Chapter 39
The three of them immediately headed to the local earth god temple. When they arrived, it was already dark, and the surrounding area was shrouded in darkness. The temple was located in the south of the city, just as it had always been. No matter how much the outside world changed, it had never changed.
Looking into the distance, a small, solitary temple stands halfway up the mountain, with a vast, desolate forest behind it.
As they went inside, Chu Xianyue reminded them, "Be careful."
He went ahead of time and walked ahead of everyone else.
This area was desolate and quiet, but upon entering the temple, one could see that incense was burning continuously and smoke was rising, indicating that many people had indeed come to worship.
Chu Xianyue scoffed coldly, "Is he a local earth god or an evil god?"
Even from the outside, the place exuded an eerie aura; now that they were inside, it was even more unsettling, with chilling sensations emanating from every corner. Chu Xianyue didn't waste any words, drawing his sword and slashing at the statue in the temple. The sharp sword energy instantly severed the statue in half at the waist.
But nothing happened.
It ran away ahead of time.
Xie Wen said, "It sensed we were coming so quickly? So it ran away?"
Just then, Yun Yan's hesitant voice came from the doorway, "Look outside! Outside!"
Xie Wenhe and Chu Xianyue turned to look.
Xie Wen's pupils dilated, and he felt a chill run down his back, as if countless needles were pricking it.
Outside the Earth God Temple, lanterns had been lit up at some unknown time, casting shadowy patterns in the twilight. A group of people marched in an orderly fashion around the city of Leling. Their formation, strangely resembling a dragon, moved spontaneously in the twilight.
It's like they've lost their soul.
Xie Wen and Chu Xianyue stepped forward, and upon closer inspection, a chill ran down their spines. It turned out that the lights that had illuminated the figures weren't actually lamps, but rather eerie glows hovering above their heads, like will-o'-the-wisps.
As they strolled around at night, they chanted something like a nursery rhyme: "Old man of the earth catches ghosts, catch one, catch two, catch three... Come and catch ghosts with me."
This made people even more uneasy. Xie Wen said, "Master, have you noticed? These people in the parade are either men who have been to Zuixianglou or beggars from the outskirts of Qingdenglin."
Chu Xianyue said, "The men from Zuixianglou and these beggars made some kind of deal with the mountain god. They exchanged their souls with the mountain god."
Six months ago, the madam of Zuixianglou visited the Earth God Temple. What the madam desired most was naturally to make her brothel's business boom. So the madam made a deal with the Earth God: the Earth God would grant the madam's wish, and in return, the madam would make a pact with it to give it the broken souls of all the men who had visited the brothel.
The beggars were doing the same thing as the madam; they had made the same deal with the local deity.
After Chu Xianyue and Xie Wen followed the parade for a while, they discovered that more people had heard the nursery rhyme and were continuously joining the procession.
Chu Xianyue said, "After they swim three laps, their souls will voluntarily be offered as a sacrifice to the mountain god. At that time, its power will greatly increase." It will be more troublesome to completely eliminate it then.
A cold, almost tangible gaze lingered behind him. Chu Xianyue turned around, and there was something else mixed in with the procession. He saw a lifeless beggar, his head drooping, his unkempt hair drooping, his stagnant eyes secretly watching Chu Xianyue.
Chu Xianyue gripped his sword, ready to search, but the next second he discovered that the thing had escaped from the beggar and vanished. Chu Xianyue looked around, searching for those eyes, those eerie eyes gleaming with a ghostly light. The world spun around him, and in an instant, he felt as if countless such eyes were staring at him, pinning him down from all sides.
Chu Xianyue gripped his sword tightly, then suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
He looked around, but where was Xie Wen?
Xie Wen has disappeared?
And Yunyan? No! Yunyan disappeared after they left the temple.
Xie Wen just disappeared.
Chu Xianyue regretted his carelessness; he should have held onto her tightly no matter what. He tried to summon her using his cloud-shaped bell, but there was no sound, no response.
But after a while, Yundang moved.
The sound that came through sent chills down Chu Xianyue's spine, and his heart felt like it was being gnawed at by countless ants.
It was the same eerie nursery rhyme, but this time it came from Yundang's direction: "Old man of the earth catches ghosts, come and catch ghosts with me, one ghost, two ghosts..."
Chu Xianyue took a deep breath and urged the cloud bell. No matter what, the only clue now was this cloud bell. He had to find it and find Xie Wen.
He heard the gentle sound of Yundang bells emanating from the parade, tinkling amidst a long, eerie dragon of ghostly flames. Chu Xianyue followed the sound. Amidst the flickering shadows, he finally saw the back of a woman with her head bowed low, a dark ghostly flame atop her head.
The woman was wearing the same clothes as Xie Wen.
Chu Xianyue took a deep breath, perhaps out of anxiety, and immediately flew over, grabbed the woman's shoulder, turned her around, and called out, "Xie Wen."
The next moment, by the time Chu Xianyue realized something was wrong, it was too late. It wasn't Xie Wen, but a woman who had lost her mind and was wearing Xie Wen's clothes.
The woman looked back at Chu Xianyue, and Chu Xianyue saw her eyes. It was those eyes. Such empty and chilling eyes.
Chu Xian looked closer and gazed into its eyes.
You must not look into its eyes.
They will lose their minds. Those who go to the temple of the earth god are those who, upon first seeing its eyes, amplify their deepest, ugliest desires, thus reaching various agreements with the earth god, essentially selling their souls to be consumed by the earth god.
Chu Xianyue regretted why he had spared the land god's life so many years ago. Keeping it alive would only allow it to wreak havoc on the world even more recklessly!
He suddenly felt a splitting headache, and his deepest, most hidden desires were magnified a thousandfold. Those desires screamed wildly in the depths of his heart as if possessed, "Xie Wen. Xie Wen. A Wen. A Wen. Xie Wen..."
The world before him seemed to turn upside down. The procession, illuminated by ghostly flames, circled around him, chanting incessantly, "Awen is there! Do you want to go find her? I know where Awen is. Do you want to go find her? Do you want to go find her?"
The long procession circled around Chu Xianyue, who covered his head with one hand, his vision blurred, making the world around him seem indistinct. Words like "Xie Wen" echoed around him. Chu Xianyue forced himself to stay rational and asked, "Where is Xie Wen?"
The people in the parade said with smiles, "Ah Wen, she's right there. Go find her. She's been there the whole time, she hasn't left."
Chu Xianyue, propping himself up, stumbled and began wildly swinging his sword, but all the sharp sword energy vanished in mid-air, unable to strike anything. He asked, "Where is she? Where is Xie Wen?"
Laughter echoed from all around. One voice said, "So, Immortal Venerable Qingheng does indeed have desires. But those desires are for a woman. If I remember correctly, Immortal Venerable seems to cultivate the Path of Ruthlessness. I'd like to see if, if she were delivered to you now, your Path of Ruthlessness would shatter."
Chu Xianyue simply said, "Where is she?"
"It seems you're quite persistent." The voice from the void gradually faded away, but Chu Xianyue was still calling out, "Where is she?"
After a long while, he heard a warm and pleasant voice calling in his ear, "What's wrong, Chu Xianyue? It's me, Xie Wen. Am I here? What's wrong?"
Chu Xianyue's unfocused eyes finally found focus, vaguely fixing on the face of the person before her. She blinked her bright eyes, looking at him with concern. She stood under the dim lamplight, radiant and dazzling, illuminating his dull eyes. Her red lips parted slightly, revealing glimpses of white teeth beneath them, and beneath those white teeth, her rosy tongue twitched.
His Adam's apple bobbed.
What do you want? Isn't what you want right in front of you?
Those things you can't bear to look at, those things you deeply suppress, those things that torment you day and night.
Isn't it right in front of you?
What are you waiting for? If you want her, you will have her; she is yours.
What are you waiting for?
These voices kept echoing in Chu Xianyue's mind, giving him a splitting headache and making the world feel constantly upside down. The only thing that remained clear was Xie Wen under the dim lights in front of him.
They stood at the center of the march, at the center of the ever-swirling vortex. Only this corner of the world remained peaceful and serene.
Xie Wen was still looking for Chu Xianyue, but in the blink of an eye, she turned around and was standing next to Chu Xianyue.
However, he is acting strangely now, as if he is under some kind of spell. He keeps calling her name. After finally waking him up, why is his gaze so fervent when he looks at her?
Xie Wen felt as if he were being roasted by fire, his gaze burning him.
Could it be that local earth god's doing again?!
Even Chu and Yue...
Xie Wen half-squatted in front of Chu Xianyue, sighed, and helplessly let Chu Xianyue hold her waist tightly. Ever since she found Chu Xianyue again, he had been like this, holding her tightly and refusing to let go, and Xie Wen couldn't move.
She wondered inexplicably if Chu Xianyue would be furious if he knew that he had done such things during the time he was under a spell.
Just as she was thinking this, Xie Wen was suddenly grabbed forward by the person in front of her without warning. She instinctively leaned towards Chu Xianyue, but the next second her head was pressed down by a hand, and Chu Xianyue kissed her directly.
Deep and lingering. As the scorching breath settled, Xie Wen stared wide-eyed at Chu Xianyue, utterly incredulous. What was he doing?!
Xie Wen struggled, but Chu Xian wouldn't let go. The more Xie Wen struggled, the deeper Chu Xian kissed him. His lips and teeth were pried open, and he went straight in, completely at ease.
Xie Wen: "!!!"
When did he become so skilled?! Did he become adept at it in the illusion?!
At this moment, Xie Wen was still distracted by these random thoughts. Chu Xianyue seemed to notice her inattentiveness and, somewhat displeased, increased the pressure of his kiss. Finally, he gave her lips a light bite.
Xie Wen screamed, "No! This absolutely can't go on, he's bewitched!!!"
A crisp "smack" rang out in the air as Xie Wen slapped Chu Xianyue, trying to bring him to his senses and make him realize who she was!
Chu Xianyue turned his head away after being slapped. After waiting for a second or two without any response, Xie Wen began to wonder if he had gone too far.
As a result, when Chu Xianyue turned around again, his once bright eyes were now covered with a layer of mist, the fire in his eyes dimmed, and he regained his usual composure and self-control.
Xie Wen patted her chest and breathed a sigh of relief. If only she had slapped him, he would have come to his senses. What did that sacrificed kiss mean then?
Xie Wen sighed again, looking once more at Chu Xianyue's stunningly handsome face. Xie Wen thought to himself, "It's not a loss, it's not a loss either. I didn't lose out either."
When Chu Xianyue regained his senses, he saw Xie Wen wiping his blood-stained lips and glaring at him with resentment.
Xie Wen was furious: He still looked completely innocent.
You're innocent!?
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