Chapter 1144: Chapter 776: You Don’t Have Much Time Left
But if it’s not Tai Wenqin, then who could it be, someone from the Dharma Sect, or an unknown expert hiding in the city?
However, no matter what, this matter made Yang Xiao sense a whiff of danger, constantly reminding him that a pair of eyes was watching them from the shadows.
In the following days, Yang Xiao and his group stayed indoors, rarely stepping out of the hotel except to monitor the innkeeper’s trips to buy groceries.
Yang Xiao focused most of his attention on Tai Wenqin, who appeared very calm.
Life was peaceful during this period, and Yang Xiao hadn’t caught any trace of that mysterious gaze again, as if it had vanished.
On the night of the fifth day, a messenger from the Dharma Sect visited, informing them that an accident had occurred during the crafting of a magic artifact, prompting them to depart immediately for a place called Wanqiang.
After the messenger left, Professor Cui spread out a map on the table and quickly located the place.
According to Tai Wenqin, Wanqiang is a small town, harsh environment, economically backward, much smaller than Bangshu. It’s in the heart of the Dharma Sect’s dominion, and not far from the Esoteric Sect’s territory, with only a mountain between their actual lines of control.
"Is there anything special about it?" Yang Xiao inherently mistrusted the Yin Temple crowd.
"The nearby area is heavy with negative energy, with very few outsiders venturing there. Rumor has it that the Dharma Sect secretly excavated many caves in the nearby mountains, using them to craft magic artifacts and cultivate Tower Guarding Paste, with over half of the Tower Guarding Paste sent to your country coming from there," Tai Wenqin explained, staring at the map.
The matter was significant, so that very night, they set out to Wanqiang under the escort of Magic Disciples.
The journey took an entire day; although the straight-line distance isn’t very far on the map, the road was treacherous and difficult, and recent rains had turned the mountain paths into a quagmire. Their off-road vehicle looked like it had just rolled out of a mud pit.
By evening, they finally reached their destination, a desolate and barren border town without a single building over five stories tall.
Through the car window, Yang Xiao noticed that the town seemed to have suffered from the ravages of war. Many buildings were abandoned, and some collapsed structures still bore signs of having been burned.
The town used to be relatively developed, but it turned into its current state due to war.
Noting its proximity to the Esoteric Sect’s territory and knowing that the Esoteric and Dharma Sects are bitter rivals, Yang Xiao reasoned that the two sects had once clashed here, and the flames of war had destroyed the entire town.
The convoy soon entered the town center, which was relatively bustling, with a square surrounded by shops and a stream of people, barely lively.
Suddenly, a glance from Yang Xiao fixed on the right side of the square, where several stone pillars stood, each with a corpse hanging beneath it.
The corpses were both male and female, with elderly and young children among them, all stripped naked, with a large sign hanging below their necks, exposed to public view in the square.
Judging by the numb expressions of the nearby people, they were clearly used to such sights.
This kind of gruesome corpse humiliation only deepened Yang Xiao’s disgust for this land, where human life seemed worthless under such brutal rule. As the convoy got a bit closer, Yang Xiao noticed that the corpses had yellow cloths stuffed in their mouths, and the signs on their chests were scrawled with chaotic writing.
It was Ghost Talisman-like writing in Myanmar-Tai that Yang Xiao couldn’t understand, so he turned to Tai Wenqin.
The other party clued in, moved closer to Yang Xiao, and whispered, "These people are suspected of being spies for the Esoteric Sect. This is meant as a warning."
"The sign reads: I am a lackey of the Esoteric Sect, this is my deserved end."
Yang Xiao took a deep breath. The Dharma Sect, a major force within the Yin Temple and a ruler of this land, wielded an influence equivalent to the sum of the three major forces domestically, but its vicious and ruthless methods even surpassed most cults.
As for the Dharma Sect, the Esoteric Sect, the Blood Sect, the Exoteric Sect, and the other hundreds of tribes, they were likely no better. The Yin Temple crowd was nothing more than uncivilized brutes.
No wonder the world calls the Myanmar-Tai Black Triangle a lawless place. Seeing it now, it truly is, under such bloody rule, where lives are as cheap as straws.
The convoy passed through the square to a residential area where a standalone house was guarded by white-clad Magic Disciples.
Upon disembarking and entering the yard, Yang Xiao and his group had a simple meal and rested briefly, then were led again by Magic Disciples to a nearby mountainous area.
This time they had to hike into the mountains; the paths were muddy and treacherous, and a few previously injured comrades couldn’t follow. Professor Cui ordered the rest to stay for recovery, taking only Yang Xiao and Tai Wenqin.
Before leaving, Professor Cui called the team leader named Zhao and whispered a few instructions.
Under the cover of night, Yang Xiao and the group set off. Besides the three of them, there were four Magic Disciples, but none were experts. The one leading the way was the strongest among the four, at most of Fierce Grade level.
Professor Cui communicated with the Magic Disciples through Tai Wenqin on the way, but the other party was tight-lipped, unwilling to reveal anything.
Of course, it was more likely that his rank was too low, responsible only for leading the way, knowing nothing else.
Yang Xiao also noticed something interesting: Professor Cui could speak Myanmar-Tai, and very fluently, but he chose to communicate through Tai Wenqin. Yang Xiao recalled carefully that Professor Cui had never shown in front of Tai Wenqin that he understood the local language.
