Following the green-robed servant, Li Yan arrived at the entrance to the main hall. He casually glanced inside and saw two other people. One, dressed in a red robe, stood with his hands behind his back at the window, seemingly admiring the view of the lotus pond. The other was holding a cup of tea, appearing lost in thought, completely ignoring the crowd outside the hall.
Li Yan merely swept his gaze across the hall's interior before looking away. It was a habitual observation of his surroundings. Seeing nothing amiss, he paid it no further mind.
After stopping, the green-robed servant spoke respectfully to the seven people outside the hall, "Seniors, please follow me." With that, he led the way along the bluestone path toward the courtyard gate. Upon hearing this, many in the group nodded and followed, but it was clear that the different groups kept a certain distance from one another, a mutual wariness in the air. Li Yan walked alone at the very back, with the master-and-servant pair just ahead of him.
In silence, the group quickly reached the courtyard gate and filed out after the green-robed servant. But just as the young man and the hunchbacked elder in front of Li Yan were about to step out, a sudden, heaven-shaking "BOOM" erupted from within the Daoist temple. The sound was so abrupt that it stunned everyone, causing them to halt in their tracks. Amidst their shock, several more loud bangs followed in quick succession, echoing through the heavens. Everyone could even feel the ground beneath their feet tremble. Then, an eerie silence fell. For a moment, no one knew what had happened. Li Yan wondered in shock, 'Could someone be attacking Xuanqing Temple?' The others also had looks of astonishment, and they had all released their Divine Sense. But just then, a shout came from the distance.
"This is bad! Senior Brother Liu has been killed! Who... who did this?"
In the silence that had just been restored, the voice was like a torn window paper, making the sound even more piercing.
Within Li Yan's Divine Sense, the voice came from a courtyard to their right, about four courtyards away. But before he could investigate further, dozens of auras appeared within his Divine Sense. These auras varied in strength, but the five or six leading ones were extremely sharp, clearly belonging to Foundation Establishment cultivators, and they were approaching at great speed.
Then, a majestic voice echoed through the heavens, "Luo Sanpang, what on earth happened over there? Hall Master Ji, please ask our visiting fellow Daoists to remain where they are. Do not move rashly, lest there be a misunderstanding." As the voice spoke, the sharp auras had already split into two groups. One flew straight toward the source of the earlier cry of alarm, while the other headed directly for Li Yan and the others.
Seeing the aggressive approach of the newcomers, many in Li Yan's group frowned. It was obvious the other party intended to control them. The man with the curly beard and the two black-robed cultivators, in particular, had their auras begin to surge. At the same time, Li Yan sensed several strands of Divine Sense coming from behind him. He didn't need to turn around to know that it must be the people still in the courtyard who had also heard the two shouts and had come out of their rooms.
The sharp auras arrived quickly. In just a moment, they transformed into four long rainbows and streaked over. In a flash, the four rainbows landed outside the courtyard. Although Li Yan was still inside, he was near the gate and could see clearly. As the light of the rainbows dissipated, it revealed three men and one woman, all in Daoist attire. They made no effort to conceal their cultivation levels. As their auras spread, a terrifying pressure descended. The leader was an old Daoist whose aura was the most powerful, having impressively reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment. He looked to be just one step away from the great circle of Foundation Establishment. Behind him were a middle-aged Daoist, a young Daoist, and a beautiful young Daoist nun, with cultivation levels of mid-Foundation Establishment, early-Foundation Establishment, and peak early-Foundation Establishment, respectively. A cultivator's true age could not be judged by appearance alone, so whether their real ages matched their cultivation levels could only be accurately determined by examining their bone age. But the cultivation of these four was already extremely strong.
Just as the four landed, the man with the curly beard spoke with displeasure, "Fellow Daoist Ji, what is the meaning of this? Coming here so aggressively, are you planning to apprehend us?" As he spoke, his gaze was already on the leading old Daoist, as if he were very familiar with this place.
"Oh, I was wondering who it was. So it's Sect Master Yue of the Qinggu Sect. You're a frequent visitor here. I didn't expect you to be here today. A mishap has occurred in the sect. I don't know the specifics yet. The Sect Master Senior Brother has already gone over there, so I imagine we'll have results soon. Before the Sect Master Senior Brother gives notice, you cannot move about freely. This is to avoid accidentally triggering a formation, which would defeat the purpose of your visit." After glancing at the man with the curly beard, the old Daoist surnamed Ji reined in his aura considerably, but his eyes swept over everyone present. He spoke politely, but the latter part of his words clearly carried a threat.
The man with the curly beard from the Qinggu Sect's expression changed upon hearing this. He was clearly extremely displeased. These Daoists were obviously temporarily trapping them here. But he was very wary of the Xuanqing Temple's formations, so he tilted his head slightly and glanced at the crowd behind him. Seeing that even the two powerful, black-robed, cloaked figures had fallen silent, although he was unhappy, he didn't press the matter. Besides, he was also very curious about the mishap here. So, he let out a heavy "humph" from his nose and said no more.
The old Daoist surnamed Ji then spoke slowly, "Would all fellow Daoists in the courtyard please come out for a chat?" His voice spread throughout the entire courtyard. The three Daoists behind him instantly spread out their Divine Senses while also increasing the distance between them, effectively locking onto the courtyard where Li Yan and the others were.
Li Yan and the others still in the courtyard heard this and knew that the intention was to have everyone under their watch. Moreover, they were completely baffled as to what had happened in the temple and wanted to know as well, so they began to walk out of the courtyard.
As the hunchbacked elder, the young man, and Li Yan walked out, there was a flurry of footsteps, and five more people emerged from the courtyard. Among them were two Foundation Establishment cultivators and three Qi Condensation cultivators. Li Yan could tell with a single glance that they were three separate groups. The two cultivators from the main hall earlier were one group, led by a fat, red-robed cultivator at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, who was very formidable. Following behind him was a young man at the sixth layer of Qi Condensation, who had a look of astonishment on his face. Behind them was a Foundation Establishment scholar, holding a folding fan and walking out alone. The spiritual power on his body seemed to flicker in and out of existence, making it impossible to guess his cultivation. The last to come out were two Qi Condensation cultivators, a middle-aged couple, whose cultivation was only at the eighth or ninth layer of Qi Condensation. They were currently looking around with a hint of terror on their faces. 510 Literature
As soon as these people appeared, the old Daoist surnamed Ji's gaze fell directly on the scholar. He narrowed his eyes and spoke again, "So, Fellow Daoist Lin, the Bloodhand Flying Sickle of the 'Bloodhand Sect,' is also here. Our humble temple has been rather discourteous. May I ask where Fellow Daoist Lin is headed?" The moment the old Daoist surnamed Ji spoke, the atmosphere here strangely solidified. Li Yan clearly felt many people's faces turn pale with horror. Several of the Qi Condensation cultivators, in particular, subconsciously moved a few steps away from the scholar. A trace of apprehension flashed in the eyes of Sect Master Yue of the Qinggu Sect. The gloomy aura around the two black-robed figures surged even more intensely, revealing their inner turmoil. Only the red-robed fatty who had come out later, who seemed to already know this person's identity, maintained his expression.
Hearing this and seeing everyone's expressions, the scholar gave a light laugh and slowly opened the folding fan in his hand, fanning it gently. "I'm just heading to Fengzi Mountain on some private business. When I came in, I saw Senior Brother Kong, who was on patrol."
The moment he opened the fan, the originally fresh air here was instantly filled with a thick, bloody smell that was nauseating. Li Yan looked up and was startled. The surface of the half-open fan was a vivid red, like blood. The waves of bloody stench were coming from it. At this moment, both the red-robed fatty and the man with the curly beard's expressions changed several times. Even the gloomy aura around the two black-robed figures suddenly intensified by several degrees before being retracted by the black-robed figures in the next breath.
All of this was seen by the scholar, but he continued to smile, a red glint flashing in his eyes. Combined with the constantly waving blood-colored fan, it gave people a creepy feeling.
The old Daoist surnamed Ji nodded after hearing this. "Oh, Senior Brother Kong is on duty today. I haven't seen him yet, so I was unaware. Had I known earlier, I would have invited Fellow Daoist Lin for a few drinks. It's just that a mishap has occurred in the temple now, so we can only wait here for news from the Sect Master Senior Brother. Please don't take offense, Fellow Daoist Lin."
Li Yan saw that the old Daoist, who had been speaking harshly just moments ago, was now so polite to this scholar. Seeing the terrified looks on those around him, he knew this person must be difficult to provoke. At the same time, he also noticed that the hunchbacked elder not far in front of him still had a dull expression, as if he were unaware of what was happening. However, after the sorrowful-faced young man's expression changed several times, he quickly returned to normal. This made Li Yan involuntarily pay more attention to the hunchbacked elder.
After hearing the old Daoist surnamed Ji's words, the Bloodhand Flying Sickle nodded. "As the Hall Master of the Xuanqing Temple's Disciplinary Hall, Fellow Daoist Ji has always been busy. Besides, I'm just passing through to use the Teleportation Formation, hehe." With that, he chuckled, making it unclear how much of his words were true. Just then, a deep, powerful voice came through, "So Fellow Daoist Lin, Sect Master Yue, and Fellow Daoist Gui are also here. I've been disrespectful. Hall Master Ji, have all the fellow Daoists come over. This is so they know what happened and don't say our Xuanqing Temple is being unreasonable and discourteous by not letting them leave."
As this voice sounded, Li Yan sensed it came from the courtyard where the earlier cry of alarm had originated. After hearing this, the Bloodhand Flying Sickle and Sect Master Yue nodded slightly. They also wanted to know what had happened. The red-robed fatty, however, muttered to himself, "Daoist Gong's cultivation is becoming more and more exquisite. I didn't feel his Divine Sense sweep over, yet he knew I was here."
After hearing this, the old Daoist Ji and the three Daoists behind him looked solemn. Then, the old Daoist Ji spoke to the crowd, "It seems the Sect Master Senior Brother already has the results. Since he has given such instructions, would all fellow Daoists please take a step forward?" Although he spoke as if negotiating, his tone was unquestionable.
The Bloodhand Flying Sickle didn't look at the others but snapped his fan shut. "Then let's go and have a look, hehe." With a laugh, he took the lead and walked over. The old Daoist Ji did not respond. Seeing this, some of the others remained silent, some shook their heads slightly, and more followed with looks of astonishment.
The old Daoist surnamed Ji and the three Daoists behind him subtly fanned out, seemingly surrounding the crowd.
Seeing this formation, although the cultivators looked displeased and unhappy, they did not speak out. They all knew this was not to prevent them from escaping. There were probably not many people here who could quickly get through the numerous formations of Xuanqing Temple. The formation of these few people was to monitor their every move.
Li Yan sighed inwardly. Why was his luck so bad on this trip out? He had just arrived at a place, and before he even knew what had happened, he was being held under a sort of house arrest. At a time like this, he could take out his Malevolent Spirit Sect token, which would probably allow him to leave as soon as possible. But if he did that, everything he had done before would be for naught. Now there were more than a dozen cultivators whose origins he didn't know; he couldn't reveal his tracks.
The group headed in a direction only four courtyards away from where Li Yan had just been. When Li Yan and the others arrived, a dozen or so disciples were already standing at the entrance of the courtyard, scattered about, guarding the outside and looking around warily. A few of them had looks of grief and indignation. Upon the arrival of Li Yan's group, their eyes showed suspicion and ill will.
Just as the group arrived in front of the courtyard, the powerful voice from within sounded again, "Fellow Daoists, please come in." The voice carried a sense of righteousness and awe.