Mo Laoda didnât waste any more time at the boundary. Although he privately wanted Yin Xiaoxiao to stay here, Mo Laoda told Yin Xiaoxiao that Liu Zhixin and Su Lao were at the foot of the mountain. God knew what would happen if Mo Laoda werenât there to keep an eye on him. Yin Xiaoxiao could secretly run off again!
Mo Laoda also gathered a group of vipers, to be commanded by Mo Damo, to guard the boundary. And so, Mo Damo was left behind while Mo Laoda, with Yin Xiaoxiao on his back, went to look for Liu Zhixin and Su Lao.
Mo Laoda didnât slither along in a hurry. After all, Liu Zhixin and Su Lao were going to the mountain because of Yin Xiaoxiaoâs deception. He and Yin Xiaoxiao would arrive only a little after Liu Zhixin and Su Lao, even after they had started out for the mountain <sup>1</sup> several days after the two humans. Wasnât that just underwhelming?
The path Mo Laoda had chosen was one on which heâd thought they wouldnât encounter Liu Zhixin and Su Lao. He didnât expect to incidentally reap eleven human lives.
But as it happened, this path which Mo Laoda had selected was the same one that eleven men, who had insisted on entering the tomb, had chosen due to genuine skill, and they could just make out the site of the hidden old tomb on that tallest mountain. Thus, they set out towards that peak. They had been quite lucky; theyâd reach the foot of that mountain within two days and they hadnât encountered any vipers. However, now it seemed that this luck had finally run out.
âSnake!â Almost the moment Mo Laoda appeared, a young man with good eyes noticed him. The other men reacted quickly, one after another taking defensive positions. Unfortunately for them, Mo Laoda was prepared, having already found a safe hiding spot for Yin Xiaoxiao. Now, he didnât have to hold back. Uncaring of the weapons the humans were holding, he directly rushed the nearest human.
These eleven people remained united in solidarity and all seemed quite tough. Seeing Mo Laoda charging them, they didnât fall into disarray, one dextrous man even throwing a hand grenade at Mo Laoda. Naturally, Mo Laoda didnât face this head on. While it was still in the air, he twisted his body to face away from the grenade.
The humans retreated to avoid the explosion, already sure that this black snake must have died. But when the smoke cleared, the eleven men were frightened to find that this black snake had not only survived, but that the explosion hadnât even damaged any scales.
The group began to fall into disorder as they became unnerved. The leader clenched his teeth and yelled, âUse an explosive!â
The explosivesâ original purpose was to blow open the old tomb, but theyâd brought more than enough that using a little here wouldnât cause any issues. Besides, if this black snake in front of them didnât die, they wouldnât even get to use these explosives anyway!
Hearing their leader shout this, the man carrying the explosives immediately fished out a bomb and threw it at Mo Laoda. Humans were still flesh and blood. Before the bomb was thrown, everyone rushed, panicked, to escape. Only once theyâd heard a loud âboomâ did the men, whoâd already fled to a safe distance, turn around to look. The area where Mo Laoda had been standing had become a ruin.
Each and every man let out a sigh or relief, believing that that black snake was already dead.
âAHâ!â While everyone was untensing, one of the men within the group suddenly screamed, his eyes staring straight ahead. Each and every man was panic-stricken as that black snake, the one theyâd believed to have been blown to smithereens, killed a man with its bite.
âEven explosives couldnât kill it!â
âThis snake is a monster!â
âQuick, run! Run!â
At this, the humans devolved into panic. How could anyone care about the search for the old tomb for the object that grants eternal life? If your life was lost here, even if the object that granted immortality was obtained, what use would it have? No matter how much the leader shouted, he couldnât reverse this utter rout. Still, he was unwilling to simply hand over victory like this. Gritting his teeth, he kept a firm grip on his backpack.
However, the leader was already old. Carrying a heavy load, he couldnât run very far before falling to the ground, dead from Mo Laodaâs bite. The leader died with great regret. Even as snake venom flowed through his body, his mind was filled with the thought, âI want eternal life!â
Even those men who insisted on continuing onwards couldnât escape their fate of being killed. Even though their willpower was strong, it was futile, just like those humans who regretted entering the snake tomb and wanted to leave. None of the humans were aware of this: since they entered the snake tomb, they no longer had any say over their life or death! Either wanting to go forward or wanting to flee, both were the same.
Just like it had been when Ji Zhao had spent all the blood in his body to make that poisonous oath, those who tried to enter the ancient tomb either died or were imprisoned.
It seemed that everything happened by coincidence: Mo Laoda accidentally encountering those eight men; Yin Xiaoxiao injury which caused Mo Laoda to kill over a dozen men in anger; and the very beginning when Mo Laoda ran into Wang Yanzhenâs group. All appeared coincidental. But was it really coincidence?
The vipers were trapped within this boundary, but it didnât prevent other creatures from entering. Although this boundary formed a world of its own, ultimately it was still intimately bound up with the outside world.
This boundary formed a world of its own but in the end it was still intimately bound up with the outside world. Regardless of whether one were Daoist or Buddhist, whether one defied Daoism or Buddhism, the way of the heavens had its own plans. When Ji Zhao arranged this boundary, heâd used his imperial mandate from heaven, using up hundreds of years of the Zhou Dynastyâs vitality and fortune, seizing the ghost shark egg from his fatherâs mouth, gathering tens of thousands of treasures into the Zhou grave room, trapping at least seven strange snakes, and then supplementing it all with the Guifang Clanâs resentment. Only with all this could the boundary be completed. Opening the vipersâ minds and giving them the inherited memories was a boon from the heavens and was done so that they could guard the old tomb. Those who entered here wouldnât face a good end.
Looking at it like this makes one wonder what could really be called coincidence.
"
"
This was only a brief interlude on the road. Mo Laoda didnât waste much time with these eleven humans. The persistence of these humans, to Mo Laoda, was quite ridiculous and wasnât worth mentioning.
Mo Laodaâs timing was impeccable. Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laoda reached the foot of the mountain just a few hours after Su Lao and Liu Zhixinâs arrival. Su Lao and Liu Zhixin hadnât continued directly onwards and had, instead, stopped to rest at the foot of the mountain.
Su Lao and Liu Zhixin had been intentionally driven to the base of this mountain by vipers. Every time Su Lao and Liu Zhixin had tried to change direction, vipers would appear and force the two men to turn back and head toward the base of this mountain. If it had been once or twice, it would have been nothing, but with the number of times it happened, Su Lao and Liu Zhixin sensed that something was off. But even if they sensed this, what use was it? In order to survive, they had to head in the direction that the vipers wanted them to go. Initially, Su Lao and Liu Zhixin had thought that the vipers intended to force them into a desperate situation, however ultimately, they were forced to the base of this mountain.
Now, Su Lao and Liu Zhixin were in a very wretched state. Their bodies were gray and their clothes had bite marks in several places from where they had been âmenacedâ by vipers. Although they werenât short on food and water, they were still exhausted from their continuous advance.
Su Lao wasnât an expert in dian xue <sup>2</sup> and only had superficial knowledge. As Su Laoâs disciple, Liu Zhixin had even less knowledge. Su Lao, relying only on the little bits of knowledge he had, could see that the feng shui of this mountain was superb. If a great tomb existed in this place, there was a great likelihood that it was on this mountain.
Su Lao looked at the mountain in front of him and hesitated. If what he thought was true, then why were those snakes forcing him and Liu Zhixin to hurry here? Surely it wasnât to have them enter the tomb, right?
But these doubts were selectively forgotten when he thought about that object that could grant eternal life in the tomb. The allure of eternal life was so powerful that Su Lao admitted that even he couldnât break himself free from this temptation.
It was those snakes who had forced him to come here, it wasnât his fault. Su Lao comforted himself with this, comforted himself with this so many times that he had convinced himself of it. âYou see, snakes were following me. If I didnât continue onwards, then Iâd be bitten to death. I had no other choice but to continue on!â
Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao hid in the underbrush, paying close attention to Su Lao and Liu Zhixinâs movements. Mo Laoda sneered upon finding out that Su Lao and Liu Zhixin had decided to continue up the mountain. Humans, they really were greedy.
Mo Laoda issued an order as Clan Head to all the vipers on the mountain. Yin Xiaoxiaoâs ears only heard a confused roar, and Su Lao and Liu Zhixin didnât hear anything, but the vipers on the mountain received Mo Laodaâs order.
âClan Head said that he was going to release the two humans on this mountain.â
âYes, yes, and he said that we shouldnât allow the humans to discover us!â
âBut, Clan Head, why go to so much trouble? Humans are so pathetic, just killing them directly is enough!â
âYou just listen to the Clan Headâs orders. What are you doing, asking so many questions?!â
âThatâs right, thatâs right! The Clan Head surely has his own reasons for doing this!â
âŠâŠ
The vipers on the mountain chatted amongst themselves. How could we put it: that the vipers really lacked entertainment? Gossip was naturally quite prevalent!
Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiao furtively tailed Su Lao and Liu Zhixin. Su Lao and Liu Zhixin, of course, wouldnât be able to notice Mo Laoda following them, but the same couldnât be said about Yin Xiaoxiaoâs gaze. Mo Laodaâs abilities could endure more and it was impossible to make Yin Xiaoxiao as powerful as himself. And then, on top of that, Yin Xiaoxiao was exceptionally enthusiastic about watching Su Lao and Liu Zhixin. Out of ten minutes, nine and a half were spent staring at them. Even the dullest person would be able to sense it.
âMaster, do you think someone is following usâŠfollowing immediately behind us?â Liu Zhixion took advantage of the noon rest to move closer to Su Lao and whisper this question.
Su Lao dismissed it, âItâs those vipers. Havenât they always been following us?â
âIt doesnât feel the same.â Liu Zhixin scratched his head. He was very perplexed but he didnât know how to put it into words. âThis feels like, it feels veryâŠlike a very passionate gaze!â Actually, Liu Zhixin wanted to say that it felt similar to be sexually harassed.
Well, actually it was like this: Liu Zhixin originally had injured Yin Xiaoxiao, so Yin Xiaoxiao naturally paid a little more attention to Liu Zhixin. No, quite a lot more attention <sup>3</sup> . Besides, who wanted to stare at a withered old man every day? And this withered old man also had a barbaric personality, so absolutely not. It was only natural that Yin Xiaoxiao stared at the âhotâ Liu Zhixin every day.
Mo Laoda didnât mind Yin Xiaoxiao staring at either of them. In Mo Laodaâs eyes, Su Lao and Liu Zhixin were both dead men walking. What did he care if Yin Xiaoxiao was staring at dead men? âMoreover,â Mo Laoda continued to think, âitâs not possible for a member of a different species, a human, to be my rival in love!â
âOh, then maybeâŠâ Su Lao thought for a bit and then cracked a joke, âthis time itâs a female snake.â
Liu Zhixin: ââŠ.â
Liu Zhixin didnât think this joke was funny at all!
However, as Su Lao and Liu Zhixin went deeper and deeper into the mountain, Su Lao also became aware that something was wrong. Of course, it wasnât that Yin Xiaoxiao had shifted targets and started to watch Su Lao. Instead Su Lao felt that it was as though there were more snakes watching him and Liu Zhixin.
Su Laoâs feeling was absolutely correct. But Su Lao also couldnât have imagined that now, every day, there were vipers coming in droves to watch him and Liu Zhixin.
The vipersâ evolution was a complete failure. The vipers hid away for several days but, gradually, couldnât remain in one place. They thought, ârather than being so bored every day, wouldnât it be better to pass the time watching those two humans on the mountain?!â Although Su Lao and Liu Zhixin continued to rub the odor-concealing chemicals on their bodies, the vipers werenât stupid. They headed directly for the Clan Head. After all, the Clan Head was following the two humans as well!
And so, every day, there was an unending stream of vipers rushing over to come and see what humans looked like. Then theyâd wait for the next group of vipers to arrive and change shifts. Thatâs right, and then the bored vipers would once again go and look for something to entertain them.
When this first began, Mo Laoda wasnât very happy with these vipers. He didnât want Su Lao and Liu Zhixin to notice them. If Su Lao and Liu Zhixin realized that so many vipers came to watch them every day, theyâd surely be scared to death. Forget about staging their prank, they wouldnât even continue to head towards the old tomb. But for the other vipers, it was just casual interest.
At first, Su Lao and Liu Zhixin searched everywhere but, when they couldnât find any explanation for the strange gaze, ultimately had to drop it.
Fortunately, the vipersâ enthusiasm for this waned very quickly. After each group saw Su Lao and Liu Zhixin twice, the vipers lost interest in Su Lao and Liu Zhixin. The disappearance of these gazes finally allowed Su Lao and Liu Zhixin to relax.
The mountain was very large, and looking for the entrance to the old tomb wasnât very easy. However, Mo Laoda was there to, intentionally or otherwise, âpoint the wayâ so Su Lao and Liu Zhixin didnât walk around in too many circles. Now it was simply a matter of time.
After days like this, Su Lao, Liu Zhixin and the vipers were getting along without conflict, and gradually Su Lao and Liu Zhixin neared their final destination â the old tomb.
However, before they could enter the old tomb, they passed by Mo Laoda and Yin Xiaoxiaoâs home. The eye-catching scarlet-colored Yan Snake Grass entered the humansâ vision.
âHuh? Master, thereâs red grass here!â Liu Zhixin was the first to notice the Yan Snake Grass.
Su Lao turned his head to catch a quick glimpse, thought for a moment, and then said, âLetâs go take a look.â
Liu Zhixin agreed and followed Su Lao over to the Yan Snake Grass. At the same time, Mo and Yin Xiaoxiaoâs cave entered Su Lao and Liu Zhixinâs gaze.
âMaster, there seems to be the remains of fire over there!â Liu Zhixin glanced over and saw traces of a fire in the open area in front of the cave. This was quite normal as Yin XIaoxiao would only eat cooked food for each meal. Since this was Yin Xiaoxiao and Mo Laodaâs nest, naturally there would be traces of fire.
Su Laoâs brow furrowed and he walked over to the ashes. âHas someone been here before us?â
Liu Zhixin followed Su Lao and crouched down in front of the ashes. âUnlikely. Those vipers arenât likely to let humans easily come up here.â
Su Lao sneered. âDidnât we come? God knows couldnât the vipers have released other people? Besides, if this fire wasnât made by man, was it made by vipers? How could that be?â
âMaybe itâs possible!â Liu Zhixin couldnât help but refute. âThose snakes could speak, so itâs very possible that they could also make fire!â
Su Lao said with jeer, âIf we continue with that, have you ever found evidence that any other creature besides humans have made fire? Whatâs more, those snakes have been following us the entire way; have you noticed them make fire? Snakes donât even have arms and like to eat raw food. Also, itâs always summer in this snake tomb. Do they need to make fire?â
Liu Zhixin didnât speak, not knowing how to refute what Su Lao had said. In short, Liu Zhixin didnât believe that this fire was made by humans! And if it wasnât humans, then it must be the snakes!