Old Liu continued to pore over the scroll, his voice slowing down. "The scent of the Corpse Flower is potent enough to resurrect Xia Jie. Mo Shu originally thought this appearance would allow her to remain by Xia Jie's side forever, but unexpectedly, the resurrected Xia Jie could only draw out his cries with a long wail; he had completely lost all semblance of human consciousness."

"We could have figured that out. Mo Shu's tribesmen in Night Crow Alley were likely also killed by Mo Shu and then revived using the Corpse Flower." Thinking of this, Ye Xiu felt a grudging admiration for Mo Shu's ruthlessness. He gritted his teeth, "This woman didn't hesitate to sacrifice her closest confidantes for experiments. It seems batch after batch of her tribesmen were summoned by Mo Shu solely to complete the experiment of using the Corpse Flower to bring people back to life."

"The experiment was initially successful, as those tribesmen were indeed revived. Mo Shu, impatient, proceeded with the Corpse Flower resurrection on Xia Jie, only to discover the side effects later on." Old Liu shifted the scroll in front of him. "Mo Shu found Kun. Kun is capable of remaining active for tens of thousands of years. Legend says its heart's blood absorbed the spiritual energy of the Nine Abysses, granting longevity."

Ye Xiu frowned, surprised that the scroll recorded Kun's involvement. This implied that the giant fish had also been brought here by Mo Shu. But how could Kun, being so immense, be transported here? And why had it been reduced to a pile of bones? Ye Xiu pressed, puzzled, "Mo Shu wanted to utilize Kun's heart. Did she succeed?"

Old Liu narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "Whether she succeeded or not is unknown. This only states that Mo Shu found a small fish in the North Sea and brought it back to raise. How could a small fish grow to such an enormous size?"

Hearing this, Ye Xiu was also bewildered. If this fish wasn't of Kun's lineage, Mo Shu surely wouldn't have bothered with it. However, the ancient texts only spoke of Kun's immense size, never mentioning any smaller breeds. He stepped forward, leaning close to the scroll. The fragmented text was pitifully scarce. Ye Xiu urged, "And then? What else does it say?"

"Nothing!" Old Liu, clearly annoyed, flipped the thin scroll over and over, examining every inch for hidden secrets, but it was utterly devoid of any mechanism. He gave up, stuffing the scroll into his waistband. "Let's go. Since we've passed the outer wall, we need to press on with the path ahead."

The path ahead? Ye Xiu followed the direction Old Liu indicated. A few stone steps led into a grove of vibrant green bamboo. A thick, swirling mist hung over the forest, making it look anything but welcoming.

"This doesn't add up," Old Liu muttered, pulling out his compass, a necessary tool for a Taoist priest. Its purpose here wasn't to point North or South, but to harmonize with the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches—an excellent device for solving mysteries related to the Qimen Dunjia.

Ye Xiu walked ahead on the slightly greenish turf. Around them were only the dense green bamboo stalks and the small, sharp bamboo shoots pushing up through the earth beneath them. They reminded Ye Xiu uncannily of the bone spurs that had erupted from Kun's skeleton. He walked aimlessly for a while, realizing there was no conventionally defined path. He slapped Old Liu's shoulder. "What did your compass indicate? Which way is the correct route?"

Old Liu stared intently at the compass, only to see the needle remaining stubbornly still. He was dumbfounded. "Strange. The compass gives no guidance. Could this bamboo forest simply be... just a bamboo forest?"

"Direction? A path?" Ye Xiu complained inwardly about the Taoist's capabilities. The half-formed mist, the surrounding wind, and the rustling bamboo leaves all screamed that this was no ordinary place, especially since they had been walking within this grove for quite some time.

"Shh..." At that moment, Old Liu leaned in, almost pressing a hand over Ye Xiu's mouth. He shot Ye Xiu a meaningful look and dragged him into the dense cover of a clump of bamboo to hide.

Ye Xiu started to protest, but at that instant, he distinctly heard the sound of a woman's laughter drifting from deeper within the woods. This was immediately followed by a man's voice. The sound grew closer, almost right beside them.

"What a beauty..." Old Liu, hidden in the thicket, widened his eyes and pointed toward Ye Xiu. "Look at that woman in the purple skirt! Look how revealing her dress is! Look at that slender waist..."

Ye Xiu shot Old Liu a glance and peered through the leaves himself. Amidst the deep green, a woman in a purple dress skipped forward, laughing. Her chest was pronounced, her figure perfectly encased by the flow of the skirt, possessing a beauty that was both tantalizingly shy and yet unspoken—the kind capable of captivating any man's heart. However, this attraction lasted only a moment for Ye Xiu. He whispered, "Look at her clothing; it doesn't seem modern. Could the woman we're seeing be Mo Shu?"

"Why don't you go ask her!" Old Liu had stared at the beauty for too long, forgetting the danger of their location. He swallowed hard, rising onto his toes, trying to get a better view past the woman's bust. Unfortunately, his vantage point was too low. He really should find a bamboo stalk to climb up.

"Mo Shu, the King has sought you for so long!" At that moment, a man's deep voice followed closely behind. A man wearing a black robe embroidered with dragons also burst into the thicket. He lunged to embrace Mo Shu but missed his target. "Whatever you desire, the King will grant it. Come back with me now."

Seeing this development, Old Liu clenched his fists. He vigorously shook the bamboo next to him. "What sort of brute is this? Such a stunning beauty with such a pot-bellied fellow! I truly wish I could rush out and beat this kid up."

"She is indeed Mo Shu." Ye Xiu watched the scene unfold with sharp eyes. Clearly, the man proclaiming himself King beside Mo Shu must be Xia Jie, the last emperor of the Xia Dynasty. But why were they both appearing before Ye Xiu now? Was this time reversal, or had Mo Shu's immortality ritual finally succeeded, allowing the two of them to live out their lives like immortal lovers within this treacherous Nine Poisonous Array?

"Swish, swish!" Just then, the compass in Old Liu's hand let out a strange, eerie screech and began to spin wildly, as if sensing some presence.

Old Liu was startled by the compass's action. He finally abandoned his gawking at the beauty and put on his sunglasses. The theory he voiced was one he himself could barely believe. "This is an echo from the past; it's the memory of this bamboo grove."

"What, the bamboo grove's memory!" Ye Xiu felt like leaping up. This grove was alive, but besides humans, what else in the world deserved the term 'memory'? He let out a long breath and asked, "You mean we don't even need to hide behind these bamboos?"

Old Liu nodded, then was the first to dart out of the cover, walking straight toward Mo Shu. He reached out, intending to touch Mo Shu's fair, delicate face, but his hand passed right through the illusion.