Xie Lian walked slowly over, stepping on the ground covered with crimson shards. Seeing a speck of crimson stain on Hua Cheng's shoulder, he wanted to brush it off for him, but suddenly realized that the gesture was too intimate. He forced himself to stop, tucking his hand behind his back. He smiled and said, "I didn't know you could bring not only blood rain, but also flying flowers. Interesting, interesting."
Hua Cheng approached him, brushing the petals off his shoulder. He smiled, "This is an improvisation, a new trick I came up with today. I was planning to unleash a bloody rain, but I suddenly remembered my brother was there. If he got soaked, wouldn't it be my fault? So I stopped myself and turned into a flower. It's fun, that's all."
However, Xie Lian escaped the drenching, but Pei Ming was completely drenched. He said in mid-air, "Excuse me, both of you, could you please let me down first?"
Several silver butterflies fluttered up, their phosphorescent wings slicing through the mesh. Pei Ming was able to escape and land safely. Xie Lian looked down and saw a silver butterfly perched in the center of the butterfly bone on Lingwen's back. He asked, "Sanlang, are Lingwen and Jinyixian all right?"
Hua Cheng said: "It's okay. I put them all into hibernation for a while."
Xie Lian was surprised, "This Jinyixian was so violent, but you subdued him so quickly."
Hua Cheng raised an eyebrow and said, "Not bad. For some reason, it doesn't seem to want to fight me."
After a moment's silence, Xie Lian said, "That's true. When you wore it before, it couldn't do anything to you, and it even revealed its true form."
At this time, Pei Ming walked over and said, "You two, let's talk later. Why don't you take off his clothes first?"
Xie Lian asked, “This… isn’t very convenient, is it?”
Pei Ming, however, didn't take it seriously: "He's a man now, what's the inconvenience?" He then began to move his hands. However, as soon as he reached out to Ling Wen's collar, he felt as if something had stabbed him hard. His face changed drastically, and he pulled his hand back abruptly, his hand covered in blood. He said, "This piece of clothing! It actually bites!"
Hua Cheng then said leisurely, "The Jin Yi Xian won't let Ling Wen go, so he can't take it off."
Pei Ming looked at his two bloody hands and said, "If something like this happens again, could His Excellency Ghost King please tell me sooner?"
Xie Lian said gently, "General Pei, it's not that he didn't tell me earlier, it's that you acted too quickly."
Hua Cheng chuckled and said, "That's it."
“…”
Despite his disability, he was still determined. If the three of them wanted to return the same way, one of them had to carry the male spirit text, so Pei Ming took the initiative to shoulder this responsibility.
Pei Su and Ban Yue remained in the original town. They reunited near the Wuyong Temple. Upon seeing them return, Pei Su strode forward and said, "General, Your Highness, the mural in the temple has disappeared!"
Pei Ming held Lingwen in one hand and wiped his bloody hair back with the other, saying, "What mural?"
Seeing Pei Ming covered in purple and red, Ban Yue's eyes widened. Xie Lian briefly spoke to Pei Ming and followed Pei Su back to the temple to investigate. Sure enough, the original wall had become identical to the other three blackened walls left by the fire, as if the mural had never existed.
Hua Cheng took his hand off the wall and said, "That mural was created with magic."
Xie Lian nodded and said, “Perhaps, the person who left it behind also had concerns and didn’t dare to let it exist for too long.”
Over there, Ban Yue hesitated for a long time before finally saying to Pei Ming, whose body was covered in purple and red, "Are you... okay?"
Pei Ming glanced at her and threatened, "Ask your snake if it's okay after biting me like this."
Pei Su opened his mouth, unsure whether to offer a fair word. Ban Yue's eyes widened, and he stammered in defense, "But... a scorpion tail bite wouldn't spread all over the body and cause this..."
Pei Ming raised his left hand, marked with teeth, and waved it in front of her, proving he had indeed been bitten. With such overwhelming evidence, Ban Yue could only say, "I'm sorry..."
Pei Su couldn't bear it any longer, so he patted her shoulder and said, "No, don't worry about it. It's not yours, it was bitten by a snake."
Xie Lian couldn't stand it any longer and said helplessly, "General Pei, could you please stop teasing this little girl at this hour?"
However, Pei Ming's lifeblood lay in this. He used his magic to wash away the blood stains on his body, his face radiant once again. He laughed heartily and said, "Are little girls meant to be teased? Besides, Ban Yue Imperial Preceptor is already hundreds of years old. How can she be considered a little girl? Are you still afraid that she will be embarrassed?"
“…” No one wanted to pay attention to him anymore.
Although Pei Su's punctuation was not good, he was able to move freely and took over the task of carrying the spiritual text. The group walked through the small town and continued to the next level of Tonglu Mountain.
A day later, they came to a small canyon.
On both sides of the canyon were towering mountains and rocky cliffs, with a mountain path running through the middle. Only when he reached this point did Ling Wen finally wake up from his drowsiness.
Although awake, he couldn't move, as the silver butterfly remained firmly ensconced on his back. Lingwen remained calm when he realized he was being carried on someone's shoulders. He simply asked in confusion, "...Why are there so many people? Why are you all here? Isn't this Tonglu Mountain?"
Pei Ming said, "Is that too many? I'm telling you, there will be even more people later, including some you haven't seen yet. We can get together a few tables to play cards."
Xie Lian felt the same way and couldn't help but laugh. After a pause, he said, "By the way, Lingwen, Qiying was chasing you at Puqi Monastery. Where is he now?"
Ling Wen said, "I don't know. After entering Tonglu Mountain, too many inhuman creatures swarmed in, and His Highness Qiying lost him. I don't know where he is now."
Pei Ming sighed to Ling Wen, "You actually didn't tell me that it was you who pulled out Xuli Nation's last straw. How unkind of you!"
Xie Lian then remembered that Pei Ming was also from Xuli. However, he seemed to have lost all feelings for the country. After all, he was only a general, not a ruler, and he had been tricked by the ruler before his ascension. Therefore, his words were not filled with grief or indignation, but mostly with sarcasm. However, Xie Lian was worried that talking too much about Xuli would anger the Jinyixian, so he quickly changed the subject and asked, "Sanlang, I actually have a question."
After entering the canyon, Hua Cheng has been concentrating on observing the high mountains on both sides and said, "Ask."
Xie Lian asked, “What exactly is that ‘copper furnace’ on Copper Furnace Mountain? Could it really be a giant furnace?”
Hua Cheng smiled, retracted his gaze, and said, "Of course not. But, brother, you asked at a good time." He raised his finger and said, "It just so happens that I can see it right now."
Everyone looked in the direction he pointed, and for a moment, they all stopped involuntarily.
Xie Lian asked, “…That’s… the ‘copper furnace’?”
Hua Cheng crossed his arms and said, "Not bad."
In the depths of his dark eyes, a huge mountain far away was reflected.
It is far away in the horizon, high above the world, towering above the peaks, with a deep blue color. The top of the mountain is surrounded by clouds and wind, and a layer of snow can be seen faintly, as if it is an ice field that never melts all year round.
Hua Cheng said slowly, "'Tonglu' is an active volcano and the center of Tonglu Mountain. When the Ghost King is born, it will awaken."
Xie Lian asked, “A volcanic eruption?”
Hua Cheng said, "Yes. Therefore, the Desperate Ghost Kings are always born with flames, magma, and devastating disasters."
As Xie Lian imagined the eye-blinking, scorching heat, he lost himself in thought. Pei Ming said, "It's too far. At this pace, not counting the time spent fighting ghosts along the way, it's going to take a long time."
Xie Lian nodded and said, “Thus, the battles and battles during the founding of the mountains throughout the ages have been like a difficult childbirth.”
Hua Cheng smiled and said, "Brother, that's a brilliant analogy." He then suddenly stopped and said, "We're here."
“???” Xie Lian was stunned. “So fast?”
Hua Chengdao said, "We're here. However, we're not at Tonglu, we're at Wuyong Temple."
Sure enough, a tall, crooked palace appeared in the center of the canyon ahead.
This was the second Wuyong Temple they had encountered. Xie Lian almost wanted to rub his eyes and asked doubtfully, "Is this temple real?"
He couldn't be blamed for this; in fact, almost everyone doubted whether this temple was real, because its appearance was so abrupt.
It shouldn't even be here. Has anyone ever seen a temple built in a narrow canyon or mountain path? What kind of shoddy feng shui is this?
Even if someone had to build it in such a place, it should at least be built on the side. However, this Wuyong Temple was carelessly built right in the middle of the canyon passage, like a brainless little bully, directly blocking the road through the canyon!
Pei Ming said in a deep voice, "There must be something fishy going on. Everyone, be careful."
Ling Wen, who was on Pei Su's shoulder, managed to raise his head and said, "Everyone, if you don't want to go inside, you can actually fly over the cliff and walk on the wall."
Xie Lian said, "No. We need to go in and see if there are any murals."
Hua Cheng said, "Don't worry, brother. If you want to see it, go ahead. It's no big deal."
After he said this, everyone felt inexplicably relieved, and they slowly approached. They walked all the way to the temple, and nothing unusual happened. They passed through the gate and entered the main hall. Sure enough, the walls of this temple were also a pitch-black color after the fire. A gentle scratch revealed a small, hard fragment, just like the previous temple.
Xie Lian had been extremely vigilant at first, but now, since there didn't seem to be anything lurking in the dark, he felt a little relieved and said, "Let's do it."
Soon, the charred "protective layer" on the wall was removed bit by bit, revealing the mural behind it. Xie Lian and Hua Cheng studied it carefully together.
The murals in this temple were completely different from those in the previous one. They began their journey from the top floor. At the top, a young man in white sat on a jade couch. His features were handsome, and it was none other than Crown Prince Wuyong. His eyes were closed, and his posture suggested he was in deep meditation. However, he wasn't at peace.
The Crown Prince's brow furrowed, and a few drops of sweat seemed to be dripping from his forehead. Surrounding him stood four figures, their faces heavy with worry. They were the four guardian deities ranked below the Crown Prince in the previous mural. Their appearance, hair, and clothing were identical to the previous mural. Looking down, the protective layer was still slowly peeling away, not yet completely removed. Xie Lian saw a mess of red, frowned slightly, and said, "Strange."
He reached out and gently touched the wall, wondering, "Is this mural in poor condition?"
Although I couldn't see the specifics of the painting, I could see that the lines and colors were blurry and hazy, as if shrouded in a layer of smoke, blurring the image. However, since this mural was created through magic, how could it be so poorly preserved as a real mural?
Hua Cheng was also concentrating on watching, frowning and saying, "Wait a little longer."
The two exchanged a glance. Once the charred, hard object had receded and the image was complete, they stepped back a few steps and peered side by side. When the entire image came into view, Xie Lian's breath caught slightly, and his scalp suddenly tingled.
He was stunned and said, "Is this... hell?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
