"The corpse cats have retreated!" Old Mo said.
I nodded. "They must have thought of a new way to deal with us."
Yunqing Zhenren, who was leading, spoke with great authority. "Whatever their method, they will be wiped out today."
With that, Yunqing Zhenren led us onward. However, the further we went, the more I sensed something was wrong. Besides the thick corpse qi and dense bamboo forest, we saw no more corpse cats. Most importantly, the surroundings felt off. It was as if we were walking in circles.
When the thought occurred, I deliberately took out my feng shui compass to check. I found the needle had gone haywire. Looking around, the dense bamboo surrounded us completely. We had no idea which direction to go.
"Old Qin, something's not right! This valley isn't long, but we've been walking for over ten minutes..." Old Mo also noticed the anomaly.
I nodded and showed him the feng shui compass.
"Is there something strange about this place?"
I nodded. Xiao Mei sniffed the air. "The corpse qi is too heavy. My sense of smell is useless. We might be trapped."
The three of us had sensed something was amiss. Just then, Yunqing Zhenren, who was leading, stopped. He wasn't moving forward, but scanning left and right.
I spoke up. "Senior Yunqing, do you think we've fallen into a trap set by the corpse cat demon? Are we walking in circles in this bamboo forest?"
Yunqing Zhenren glanced at me upon hearing this. He nodded slightly. "Indeed, we are currently walking in circles. I marked this particular bamboo earlier, but we've looped back." He pointed to a bamboo stalk.
"Ah? Aren't we caught in a 'ghost hitting the wall'?" Old Mo exclaimed in surprise. But before Yunqing Zhenren could respond, Xia Qiuxi chimed in, "I believe it's a demonic miasma, related to the corpse qi here."
"Demonic miasma?" My companion and I asked in unison. We had never encountered it before, nor had our masters mentioned it. We were unfamiliar with such professional terms.
Yunqing Zhenren nodded. "A demonic miasma and a 'ghost hitting the wall' are fundamentally similar. Both are merely illusions. However, a demonic miasma is stronger and harder to break. The corpse cats, using the pervasive corpse qi here, are confusing our senses and causing us to lose our sense of direction. Simultaneously, they are weaving demonic arts into reality, making it impossible to distinguish between the true and the false. This causes us to circle within a certain area. If ordinary people came here, they would likely be trapped to death. But it's not a problem. Watch as this humble Taoist breaks its spell!"
Hearing this, Old Mo and I finally understood what a "demonic miasma" was. In essence, it was a semi-real, semi-illusory state that disorients people.
With that, Yunqing Zhenren took out a piece of yellow paper from his robes. Without drawing any talismans, he began to fold it. Old Mo and I looked on in confusion, having never seen such a thing. We both moved closer to see what Yunqing Zhenren was folding. However, no matter how we looked, what Yunqing Zhenren was folding resembled a paper frog.
Yunxia Gu, seeing our bewilderment, spoke from the side. "This is a rather advanced Taoist technique, known as the Paper Frog Breaking Realm method..."
"Paper Frog Breaking Realm method? Yunxia Gu, how is this technique performed?" I continued to ask. Before Yunxia Gu could reply, Yunqing Zhenren held the paper frog in his hand and answered directly. "Humans have seven emotions and six desires, with eyes, nose, mouth, and ears. Those malevolent spirits can exploit these characteristics to deceive us. But the paper frog in my hand cannot be deceived. This thing has no life, no emotions. It is merely a paper talisman with an incantation. In a moment, when we cast the spell, the paper frog will jump, and we will follow it to successfully escape this demonic miasma."
Yunqing Zhenren spoke with utmost confidence. Old Mo and I listened intently. This was another advanced paper-folding Taoist technique, making us both eager to witness it. The Nine Craftsmen of the Yin Gate were each mysterious in their own way, but the Paper Craftsman ranked first among them. This was enough to illustrate their prowess. This folded paper frog was a rather advanced technique within paper craftsmanship, likely lost to the outside world. Only venerable sects with thousands of years of heritage and profound foundations might grasp even a fragment of it. Today, we would have a chance to broaden our horizons.
Subsequently, we saw Yunqing Zhenren use a branch to draw a Bagua on the ground. He placed the paper frog in the center of the Bagua and began forming hand seals, chanting incantations under his breath. Finally, he narrowed his eyes and uttered in a low voice, "Left Qian eight directions, right Kun six earths. Brightness within, soul-snatching without. Golden toad leads the way, all evil shall not pass. Lin, Bing, Dou, Zhe, all arrayed and moving forward, spirit grasping!"
As the incantation concluded, Yunqing Zhenren pointed his finger, shaped like a sword, at the paper frog within the Bagua. The Bagua pattern on the ground instantly flashed. The paper frog, crouching in the center, opened its mouth. It also emitted a "croak," a deep toad's call. Immediately, a miraculous scene unfolded. The paper frog folded from yellow paper, with a push of its legs, jumped forward. This jump covered a distance of over two meters. And with each jump, it emitted a "croak." Old Mo and I were stunned. It was made of yellow paper, yet it could croak and jump like a real frog. This paper-folding skill, this Taoist sorcery, was truly magnificent!
While we were in awe, Yunqing Zhenren was already leading the way. "Follow the paper frog quickly, we will leave the demonic miasma soon..." With that, Yunqing Zhenren dashed forward. We also nodded repeatedly and quickly followed. The yellow paper frog croaked incessantly as it jumped faster and faster, turning left and right. We kept pace without pause, closely following behind. After about two to three minutes, the yellow paper frog lunged directly into a dense, unbroken row of bamboo. And miraculously, as the yellow paper frog touched the bamboo, the surface rippled like water. Yunqing Zhenren narrowed his eyes, a smile appearing. "The exit is here!" With that, he stepped forward. Like the yellow paper frog, he too passed into the dense row of bamboo...