The Blade-Wielding Legend
Chapter 143 - 114: The Ancient Temple, Green Lantern, and the Reason_2

Chapter 143: Chapter 114: The Ancient Temple, Green Lantern, and the Reason_2

The firearm seemed unremarkable at first glance, yet it was exquisitely crafted with bamboo surrounding a copper pipe and even segmented into sections. A pull of the wire at the back would spray out phosphorus fire and fierce kerosene flames.

Li Yan had witnessed its destructive power and naturally pocketed it.

Unexpectedly, this item was called the "Netherworld Fire Pistol."

He kept it inside his robe; the fact that the other party could discover it must be due to their divine skills.

"Hmm."

The elderly woman nodded indifferently, seemingly too lazy to say more.

The two passed through the stone archway, and suddenly, a Divine Temple hall appeared in front of them. Like the archway, it was carved out of a hollowed mountain. Many parts were already damaged and it looked ancient and decrepit.

Atop the divine altar stood a statue of an emperor, about the height of one story, its form simple and its craftsmanship seeming almost natural. Dressed in imperial robes and wearing a crown, the figure bore Fuxi’s bone on its head and a black beard stiff like a halberd, exuding an imposing and solemn aura.

In front of the divine position, it resolutely read Beiyin Fengdu Emperor!

And in front of it stood another five divine positions, each inscribed with the titles of the Five Ghost Emperors, but without divine statues to worship.

Indeed, it was this revered deity who was worshipped.

Li Yan’s expression grew solemn, and he even refrained from using his divine skills to probe. Instead, he respectfully lit three incense sticks, bowed repeatedly, and placed them in the incense burner.

Seeing this, the elderly woman by his side softened her indifferent gaze and nodded, "You sit down, I’ll go make tea."

After speaking, she turned and entered the cave behind.

Li Yan found a place to sit and casually surveyed the surroundings.

According to the elderly woman, the heritage of these Magic Veins probably emerged from the end of the Qin dynasty and had continued until now, with only one person remaining.

The old temple’s lone lamp suggested she had neither apprentices nor intention to take any.

This was strange indeed; weren’t Magic Veins supposed to value the incense offered...

Of course, Li Yan was not concerned about the future of these Magic Veins.

But one question persisted in his mind:

If these Magic Veins had never been interrupted,

who was the Cold Altar Wandering Master?

While he pondered, the elderly woman came out from the cave with a tea tray, heating water over a small stove to make tea with unhurried movements that made Li Yan a bit anxious, though he felt it rude to interrupt.

The woman seemed to notice and continued brewing the tea. She even roasted three red dates to add into the cup, all the while never lifting her head as she asked, "Are you in a hurry?"

Li Yan was taken aback, unsure how to respond.

The woman calmly said, "People in this world are all cultivating in their way, driven to such urgency because life is as transient as the morning dew, pursuing status, power, spells, worshiping immortals, worshiping Buddha..."

"A lifetime rushes by in haste. People think they have lived it fully, but it is no more than a dew’s illusion. They do not realize that the sun has barely risen, and they are still ignorant of the passing years."

Li Yan was silent. "Being in no hurry is of no use either. People will always die, and how many can achieve immortality?"

The woman looked toward the cave entrance, her gaze as still as an ancient well, "I thought the same when I was young. Later, after living here for a long time and watching the cycle of growth and decay of the flora, enduring the storms, snow, and frost, I began to understand something.

"Because human life is so fleeting, it compels people to strive, driving the torrent of humanity relentlessly forward. But if one cultivates, one must perceive time on an extended scale. The ancients observed the four seasons of a year to understand the phases of yin and yang; they watched the night sky’s movements to set the heavenly stems and earthly branches, and they contemplated the essence of all things to create written characters with Cangjie...

"Sometimes, it is better to slow down."

"Senior, you are wise!"

Li Yan slapped on a comment with the flattery of immediacy.

He felt the woman had indeed comprehended something but also thought she might just be someone who had been alone for too long and wanted to talk whenever she encountered someone else.

The woman didn’t mind and continued preparing the tea. Finally, the water was ready and she served Li Yan the tea. Then she asked, "Are you here by Brother Wu’s request, returning the Hook Paper?"

Given that she could smell it, Li Yan was not surprised and nodded, "That’s right, but there has been some trouble..."

The woman referred to Wu Lao Si as her brother and spoke of purging the disgraceful magicians, and her demeanor made Li Yan decide not to hide anything. He narrated the entire situation in full detail.

"Cold Altar Wandering Master?"

Li Yan’s words seemed to surprise the woman, who frowned and said, "The incense of our lineage is nearly exhausted and I have no intention of taking disciples. Where would this Cold Altar Wandering Master come from..."

As she spoke, something seemed to strike her. Her pupils contracted and she inquired, "What did this Cold Altar Wandering Master look like?"

"Covered in blood-stained clothes, with iron chains passing through his body..."

After Li Yan’s description, the woman fell silent, and when she looked at him again, her gaze carried a hint of complexity. She sighed, "I think I might know who you are talking about. It seems he is still not giving up."

With that, Li Yan was completely baffled.

The old woman didn’t explain further, she just sighed and said, "Follow me, then you’ll know."

She got up and entered the cave behind her.

Li Yan, full of confusion, quickly followed behind.

Arriving at the back, he found another large cave, carved into a quiet room, a practice field, a kitchen, and bedrooms; it seemed that this Magic Veins had once been quite extensive.

Now, however, except for a few places, everything was covered with dust, clearly uninhabited for a long time.

The old woman lit a torch and led Li Yan deeper inside.

Gradually, they encountered natural caves, without any signs of man-made excavation, even with the dropping of spring water.

After moving forward another hundred meters, there, startlingly, stood a stone door.

Above the door were stone ears, and a dense, tangled mass of copper chains ran through them, sealing off the door completely.

And on it, were pasted several ancient Yellow Talismans.

Seeing the shocked look on Li Yan’s face, the old woman said calmly, "The answer you seek is inside."

"Our late master commanded that this stone door must never be opened, but since he has become a wandering corpse at the Cold Altar, he most likely has met his demise."

As she spoke, she moved forward to unlock the copper chains, tearing off the Yellow Talismans and methodically unfastening the chains before pressing lightly with her palm.

With a rumbling sound,

the heavy stone door instantly opened.

What a sight, an expert in Force Transformation!

Li Yan was startled, but soon, he was drawn in by the scene inside.

Inside was a stone chamber, containing a stone coffin.

Around the coffin, in the position of the Southern Dipper’s six stars, stood six stone lamps.

Li Yan had seen such arrangements before, similar to when Old Wu passed through the Yin Realm.

However, what was different was that above the coffin hung a large copper column, thick at the top and tapering down, like a spike ready to plunge into the coffin at any moment.

Inside the coffin, chains crisscrossed wildly, penetrating a skeleton from top to bottom, left to right, seemingly to prevent it from rising.

"What kind of cruel punishment is this?"

Li Yan was horrified inside, no wonder the roaming corpse from the Cold Altar was pierced all over by chains; it had suffered this kind of punishment.

"It’s not punishment," said the old woman indifferently, "it’s Corpse Pinning!"

"A zombie?" Li Yan was confused.

The old woman shook her head, "I don’t know much about this either.

According to my master, this man was called Ju Chengshan, the most outstanding disciple of their generation, with incredible talent, and compared to the peers of the Taixuan Orthodox Sect, he was in no way inferior. Moreover, he became a living Yin messenger quite early."

"Everyone thought he would be the next Master, but no one expected him to diverge further and further from the path until he completely lost his mind, claiming he had found the ladder to Ascension."

Li Yan frowned, "What path?"

The old woman looked at him with a meaningful gaze, "A living Yin messenger is just an envoy walking between the Yin Bureau and the Human World, with clear taboos about what should and should not be done."

"But there are always those who want to unravel the true nature of the Yin Bureau, like a summer insect trying to comprehend ice, ultimately leading to a dead end."

"He was no exception, and became increasingly insane."

"Towards the end, when his lifespan was nearing its end and his days were limited, he stole the taboo techniques from my lineage, derived from Fang Xian Dao—the Taiyin Corpse Refining Technique, and turned himself into a zombie to prolong his life, killing living beings in the process."

"Many in my sect were killed or injured before we were able to capture him, suppress his zombie body and soul with Secret Techniques, to prevent him from wreaking further havoc."

"As the evil technique backfired on him and he realized he couldn’t escape, he begged my master bitterly to find someone to pass on his technique. Of course, my master did not allow it and directly sealed this place off as a forbidden area."

"In our sect, there was only one Hook Paper; Brother Wu actually inherited it from him, and perhaps he had already tampered with it by then, becoming a wandering corpse at the Cold Altar seeking a successor after death..."

So that’s how it was!

Li Yan felt a bit of a headache, and respectfully said, "I naturally do not wish to accept such an evil technique, please guide me on how to dispel it."

The old woman shook her head, "Dispelling it? It can’t be dispelled!"