006: Once Upon a Time, There Was a Mountain - Part Six.

After finishing dinner, Anyu happily climbed up Mount Wuyu.
Anmo appeared out of nowhere, with its large and majestic figure, obediently following by Anyu's side.
An Yu reached out and touched An Mo's smooth head, saying, "Amo has grown up again, amazing!" It's almost reaching her waist.
The expression on her face is also like that of a child, pure and innocent.
Anmo rubbed his head against Anyu's palm and let out a low growl, seemingly responding to Anyu's praise.
By the time they arrived at the wordless temple, it was already halfway through the hour of the Pig.
Anyu rubbed Anmo's head and said with a smile, "Amo, wait for me inside. I ate a bit too much, I'll go for a stroll."
"Hmm~" An Mo moved his front paw and wanted to follow along.
An Yu took out a bead from his pouch and stuffed it into An Mo's mouth, then gave his head a few pats. "Practice well, An Mo, you still need to protect me."
"Ah-woo~"
Pacifying Anmo, Anyu lifted her foot and walked towards the top of the mountain.
The higher she went, the colder the atmosphere became. The thick fog and snow-covered trees seemed to blend together, and everything in sight was covered in a vast white.
An Yu walked steadily upward, listening to the faint sound of flowing water. The path beneath her feet felt familiar, as if she had traversed it countless times without any hesitation.
Upon reaching the mountaintop, she heard the sound of the cold wind rustling her clothes.
At a glance, she seemed to see hell.
In the white mist stood a person, wearing a black cloak embroidered with dark patterns with black and gold threads, with black hair tied up by a black jade hairpin engraved with auspicious cloud patterns, and a mole behind her left earlobe.
This person stood with hands on hips, standing straight against the cold wind, seemingly unaware of the cold.
An Yu stood motionless, watching the person without knowing what they were thinking.
After an unknown amount of time, perhaps fifteen minutes or maybe an hour, the person who had been silent all along slowly turned around.
This person's brows are sharp and his phoenix eyes are slightly raised. His silhouette in the mist is exceptionally clear, with thin lips carrying a hint of a smile, but his eyes are as cold as ice and snow.
He saw into An Yu's eyes with just one glance.
"Excuse me, miss, where is the way down the mountain?"
The voice was quite gentle.
An Yu stared into his eyes, suddenly raised her eyebrows and pointed behind him, saying, "The road is right behind you."
This person didn't even furrow their brows and nodded at An Yu, "Thank you."
Then they turned around and leaped off the cliff that was thousands of feet tall.
An Yu didn't pay attention to the few figures that jumped down right after them. All she could think about was the person's slightly lowered eyelashes when they nodded, two words: really long!
Zhao Yi, with excellent light skills and extraordinary vision, caught up with his master, frowning deeply.
There was a cut on Jiang Yan's beautiful cheek, not serious, but blood was flowing out.
Fresh red blood flowed down the cheeks and dropped into the icy water like raindrops.
Qian Er followed closely behind and when he saw the situation, he was about to step forward, but Zhao Yi grabbed him and said, "Master, what is this...?"
Zhao Yi shook his head and stood still.
Jiang Yan seemed to be devoid of breath, floating on the river with closed eyes, slowly moving along the gentle current. His hands, with distinct joints but overly pale, were steadily placed on his abdomen with no intention of getting up whatsoever.
If it weren't for the wrong place to lie, it really looks like she is closing her eyes to relax.
Zhao Yi and Qian Er Liang followed on the river bank, and the increasingly close and urgent sound of the river made both of them look anxious.
Jiang Yan, however, seemed to not hear them at all. He lifted his left hand lightly, indicating for the two not to follow. In the next moment, he disappeared from the two's sight, following the river flowing down.
Qian Er hesitated for a moment and thought about chasing after him, but stopped. He asked Zhao Yi, "What should we do?"
When will the young master's self-destructive nature change?
Zhao Yi calmed down and said, "No worries. When I came down from the cliff just now, I felt that something was off about this mountain. It seemed like it was being protected by something. Even someone without any strength would not be in danger of losing their life if they fell from the cliff, let alone the young master, who is not someone ignorant of the severity."
Qian Er looked at Zhao Yi with a cold expression as if saying, "Are you kidding me?"
Zhao Yi faced Qian Er's skeptical gaze and continued, "Let's wait for the master at the foot of the mountain."
钱二：“……”
你是老大你说了算。
安虞回到无字庙宇已经快凌晨了，打着哈欠泪眼模糊的她在低头看到门前一滩水迹的时候，有那么一丢丢的心虚。
"Woo~" An Mo, who was confronting Jiang Yan, pounced with her feet. She was pushed back by An Yu pressing her head.
She's too big, if she pounces on someone, they'll die.
An Mo obediently rubbed against An Yu and happily moved her ears.
Jiang Yan turned around in the courtyard and looked at An Yu, smiling, "What a coincidence."
An Yu stared at Jiang Yan for a long time before bending her eyebrows and smiling, "The young master's eyes lack brightness."
Jiang Yan's smile remained unchanged, and the bloodstains on his cheeks were particularly dazzling in the candlelight: "The night is already late, I wonder if I can stay overnight?"
An Yu led An Mo inside and casually closed the door: "The one who comes is a guest, please come in."
That night, the creatures of Wuyu Mountain were extremely quiet, and even the sound of the wind seemed to be much softer.
The weather was still cloudy the next day, but An Yu, who had originally planned to stay home, took An Mo down the mountain early in the morning.
Looking at the smoke rising from the village of Wuyu in the distance, Anyu habitually rubbed Anmo's head. The little Anmo snuggled in Anyu's arms and rubbed against him, shaking his little ears more happily.
"This young lady."
"Woo-ah~"
The wicked ghost, with a fierce and crimson gaze, was approached by An Yu. Startled that An Yu could see her, the dark mist that covered her entire body trembled.
An Yu seemed to be indifferent to her reaction and simply said, "I have avenged my deep grudges, why linger in the mortal world."
The evil spirit's body was engulfed in eerie black mist, and he grimly said, "I once had a lifetime of peace and joy in Anping. The lives they took cannot compare to even half of what I want - to live! To live for a long, long time!"
The fact is, it has been proven that reasoning with a ghost is futile. However, adhering to the principle of diplomacy before force, An Yu patiently tries to persuade.
"Having ideals is a good thing, but you should know that becoming a ghost is not the end of life, but the beginning of another phase. Why can't you, as a young girl, come to terms with it?"
"Speaking of which, An Yu's smiling eyes grew colder. 'Hunting down one's own kind, attempting to devour their souls and possess another's body. Little girl, being enslaved by desire and lust, driven by evil thoughts and turning oneself into such a state, how do you feel?'"
The crimson eyes of the evil spirit collided with An Yu's eyes, and she saw her youthful self, saw the loving parents, saw the murderer who killed her...
How could she become like this? Not human nor ghost***, her mother probably wouldn't recognize me anymore...
A drop of crystal clear tear fell from the eye sockets of the evil spirit, and the tear dripped onto the black mist. The mist twisted for a moment as if unwilling, slowly dissipated, and the terrifying appearance of the evil spirit also transformed into a delicate and charming look from its past.
安虞有些意外，很少有鬼被恶念驱使之后还能回心转意的，而且恶念被剥离的这般干脆利落。