One person: Starting with the Snow Drinking Blade

Chapter 238 Outpost

Nie Lingfeng's heart skipped a beat. This mountain guardian clearly knew this area inside and out, and seemed to have no hostility; he might even know the signals they were tracking. After a moment's thought, he decided to reveal part of their purpose: "We've been tracking a peculiar, evil aura, originating from the same source as the pollution in 'Nammu Cave,' but it's more 'refined and orderly,' and seems to be moving towards northern Myanmar. Additionally, we're also investigating an organization called 'The Parliament,' which may be operating here, conducting dangerous experiments."

"The 'Council'..." the mountain guardian repeated the word, his dry voice carrying for the first time a distinct chill and disgust, like the friction of ice. "Those... who attempt... to open... doors that shouldn't be opened... to steal... power that doesn't belong to them... to disrupt... life and death... to defile... the sacred... blasphemers..."

As expected! The mountain guardian knew about the "parliament"! And his stance was clear!

"Does the senior know them?" Nie Lingfeng pressed.

The mountain keeper did not answer immediately, but slowly turned around to face the rushing downstream stream, remaining silent for a moment. In the valley, only the rushing water and the sound of the wind rustling through the distant forest could be heard.

"Follow me." After a long silence, the mountain guardian uttered three words in a hoarse voice. Then, his hunched and thin figure, with a lightness and agility that was completely inconsistent with his old appearance, like that of a mountain ape, disappeared behind a patch of hanging vines and dense bushes along the steep and slippery rock wall on one side of the valley in a few leaps.

Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo exchanged a glance. Chen Duo looked at Nie Lingfeng, her eyes questioning. Nie Lingfeng pondered for a moment, then nodded. This mountain guardian, though strange, hadn't shown any malice so far, and seemed to possess important intelligence. They needed this intelligence.

"Stay close to me." Nie Lingfeng pulled Chen Duo up and leaped onto the rock face, chasing after the direction in which the mountain guardian had disappeared. The rock face was slippery and covered in moss, but it was not difficult for Nie Lingfeng now. Although Chen Duo had not recovered her strength, she was agile and with Nie Lingfeng's help, she managed to keep up.

Beyond the vines lay a narrow, well-hidden crevice, concealed by natural rocks and dense vegetation, extending upwards. The crevice was only wide enough for one person to pass through; the light was dim, and the air was filled with the damp, cold scent of rocks and a faint, ancient, musty smell, similar to that of a mountain guardian.

After walking for about a few minutes, the view suddenly opened up. At the end of the crevice, there was a cave platform, like an eave, naturally formed by a huge protruding rock formation, located halfway up the mountain. The platform was not large, about half the size of a basketball court, and the ground was flat, clearly having been artificially prepared. On the inner side of the platform, close to the steep mountain wall, stood an extremely simple yet exceptionally sturdy stone house.

The stone house was built entirely from black rocks collected nearby, without any adhesive, yet it fit together perfectly, as if integrated with the mountainside. The roof was covered with thick moss and some kind of hardy fern. The stone house had no windows, only a low doorway covered with a single plank of wood and animal hide. On either side of the doorway stood two smooth stone pillars, their tops carved with abstract animal heads (faintly discernible as a qilin and some kind of mythical bird). The pillars were covered with the marks of wind and rain, clearly indicating their great age.

In the open space in front of the stone house, there were scattered stone mortars, pestles, wooden racks drying strange plants and animal hides, and a hearth surrounded by stones, with a faint ember burning inside. Above the hearth hung a dark earthenware pot, inside which a dark green liquid with a strong, bitter herbal smell was bubbling away.

This is the dwelling of the mountain guardian. Simple and primitive, yet it exudes an ancient solitude and mystery that perfectly complements this wild and untamed forest.

The mountain guardian was already sitting on a smooth boulder by the fire pit, unconsciously stroking the ancient wooden whistle in his hand. Seeing Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo follow him in, he raised his eyelids and gestured for them to sit on the stone opposite the fire pit.

Chen Duo curiously looked around this peculiar place, her emerald eyes darting between the stone house, stone pillars, hearth, and mountain guardian. She wrinkled her little nose, seemingly not quite used to the strong, bitter smell of herbs in the air, but she still obediently sat down next to Nie Lingfeng, took out her water pouch from her backpack, and sipped her water.

Nie Lingfeng sat down on the rock, his gaze sweeping over the two stone pillars carved with qilin and divine birds, a slight tremor running through him. The carving style of these two pillars was completely different from the blasphemous symbols in the "Nanmu Cave" sacrificial platform and the Yaoxing Society base. Although equally ancient, they exuded a sense of grandeur, holiness, and protection. Especially the qilin carving; although the lines were simple, its majestic and profound divine aura caused a very faint resonance within his "Qilin Star Body."

"This place... was once... the outpost of the 'Guardians'..." The mountain guardian seemed to sense Nie Lingfeng's gaze, pointing to the two stone pillars with his wooden whistle. His voice remained hoarse and slow. "Long... long ago... before the fall of 'Nammu'... before the shadow of the 'Council' appeared... this land... had its own... guardians... the Qilin... guarding the earth... the Phoenix... purifying evil spirits... and... others..."

His words were fragmented, yet incredibly informative! This land, before the emergence of the "Nammu" and the "Council," actually had "Guardians"—divine beasts like the Qilin and Phoenix, or their descendants? These two stone pillars are relics from the "Guardian Outpost"? And the mountain guardian before him, is he a descendant of the "Guardians"? Or a...watchman who inherited the "Guardians'" will?

"And then...what happened?" Nie Lingfeng couldn't help but ask. What caused the "Guardians" to disappear? What caused the "Nammu" to fall? What allowed the shadow of the "Council" to infiltrate?

The mountain keeper remained silent for a long time, so long that the embers in the hearth crackled and popped a few times. His dark pupils gazed at the leaping flames, as if through the flames he could see a distant, long-forgotten, terrifying past.

"Calamity...came from beyond the heavens...carrying...incomprehensible...madness and...blasphemy..." The guardian's voice, for the first time, carried a noticeable, uncontrollable tremor and fear. Even after countless years, the terror etched deep into his soul remained clear. "It corrupted...the ley lines...distorted...living beings...tempted...faith...'Nammu'...first...was corrupted...from the...mother of life...into...a...greedy...devourer..."

"The guardians... rose up in resistance... but... that power... was too strange... too... indescribable... It didn't directly... destroy... but instead... polluted... distorted... assimilated... The Qilin was severely injured... and fled deep into the earth... to sleep... The Phoenix... burned out its true fire... in an attempt to purify... In the end... only scattered... embers remained... in all directions... The outpost... was destroyed... and the legacy... was almost... severed..."

A calamity from beyond the heavens? An indescribable power? Pollution, distortion, assimilation? The Qilin is severely injured and asleep? The Phoenix has burned out its true fire, leaving only a few embers?

Nie Lingfeng's heart was filled with shock! This description was so similar to the will of the "Blood Moon," the "Council's" attempt to find the "key" and the "path home," and the characteristics of those blasphemous and evil forces! Could it be that the so-called "Council" and the "being" it worships are remnants of that "catastrophe" from back then? Or... are they its descendants or servants?

The Qilin was severely injured and asleep, while the Phoenix only had a few scattered embers left... This explains the origin of the Qilin marrow and Phoenix blood in his body! They are likely the "origin" or "essence blood" of the divine beasts that were scattered and left behind after that great battle! And the Dragon Essence... might also be related to the "Guardian" of that time?

"Then the 'parliament'..." Nie Lingfeng suppressed his shock and continued to ask.

"The 'Council'... is a malignant tumor... born from the 'seeds' left by the cataclysm... or... a deformed product... born from the combination of the corrupted, betrayed descendants of the Guardians... and... the power of the Outer Demons..." The Mountain Guardian's tone was filled with deep-seated hatred and contempt. "They inherited... the cataclysm's... greed and... blasphemy... but lost... their last... reverence for this land... They search everywhere... for... the scattered... divine beast origins... and... ancient relics... attempting... to open... the... door... to the 'outside'... or... to create... a 'container'... capable of bearing... the will of the Outer Demons..."

"The signal you're tracking... should be... a 'mark' left behind after they... collected and refined... some kind of 'contamination source' or 'divine blood sample' here... or... they're transferring... important... 'experimental subjects'..."

Just as I suspected! Everything is connected! Yaoxing Society, Yanben, "Nanmu Cave"... are all part of the "Council's" massive plan to collect, cultivate, and purify so-called "holy blood samples" (contamination sources or divine blood) to serve the ultimate goal of opening the "door" or creating the "container"!

"Senior," Nie Lingfeng said gravely, "we must stop them. Do you know the exact destination of that signal? Or, does the 'Council' have any other strongholds or traces of activity in this area?"

The mountain keeper fell silent again, seemingly weighing his options, lost in thought. After a long while, he slowly raised his withered hand and pointed downstream into the valley, deeper into the mountains to the west.

"Following... a tributary of the Nu River... continuing west... into... the true heart of the Savage Mountains... there... is a... very ancient... abandoned 'altar'... legend has it that... the 'Guardians'... held... a major ceremony... to communicate with heaven and earth... later... it was corrupted... the insects of the 'Council'... seem... very interested in that place... recently... there have been unusual... energy fluctuations... and... a scent that doesn't belong to this mountain forest... appearing..."

An abandoned ancient altar? Contaminated? Is the council interested?

This could very well be the next key location!

"Furthermore..." The mountain guardian's dark pupils looked at Chen Duo again, his gaze complex, "Since the phoenix's...fire has reappeared... perhaps... that altar... is also... your... opportunity... or... calamity..."

Chen Duo was still a little confused when she was suddenly called out. She blinked her emerald green eyes and looked at the mountain guardian with a bit of a blank expression, then at Nie Lingfeng.

Nie Lingfeng's heart tightened. An opportunity? Or a calamity?

"Please enlighten me, senior," he said in a deep voice.