I was a mineral prospector in Chengdu, who transmigrated into the body of a mortal sword immortal.

Li Bai stood by the pool, the clear water reflecting the hazy light filtering through the cracks in the cave ceiling, and also his own pale yet resolute face. The wound on his leg still throbbed, but compared to the hope brought by the breaking of the shackles and the return of his spiritual power, this pain was bearable. He looked down at the dark opening underwater, bubbles rising in strings from the depths, making soft popping sounds as they burst, like a silent invitation. Climbing the crack was almost impossible, and the underwater passage, though fraught with unknown risks, was currently the most likely path to freedom. He took a deep breath, sheathed the Azure Lotus Sword in his dantian, and began checking the remaining strips of cloth on his body for sturdiness, searching for vines inside the cave that might be used for fixation or support. His life or death depended on what path lay hidden underwater.

He crouched down and reached his hand into the pool.

The water was cold, carrying the piercing chill unique to underground. My fingertips touched the edge of the cave entrance; it was smooth, slippery rock. The entrance wasn't large, barely enough for one person to pass through, and the water flowed out with a steady thrust.

Li Bai did not immediately go into the water.

He closed his eyes and slowly circulated the ten percent of spiritual energy he had just recovered throughout his body, especially his legs and lungs. The spiritual energy flowed through his meridians, bringing a faint warmth, dispelling some of the chill, and further relieving the pain in his wounds. He adjusted his breathing, allowing his heartbeat to gradually slow down, entering a rhythm almost like a turtle's breath—this was the "Breath-Holding Technique" from the basic Shu Mountain cultivation method, which allowed him to remain underwater for longer periods.

Then, he opened his eyes and his gaze fell on the vines hanging down the cave wall.

These vines, some as thick as a wrist, had grown for countless years, their bark rough and tough. Li Bai used his Green Lotus Sword to cut off the longest vine, about two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters) long. He tied one end of the vine securely to his waist, and the other end to a protruding rock by the pool. This was for safety; if the underwater passage turned out to be a dead end or too complicated, he could still follow the vine back the way he came.

Having made these preparations, Li Bai took another deep breath.

This time, he took a deep, slow breath, filling his lungs with the air of the cave, thick with the scent of moss and earth. Then, he leaped into the pool.

"Thump—"

Water splashed up, and ripples spread out.

The icy water instantly enveloped his entire body, the biting cold causing Li Bai's muscles to tense. But he didn't stop; his spiritual energy circulated rapidly within him to resist the cold. Like a fish, he swiftly submerged, swimming towards the dark cave entrance.

The inside of the cave appeared more spacious than the outside, but the current was noticeably stronger. Li Bai entered against the current, feeling the water pushing against his body; the resistance was considerable. He used both hands and feet, groping his way forward in the narrow passage.

The passage is sloping downwards.

The further he went, the dimmer the light became, until finally he was completely plunged into darkness. Only the rushing water echoed in his ears, along with the dull thumping of his own heartbeat. Li Bai opened his eyes wide, but could see nothing. He could only rely on touch and his spiritual senses to orient himself.

The passage was not straight, but winding and turning, sometimes to the left and sometimes to the right. The rock walls were slippery and covered with slimy algae. Occasionally, one could touch some hard-shelled aquatic creatures, which would quickly retreat into the crevices when startled.

Time becomes blurred in the darkness.

Li Bai didn't know how long he had been swimming, but the air in his lungs began to feel scorching, and a suffocating pressure came from his chest. He estimated that, with the support of his breath-holding technique, he could probably hold on for about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea.

Just then, he sensed that the direction of the water flow ahead had changed.

The downward trend has begun to level off, and there's even a faint sense of an upward trend?

Li Bai's heart skipped a beat, and he quickened his pace to swim forward.

Sure enough, the passage began to slope upwards. Moreover, he keenly sensed an extremely faint airflow mixed in with the water—not from behind, but from the front!

There's air!

This discovery greatly invigorated Li Bai. Following the direction of the airflow, he continued forward in the darkness. The passage grew narrower, sometimes requiring him to squeeze through sideways. The algae on the rock walls gradually diminished, replaced by dry mud and sand.

After swimming for about ten more zhang, a fork in the road suddenly appeared ahead.

Two passageways, one on the left and one on the right.

The passage on the left continues upwards, with shallow water that barely reaches your ankles. The passage on the right slopes downwards, with deeper water and no sense of airflow.

Li Bai chose the left side without hesitation.

He scrambled to the surface, finding himself in a semi-aquatic passage. The bottom was damp mud and gravel, while the dry rock walls were covered with shade-loving ferns. Most importantly, there was air! Fresh, cool air flowed slowly from the depths of the passage, carrying the scent of earth and vegetation.

Li Bai took deep breaths, the burning sensation in his lungs gradually subsiding. He untied the vines from his waist—they were no longer long enough, but they weren't needed now. He discarded the vines aside and began to climb upwards along the passage.

The passage was steep, requiring the use of both hands and feet. The wounds on his legs were aggravated as he crawled, sending sharp pains through him, but Li Bai gritted his teeth and endured it. He crawled slowly and steadily, making sure each step was firmly planted before moving forward.

The higher you go, the drier the passage becomes, and the fresher the air gets.

After climbing for about half an incense stick's time, a hazy light suddenly appeared ahead.

It wasn't the faint light from the cracks in the cave ceiling, but a softer, more hazy light, like moonlight shining through some kind of obstruction.

At the same time, a sound was heard.

It was faint, distant, yet clearly audible—the cry of a night bird.

"Coo-coo—coo-coo—"

It's an owl.

Li Bai's heart began to pound.

The call of the night bird means that he is very, very close to the ground!

He quickened his pace, climbing towards the light. The passage leveled out here, eventually becoming a damp slope. At the end of the slope was a jumbled pile of rubble and dirt, blocking most of the exit, leaving only a narrow gap barely wide enough for a person to crawl through.

The light was coming in through the crack.

Li Bai climbed to the crevice, carefully pried open a few loose stones, and peered out through the crack.

It was night outside.

A few sparse stars hung in the deep blue sky, and a crescent moon hid behind thin clouds, casting a dim, pale light. He saw swaying tree shadows, saw wild grass undulating in the night wind, and saw in the distance... a majestic, crouching black silhouette.

That's the city wall of Chang'an.

He really came out!

Li Bai took a deep breath, suppressing his excitement. He didn't climb out immediately, but instead lay prone in the crack, listening carefully to the sounds outside.

The sounds of wind, grass rustling, insects chirping, and the faint barking of dogs in the distance.

There were no footsteps, no human voices.

This place seems to be very remote.

He then carefully widened the gap and crawled out of the well-disguised exit—a partially collapsed burial mound.

A night breeze immediately swept over my face.

A chill settled in, carrying the coolness of early autumn, along with the scents of earth, withered grass, and a faint, almost imperceptible aroma of humus. A breeze brushed against his cheek, bringing a long-lost sense of freedom. Li Bai stood beside the grave mound, surveying his surroundings.

This is a mass grave.

The moonlight was dim, barely enough to make out the surroundings. New and old graves were scattered among the weeds, some with crooked wooden plaques, others just mounds of earth. Bare trees stretched their jagged branches in the night, night birds perched on their branches, their eyes reflecting a ghostly green light. In the distance, the outline of Chang'an stood silently in the night, the lights on the city walls like distant stars.

Li Bai looked down at himself.

His prison clothes were tattered and filthy, covered in mud, bloodstains, and moss, clinging damply to his body and bringing a biting chill in the night wind. In this state, let alone entering the city, even being seen in the middle of nowhere would immediately arouse suspicion.

He remembered Duan Qiniang's words.

"Outside the export area...prepared..."

Li Bai immediately began searching around the burial mound.

He moved very quietly and carefully, trying not to make a sound. The soil in the mass grave was soft, and his footsteps made almost no noise. Behind the grave mound, in a thick clump of weeds, he found a small bundle tightly wrapped in oilcloth.

The burden wasn't big, but it was heavy.

Li Bai took the bundle to a place where the moonlight was slightly brighter and untied the oilcloth.

Inside, neatly folded, was a set of coarse cloth clothes—a gray short-sleeved shirt, black trousers, and a pair of thick-soled cloth shoes. The clothes were old, but very clean, and unmarked. Inside the bundle was a small cloth bag; opening it revealed a few loose silver coins and dozens of copper coins, as well as a folded piece of hemp paper stamped with a faded official seal—a travel permit to leave the city, bearing a false name and simple identification information.

At the very bottom, there was a small note.

The handwriting on the note was delicate and familiar; it was Duan Qiniang's handwriting. It consisted of only one short line:

"Change your clothes and leave quickly. There's a note under the locust tree; someone will come to meet you."

As Li Bai looked at these words, a complex mix of emotions welled up within him. Gratitude, guilt, and a touch of indescribable warmth. Duan Qiniang… the first woman he met after his rebirth, this seemingly worldly woman who was actually deeply loyal and devoted, had done so much for him.

There's no time to think about it anymore.

Li Bai quickly took off his filthy, damp, and cold prison clothes and changed into clean, coarse cloth garments. The fabric was rough, but dry and warm, instantly dispelling the chill. The shoes fit perfectly, as if they had been made especially for him. He rewrapped the prison clothes and fragments of shackles in oilcloth, stuffed them deep into the crevice of the collapsed grave mound, and covered them with soil and pebbles.

After doing all this, he looked again at Chang'an City in the distance.

Chang'an in the night was still majestic and prosperous—at least from the distant lights. There lay his memories of poetry and wine, of his fleeting encounter with Yang Guifei, as well as the darkness of the prison, the coldness of shackles, and the despair of slow slicing.

Mixed feelings.

But now is not the time for sentimentality.

Li Bai withdrew his gaze, carefully tucking the travel permit and money pouch into his robes. He took one last look at the exit of the grave mound that had rescued him, then turned and walked towards the edge of the mass grave.

According to the note, the rendezvous point should be under a locust tree.

There were indeed a few old trees at the edge of the mass grave, standing like silent guardians in the dim moonlight. Li Bai lightened his steps, concealed his aura, and circulated his newly recovered spiritual energy to his eyes and ears to enhance his perception.

He quickly found the locust tree.

It was an old locust tree, at least a hundred years old, with a thick trunk and a canopy that cast large, dark shadows in the night. Its roots were gnarled and twisted, with some exposed above the ground.

Li Bai searched carefully near the tree roots.

Soon, he found a triangular marker made of three fist-sized stones in an inconspicuous depression among tree roots, half-hidden by weeds. The stones were ordinary, but their placement and shape were out of place with the surrounding environment, clearly indicating that it was man-made.

found it.

Li Bai felt relieved and was about to step forward.

But the moment he lifted his foot, an extremely subtle, strange sensation pierced his senses like an ice needle.

He immediately stopped, lowered his body, and held his breath.

His gaze, sharp as a sword, swept across the area around the locust tree.

The moonlight was dim, the shadows of the trees swayed, and the wild grass rustled gently in the night breeze. Everything seemed normal.

But that's not right.

Li Bai's gaze fell on the patch of wasteland near the mark.

The direction in which the grass blades are lying down... is somewhat chaotic.

The night wind was blowing from the northwest, and the grass should have been lying flat in the southeast. But near the marker, there were several patches of grass lying flat in a clearly different direction, as if something had trampled them from the side. Moreover, the broken stems of those trampled grasses were still fresh, with the sap still wet.

More than one place.

Li Bai carefully examined the area and found at least three or four such marks, distributed in different locations around the locust tree.

It wasn't left by one person.

At least two or three people had stopped and walked around here not long ago.

Is he the contact person?

Or... pursuers?

Li Bai's heart sank slowly.

If they were the accomplices, why would they linger here and leave so many traces? According to the plan, they should have left markers and waited in a hidden spot nearby, or had a more discreet way of contacting each other.

These traces are more like... reconnaissance and preparation before an ambush.

The night wind grew colder.

A sharp, abrupt hooting sound came from afar.

Li Bai lay motionless in the tall grass. His gaze was fixed on the old locust tree and the seemingly peaceful darkness surrounding it. Spiritual energy flowed slowly within his body, and the Azure Lotus Sword hummed softly in his dantian, ready to be drawn at any moment.

Should we risk going forward to check, or leave immediately?

If they are truly pursuers, they have likely already discovered this rendezvous point and are lying in wait. Moving forward now would be like walking into a trap.

If he were truly the contact, missing him could mean losing his only reliable source of assistance, leaving him to face the imperial court's wanted notice and pursuit alone.

Time passed in silence, and every breath felt long.

Li Bai slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, a resolute glint in his eyes.

He chose to trust his intuition.

Those marks looked too much like a trap.

He can't gamble.

Slowly and silently, Li Bai began to retreat. Each step was firm, avoiding withered branches and pebbles, like the most nimble nocturnal animal, blending into the darkness behind him.

Only after retreating more than twenty paces, completely away from the locust tree and the area that might be under surveillance, did he turn around and start walking in the opposite direction from Chang'an City.

The night was deep, and the road ahead was unknown.

But he had to leave, immediately.