Free Web NovelChapter 500: Chapter 2: The Astonished Lame Daoist, Hongjun Era
Zhou Xiaotong waved her hand, brushing away the billowing dust, and the three of them finally got a clear look at the scene inside the Daoist Temple.
Behind the gate was a small courtyard. A gravel path led straight to a low-roofed cottage.
The dirt ground in the courtyard looked ordinary. To one side was a dried-up pond, and to the right stood a doll covered in cracks.
"Why is this Daoist Temple so strange? What’s with the doll?" Lin Yiyi wondered, looking around curiously as she became the first to step into the courtyard.
"Careful!"
Zhou Xiaotong, carrying Chong Shanhu on her back, wore a solemn expression.
"That doll... there’s something wrong with it!"
"Huh?" Lin Yiyi and Chen Lide exclaimed in unison, both somewhat surprised.
Zhou Xiaotong, however, had become vigilant. "It seems to be a Corpse Puppet. Although it’s broken and battered, there’s still Immortal Light flashing within the cracks... When it was intact, this Corpse Puppet was at least at the Earth Immortal level. It was very likely a True Immortal Corpse Puppet!"
"A True Immortal!" The boy and girl jumped in fright. Lin Yiyi darted back out like a startled rabbit.
Even in this new age, with Immortals and Buddhas returning one by one, a True Immortal was still an incredible figure.
And here, one had been turned into a Corpse Puppet?
"I was just telling you to be careful. There’s no need to panic."
Zhou Xiaotong gave a weary smile and continued,
"This place looks like it’s been abandoned for many years. It must have once received constant worship, a major temple. Its Temple Master was probably a renowned figure..."
"Then... then why is it so dilapidated?" Chen Lide asked.
"What other reason could there be?"
Zhou Xiaotong shook her head and sighed.
"The Immortals and Buddhas..."
The boy and girl fell silent.
After a long moment, Zhou Xiaotong took the lead and entered the courtyard, heading for the dilapidated cottage at the end of the path. Lin Yiyi and Chen Lide hurried to follow.
As they passed the ruined True Immortal Corpse Puppet, the two couldn’t help but stare, their eyes filled with awe.
Before long, the three of them reached the cottage. They pushed open the door and froze, their expressions changing.
"Someone’s here!"
Lin Yiyi let out a soft gasp. She peered inside. The cottage looked like it had been falling apart for countless years, covered in dust with delicate spiderwebs everywhere.
In the center of the room, toward the back, sat a cross-legged old man in tattered clothes. His head was slightly bowed and his eyes were shut tight. There seemed to be dried blood at the corners of his eyes.
On the crooked altar behind him sat a Cyan Lamp, its flame flickering faintly.
Whether it was an illusion or not, Lin Yiyi felt her heavy body lighten in the lamplight, and a sense of cleansing peace settled over her.
"Is... is he dead?" Chen Lide asked.
"He’s alive, but he seems to be in very bad shape." Zhou Xiaotong stepped carefully into the room, her eyes fixed on the haggard old man with his messy white hair and stubbled chin.
She carefully set Chong Shanhu down near a supporting pillar, her gaze never leaving the withered old man as she spoke.
"His breathing is unsteady, and his aura seems chaotic. He radiates a sense of depletion. He must have been severely injured and is in seclusion to recover."
After a pause, she beckoned the boy and girl over and whispered,
"He’s probably a passerby, just like us. Most likely, he was ambushed by patrolling Ghosts or passing Shadow Soldiers last night and is resting here to recover. Don’t disturb him. Let’s just focus on ourselves."
Lin Yiyi and Chen Lide nodded obediently and sat down quietly beside Zhou Xiaotong.
Still, they couldn’t help but sneak glances at the withered old man, their eyes filled with curiosity.
"Watch over your Uncle Chong. Before night falls, while there’s still some light from the Great Sun, I’m going to look around for any Great Medicine..."
With that, Zhou Xiaotong cast a worried glance at the unconscious Chong Shanhu, then quietly stepped out the door.
"Aunt Zhou, be careful!" Lin Yiyi called out worriedly.
"I will."
...
Meanwhile, in a Supreme place, where concepts were sparse and Time was severed.
The Origin.
Lu Xuan’s Divine Thought took human form, stepped into this place, and called out softly,
"Three Masters, Three Masters!"
A moment later, the mark of Shangqing within the Origin trembled slightly and transformed into the Lame Daoist, who strode over with a slight frown.
"Xiaoxuan."
The Daoist still wore a grave expression as he greeted him.
"What is it? You seem injured. Is there a great enemy in the outside world? Qing Ping has been taken to suppress the Six Paths of Reincarnation, but here, take these Four Immortal Slaying Swords and slay them!"
As he spoke, the Four Immortal Slaying Swords materialized in his hand, rotating slowly and emanating a terrifying martial might capable of sundering heaven and earth.
Lu Xuan gave a wry smile and waved his hand dismissively.
"No, no, it’s not that. I was injured forcing my way across the chasm of Years. It looks severe, but I hold the title of Emperor Earth Deity. By drawing on the power of the land, I’m already recovering."
The Lame Daoist breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.
"My good disciple, if no great enemy has come, does this mean you simply missed your Three Masters?"
Lu Xuan was speechless for a moment. Not wanting to waste time, he got straight to the point and explained everything in detail.
"You’re saying that while holding the Glazed Lamp, you glimpsed a pitch-black Long Spear that once fell into the Current World, and by tracing it back to its source, you saw the Demon Ancestor?"
The Lame Daoist’s brow furrowed.
Lu Xuan said softly,
"There’s more. I also saw the Maitreya Buddha Mother seated respectfully beside that woman. In front of them stood two Great Buddhas.
One held aloft a vast Buddha Land, while the other wielded a resplendent Miaoshu. They seemed to be discussing something..."
The Lame Daoist’s frown deepened, and he murmured,
"The two Buddhas you speak of are Amitabha Buddha and the Ancient Bodhi Buddha. Both are Enlightened Ones who possess a Complete Dao Fruit..."
He paused, then warned,
"Once you leave the Origin, do not speak their names aloud in the Current World. The Goddess seems to have run into some trouble, and her suppression of the Current World has weakened. Dao Fruits can occasionally cast their gaze upon it now!"
Lu Xuan’s expression changed dramatically, and he quickly asked,
