Chapter 75: Physical Training (Part 6): I Caught It Part 1

This character looked harder to write than “fortune,” no matter how you sliced it!

Not to mention the occasions where a double happiness character might be used—taken alone, it certainly carried positive meaning. But even the best things depended on how they were used. Right now, plastered in the middle of that pallid, ghastly skull, it gave off a bizarre vibe that was both auspicious and ominous, utterly out of place!

Mu Qian Tan’s eye twitched. She flew over to rip the double happiness character down, then dashed back into the skull and hauled out the still-sleeping Shang Shan. She crumpled the character into a ball again and stuffed it into her mouth, urging her to swallow while scolding, “You really have something wrong with your head.”

The stiff paper scraped down her throat into her stomach. Shang Shan was forced to gulp it down, coughing a few times before jumping up in a panic. “What are you doing? My fortune’s gone!”

Mu Qian Tan said, “Was that fortune?”

Shang Shan said, “I couldn’t remember how to write it for the moment! Why can’t I use something similar?”

“Is that similar?”

“It’s similar in meaning.”

Mu Qian Tan gritted her teeth. “Double happiness is only used for weddings—it’s worlds apart from New Year’s and has nothing to do with fortune. Even a single happiness wouldn’t have been so grating. And not only did you stick it up, you stuck it right on someone else’s forehead, so blatantly obvious. What do you think people will make of that?”

Most of the time, she didn’t care much about others’ gazes. After all, those unfriendly words were usually aimed at the original host and had nothing to do with her essence. If it really bothered her, she could just suppress it with violence.

But this was different. Only the two of them lived in this skull. What did plastering a double happiness character on it mean? Anyone would make associations—maybe think she, Mu Qian Tan, was hiding a man here and making a big show of it, treating the host’s home like a bridal chamber. It was disgusting. Just thinking about it made her scalp crawl.

Shang Shan’s face went blank for a moment before some expression returned. She let out a long “oh” and murmured, “Oh, right. It’s for weddings.”

Mu Qian Tan shoved her away and frowned. “This is someone else’s turf. Don’t embarrass yourself here.”

Getting a tongue-lashing first thing in the morning left Shang Shan’s brain in a fog. Though she knew she’d messed up, she felt a bit indignant—especially with old grudges unresolved—so she couldn’t help saying, “You’re scolding me again. I just wanted some good luck for New Year’s. Red is so pretty. I know I was wrong, sorry. But you still have to yell at me over something so small, and so harshly too.”

Mu Qian Tan lifted her chin, gesturing toward the window outside. “Isn’t there enough red out there?”

Red flowers, red sky, red sun. Far from just red—it was red as far as the eye could see.

Shang Shan muttered, “….That’s different.”

“Different?” Mu Qian Tan said coldly. “A slap to your face would be red too.”

Thinking she was serious, Shang Shan quickly covered her face with her hands. “Don’t.”

Mu Qian Tan glanced at her and looked away, lest her temper flare again.

Shang Shan scrunched up her brows and looked at the woman’s cold profile, whining, “Then why didn’t you tell me last night how to write fortune? I wouldn’t have messed up.”

Mu Qian Tan said, “If I’d known you could be this stupid, I really would have taught you.”

Shang Shan opened her mouth, flustered. “I’m not stupid! Stop always saying that about me.”

“You’re not stupid. You’re just not obviously smart.”

“Ah!” Shang Shan fumed, rolled onto the ground, and wrapped herself up in the blanket, yelling, “We’re done!”

Mu Qian Tan rolled her eyes. Done, huh? As if this were kids playing house.

Ignoring her, she went out to find Shen Xin. After completing the day’s tasks, she returned to the skull and found that blanket lump still right where it was.

Unbelievable. She hadn’t even gone to eat?

Mu Qian Tan took a bath first and prepared to go to bed. Pretending it was accidental, she kicked her. “Move over.”

The blanket didn’t budge.

She wouldn’t have suffocated, would she?

Holding to the principle that she’d need the protagonist later, she figured she’d give a sweet after the slap. Besides, thinking calmly about that morning’s incident, it really wasn’t that serious. The weirdos in Bone Mountain probably had no interest in idle gossip.

Mu Qian Tan crouched down and yanked the blanket away, revealing Shang Shan curled up hugging her knees on the floor. The girl opened her big round eyes and pouted, clearly aware of her right there but refusing to look.

Dabbing her damp hair with a towel, Mu Qian Tan said speechlessly, “What are you doing?”

Fresh post-bath fragrance wafted from the woman. Shang Shan sniffed, hugged her knees tighter, curled into a ball amid her long wavy hair, and bit her lip without a word.

“Cat got your tongue?” Mu Qian Tan pretended to cover her back up with the blanket. “Keep burying yourself alive then. I’m going to sleep.”

Shang Shan still didn’t react, uncharacteristically stubborn.

Mu Qian Tan draped the blanket over her face but didn’t get up. Instead, she combed the long hair with her fingers and said casually, “Your master here isn’t bad at calligraphy. People from Narrow Sea to Penglai Hall line up to learn from me. Why should I teach you? What’s in it for me?”

The blanket stayed silent for a bit before a hand poked out, voice muffled. “Teach me fortune, and I’ll make up with you.”

Mu Qian Tan traced her palm. “That doesn’t count as a benefit.”

Shang Shan said, “I don’t know then.”

“Fine,” Mu Qian Tan lowered her lashes. “For the sake of you being my disciple, you can owe me first.”

Her fingertip followed the girl’s palm lines—career, love, life—ultimately twisting into a “fortune” that blended together inseparably.

A tingling itch spread from the palm. The blanket trembled faintly, curled up tighter, but held back from pulling away.

Mu Qian Tan finished the last stroke and pressed down the girl’s naturally curved four fingers over her palm. “Fortune’s yours. Whether you catch it is up to you.”

At that, Shang Shan clenched her fist tight, knuckles whitening, as if afraid the thing in her palm would flap away.

She retreated into the blanket. After a while, she said, “I caught it.”

The girl said no more. Mu Qian Tan figured that was enough, dried her hair, and went to bed. The next morning when she woke, the person under the bed was gone.

After washing up, she stepped outside and looked up again. A neat, square “fortune” had replaced yesterday’s double happiness character. It actually looked somewhat festive.

Mu Qian Tan chuckled and turned to leave.

No one in Bone Mountain cared about the holiday, so New Year’s passed tastelessly. Except for Shang Shan muttering at night about growing another year older, wanting fireworks but having none, so mimicking the sounds with her mouth—otherwise, nothing different.

After New Year’s, only a few days remained of the one-month limit.

Mu Qian Tan calculated carefully this time. On the final day, after her physical checkup, she finally relaxed and sat on the bed’s edge, gathering her clothes.

Shen Xin hadn’t found the reason why shattered-heart fragments could still live. The unsolved mystery only drew explorers more. She grew even more obsessed, gripping the Hidden Tooth Dagger as if tempted to trap Mu Qian Tan in Bone Mountain forever. Only when she picked up Solitary Goose did she stop.

As the shattered-heart prepared to leave, Shen Xin felt regretful. “When will you come next time?”

Mu Qian Tan thought seriously. “Probably my next life.”

Money, treasures, and various artifacts failed to keep her. Seeing her determination, Shen Xin sighed repeatedly and stopped blocking. She pulled a toy from a nearby cabinet drawer—a wooden puzzle.

“Here, for you.”

The puzzle had sixteen pieces, molded exactly after the sixteen fragments of Mu Qian Tan’s exploded heart. It could be disassembled, and reassembling took effort. She said it stimulated children’s spiritual roots—a toy for future disciples or kids.

“….” Mu Qian Tan suppressed murderous thoughts and reluctantly accepted it.

Before leaving, Shen Xin pulled out a hanging painting, her whole face flushing red. “You’re beautiful, so I painted this for you. It’s a gift.”

Mu Qian Tan felt a vague unease as she unrolled it. Sure enough, amid a lush flower sea lay a complete human skeleton, pallid and lifelike like a photo. Inside the skeleton were detailed cross-sections of viscera, colors vivid and rich. The brushstrokes were delicate and fluid, tension leaping off the canvas—yet no one could see the beauty in it.

“Don’t be shy. Take it and hang it up when you get back.”

Only a lunatic would hang that.

Mu Qian Tan wanted to refuse outright but remembered she’d face that dog You Lianmeng soon. After a thought, she asked, “I can take it if I can come back next time.”

Shen Xin beamed. “Really?”

“Really.” Mu Qian Tan rolled up the hanging painting. “As long as you give me some potions that can torment people.”

Shen Xin asked curiously, “Torment? What for?”

Mu Qian Tan smiled. “Nothing.”

With their things, master and disciple left Bone Mountain and headed straight for You Lianmeng’s Misty Smoke Above the Pool.

In the distance, the sky was a hazy blue, white clouds melted away. Amid layered green shade below, steaming heat rose in wisps, forming thick fog that blanketed the Warm Pool, obscuring the path. You Lianmeng lived deep in that fog.

They stood at the shore, milky-white pool water surging quietly at their feet. Huge king lotuses unfurled ferocious leaves, floating on the surface.

Each leaf was three feet wide, edges curled up to reveal scarlet fleshy rims, like traps waiting to devour people. Mu Qian Tan said decisively, “You go first.”

Shang Shan said, “I knew you wouldn’t dare!”

Mu Qian Tan smacked the back of her head. “Hurry.”

Shang Shan rubbed her head and carefully stepped onto a leaf. Contrary to appearances, it was sturdy—even jumping on it caused no issue.

Seeing her tramp around fine, Mu Qian Tan stepped on too. They proceeded along the leaves. In the distant fog, a pitch-black mansion gradually emerged, two giant hands capping the roof, dangling threads like a puppeteer’s.

Emerging from the fog, things clarified. More leaves lined the pool path, dotted with naked human figures sitting or standing—black hair flowing, skin creamy white. One turned at their footsteps: a face without features, like a half-finished wooden doll.

Shang Shan looked left and right, then tugged her collar to check herself. “They seem to be missing something.”

Mu Qian Tan stared ahead, ignoring her.

Farther on, the eerie black mansion loomed, not spacious but exuding a murderous aura that crashed down oppressively, scalp-numbing.

Before they could reach shore, a carp head popped from the water near the bank. It peered at the leaf, then flicked its tail onto land, bursting into smoke and transforming into You Lianmeng.