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墨書 Inktalez
In the Dunhuang Desert, north of Shu Mountain, the yellow sands swirled around. Douding stood beside the Moon Well, gazing at the ruins of Leiyin Temple. What remained could hardly be called ruins; the once grand and majestic Leiyin Temple was now mostly buried beneath the sands, with a vast pit marking the location of the Ten Thousand Buddha Grotto.
Amidst the yellow sand, there were some corpses of Yin Soldiers and weapons that had not yet decayed.
Douding murmured, "It seems like Song Qianqiu did this. Why would he attack the people of Leiyin Temple? Where are Master and the others?"
A sense of unease filled Douding's heart as he turned to look at the Moon Well. Suddenly, he heard a strange sound coming from within it.
The Moon Well had always been devoid of fish; its spring water was clear but unfathomable. The existence of Leiyin Temple relied entirely on this never-drying spring. A mountain does not need to be high if it has a name; water does not need to be deep if it has a dragon. Now that the monks of Leiyin Temple had vanished, the spring seemed to have lost its spirit, yet a sound emanated from it for reasons unknown.
Confused, Douding dove into the Moon Well. His eyes shone with golden light as he peered into its depths, discovering flickering lights far below. The light revealed a collapsed Buddha statue, beneath which lay an enormous river clam covered in moss. The clam was massive, about the size of a room, and it opened and closed its shell rhythmically, producing a melodic sound.
Douding landed beside the clam and noticed a pearl radiating multicolored light within its shell. The pearl was translucent and vibrant with Spirit Energy, exuding vitality. Douding's face lit up with joy as he reached out to grab the Multicolored Pearl.
At that moment, however, the clam suddenly snapped its shell shut. Douding was caught off guard and found his arm trapped inside. His face turned pale as he tried to pull his arm free, only to find that the clam's grip tightened further. It felt as if something inside the clam was wrapping around his arm, attempting to swallow him whole.
This clam was the only living being beneath the Moon Well. After thousands of years, it had often heard the teachings from Leiyin Temple and gradually cultivated itself into a spirit. Leiyin Temple had nurtured it while simultaneously suppressing it. Now that Leiyin Temple no longer existed, the clam sought a living being to possess in order to escape.
"Big Cat!" Douding shouted, but he was choked by the water and struggled to breathe.
With a splash, Qiongqi leaped into the water, flapping its powerful wings as it swam towards Douding. Upon seeing Douding being dragged into the clam, Qiongqi slapped its paw against the clam's shell, which proved incredibly hard.
Although Qiongqi was an Ancient Fierce Beast, it was not adept at swimming; before its wings had grown, it had always feared deep water. With Douding trapped inside the clam, Qiongqi had no choice but to use all four limbs to grasp the clam and drag it out of the water onto the shore.
Qiongqi roared, channeling its clan's immense power. Suddenly, it struck down with a claw on the clam, causing cracks to form in its shell. Inside came Douding's sounds of struggle; with a fierce roar, Douding burst out from within the clam, clutching the Multicolored Pearl in both hands. He glared at the clam beneath him with disdain before jumping back into the Moon Well to wash off the sticky residue.
Meanwhile, Qiongqi moved forward to tear into the flesh of the clam spirit. The thousand-year-old clam had tender meat rich in Spirit Energy. After so long without meat, Qiongqi greedily savored the essence within.
Once Douding finished washing himself and returned to shore, he looked at the Multicolored Pearl in his arms and said, "This pearl is truly beautiful; it's just a bit too large. I want to give it to Sister Yunxi."
Douding held out the pearl towards Qiongqi's mouth, signaling for it to swallow it whole. Qiongqi consumed the enormous Multicolored Pearl without refining it and took off with Douding away from the desert.
Half an hour later, Qiongqi flew over Mount Tai, and Douding looked down, asking, "Big Cat, don't you think something is off here? Most of the other mountains are occupied by Yin Soldiers, yet this great mountain is orderly and peaceful, with abundant Spirit Energy. The most crucial thing is, it's so hot here."
Douding gestured for Qiongqi to descend. Once on the ground, Douding began to survey the jungle. Qiongqi soared above, eyes sharp, constantly on the lookout for any dangers below.
Suddenly, Douding heard Qiongqi's voice in his mind, warning him that someone was approaching. Douding acknowledged with a hum but didn't pay much attention. Qiongqi landed nearby, worried about Douding's safety.
"Yin Soldiers are everywhere now, yet there's not a single ghostly figure on Mount Tai. Many hidden doors have already spread rumors that there will be Treasure emerging from within Mount Tai. Let's take a look around; it will help us seize the Treasure when the time comes."
"Mount Tai has been a sacred mountain for emperors since ancient times, with the Nine Dragons Ancestral Hall and Altar of Offerings on top. I never expected Treasure would appear here as well."
"Hehe, I've been here before; there are countless Treasures in the world. We, the Bamboo Mountain Three Elders, will definitely seek out a divine artifact comparable to an Evil Weapon. Given how hot it is on Mount Tai right now, the Treasure that is about to emerge must be fire-type."
The voices of three elders dressed in Azure Robes could be heard not far away. All three had bamboo tattoos on their bodies. Upon seeing Douding and the enormous Qiongqi behind him, they showed no fear; instead, excitement lit up their faces.
"What kind of creature is this? It's so massive!" One elder exclaimed with excitement as he approached Qiongqi.
Douding frowned and said, "Who are you? Don't provoke Big Cat; if Big Cat gets angry because of strangers, it will bite."
The elder chuckled and replied, "Kid, who are you? Have you ever heard of our Bamboo Mountain Three Elders?"
Douding thought for a moment and said, "I've never heard of you."
The elder continued, "A frog at the bottom of a well! With your limited experience, how dare you venture into the world? Are you from the Beast Tamer Hall?"
Douding shook his head and replied, "No, I'm from Qingliang Temple."
"Then how do you understand beast taming techniques and manage to control this Azure Wind Bull?"
"What Azure Wind Bull? Big Cat is Qiongqi." Douding increasingly felt that these elders were quite confused.
The Bamboo Mountain Three Elders burst into laughter upon seeing the giant beast before Douding, one of them saying, "You believe in tales of the gluttonous Qiongqi and the Kunpeng bluebird? We, the Bamboo Mountain Three Elders, are renowned in the Eastern Wasteland for our formations and beast taming. Have you ever seen anyone who dares to control an Ancient Fierce Beast by themselves?"
"You can doubt all you want, Big Cat. We're leaving," Douding said as he began to walk away.
An elder blocked Douding's path, saying, "You must be a young master from some noble family to be out here at your age, and you have a useless Azure Wind Bull following you. You should inform your elder to bring treasures and wealth to meet us."
Upon hearing this, Douding stepped back. One of the elders began chanting a beast taming incantation, trying to control the consciousness of Qiongqi. After a moment of confusion, he muttered, "What's going on? I can't communicate with this Azure Wind Bull's consciousness?"
"The Azure Wind Bull is gentle by nature; it may look fierce but is actually a herbivore. We could use it as a mount," another elder suggested.
This elder approached and stroked Qiongqi's beard. The beast's face trembled, revealing its ferocity. The elder laughed as he pried open Qiongqi's mouth and said, "Look at this creature's belly; it's about to burst yet still tries to act fierce. I—"
Suddenly, Qiongqi opened its mouth wide and bit off half of the elder's body, chewing and swallowing it whole.
"Third Brother!" The other two elders were terrified and enraged. They leaped back and somehow found two bamboo poles, striking them against the ground rhythmically before charging at Qiongqi.
Douding stood in front of Qiongqi; a thin crack appeared on his forehead, emitting golden light that turned the bamboo poles to ash. The attacking elder was instantly pierced through the head by the golden light.
The other elder was horrified and turned to flee. Qiongqi let out a roar and lunged forward like a cheetah, pouncing on the last elder and killing him.
Douding shook his head and continued forward until he reached the summit of Mount Tai. There, he saw an Altar of Sacrifice at the peak surrounded by corpses from the Daoist Sect.
Above the Altar of Sacrifice, a Cauldron spun slowly. Douding frowned as he peered through the trees and spotted a Red-Clad Elder seated beneath the Cauldron—it was Nangong.
"How did Nangong end up here? How did he kill so many people? It seems there are no treasures on Mount Tai; it must be due to this Cauldron. Is he practicing some Daoist Arts?" Douding thought to himself as he quietly began to retreat; his current strength was unstable, making him no match for Nangong.
But just then, Nangong suddenly spoke up, "Since you're here, why not show yourself?"
Douding hesitated for a moment before attempting to step out when someone suddenly covered his mouth from behind and pushed him down.
Douding did not sense any malice from the person behind him. When he turned around, he was surprised to see Brother Five.
Neither of them had gone outside, but a burly man in black athletic gear emerged from the other side of the mountain top—it was Li Fugui.
"Brother Five, what brings you here?" Douding asked.
"Shh—" Five made a gesture for silence, tapping Douding on his bald head. "I haven't even asked you yet, and you're already asking me. What are you doing here, kid? Where are the others?"
Douding flashed a bright smile and replied, "I came out on my own. Sister Yunxi and the others are still in Red Maple Valley rescuing Brother Yang Hao. I just returned from Leiyin Temple and noticed there were no Yin Soldiers here, so I came down to take a look since it was particularly hot."
"Good thing you weren't discovered; otherwise, your life would be in danger. Nangong's power is at the peak of the Mahayana Realm, just one step away from Supreme. The moment you saw him, you should have quietly retreated. Where's Big Cat?" Five asked.
Douding said, "Big Cat is still halfway up the mountain; I told it to wait for me."
Five shushed him again, signaling Douding to stop talking. Next to the Altar of Sacrifice, Li Fugui stepped forward alone and looked at Nangong Dao. "Nangong Master really seems fearless."
Nangong opened his eyes, gathered his energy, and stood up. "Just a lapdog of Yu Xuanliang; why should I be afraid of you?"
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