Chapter Sixteen: The Forest of Tempering – Changsheng's Memories

Lin Yi walked over and took a closer look. The vegetation here had already lost all signs of life, bearing an unmistakable aura of ominousness.

There was certainly great danger in this place!

Lin Yi narrowed his eyes slightly.

Instinctively, he slowed down the circulation of the Grand Cavern Sutra.

As he climbed higher and higher up the peak, he suddenly felt the air around him grow heavy and dark.

Was this some sort of environmental pollution?

He soon realized that the black mist seemed to seep into his body from every pore, trying to infiltrate through his skin.

At that very moment, a warm sensation spread throughout his body.

Clap, clap, clap, clap…

The Godslayer Scripture stirred!

Pages began to flip rapidly within the Godslayer Scripture.

In the midst of this warmth, Lin Yi seemed to see, within that hazy space, the Godslayer Scripture on the stone table flipping its pages until it finally stopped on one.

On that page, a vivid painting of a fierce tiger suddenly appeared!

The tiger's body was immense, its fangs curved like hooks, its eyes burning crimson with savagery.

Behind it, there seemed to be countless ghostly figures.

Yet the image remained rendered in shades of gray.

Noticing that this painting was smaller than the one of Lady Huang Jiu, Lin Yi realized the strength of this striped tiger was far inferior to hers.

However, compared to the little yellow weasel seeking a title, the striped tiger's image was much larger.

In other words, this striped tiger was far more powerful than the title-seeking weasel.

In the next moment, Lin Yi felt an indistinct dizziness, as if the entire world had changed.

Before, the mountain had only been chillingly cold, but sunlight could still be glimpsed elsewhere on the slopes.

Now, however, the sky had darkened; the sun was nowhere to be seen, and only snowflakes drifted endlessly down.

The snowflakes were pure as cotton, floating down bit by bit, and Lin Yi felt the cold soaking into his back, icy air seeping into his nape.

Not far away, a fire flickered, its glow inviting.

Warming himself by the fire seemed like an excellent choice.

Smacking his lips, Lin Yi smiled at the sight.

"I, Lin Changsheng, will surely earn my title this time!"

At that moment, Lin Yi possessed the memories of Lin Changsheng!

Lin Yi was no fool. He understood: the striped tiger ghost was laying a trap for him.

The memory had come out of nowhere!

Just now, the black air had tried to invade his body, but thanks to the Godslayer Scripture, it had been temporarily blocked.

Then, the Godslayer Scripture transmitted a memory to him—Lin Changsheng's memory.

At the same time, a multicolored energy burst forth from within the Godslayer Scripture, sealing away his cultivation from the Grand Cavern Sutra.

The Godslayer Scripture was sharpening him!

This was the information Lin Yi received from the scripture.

The Godslayer Scripture wanted him to find the flaw at the heart of the illusion, to see through the deception as Lin Changsheng, and distinguish truth from falsehood.

Only by doing so could the illusion be dispelled and his cultivation restored.

Thus, the rewards would be great!

But so would the dangers.

Yet after witnessing a great battle between humans and demons, Lin Yi did not shrink back.

He, too, sought more rewards to increase his strength and, in the future, slay monsters and demons!

So Lin Yi knew—he would, for now, play the part of Lin Changsheng.

One does not catch tiger cubs without venturing into the tiger’s lair!

An illusion, with memories to match?

Then he would turn their trick to his own advantage!

…

Lin Changsheng was born into a landlord's family.

His mother was the matriarch, and he was raised in luxury from a young age.

He could read at three, compose poetry at five, and was hailed as a prodigy, becoming famous at ten for creating a classic poem in just seven steps.

Now, at seventeen, he had passed the county examination and was heading to a larger city for the prefectural exam.

He was traveling through a region called Twin Dragon Mountain.

He was skilled in martial arts, and so was his page.

Now that they had reached the mountain, the land grew ever more desolate, and as the snow fell, Lin Changsheng and his page sought a place to warm themselves and wait for the snow to stop.

Lowering his head, Lin Yi looked at his own attire—a long ancient robe, silky to the touch.

His memories grew ever clearer: Lin Changsheng was a scholar on his way to the imperial exams, accompanied by his page, Ye Er, whom he usually called Little Leaf.

Snowflakes drifted, the north wind howled, and the world was a boundless expanse of white.

Turning his head, Lin Yi looked behind him.

Sure enough, someone was there!

Even with his cultivation sealed, Lin Yi knew this person was not real.

The illusion had conjured all of this.

But for now, he continued to play along.

With his powers sealed, he could not shatter the illusion by force; he would need to find the core and strike precisely to break free.

Little Leaf carried a shoulder pole loaded with books and daily necessities, shivering all over.

Both master and servant were exhausted and cold, and not far ahead, firelight flickered from a cave.

Lin Changsheng helped lighten Little Leaf’s load.

Little Leaf looked anxious, but under Lin Yi’s gaze, he yielded.

The two hurried toward the firelight.

The cave was quite spacious, almost like a natural little house.

As Lin Changsheng and Little Leaf arrived, the wind and snow outside grew fiercer.

Stepping into the cave’s entrance, Lin Yi was enveloped by a comforting warmth.

Little Leaf stopped shivering, a hint of joy showing on his face.

Inside the cave were already two people—a young man and a woman.

They seemed to be from some martial sect, each carrying a sword and dressed in uniformed long robes.

Seeing Lin Yi and Little Leaf enter, they glanced up, then returned to warming themselves by the fire.

After a moment’s thought, Lin Yi cupped his fists in greeting. “Excuse me, young sirs. Fate has brought us together. I am Lin Changsheng. May my page and I warm ourselves by your fire?”

The young woman smiled sweetly.

“Of course. It’s no easy journey for you, young master. Come, warm yourself.”

At that moment, down at the foot of the mountain, a group of people carrying torches was making their way through the snow toward the cave.

There were more than ten in their party; their voices reached the cave before they did.

“Damn, it’s so cold… Hey, someone’s got a fire going here! Quick, let’s join them!”

“Who would’ve thought—everyone says there are man-eating tigers in these parts, yet someone dares to warm themselves in a cave? They’ve got some nerve!”

“Exactly! There’s been a tiger haunting Twin Dragon Mountain. When we haul goods, we have to travel in groups. Who knows who these people are? These are chaotic times—bandits could appear at any moment. Everyone, be careful! When we eat, we’ll take turns, just in case someone tries to drug us!”

…

It turned out the distant group was made up of ordinary traders, buying and selling mountain goods.

From their conversation, it was clear that a tiger had appeared on Twin Dragon Mountain.

Besides that, bandits were also known to haunt the area.

The group was loud.

Lin Yi and his page, Little Leaf, heard everything clearly.

Lin Yi glanced at Little Leaf, pretending to breathe a sigh of relief.

“If they’re just ordinary folk, there’s nothing to fear,” Lin Yi said.

Little Leaf nodded, looking reassured.

Carrying their torches, the group soon reached the edge of the cave.

There were sixteen of them, of all shapes and ages.

Each had a sturdy build, the sun and wind having left their marks.

They were simple tradesmen and farmers.

Seeing the fire, their faces lit up, and one elderly man came forward to borrow a flame, lighting dry leaves, after which everyone began to chat.

Meanwhile, Lin Yi’s scholarly bearing and the uniformed robes of the other pair, marks of a martial sect, earned everyone’s respect.

As they talked, the old man known as "Old Chief" suddenly frowned and spoke up.

“Something’s wrong—where’s Erwa? Wasn’t he at the back, carrying a box of fox pelts? He’s missing!”

The old man’s words shocked everyone.

They’d been so caught up in conversation, they hadn’t noticed.

Now, hearing Old Chief, several people froze, then quickly stood up.

“In this freezing weather, with snow falling so hard, if Erwa collapsed in a snowdrift, he could be crippled for life. Hurry, let’s search for him—everyone, go, and take more people!”

…

A tiger’s roar split the air.

Dragon rides the clouds, tiger rides the wind.

Suddenly, a tiger’s roar echoed through the mountains.

The crowd in the cave, just discussing Erwa’s disappearance, broke out in a cold sweat.

A tiger’s roar, so close—didn’t that mean the beast was nearby?

The roar was so clear, it struck fear into everyone’s hearts.

“This is bad. The tiger’s right outside. We’re done for. Old Chief, do you think something’s happened to Erwa?”

“If Erwa doesn’t make it back, who’ll care for his blind old mother? We must hurry and save him!”

…

The group grew ever more chaotic.

Erwa’s fate was unknown, and now the tiger’s roar had everyone fearing the worst—that the beast had already claimed its prey.

Soon, the tiger’s call faded, and the night fell silent once more.

In the snowy weather, footsteps made a crisp crunching sound, and soon, that very sound echoed from the entrance of the cave.