Chapter 97: Danger Lurking Everywhere

"Fellow Daoist..."

Sima Wuhen opened his mouth, just about to speak.

He saw Su Yuanshan wave his hand and say indifferently.

"Let's go, we should head over too."

Su Yuanshan walked in front, with Sima Wuhen following behind.

And walking at the very back was that young girl in purple.

The group walked about three kilometers, finally seeing an ancient temple at the end of the mountain path.

In front of the temple gate was a mottled stone tablet with several large characters written on it.

"Zhoutian Si"

Palace Master Ciyan of Jade Maiden Palace saw this, glanced at the stone tablet with a sneer, and said to the group of monks from Wuyang Temple.

"You ascetics just love to be mysterious. And 'Zhoutian'? You've got some nerve, that's quite a bold claim!"

The little monk was displeased upon hearing this and said indignantly.

"Please show some respect, Benefactor. We are not the monks of this temple, so why must you beat around the bush to insult us?"

Palace Master Ciyan rolled her eyes upon hearing this, appearing somewhat displeased.

Just then, the old monk chanted a Buddhist name.

"Amitabha, Zhiyu, do not be rude! We who have left the secular world must always remember to curb anger and impatience."

Palace Master Ciyan mocked upon hearing this.

"It seems your cultivation is not low, old monk! You really don't strike back when hit or retort when scolded! Little monk, you still have much to learn from your master; your cultivation is still insufficient."

"You..." The little monk's face turned red with anger, and he was about to explode.

However, the old monk shook his head, and he had no choice but to swallow his anger.

Palace Master Ciyan said.

"That's more like it!"

She tapped the ground with her dragon-headed staff and said to the female disciples behind her.

"Disciples, let's go, let's go inside and take a look."

The middle-aged scholar from Kaiyuan Academy was just about to open his mouth to warn her when he heard Huang Yang laugh from the side.

"Why bother with her? Wouldn't it be better to let them suffer a little?"

Clearly, Huang Yang could not stand their arrogant demeanor.

However, no sooner had he finished speaking than screams were heard from inside.

Before long, those Jade Maiden Palace disciples who had entered the walls of Zhou Tian Temple ran back out in a panic, one by one, giving Huang Yang, Tian Ruoyun, Cailian, and the other loose cultivators a great fright.

At the same time, a woman was heard crying out.

"It's bad, the Palace Master, she... she is not going to make it!"

To be honest, everyone was startled. Lv Qingshan's expression changed, and he was about to go in with Cailian to save her, but he was stopped by the middle-aged scholar from Kaiyuan Academy, who said.

"Fellow Daoist, do not be reckless! It won't be too late to ask about the situation after they come out!"

As he spoke, several women were seen stepping out of the temple gate with panicked expressions.

Lv Qingshan stepped forward and asked in a deep voice.

"What exactly is going on? What happened inside, and where is your Palace Master?"

Before long, the other Yunu Gong disciples ran out from inside; in particular, that young girl in yellow had a pale face and a trembling body, clearly terrified.

She replied.

"We don't know what happened either. We only saw a green shadow flash by, and Master fell to the ground. It was only when I went over to look that I realized she was already beyond saving."

Fortunately, apart from Palace Master Ciyan, the other female disciples were uninjured. The young girl in yellow looked at the crowd, let out a slight sigh of relief, and slowly calmed down.

The crowd surrounded these female disciples asking questions, but no one dared to step into the temple of Zhou Tian Si again. Su Yuanshan, on the other hand, stood by and watched, appearing on the surface to be uninterested in what had happened inside.

But in reality, through Purple Star Astrology, he had "seen" the situation inside clearly; it was just that they had not revealed it.

The thing that attacked the Yunu Gong Palace Master was actually a vine monster. That's right, that is what the Purple Star Astrology showed—a vine monster, not a vine demon!

Although it was a subtle difference in name, the essence was completely different. Of course, apart from Su Yuanshan, no one else was aware of this, and he had no intention of sharing this secret with everyone. After all, they hadn't asked, and Su Yuanshan was naturally too lazy to explain.

At this moment, Huang Yang turned his gaze to the scholar from Kaiyuan Academy and asked.

"Didn't your Kaiyuan Academy and the Guiyuan Sect come here before? Please tell me what you saw at that time."

However, the middle-aged scholar gave a bitter smile.

"Fellow Daoist Huang, I have already said many times, we didn't see anything at that time. By the time we went in, the disciples of the Guiyuan Sect were already lying there!"

Yet, the young girl in yellow suddenly spoke up at this moment.

"We didn't see those Guiyuan Sect disciples you mentioned inside!"

The middle-aged scholar from Kaiyuan Academy was stunned upon hearing this.

"What? You didn't see them? There wasn't a single person on the ground?"

Seeing the young girl in yellow nod, the middle-aged scholar frowned, filled with worry, and said.

"That is strange. They don't have wings; did they fly away?"

The others felt a chill upon hearing this. The loose cultivators couldn't help but look at the temple gate, feeling more and more that this ancient temple was eerie and terrifying.

Sima Wuhen, however, looked thoughtfully at the top of a Baota, raised his hand, and said to the crowd.

"I don't know if it's my imagination, but I seem to have seen a figure on the top level of that tower just now!"

However, when the crowd looked in the direction he was pointing, they saw nothing but the Huiwa Futu; they did not see the figure he spoke of.

Cailian said.

"I think you're just too nervous and your eyes are playing tricks on you!"

Sima Wuhen replied with a sheepish grin.

"Perhaps so!"

The girl in yellow no longer had her previous arrogant appearance and begged the crowd.

"I beg you all, go in and save my master!"

However, no one responded; after all, most people prioritized themselves in the face of danger, and furthermore, the master of Ciyan Palace did not have a very good reputation, so risking one's life for her required weighing whether it was worth it.

Just then, the middle-aged scholar from Open Origin Academy spoke up to persuade her.

"Young lady, do not be anxious yet. Based on your description just now, your master is clearly beyond saving. Rushing in now is truly not a good plan; it would be better for everyone to discuss it first."

Lv Qingshan also spoke up.

"What this fellow Daoist says is not without reason. You should first check if any of your fellow disciples are injured, and wait until we have a plan before we go in to check on your master's situation!"

Upon hearing this, the girl in yellow looked sorrowful. Although she knew that what Lv Qingshan and the others said was not without reason, the one lying inside was, after all, her master; as the saying goes, when the lips are gone, the teeth are cold, and when the hare dies, the fox grieves, so she could not help but feel sorrowful in her heart.

She cast a pleading gaze toward the few monks from Five Suns Temple, but the old monk seemed to pretend not to see and only focused on chanting scriptures, while the young monk felt his face burn when he met the girl's gaze, feeling somewhat ashamed.

Disappointment—the girl's heart was filled with disappointment. She turned her gaze toward the Jade Light Sword Sect and the rogue cultivators, yet Xie Lingyu merely sighed and shook his head; clearly, as a sect leader, he did not want to let his own disciples risk danger.

Finally, having no other choice, she turned her gaze toward Sima Wuhen, the girl in purple, and Su Yuanshan and the others, though it was clear that deep down she did not hold much hope for them.

After all, she had looked down on them at the very beginning, but now that the situation had reversed, she could only shamelessly beg them.