Niuxin Mountain

Literally “Ox-Heart Mountain,” the rustic name of Bai Lingmiao’s home village. The sweet pastoral image serves as a sharp contrast to the horror that follows.

Definition

Literally “Ox-Heart Mountain,” the rustic name of Bai Lingmiao’s home village. The sweet pastoral image serves as a sharp contrast to the horror that follows.

Story context

Get ready, fellow travelers on the Dao-Twisted road. After the relentless horrors of Zhengde Temple and the blood-soaked weddings of the past few arcs, Chapter 187 finally gives us a moment to **breathe**—and it’s one of the most quietly devastating chapters in the entire novel. No monsters, no rituals, no screaming. Just Li Huowang lying in bed with Bai Lingmiao, talking about the future like a normal couple… until the hallucination drags him back to a sterile hospital room.

Why it matters

This chapter is a **palate cleanser made of emotional glass**. After the grand guignol of Zhengde Temple and the grotesque Flesh Buddhas, we’re given a quiet, almost *normal* scene. Li Huowang talking about marriage. Bai Lingmiao nestling closer. A future that sounds peaceful. And that’s exactly why it cuts so deep. We know—and Li Huowang knows—that this peace is built on a fault line. The phone call with Yang Na is a masterstroke: she’s warm, she’s familiar, she apologizes for accidentally hurting him. And that *normalcy* is the most destabilizing thing in the entire chapter.