Volume One: The Soul-Drawn Gourd and the Flame of Spirit End of Volume One: The Sacred Stone Cave

During the chaotic era of warlord infighting in the 1920s, power grew out of the barrel of a gun. Warlords held their own territories, plunging the country into a living hell of endless warfare, starvation, and slaughter. The very air was thick with the bloody stench of gunpowder. Human life was as cheap as grass, and the selling of children and wives, the constant terror of not knowing if one would survive the day, and the state of humanity as a purgatory were the defining labels of that dark age.

One day at noon, under a cloudless, scorching sun, the heat waves burned the earth. Even the scent in the air felt spicy and hot.

*Clatter, clatter, clatter...*

A troop of over twenty men was struggling through a desolate mountain range in the north. At their head rode a fierce warlord-type bandit, draped in a yellow wool coat and dozing lazily atop a tall horse. Even in the sweltering heat of summer, that yellow wool coat was truly striking. It was unexpected that such a remote mountain area had remained untouched by the smoke of war. It seemed there were benefits to being isolated after all.

The troop marched for about the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn, crossing creeks and pushing through dense forests, until they finally stood before a mottled stone gate. The group stopped and looked up. The massive, eerie stone gate was embedded in a pile of rubble about seven meters high—a seemingly unremarkable mound devoid of flowers or grass. Yet, upon approaching the gate, an unusually chilling air made everyone go silent, as if terrified. In the heat of summer, however, this chill provided a strange sense of comfort.

"Mr. Gu!" the adjutant, dressed in a clean military uniform, called out loudly.

A man dressed in a long gown and carrying a folding fan, riding a donkey backward, slowly approached. He appeared to be in his forties and had a thin frame. His light blue gown, though washed a dozen times, was spotless. His long braid was lightly tinged with white, and he wore round sunglasses on the bridge of his nose. Despite his frail appearance, his features were honest and simple.

Mr. Gu stroked his goatee and, with the help of the adjutant, dismounted from the donkey. He then stepped forward slowly and reached out to touch the stone gate, which was scattered with patches of moss. Although the carvings were blurred, the bespectacled Mr. Gu sensed something amiss. Behind him, the soldiers craned their necks to look but dared not get any closer.

"Sir, this is the place!"

The adjutant returned to the warlord and reported in a booming voice, "Commander, it seems we have finally found the right spot."

The commander twisted his riding whip, and a wanton, unrestrained laugh erupted. "Hahaha!"

The fierce commander dismounted, pushed aside the subordinates who were gawking, and spat on the ground nearby. *Ptooey!* A thick glob of phlegm landed on the earth. He surveyed the gate for a moment, then turned his malicious gaze toward Mr. Gu, smiling sinisterly. "Mr. Gu, you’ll have to have a few drinks with me for this!"

The fragile-looking Mr. Gu could only offer a weak smile.

In a flash, the commander strode forward and ran his white-gloved hand across the mottled stone gate. "Damn it all! With this thing, let's see how that blind Li fights me now!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the commander, filled with grand visions, barked an order without looking back. "Men! Blow this gate open for me!"

Ten or so soldiers responded sharply, "Yes, sir!"

In an instant, the soldiers hauled explosives from a crate and piled them before the stone gate, preparing for a forced breach. The frail Mr. Gu, seeing this, adjusted his round sunglasses and attempted to persuade him. "Commander, forced demolition might not be appropriate..."

The commander glared, shouting without turning his head, "Pah! What time do you think it is? I don't care about that... Blow it up!"

The commander put his hands behind his back and squeezed his riding whip hard. The whip cracked in his grip, a sight not lost on Mr. Gu. These soldiers were all fierce and brutal, more like bandits and thugs than a local military force—they lacked any true refinement. The sound of the whip was undoubtedly a final warning. If it weren't for Mr. Gu’s merit in leading the way, his entire family might have been slaughtered.

In this situation, Mr. Gu could only give up. He shook his head and retreated to the side, leaning against a tree trunk in despair. Feeling heavy-hearted, he reached out to touch an old compass, seemingly regretting having led the warlords to this sacred place.

*BOOM!*

The explosives detonated, dust filled the air, and the entire earth trembled. Leaves fell from the trees as if lamenting a sorrowful fate. Mr. Gu, standing the furthest away, looked terrified, his spirit seemingly crushed, and he let out a long sigh. The soldiers at the gate, eager to curry favor, rushed into the swirling dust to clear the rubble.

After a long while, a bone-chilling wind blew from within the gate. A pitch-black cave appeared like the gaping maw of a beast, ready to devour the ignorant who dared to offend it. The adjutant glanced at the commander, then lit a torch and led his men inside to investigate.

After the time it took to smoke a bag of tobacco, a trembling soldier ran out from the cave. Upon standing still, he immediately saluted and shouted, "Commander, we found it!"

The beaming commander was overjoyed and shouted, "Lead the way!"

At that moment, Mr. Gu, who had been sitting in a daze, regained his composure. He put away his compass, climbed to his feet, and brushed the dust from his gown. The impatient commander had already charged into the cave.

After a few steps, guided by the light of the torches, they saw that the walls were damp and smooth, and an intense, bone-chilling cold permeated the air. The eerie sensation felt like an electric current shooting from the base of his spine to the top of his head. With the sudden drop in temperature, the whip-wielding commander shivered and pulled his coat tighter as he continued forward.

"Damn it, this is intense. I should have brought more men."

Before long, a dark green stone platform appeared at the end of the cave. A small hole in the ceiling allowed a beam of light to shine directly onto a brocade box resting on the platform. Beside the platform were a dozen large wooden crates covered in dust. The adjutant carrying the torch stepped forward and gestured with his chin. The soldiers rushed up to open them.

In an instant, a dazzling, brilliant golden light filled the space! Everyone’s jaw dropped; their eyes seemed ready to fall out of their sockets. The commander stepped forward, snatched the torch from his subordinate with one hand, and grabbed a handful of gold dust with the other, letting it slip through his fingers. *Swish, swish, swish...*

"Hahaha, screw it all! Now let's see how that bastard Li fights me! The whole world will be mine! Hahaha!"

His arrogant laughter echoed through the cave, refusing to die down. The nearby soldiers quickly lit the commander’s cigarette. Amidst the clouds of smoke, the fierce commander began to fantasize about his future. Outside the cave, Mr. Gu listened to the joy within with an expressionless face, his mind visualizing the ugly, greedy behavior of the men inside. In his eyes, living in such chaotic times, survival and enough food were all that mattered. Wealth and glory were nothing but passing smoke, worth nothing at all.

Inside the cave, the commander watched the gold dust fall from his fingertips back into the crate, then walked to the platform to examine the brocade box. The crates of gold dust were precious enough to allow him to raise an army and swallow up the surrounding powers. If that was the case, wouldn't the contents of the box be even more valuable?

Thinking this, the fierce commander reached for the brocade box. But before his hand could touch it, a wave of cold hit him instantly. Without hesitation, the commander opened the box.

Inside, there were no rare treasures. Disappointed, the commander’s face twisted, his brows furrowed, and he cursed, "What the hell kind of brocade box is this? An old lamp and a red-skinned gourd. Doesn't look like anything valuable."

The adjutant was directing his men to carry away the wooden crates. The soldiers had just started moving them when they bumped into Mr. Gu, who was walking in. The commander in the cave froze for a few seconds, holding up the oil lamp to inspect it. In a flash, while taking a puff of his cigarette, the commander, as if possessed, used the tip of the cigarette to touch the wick of the ancient lamp, intending to take a closer look!

In a split second, a bizarre aura surged forth! A streak of green light flashed out with a roar.

*Swish!*

Mr. Gu, just reaching the end of the cave, was suddenly flung backward and fell to the ground. His eyes turned red, and then—he could see nothing! Immediately after, a rustling sound reached Mr. Gu’s ears, as if something had slipped away. Then, the bewildered Mr. Gu felt a chill run through his body, and he passed out.

...

I do not know how much time had passed when a bone-piercing chill returned. Mr. Gu crawled up, trembling. Not only could he see nothing, but when he opened his mouth, no sound came out. With no other choice, he reached out in terror to grope his way forward.

Before long, all he could feel under his fingertips was fine sand. Without needing to think, he knew it must be the gold dust. After groping around for a long time, he found nothing but gold dust, empty clothes, boots, and long rifles.

A wave of questions flooded his mind. Where had those naked soldiers gone? Did they leave the gold behind? Why were their clothes still here? Where were the people?

Now, Mr. Gu could see nothing and hear nothing. His only sense was the cold that grew closer and closer to his fingertips. After a long time of searching, his hands finally touched the cold stone platform. He slowly pulled himself up, reached out, and placed the oil lamp he had glimpsed earlier into the brocade box. It might seem like a simple, trivial action, but because he had lost his sight, it took Mr. Gu more than a dozen tries to succeed.

Afterward, he tucked the brocade box into his robes. A bone-chilling cold immediately spread throughout his body. The last image in Mr. Gu's mind was the commander using his cigarette to touch the lamp's wick, followed by the surge of eerie green light and him being knocked over by the cold.

Could they all be dead? Did they vanish into thin air? And why was I still alive?

After pondering for a while with no answer, Mr. Gu had to crawl slowly back the way he had come. As he crawled, he realized something was wrong. He reached into the tobacco pouch at his waist, emptied out all the tobacco, stuffed in a handful of gold dust, tied it tight, and began his long, arduous crawl once more.

Until he felt a sense of warmth, and his hands touched ground that was no longer damp and smooth... and he touched the body of a horse, though he knew not whose it was...

Days later, the disheveled and wretched Mr. Gu finally returned home. It was a pity that he did not manage to hold on until the end. Since then, a white stone horse has stood silently in the small courtyard of Mr. Gu’s home.