Chapter 309: Huang Moshen Rantong

"Senior brother, it's this thing!"

The martial monk of the Law Enforcement Hall stopped and pointed forward.

Li Yan and Chengjue looked and both frowned tightly.

This secret room hidden underground in the meat stall backyard indeed used Qimen formation to cover it, and washed pig offal in the whole courtyard, making it stink to the sky, so pedestrians avoided it.

Therefore, this group of people could hide until now.

This secret room underground was not small and was divided into two areas; one was used for accommodation, with earthen beds and oil lamps, very simple.

One was used for sacrifice.

Against the wall was a two-meter-long large offering table, on which were not only five offerings, incense and candles, but also densely packed cat skulls.

On the offering table, there was also a statue of a god, the upper body resembling a middle-aged man, white beard and black eyebrows, wearing a black robe, barefoot below, revealing a pair of huge chicken claws.

One look and it was clear it was not any righteous god.

And on the tablet, it was written "Position of Huang Moshen Rantong".

"Which hairy god is this? Do you recognize it?"

Chengjue couldn't help but frown and ask.

And Li Yan beside him suddenly felt dazed.

The hook order was hot and trembling, and thick fog filled the surroundings.

Is this another mission?

Li Yan immediately understood and quickened his pace through the fog.

Ahead, a black well appeared, covered in blood-colored oracle bone script, wrapped in bronze chains, with viscous blood surging and swirling inside, and bubbling.

Another demon god's demonic energy is escaping!

Li Yan knew what had happened.

No wonder that Liu Niang could control so many cat ghosts; she must have worshipped the evil god and practiced the secret methods in the "Longevity Immortal Treasury".

He didn't recognize that evil god, which was also normal.

The "Longevity Immortal Treasury" has seventy-two kinds of evil methods, representing the seventy-two demon gods suppressed after the Battle of the Gods.

But this book was scattered all over the Shenzhou during the Witchcraft Rebellion of the Qin and Han Dynasties when the Fangxian Dao was wantonly suppressed by the Imperial Court; some were already lost, and some were still being passed down in secret.

The book given to him by Yulinzi on Mount Taibai was just information collected by the Mystic Sect righteous path over the years, only recording the characteristics of evil methods, and the quantity was incomplete.

It seems that a new demon god has been discovered, and demonic energy has escaped from Mount Luo Feng.

Li Yan's expression was solemn as he placed his hands on the well rim.

Soon, the blood surged, and an illusion appeared before his eyes:

It was still a large, square sandstone, covered with large and small blood-colored talismans, wrapping a bronze coffin inside.

Inside the bronze coffin lay a man in black, with

What shocked Li Yan even more was that the opponent's four limbs, dantian, heart, and forehead were originally pierced by bronze spikes, symbolizing seven layers of seals.

However, now the five spikes at the opponent's heart, forehead, dantian, and even both hands had already detached from the body.

This demon god had actually already escaped five strands of demonic energy!

When all seven layers of seals were broken, the opponent would be able to escape completely!

This scene made Li Yan's back feel cold.

Just then, he seemed to sense something and looked at the demon god's head, only to discover that at some point, the opponent's eyes had opened and were looking in his direction, the corners of the mouth curling up to reveal a mouthful of sharp teeth.

Even stranger were the opponent's eyes.

A white membrane, similar to a bird's nictitating membrane, opened and closed rapidly, as if it were blinking!

Li Yan felt a shock in his heart, and the illusion before his eyes immediately vanished.

Above the bloody water of the black well, a scroll had appeared, and just as he had expected, it was written with the origin of this demon god:

"This demon was originally an ancient mountain god, transformed from an ancient shaman, named Ran Tong. Later, he transformed into a demon god; after the War of Investiture of the Gods, he was suppressed and imprisoned in the Heavenly Palace of Wucheng, where the Morning Star endures punishment...

"He left behind the 'Profound Nether Longevity Art' in the 'Immortal Repository of Longevity', falsely claiming to be a righteous god, stealing incense offerings, and teaching evil arts, causing his demonic energy to escape..."

Line after line of text made Li Yan's heart jump with fear.

This demon god Ran Tong was actually a mountain god from the era of the ancient Classic of Mountains and Seas; he did not know why he had participated in the War of Investiture of the Gods and been suppressed.

The language was vague, as if it were concealing some information.

Of course, even more terrifying were the characteristics of this demon god.

He was skilled in the art of communicating with the netherworld and controlling all kinds of ghosts and demons; even the longevity art he passed down used the power of ghosts and demons to transform people into "Old Yin People."

An "Old Yin Person" is a type of evil creature similar to a zombie, but unlike a zombie, the body of an Old Yin Person can still move normally, and is even more flexible, similar to a type of living dead.

Practicing this art can gradually restore youth, but when the natural lifespan is exhausted, the yang energy in the body will dissipate, and yin energy will gather; they can only live underground where the yin-evil energy gathers, never seeing sunlight for the rest of their days.

As their cultivation increases, they will also hide deeper.

There is one more point: this demon god Ran Tong is very good at hiding.

He not only stays in remote areas, disguising himself as various righteous mountain gods, but also changes into various images, teaching ghost-controlling arts and bewitching people to perform sacrifices to him.

The Great Song Ghost Sect sacrifices to a wide variety of ghosts and gods.

But whether it was the "Lengzheng God" of Ezhou or the "Ningdeng God" of the Eastern Capital at the time, they were only his incarnations.

This demon god Ran Tong was his true body!

Moreover, the methods he taught were also different; just like Liu Niang, who focused on cat ghosts.

By using this deceptive method, the opponent had actually already escaped five strands of demonic energy; breaking two more seals would allow him to escape.

The illusion disappeared completely, but it only lasted for a brief moment.

Just as Chengjue's question left his lips, Li Yan said with a solemn expression: "This is the demon god Ran Tong, we are in big trouble!"

After saying this, he quickly turned and rushed out of the courtyard.

Outside, a light rain was drizzling, and bloody water flowed on the streets.

The surroundings had already been blocked off by yamen runners, and the common people were peeking and looking, whispering to each other, still feeling lingering fear.

Li Yan hurriedly pinched a magic seal, took a deep breath, and then looked in all directions, saying urgently to Chengyuan who had chased after him:

"Quick, have someone close the city gates and conduct a strict search!"

"Brother Lu, send out all the animals to investigate!"

"We have all been deceived..."

In less than half a stick of incense, the various city gates of Wuchang closed with a rumble. Facing the fierce soldiers, although the common people were dissatisfied in their hearts, they did not dare to ask more and had to inquire privately.

And in the woods near the outside of the city gate, a scholar was silently watching all this. Suddenly, a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, his eye membrane turned white, and he turned and burrowed into the dense forest, disappearing without a trace...

…………

Botong Zen Temple, inside the Great Hall.

"Everyone has been deceived, and the demoness Liu Niang is no exception..."

"She thought she had succeeded in practicing her arts, but in reality, there was a strand of demonic energy attached to her, which allowed her to control so many cat ghosts..."

"She thought she could escape, but in reality, it was that demonic energy influencing her to release the cat ghosts and divert our attention; that demonic energy has already left using the body of a bystander..."

"I originally thought this disaster here was arranged by Zhao Changsheng for Liu Niang to preside over, but in reality, it has always been this demon god controlling it from the shadows..." The high monks of Botong Zen Temple were all present.

Listening to Li Yan's account, their eyes were also filled with horror.

Even Li Yan himself felt a chill down his spine.

Thinking carefully, from the moment they discovered Liu Niang, the opponent had already thought of a way to retreat; just like a gecko shedding its tail, no matter how happily Liu Niang jumped, she was only that wiggling broken tail.

If it weren't for Lu San's secret technique, I'm afraid that when that strand of demonic energy left, Liu Niang would have died from the backlash of the cat ghosts, which would have also diverted their attention.

Abbot Mingzhu's white eyebrows furrowed, "Is this demon actually so cunning?"

To be honest, what Li Yan said was too unbelievable; he even found it hard to believe.

"More cunning than you can imagine!"

Li Yan shook his head in a deep voice: "Thinking about it now, the opponent clearly could have used other methods to silence witnesses, but chose to use the evil art of cat ghosts to kill Wu Jiucheng, just to make us focus our attention on the brothel."

"If it weren't for my brother Lu San's secret technique, who would have thought that this Liu Niang and the demonic energy would hide in such a filthy place!"

"If nothing goes wrong, Liu Niang hiding in the city must be to coordinate from the inside and outside, to do something big and destroy the feng shui layout."

!.

Chengjue, who had just walked into the hall, also put his hands together and said: "Reporting to the Abbot, Young Hero Li's guess is correct."

"According to the confessions of those martial arts scum, there are three other Miao people under Liu Niang, all dressed as hunters; they should be disciples of the Meishan Dharma Sect, and they already left secretly yesterday, not knowing what they are going to do."

"In addition, there are cargo ships from Xiangyang that have already delivered a large amount of gunpowder; they are responsible for transporting it to the mountains, where there are also people responding, not knowing where it was transported to..."

One of the old monks heard this, shook his head slightly, and said: "Demonic nature is cunning, often bewitching the world and reversing yin and yang, but the path they follow is biased, and it also has its weaknesses."

"Patron Li is a living nether-official, do you know them?"

Li Yan nodded and said: "This demon god Ran Tong is skilled in the art of controlling ghosts, but his own weaknesses are also very obvious; he needs to use the host's physical body to cause trouble, and he cannot see the bright, scorching sun; when dawn breaks, he must hide underground."

"He escaped in a hurry this time, and we obtained the idol. The Daoist sect has the Altar for Subduing Demons and Capturing Monsters; I wonder if the Buddhist sect has a similar method?"

The demonic path is fierce, and the righteous Mystic Sect can suppress it, naturally having ways; all kinds of large-scale demon-subduing rituals are prepared for it.

Just like the Three Gorges water monster back then, even if it dived to the bottom of the river, the Zhushan Sect could use rituals to suppress and kill it.

Such methods usually cannot be separated from a medium.

And that idol is often attached to by demonic energy, which is the opponent's weakness.

The old monk nodded and said: "The Buddhist sect has ways to suppress this place, naturally. Mingzhu, the water monster suppressed under the Shadowless Pagoda of Xingfu Temple has been destroyed, and it just happens to be empty; I will personally preside over the ritual to suppress this demon."

"Patron Li, since this demon escaped from the netherworld, I'm afraid you will still need to take action when the time comes."

Li Yan hurriedly cupped his hands, "Many thanks, Master Tongxuan."

He revealed this matter, firstly to let the Ghost Sect's conspiracy be known to the world, and secondly to borrow the power of the Buddhist sect.

After all, with his own strength, it would be difficult to capture the demonic energy; even if he could summon divine generals, he would still need to be able to find where the demonic energy is.

The situation was urgent, and the people of Botong Zen Temple naturally did not dare to delay. Soon, a large group of monks left the temple with various ritual implements...

…………

Xingfu Temple is located at the eastern foot of Hongshan.

Botong Zen Temple is also on Hongshan, but it is located at the southern foot, so after walking for less than half an hour, everyone saw a temple hidden in the mountains.

Li Yan had once heard Wang Daoxuan say that whether it is a Daoist temple or a Buddhist temple, they all pay attention to feng shui when being built, but they are all different.

The site selection for Daoist temples is always a "Four Spirit Beasts" layout, but sometimes it transcends feng shui, paying attention to famous mountains and great rivers, hiding the spirit within, which is the so-called blessed land of the cave heaven.

The three religions of the Shenzhou have merged, and the Buddhist sect has also absorbed similar characteristics, but besides the Four Spirit Beasts, they are also named after Buddhist Vajras, Bodhisattvas, and Wisdom Kings.

The temple before their eyes was the same, hidden between the mountains and forests, with towering trees lush and green; if one turned the direction, one could only see the head of a pagoda exposed.

Chengyuan walked while introducing: "This Xingfu Temple was first built in the first year of Renshou of Emperor Wen of Sui, later destroyed in the flames of war, and rebuilt during the Southern Song Dynasty."

"A few years ago, a water monster in the Yangtze River caused trouble, stirring up wind and waves; after it was suppressed and killed, its soul remained restless, so it was suppressed under the pagoda."

The leading old monk was named Tongxuan; Li Yan could not smell any scent on him at all, he was already a master who had stepped into the Dan Jin realm, and he was also proficient in Buddhist teachings, counting as one of the foundations of Botong Zen Temple.

Hearing this, he shook his head slightly and said: "This pagoda was built during the Southern Song Dynasty, also to deal with the evil people of the Ghost Sect; it can also be considered karmic reincarnation."

Outside Xingfu Temple, a monk in charge had already received the news, opened the main gate, and came out to welcome them.

The monks did not talk nonsense, entered the temple directly, and came before a towering pagoda.

The pagoda before their eyes had only four stories, all built of stone blocks. It was octagonal in plan, the pagoda body stood on a Sumeru base and an upward lotus base, with wooden structure flying eaves and brackets, and bells hanging from them.

On the pagoda body, there were also carvings of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Arhats, Heavenly Kings, and warriors, looking very exquisite.

Li Yan had also heard of this "Shadowless Pagoda"; it is rumored that every year at the summer solstice, the pagoda body has no shadow, which can be considered a scene of Wuchang.

He did not expect that it also had the use of suppressing demons.

Under the pagoda, there was also a well, with the sound of water churning inside, and a stone tablet standing beside it, written with "Building a pagoda to settle the waves."

Chengyuan saw Li Yan's curiosity and explained: "There is a water vein under this well, leading directly to the Yangtze River; when water monsters appear in the river, they can all be suppressed here through rituals."

Li Yan heard this and praised: "Good means!"

He could smell that this pagoda had a rich sandalwood scent, and it was fused with the innate rigid baleful energy of the surrounding earth veins, counting as one of the suppressing objects of Wuchang.

The Buddhist Zen sect being able to gain a foothold here is indeed extraordinary.

Of course, these Buddhist disciples could not afford to talk nonsense, and quickly surrounded the pagoda to set up the altar.

At the same time, several monks uncovered the scriptures at the entrance of the pagoda and carried out a wooden box similar to a treasure chest from inside.

Inside the box, there was actually a withered bone, shaped like a snake-fish, but it had a pair of human hand bones, with all five fingers complete, which was very strange.

The withered bone had already decayed, and the last trace of yin-evil energy also dissipated instantly after being carried out of the pagoda.

Afterwards, the monks wrapped the idol of the demon god Ran Tong with scripture banners, nailed demon-subduing pestles around it, and carried it into the pagoda.

Rumble!

As the stone door of the pagoda closed, the monks immediately chanted scriptures and struck wooden fish under the command of Master Tongxuan.

At this time, night had already fallen.

The sound of wooden fish, the curling incense smoke, and the chanting of scriptures echoed in the temple, seeming to drift toward the sky.

Li Yan also sat cross-legged, tightly clutching his hook-token.

As long as he waited for that strand of demonic energy to be hooked over, he could immediately summon the netherworld divine generals...

…………

Outside Wuchang City, in the mountains and forests.

The three Meishan brothers were shuttling through the dense forest at high speed.

The events that happened in the city had already spread; their eyes were filled with anxiety as they headed toward the place Liu Niang had agreed upon in advance to gather.

To be honest, they were only holding onto a glimmer of hope.

Arriving outside a ruined temple in the mountains and forests, the three of them were suddenly overjoyed.

They saw a scholar standing in the moonlight, his face pale, and the yin-evil energy around him transformed into black mist, baring fangs and brandishing claws...

(End of chapter)