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墨書 Inktalez
The Western Divine Serpent Sect is located deep in the western part of the Central Plains, with the Shatuo Ancient City situated midway. The surrounding area has been barren for hundreds of years, devoid of any vegetation. The Serpent Cult lies to the northwest of Shatuo Ancient City, where nearly all the plants are red, and almost half are poisonous. Anyone who enters rarely comes out alive. Thus, the Western Divine Serpent Sect has managed to exist for centuries as a dark sect without being destroyed. Its geographical conditions are even more concealed and secure than those of the Yinshan Yang Family.
Douding and I appeared on a desolate mountain over ten miles away from the Divine Serpent Cult Headquarters. I asked, "Douding, does your senior brother have any distinctive features?"
Douding nodded and replied, "He has a round birthmark between his chin and neck, and there’s a scar on the back of his hand from when he was practicing swordsmanship at Qingliang Temple."
"Alright, wait for me here. I'll go in and see what happened to him." I looked at Beast Path and said, "Pao Pao, protect Douding here."
"Okay!" Beast nodded and affectionately rubbed against Douding's face.
I stepped forward and vanished into the red wilderness.
At the entrance of the Divine Serpent Cult Headquarters, two burly guards stared wide-eyed. I slipped between them unnoticed. The main building of the Serpent Cult was not as lavish as those of other sects; it seemed to be carved out of volcanic rock, creating a space that was interconnected and quite hot.
After wandering through the cave for a while without finding the so-called Refining Fire Hall, I instead discovered an opening that let in sunlight.
I leaped up through the opening to reach the mountain peak. After several jumps over the rugged terrain, I suddenly heard a strange hissing sound. Turning around, I saw a massive volcanic pool behind the Divine Serpent Cult Headquarters, where red lava occasionally erupted in flames. A gigantic creature occasionally surfaced; it was the Panlong Remnant raised by the Serpent Cult.
Next to the lava pool where Coiling Dragon resided was an entrance to a cave, adorned with a large stone statue of a ghostly head above it, with iron chains hanging on either side. I slid down along the mountainside; upon seeing no unusual activity at the cave entrance, Coiling Dragon suddenly raised its head to look towards me before diving back into the lava pool.
I let out a sigh of relief and dropped down from behind the ghostly statue, walking into the cave.
Inside, this cave was much more spacious than the previous interconnected caverns. I concealed my presence and avoided several Disciples of the Serpent Cult until I finally spotted the Refining Fire Hall. Inside, I could hear Nangong's voice.
"You useless bunch! You can't even handle this little task; you sent out a bunch of trash!"
"Master, it is widely rumored that Guo Daozhen's prophecy speaks of impending chaos, and that the Daoist Sect will face the greatest Calamity in history. Various sects are now on high alert, closing their doors to cultivate and strengthen their powers. We have been unable to gather any useful information, and those few trusted aides have been killed without a trace," an elder said nervously.
"Are you being redundant?" Nangong replied coldly.
"I dare not, but our Serpent Cult has the Machine Wall. Why not use the Machine Wall to observe the situation of each sect and uncover the reason behind the disappearance of the Martial Dao Classic? Many are saying that Yang Hao is not dead at all, and since the Martial Dao Classic recognizes him as its master, it might already be in his hands!" the elder suggested.
Nangong snorted, "If the Machine Wall could see everything, would I need to send you useless fools to investigate? The Machine Wall is not omnipotent; it can discern someone like Zhang Jianzi, but when faced with someone of higher cultivation or those skilled in concealment, it cannot observe them at all. Moreover, the Yang Family's Old Scholar has been spying on us for years and has secretly altered many things. The capabilities of the Machine Wall are ultimately limited."
"Master, according to my informant placed in the Sword Pavilion, Elder Mo, Eastern Elder, and Dongfang Zhen all went to the mountains in search of famous swords, but somehow they all died at the same time," another elder reported.
"Dongfang Zhen is dead too?" Nangong Lin asked. "Father, Dongfang Zhen is the heir of the Sword Pavilion. The Dongfang family has always been ruthless. Now there is only one peer left in their clan, Dongfang Yuqing. If we capture him, we could use him to threaten Dongfang Jiu, forcing him to relinquish control of the Sword Pavilion."
"Young Master, that idea is unwise. The Sword Pavilion has held power in Central Plains for many years, with deep economic ties. Our Serpent Cult is already unpopular. Even if we gain control over the Sword Pavilion, we cannot manage its influence; instead, it would incite public outrage and draw military attention, placing us in even greater danger. Furthermore, our Disciples of the Serpent Cult have suffered heavy casualties, and our disciples' quality varies greatly. It would be unwise to stir up trouble again in such a short time," one elder advised.
"But we cannot just sit here and do nothing! Is our Serpent Cult afraid of chaos? That’s absurd!" Nangong Lin retorted.
"Child, the elder speaks wisely," said Nangong Dao. "Currently, all sects are biding their time, hiding away to increase their strength. They are undoubtedly waiting for the source of chaos to appear. If we provoke a war now, we will become targets for everyone. If we can incite other sects to fight among themselves first, we could then move in under the pretext of quelling the chaos and march into Central Plains."
"The Master is brilliant! I have an idea that might work..."
...
I had been hiding outside the Refining Fire Hall, listening for some useful information but had heard nothing significant. Just as I was about to quietly retreat, a heavily armored man pointed at me and began to say "you," but I quickly covered his mouth and pulled him aside.
I pressed the Fish Intestine Sword against his throat, and the burly man begged for mercy. I asked, "Has anyone from the Serpent Cult come by recently? A young man with a birthmark on his neck and scars on his hands?"
The man replied, "Sir, there are so many of us in the Serpent Cult; I've only seen a few people."
"Has anything significant happened in the cult lately?" I inquired. "For example, has anyone died?"
The man said, "A few disciples who tried to escape were caught by the elders and were fed to the Serpent Lord."
"The Serpent Lord?"
"That's the Coiling Dragon in the magma pool at the entrance. It appeared during the battle at Hua Shan; if you attended the Hua Shan Uprising, you must have seen it."
"Is there anything else that has happened?" I asked again.
The burly man thought for a moment and said, "Someone poisoned our wine—a disciple who has been here for half a year."
"Where is he?" I asked.
"I'll take you there; it's hard to find. I came here to report to the elders about how to deal with this person," he replied.
I followed the burly man as we walked through the heart of the Serpent Cult for half an hour until we reached their dungeon. As he entered the dungeon, he suddenly ducked and shouted, "Capture this Thief!"
Soon, several armed individuals rushed over. I looked at the burly man and asked, "Was what you said about someone poisoning our wine true?"
The tall man smiled and said, "Of course it's true. And I remember that this traitor has a birthmark on his chin, but you will soon be accompanying him to the grave. Take him down!"
I extended my right hand, and suddenly, countless strands of Dao Qi spread from my fingers, penetrating the skulls of these people and controlling their minds in an instant. All of them slit their throats and committed suicide.
The tall man was horrified and stepped back, saying, "Who are you? What kind of sorcery are you using? What do you want?"
I replied, "Since you participated in the Hua Shan Uprising, don't you recognize who I am?"
The tall man furrowed his brow and reluctantly uttered my name: "Yang Hao?"
"Smart of you." I slapped the tall man away, causing him to crash against the wall of the dungeon before I walked straight into it.
In one of the cells in the dungeon, I found the master brother of Douding. He was beaten to a pulp, bloodied and barely conscious.
I infused powerful life energy into the young man's body, and he awakened. I asked, "Are you Chang Liulang?"
The young man nodded and asked, "Who are you? How do you know my childhood name?"
I said, "I am a friend of Chang Lao and Douding. I'll rescue you first."
I shattered the chains binding Chang Liulang and helped him toward the exit. The people in the dungeon shouted for me to release them as my Dao Qi scattered. I broke the iron chains in their cells, and a group of them rushed out, thanking me as they fled toward freedom.
Outside the dungeon, a large number of Disciples of the Serpent Cult rushed over upon hearing the commotion. I stood at the entrance of the dungeon and threw a punch. The Rift Path shook the Eight Desolations; the walls of the dungeon collapsed, and the void split open. In an instant, hundreds of incoming people were torn apart by murderous intent.
Everyone was terrified, and I said, "You don't need to be afraid. The higher-ups of the Serpent Cult will discover this place soon. Those who can escape should do so quickly. It will be too late if you wait any longer. Also, set fire to everything that can burn."
The crowd thanked me again and fled outside the Serpent Cult, while some followed my advice and ignited everything in their path. Soon, the Elder of the Divine Serpent Sect arrived with his people. Nangong and Nangong Lin also reached the dungeon, but I had already taken Chang Liulang and left the Serpent Cult's territory, appearing in the wilderness.
Since awakening from my state of enlightenment, both my cultivation and agility had greatly improved, especially my understanding of Time Walk. The highest realm of Time Walk allows one to travel a thousand miles in a single step; now my skills barely allowed me to cover ten miles in one step. Even so, this was already considered peak agility within the Daoist Sect.
Douding stood on the mountaintop and spotted us from afar. He ran down the hill, crying out, "Senior Brother!"
Chang Liulang looked at Douding running towards us, incredulous as he asked, "Am I seeing things? Didn't our junior brother die?"
I replied, "Chang Lao set up a Life-Generating Array within Douding. It gathers Spirit Energy after his life essence dissipates to heal his injuries. Douding wasn't harmed by a magical artifact, so his body remained intact. He only awakened after more than a year."
Chang Liulang nodded, looking at Douding with tears of joy as he said, "Then I haven't let Master down!"
Chang Liulang then fell back, his eyes glazed over. Douding called out for his senior brother and hurriedly asked what was wrong.
Chang Liulang said, "It's nothing. These cultists thought they could torture me to death like this. Have you forgotten what your senior brother told you?"
"I haven't forgotten! My senior brother weighed six taels at birth, so he was named Liulang. Born different, blessed with great fortune; he will protect Douding," Douding cried.
"That's right!" Chang Liulang said, pinching Douding's nose, his face pale. "Who shaved your head? You look like a monk."
"It was Uncle Zhang; he..."
"Douding," I said, "your senior brother has suffered serious internal injuries and seems to have been poisoned. Right now, I don't have any medicine on me; I can only use Dao Qi to keep him alive. We need to find a safe place quickly to treat his wounds."
When I was at Mount Hua Summit, I had thrown everything out of my Qi Sea, fully prepared for death because I didn't know if the method to comprehend the Three Souls and Seven Spirits scattering in all directions would succeed.
A cultivator's Dao Qi is not omnipotent; as the saying goes, a clever woman cannot cook without rice. Dao Qi is akin to water or fire, serving a regulating and assisting role, but true healing still requires medicine or tapping into one's own healing abilities.
It was clear that Douding cared deeply for Chang Liulang. There were few disciples left at Qingliang Temple; initially, only Chang Liulang and Douding remained to guard the temple. Later, due to livelihood issues, Chang Liulang had no choice but to leave Qingliang Temple in search of another path.
After joining a sect, Chang Liulang was recognized as an outstanding talent due to his exceptional abilities, yet he often reminisced about the days at Qingliang Temple, where fame and fortune were insignificant, and he missed having a beloved junior brother there.
Later, he heard that members of the Serpent Cult were pursuing Zhang Jianzi to seize the Martial Dao Classic, while Zhang Jianzi carried a dead child on his back.
Thinking of the close relationship between Zhang Jianzi and Douding, Chang Liulang hurried back to Qingliang Mountain. Upon arriving, he saw that Niujia Village at the foot of Qingliang Mountain had been slaughtered; everyone was dead, and Qingliang Temple had become ruins. Zhang Jianzi had no children or family; apart from carrying Douding, who else could he carry?
From that moment on, Chang Liulang began planning to infiltrate the Serpent Cult and seek revenge.
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