Chapter 1834: Chapter 1047: Zhenxuan Temple (Part 2)
"Senior, then I won’t stand on ceremony. I want a high-level puppet, like the one previously controlled by the Ninja Team General of the Kah Party. If I can rescue Beiyu Ye, I want him to help me craft this puppet." Yang Xiao wasn’t doing it for personal gain; after all, it was his good sister’s highest directive. Even with no benefits, he had to proceed, but refusing free benefits would be foolish, and this could also dispel any suspicions from the Jiu Mountain Family.
That puppet, in life, was at least an expert at the half-step Netherworld Realm, and its physique was extremely robust. Yang Xiao wanted to take it away at that time, but he had no chance.
That Temple Tail Branch Chief wasn’t particular about rules; he collected all those puppet corpses, claiming it was in the name of gathering evidence.
Moreover, the way that guy looked at him was quite peculiar, much like how he looked at those evil cultivators with good magic artifacts.
Upon hearing Yang Xiao’s request, Jiushan Huangye agreed readily. He even straightforwardly said that if this mission succeeded, the Taoist Sect would also owe Yang Xiao a favor, and having Beiyu Ye assist in crafting a puppet would be appropriate.
"By the way, where’s Miss Sha Yue? Why isn’t she here?" According to the information Yang Xiao had obtained, Jiu Shan Sha Yue should also be at this camp.
"She didn’t follow orders and has been placed in confinement by me, sealed off with my ability." Jiushan Huangye couldn’t help but frown slightly at the mention of Jiu Shan Sha Yue.
Yang Xiao looked at the blood-red pen holder in Jiushan Huangye’s hand and roughly guessed that Jiu Shan Sha Yue must have clamored to go in and rescue someone, only to be trapped in the pen holder world by Jiushan Huangye with his ability.
Yang Xiao’s Soul-Capturing Mirror can open the Mirror World, his good brother Fu Qingzhu’s Bone Fan can also create a siheyuan world, so Jiushan Huangye’s pen holder might very well contain a self-contained world as well.
"Yang Xiao, remember, whether it succeeds or not, don’t force it. If you can’t save him, leave by yourself. Absolutely don’t act recklessly." Jiushan Huangye emphasized again, having said similar words twice already.
Losing one Beiyu Ye was bearable, but if Yang Xiao was lost too, it would be a blood loss. If that happened, the matters of the Taoist Sect would have to be postponed. Yang Xiao... absolutely cannot die.
The willingness to take on some risk also had its reasons; the Jiu Mountain Clan naturally had its own motives. If they could obtain this Wordless Heavenly Scripture, they could also attempt to use it to calculate the major event they were planning.
That matter was too important, wagering the future of the Jiushan Clan, not allowing for any mistakes.
"When do you plan to set off?" Jiushan Huangye was visibly anxious, as time was pressing, and the more time they won, the more chances they had to break the stalemate.
"Do you know what the situation inside the Secret Realm is?" Yang Xiao was making a final confirmation.
Unfortunately, the Jiu Mountain Family also had no knowledge of the situation inside. The only person who knew was Beiyu Ye, but unfortunately, he held his tongue.
Clearly, the Taoist Sect and Beiyu Ye himself didn’t trust the Jiu Mountain Family, at least not on this matter. They would rather die inside than reveal information about the Secret Realm to prevent the Jiu Mountain Family from exploiting it.
Hearing this, Yang Xiao didn’t waste any more words. After taking a backup map, he set off. The main goal was to seize the treasure, with rescue as a secondary aim. Yang Xiao also wanted to see what this Wordless Heavenly Scripture, a supreme treasure, was like.
On the way, many strange and peculiar thoughts popped into Yang Xiao’s mind. He suddenly thought, if his good sister obtained this book, could she foretell that he would betray her in the future?
If that were the case, it would be too awkward. Wouldn’t it be like shooting himself in the foot? Heaven knows, Yang Xiao’s loyalty to his good sister was unwavering.
With the map, Yang Xiao entered the marked area, easily discovering a spatially unstable region in a mountain hollow.
"Yes, this should be it." The sensation in front of him was very familiar; it was similar to the feeling when he entered the Secret Realm of the Yi Sect.
But this time, the entrance was much less stable than before, clearly indicating this Secret Realm couldn’t last long.
Without further hesitation, Yang Xiao’s figure flickered, disappearing from his original spot.
A flash of light and shadow changed before his eyes, and as the view gradually cleared, Yang Xiao found himself in an unfamiliar world. The mountains were majestic, the ridges verdant, and peaks rose and fell without end in sight.
Not far in front of Yang Xiao stood a Daoist temple. The gate and outer walls were already eroded and dilapidated, with the signboard askew.
The large golden characters on the signboard, though dusty, were still discernible as "Zhenxuan Temple."
As Yang Xiao was observing, suddenly, the gate of the Daoist temple, in disrepair, was pulled open by some force, and three people walked out from inside.
Too far to see faces clearly, the silhouettes suggested two men and one woman. The three wore ancient-style Daoist robes, stitched and patched.
Through the open vests, one wore an old-style Chinese suit underneath, one had a green qipao, and the last wore a kimono, complemented by wooden clogs. This mix-and-match ensemble was utterly incongruous.
The auras of these three were strange, not quite human, yet unlike ordinary puppets. Yang Xiao hid behind a large rock, not daring to move, using the Concealing Technique taught by Jiushan Cangxuan to suppress his spiritual power and minimize his presence.
Though odd, these three were undoubtedly powerful. The man in the Chinese suit, the middle one, had the power of a peak Ghost Level, the qipao woman was slightly weaker, nearly at the peak of the Ghost Level, and the man in the kimono had the capability of an Upper Ghost Level. Together, they formed a formidable team.
Uncertain of the circumstances, Yang Xiao naturally wouldn’t rashly reveal himself, especially since he didn’t have the confidence to defeat these three without using his trump cards.
After exiting the temple, the three seemed to have a clear target and immediately headed in one direction, soon vanishing into the dense forest.
Yang Xiao glanced a few times at the dilapidated "Zhenxuan Temple" and then turned to follow them, deciding to see what these people intended to do.
To understand what had happened here, exploring the temple would be the most direct choice, but it would also be too risky.
The temple gave Yang Xiao an unusual feeling. Previously, with the Human Bone Staff, he’d found no spiritual response inside, as if it were an empty temple.
Yet, three powerful individuals emerged from it, unnoticed by Yang Xiao until they stepped out of the temple gate.
Now, upon reevaluation, the temple clearly had some restriction isolating spiritual power detection, prompting Yang Xiao to speculate if "Zhenxuan Temple" might actually be the core of this Secret Realm, given the Secret Realm’s origin was the Taoist Sect’s Wordless Heavenly Scripture.
The temple felt like a dead water pool to Yang Xiao, but who knew what lay beneath?
Rushing in recklessly could lead to an ugly death; imagine kicking the door open and finding a roomful of high-level Apostles, all turning to stare at him—that scenario was stimulating enough just to imagine.
Unaware of the local conditions, Yang Xiao opted not to take action, having enough time to gather intel first. The urgent task was to locate the missing Beiyu Ye, who certainly knew the situation.
With the Soul-Capturing Mirror in hand, following the trio wasn’t challenging for Yang Xiao. About ten minutes later, the dense forest ended, revealing a river ahead.
The river was muddy and turbulent, flanked by scattered stones, and on the open bank, there seemed to have just been a fierce battle.
Five corpses lay on the ground, some with severed limbs, others beheaded, and one was gruesomely torn in half. Strangely, not a drop of blood flowed from it.
His pupils involuntarily contracted; the face of this corpse was familiar to Yang Xiao—it was one of Beiyu Ye’s puppets. At that moment, the sound of fighting emanated from the nearby forest.
