Eternal Swordmaster
Chapter 322 - 315

Chapter 322: 315

"If Taoist Lord Wuji were here, with his Heavenly Plate contract, he would certainly be able to figure out the ins and outs of this trouble," Chen Fan said helplessly. "If those lone travelers get involved, then it really becomes troublesome."

"Don’t be so pessimistic, we’ve gotten through this so many times together. There won’t be too many problems, rest assured," Mei Zi comforted.

With a smack, a large hand landed on Lin Xin’s shoulder.

Gu Lince walked up and stood shoulder to shoulder with Lin Xin near a temple pillar. He sighed deeply, looking at Lin Xin with a complex expression in his eyes.

"Haiji, tell me the truth, is it that he has come?"

Lin Xin was initially stunned, then his expression slightly darkened.

"Can you phrase it differently?"

Gu Lince was also slightly taken aback.

"What’s wrong? Is there something incorrect?"

"It’s just that your phrasing sounds very strange," Lin Xin said helplessly.

"Haven’t we always spoken like this before?" Gu Lince was somewhat puzzled.

"Alright, alright, go on," Lin Xin could only respond speechlessly.

"I just want to ask if it’s that time of the month for you," Gu Lince said earnestly.

"What is ’that’?" Lin Xin countered, somewhat bewildered.

"That, you know!" Gu Lince was also somewhat at a loss for words.

"How would I know which ’that’ it is if you don’t clarify?"

"We’ve always used this phrase. It’s the one where once it comes, there will be bleeding."

The two men looked at each other, both speechless.

"Alright, alright, I mean the ’Illusion’," Gu Lince had no choice but to stop hiding it.

"Illusion..." Lin Xin’s heart chilled, and he bowed his head. "Why are you suddenly asking about this?"

"You know I’ve gone through it once before. If it hadn’t been for all of you forcibly subduing me and knocking me out, I might indeed have made a grave error," Gu Lince said solemnly, "So, although I spent seven days in a constant unconscious state, I have no regrets."

He sighed again.

"I heard that not long ago, there was someone who alone endured the ’Illusion’ by sealing themselves with a Holy Stone. Compared to him, we really are quite cowardly."

Lin Xin had nothing to say since he had also toughed it out on his own.

Gu Lince leaned a hand against the pillar.

"Sometimes, I think that seeing almost no hope of escaping from the netherworld, it would be easier just to die," he said.

"What are you thinking! Don’t talk so lightly of giving up, wasn’t that what you always told us?" Mei Zi came over and said softly.

As the big brother of the team, Gu Lince could only give a wry smile.

"Don’t worry, I promised you, I would lead everyone, all of us, to survive together. That’s why I am still standing here. Rest assured..."

Mei Zi walked over and gently hugged him.

Chen Fan was also in low spirits, walking up to Lin Xin and patting his shoulder.

He immersed himself for a while.

Lin Xin’s heart stirred, and he spoke in a low voice.

"Not long ago, I encountered a man who had passed through the ’Illusion’, and his body began to decay."

"Decay? Did he not know how to balance the ’Slaughter’? The netherworld and reality must be balanced; otherwise, the body will gradually be lost to the ’Illusion’."

But Chen Fan and Gu Lince’s expressions instantly became sharp.

"Haiji, where did you see this man?"

And this balance of the ’Slaughter’?

Lin Xin could sense the tension in the two, his mind rapidly turning.

"I also encountered him on the way here, from Curved Serpent City to this side trail, when we ran into each other face to face. What’s wrong?"

"This decay... Is it that kind of withered rotting phenomenon appearing on the body?" Chen Fan asked quickly, his expression tense.

"It seems so," Lin Xin frowned, "I was in a hurry to come here, so I didn’t look too closely. After all, staring at someone isn’t polite."

"If it really is that kind of withered decay, then you’d better stay as far away from that person as possible," Gu Lince earnestly advised.

"Why?" Lin Xin asked, puzzled.

"Because, if such a situation occurs and it’s not due to other reasons, for us children of the netherworld, there’s only one condition that could lead to this state," Gu Lince explained.

"What is it?"

"Lion Plains!" Gu Lince’s expression grew solemn, "That’s definitely a powerful and fierce person who has been to the Lion Plains!"

"Right!" Chen Fan nodded, "Those who have gone to the Lion Plains are generally called the despairing. Over time, their bodies continuously decay, and only by relentless slaughter can they find relief. They’re about to turn into living dead monsters. Don’t get close to them. In their hysteria, they might do anything."

"Because they won’t live long?" Mei Zi asked softly.

"No, they will live on forever, but it will be an existence worse than death," Gu Lince replied coldly.

"An existence worse than death...." Lin Xin felt a chill in his heart. If it weren’t for the gift from the Red Leaf Sword Master, he might now be one of the countless walking dead.

Lion’s Origin.... Truly a terrifying and hopeless place. It was a name people preferred not to mention.

The four of them gathered and spoke in whispers.

Next to them, a small team of four people had unknowingly positioned themselves close by.

The leader was a tall man with dark skin, dressed in blackish-grey leather armor, with two ancient, thick-backed sabers hanging at his waist and two black iron spheres, the size of a human head, tied to the heels of his legs, which restricted movement; the chains emitted a continual jangling of metal.

"Gu Lince, long time no see. I owe you thanks for your help back in the Intestine-Free Nation," the tall man said coldly to Gu Lince.

The other three with him, two women and a man, also emitted a cold aura towards them.

"A bet is a bet, what about it? Can’t Captain Yao Dong accept a loss?" Gu Lince responded with an equally cold tone.

"Can’t accept a loss? What a joke!" the dark-skinned man scoffed. "If it weren’t for your cheating at the last minute, those two Demon Talisman Seeds should have been ours!"

"All is fair in war. Have you never heard that saying before?" Gu Lince laughed.

The two men, exchanging barbed words with each other, argued noisily but the atmosphere was tense, neither making a move—clearly, each had a wary respect for the other.

Lin Xin, pulled aside by Mei Zi, chatted softly about recent amusements, half-heartedly responding as he continually sized up the others around him.

"Gentlemen!"

Suddenly, from within the temple, an old monk with a beard plaited into a triangle slowly stepped out wearing a silver kasaya that shimmered like fish scales, clearly not a mundane object.

The old monk, lean and withered, walked out step by step, his voice loud and clear.

"I am Huangshan, the Venerable. Today marks our hundred-day meeting, besides the usual trading, team invitations, and information sharing. Here, I also have a major discovery to announce," he declared.

"Venerable Huangshan, for something to be considered significant by you, it must involve the most troublesome matters, right?" a giant man, curled up in a dark corner, slowly stood up wearing a suit of dark metal armor and a black whip hanging at his waist.

"Not necessarily," the Venerable Huangshan chuckled.

"With your capabilities, Venerable, it must be related to that recent event in reality," another woman with a palm-sized burn scar on her neck spoke faintly.

"Is it those reckless foreigners?!" someone blurted out. The voice echoed around the small square in front of the temple.

"The foreigners are just a minority. It’s not about them," Venerable Huangshan shook his head.

"If I’m not mistaken, it’s related to that thing that appeared in the west?" The giant man, seeming to hold a kind of authority, spoke softly.

"Jia Ling got it right," the Venerable Huangshan pinched his beard. "Indeed, it’s related to the palace that just appeared in the west."

At this revelation, a buzz slowly rose among the crowd as they murmured to each other.

Lin Xin felt a slight confusion and concentrated, listening intently to the conversations around him.

Soon, he figured out what that palace in the west was.

The Sand Time Divine Palace.

That was the name of the palace.

It had emerged abruptly at the top of a massive sand pillar, arrogantly blocking off the surrounding area for twenty miles, with only those inside having the freedom to move about, leaving those outside with no option but to watch helplessly.

"It is said to be the true palace of the strongest ancient demon, the Sandstone Demon," Venerable Huangshan explained seriously.

"Sandstone Demon?" Suddenly, a soft male voice floated down from the eaves of one side of the temple.

Accompanied by the voice, a chilling cold air swept through the area.

The ground unknowingly began to frost over with a thin layer of white frost. Nearby branches and leaves, the temple walls, steps, and even the surfaces of lit lanterns, began to slowly cover with an unusual white layer.

All the sons of the gloomy mansion became instantly quiet, each with a solemn expression, staring at the slender figure standing on the eaves.

"Wusheng Knife..." Venerable Huangshan’s expression also turned slightly stern. "I seem to remember not inviting you."

"Do I need your invitation?" the soft male responded. His face was neither fat nor thin, neither handsome nor ugly, but his eyes were narrow and his nose bore a nail-cover sized blue-silver bird mark.

His black hair fluttered in the wind, reaching nearly to his waist.

The drifting of his hair was exceedingly strange, as there was no airflow or breeze on the scene.

Lin Xin watched the man with a slightly serious gaze.

The stranger’s aura was obscure, his cultivation unknown, but merely from the murderous intent emanating from him, the number of people he had killed might even surpass Lin Xin’s own.

"I’m here to get information about the Sand Time Divine Palace from you," Wusheng Knife licked his lips, narrowing his eyes.

"But I’m rather curious, Huangshan, such a peaceful and weak stronghold like yours has managed to survive up until now. There must be some unknown special reasons for it..."

Venerable Huangshan replied coldly. "Huangshan and other strongholds are different. We, the sons of the gloomy mansion, are already in despair and pain. If we do not assist each other, how can we have a future? That’s unlike you, Green Snake!"

"Is that so?" Wusheng Knife smiled faintly. "Name your price. For a weak stronghold like yours, holding onto such vital information is pointless. You lack the strength to utilize it. Why not sell it to us and get some benefits to offset your stronghold’s consumption?"

At these words, Venerable Huangshan’s expression suddenly grew uncertain. (To be continued. If you like this work, I invite you to cast your recommendation and monthly tickets at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)