Chapter 340

"Flying Wooden Magpie?"

Lu San frowned, his face full of confusion.

He grew up following the village guardian, and later mixed in the martial world; he could read well enough, but he hadn't really read many books.

He naturally didn't know this allusion.

Li Yan stroked the tough rattan, "This thing is recorded in 'Mozi'; Lu Ban carved bamboo and wood into a magpie, which could fly in the air for three days without landing. It is rumored that Mozi even debated with him to stop Chu from attacking Song."

"It's just that this thing is a bit different from what I thought."

He originally thought it was something like an airplane, but didn't expect it to be a hot air balloon; after being lit and taking off, it truly looked like a torch.

Lu San had no interest in these allusions, looked at the sky, and frowned: "The rain is about to stop; can this thing take us away?"

"Let's try."

Li Yan said, directly pulling open the door of the rattan wooden grid on one side, and taking Lu San inside.

This kind of black bamboo rattan should also be some kind of spiritual material, and it was unknown what method was used to process it, but it was extremely tough and light in weight.

The rattan was woven into a pavilion shape, about the size of a gazebo.

Inside, it was also covered in mud and sand, and there were two corpses lying there, a long sword and a sharp blade piercing each other, dying together.

Li Yan couldn't care about dealing with them, directly looking up.

No matter what the principle of this thing was, it definitely had to be lit from above.

Sure enough, there was a circular opening above, with several bronze chains hanging a copper basin, which was also piled full of mud and sand.

Unable to explain much, Li Yan leaped up, grabbing the frame with one hand, and carefully clearing the mud and sand in the copper basin with the other.

As the mud and sand were pushed aside, a strange fragrance hit his nose.

Under the mud and sand was a layer of white solid paste; after so many years, the color was still snow-white, looking like some kind of paraffin.

And in the center, there was a strange copper pillar, densely covered with holes, with velvet thread stuffed inside, which should be the wick.

"Do you have a fire starter?" Li Yan lowered his head and asked.

Having been buried in the lake for so long, he didn't know if it could still be used, but he had to try first.

"Yes."

Lu San hurriedly took out a fire starter from his waist and handed it over.

Li Yan blew the fire starter until it ignited, carefully aiming at the copper wick.

However, the velvet thread inside had been soaked for too long; no matter how hard he blew, it couldn't be lit.

Just at this moment, the heavy rain outside became smaller and smaller.

Looking at the appearance, it was about to stop.

Rumble!

The ground actually began to shake.

Lu San suddenly felt dizzy and had tinnitus; he could clearly hear all kinds of shrill sounds even without turning on his divine ability.

"Quick, the ghost city is sinking!"

At the same time, on the stage on the shore of Shenjiaba.

Although the actors of the opera troupe were still performing with all their might, their faces were all pale, their foreheads were blue, and their eyebrows and beards were all covered with white frost.

The yin energy here was thick to the extreme, worthy of being called a ghost realm.

They were just ordinary people; being able to persist until now was already not easy, all relying on a single breath to support themselves, and their bodies were already trembling.

Whoosh~

Just at this moment, a fierce wind whistled around.

The gongs and drums of the opera troupe actually started beating by themselves with a ding-ding-dang-dang sound, scaring the musicians of the opera troupe until their bodies were stiff, not daring to move.

Fortunately, the thick fog below retreated rapidly, and those dense shadows also dissipated in large numbers.

Within a few breaths, the thick fog disappeared completely, the surrounding air suddenly became fresh, and one could even vaguely hear the sounds of insects.

The heavy rain had stopped at some unknown time.

The members of the opera troupe all breathed a sigh of relief, but still didn't dare to break the rules, honestly thanking the audience, sounding the gongs, and only after getting off the stage did their legs go soft and they fell to the ground, hugging each other and crying bitterly.

The experience of this night was something they would never forget in their lives.

And Wang Daoxuan, who was under the stage, had a greatly changed expression; he couldn't care about packing up his Yansheng treasure coins, hurriedly leaped out of the protective formation, and ran to the lake to watch.

He saw the thick fog and ghost fires constantly shrinking toward the center.

"Oh no!"

Wang Daoxuan was anxious, but didn't know what to do.

On the other side, the movement in the ghost city was even greater.

The ground rumbled, beginning to sink slowly, and the lake water spread from all directions, soon submerging their feet.

At the same time, figures appeared on the street, men and women, old and young, all covered in mud, their faces pale.

Li Yan and Lu San were living people; in the eyes of these wronged souls and fierce ghosts, they were almost like furnaces.

That warm yang energy attracted them to keep approaching.

"It's too late, let's go!"

Even though Lu San was calm, cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

Just at this moment, a flash of inspiration appeared in Li Yan's mind; he hurriedly took out a magazine, pried out the iron pellets and oil paper, and poured all the gunpowder onto the copper wick.

Boom!

As soon as the fire starter touched it, fire and thick smoke exploded.

Li Yan was almost sprayed in the face, hurriedly dodging, and when he turned his head to look, the copper wick was already emitting a raging fire.

Moreover, the flames passed through those honeycomb-shaped fine holes, spraying out in a twisted shape, but the white paraffin-like substance around it didn't melt.

Whoosh~

Hot air billowed, and the leather bag above first stood up, then actually began to expand, getting bigger and bigger, like a giant lantern.

"Quick, clear away the things that are in the way."

Li Yan jumped down, kicked violently, kicking the two entangled remains on the ground away, and Lu San also didn't care about the filth, reaching out to push the mud and sand away.

And the countless yin souls around had already whistled over.

"Nugao, the left carries three stars, the right carries three prisons, heaven turns and earth flips, all nine paths are blocked... Decree as fast as the law!"

Li Yan was already holding the God Tiger Order, using the Northern Emperor Body Protection Incantation.

"Roar!"

With a fierce tiger's roar, a fierce wind blew around; those yin souls and fierce ghosts that rushed up either had their souls scattered directly or were dizzy, bumping around everywhere.

As Li Yan's cultivation increased, the power of the God Protection Incantation also greatly increased.

However, his use of magic arts alarmed the ghost city.

He saw that outside the city walls, corpse after corpse broke out of the water, with long meat tentacles connected behind them, like jellyfish, rushing toward them from all directions.

Only then did Lu San know that Li Yan's words were not false.

If they had left the city just now, they would probably have been entangled by this thing immediately; whether sinking the boat or swimming in the water, they would have been at a disadvantage.

And at the same time, the air bag above was getting bigger and bigger.

Finally, the two felt their feet sink, and the entire pavilion woven from black rattan began to rise slowly.

And those tentacles also whistled over.

"Sit tight!"

Li Yan gave a low shout, suddenly leaping out of the rattan pavilion, his right hand climbing the rattan window, and his left hand lifting.

Clang!

A Soul-Severing Duanhun Feidao at his waist whistled out.

Under the control of the Soul-Hooking Rope, the flying knife made a shrill sound, directly cutting off several tentacles, and crashing to the ground along with the corpses in front.

This flying knife of his had the power to sever souls; all the tentacles that were cut off and fell to the ground twisted crazily, gradually having no movement.

Boom!

Lu San also opened fire violently.

Flames splashed in front of the mace, directly breaking several tentacles.

And in this short time, the rattan pavilion had flown higher and higher; after rising dozens of meters, those tentacles could no longer reach them. Looking down from high altitude, the scene before them was even more astonishing.

With the ruins of Gaochang County as the center, the surroundings were densely packed with tentacles, like a giant sea anemone.

As the heavy rain stopped, Gaochang City was also sinking rapidly, and the yin souls and fierce ghosts in the city stopped chasing, all looking up.

Pale faces, black eyes, were gradually swallowed by the lake water, and the thick fog on the lake surface dissipated along with it.

Lu San and Li Yan looked at each other, both breathing a sigh of relief.

And on the shore of the lake, Wang Daoxuan, the members of the opera troupe, and Wu Ba were all dumbfounded, looking at the sky.

The lantern-like torch was exceptionally obvious in the night sky.

Climbing high and looking, the night wind blew, Li Yan's hair fluttered, and even though he was covered in mud and a bit disheveled, he felt exceptionally happy, laughing loudly.

And Lu San, clutching the window, felt his legs go a bit soft.

He finally understood Wu Ba's feelings.

!.

"Stop laughing!"

Lu San's whole body was tense, saying with difficulty: "How are we supposed to get down?"

Li Yan was stunned, "Ah this, I don't know."

Lu San: "..."

…………

In the land of Jiangxia, a river was wide.

This river was named the Jinshui River, passing through Jiangxia, reaching Xianning and Chibi; since ancient times, it had been a strategic thoroughfare, extending in all directions; during the Battle of Chibi, the Eastern Wu navy had practiced ambushes here.

On the river surface, a Jiujiang boat was moving forward rapidly.

The boat was densely packed with garrison soldiers, all wearing armor, holding knives and guns, their eyes sharp, scanning the surroundings.

"The rain has stopped!"

Sha Lifei walked out of the boat pavilion, his eyes full of worry.

Behind him, not only were there martial monks from the Law Enforcement Hall like Chengjue, but there was also an old monk with white eyebrows, precisely one of those Li Yan had seen at the Baotong Zen Temple.

This old monk's dharma name was Tonghuan, and he had come specifically to handle this matter.

His expression was also not good at this moment, and he couldn't help but pick up the thangka to look at it, a trace of killing intent flashing in his eyes.

This thangka was precisely what Li Yan had searched from the foreign monk.

On it were painted two gods, both with ghost faces and fangs, their whole bodies pitch black, six arms each holding magic tools, entangled with each other.

Seeing this, Sha Lifei hurriedly asked: "Master, is it really that troublesome?"

"Yes."

The old monk sighed, shook his head, and said: "The person you encountered is from a rare sect in Tibetan Buddhism, the 'Sky-Walking Sect'."

"This sect had already defected to the Golden Tent Wolf Kingdom during the previous dynasty; due to sectarian disputes, the Golden Tent Wolf Kingdom's national master, Phagpa, couldn't tolerate them and ordered their pursuit."

"To protect themselves, they threw themselves under the command of the Shaman Sect, seeking protection. After the Golden Tent Wolf Kingdom was destroyed, they had been secretly sowing discord in Tibet, inciting rebellion."

"The letter mentioned a piece of news: remnants of the Golden Tent Wolf Kingdom have entered the Luo Sha Kingdom and have already grasped power. This time he sneaked in to persuade the Maitreya Sect to join hands with them to do something big."

"On this thangka, the two gods are named the Ghost-Faced Sky-Walking Mother and the Black Heaven Bright King. In their doctrine, the Sky-Walking Mother is a female Bodhisattva, a messenger between mortals and Buddhas and Bodhisattvas..."

The old monk spoke obscurely, but Sha Lifei vaguely understood something, "They want to bring someone back to life?"

The old monk was stunned, "I forgot, you and Benefactor Li are close friends, but this matter is more troublesome than bringing someone back to life."

"It is descending to the mortal world!"

"The letter says that the Ghost-Faced Sky-Walking Mother and the Black Heaven Bright King have condensed a divine fetus, and they will use this method to descend to the human world."

"This method is similar to reincarnation. During the Daxing years of the previous dynasty, there were people from the 'Sky-Walking Sect' who brought a divine fetus into Ezhou, wanting to use the special terrain of Liangzi Lake to gestate the divine fetus."

"Fortunately, their plan hadn't succeeded yet when the Golden Tent Wolf Kingdom was destroyed by the Great Xuan Dynasty, and the remnants scattered."

"These people are not dead-hearted, wanting the Black Heaven Bright King to be reincarnated into the mansion of a Great Xuan Prince, and become the leader of the Maitreya Sect, subverting the imperial court."

"Descending to the mortal world?"

Sha Lifei was a bit confused, "Immortals?"

The old monk shook his head: "All sects in the Divine Land are constrained by the 'Heavenly Law'; whether gods or Buddhas, they are forbidden from descending to the mortal world, and even forbidden from communicating with mortals; those who violate this will face disasters."

"But they dare to do this, so they must be prepared. No matter what background this Black Heaven Bright King has, he cannot be allowed to succeed!"

He seemed to have said a lot, but in reality, he hid even more.

The original Bon religion, like Shamanism and Witchcraft, originated in ancient times; later, due to the rise of the Zhangzhung Dynasty in Tibet, wizards scattered everywhere were gathered to form the Bon religion.

Later, the Bon religion grew powerful, and the struggle between divine power and royal power was endless; after Songtsen Gampo unified Tibet, he introduced Buddhism to balance it, thus the struggle between Buddhism and Bon appeared, and the two merged to form Tibetan Buddhism.

Until the period of the Golden Tent Wolf Kingdom, the Liangzhou Alliance, Phagpa became the national master, and this long-standing struggle finally came to an end.

The "Sky-Walking Sect" actually took the original Bon religion as its core and Tibetan Buddhism as its skin, worshipping some ancient gods in Tibet.

This Black Heaven Bright King is very likely an ancient god.

Or perhaps, one who successfully ascended to godhood...

…………

Near Shenjiaba, Water God Temple.

In the underground cave, the candlelight was bright.

Several old men were kowtowing to the black Maitreya Buddha statue, and in front were dense lotus lamps, arranged in a circle layer by layer.

"Wah~ wah~"

The crying of an infant kept coming.

But he saw a tender child placed in the center of the lotus lamps, wrapped in yellow scripture silk, with blood-colored talismans drawn all over his body.

Whoosh~

Just when Li Yan escaped by taking the Flying Wooden Magpie, a fierce wind suddenly rose around, blowing the candles in the cave unsteadily.

"White Hall Master and the others have taken action!"

An old man's eyes were full of excitement, and he couldn't help but laugh loudly: "That foreign monk is also stupid; with this divine fetus, we can just let the Bright King Chen Youliang return to life."

"That's right."

Another old man also sneered: "That Black Heaven Bright King of theirs is just a foreign strange god; what qualifications does he have to lead our Maitreya Sect? It's a pity that the foreign monk ran away..."

The leading old man said in a deep voice: "Stop talking, concentrate; after this matter, we will inevitably be exposed, so we will take the Bright King and leave Ezhou, waiting for the opportunity."

While speaking, the yin wind in the cave became stronger and stronger.

Visible black fog spread from the ground, vaguely forming the appearance of a human face, roaring ferociously, flying toward the infant.

But just when several old men were excited, their expressions suddenly changed, spitting blood and falling to the ground, their skin quickly turning black, and blood flowing from their seven orifices.

"Someone poisoned us!"

In their horrified gaze, one of the old men quickly stood up, jumped to the center of the lotus lamps, took a red bead from his bosom, placed it on the infant's forehead, and bit his fingertip, drawing several talismans.

"Roar!"

The black fog on the ground surged, and the human-faced smoke that had just formed quickly dissipated.

At the same time, dots of spiritual light appeared out of thin air, vertically sprinkling on the infant, and a rich fragrance of ghee drifted.

"Elder Wang, you..."

Several old men were full of disbelief.

And that old man looked at them, his eyes complex, and said: "Everyone, my original name is Burgud, Dark Eagle Guard of the Golden Tent Wolf Kingdom; these years... I'm sorry."

After saying this, he kept kowtowing to the infant.

And the infant stopped crying, his face becoming gloomy, his eyes gradually turning pitch black...

The second update will be later

(End of chapter)