Eternal Swordmaster
Chapter 267 - 260 Demon God Temple Part 1

Chapter 267: Chapter 260 Demon God Temple Part 1

"Let’s reside in the corner of the courtyard instead of entering the temple," Han Yaolu managed to squeeze out a smile and suggested. "Red Master surely left because he feared we might become too dependent. He must be looking after us from the shadows..."

"That must be it..." Guo Zixuan nodded, his face a picture of misery.

Ma Jingxuan struggled to steady her mind, no longer having Red Master to rely on. Waves of panic and unease surged relentlessly within her.

But as the team leader, if she panicked now, the entire team would fall into chaos.

"It should be the case. Let’s just focus on completing the task. Since the sect has assigned us this mission, it means we are capable of handling it on our own. As long as we are careful, there should be no issues."

"Sister is right."

Guo Zixuan quickly agreed.

"Let’s start a fire first, then set up the tents."

The group entered the Taoist temple and began to busy themselves.

*******************

Lin Xin walked alone in the gloomy woods, where everywhere looked the same at a glance, with unending mountain forests that were deep and chillingly cold.

The sky grew darker as evening approached, the only light being the lingering whiteness of clouds after the sun had completely set.

Lin Xin walked slowly through the woods, his feet rustling and cracking on the thick layers of fallen leaves, seeming to crush twigs or withered foliage beneath him.

Just now, he had felt as if someone had dashed by outside the temple; the sounds were faint, inaudible to Ma Jingxuan and the other two. He just happened to want to act alone, to prevent Ma Jingxuan from becoming overly reliant on him and unable to face the task independently. That was why he tapped into his movement technique and left in an instant.

To his surprise, after coming out, he saw no one.

After circling around the Taoist temple, Lin Xin found traces of something bound with ropes on the trunk of a large tree behind the compound.

Nothing else appeared out of the ordinary.

He lightly leaped up, landing on a large tree branch, and after clearing some debris, he sat cross-legged, continuing his search for Eternal Slumber Nine Injuries.

Not long afterward,

sounds of the campfire burning and the faint voices of Ma Jingxuan and the others talking could be heard from within the temple.

Even with his eyes closed, Lin Xin’s sharp senses allowed him to keep track of their movements.

As the night wore on, the branch he sat on became utterly dark, devoid of any light.

Besides a few stars, the moon was also tightly concealed by thick clouds. The entire forest was barely visible, with only a faint glimmer here and there.

After an indeterminate amount of time, the sounds from the direction of the fire ceased, and Lin Xin slowly opened his eyes.

Perched high on his branch, he could vaguely make out the flames of the fire from the temple courtyard.

Now, there was no one by the fire, yet it burned briskly. It appeared everyone had settled down for the night in their respective three tents. Around them, they had spread some medicine powder to deter wild animals, and a circle outlined with Talisman Paper on silk thread surrounded the tents.

"They are well-prepared," he nodded in approval and was just about to stand and check on them.

Suddenly, he felt a tingling sensation on his skin and sharply looked down toward the base of the tree.

A blurry white figure stood below, looking up at him. Its somewhat protruding eyes were fixed on him, unaffected by the dark shadows.

But in a blink, the figure vanished, as if it had been an illusion.

Lin Xin’s face remained expressionless as he carefully sensed the surroundings but felt no living creature approaching.

"Interesting," he murmured as he lightly dropped from the tree, scanning the area.

There were no signs of human activity, only the line of footprints he left in the forest.

He took out a High-Level Resentment Talisman, which remained still, showing no reaction.

"No resentment here, not a vengeful spirit," he muttered, quickly turning his attention back to the Taoist temple.

This temple seemed to be more complex than the mission briefing had suggested.

"Demon creatures? Indeed, there seems to be a demon concealing itself here, with signs of its presence all around. But that person just now..."

He recalled the figure he had just seen.

It was white, hazy, with very little hair, and nothing else could be discerned.

"Definitely not a demon..."

With an agile leap, he descended into the temple compound, landing soundlessly on the moss-covered stone bricks.

Looking around, he found himself in what appeared to be a small garden. A few hoes and watering cans were placed to one side, as if someone had been tending to the flowers not long ago.

To the right lay the temple’s dim corridors, and to the left, a row of small shed-like rooms.

In the middle of the courtyard was a well, with a wooden bucket placed askew beside it.

Lin Xin walked over to the bucket, squatting down to touch its edge, which felt cold and rough—characteristic of wood, hard yet resilient. Most importantly, it was dry.

Looking into the well, he saw only shimmering water, nothing else.

Thump.

From the darkness of the corridor came the sound of something dropping onto a wooden board.

Lin Xin looked up, but again saw nothing. The wooden floor was covered in a thick layer of dust; with his keen eyesight, he could see there were no footprints, not even the mark of an insect.

His hand slowly resting on the hilt of the Red Flower Sword, Lin Xin suddenly thought that this was the youngsters’ mission, and he should not intervene.

After pondering for a moment, he let go of the Red Flower Sword and headed straight for the pitch-black corridor.

Soon, he arrived at the entrance of the corridor, which was shrouded in darkness without a speck of light.

He took out a fire starter, struck it with a hiss, and then took out the prepared torch to light it.

Instantly, the yellow flame lit up, illuminating most of the passageway.

Looking forward along the path of light, the end of the corridor revealed a wooden door that was half-open. The door swayed with the breeze, giving the illusion that someone had just passed through it.

Holding the torch, Lin Xin slowly walked into the corridor and soon reached the door, pulling it gently.

"?!"

To his surprise, the door shook slightly but wouldn’t open!

Lin Xin was startled as he clearly felt that someone on the other side was also pulling the door with all their might, just enough to counteract his strength, making it impossible to pull open the door.

Creak, creak...

The door constantly shook under the force of both sides; the person inside seemed to be desperately trying to close the door, while Lin Xin wanted to pull it open completely.

Let go.

The force on the other side disappeared at the same time as he released his hold on the door.

Lin Xin was somewhat astonished, glanced at the wooden door, and decided not to enter. After all, this Taoist temple was part of the rotund girl’s task, and if he figured things out, it wouldn’t serve the purpose of letting her gain experience.

Retreating back outside the temple, he found another large tree and climbed up to continue resting.

Until daybreak, when the crisp chirping of birds grew louder, he slowly came to.

From inside the Taoist temple came the faint sounds of the three youngsters getting up, seemingly preparing to explore the entire temple.

Lin Xin quietly descended and followed behind them.

As they entered the temple gates and saw them walk into the main hall with the damaged statue, they whispered to each other for a moment and then began to investigate separately.

Once they had left, Lin Xin walked into the hall and looked up at the eerie statue with a smirk-like expression.

"A four-armed demon god, huh...?"

He recognized the statue, not as that of a True Monarch but actually one of the demon race’s demon gods.

"In other words, this place is not a Taoist temple meant for human reverence, but a place constructed for the demon race to worship," he noted as he carefully examined the incense candles used in the main hall, which were indeed of a pale purple hue, a color only the demon race would use to worship their gods.

"As you are before me, Daoist Master, there is no longer any need for me to hide," suddenly a voice came from behind him.

Lin Xin turned around and saw a beautiful woman in a pink petal gown standing at the entrance of the grand hall, holding a red oiled paper umbrella, with her long hair reaching her waist, silently watching him.

"Who are you?"

The woman smiled subtly, walked in under her umbrella, and gave Lin Xin a slight bow.

"I am Gong Shoulian, and I have been cultivating here for over four hundred years," she said.

"This place doesn’t seem like it could have been created by any mere demon," Lin Xin stated calmly.

"Daoist Master is astute," Gong Shoulian, who had claimed to be Gong Shoulian, nodded. "This was originally a small Taoist temple for the worship of the Demon God. One day, however, an uninvited guest came, and from that day on, the temple began to deteriorate. The minor demons either died or scattered until now."

"As for the abnormal state here, it was precisely because of such phenomena that a Taoist temple was built here," Gong Shoulian explained softly.

"What kind of abnormality?"

Gong Shoulian hesitated.

"Since the Daoist Master asks, I will take you to see, and you will know. After all, many high-ranking people nearby are aware of it, but nobody wants to meddle in these troubled waters."

"Oh?" Lin Xin expressed curiosity, since everyone knew about it yet no one wanted to come, there must be something truly difficult about it.

"Lead the way, and let’s take a look," he suggested.

The woman nodded quickly.

"Please follow me, Daoist Master."

She led Lin Xin out of the Taoist temple, walked a few hundred meters up the small mountain path, and soon, they came upon an extraordinarily thick, yet abnormally short, strange tree.

This queer tree was situated next to a silver-white creek, riddled with many bizarre growths and with bark covered in rough nodules, indicating its ancient age.

"Elder Tree, I’ve brought a Daoist Master to see you," Gong Shoulian said softly to the strange tree.

Poof!

A dense cloud of smoke burst forth from the ground, and as the white smoke quickly dissipated, it revealed an old man with a walking stick and a white beard.

The old man had a large lump on his forehead, appeared sprightly for his age, obviously having lived for many, many years.

"Greetings to the fellow Daoist," the old man slightly bowed to Lin Xin.

Lin Xin promptly returned the bow.

"Are you the Mountain God dwelling in these mountains?"

There are elves in the mountains that, once they set boundaries and cultivate over the years, are not few in establishing themselves as a Mountain God.

Mountain Gods can be spirits or demons, all cultivating the nature’s spiritual energy without killing living beings. Thus, they are usually associated with the Righteous Path.

"Indeed," the old man nodded, "I am Murong Ci. I have been the Mountain God for over three hundred years. Originally, I was an old tree in these mountains."

"I am Red Flower, here to protect a junior," Lin Xin also introduced himself.

"The issue is this, there is a demon named Sahan causing trouble and disturbing the peace of living beings year-round," Murong Ci sighed, "To be frank, I have only recently achieved the status of Mountain God and my cultivation may not be as strong as yours, so when this issue arose, naturally I should take action to resolve it. However, I did not expect that this Sahan has a powerful demon behind him, residing in the Sahan - Snake Cave of Wuchen Mountain. Then..." (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)