The Blade-Wielding Legend
Chapter 270 - 183 A Moment’s Divergence_2

Chapter 270: Chapter 183 A Moment’s Divergence_2

Li Yan hastily said, "This brother’s Daoist certificate has been registered but hasn’t been collected yet, and everyone at the Law Enforcement Hall in Chang’an, including Luo Mingzi and Gu Chenzi, are acquainted with me."

"What they say about King Yan being easier to deal with than his subordinates really is true," Li Yan realized that day.

Unexpectedly, on his way up the mountain, he encountered such a peculiar character, forcing him to pull some strings.

Perhaps it was due to the black Daoist certificate and the identity of a living Yin messenger, but the Daoist didn’t question further and nodded, saying, "If that’s the case, I will not interfere further. Once you ascend the mountain, you can head to Chunyang Palace where someone will be there to receive you."

Having said that, he took out a register to sign them in.

They had finally managed the situation...

Li Yan shook his head slightly, waiting calmly on the side.

Suddenly, the Hook Paper in his bosom began to feel incredibly hot.

Li Yan froze, and before he could regain his composure, the area around him was enveloped in a thick fog.

Could this be... the Yin Bureau issuing a new task?

Or had he encountered a communication with God?

Full of doubts, Li Yan hurried forward.

Soon, the thick fog swiftly dissipated, and a huge cauldron appeared abruptly before him.

What was this?

Curiosity filled Li Yan’s heart. Could this be a new Magic Artifact from the Yin Bureau?

He cautiously stepped forward, and just like one would do with a well, slowly reached out his hand towards the incense burner.

Yet, there was no reaction.

Li Yan’s curiosity grew; he decided to leap onto the incense burner to explore it further.

But upon inspection, a chill ran from the soles of his feet to his head, sending shivers down his spine.

Inside the incense burner lay a monster, covered in green hair, seemingly humanoid, with eyes as sharp as cold blades that seemed ready to devour him alive the next second.

A demon?

Li Yan’s hairs stood on end, and just as he was about to act, he suddenly remembered something. His hand stiffened, and he stopped.

This place was called the Hairy Woman Cave,

Could this creature be the Hairy Woman?

Why did it look so terrifying?

Fortunately, the Hairy Woman just stared straight at him without any unusual movements. Just as Li Yan was about to inquire, the scenery around him changed once again.

He found himself in a dark and gloomy cave, seemingly constructed according to the Eight Trigrams. The walls around were carved with big and small talismans, all filled with vermilion sand, vivid red like blood.

Just a glance upward sent a chill through his bones, causing him to shiver uncontrollably.

In the center of the cave, there stood a coffin made of bronze, large in size with patches of verdigris, and its cover fitted with seven copper spears arranged according to the Big Dipper.

It was the coffin used to suppress the Drought Demon!

Li Yan immediately understood.

This Hairy Woman... might be trying to tell him something.

Just then, the cave underwent another strange transformation.

The soil near the coffin stirred as a gust of wind arose, and a large piece of wood slowly emerged from the ground.

What was this now?

Li Yan became alert.

The wood was clearly pine, covered with various claw marks. As it emerged from the ground, it suddenly collapsed, a few meters away from the bronze coffin.

Soon, another creature emerged from the cave.

It was a small lizard, with six legs and a raised back, looking very peculiar.

Li Yan couldn’t fathom how such a large tree could be moved by a small six-legged snake, apparently using the Earth Escape Skill...

However, this little creature seemed extremely fearful of the blood-colored talismans around, not daring to show its head, and struggled to crawl under the wood.

With every step, it seemed to carry a weight of thousands, but it never stopped, slowly approaching the bronze coffin using the wood for cover.

Yet, the pine was still some distance from the coffin. The lizard crawled to the end, turned around helplessly, and then returned to the cave.

Was this a warning from the Hairy Woman?

A flash of insight crossed Li Yan’s mind as he remembered something.

Earlier on the way up the mountain, Wang Daoxuan had mentioned that the "Classic of Mountains and Seas" described a strange snake at Hua Mountain called the Feiyi, with six legs and four wings, appearing as a harbinger of large-scale droughts.

"The Drought Demon too emerges from the source of great droughts,"

"Could these two beings be looking to stir up trouble?"

At that moment of shock, the dense fog around him quickly dispersed, allowing Li Yan to regain his composure.

After his Dao had improved, whether it was receiving tasks from the Yin Constables or communicating with God, his speed had significantly increased. Despite having experienced so much just now, to an ordinary person, it seemed like only a moment had passed.

"Daoist, there seems to be some trouble up on the mountain..."

Li Yan hesitated for a moment before recounting what he had just experienced.

Although the Daoist was detestable, the warning from the Spirit Maiden, coupled with the mischief of those two ferocious creatures, clearly indicated this was no small matter. It could not be concealed due to personal grievances.

"What?!"

The Daoist was startled, abruptly standing up, and in his haste, he even knocked over the table in front of him, scattering brushes, ink, and paper everywhere.

He paid no attention to the mess and urgently stepped forward to ask, "Is what you say true?"

Li Yan frowned slightly, "For such a significant issue, why would I deceive you?"

The Daoist’s face shifted between expressions, too anxious to say more. He went directly to the altar where the Spirit Maiden was honored and picked up a Yellow Talisman.

He grasped the vermilion pen and, with fluid strokes on the back of the talisman, wrote some words. His hands then began to move swiftly, and within a breath’s time, he had folded the Yellow Talisman into a paper crane.

Then, with a solemn face, he performed the spell, stepped in the Step Gang pattern, and chanted, "Om! By the command, feathers soar and transform, envoy of the Divine Heaven and Crimson Lake, heeded by the order, come before my path, swiftly as decreed by the law!"

A paper crane messenger?

Upon seeing this, Li Yan became intrigued.

This spell was no ordinary one, a legacy known only to the Proper Xuan Sect and distinct from his own Grass Spirit Technique, not found in any side door.

He had only heard of it before and had not expected to witness it with his own eyes.

While he contemplated, the Daoist finished chanting the mantra, then blew on the paper crane three times and, with a flick of his hand, released it into the air.

Whoosh!

A sudden gust of chill wind arose, and the paper crane, as if coming to life, flapped its wings and flew straight out of the temple, vanishing in the blink of an eye.

After sending the paper crane message, the Daoist still looked deeply worried. After watching the sky for a while, he finally turned to Li Yan and said, "Daoist friend, thank you for the warning. If this matter proves true, your virtuous deeds are immeasurable."

With two more days until the ritual, Li Yan was not in a hurry and asked curiously, "The temple’s Spirit Maiden raised a warning, and I am merely relaying the message. Could that small creature be Feiyi?"

The Daoist hesitated, then nodded and said, "I shall not conceal it from a Daoist friend. Hua Mountain has always been a divine mountain. Although we reside in this Grotto Heaven Blessed Land, we are not its masters but rather serve to honor the White Emperor. The biggest trouble on Hua Mountain is indeed Feiyi."

"This creature is a naturally born supernatural being, emerged from the energy of Evil Spirits, particularly of the wood type. It lays eggs within the Earth’s veins and prefers to destroy spirit wood."

"On Hua Mountain, there is Purple Cypress, a Divine Wood unique to this place. After many years, it can become a Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasure. Even for the divine beauty of Hua Mountain, it takes hundreds of years to form."

"Whenever Purple Cypress appears, Feiyi inevitably is born, guards beneath it, absorbs its fortune, and seizes its opportunity."

"Feiyi is indeed a major problem and can trigger droughts. A few years ago in Jianchang County of Ganzhou, lumberjacks saw Feiyi in the woods, and that year a severe drought occurred."

"If it also absorbs the corpse energy of the Drought Demon, it could quickly become fully formed and bring harm to the region, perhaps even causing a great drought in Guanzhong."

"If it really is this creature stirring trouble, Daoist friend, you may not know how many lives you have saved..."

So that’s how it is...

Relief washed over Li Yan, and fear lurked in his heart.

He was never one to suffer losses and had gained the reputation of being a "troublesome ghost" in his village. Over the past six months traveling the pugilistic world, he had always been one to return eye for an eye.

Just moments ago, he had harbored selfish thoughts, unwilling to let this opportunistic Daoist gain credit, planning to inform the other members of the Taixuan Orthodox Sect after ascending the mountain.

Had things truly been as he suspected, he might have nearly made a massive mistake.

He vividly remembered that Feiyi was only a few meters away from the coffin, perhaps just needing another piece of wood to succeed.

Disaster and turmoil, all hanging on his single thought.

He could have pretended to be oblivious, and no one would have pursued the matter afterward, but in doing so, how would he be different from the people he had always looked down upon?

With this realization, Li Yan glanced at the statue of the Spirit Maiden, lost in deep thought.

In this moment, he suddenly understood what it meant to be a part of the Mystical Sect and what his identity as a living Yin messenger represented...

The hearts of men might be deceived, but the Ghost Gods are not so easily fooled.

Unbeknownst to others, Yan Jiuling, who had been holding back for a long while, was already profoundly stirred and excited, "Who would have thought that this journey to Hua Mountain would let me witness such a strange event, truly worth the trip."

"No wonder you are regarded as a hero, Li. The first time I met you, I felt you were out of the ordinary, truly a remarkable figure amid the dust of the world."

"Hero?"

Li Yan slightly shook his head, "I am not yet worthy of that title."

With those words, he looked outside and calmly stated, "Let’s go, this mountain still stands high..."