Qi lässt sich leicht weitergeben

Kapitel 5

I chuckled inwardly; it would be strange if the two of them developed an extraordinary romance. However, gossip is a powerful force, and with their parents' fervent search, the rumors of two young lovers eloping would surely spread like wildfire, full of vivid detail.

“A week ago, after they came back from the autumn outing you took them, they often gathered together and whispered things to me that they didn’t want me to hear.”

As I said this, I hesitated again about my earlier judgment. Could it be that the two of us, both so careless, had developed subtle feelings for each other while dealing with Erli together that day? Thinking about Xiaoyue and me, we are both introverted. If we hadn't gone through thick and thin together to deal with Tianyizi, how could we have developed feelings for each other?

“Sometimes they also bring a bunch of books, and they even bought a compass. Once I even saw a Swiss Army knife hidden in Xiaohui’s bag.” She told me something new, which gave me a sudden inspiration, but I couldn’t think of where the clue came from.

“I also brought Pearl’s diary. What she said in the following week was very strange.” As she spoke, she took out a pink diary.

---janeadam

Reply [9]: I hesitated for a moment, then took it, inwardly smiling bitterly, because I often tell my students that it's illegal to read someone else's diary, and the people they should be most wary of are their parents, as they often mean well but do more harm than good. But now—

“Teacher, I know it’s wrong to read my child’s diary, but I still pried open her drawer to save her,” she said, trying to comfort me.

I had no choice but to flip to the diary entries for the next seven days.

"Saturday, November 5th, sunny, with a sudden downpour at noon. In the morning, led by Teacher Luo, we went to Jianqi Valley in Taoyuan Village for an adventure... We went up the stream in groups of five to collect specimens. Suddenly, I smelled a faint floral fragrance above the water. Xiao Hui smelled it too and said it was the fragrance of peach blossoms, but A Yuan objected, saying it was late autumn and there couldn't be any peach blossoms in bloom. But I also thought Xiao Hui was right, so the two of us secretly discussed going to explore the upper reaches of Peach Blossom Stream."

What excuse could we use? Xiao Hui, that idiot and fool, racked his brains for a long time before finally saying he needed to pee! What a ridiculous idea! How embarrassing! But we couldn't think of anything better, so we played rock-paper-scissors. I lost, so I suggested he walk with me. We walked for about twenty minutes, and just as we were about to turn back, we smelled an even stronger floral fragrance. We ran towards it, rounded a hill, and were utterly astonished.

I was also taken aback when I saw this, because the source of the stream was an underground river, and the entire source gushed out from a small cave. There was an inexplicable magnetic field floating inside the cave, which could cause hallucinations. So when I went in for a while, the magnetic field caused a certain fluctuation with my spiritual energy, making me dizzy, so I quickly came out.

After the battle with the mountain spirit and the bird-eared creature, I realized that it was the one pulling the strings.

"The entire stream surged out of the cave, it was so spectacular! The teacher knew there was such a beautiful sight, why didn't he tell us?" On a whim, Xiao Hui rolled up his trousers and waded into the cave, and then I went in too. After walking for five minutes, the view before me was something I'll never forget!

They wrote a paragraph later, but then completely crossed it out, only adding the sentence, "What's written is less than a fraction of the truth," and then nothing more, just like some online writers who like to keep readers in suspense. What I find strange is that they can actually walk in safely for five minutes and come out unscathed.

"After we came out, a sudden gale arose, dark clouds gathered, and the weather changed color. We didn't know what had happened, so we quickly ran back the way we came..." I know what happened after that.

In the later entries of my diary, I specifically listed information about a mysterious plan because I felt their disappearance was related to it.

"On Monday, November 7th, while the plan was underway, we had an argument about whether or not to tell the teacher. Xiaohui insisted that the teacher couldn't know, otherwise the whole thing would fall apart. I also thought he had a point. Even though the teacher might seem a bit eccentric at times, she's actually very careful and cautious. I was just a little uneasy."

"On November 8th, I borrowed a camera and bought two rolls of film. Xiaohui said it might not be enough, but it still cost me a week's allowance. At the same time, I showed him my ghost friend Lin Caixia, which almost scared him to death. This guy may look big, but he's actually a scaredy-cat!"

"On November 9th, we borrowed a compass and a Swiss Army knife. Xiao Hui secretly got the Swiss Army knife from his cousin, saying that he would return it when his cousin came back in a week. In addition, we prepared plenty of dry food and bought band-aids, insect repellent ointment, etc., but in such a beautiful place, it was completely unnecessary."

"On the evening of November 10th, we took stock of our equipment for the trip and made predictions about other unforeseen events. This is what Teacher Luo taught us... If successful, it will be a great cultural discovery for China, and our names will be recorded in history. Just thinking about it makes us overjoyed! We can't calm down!"

The diary entry ends abruptly here, followed by a copy of "The Peach Blossom Spring":

During the Taiyuan era of the Jin Dynasty, a fisherman from Wuling made his living by fishing. He followed a stream and forgot how far he had gone. Suddenly, he came upon a peach grove that stretched for several hundred paces along both banks. There were no other trees in the grove, only fragrant grasses and fallen petals.

The fisherman was greatly surprised. He continued forward, wanting to explore the forest to its end. At the end of the forest, he found the source of the stream and a mountain. The mountain had a small opening, seemingly emitting light. He abandoned his boat and entered the opening. At first, it was extremely narrow, barely wide enough for a person to pass through. After walking several dozen paces, it suddenly opened up into a bright and spacious place, with well-arranged houses. There were fertile fields, beautiful ponds, mulberry trees, and bamboo groves. The paths crisscrossed, and the sounds of chickens and dogs could be heard. The people there went about their daily work, and the men and women dressed just like outsiders. The elderly and children alike were all enjoying themselves. When they saw the fisherman, they were greatly surprised and asked where he came from. He answered them in detail. They invited him to their homes, preparing wine and killing a chicken for a meal. When the villagers heard of this man, they all came to inquire. They said that their ancestors had fled the chaos of the Qin Dynasty, leading their wives, children, and fellow villagers to this secluded place, never to leave again, thus becoming isolated from the outside world. When asked what dynasty it was, they knew nothing of the Han Dynasty, let alone the Wei and Jin Dynasties. The fisherman told them everything he knew, and they all sighed in regret. The others then invited him to their homes, where they all offered him food and drink. He stayed for several days before taking his leave. The people there said, "This is not something to be told to outsiders." After leaving, he found his boat and followed the path he had marked at various points. Upon reaching the prefecture, he went to the prefect and told him what had happened. The prefect immediately sent men to follow him, but they lost their way and could not find the path again. Liu Ziji of Nanyang, a man of high moral character, heard of this and eagerly planned to go, but he did not succeed and soon died of illness. Afterwards, no one else inquired about the place.

Although I was still a bit confused, I understood the key point: they were going to Jianqi Valley. They wanted to go to the source of Peach Blossom Stream to find something in the cave that would amaze them.

---janeadam

Reply [10]: Chapter Five Wonderland

When we arrived at Jianqi Valley, it was already 1 p.m.

As soon as I finished my morning classes, I asked the principal for leave, and without even eating lunch, I rushed over as fast as I could. Two students had been missing for two days, and we still didn't know their fate!

Jianqi Valley remains as magnificent as ever, but my mood is quite different. There is a sense of anger in the churning spiritual energy around me, clearly indicating that the mountain spirit and the bird with ears have discovered my arrival again. The sky quickly darkens.

Ignoring the howling wind, I searched the valley thoroughly, but found no trace of it.

I flew to the top of the Hundred-Zhang Cliff, which is 500 meters high, and shouted at the sky: "Ear Bird, you despicable bastard, give me back my students! I know you did it. If they are even slightly harmed, I will make sure you are annihilated and disappear from the spirit world forever!"

The sky roared with thunder, showing no sign of weakness, but it did not attack me first.

I ignored its howling and leaped toward the cave at the exit of Peach Blossom Stream. I had only flown halfway when countless bolts of lightning struck down from nowhere.

I was prepared. As I ran, I held the Phoenix Pendant upwards, then continuously channeled spiritual energy into it. This time, I was desperate. I disregarded the law of conservation of spiritual energy and the severe backlash from its depletion on my body, focusing solely on pouring the energy into the artifact like a tidal wave. In the blink of an eye, lightning arrived, following like a shadow.

Before the phoenix pendant could emit its golden light, lightning struck.

Just as I was about to be struck by lightning, something strange happened: the lightning that was about to hit me was absorbed into the Phoenix Pendant's abdomen.

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The world fell silent for a moment, then the phoenix pendant in my hand shone with a brilliant red light, and a fiery phoenix burst forth, circling above my head, and letting out a clear cry to the bird-like creature in the sky: "Ho—"

The voice carried an indescribable air of contempt and pride.

Everything seemed to return to the scene in Gantian Village, except this time it was summoned by the combined power of me and Erqin.

But when the Fire Phoenix appeared, I became anxious, worried that it would kill the Ear Bird without asking any questions, because it still had two of my students in its grasp.

Fortunately, the Fire Phoenix seemed to know my intentions and did not immediately attack the Ear Bird.

I shouted, "Ear Beast, I'll ask you one more time: where are my students?!"

A sharp, childlike voice immediately rang out from the sky:

"Good lad, you actually have Nuwa's Phoenix Pendant in your hands! Fine, I'm scared of you."

Then, the thickest cloud cluster in the very center of the sky gathered together, forming a small dark shadow, and then quickly fell to the ground.

I remained cautiously on guard, worried that it might try some trick.

A phoenix circled around me.

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