Where Immortals Once Walked-Chapter 228: Familiar Faces

“It’s popular everywhere the trade roads reach—West Luo, Baling, Xianyou, you name it. A single snail shell like this will fetch at least one tael of silver at a market. I’ve even heard that in West Luo it can go for two.”

By the glow of a handful of glowspores, He Lingchuan saw that the snail in Liu Tong’s hand was a vivid, buttery yellow, the color of larderite from Mount Shou. However, there was also a touch of green, as well as purple, here and there, as if some carefree painter had dabbed on color at whim.

It looked carefree, yet brimmed with a quirky grace. Each streak of color felt like a finishing touch, bringing the shell to life.

“Candy snails grow only in the caves of Mount Yan,” Liu Tong said with a grin. “Panlong City posts guards and forbids private picking. What we’re getting now is a special reward for the merit we earned at Guizhen Stone Forest.”

Skinny’s eyes lit up like sparks catching dry tinder. “They’re too beautiful!” One tael of silver was a thousand large coppers. “We each get six?”

“Right, but don’t even think about sneaking more.” Liu Tong’s tone turned firm. “If we’re caught, our whole squad gets fined ten taels, and we lose military merit.”

He fixed Skinny with a hard stare. “Did you hear me?”

He was worried about him the most.

Skinny waved both hands. “Relax, relax, going over the limit isn’t my style!”

The squad fanned out at once to hunt for snails.

It had snowed hard a few days earlier, yet the cave was warm and humid now. Lichens and moss were even sprouting new shoots. It was a paradise for snails. The snails were lively, crawling out of their hidey-holes to roam about.

In no time, everyone had hit their quota.

Fist to fist, then palms opened. Dozens of candy snails were now clustered together, the colors reflecting like a rainbow after rain.

Gold, red, blue, indigo, violet, yellow... There was no shade that they did not have. Not even the nimblest confectioner could craft sweets as variegated as these shells.

“They’re so beautiful!” Willow sighed. “I’m not selling mine. I’m keeping them.”

Would they not outshine a whole street of pearl and agate as bracelets, pendants, hair ornaments, or hairpins?

At that, Doorboard scratched his head. “Once we’re out, you can have mine too.”

Willow blinked. “Huh? Well, alright. I’ll buy them off you, but give me the squadmate price.”

“These are girly trinkets. I can just give them to you,” Doorboard said awkwardly.

Only then did Willow beam like a flower in bloom.

Skinny and He Lingchuan exchanged a look and sighed in unison. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

The road back to the city was peaceful all the way.

Before long, Panlong City’s unmistakable gates rose into view.

At any time, that mighty pass put iron confidence in the hearts of soldiers, commoners, and travelers alike. But as He Lingchuan drew near, he realized streams of people were pouring out. They had bedrolls on their backs, some were riding donkeys, while others crammed into carts.

This did not look like a caravan. It looked like a migration.

Doorboard blurted, “What’s going on?”

Panlong City rarely threw its gates wide and released this many people at once, other than when it sent its armies out.

Usually, it was families moving into the city for safety, not moving out shoulder-to-shoulder.

With a quick sweep of his eyes, He Lingchuan spotted familiar faces in the crowd.

He saw Liu Sanjiu, his wife, and their two children.

They still led the same shaggy donkey, which carried the same big bundle. The beast’s eyes were full of weary grievance.

Back when Wei City fell, He Lingchuan had slipped into the refugee flow and first ran into this very family. They used to work at a small-town distillery outside Wei City. He had even chatted with them for half a while, right up until Baling’s pursuers were on their tails.

He remembered that great battle as if it were yesterday, so how could he forget the people he met around it?

There were patrolmen posted right by the road. Liu Sanjiu spotted him in turn and let out a surprised “Ah!” Then delight broke over his face. “It, it’s you!”

He clearly recognized the sturdy young man who had helped them on the road, though he still could not recall his surname. He hesitated, then hurried on, “How have you been? Are you coming back with us?”

“Back?” He Lingchuan smiled. “Back where?”

“To Wei City, of course.” Liu Sanjiu flushed a little. “The Red General has reclaimed Wei City. Commandery Administrator Sun is taking us home.”

He remembered his own panic and shame from the migration as well; seeing He Lingchuan again made him feel complicated.

The young man’s appearance felt like a mirror, reflecting how base and helpless he had been back then.

He Lingchuan glanced at the long column. “All of these are people from Wei City?”

“Yes, yes.” Liu Sanjiu’s wife could barely contain her joy. “We never thought we’d see the day in our lifetime.”

Skinny eyed the family, then said out of nowhere, “If Brother He hadn’t risked his life to blow up the spider den at Guizhen Stone Forest, and if the Red General hadn’t personally infiltrated Wei City to take it back, you’d still be farming in Panlong City right now. Not that I think that’s such a bad life, mind you!”

The couple’s smiles hit a slight snag.

They did not know much about the front. They only knew that reclaiming Wei City was just one entry on the Red General’s long tally of victories.

He had so many wins that commoners had grown numb to good news.

Liu Sanjiu bowed deeply to He Lingchuan. “Thank you, Brother He!”

He Lingchuan waved him off. “Why do you want to go back to Wei City? Isn’t Panlong City safer?”

“Panlong City is a wonderful place, and the Chipa Plateau beyond it might as well be heaven,” Liu Sanjiu said after exchanging a look with his wife. “But we’re not used to it here. Home is best.”

“How did you all organize at once?” Liu Tong, thinking from a different angle, asked, “Did someone call you together?”

“We heard Commandery Administrator Sun asked Commander Zhong for permission to return, and Commander Zhong agreed,” Liu Sanjiu’s wife replied. “Commandery Administrator Sun posted the notice in the city. Anyone from Wei City who wanted to go home had to register at the yamen, then gather at the southern gate today to depart, escorted by the troops.”

Sure enough, Panlong patrolmen shadowed the column. It looked like Zhong Shengguang intended to do the good deed to the end and see the Wei City people safely home.

Liu Sanjiu eyed He Lingchuan. His armor made his status obvious. “Brother He, you’ve joined the army?”

He Lingchuan nodded.

“In Panlong City, you’ll make something of yourself.” Liu Sanjiu cupped his hands. “Please, take care out there.”

They waved and went their separate ways, each returning to their own path.

Knowing they would likely never meet again, they smiled all the more genuinely.

“Enough, wipe off your fake smile.” Willow rolled her eyes at He Lingchuan. “Don’t tell me you saved that family, too?”

“Mm...” He had joined Colonel Xiao’s rearguard to buy the commoners more time to flee, so—“you could say that.”

Willow clicked her tongue. “He can’t even remember your surname.” She had seen well enough how Liu Sanjiu had trailed off.

“It doesn’t matter.” He Lingchuan turned his horse toward Panlong City.

What could he say? He was a good man who never asked for anything in return.

Once inside the walls, he parted ways with the squad and headed back to his little house. More gifts were heaped by the door again.

He carried everything inside. The tiny courtyard was half-filled already; even the water jar was running out of room.

He warmed a pot of water—not quite hot, not exactly cold—and washed the wind and dust from his body.

Any home with brazier coals glowing in winter was the best harbor for a weary heart.

He had barely finished wiping his hair down with a towel when a commotion broke out outside. He heard a clatter. It sounded like something had been knocked over in the yard. Then, he heard the harsh cry of a bird.

What is it now?

He pushed the door open. Black-and-white feathers whirled through the air. The sole stool in the yard had been toppled, and a small puddle of blood stained the tiles.

On the wall perched a bird of prey, brown with white speckles. Its talons pinned a magpie; the bird’s head was gone, but the body still twitched.

The bird of prey was plucking feathers with its hooked beak, and the blood-flecked plumage drifted down into He Lingchuan’s yard like snow.

Apparently, his courtyard had become a hunting ground.

He gave a low whistle, reminding the uninvited guest to mind its table manners and not make a mess for the host.

Why does this bird look familiar?

The bird of prey saw him come out, but instead of fleeing, it cocked its head and studied him. Then it spoke in human speech, “So it’s you.”

Hearing it, He Lingchuan also said, “Oh, it’s you.”

It was the very same sparrowhawk he had met in Guizhen Stone Forest. Back then, ordered by General Nanke, the creature had tried to blow the spider den with a command arrows with fire charges. Unfortunately, Zhu Erniang’s spider silk had been too tenacious, so that task had fallen to Sun Jiayuan and He Lingchuan instead.

After that, they counted as comrades-in-arms of a sort. He had never seen the sparrowhawk again, but it had presumably rejoined the main force on new assignments.

He pointed at the magpie in its claws. “Thanks. That thing chirps outside my window and ruins my naps.”

In winter, most birds vanished from Panlong City, but fat, brazen magpies still hopped about, often stealing grain from people’s homes. Spring had not even come yet, and they were already plump. During such times, what else would a bird of prey hunt?

Since fate had brought them together again, he righted the stool and set a bowl of clean water on it.

The sparrowhawk hopped down with its prize and drank several deep gulps.

“Have you been well?”

“I just accompanied the Red General back from Guizhen Stone Forest,” the sparrowhawk replied between mouthfuls. It looked famished. “The round trip took two days.”

He Lingchuan started. “The Red General went to Guizhen Stone Forest?”

“Yes. He led troops to cut Zhu Erniang down to size,” said the sparrowhawk. “The Red General said he meant to settle the score from last time.”

Those from Baling had played their trick, turning the burrow spiders of Guizhen Stone Forest against Panlong City’s army. Zhu Erniang had taken the field herself, and General Nanke’s unit had nearly been mauled.

It was only natural that Panlong would not swallow that insult.

Guizhen Stone Forest was also the key corridor to the southeast for Puxi Gully and Panlong’s allied cities. Panlong had an obligation to keep that passage safe.

“How did it go?”

“We went in ready this time and made a point of ruining the burrow spiders’ day. We burned seven or eight subsidiary dens alone. As for Zhu Erniang’s brood, we cut down more than half.” The sparrowhawk’s voice held a savage satisfaction. “At the main den, the fighting was even fiercer. That old trap-layer fell into the Red General’s trap this time. Most of her elite guards died, both her legs were broken, and her belly was nearly split open. The Red General threatened to burn her den to ash. Zhu Erniang had no choice but to beg for peace.”

“Tsk—” He Lingchuan had seen Zhu Erniang with his own eyes. Ancient remnant greater monsters like her always had a hundred tricks tucked away. To be beaten this miserably...

No wonder they call him a war god. He’s a true iron-blooded terror.