Chapter 18: The Little Yellow Horse

Taking advantage of the moment when Han Luo was entangled by Ming Yan, Cheng Shan slipped away. Running in panic for several miles, she finally realized that she was surrounded by dense woods on all sides, completely unfamiliar with her surroundings. Unable to determine her location or direction, and with no signs of human presence, Cheng Shan had to rely on the stars to discern a general direction and walk forward.

The forest was filled with thorns and ancient trees, and the moonlight was sparse. Occasionally, mysterious sounds emanated from the surroundings, startling enough to make one jump. It seemed as if countless souls and spirits were hiding in the shadows, and Cheng Shan felt a sense of fear. Unconsciously, she held the Demon King’s bow tightly. The small red bow seemed to understand her intentions and emitted a soft orange light, illuminating the area within ten steps, dispersing shadows, and forcing spirits and auras to retreat.

“Perhaps it’s the lingering power of the Demon King Qiyao?” Cheng Shan thought to herself, calming down a bit. Letting the Demon King’s bow lead the way, she walked briskly behind it, completely ignoring the eerie surroundings. She didn’t notice that there were occasionally some creatures lurking in the forest.

Eventually, the sky began to turn gray, and Cheng Shan emerged from the woods, reaching a main road. After gazing into the distance, she said to herself, “This should be a tributary of the Ji River. If I continue north, I should be close to Luocheng.”

The Demon King’s bow dimmed its light when they reached a populated area. Cheng Shan, without any jewelry or money pouch and not even a bag, appeared completely unharmed in broad daylight. Passing by a small town, Cheng Shan exchanged a jade pendant from her folding fan for a small yellow horse. Although the horse was skinny and no one was willing to buy it, Cheng Shan didn’t mind. She only held onto the reins, treating them as a companion on the journey. Occasionally, feeling bored, she spoke to herself, hoping for some reaction from the living creature. However, the little yellow horse simply moved forward without responding, completely indifferent to Cheng Shan. Cheng Shan sighed with a bitter smile, feeling even more lonely. The desire to dive into water surged within her.

As fate would have it, on this evening, Cheng Shan arrived at a riverside. Looking into the distance, she said to herself, “This should be a tributary of the Ji River. If I continue north, I should be close to Luocheng.”

The little yellow horse, left to its own devices, stuck its head into the river to drink water. Seeing that there was no one around, Cheng Shan tied the reins to a large rock and walked to the center of the river. Slowly submerging herself in the water, she gradually disappeared.

Sinking to the riverbed, Cheng Shan felt the water surrounding her, and a sense of fatigue disappeared. The spiritual power in the Demon King’s bow seemed to gradually merge into the water. With the energy from the water entering her body through every pore, Cheng Shan quickly circulated her cultivation, transforming the impure into pure, returning to simplicity and purity. True Yuan continuously surged and circulated in her sea of consciousness.

The sea of consciousness surged and roared, waves and billows rising. Cheng Shan guided her breath, refining her qi and spirit. Once again, she stirred the river water into a whirlpool. However, this time, Cheng Shan wasn’t carried away by the water. Instead, she calmly sensed and manipulated the water flow in her consciousness. For a moment, the river water, stretching for miles, boiled, forming countless water splashes, creating a bizarre and stunning scene.

On the shore, a small yellow horse drinking water witnessed this and retreated in astonishment. After a while, it managed to free the rope from a large stone and ran away.

Underwater, Cheng Shan was unaware, fully immersed in her consciousness. She finally remembered the spirit consciousness flower she hadn’t seen for days.

For some reason, the once bright and beautiful water lily showed signs of withering, drooping with a dull and lifeless appearance. Cheng Shan stared at it for a long time but couldn’t discern any signs of life. A sense of unease crept into her heart.

Han Luo had mentioned that only if he died would the flower wither and perish. Could he have lost to Ming Yan and met an unfortunate fate? Cheng Shan felt uneasy at the thought. Han Luo always carried an aloof expression, making Cheng Shan subconsciously believe that he wouldn’t easily fail. But now… Cheng Shan couldn’t help but shiver. Was it because of her? How severe was the impact of that arrow on him?

Cheng Shan became restless in her thoughts, giving up on cultivation and resurfacing. It was late at night, and there was no one around in the desolate wilderness. The little horse on the shore continued drinking water carefreely, and the rope remained tied to the large stone.

As the water splashes gradually subsided, Cheng Shan climbed ashore, feeling somewhat despondent. She lay down on the shore, and in her mind, she couldn’t shake off the image of Han Luo’s cold face. After a while, Cheng Shan looked up at the sky with vacant eyes, sighed, and suddenly sat up, contemplating, “Even if he loses to Ming Yan, it might not be a dead end. Ming Yan insisted on taking him back to see the Ghost Emperor. However, someone mentioned that the Ghost Emperor was in seclusion before and wouldn’t pass judgment so quickly.”

A rush of heat hit her, and the little yellow horse snorted loudly, looking at her with watery eyes. Cheng Shan chuckled and suddenly felt like she wasn’t just talking to herself. She continued, “I guess if he’s injured, unconscious, or mentally unclear, the spirit consciousness gu flower may not survive either.” Cheng Shan patted the horse’s face sympathetically and lay back down, saying, “Being with him for so long, besides meditation, he seems not to have slept.”

“Well, that kind of old ghost who has lived for seven or eight hundred years should not be unable to survive a crisis, right?” Cheng Shan thought more optimistically, partly because of her optimistic nature and partly out of guilt. She sincerely prayed that Han Luo would be safe. However, deep down, Cheng Shan still wasn’t eager to acknowledge him as her master.

The little yellow horse lay down next to Cheng Shan, curious or something else, and suddenly nudged the Demon King’s bow that Cheng Shan had placed aside with its mouth. The bow emitted a crisp sound and burst into orange light. The horse was suddenly pushed away by an invisible force; the reins were torn off, and it fell about ten steps away.

Cheng Shan was startled and hurriedly got up to check on the horse, thinking about the formidable power of the Demon King’s bow. This ordinary horse wouldn’t be able to withstand it. However, to her surprise, the horse stood up on its own, shook its head unhappily, snorted, and took three wobbly steps to the water’s edge, refusing to get closer to the Demon King’s bow.

Cheng Shan patted the horse sympathetically and said, “Don’t touch it, brother. It’s not something to play with.”

At her words, the little yellow horse lowered its head, kicked the water, and looked up at the hazy moon with a strangely melancholic posture.

Cheng Shan joked that it was affected by her bad luck and was now starting to feel sorry for itself. She lay back in her original position, continuing to worry about her troubles. After a while, Cheng Shan suddenly sat up, slapped her head in horror, and said, “Oh no! If Han Luo can’t even maintain the spirit consciousness, will the barrier he set for Cheng Qian still exist?”

Cheng Shan thought of her father, and anxiety gripped her. She quickly took the reins of the little yellow horse, mounted it, and set off. It was only when the surroundings became dimly visible that she realized something was wrong. When did a saddle appear under her?