Entering the Spirit Void 137. Death of the Evildoer

Luo Mingyuan said in a deep voice, "Why would I destroy the painstaking efforts of my ancestors? Not only have I preserved them, but I have also added to them. If you have the ability to defeat me, you may take everything back."

Hearing this, Abbot Tianhong felt a mixture of joy and anxiety. He rejoiced that the scriptures had not been destroyed, yet worried that his martial arts were inferior to those of the traitor. Defeating him was impossible, and without defeating him, the scriptures could not be recovered.

Abbot Tianhong said, "You are senior to me in generation, yet your six roots are impure, and you have betrayed our Buddha. If you had not stolen the scriptures of our temple, I would not bother with you."

With that, Abbot Tianhong rushed toward Luo Mingyuan. Tianhong's true prowess was not as profound as Luo Mingyuan's; however, whenever Luo Mingyuan exerted his strength, he felt a sharp pain in his eyes and thus dared not unleash his full power.

Mo Dao and the others also launched their attack. Instantly, blades and swords flashed, and cries of slaughter filled the air. Soon, the hundred sects were swept away, leaving only Luo Mingyuan and his followers.

Gao Yunxiang laughed aloud and said, "Wine-and-meat monk, the general trend is lost. You and your men might as well end your own lives."

Luo Mingyuan shouted in a deep voice, "Brothers, go quickly and bring out my golden Zen staff!"

Taking the golden Zen staff handed to him by a disciple, Luo Mingyuan demanded sternly, "Who comes first to meet their death?"

Abbot Tianhong took a戒刀 (broadsword) from a disciple and immediately engaged him in a life-or-death battle.

This battle truly changed the color of the mountains and rivers, eclipsing the sun and the moon. Everyone present watched with pounding hearts.

Luo Mingyuan pressed the attack with sheer power, while Abbot Tianhong fought back carefully with all his might.

Although Luo Mingyuan's skill was far superior to Abbot Tianhong's, the reason he could not secure a quick victory was that whenever he exerted himself, his eyes would suffer agonizing pain, drastically reducing his power.

Two massive figures flitted back and forth across the plaza, moving so fast that only shadows remained, making it impossible to tell who was who. Occasionally, their weapons collided, producing sounds that shattered the night sky, the echoes rumbering and lingering for a long time.

No matter how sharp one's eyesight might be, it was impossible to discern the moves they were making. One could only see intertwined human shadows, soaring through the air or sweeping across the ground, while the fierce wind generated by their clashing weapons was as sharp as frost blades, threatening to split the skin upon contact.

In the end, Abbot Tianhong proved no match for Luo Mingyuan. Struck down by a single blow of the staff, he collapsed to the ground. Luo Mingyuan sneered and said, "The old bald donkey is dead. Who else dares to step forward and test my moves?"

Huang Sanlou and his martial brother exchanged glances and charged forward with their swords, followed by Li Hao and Jie Zhenzi. Instead of retreating, Luo Mingyuan stepped forward to meet them.

Mo Dao and the others also launched attacks on the remaining sect leaders. This fierce battle lasted until dawn. Apart from a few elders of the Yuxu Palace, only Mo Dao and a few high-martial-arts sect masters remained alive.

Li Hao and his siblings all fell in battle, while Yang Yifei managed to survive by sheer luck. Looking at the blood-soaked ground, Mo Dao could not help but sigh.

"Yifei, the battle is over. Shall we leave?" Mo Dao looked at Yang Yifei and sighed. Yang Yifei opened her mouth as if to say something, but ultimately kept silent. Under the dark, starlit night, the two of them descended Mount Tongbai.

Two ancient locust trees, tall enough to scrape the sky, partially shielded the side wall of a half-collapsed ancient temple. The shadows made the ruined walls appear even more eerie.

Autumn winds and autumn rains filled the world with a desolate and bleak atmosphere! Night fell, the moon hid, and all was quiet, save for the seven lanterns hoisted atop the ancient temple walls, swaying in the wind.

The lanterns were arranged like the Big Dipper. Though they provided little illumination, they allowed travelers to make out the partial silhouette of the ancient temple from afar.

At that moment, from the muddy path directly facing the ancient temple—where the deep grass grew waist-high—came the monotonous yet extremely steady sound of footsteps, drawing closer and closer. Suddenly, two burly men leaped out from behind the massive trunks of the two ancient locust trees.

The burly man on the left raised his thick eyebrows and shouted in a deep voice toward the path, "Halt and state your names!"

Someone on the path replied, "Mo Dao. Traveling at night and caught in the rain, I saw the light here from afar—"

The newcomers were indeed Mo Dao and Yang Yifei. Before Mo Dao could finish speaking, the burly man on the right interrupted him with a stern reprimand, "This road is blocked tonight. Turn back!"

The man's shout was extremely harsh, but Mo Dao acted as though he hadn't heard. Without breaking his stride, he continued forward. The burly man on the left barked an order to halt, took a large step forward, and blocked their path.

The man on the left looked Yang Yifei up and down a few times before saying, "Are you both deaf? I told you this road is closed tonight. Didn't you hear?"

Mo Dao furrowed his brow, pointed toward the wide road on the right side of the temple, and said, "The road is still open over there! Besides, we aren't trying to hurry on our journey; we just want to take shelter from the wind and rain. This temple—"

The burly man on the right chuckled derisively and said, "Listen carefully, your lords here have official business on this road tonight, so passage is forbidden!"

The man on the left added, "We are chivalrous men of the Jianghu underworld. If you haven't lived enough, you'd better return the way you came right now!"

Mo Dao said in a deep voice, "And if I refuse?"

The burly man on the right flashed a ferocious grin and said, "If you refuse, don't expect to leave alive!" As he spoke, the man raised his right palm, preparing to strike down!

At that moment, a mournful, lingering howl suddenly echoed from afar, sounding as though it originated several miles away.

Upon hearing the sound, Lao Zhuang's expression changed dramatically. Panic-stricken, he urged the man on the left, "The Third Master is about to arrive. If he sees these two people here, won't it ruin everything? Lao Tian, tell me, what should we do about this?"

"I'm telling you two, if you know what's good for you, you'd better leave quickly," Lao Tian said with a frown.

"You tell me to leave, and I leave? Where is my pride?" Mo Dao said with disdain.

"Since you refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit of fine wine!" Lao Zhuang finished speaking and pounced toward Mo Dao like a leopard. Lao Tian remained still; he knew the capabilities of his old brother well enough.

However, had Lao Tian known where Mo Dao and his companion were returning from, he wouldn't have been so calm. Mo Dao had dared to cross swords with the likes of Luo Mingyuan, let alone two nameless foot soldiers like them.

Seeing Lao Zhuang pounce, Mo Dao shifted his body to the side and threw a punch straight at his face. Unconcerned, Lao Zhuang met the blow with a punch of his own. The two fists collided, and Lao Zhuang's expression instantly underwent a drastic change.

Before Lao Zhuang could react, he felt a tremendous force blast him backward through the air. Mo Dao withdrew his fist, stood firm, and stared coldly at Lao Tian.

Lao Tian could not help but frown. Lao Zhuang's strength was no less than his own, yet he had been sent flying by a single punch from a young man. Cold sweat poured down Lao Tian's face, and his entire body trembled uncontrollably like a sieve in the wind.

"Can we pass this road now?" Mo Dao asked calmly.

With a trembling voice, Lao Tian replied, "Yes, yes, please pass, both of you!"

Without another word, Mo Dao took Yang Yifei by the hand and left.

Lao Tian's full name was Tian Gengjiu, and Lao Zhuang was Zhuang Quansheng. They were considered figures of some weight in this region, yet neither had expected to stumble so badly at the hands of a young man.

Tian Gengjiu helped Zhuang Quansheng to his feet. Suddenly, Zhuang Quansheng stood at attention, his expression turning utterly submissive as he looked behind Tian Gengjiu and said, "This subordinate welcomes the Third Master."

The Third Master possessed a slender figure, a horse-like face, hooked eagle eyes, fierce hawk-like pupils, slanted eyebrows, and a pale complexion. His face was cold, gloomy, and devoid of the slightest warmth—a man difficult to provoke and hard to deal with.

Tonight, his affairs had likely gone smoothly and pleasantly, so although his horse-like face remained exceedingly long, it held a trace of human warmth. Therefore, when Tian Gengjiu stood with his back to him without addressing him as "Third Master" or offering a bow, he did not punish him. He merely swept a glance at Tian Gengjiu with those hawk-like eyes, yet even that was almost enough to frighten the wits out of Tian Gengjiu.

Tian Gengjiu hurriedly bowed and said, "This—this subordinate pays his respects to the Third Master."

The Third Master grunted gloomily and waved his hand, saying, "Have the main hall cleaned thoroughly? The First Master is about to arrive!"

Zhuang Quansheng and Tian Gengjiu hastily and respectfully replied that it had already been cleaned. With a slight nod, the Third Master raised his hand and extinguished the Big Dipper lanterns on the wall. Zhuang and Tian pushed open the door and respectfully waited for the Third Master to enter.

Just as he was about to cross the threshold, the Third Master suddenly stopped and asked, "Are all the preparations made?"

Zhuang Quansheng answered subserviently, "Everything is ready. Shorty Huang will be here soon."

The Third Master let out a cold hum and said, "If he has any fortune, he'd better arrive before the First Master!" With that, he strode on his own into the half-collapsed main hall.

Zhuang Quansheng had served this Third Master for years. When the Third Master was in a good mood, he counted as a trusted confidant, so he quietly followed into the main hall. The interior was pitch black, unable to be penetrated even by one's own outstretched hand. Yet unexpectedly, the Third Master could see in the dark, his hawk-like eyes flashing with a greenish glow.

Surveying the main hall, the Third Master said, "Very good. It seems you cleaned up early on."

Zhuang Quansheng chuckled and said, "This subordinate would never dare to slack off."

The Third Master gave a hum of approval and said, "Once this matter is concluded and we return, I will remember to promote you and Tian Gengjiu."

Zhuang Quansheng immediately bowed respectfully and said, "Thank you, Third Master, for your cultivation. Has the task been successfully completed?"

Being in a good mood tonight, the Third Master actually deigned to reply, "That wretch walked right into the trap, and now—" Before he finished speaking, he remembered he shouldn't discuss such matters with subordinates, and thus commanded in a deep voice, "Go outside and wait for the First Master!"

From outside the temple came Tian Gengjiu's voice: "The First Master gives orders—light the lamps!"

Zhuang Quansheng responded loudly, and lanterns and torches flared up inside the main hall!

Without any sound of voices, there came instead the neat and steady tread of numerous people. A dense, dark mass of men filed into the half-collapsed main hall in complete silence.

At their head was a man dressed in black with tiger-skin boots, white hair, and eyes shooting a cold, piercing light. He swept his gaze across the entire main hall and said to the Third Master, who stood respectfully waiting to welcome him, "Third, issue an order to strictly guard all access routes and permit no one to pass!"

The Third Master grunted, swept his gaze over his subordinates three times, and three fierce-looking men stepped out from the ranks, heading outside the temple to stand guard at the three pathways.

Zhuang Quansheng placed a chair in the center. The old man strode forward with tiger-like steps and sat down with peerless majesty. The moment he was seated, he waved his hand and shouted aloud, "Bring that good friend up here!"

Following the command came the rattling sound of iron chains dragging across the ground.

Two burly men half-carried, half-supported a disheveled young man in plain clothes! With a thump, the two men hurled the youth onto the floor of the main hall!

The youth was already unconscious and utterly unresponsive, which was why he made no sound despite the heavy impact. A ox-sinew rope as thick as a thumb was tightly bound around his body, and over that was wrapped a pure iron chain—treatment usually reserved for condemned state criminals!

The white-haired old man's piercing, frost-like gaze swept the hall as he commanded, "Add more torches and wait for 'Southern Overlord' and his men!"

The Third Master acknowledged the order personally and set to work. In an instant, lanterns, torches, and pine resin lights were planted all over the main hall, illuminating the interior as brightly as day.

Only under the blazing light could the appearance of the old man and his subordinates be clearly discerned. The old man was not yet sixty, with a broad, pale face, two broken, thick eyebrows, deep-set eye sockets, and gloomy, crafty eyes that constantly flashed a ruthless and cruel light!

Standing to the old man's left was a man dressed like a scholar, with an "iron brush" thrust behind his back. The brush was about two feet six or seven inches long, and some objects were rolled up around its shaft.

This man wore a blue long gown. A single glance at his face revealed he was no true scholar. About forty years old, the corners of his eyes and mouth constantly twitched for no reason. With a purplish face, he looked ruthless and vicious—he was the old man's second sworn brother.

Standing to the old man's right was the Third Master. At this moment, the Third Master's horse-like face gleamed, his lips pressed tightly together, wearing a petty, triumphant expression that was quite repulsive.

The remainder consisted of seventeen fierce and sturdy men, including Zhuang Quansheng and Tian Gengjiu—who had previously guarded the ancient locust trees outside the temple—along with the three men stationed outside, totaling twenty men in all. From the old man down, everyone kept their mouths shut, as if awaiting something.

Before long, a shout echoed from outside the temple: "Who goes there? State your name posthaste!"

Following the challenge came a burst of laughter, and someone replied, "Old man 'Hao Fu,' here specially to pay my respects to 'Boss Hu'!"