I am about to die of old age, and I have awakened the character of longevity.

Chapter 153 We meet again, just like before!
Yuhe looked at the huge tree stump on the ground, and then looked at Xie An... her eyes were full of shock.

This tree stump was so thick it took a person to hug it, and it was underwater, with a well-developed root system. Pulling it out was quite difficult. Yu He had tried before, using her fifth-level internal energy, but had failed.

Unexpectedly, the master made a move... and succeeded immediately.

"Master is awesome!"

Surprised, Yu He quickly put away the two spirit tablets and the wrapped ice marrow. Just as she was about to carry the tree stump, a hand reached out and grasped it.

"I'll do the rough work of carrying the tree stump."

Xie An put a little effort into carrying the tree stump on his shoulders, then led the way into the passage under the shrine.

Except for the narrow entrance, the space becomes wider after walking about ten meters, enough for an adult to walk while bending over.

Furthermore, the passage winds upwards, and the humidity on both sides of the stone walls decreases as you go higher, and the temperature becomes higher and higher.

All signs indicate that this passage can be used to exit.

Xie An and Yuhe quickened their pace and stared ahead with wide eyes, with deep anticipation in their eyes.

They have been trapped here for four years, and finally they can get out...

The closer you get to hope, the more excited and nervous you become.

Yuhe, in particular, was even muttering something like "Buddha bless you", hoping that the passage would be blocked again.

Although Xie An appeared calm and tried to comfort Yu He, he was actually quite worried.

If this passage is also blocked, we will be trapped underground to death.

Even Mingyu's magical power of the Eighteen Sections could not penetrate the rock layer that was a hundred meters thick.

After walking for about two quarters of an hour, the passage ahead became wider. I could walk upright without hunching over, and my muscles and bones were greatly stretched.

Finally, after turning a corner, a ray of light came in.

Yuhe looked in the direction of the light, and at the end fifty meters away... was a cave entrance.

She could no longer suppress her excitement and was overjoyed: "Master, that's the exit! The exit!"

Xie An breathed a sigh of relief, "Let's go out and breathe some fresh air."

He carried the tree root and led the way. With every step forward, he felt the light around him become brighter, and in his heart he felt that he was closer to freedom.

This feeling made Xie An feel particularly comfortable.

Only when you have been in darkness and despair, and felt that kind of hysterical despair... can you feel how exciting it is to see the sunshine and freedom.

Finally, we reached the cave entrance.

Xie An threw the stump out first, then half moved to the side, "Yuhe, you go up first."

Yuhe was stunned, not knowing why Xie An did that.

Xie An explained, "In the past four years, you've suffered more and faced more torment than I have. The first ray of sunshine should fall on you."

Yuhe instinctively wanted to refuse, but Xie An pulled her back. She was stubborn and had to be the first to climb out of the cave.

Xie An climbed out of the cave and was immediately bathed in bright sunlight, a bit blinding but warm. He could also hear birds chirping around him.

The glaring sunlight made Xie An very uncomfortable. He closed his eyes and lay on the ground at the entrance of the cave in a big letter shape, listening to the birds singing and cicadas chirping, and smelling the fragrance of flowers.

The sunlight falls on the skin, warm and numb.

All this made Xie An feel intoxicated, peaceful and tranquil.

It took Xie An a long time to get used to the strong light. He slowly opened his eyes and found Yuhe sitting next to him, hugging her knees with her hands, burying her head in them, sobbing slightly, and her body trembling.

Xie An saw it with his own eyes, but felt pain in his heart.

Four whole years!

Yuhe guarded herself in that dark and hopeless place for four whole years!

Faced with despair and torment every day.

Life like that is worse than death.

This is especially devastating for a woman who is only in her twenties.

Now that I'm finally out and free, it's no wonder I'm a little emotionally drained.

Xie An knew that Yuhe had a harder time than he did.

After all, Xie An's four years of seclusion felt like just a few days spent in Daoist sutras. His feelings about the torment brought by time were not as profound as Yu He's.

Xie An sat up, slowly reached out his hand, and gently stroked Yuhe's head, "Yuhe, don't cry, you are all free."

Yuhe wiped her tears, then uttered a loud "hmm," and soon broke into laughter. "Let's go down the mountain and find a place to have a good meal... No, we have to change our clothes first. This is so ugly."

Xie An was in a good mood. "Then let's go down the mountain to change clothes, take a bath, and then have a good meal."

He picked up the stump and prepared to leave when something struck him. He lowered his head and looked around. Sure enough, he saw footprints and tracks at the entrance of the cave. Although a long time had passed, they still left subtle traces.

Yuhe came over to take a look. "Why are there handprints and footprints together... Did that woman crawl out?"

"That's probably it." Xie An's face was solemn, and he had a rough guess in his mind: this old woman Jin was indeed a great figure in her life, and could have been revived. But because he had sucked away all the immortal energy from the woman, she was forced to revive miserably.

Without the nourishment of immortal energy, the woman became extremely weak. That's why she chose to crawl out of the passage... rather than attack herself.

This makes sense.

What a pity is... that old lady Jin ran away.

I don’t know if she has other ways to recover her strength after running away, or if she will endanger the surrounding villages and towns after running away.

An old monster who was born four hundred years ago ran away alive... Xie An always felt that it was not a good thing.

Yu He also felt a great deal of pressure. "I remember the young lady specifically asked me to keep an eye out for an old creature in the Corpse Refining Hall. Maybe it's this thing... Let's go down the mountain first. After a couple of days of rest, I'll go ask the young lady. She's sure she knows the identity of this woman."

Xie An thought about it and couldn't think of a better way, so he nodded and agreed, "Let's go down the mountain first."

Not only were they wearing tattered clothes, they were also smelly and extremely uncomfortable. If anyone saw them, they would think they were two savages... Naturally, they had to go down and clean themselves up before making any other plans.

After walking a few steps, Xie An saw countless coffins arranged in a circle around him. Although most of the coffins were broken and the lids were missing, it was still shocking.

"Is this the forbidden cemetery that once belonged to the Corpse Refining Hall?"

"Yes. The roar we heard earlier in the ancestral hall came from here. Later, we encountered seventy or eighty crystal corpses rushing in... I guess those crystal corpses also came from here, lying in these coffins, and were awakened by something that night."

Xie An couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.

The scene that night is still vivid in my mind.

That night, the Nanyang Demon Suppression Division had already arrived, and Xie An could hear the sounds of fighting. He only needed to wait a little longer to be rescued.

The reason they were forced into that secret passage was because seventy or eighty crystal corpses suddenly appeared...

Unexpectedly, those crystal corpses actually crawled out of the coffins here.

Xie An carefully counted the number of coffins around him.

More than four hundred.

In other words, more than 400 crystal corpses ran out from here!

One crystal corpse is equivalent to a martial artist with the fourth level of internal energy. More than four hundred...even a martial arts master would have a hard time dealing with it, right?

It was conceivable that not only were Yuhe and I in dire straits, but the Demon Suppression Division on the periphery was also facing a ferocious battle. Perhaps even worse than what Yuhe and I faced.

Thinking of this, Xie An couldn't help but sigh.

Yu He naturally thought of what Xie An was thinking, and was worried and melancholy, "I wonder if the young lady is okay..."

Xie An couldn't help but feel a little worried about Su Yuqing.

Although this woman was thoughtful and cunning, Xie An still had a good impression of her after spending several years with her. Moreover, she had been very helpful to him, so he did not want Su Yuqing to get into trouble.

The two men's joy at having escaped death was largely diluted by these worries. They said nothing more and hurried on their way.

Beyond the cemetery is a mass grave.

After passing the mass grave, we arrived at the Corpse Refining Hall.

Xie An had been to this place before and was quite familiar with it.

But the situation we see now is very different from what it was before.

Almost all the houses had been burned down and collapsed, and the entire Corpse Refining Hall had been razed to the ground. A large amount of weeds had grown on the ruins, and some trees had grown to more than ten meters high.

Where is there any hope?

Walking through the ruins, one could vaguely see blood stains on the stones on the ground.

All signs indicate that a very brutal battle took place here.

The result was obvious—the Corpse Refining Hall was completely uprooted. Xie An said, "It seems that the battle four years ago ended with your young lady's victory. She should be fine."

Yuhe nodded, "Let's go down the mountain quickly. We'll find out when we go to the Demon Suppression Room and ask."

The two of them shuttled through the Corpse Refining Hall and walked towards the outside of the village.

We didn't see a single living person along the way. The miasma that had been lingering in the air had dissipated, and the vegetation in the fields was growing beautifully. Birds chirped and flowers bloomed everywhere.

Just as they were about to leave the camp, Yuhe and Xie An heard voices approaching, so they stopped at the same time, looked at each other, then hid behind a large camphor tree and looked ahead vigilantly.

Yu He pulled out her dagger and whispered, "It might be the evildoer from the Corpse Refining Hall that hasn't been eliminated."

Xie An agreed with this and gripped the hilt of his sword tightly. He stared ahead, ready to draw his sword and kill the evildoer at any time.

With Xie An and Yu He's current strength, they wouldn't have to worry about encountering a few crystal corpses. They were just afraid that the other side would be outnumbered, so they hid and observed for a while.

Not long after, two footsteps were heard.

Xie An saw two young men coming towards him, sweating profusely. One was carrying a hoe and the other was carrying a shovel. They also had ropes, leather water bottles, and other things hanging on their bodies.

He looked like a tomb robber.

When they reached the ruins, they each picked up a hoe and shovel and began to dig the soil and move the stones, making a "ping pong pong" sound.

The two men dug the soil and moved the stones in a very methodical manner, leaving no inch of land untouched, conducting a carpet search.

Because of the hot weather, both of their skins were dried out and their clothes were soaked with sweat, but they never stopped.

"Hezi, we've been digging here for over a month. It will take another half a year to dig up the entire corpse refining hall. Why don't you go marry Chunlan first? Madam Li won't have many days left. If she dies, Chunlan may not stay in the Li Mansion. She'll either become a maid in another family or find other ways to make a living, such as washing clothes or doing odd jobs. How can you bear to do that? It's the same if you marry her and then come back to find a master. It won't delay anything."

These two people were naturally Han Li and He Chunli. Han Li turned over the big rock with his bare hands while giving advice.

He Chunli stubbornly said, "I know what you're saying, but I can't get over the fact that I haven't found my master. Even if my master is truly gone, I'll still find his body, bury him, and observe three years of mourning for him. Only then will I consider my own affairs."

Han Li knew he couldn't persuade his brother, so he sighed, "It's up to you. My father is gone, and my mother isn't around anymore. Seeing me become a warrior, my other relatives have all come to fawn over me, acting like they're close to me. Before, when my family couldn't make ends meet, I was kicked out when I asked them to borrow a bowl of rice. It wasn't very meaningful. I, Han Li, am all alone, and I only recognize Master as my family. I can afford the time. At most, I can spend a year digging this place up by myself."

He Chunli sighed and wiped his eyes. "Stop those sentimental words and come help me. We have to dig up this area today. We also have to be on guard against the demon-suppressing guards patrolling the mountain. If we get caught, we'll at least get a beating. A beating and scolding is fine, but I'm afraid if I get caught, I won't have the chance to come here to see my master anymore."

"Here we go. I'll count to one, two, three, and we'll all push together."

"One, two, three, exert force."

The two of them moved the huge rocks together and continued to dig the soil and dig the mountain.

Xie An, standing behind the big camphor tree, saw and heard everything clearly.

Seeing the two apprentices working with sweat on their foreheads, I was deeply moved.

Did not expect ah.

It's been four years.

These two disciples are still thinking about their master.

Yuhe, who was standing by, took out a washed handkerchief and handed it to Xie An.

Xie An shook his head and walked out.

"Someone!"

"Remnant of the Corpse Refining Hall! Look out for the sword!"

Han Li and He Chunli became alert immediately when they heard the footsteps approaching. They threw away their hoes, drew their swords, and chopped at Xie An fiercely.

Han Li practiced swordsmanship, a long, gleaming sword so heavy and massive that its impact was unstoppable, displaying the extraordinary strength of the Iron Bone Realm. He Chunli, on the other hand, practiced broadswords, whose power was even greater than Han Li's swordsmanship.

What's more, when they saw a ragged guy suddenly appear in front of them, his whole body was in line with the characteristics of a demon. They attacked without thinking.

Bang!
Xie An was not at all panicked. He raised his hands and stretched them forward with his bare hands, holding the sword blade in one hand and the knife tip in the other.

Such a small attack was just a tickle to Xie An.

But Han Li and He Chunli were terribly shocked. They tried to draw back their swords, but found they couldn't, as if their swords were clamped by two huge iron pliers.

Han Li shouted, "He's a master who can catch a blade with his bare hands. We can't beat him. Hezi, drop your weapons and run away."

Although He Chunli was stubborn, he knew that he could not force his way into a life-or-death situation, so he dropped his weapon and ran away with Han Li.

Xie An originally wanted to test the strength of these two disciples, but he didn't expect... they ran away just like that?
But if you think about it, it makes sense.

If you can't win but still try to force your way in, then all your martial arts training will be in vain and your master will have loved you in vain.

Mature.

Seeing the two men running for their lives, Xie An activated his Mingyu Gong and caught up with them in one step.

Xie An was shocked by the speed.

After blocking the two disciples' path, Xie An wanted to test them again. He threw his sword to the ground fiercely and said, "How can you come to the forbidden area of ​​​​the Corpse Refining Hall? Tell me, what are you doing here?"

Seeing no way to escape, Han Li and the other two panicked, but quickly regained their composure. Han Li took a step forward, blocking He Chunli behind him. "We're here to find our master. We have no intention of offending your sect."

Well, he is calm when encountering problems, speaks in a very polite manner, and has a bit of the air of a wanderer.

Xie An felt satisfied in his heart, but a cruel look appeared on his face. "What's your master's name?"

He Chunli stared closely at the young man in front of him, feeling somewhat familiar. However, the man's face was ferocious, so he didn't dare to think too much. He said, "His name is Xie An. He had an accident here four years ago."

Xie An snorted coldly, "It's been four years, why are you still looking for him?"

He Chunli said, "The master treats us well and treats us like his sons. I want to find the master."

After saying this, He Chunli knelt down and said, "If you insist on killing me, please give me six months. I will dig up this land and then surrender my head, regardless of whether I find my master or not."

Han Li also knelt down: "I beg Your Excellency to show mercy."

Looking at the two disciples' resolute faces and rosy eyes, Xie An could no longer test them. "Stand up and speak. Your master already knows what you mean."

The two men did not stand up. The sharp-eyed Han Li asked, "How did you know that my master knew my feelings?"

Under the horrified gazes of the two men, Xie An stood up, walked up to them step by step, and slowly squatted down, "Because I am your master, you two idiots! Open your eyes and take a look."

Hearing this, the two of them suddenly looked up and looked at Xie An in disbelief.

Although Xie An's clothes were ragged, his facial features were indeed very similar to Xie An's. However, he looked much younger than before, and even if one looked closely... it was difficult to confirm that it was the same person.

After all, in the common sense, it is understandable for a face to age. But for an old face to become younger... it is illogical.

Even Han Li and He Chunli, the two closest disciples, stared at Xie An for a long time after he revealed his identity before they dared to confirm that it was the same person.

He Chunli pursed his lips and called out with a choked voice, "Master...!"

He murmured "Master" several times in succession, and finally threw himself into Xie An's arms, hugged Xie An's thighs tightly, and burst into tears.

Han Li restrained his emotions and didn't cry loudly, but his eyes were red. He slowly approached Xie An, hugged Xie An tightly, and called out: "Master!"

Xie An was moved and touched, so he took his two disciples into his arms and patted them on the back of their heads. "Master is here, I'm fine. It's been tough on you two these past four years."

He Chunli shook his head frantically, almost bursting into tears. "It's not hard. As long as Master is safe, that's more important than anything else."

Xie An felt very warmed. "Seeing that you are fine, as your master, I am also relieved. Okay, okay, stop crying. The master sees that you are also warriors of the third level of Iron Bone Realm. There are still people here."

He Chunli stopped sobbing when he heard someone was there. He turned around and saw Yuhe standing under the camphor tree with a smile on her face. The bright sunlight fell on her face, making her delicate skin look crystal clear.

He Chunli's face turned red immediately. She was too embarrassed to cry anymore and just wiped her tears.

In fact, outside, He Chunli was already a martial artist, having seen life and death, killed bandits, and was very powerful. But in front of his master, he just couldn't control his emotions, always feeling like a child who hadn't grown up.

"Master, your clothes are like this. You must have suffered a lot. I just happened to have two sets of clothes in my bag. I plan to stay here for a few days. I'll go get them for you." Han Li slapped his head and hurried off. When he returned, he was carrying a bag. He opened it in front of Xie An. Inside were two sets of clothes, dry pancakes, beef jerky, and other things.

Han Li took out pancakes and beef jerky, along with a leather flask, and placed them on the stone in front of Xie An. "Master, you must be hungry. Eat some coarse food first. When we get to the foot of the mountain, I'll treat you to delicious food and spicy drinks. Then I'll go to the brothel and find two beautiful girls for you to enjoy."

He Chunli kicked Han Li and said, "What are you talking about? Master is a righteous man, why would he go looking for a girl?"

Han Li dodged and snorted, "You have Chunlan by your side, so you're naturally satisfied. But my master and I don't have that."

He Chunli's face flushed red as he glared at Han Li fiercely. He then said to Xie An, "Master, don't listen to his nonsense. Chunlan and I are innocent. We are not as dirty as he says."

Xie An did not reply, but just watched the two people joking with each other, and then looked at the pancakes, beef jerky and other dry food on the stone, thinking that the two people planned to dig the soil here for a long time to find him.

Not long after, Han Li brought over a raccoon, built a fire on the spot, skinned it, and grilled it. "Master, if you're not too hungry, then don't eat the dry food for now. This is a raccoon I killed this morning. I'll grill it for you."

Xie An's eyes suddenly turned red.

It was as if I had returned to New Year's Eve eight years ago, in the backyard of Li's pawnshop, on a snowy night. The three of them, the master and his disciples, were still slaves living under someone else's roof, relying on each other for survival. They gathered around the stove, eating cheap snacks and chatting...

Now we meet again, eight years have passed since then.

Each of them has achieved considerable success and is no longer a slave living under someone else's roof.

However, the friendship between master and disciple has never faded.

(End of this chapter)