Yinlan City, part 4

Dozens of soul beasts crouched low, tails down, ears pricked, sniffing throughout the building.

Each pass left sticky black fog footprints.

Losing patience after finding no prey, tails lashed irritably.

Half a day later, confirming the humans vanished, they growled reluctantly, dissolving into black fog, slipping through broken doors and windows.

Through a narrow crack, seeing all soul beasts gone, Lin Ziyue shakily reached out, pasting a silence talisman on the door.

Su Qing, amid tangled limbs, found her arm, gently pushing the cabinet door open without a sound.

Outside: only the ruined restaurant interior.

The five exchanged relieved glances.

Su Qing shifted to exit but tumbled out with Tian Ning, Tang Yueling, and Lin Ziyue from the cramped cabinet.

Only then did they pull out Pei Jingzhi, squeezed deepest, organs nearly displaced.

A literal coming out.

Pei Jingzhi emerged aching everywhere—three left ribs cracked, blood in his throat.

The wine storage cabinet was thick but tiny, unfit for five—especially three iron-bodied Body School members.

But with soul beasts drooling in pursuit, no time to choose.

Su Qing had quickly calculated: ball up fragile Pei Jingzhi deepest, fold Lin Ziyue, Body trio squeeze in, shut door.

Done.

Though bones cracked audibly, they survived.

Pei Jingzhi chuckled weakly, swallowing healing pills, circulating qi.

As seniors said: Sword Sect punished student killings, so Body School death risk was low.

But not zero.

Fearing noise drawing soul beasts, they transmitted.

Tang Yueling: “Withdraw now?”

Lin Ziyue agreed: “Before they return, go.”

The fight drained too much spiritual energy; more soul beasts would be dire.

But their captain didn’t reply, divine sense scanning the floor inch by inch, searching.

Tang Yueling: “What are you looking for?”

Pei Jingzhi guessed: “Clues?”

“No.” Su Qing looked up. “Long ago, I worked in a teahouse. The boss was stingy, paid little…”

She paused, certain. “This restaurant has a cellar. If lucky, we escape through it.”

Eyes lit up—cellar meant avoiding soul beasts.

As Su Qing said, under the wooden stairs: cellar entrance.

Su Qing lifted the slab; Tian Ning leaped down sword-first, then Lin Ziyue, Pei Jingzhi, Tang Yueling, Su Qing last.

Cellars stored food and ingredients—pitch black.

Su Qing used a night pearl for light.

Silent on stone steps, they reached the vast cellar.

As the Inner Subsidiary City’s largest restaurant—seven stories, huge traffic—it needed massive storage, endless to the eye.

First area: pickled vegetables.

Then thousands of wine jars, well-preserved, untainted by fog.

Yinlan City’s north border cold made residents love warming wine; beast bone and blood wines were famed.

Su Qing eyed the solemn jars, blinking.

Tian Ning ahead warned: “People.”

People? Residents should’ve died in the fog. Survivors hiding?

Alerts maxed, weapons ready.

Su Qing checked: indeed, two to three hundred.

Diners, locals—families huddled, women clutching children, elders on the edges. All prone, faces pallid, chests still.

But expressions vivid—panic, anxiety, fear leaping from skin.

Yet motionless.

Under night pearl light, like bronze tomb statues, chilling.

Strangest: wine bowls before each, as if poisoned.

Su Qing boldly examined.

Pearl light on a woman’s face—child’s cheeks tear-streaked.

She pondered. “Fog hit a month ago, but bodies fresh, like just dead.”

Lin Ziyue scanned, suspicious.

“So much food—enough for a month if soul beasts didn’t come. Why suicide?”

Pei Jingzhi theorized: “Hundreds together, strong life souls attracted soul beasts eventually. Better quick death than prolonged pain.”

Su Qing glanced, disagreeing.

Highborn, he didn’t understand bottom-dwellers—tenacious weeds.

Even rotten lives clung on; suicide wasn’t their way.

Tang Yueling lifted a jar’s cloth; rich, spicy aroma burst.

Su Qing nearly drunk from the scent. Tang Yueling tasted a drop.

She realized: “Besides Yan spears, Yinlan has another fame. I thought rumor, but partly true.”

Su Qing: “What rumor?”

“Feign death art.” Tang Yueling explained: “Frequent beast tides, even without, forest beasts roamed. Locals encountering them while foraging devised: overdose beast blood wine with breath-concealing technique for fake death. Fresh-eaters bypass. Saves one or two in ten—not great odds, but hope.”

Lin Ziyue awed: “They overdosed beast blood wine, faking death to hide life souls from soul beasts?”

“Exactly.” Tang Yueling nodded. “All jars: spiritual beast blood wine.”

Tian Ning: “How to wake them?”

Tang Yueling: “Wait for effects to fade, or force with external means.”

Su Qing: “Solve the fog fast—they can live.”

Faces grave—two to three hundred lives. Sword Sect aided Yinlan to save people from beast tides.

If they escaped the Inner Subsidiary City—

Su Qing spread her map on the ground.

Conditions poor, no cultivator poise; all squatted or sat, heads over it, especially Su Qing’s finger.

Night pearl lit it clearly.

Su Qing pointed Thousand Treasures. “Largest, most famed—spans twelfth, eleventh, fourth, second streets’ intersection.

Inner Subsidiary City layout: seashell fan, not parallel or grid, with a center. Twelve main streets radiate from it.

First street crosses the center—key martial square, city lord mansion there, most vital.

Thousand Treasures near center—under a thousand meters.”

“Known: soul beasts merge stronger. Fear fire, heat.” Finger to center. “Can we lure them one spot, burn them all?”

Solve roaming soul beasts permanently, free other teams to explore and withdraw fast.

Lin Ziyue frowned: “Where’s such big fire?”

She turned—thousands of jars loomed silently.

Plan feasible but crude—would it work? @Infinite Good Reads, Only at Jinjiang Literature City

She looked: Pei Jingzhi mirrored her doubt; Tang Yueling’s eyes sparkled excitement. “Perfect! Hate those uglies—burn them sky-high. I’ll ignite, blast them!”

Tian Ning stood, sleeves rolled, storing jars.

Hundreds-jin jars flew into her palm-sized bag effortlessly.

Proposer Su Qing frowned unconsciously, knuckle tapping map—not fear, but implementation.

Lin Ziyue inwardly tsked: Body School crazies—planners and executors alike.

She shook her head, amused.

Sane people wouldn’t body cultivate, turning flesh into frontline weapons—unwise.

But the madness was alluring; her hands itched.

Su Qing asked: “Contact other teams’ Talisman members to help?”

Lin Ziyue: “Yes.”

High-tier communication talismans from Xu Ruyi pre-entry.

Three quarters later, contacted eight of eleven teams; three unresponsive—likely bad.

“They’ll try. Use their unlocked maze entries to reach first street—halves time.”

One and a half days in, three teams lost—Lin Ziyue’s heart sank.

“Don’t worry.” Su Qing comforted. “Solve the bulk fast—they’ll be fine.”

Plan set: arson at city lord mansion—three wood stories, eroded to skeleton but flammable.

Wine, firewood, alcohol-soaked fuses prepped in bags, ready.

Arson: pre-dawn, peak soul beast activity. Other teams lure to center.

One issue: gather, even merge soul beasts at mansion for one burn?

Easy.

Soul beasts drawn to blood, noise—Su Qing had beast blood for Ten Rakshasa Blood Flower Array, usable here.

Lin Ziyue carried second, third-tier blood for talismans.

But needed what soul beasts craved: life soul.

“We need bait.”

Bait with life soul and spiritual blood to lure.

Who?

Su Qing could, but who leads? Captain as bait first? Unreasonable.

Igniting: Tang Yueling, fully focused on fourth-tier earth fire explosion—no.

Lin Ziyue: coordinates teams—no.

Tian Ning? Strongest as bait weakens team; ice root cold, near-dead aura—unappealing.

Thus: fragile, tender, vibrant Pei Jingzhi—soul beast delicacy.

Sharp, he knew doom upon “bait.”

He sighed resignedly. Better negotiate than humiliated 4-1 vote.

Strength: no match for Body. Brains: maybe smarter, but they overwhelmed with chaos.

Self-preservation best.

Bait might live; under Body hands, maybe not.

“I’ll go.”

To Lin Ziyue: “Give me Xu Ruyi’s teleport talisman.”

“No problem.” She agreed. “Would’ve anyway.”

Settled.

Su Qing: “Thanks. You’ll be fine.”

Tang Yueling: “Minor. You’ll return alive.”

Tian Ning eager: “Great kindness—”

“Stop.” Pei Jingzhi winced. “Not like I’m dying.”

Second night, pre-third dawn.

Eight streets’ fronts near center: sky-shaking booms.

Night soul beasts drawn, rushing center.

Su Qing’s team, via cellars, alleys, unlocked maze entries, reached first street.

Half quarter later.

City lord mansion: rich spiritual blood scent, delightful life soul aroma.

Soul beasts near center, lured, plunged in.

Mansion eroded—doors ash—but frame held, shaky but standing.

Eighth street Talisman Gu Tian: [Eighth clear: 35 soul beasts.]

Sixth team: [Sixth clear: 12 large, 14 small—possible merges.]

Third: [Third clear: 28, leaped to martial square.]

Eight streets: 216 total. Lin Ziyue calculated, transmitted Su Qing: [Half in square, to mansion—180 breaths to Pei Jingzhi.]

Su Qing on rooftop, dark eyes to mansion 300 meters away. Tense moments calmed her—heard blood roar, heart thump.

[All teams: swap life soul bait in square.]

Array members activated teleport arrays, swapping teammates—fast, seen in second-year thunder snatch.

Teammates safe, Tang Yueling and Tian Ning’s turn.

Square erupted in beast blood wine—half-year supply rained like storm or waterfall.

Blood and alcohol scent filled; drops trembled in dim light like living red blood, dyeing sky crimson instantly.

Tian Ning carried Tang Yueling, Snowfall Sword flashing like light, dodging howling soul beasts.

Tang Yueling smirked, flame cluster in hand.

“Ten million, go!”

Fourth-tier earth fire, bought for ten million spirit stones from Pill School—named casually.

She hurled it. Worth its price: contacting wine droplets, it exploded hundredfold, thousandfold, engulfing square in massive fire ring.

Flames soared, lighting Inner Subsidiary City, reddening overcast sky.

Ensnared black soul beasts wailed, annihilating; escapes trapped in blazing circle, howling to center mansion.

Only shelter, with life soul calling.

Fleeing, large devoured small.

At mansion: one terrifying black shadow, mansion-sized, howling at central Pei Jingzhi.

No order needed—life-loving Pei Jingzhi crushed teleport talisman at sight, vanishing safely.

Before fading, he flung a spark—Tang Yueling’s earth fire seed. It ignited pre-soaked wine path.

Split and main fire sensed; outer ring surged center, shaking wood mansion, collapsing in inferno.

From Su Qing: arson beautiful.

Never thought she’d burn a city gate, watch it blaze—rare life experience.

Reminded: [Burnt fog more toxic—protect.]

Orange light on her face, cold eyes—gentle incongruously.

Three-story soul beast struggled in heat, shattered, ashes scattering.

Lin Ziyue murmured: “Done…”

Su Qing eyed horizon—fire reddened city like fiery clouds; time unclear by sky.

But time remained.

Light transmission: [Mostly solved. Work.]

Outside, Sky Eye watchers Deng Mingjian, Xu Ruyi stunned.

Deng Mingjian slammed table: “Crude plan worked?”

He couldn’t grasp Body minds—no breath, no doubt from plan to execution!

“Shut up or I tear your mouth.”

Lin Hebai’s eyes proud: “Didn’t they do well?”