted loudly.
“Good, well done, everyone prepare, let’s move on!”
Captain Wang couldn’t help but show joy on his face, thinking this escort should not have much trouble, and announced clearly.
“Yes!”
“As ordered!”
The guards also each showed expressions of relief, clearly believing this escort should go smoothly.
Gurgle gurgle!
Following Captain Wang’s order, the convoy advanced slowly again.
At this moment, Captain Wang slowly returned to the back of the convoy, standing beside Tang Jinbiao, and spoke toward the person inside the Carriage: “Reporting to the Young Lady, everything is normal!”
“Hmm, normal then, but still don’t let down your guard. The bandits here have some shady ties with that Chu Clan, or they wouldn’t have survived all these years. Have the brothers stay alert!”
The melodious voice from the Carriage responded lightly.
“Yes!”
Captain Wang acknowledged and then ordered loudly: “No one slacks off—until the moment we reach Chuyun City, no one can be negligent, understood?”
“Got it!”
“Understanding!”
The guards shouted back one by one.
“Got it!”
“Understanding!”
Because the convoy had fully entered the valley by then, the echoes rang clearly throughout the valley.
“Not right, not right, still not right!”
Tang Jinbiao followed the team as they moved slowly deeper into the valley, but that unease kept lingering…