My words have become law; I truly have no desire to display my divine power before others.

The main room became even quieter.

Zhao Tieshan frowned slightly, Sun Dayong gripped his trousers tightly at his knees, and Liu Heizi stood up from outside the threshold, walked in, and stood by the table.

Zhou Xiaoqi turned around by the window and looked at Qian Laosan.

Zhao Dazhu's hand holding the bowl trembled slightly.

The elder stopped using his cane.

He raised his head and looked at Qian Laosan with a deep gaze.

Qian Laosan did not evade the question. He looked at the clan elder and said in a low but clear voice, "Clan elder, I have followed you for twenty years. There are some things that you don't tell me, and I don't ask. But today that bear demon has come. With a hundred years of cultivation, only a Martial Saint can deal with it."

If it weren't for that Taoist priest's disciple intervening, our village would be gone today. I want to know, is the venerable Master Lin still alive?

Zhao Tieshan also spoke up: "Elder, Lin Wusheng has been in seclusion for a year. In the past, he would only go into seclusion for a maximum of three months before coming out. He has never been in seclusion for this long."

The villagers are all speculating, but no one dares to ask. The bear demon came today, but he didn't come out. If you know anything, please tell us.

Sun Dayong nodded. Liu Heizi said in a low voice, "We're not trying to force you, we just want to know what to do next."

Zhou Xiaoqi stood by the window and whispered, "Is Old Master Lin Wusheng...already...?"

He didn't finish speaking, but everyone knew what he wanted to say.

The clan elder sat at the head of the table, looking at these people.

His gaze moved from Zhao Tieshan's face to Sun Dayong's face, from Sun Dayong to Qian Laosan, from Qian Laosan to Liu Heizi, from Liu Heizi to Zhou Xiaoqi, and finally landed on Zhao Dazhu's face.

His son kept his head down, not daring to look at him.

The clan elder remained silent for a long time.

So long that the flame of the oil lamp flickered several times, and so long that the shadow on the wall swayed several times.

Then he spoke, his voice low and deep, as if it came from underground.

"Lin Wusheng may no longer be here."

The main room was deathly silent.

Zhao Tieshan's face turned pale, Sun Dayong's hands clenched tighter, Qian Laosan's narrowed eyes suddenly widened, Liu Heizi let out a muffled breath, and Zhou Xiaoqi's mouth opened and then closed again.

The bowl in Zhao Dazhu's hand fell to the ground with a "crash" and shattered, spilling water all over the floor. No one looked down to look.

Zhao Tieshan was the first to come to his senses.

He stood up, walked to the elder, and said in a trembling voice, "Elder, what do you mean by 'maybe'? Are you not sure either?"

The elder shook his head.

"After the grand ceremony last year, he went into a cave, saying he wanted to go into seclusion to break through his cultivation. The cave was locked from the inside and couldn't be opened from the outside."

Every few days I would bring them food, slipping pastries through the small hole. But those pastries were never touched.

Zhao Tieshan's expression darkened further. "Hasn't moved in a year?"

The clan elder nodded.

Zhao Dazhu squatted down to pick up the broken pieces of the bowl. He cut his hand, and blood seeped out, but he ignored it. He just kept his head down and picked up the broken pieces one by one, placing them on the table.

Qian Laosan leaned against the table, his voice a little dry: "Where is that cave? Can you take us to see it?"

The clan elder glanced at him, then at Zhao Tieshan, then at Sun Dayong, then at Liu Heizi, and then at Zhou Xiaoqi.

He stood up, leaning on his cane, and said, "Come with me."

The clan elder walked at the front, his cane tapping on the bluestone slabs, the sound carrying far in the night wind.

Zhao Tieshan followed behind him, followed by Sun Dayong, Qian Laosan, Liu Heizi, and Zhou Xiaoqi, with Zhao Dazhu bringing up the rear.

The group of seven walked through the alley, across the open space in the center of the village, and up the stone steps in front of the ginseng temple, heading towards the back mountain.

The moon has risen; it's not round, a piece is missing, but it's very bright.

The moonlight shone on the mountain path, turning it bluish-white, as if covered with a layer of frost.

The bushes on both sides of the road swayed gently in the night breeze, rustling as if they were saying something.

After walking for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a stone wall appeared in front of them.

The stone wall was covered with vines and thick moss, which gleamed with a faint green light under the moonlight.

The elder walked to the stone wall, stopped, and took a few breaths.

He used his cane to push aside the vines, revealing a flat stone surface. On the stone surface was a small hole, about the size of a fist, dark and black, like the eye of a mountain.

The elder pointed to the small hole and said, "This is it."

Zhao Tieshan walked over, squatted down, put his finger into the small hole, and felt around.

It was empty inside; there was nothing there.

He pulled his hand back and sniffed it near the cave entrance.

A damp, musty smell wafted out; there was no smell of blood or decay, only the hollow scent of a place that had been uninhabited for a long time.

His heart sank.

"Martial Saint Lin!" he called out into the cave. The sound echoed and buzzed behind the stone wall, as if someone was responding from afar, but it was not a human voice, but an echo.

No one answered.

Sun Dayong also went over and shouted into the cave.

no answer.

Qian Laosan, Liu Heizi, and Zhou Xiaoqi took turns calling out, but none of them answered.

Zhao Tieshan stood up and looked at the clan elder: "Clan elder, this hole is bolted from the inside, and it can't be opened from the outside. But we need to know whether Lin Wusheng is inside or not."

The elder looked at him: "How do you want to know?"

Zhao Tieshan paused for a moment, then turned to look at Liu Heizi. "Heizi, you have a keen sense of smell. Smell around in this cave, can you smell any signs of life?"

Liu Heizi nodded, walked to the entrance of the hole, lay down, brought his face close to the small hole, and took a deep breath.

He closed his eyes and remained motionless, like a hunting dog tracking its prey.

After a while, he raised his head, stood up, and took two steps back.

His face looked terrible, and his lips trembled slightly.

"No," he said, his voice muffled.

"There's no sign of life inside. Only stones, only dampness, only..."

He paused for a moment, then said, "Only death."

Zhao Tieshan gripped the hilt of the knife tightly.

Sun Dayong lowered his head.

Qian Laosan closed his eyes.

Zhou Xiaoqi turned around, facing the village below the mountain, her shoulders trembling slightly.

Zhao Dazhu stood at the back, looking at his father's hunched back, wanting to say something, but his throat seemed to be blocked by something, and he couldn't speak.

The clan elder stood there, motionless.

The moonlight shone on his face, making the wrinkles appear even deeper, as if they were carved with a knife.

His eyes were fixed on that small, dark opening for a long time.

Then he spoke, his voice very low, as if he were talking to himself.

"When he left, he was wearing a gray cloth shirt that had been washed until it was almost white. His hair was neatly combed, not a single strand was out of place. He stood here and said to me, 'Brother, I'm going in.'"

I asked, "When are you coming out?" He said, "I'll come out when it's time." I said, "Don't be stubborn." He smiled, didn't say anything, and turned to go inside. Before the stone door closed, he looked back at me. That one look…