Chapter Forty-Five: The Mustard Seed Bracelet

Early the next morning.

Yue Qi had not slept the entire night. The group had spent the evening resting on the hillside. Although most of the zombies in Yang Family Village had already been cleared by Yue Qi, no one was willing to return to that place. It had been everyone’s first new home, but in just a few days, that sense of safety had been shattered, replaced by blood and despair.

“Qi, don’t be so sad. At least try to get some rest. You can’t go on like this…” Yue Liu came over, patted Yue Qi on the shoulder, and tried to comfort him.

“Don’t worry, Sixth Sister, I’m fine…” Yue Qi forced a smile at Yue Liu, then sat back on the slope, gazing off into the distance, no longer responding to her.

Yue Liu sighed. Her eyes were swollen from crying all night. She had managed to bear her father’s death, but her mother’s passing had completely broken her last line of defense. If it hadn’t been for Yue Si’s comfort, she might have done something foolish. So she understood well the grief weighing on Yue Qi’s heart.

But Yue Liu was mistaken. Since Yue Qi had sworn to avenge his mother, the pain in his heart had diminished somewhat. Now, his most pressing concern was how to take care of his remaining family members.

Qinghe Town was an excellent choice—its walls were effective against zombies—but if they encountered other survivors, such a small “city wall” might not be enough. Furthermore, although Qinghe Town had a fair number of people, few were capable of fighting. If they brought the surviving group there, it would likely fall to Yue Er and Yun Sheng to manage everyone, especially since Yue Qi knew he would eventually have to leave.

“What are you thinking about?” A gentle voice sounded behind him, stirring Yue Qi’s heart, then filling it with joy.

“You’re back?!” Of course, it was Bai Lian. At dawn, she had set out swiftly for Yang Family Village, worried something might have happened to Yue Qi. Upon reaching the hillside, she had run into Yun Sheng, who was tending to Yu Qi.

Having heard Yue Qi mention Bai Lian the day before, Yun Sheng wasn’t particularly surprised to see her return. He simply explained what had happened in the past two days, then went back to looking after the unconscious Yu Qi.

“Mhm…” Bai Lian nodded, then sat beside Yue Qi, gently resting her head on his shoulder.

“Everything all right?” Seeing his beloved, Yue Qi felt a sliver of comfort in his agitated heart. He buried his nose in her hair, breathing in its delicate fragrance.

“Everything’s fine. In fact… I made some good finds!” Bai Lian glanced at Yue Qi and smiled. She had no intention of keeping him in suspense; she could tell he was in no mood for jokes.

“Oh?” Yue Qi looked at her in surprise. What could these ordinary people possibly have of value? Sharp weapons, perhaps, or some gold and silver. Maybe a few medicinal herbs from the Qinghe Sword Sect, but nothing particularly special.

Bai Lian nodded, producing something that looked like a cord from behind her. “I found this on Xiao Ke. It’s called the Dragon-Binding Rope. It’s fairly well-known in the Qinghe Sword Sect—his master likely gave it to him. It’s quite effective for restraining enemies.” Pausing, she continued, “But it requires spiritual power to activate. In the hands of an ordinary person, it’s just an ordinary rope…”

Yue Qi nodded and accepted it. It was indeed a useful item—at a critical moment, it might even save his life.

“But that’s not even the best part!” Bai Lian smiled mysteriously and removed the bracelet from her left wrist.

“A bracelet?” Yue Qi had noticed the new accessory on her wrist earlier, but had assumed she was simply being fashionable.

“Yes!” Bai Lian nodded, handing him the bracelet. “Try channeling your spiritual power into it.”

“Channel spiritual power? Are you sure it won’t shatter?” Yue Qi asked doubtfully. Most items couldn’t withstand the force of a cultivator’s spiritual energy and would break.

Seeing Bai Lian’s confident look, Yue Qi drew a trace of energy from within and channeled it into the bracelet.

Suddenly, the bracelet produced a powerful suction, drawing in all the spiritual energy he’d just sent. Then, something even stranger happened—the bracelet flashed with light, and a vast space unfolded before his eyes!

“What… what’s going on?!” Yue Qi stared in shock at the scene before him. There seemed to be objects stored in that space.

“Just as I thought—this is the legendary Mustard Seed Bracelet!” Bai Lian said, pleased with his astonished expression.

“Mustard Seed Bracelet? What do you mean, Lian’er? Can’t you see there’s a black hole before me?” Yue Qi was still confused. The name sounded impressive, but what exactly was this thing?

“Of course I can’t see it. Your spiritual power makes the space belong to you alone—others can’t access it!” Bai Lian explained.

“It’s my own space? You mean I can do whatever I want with it?” Yue Qi was amazed. In the cultivation world, there was a saying: ‘A mustard seed contains Mount Sumeru’—a reference to mighty cultivators who could create their own pocket dimensions.

“It’s not that miraculous,” Bai Lian rolled her eyes at him. “Let me give you a lesson. The Mustard Seed Bracelet is essentially a storage artifact. Channel your spiritual power into it, and the space opens up for you to store whatever you like—just remember, you can’t put living things inside!”

“I see! Still, it’s quite a treasure!” Yue Qi had originally thought it would make a great hiding place during a zombie attack—if everyone hid inside, the zombies would never find them.

“Take a look at what’s inside, and see how big the space is,” Bai Lian encouraged, happy to see his spirits lifted.

“Alright…” Yue Qi nodded, delving into the bracelet’s space to investigate. “Looks to be about five or six cubic meters. There are some weapons, but nothing useful. Oh, and a few bottles of medicine!” As he spoke, he took everything out, littering the grass with various odds and ends.

“Indeed, the treasures are hardly impressive, but those pills could still benefit a cultivator,” Bai Lian said, shaking her head in disappointment. But with a Mustard Seed Bracelet in their possession, she really couldn’t complain.

“By the way, Lian’er…” Yue Qi suddenly thought of something. “How did you manage to find such a small bracelet?”

“Well…” Bai Lian recalled the events of the previous day.

After returning with a man named Hong Ye, they had finally located Wang Jian’s treasure room, but found nothing of value—at least, nothing useful for cultivators. Bai Lian suspected she’d been tricked by Hong Ye, but after further searching, they discovered a hidden compartment.

Inside was a small box, which Bai Lian opened to reveal the bracelet. At first glance, it seemed ordinary, but she noticed its material was unusually flexible yet extremely tough.

This immediately reminded her of the Mustard Seed Bracelets worn by elders of the Qinghe Sword Sect who had reached the Core Formation stage. Her own master had once mentioned the legendary artifact as well.

“Seems we’re quite lucky, finding such a treasure in the mortal world!” Yue Qi patted Bai Lian’s head, smiling contentedly.

“But the Wang family seems to hold a high position in Qingzhou. For them to acquire such an item, they must not be an ordinary household…” Yue Qi frowned in thought.

“That’s not surprising,” Bai Lian said. “I’ve heard from my seniors that some cultivators, drawn to wealth and status, become retainers for prominent mortal families. They’re very well treated, and for a cultivator in the early Core Formation stage, acquiring something like this isn’t too difficult—just a matter of paying in spirit stones.” The so-called spirit stones were the currency of the cultivation world, imbued with spiritual energy.

“I see…” Yue Qi nodded thoughtfully before adding, “There are also some weapons in the bracelet. They look decent, but we have no use for them. Let’s distribute them among the others.”

Bai Lian agreed. Such items might be valuable to ordinary people, but to cultivators, they were no more valuable than scrap metal.

“Oh!” Bai Lian suddenly remembered something. “I also found another artifact on Xiao Ke!” She took out a vest-like garment from her bundle. It looked somewhat similar to the one she wore herself.

“This is a fine piece of armor—ordinary zombies won’t be able to pierce it,” Bai Lian said, handing it to Yue Qi. Noticing he was about to protest, she added, “I already have one from the sect leader, and it’s of even higher quality. So go ahead and wear this one.”

“Alright…” Yue Qi accepted the armor. In times like these, having such a defensive treasure was a rare blessing.

“So what should we do next?” After a long silence, it was Bai Lian who finally spoke.

Yue Qi exhaled slowly, glanced up at the azure sky, and spoke softly: “Avenge them!”

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