Feng Shui Chapter 157: Heartstrings Tremble

The armored beast’s dark, wet nose twitched as if it had caught the scent of an unfamiliar presence in the air. Seeing this, Tong Nuonuo quickly pulled Tang Ru back toward the corner.

The beast’s nose kept twitching, but after the scent faded, it stopped moving and resumed licking the ice velvet grass at the cave entrance with its sticky tongue. Each swipe pulled away thick leaves from the plant.

Tang Ru was still shaken. “What should we do? The beast’s nose is already this close. It’s too dangerous.”

Tong Nuonuo felt calmer than before. “Don’t worry. Looks like this armored beast is just being lazy. As long as there’s food right by its mouth, it won’t bother digging in here.”

Tang Ru thought for a moment and asked, “If that’s the case, what if we bring all the ice velvet grass to the entrance so it can’t finish eating it all?”

“That could work. Let’s try." Tong Nuonuo said.

They quickly divided the work. Tang Ru used her skills as a spirit plant specialist to harvest the ice velvet grass with magic, not caring about the appearance, just cutting patch by patch. She piled the harvested plants beside Tong Nuonuo, who fashioned a telescoping shovel from spare parts and stood at the corner, using it to push the grass right up to the beast’s mouth repeatedly.

According to Tong Nuonuo, the armored beast had a small, pointed head but a massive body and wide tail. The gap was about as tall as a person but only wide enough for the beast’s nose and mouth to fit through, its bulky body remained out of sight. They worried they wouldn’t keep the beast satisfied, one kept harvesting, the other kept feeding it.

The beast probably knew they were there, but it was just too lazy to dig deeper when food was so close.

After an hour of hard work, the pile of ice velvet grass filled the cave entrance. Wiping the sweat from her brow, Tang Ru said, “This should be enough to fill it up, right?”

“Let’s wait and see. You rest first." Tong Nuonuo replied.

Tang Ru was exhausted and sleepy but refused to rest. She sat hugging her knees, staring at the cave entrance. Even though the armored beast was feasting nearby, they dared not eat themselves, afraid the smell would attract it.

Before long, Tang Ru’s small head dropped onto her knees, and she dozed off. Tong Nuonuo glanced over but didn’t disturb her, focusing intently on the cave entrance. No one knew how much time passed when suddenly the ground trembled, waking Tang Ru with a start: Had the armored beast charged at them?

“Quiet." Tong Nuonuo gestured to her, putting a finger to his lips. The rustling sounds ceased briefly, then started again. Tong Nuonuo sighed. “It probably just shifted position because it got tired of eating one way.”

Tang Ru couldn’t help but feel speechless. A lazy yet fierce beast like this was definitely a strange sight in the cultivation world. She felt grateful, if the beast had been this hungry and they hadn’t acted quickly, it surely would have come through the cave after eating all the grass at the entrance.

After changing its posture, the grass pile quickly shrank. Seeing this, the two hurried to harvest more and refill the cave mouth.

Later, Tang Ru and Tong Nuonuo took turns watching while the other rested briefly. Tong Nuonuo looked at Xi Yunqing and Chen Xiao lying side by side and couldn’t help but envy them. Even though trapped in the dream, they were at least not in constant fear like they were.

After four piles of ice velvet grass had been eaten, the armored beast finally left, fully sated. The cave entrance remained the same size, with only a patch of slippery slime left on the rock, evidence of the beast’s licking. Nearly twelve hours of intense vigilance left Tang Ru and Tong Nuonuo mentally drained, more exhausting than a fierce battle. Neither mentioned keeping watch anymore. Assuming no further danger, the two leaned against each other and fell into a deep sleep.

It was already the fifth day, and the effect of the “Twin Bloom Red” had finally worn off. Chen Xiao, the first to touch the Twin Bloom Red, was the first to wake from the dream.

Just as overly vivid dreams leave lasting impressions, Chen Xiao’s mind was filled with the fading images of the dream, becoming clearer with every thought. The early scenes jumped around confusingly, mixing past and present lives, but he could follow. Later, the dream focused entirely on scenes of him being trapped, pressed down repeatedly, tossed over and over.

Dreams amplified feelings; despite being oppressed, his mind somehow found a strange satisfaction. But waking up, no matter how much he recalled, it couldn’t compare to the real experience. Chen Xiao touched his dry, warm clothes and sighed wistfully. No matter how vivid the imagination, it was just scratching an itch.

With the last traces of the dream fading, his mind finally cleared. He remembered entering the cave with his elder brother, leaving to gather spirit plants, and wondered how he suddenly fell asleep and had such a bizarre dream.

Thinking he might be under some spell, Chen Xiao jerked awake, springing up with a loud movement that startled Tang Ru and Tong Nuonuo, already jumpy like frightened birds.

“Again?”

“Is the armored beast hungry already?”

Chen Xiao’s heart raced. Hearing this, he asked, “The armored beast showed up?”

Tong Nuonuo looked up and sighed with relief at Chen Xiao’s awakening. “Finally awake. I haven’t had enough sleep yet. You keep watching for a while. If you get hungry, eat your rations, but don’t cook anything yourself, afraid it might attract... you know.” His voice trailed off as he fell asleep again.

Tang Ru was more attentive. She stood up and brightened the lamp a little, then walked over to Chen Xiao and checked his face and eyes. She said, “You’ve been asleep for four days and nights. The effect is definitely stronger than just picking the plants.”

Recalling his experience, Chen Xiao suddenly understood. “So it was that plant with the two little buds that put me into a deep sleep?”

Tang Ru nodded. “Next time you encounter an unfamiliar spirit plant, don’t act rashly. Luckily, the ‘Bingdi Hong’ only causes two people to share the same dream, it doesn’t cause any other harm.”

Chen Xiao stiffened, his face paling. “What did you say? Two people? Sharing one dream?”

Tang Ru was puzzled by his reaction. “Yes. When one person finishes using up the energy of a Bingdi Hong, it takes about ten days to recover. Your Senior Brother Xi was worried your body couldn’t handle it, so he entered the dream with you, to help you wake up sooner.” She gestured toward Xi Yunqing, who was still asleep nearby. “He should be waking up soon.”

So it wasn’t just an ordinary dream! Although it was a dream, it was almost like reality. His big brother had kindly helped him, but because of him, his brother had to suffer through that dream too!

Because of what had happened, Chen Xiao immediately blamed himself. He crouched down, covering his head in despair. How much trouble had he caused, polluting his brother’s pure world with that yellowish waste?

How could he face his brother now? Maybe it would be better to just bang his head against the wall and avoid the embarrassment altogether. Chen Xiao seriously considered the possibility of escaping his guilt by ending it all.

Tang Ru blinked, yawned, and lay back down to continue resting.

Chen Xiao crouched like a frightened quail in the corner, carefully watching Xi Yunqing’s handsome face. He bit his lip, torn and conflicted, should he bow and apologize, or shamelessly laugh it off?

He regretted not asking Tang Ru whether, after this nightmare ended, Senior Brother would remember it as clearly as he did. But since he remembered so vividly, he didn’t dare hope that Xi Yunqing would forget.

Chen Xiao rubbed his face anxiously. What if his brother was furious and cut ties with him?

Just as Chen Xiao’s mind swirled with worries, Xi Yunqing woke up. His long, thick eyelashes fluttered open, and the lamp’s light shone in his jet-black eyes, sparkling like stars in the night sky. It was the first time Chen Xiao had seen his brother awake so close, and he was momentarily stunned.

Xi Yunqing sat up, one arm supporting the blanket, one leg propping him up. He looked at Chen Xiao, his gaze still burning slightly from the dream’s lingering impression. Then, as he regained full awareness, his expression shifted and he awkwardly straightened his face. Blushing faintly, he pressed his lips together and said, “Xiao...”

After five days of fasting and sleeping, his voice was hoarse and low. That single word struck both their hearts deeply.

Xi Yunqing cleared his throat gently, and Chen Xiao quickly spoke first. “Thank you, Senior Brother, for helping me. It was my recklessness, rushing to pick a strange spirit plant without caution. I even dragged you into that... that, ” Chen Xiao couldn’t finish, his face burning red as he blurted out, “I’m sorry. It was all my fault.”

Xi Yunqing felt awkward too, but forced himself to sound normal. “It’s nothing. Xiao, you’re still young. Once you gain more experience, you won’t make such mistakes again.” He never mentioned the dream. This was just a coincidence, an accident. There shouldn’t be any changes between them because of it.

Relieved that his brother wasn’t angry or blaming him, Chen Xiao’s heart still felt strange. Sharing that dream, yet no sign of resentment, did that mean there might still be hope for them?

In the end, neither dared to bring up the dream again, not the secrets, the past, nor the complicated emotions it stirred. But that dream had shattered the invisible barrier between them. Things could never go back to the way they were.

After they ate and drank, Tang Ru and Tong Nuonuo woke up one after another. The icy velvet grass at the cave entrance had fed the armored beast most of the day, with only a small amount left. The four of them split up to gather more, finishing the mature grass in half a day. Unfortunately, they never found another Bingdi Hong.

Leaving the cave, they continued to explore the ravine. Tang Ru and Tong Nuonuo each made gains, while Chen Xiao, though distracted, managed to chip away at quite a bit of ice stone ore.

Counting the days, after leaving the ravine, they headed to the meadow Xi Yunqing had discovered and caught a few snow geese. With their goal achieved, they didn’t linger, returning to the capital city of Jin City well before Chen Xiao’s twentieth birthday.

On a clear, cloudless day in May, the day marked on Chen Xiao’s official record, his long-awaited coming-of-age ceremony finally began.