Chapter 235

Bai He Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi did not choose to stand passively under the altar to defend; instead, he held his trident high with both hands and took the initiative to thrust it forward.

The Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun tilted his body slightly, placing his left wing horizontally in front of him, intending to defend while simultaneously slipping past; he had no intention of getting too entangled now, as his eyes were fixed only on his own sealed magical artifact.

Because he had already realized that although he still occupied an absolute advantage, he had been unable to break the deadlock for too long, and if this situation were allowed to drag on, he felt a faint sense of foreboding.

"Snap!"

The trident held in Bai He Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi's left hand snapped.

One reason was the high defensive strength of the wings, and the other was the recent increase in strength of both the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi and Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Shu You; these two factors combined caused the weapon that A You had carried with him since he went to college in Jin Ling to reach the end of its life.

However, the Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun, who was about to slip past, faltered at this moment.

He lowered his head and pulled back the wings that had been shielding his front.

A trident was embedded in his chest.

This trident quickly dissipated into blue smoke, but the wound it left behind was real, and thick, black blood flowed continuously from it.

He was injured.

Perhaps only beings of the same kind could be more familiar with each other and know how to act to truly harm him.

Rage was burning in the Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun's eyes.

Yet he still did not counterattack the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi, continuing to fly toward the altar.

Bai He Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi's vertical pupils narrowed, and he closed in, preparing to intercept.

The young man's voice sounded in the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi's heart: "No need to intercept, gather strength for the next strike."

The Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi slowed his speed, his hands grasping at the air as two tridents condensed once more.

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan jumped off the altar from the side.

The Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun ignored the young man entirely, instead going straight to a stone pedestal covered in talisman paper and slapping it with one hand.

"Hum!"

The scene of the stone pedestal cracking and the magical artifact appearing, which he had anticipated, did not occur.

The first thing that met his eyes was a blinding white light.

Perhaps he had never expected that the young man would not only seal the stone pedestal at the first opportunity but also set up a formation beneath it in such a short time.

This time, the Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun didn't even have time to press his wings down before he was knocked off the altar by the white light.

While he was still in mid-air, Bai He Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi arrived, and the two tridents thrust forward again.

A low growl issued from the Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun's throat; he twisted his body and smashed a fist down fiercely.

The Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi crossed the two tridents, thrusting them into the arm with which the Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun was swinging his fist, then slid his hands down to lock onto the opponent's arm.

The force of the punch was fierce, but most of it was neutralized by the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi; not only that, but the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi stepped forward further, condensing a third trident in his right hand, intending to thrust it into the opponent's head.

"Retreat."

The young man's warning came from the depths of his heart.

He had to warn him; the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi was getting carried away.

The Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi voluntarily dispersed his offensive, kicked off the Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun's body, and used the force to fly backward.

The next moment, the two pairs of wings on the Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun's back closed rapidly, like a giant clam, nearly trapping the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi inside.

"Go to hell!"

The Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun spread his wings again, intending to attack.

"Bang!"

Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng's shovel descended at this moment, smashing heavily onto the wings behind him.

The Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun's body swayed forward; he turned his head in shock, unable to understand why the force of this guy's attacks grew stronger each time.

But just as he prepared to turn and find Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng, the ghost infant's nursery rhyme sounded again, and the ghost-hitting-wall appeared once more.

"Roar!"

Amidst the roar, his confused perception recovered, but Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng also took this opportunity to retreat a distance and gather strength for the next strike.

Meanwhile, Bai He Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi pressed forward again; his trident technique's phantom could pierce the Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun's wing defense, and every time he advanced, he added another mark to the Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun's body.

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan let out a breath; the foundation of the building blocks had been completed.

The subsequent combat mode was to replicate the cycle above.

When Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng attacked, the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi prepared; when the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi attacked, Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng gathered strength.

Tan Tan Tan Tan Tan Tan Wenbin's small, distracting techniques were added at appropriate intervals, solely to regulate the rhythm.

Seeing Yin Meng's poison jar was not suitable for throwing at this moment, as it would easily contaminate their own advantageous battlefield.

However, her leather whip was not idle, constantly lashing out to help the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi and Tan Tan Tan Tan Tan Tan Wenbin adjust their tactical positions.

She dared not hand the whip to Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng because Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng was too heavy and his brute force too great; she couldn't pull him, and besides, Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng was still in the stage of gathering strength for the rolling waves, so it was impossible for him to discharge his force now.

The most idle one, instead, was Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan.

He discovered that he really didn't need to do anything now; if he did, it would not only fail to add to the perfection but would instead disrupt the existing rhythm.

It wasn't that the Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun hadn't thought about attacking the targets that looked weaker; if he had done so at the start, he would indeed have had a great chance to kill one or two first, but now, every time he had such an intention, the young man would detect it in advance, and the rhythm of the siege would accelerate, suppressing him back.

With the red thread connection, the team's coordination had improved to a remarkably smooth level, and this was the effect Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan had always pursued.

A team should look like a team and should release this feeling of taking advantage by outnumbering the opponent; it couldn't just be one or two people burying their heads in frantic work while the others acted as accessories or cheerleaders.

The Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun's frustrated roars continued; if he could do it over, he would definitely have taken the magical artifact out of the stone pedestal the moment he woke up, and then, at all costs, killed the young man who now looked like he was doing nothing!

Don't look at the young man standing outside the battlefield as if he hadn't done anything; every time the Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun had other thoughts in his heart to change the current situation, the young man's eyes would change immediately, and the people besieging him would instantly change their formation.

Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng's momentum was stacking higher and higher; now, every time he swung his shovel down, the Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun no longer dared to rely on his wings to block purely as he had before, having to actively dodge.

But even if a strike missed, Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng would quickly close in, determined to find a point of leverage to land the force of that breath solidly before retreating.

For this, Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng didn't hesitate to trade a few punches and take a few kicks from the Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun; even though each time it worsened his injuries and caused more blood to flow, the next time, Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng's momentum could still rise another level.

Facing such an opponent was absolutely despair-inducing because you couldn't judge where his limit was; he was like an tireless ocean wave, crashing against the beach reefs again and again.

In short, either you had the absolute strength to crush him in one blow, or you had a method to interrupt him; otherwise, you were destined to be worn down by him.

This was probably the feeling Qin Shu gave people when he used his true strength.

When the Bai family town under Chongming Island faced such a Qin Shu, it was probably the same despair.

One person was a thousand troops, capable of taking on an entire faction alone.

Perhaps one really had to thank this Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun; he provided an extremely suitable template—strong but not overpowered—simply the perfect whetstone for Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng.

At the same time, Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan also noticed that after the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi had fought for a long time, he finally took the time to insert three incense sticks for asking the way on his head, which meant that the time for each stage had been greatly extended.

This was because the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi had previously left a lot of divine power in Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Shu You's body, and combined with Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan forcefully splitting half of the gift package to A You, this resulted in a large surplus of divine power in A You's body, which the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi could extract and use after descending; it was equivalent to having a spare fuel tank, strengthening his endurance.

Seeing Yin Meng was laughing, her two leather whips dancing happily in her left and right hands.

Before, she was just a battlefield poison bomber;

Now, she was a battlefield dispatcher.

She had already decided that after this wave was over, she would polish her whip technique well, and besides, the leather whip needed to be lengthened.

Sure enough, Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng was right; Xiao Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Yuan had a good brain, so just listening to Xiao Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Yuan was enough; in the past, she never expected that one day she could do this kind of work.

It could be said that apart from the Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun being in great pain, the entire team had become more proficient and improved in this stage of coordination.

Although Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan did not intervene directly in the battle, he was not doing nothing; the young man's hands were always behind his back, constantly forming seals.

The eight stone statues on both sides trembled slightly from time to time.

But such movement was not worth mentioning in such a lively situation.

After a long, drawn-out battle, it was about to enter a period of mutual attrition.

And often at this time, changes were most likely to occur, and some trump cards that one was originally reluctant to use would be forced out.

"Slow down the rhythm, don't over-press, pull back!"

The young man's voice appeared in his companions' hearts, pouring a basin of cold water in time.

Sure enough, the Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun suddenly knelt down, covering his whole body with his wings, and a harsh, grating sound of bones rubbing together came from within.

When he stood up and spread his wings again, his entire physique had doubled in size compared to before.

At the same time, the outer skin on his wings fell off completely, and each wing bone pierced into his massive body with a "swish," supplementing the internal structure and coordinating the whole body anew.

What changed was the physique; his skin became thin and transparent due to this expansion.

A red fireball ignited in his abdomen, and the firelight shone through his body into the entire temple.

In an instant, the oppressive and eerie atmosphere within the temple was swept away, replaced by a sense of sacred majesty.

That ball of fire was his source of divine power.

Strictly speaking, the current Bai He Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi and the two generals, Zeng and Sun, were all in this state; they only had source divine power and no physical bodies.

Every time they sensed a spirit medium performing a ritual, they would split off a portion of their divine power to descend and attach themselves to the medium to slay demons and eliminate evil.

There was a return for every investment; consuming a portion of source divine power in exchange for further enrichment of merit was, in essence, a business—there was capital and there was profit.

And the fact that the high-ranking generals generally didn't treat the mediums as human beings, using and consuming their bodies at will, was also to compress costs.

However, the lineage represented by the Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun had long been submerged in the long river of history and lay silent on the seabed; there were no more mediums in the world performing rituals for him.

This meant that the little source he retained could only be consumed, not replenished.

He petrified and sealed himself also to protect and preserve this little spark of source fire so it wouldn't be completely annihilated.

Now, he couldn't care about anything else.

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan observed the red flame carefully; from the current perspective, the Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun was not an Yin god in the traditional sense; he had a physical body, but he was not a medium.

Combined with the fact that the other eight stone statues here were all surnamed Yao, it was not hard to guess that his lineage as an Yin god was limited to within one family. Therefore, this Gate-Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Guarding Zhenjun should also be surnamed Yao, most likely the most revered and oldest ancestor of this family.

This was completely different from the current lineages of the high-ranking generals and the eight families; although it was inevitable that a temple would have a larger proportion of members from a certain family or clan, the temples were relatively independent, and anyone's family could invite the Yin gods to descend.

The "Yin gods" of the past were clan leaders with physical bodies, while the Yin gods of today were the ghost kings of the past, who not only lacked physical bodies but had long since severed their worldly ties.

The past was family lineage; the present is temple lineage.

The ceiling of the past was obvious; the current upper limit and strength of Yin spirits are clearly higher.

The changes are significant, but if one looks down from the position of the highest entity in this ecological niche, these changes are all about stripping away intermediate power and strengthening one's own vertical management capabilities.

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan cannot help but wonder now, is the "Dizang Nunnery" on this plaque truly fake?

If this place is real, it means that the inheritance systems of Yin spirits like the Eight Generals and the Official Generals did not appear late in history due to a lack of antiquity, but were interrupted and corrected in the past.

Then who was it that reshuffled the deck?

"You... deserve death!"

The muffled voice echoed within the temple; this alone was enough to make people's eardrums ache.

The Gate-Keeping True Monarch's pupils were blood-red; he was now desperate to slaughter, to trample to death all these ants that had surrounded and suppressed him for so long!

Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng and Bai He Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi waited for the young man's command; they also had trump cards they could use, and they were confident that after using them, they could regain the rhythm of the previous suppression.

However, Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan did not issue such an order.

Being able to force the Gate-Keeping True Monarch to this point, Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan was already very satisfied; to add more to this, to increase the cost, would be a loss.

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan placed his hands, which had been hidden behind his back, in front of him, interlaced his fingers, and bowed upward.

"Click... click... click..."

A series of stone-peeling sounds emerged, and all eight stone statues of the Yao family spirit mediums fell away, revealing the corpses sealed within.

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan had already completed the preparatory work earlier.

With his current abilities, controlling eight puppets to fight at once was truly a bit of a stretch; if he really did that, he would certainly end up with bleeding eyes and overexertion, and the effectiveness would be very low.

However, if it was just controlling the eight of them to perform some simple, basic movements, then the problem was not significant.

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan now wanted to try using the *Dizang Bodhisattva Sutra* to guide and urge his puppets to perform spirit possession.

If the spirit possession could be successful, it would mean that this inheritance buried on the seabed had an inevitable connection with the current Official Generals!

The eight Yao family puppets all opened their left hands, clenched their right fists, lifted their feet, and stomped!

Everything happened very quickly; the Gate-Keeping True Monarch had just brought out his trump card and mobilized his divine power source when, on the other side, the stone statues had already shed their skins and collectively performed spirit possession!

In an instant, eight portions of the red flame within the Gate-Keeping True Monarch drifted out and fell into the bodies of the eight Yao family puppets.

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan immediately showed pain on his Human Human Human Human Human Human Human Human Face; controlling eight people to complete spirit possession at once was truly too much pressure.

But in the young man's eyes, there was also shock; it was actually... the inheritance was consistent!

"No!"

The Gate-Keeping True Monarch clearly did not expect such an eerie situation to occur; the descendants of his clan who were buried with him after his death were actually grabbing the little remaining porridge in the bowl of their ancestor at this moment.

This amount was not even enough for him to eat his fill, and having kept it hidden and sealed all this time, to have so much divided away at once, he could no longer even maintain this tall body.

The Gate-Keeping True Monarch's figure began to shrink, and the wing bones that had previously pierced into his body now became sharp blades disrupting his physique.

Within a few breaths, the Gate-Keeping True Monarch returned to his original stature, and the wings he had previously regarded as a powerful defense now pierced through his body, pinning him into a hedgehog.

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan immediately interrupted his control over the eight puppets, and blood flowed from his nose.

His companions naturally would not miss this excellent opportunity; first was Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Lu Runsheng, who, with layers of accumulated strength, swung his strongest shovel strike since he had opened all his Qi gates.

"Slap!"

This shovel hit the True Monarch's back, causing a large area of depression to appear instantly; the whole person was flattened, making a body that was already in chaos become completely messy.

Bai He Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi leaped forward, spat onto the trident condensed from techniques in his hands in mid-air, and a burst of True Fire attached to it; he then plunged it fiercely into the top of the True Monarch's head from above!

Without the protection of the wings, Seeing Yin Meng's poison jars finally had room to play; a string of poison jars was thrown out, broken by a whip at the top of the True Monarch's head, and the poison mist descended, covering the True Monarch completely.

"Ah..."

The True Monarch tilted his head back and let out a painful wail.

At this moment, confusion appeared in his pupils, followed by clarity; the power that had previously controlled and bewitched him receded, completely repeating the old events on the island earlier.

He scanned his surroundings, pausing first on the young man: "You are not... the Bodhisattva..."

Until his death, he could not understand why the young man could use such unimaginable means, but he confirmed that the young man was not the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva.

Finally, his gaze fixed on Bai He Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi.

The Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi closed his eyes; he had stabbed the hardest with that trident earlier, but now, he did not want to look directly into the other's eyes.

The Gate-Keeping True Monarch laboriously raised his hand, which had already melted halfway, inserted it into his own abdomen, took out a cluster of divine power source as weak as a candle flame, handed it toward Bai He Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi, and chanted hoarsely:

"Demons and evil spirits... kill, do not ferry~"

The Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi opened his eyes, looked at this scene, and then, his vertical pupils disappeared, and he fled.

Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Shu You looked at the scene before him and immediately looked at Brother Marquis Xiao Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Yuan.

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan: "Take it."

"Oh."

Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Shu You stepped forward, reached out, and took the cluster of flame from the True Monarch's hand.

There was no burning sensation, but it was very hot; Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Shu You gritted his teeth to keep from crying out, and after the flame merged into his body, a red mark appeared on the back of his hand.

Half of the Gate-Keeping True Monarch's head had already melted, and the remaining part of the skull lost support and drooped down:

"It seems... something happened... in the nunnery..."

Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan: "Yes, otherwise I wouldn't have come here."

"It is I... who did not... guard the gate well..."

"Plop!"

The skull detached from the torso, and the remaining part of the body melted into corpse water.

Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Shu You looked at the red mark on the back of his hand, his expression somewhat complex and solemn.

Tan Tan Tan Tan Tan Tan Wenbin walked over, bumped into A You, and said:

"A You, this time it was your quick wit that forced the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi down.

If you ask me, this Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi is really something, always liking to slip away at critical moments; this time he was actually scared like this by the aura of a fake Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva—hasn't he heard the story of the fake Leiyin Temple?"

"Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Binbin."

"Yes, Brother Marquis Xiao Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Brother Yuan?"

"I think that earlier on the bridge, the Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Master Tongzi should have truly sensed the aura of the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva."

Tan Tan Tan Tan Tan Tan Wenbin and Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Lin Shu You heard this, and their eyes widened instantly.

And Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Li Zhuiyuan's next sentence made the four people present tremble with goosebumps.

"The Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva... is right inside here."

(End of chapter)