Liu Village sits to the northwest of Fengdu Mountain, which is the ancestral seat of the Pingdu Eight Formations Gate. The sect bases its cultivation on the path of formations, and in that field they’re second to none in the world. Within their sphere of influence, small families who practice formation techniques, like Liu Daoran’s family, are everywhere.

Because of that, the Liu family belongs to the lineage of the Pingdu Eight Formations Gate. They’re not under the control of Gengsang Cave, and they didn’t take part in the Battle of Zhuoshui.

Things are different to the north, on South Aunt Mountain. Even though it’s only eighty li away, it falls on the edge of Gengsang Cave’s territory. Gengsang Cave suffered heavy losses in the fighting and needed more cultivators, so last month they conscripted people around South Aunt Mountain. That’s how Liu Daoran’s good friend, Zhang Daming, was sent off to Zhuoshui.

Liu Daoran’s idea was to seek out this friend. He wanted to see if Zhang Daming had any connections that might help. Even if he didn’t, being on the battlefield meant at least he could gather some news.

After hearing this, Liu Xiaolou hesitated. “To be honest, western Xiang and Badong are already fighting like mad. Liu Daoran, your friend is on Badong’s side. If we ask him for help, there won’t be any problems, will there?”

Liu Daoran waved his hand. “Don’t worry. I’ve thought this through. First, South Aunt Mountain isn’t really part of Gengsang Cave’s core territory. Daming was never close to them, and he was rarely drafted before. He doesn’t have much of a grudge against you folks from western Xiang. Second, he owes me a favor. I’m currently refining a formation disk for him. When we get to Zhuoshui, we can just play it by ear.”

Liu Xiaolou was touched. “Brother Daoran, are you going too?”

Liu Daoran smiled. “If I only send a letter, I’m afraid Brother Daming won’t put in his full effort.”

With things starting to take shape, Liu Xiaolou’s mood improved a lot. His appetite came back, and he wolfed down a hearty meal.

Liu Daoran ate a little with him, then asked about the situation on Jinting Mountain. Knowing Liu Daoran was once again worried about that formation disk, Liu Xiaolou tried to reassure him. “There’s been no news at all, so you can set your mind at ease. Like I said before, who would dare trespass on Fangle Peak? That grand formation could sit there for decades, even a century, without anyone touching it.”

At one point, Liu Daoran wanted to introduce Liu Xiaolou to his wife, but Liu Xiaolou only gave a bitter smile and declined. After all, he’d dragged her husband off to a brothel. How could he have the face to meet her?

So Liu Daoran let it go. Ever since receiving the Bewildering Fragrance Tendon, he had been sincerely grateful to Liu Xiaolou. When their talk turned to formations again, he went over the various Gang Steps for breaking formations with him one more time.

Tigerheaded Dragon slept for another couple of hours. After a big meal at the Liu household, it finally felt fully restored, clear-headed and energized. The three of them set out at once.

They first headed north to South Aunt Mountain, then another two hundred li northeast, gradually entering the Zhuoshui battlefield. Since they came in through the rear lines of the Badong cultivators, what they saw along the way was all the more striking.

Gengsang Cave is famous for its divine silkworms, and its silkworm gu techniques are known throughout the world. The various methods that branch out from them are full of mystery. Silkworms, silkworm venom, silken threads, silkworm gu, and even all kinds of snakes and insects left Liu Xiaolou and Tigerheaded Dragon deeply astonished.

After being stopped for questioning a few times, the three of them grew even more cautious. Fortunately, Liu Daoran was with them. As a Bashu cultivator, his accent aroused no suspicion. On top of that, he was a formation master from within the sphere of the Pingdu Eight Formations Gate, so Gengsang Cave’s people treated him fairly politely and didn’t make things difficult. That’s how they managed to reach the very heart of Gengsang Cave’s territory.

Ahead, by the river, rose a hundred-zhang peak. This was Xiannü Mountain, the main peak occupied by Gengsang Cave.

On the mountaintop, sword-light flashed back and forth in dazzling bursts. The three dared not press further in. Liu Xiaolou and Tigerheaded Dragon slipped into the deep forest to hide, while Liu Daoran went to track down Zhang Daming. After more than two hours, he returned with someone.

The man had a headscarf wound tight around his head and a rugged, intimidating look. In fact, he even resembled Tigerheaded Dragon, more like a body cultivator or perhaps a martial artist from the jianghu. He looked nothing at all like the “master of gu and poison” Liu Daoran had described.

This was Liu Daoran’s friend, Zhang Daming.

Zhang Daming was at the eighth layer of Qi Refinement, and he spoke in a straightforward way. “Daoran and I are close friends. Since he’s the one asking, I’ll definitely find a way to help. That said, the two of you daring to come deep into enemy territory to save someone is impressive, I’ll give you that. But admiration aside, the proper price still has to be paid.”

Liu Xiaolou understood the rules. “Name your price, brother. I’ll do my best to meet it.”

Zhang Daming said, “For Brother Daoran’s sake, I’ll only charge you eighteen spirit stones. Eighteen spirit stones for a life, it’s steep, but this isn’t an ordinary situation. In normal times, rescuing a low-level cultivator in early Qi Refinement would only cost three to five stones. But right now we’re in the middle of a war, and one wrong move could cost me my head.”

Liu Xiaolou nodded. “I understand.”

Liu Daoran spoke up beside him. “Daming, precisely because it’s wartime, there’s more room to take advantage of the chaos. Besides, I’m still making you that formation disk. Don’t count that in spirit stones.”

Zhang Daming let out a hearty laugh. “Well, the risks are high… but fine. Since Brother Daoran says so, let’s make it twelve. I can’t pull this off alone anyway; I’ll need helpers, and spirit stones will smooth the way.”

They agreed then and there to settle at twelve spirit stones. The four of them huddled together to discuss the plan. In the end, they decided Zhang Daming would break the prisoner out of the dungeon and deliver him to the foot of the mountain. From there, Liu Xiaolou and the others would take care of getting him away.

Was it really that easy to break someone out? Liu Xiaolou had his doubts, but seeing how confident Zhang Daming sounded, he held his tongue. Right away he took out twelve spirit stones and handed them over. Zhang Daming accepted them and told the group to wait until nightfall to receive their man.

As he left, he added, “Once I get him out, we don’t know each other. If you get exposed, as long as you don’t resist, Gengsang Cave won’t just kill you for nothing. So when the time comes, don’t say anything reckless. That way we can keep rescuing people in the future. Otherwise, we all go down together.”

The words were plain enough, and they made sense. Liu Xiaolou answered without hesitation, “Don’t worry, Brother Zhang. We know the rules.”

Zhang Daming really did have a way. He had a connection; one of the cultivators assigned to guard the western Xiang prisoners. That was the main card he had to play.

The war had dragged on for over half a year, and Gengsang Cave had captured more than forty cultivators from western Xiang. All of them had been bound with Eightfold Restriction Cords and locked up beneath Wangfu Cliff on the western side of Xiannü Mountain. The place was well hidden, shielded by the mountain itself, and deep inside Gengsang Cave’s territory. For the Zhanglong Sect, mounting a rescue was nearly impossible. But sometimes things that look impossible can turn out to be effortless, if you have the right person.

After casting a glance at the cave where the western Xiang captives were held, Zhang Daming headed to a nearby hut and greeted the two rogue cultivators standing guard. “Where’s my third uncle?” he asked.

Someone behind him called out, "Daming's here?"

Zhang Daming hurriedly led the man to a quiet corner, pulled four spirit stones from his robes, and handed them over.

Zhang Daming's Third Uncle was the same age as him, but he had already reached the tenth layer of Qi refinement. As one of the leaders, he was in charge of holding the prisoners. He took the spirit stones. "Who is it this time?" he asked.

"A young cultivator, surname Su," Zhang Daming said. "His name was something like Jing or maybe Jeng, I can't remember which character."

"Those western Xiang thieves never tell the truth," Third Uncle replied. "How are we supposed to know what they call themselves?"

Zhang Daming added, "Under twenty, cultivation at the fifth layer, about this tall. Oh, and a small mole in the center of his brow, slightly toward the right eye."

Third Uncle nodded. "Got it, but we'll have to wait."

"Why?" Zhang Daming asked.

"We had a corpse ready," Third Uncle said, "but we used it two days ago. We'll have to find another one."

Zhang Daming forced a smile. "It's kind of urgent, Third Uncle."

Third Uncle gave him a look. "Who isn't?"

Zhang Daming said, "The fighting's about to stop..."

Third Uncle frowned, thought for a moment, then said, "Go dig up that corpse and see if it can be used again."