Love Burning Amidst the Ashes. - Chapter 5-wisdom in the midst of fire

The darkness was as thick as ink, instantly swallowing the fallen figure of his father behind him, along with the frenzied sounds of digging echoing from above. Carrying his unconscious younger brother, Xu Qing Feng, on his back, Xu Qing Xuan dove headlong into a narrow side tunnel reeking of blood and decay.

Inside, the passage was far tighter and rougher than he had imagined. He had to hunch over just to move forward, the width barely enough for one person to squeeze through sideways. Jagged, wet rocks scraped against his arms and shoulders, leaving streaks of blood behind. Beneath his feet, the cold, slippery mud mixed with sharp gravel made every step a struggle. The stench of rot and dampness hung thick in the air, almost suffocating.

The yin–yang pendant pressed against his chest glowed faintly, casting a soft, steady light that illuminated only a few feet ahead—like a lone boat adrift in an endless black sea, on the verge of capsizing at any moment.

“Ugh…” A weak groan escaped Xu Qing Feng’s lips as his limp body jolted from the uneven path. Xu Qing Xuan could feel the heavy, labored heartbeat and burning heat of his brother’s body through the thin fabric between them. That weight—was responsibility, a burden, and the only anchor keeping his frozen will from shattering.

But the illusion of safety was short-lived.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The muffled, violent pounding—like the tolling of hell’s own bells—cut through the thick layers of rock and soil, hammering directly into Xu Qing Xuan’s tense nerves again and again! The sound no longer came from the collapsed entrance behind them—it came from the direction of the muddy cave they had just fled! The pursuers were far faster than he had expected. They had clearly found a more direct tunnel—or were using some inhuman method to reach them!

That gray-robed sorcerer! The image of the eerie old man and his talismans flashed through Xu Qing Xuan’s mind. A chill like a venomous snake slithered up his spine.

“Faster! They’re right below! Dig, damn it! Don’t let those brats escape!”

“Damn this place! The soil stinks of corpses!”

“Old man! Use your fire charm! Burn this cursed hole open!”

The faint curses and shouts of the pursuers grew louder, accompanied by the rumbling of their relentless digging, chasing the brothers like hounds of hell.

Xu Qing Xuan’s heart sank to the bottom of despair. In this narrow, suffocating passage, with no idea where it led, there was no escaping. If they were caught, burdened with his unconscious brother and nowhere to move—he would be nothing more than a fish on the chopping block. His father’s final words, his parents’ sacrifice for this one fragile chance of survival—all would be in vain.

Cold despair tried to drown him once more. But at the edge of that abyss, deep in Xu Qing Xuan’s clear eyes, two cold flames ignited—unyielding, eternal. He pressed himself against the slick, freezing wall, breathing fast but soundlessly. The warmth of the pendant steadied his trembling mind, granting him a final, fragile calm.

His thoughts raced faster than ever before, like a compass spinning for a single point of hope: the narrow passage, the enemy behind, the faint glow from the pendant, his brother’s ragged breathing—and then… that strong, fishy smell in the air?

Water.

His gaze sharpened like a blade. In the pendant’s faint light, he noticed the walls glistening with moisture, droplets seeping from the stone, the mud beneath his feet wet and slippery. Then it struck him—before entering this tunnel, he had felt heavy damp air in that other cavern filled with rotten leaves and sludge. There had to be water deeper inside. Flowing water. Which meant—there might be a way out!

A spark of hope split through the darkness like lightning—only to be crushed by the pounding reality behind him. The pursuers were too close! He didn’t have time to find the exit.

He had to act.
He had to stop them.
He had to create chaos—
Buy himself time.

Enemies… chaos… time…

Xu Qing Xuan’s eyes, sharp as a hawk’s, swept through the passage once more. The narrow space… the slick, wet stone walls… the stench of rot thick in the air…
Then—his gaze locked onto something stubbornly growing in the cracks of the rocks: dark brown plants, clinging to the stone like moss, damp and glistening. Their strange shape… that sharp, decaying smell…

“Yin Fu Moss…”

The name struck his mind like lightning!
According to the Classic of Herbal Medicine, it was a type of low-grade poisonous weed that thrived in the darkest, filthiest, most humid places. Its toxicity was weak, but its sap contained foul yin energy. When exposed to fire, it was highly flammable, producing thick, acrid smoke laced with mild paralytic toxins!

In an instant, a desperate yet brilliant plan took shape in his mind.

“Fire!”

A fierce, unyielding light burst in Xu Qing Xuan’s eyes.
Only fire—in this narrow, gas-filled tunnel of decay—could create enough chaos to stop the pursuers and win them a few precious moments to escape!

He quickly set his unconscious younger brother down in a dry recess of the rock wall.
Xu Qing Feng was still out cold, his breathing rough, his brows furrowed—even in unconsciousness, he seemed to be enduring excruciating pain.

Without hesitation, Xu Qing Xuan tore off his outer robe, caked with mud and blood, already tattered and ragged. It was old, but wide enough. He spread it out on a dry patch of stone.
Then, from his boot, he drew a small silver knife—sharp-edged, the kind used to process herbs. Like a lone wolf cornered by fate, he moved swiftly and precisely toward the wall.

He slashed and scraped madly at the damp rock, tearing away clumps of Yin Fu Moss.
Dark brown sap mixed with crushed moss oozed out, thick and foul-smelling. Carefully, he gathered it onto the robe. Soon, a sticky, stinking lump of dark sludge sat in the center of the cloth.

But that wasn’t enough.

His eyes darted across the tunnel floor—half-rotted leaves, oily sludge rich in decay.
He grabbed handfuls of the driest leaves he could find, crumbled them, and mixed them into the moss pulp to make it more combustible. Then he smeared the outer layer of the robe with greasy, half-rotten mud.

A crude but deadly “fire packet” was quickly taking shape—heavy with oil and fuel.

From above, the sounds of digging and shouting grew louder. Dirt and pebbles began to fall. Excited voices rang out,
“It’s open! I can smell those brats!”
“Torches! Bring the torches! Go down and get them!”

Time was running out.

Xu Qing Xuan grabbed the foul-smelling fire packet and hurried back to his brother’s side.
He slung Xu Qing Feng onto his back again, tying him securely with coarse rope.
Then he took a deep breath—the stench of rot and death filled his lungs, cold and heavy—yet it only made the flame of determination in his eyes burn fiercer than ever.

He clutched the jade pendant to his chest, feeling its faint yet steady pull guiding him forward. His eyes locked onto the unknown darkness deep within the tunnel — the direction from which the damp air and fishy wind flowed. It was the only way out.

In his other hand, he gripped tightly the heavy, wet, foul-smelling “fire packet.”

He cast one last glance over his shoulder — the tunnel corner behind him was trembling as chunks of dirt and stone rained down from the digging above. A flickering yellow light seeped through the half-opened breach — faces twisted with malice, the glint of steel — the pursuers were almost there.

> Now!

A flash of cold light burst in Xu Qing Xuan’s eyes.
With every ounce of strength left in his body, he hurled the fire packet toward the corner of the tunnel — right beneath the spot where the wall was about to break open!

The bundle arced through the air, landing squarely on a pile of loose mud and stones shaken down by the excavation.

At that same moment, Xu Qing Xuan didn’t look back again.
Carrying his unconscious brother, he sprinted into the depths of the tunnel, chasing the faint glow of the jade’s guidance.
Muck splattered beneath his boots; cold, jagged rock scraped his body; the burns on his back screamed with pain — yet he felt none of it.
There was only one thought in his mind, Run. Break through.

And just as he took his tenth stride— “Pfft!”

The fire packet, soaked in oil, rot, and Yin Fu moss sap, landed right beside a black-robed knight who had just crawled through the opening, torch in hand. The sticky, stinking mixture splashed across his legs.

“What the hell—what is this filth?!”

The knight cursed in disgust, instinctively lowering his torch to see what had hit him.

And then—
The flame touched the sludge.

BOOM!

Not a sharp explosion, but a deep, guttural roar — as if a beast buried beneath the earth had awakened.

A surge of thick, searing green fire burst outward, erupting like the flames of hell unleashed!
From within the blaze billowed dense, black-gray smoke, sharp with sulfur and poison, its stench suffocating, its fumes laced with a paralyzing toxin.

The smoke moved like a living thing, swelling with the wind, flooding the narrow corridor in an instant — then rushing back through the breach like an enraged dragon!

“Aaaagh! My eyes!!”
“Cough—! It’s poison! The smoke is toxic!”
“The fire—put it out! Aaaah—!”

From the shattered breach came screams of agony, panicked curses, and the frantic flailing of men in terror.
The dark green flames were thick and clinging, burning with savage fury as they devoured cloth, flesh, and even stone, almost impossible to extinguish.
The toxic smoke seeped into every crevice, smothering the soldiers near the opening—their eyes streamed, their lungs seized, and within moments they collapsed, helpless and choking.

Chaos. Utter chaos!

> “Useless fools! Use fire wards—now!”

The roar of the middle-aged commander thundered from above the breach, yet even his voice sounded hollow and powerless.
The narrow space, the sudden outbreak of poisonous fire and choking smoke, shattered the discipline of even the best-trained pursuers—panic reigned.

Amid that turmoil, Xu Qing Xuan, carrying his unconscious brother on his back, seized the precious moment of chaos and darted around a bend in the tunnel.
Ahead, the passage widened slightly, though the darkness remained absolute.
A wave of thick moisture hit his face, carrying with it the rank, swampy stench of rotting aquatic plants.
Somewhere ahead, he could hear the rushing roar of water!

The jade pendant against his chest glowed faintly—its light now a little brighter, pointing steadily toward the sound of the water.

A way out—right ahead!

A spark of hope flared in Xu Qing Xuan’s heart.
He pushed himself harder, racing headlong into the darkness, chasing the promise of life.
Behind him, the screams and chaos became the merciless soundtrack of his flight.

But—just as he was about to break free from the chamber and step into the deeper waterway—

> “You little wretch! Where do you think you’re going?!”

The voice—a furious, venom-laced roar—ripped through the smoke and flame like a blade of icy wind from the Nine Hells,
piercing the air, driving straight into Xu Qing Xuan’s ears!

It was the old gray-robed Daoist!

From the breach, the dark-green flames and choking smoke were suddenly parted by an unseen hand.
A withered, wrinkled face, twisted by rage and hatred, emerged in the flickering yellow glow of a talisman.
His robes were scorched and torn, his appearance disheveled and wild,
yet in those clouded old eyes burned a flame of malice fierce enough to consume the world.

In his hand, he clutched a yellow talisman, its crimson cinnabar sigils writhing like living things.

> “Leave your life for this Daoist, boy!”

With a snarl, the old man flung the talisman forward—
it burst into flame midair, transforming into a bolt of blinding white lightning,
thick as an arm, radiating an icy aura that froze the soul,
tearing through smoke and darkness,
and shot straight toward Xu Qing Xuan’s back!

The Yin fiend Thunder Talisman!

In that instant, death itself descended, enveloping the two fleeing brothers in its shadow.