Chapter 404

Pitter-patter...

Stones of various sizes poured down.

Wu Ba shrank his body back, covered in dust. Li Yan lit a torch again and crawled out, clutching the rock wall and looking around.

This yang hole cave on Shennong Peak was even larger than what he saw in the illusion, winding into the mountain, with loose rocks and barren soil filling it along the way.

If they hadn't known beforehand, no one would have thought that inside this desolate and uninhabited Shennong Peak, there was another world.

Looking around, Li Yan secretly said that it was indeed so.

Before him was a karst cave, clearly modified by humans, with caves chiseled out, huge and messy, not for people to live in.

On the stone wall beside it, depressions had been dug, a bit like a place for hanging coffins, but inside were placed the remains of one-armed and one-legged skeletons.

This place should be the ancestral land of the Divine Spirit tribe.

The Divine Spirit tribe of Shennongjia had traces of Fangxian Dao sorcery modification and were placed here, clearly to guard something.

This technique also came from the Fangxian Dao, capturing and driving exotic beasts to guard tombs.

Could it be that someone was buried here?

Li Yan became increasingly curious in his heart, took a deep breath, investigated the terrain below, and jumped down holding the torch.

After two efforts to borrow force, he landed at the bottom of the cave.

The others also climbed down from the cave one after another.

"Good fellow, this... this wouldn't be the Shennong Mausoleum, would it!"

Sha Lifei widened his eyes, clearly also feeling that it was a tomb.

"You've thought too much."

Li Yan looked around and shook his head, "Look at those carvings; they haven't been there long. It should be something else."

Speaking of this, he already had a guess in his heart.

This place originally had Divine Spirits guarding it, but this spirit tribe had already migrated, so naturally, there was no danger.

According to the memory in the illusion, Li Yan led the crowd around a few corners and quickly found that bronze door.

"We're here, it's this place!"

Li Yan raised the torch and looked carefully.

This place must have something strange; even the Dragon Lady's dream could not peek into what was inside.

"Roar..."

Just at this moment, "Zouyu," who had followed, let out a few low roars.

Lu San frowned, hurriedly used the language from above to talk to it, and then explained, "The Mountain God said that there is a force here that repels him. He feels uncomfortable all over as soon as he gets close, so he will wait for us outside."

"Oh?"

Li Yan's eyes narrowed, and he understood in his heart.

This place should have arrangements targeting gods, so it was difficult for either the Dragon Lady or "Zouyu" to get close.

He stepped forward holding the torch and looked carefully at the bronze door. He saw that it was covered in verdigris, and the surrounding patterns were ancient and simple, yet carried a trace of novelty.

"This is craftsmanship from the Song Dynasty."

Wang Daoxuan on the side also looked left and right and said, "The Song people worshipped the ancient. From the imperial palace to the common folk, they all loved to imitate Shang and Zhou bronze vessels and would even make them look old."

"Hmm, everyone be careful."

Li Yan nodded, took out the strange-shaped key, aligned them one by one, inserted them, and twisted slowly while holding the front end.

Creak~

Inside the bronze door, the sound of machinery suddenly came, and finally, accompanied by the sound of falling dust, it slowly opened.

Instantly, a foul stench rushed toward them.

"It stinks to death, what is this thing?"

Sha Lifei covered his nose and raised the torch to check.

Upon seeing this, he was immediately shocked.

He saw that inside was also a karst cave, but the stalactites presented a strange structure, layered, winding, and twisting, forming fine scale-like shapes, and circling and arching.

"Dragon Cave!"

Wang Daoxuan was shocked upon seeing this.

He had seen this kind of thing before.

Inside the True Martial Dragon Cave on Mount Wudang, there was something similar, but it was at the top, looking like five giant dragons entangled.

And this one before them protruded from the ground, as if the half-body of a giant dragon had arched up. It was simply heaven-made and ghost-crafted.

On that strange "dragon body," one after another, huge bronze pillars were nailed, and they were connected by chains, all covered in verdigris.

Several bronze pillars had already fallen, clearly destroyed by humans, and there were dense piles of human bones all around.

Although their clothes were tattered, one could vaguely distinguish that they were all Daoist robes, and there were also scattered precious swords, tokens, and array flags on the ground, but they had all rotted and lost their spiritual essence.

"This is a dragon-suppressing stake!"

Wang Daoxuan was shocked, then took out a compass, checked it, and shook his head, "The dragon energy of the earth's veins is scattered; I can't see anything strange."

Sha Lifei turned his head left and right, looking like there was no treasure, and was greatly disappointed, "Tsk tsk, another wasted trip."

Li Yan also frowned tightly.

The scene before him was also beyond his expectations.

He went to those remains and checked carefully.

All the skeletons were neat and tidy, but the throat and skull parts had turned ink-black and appeared very loose.

Li Yan raised the scabbard of the Dust-Breaking Sword and poked it lightly.

Crack!

The bone shattered at the sound, and inside were dense holes, winding and twisting, as if gnawed by some kind of insect.

Buzz, buzz, buzz...

Lu San's demon gourd immediately began to shake.

He listened for a moment and said in a muffled voice, "The demon gourd has a response; it says it's a powerful gu insect, but it has already dissipated."

Li Yan nodded and checked carefully in the pile of corpses again, finally finding an iron box. After opening it, inside was a Daoist certificate and a secret letter.

The Daoist certificate said it was Boyangzi of the Taixuan Orthodox Sect, a Quanzhen Daoist, with a cultivation of the third floor.

Li Yan opened the secret letter again and said while reading, "It says here that there were rebellious bandits Wang Xiaobo and Li Shun in the Bashu area, who rebelled under the name of Erlang, and the war situation was rotten. They were asked to come here in secret to break the dragon-suppressing stake... The signature is Wang Ji'en."

"The eunuch Wang Ji'en?"

Wang Daoxuan nodded, "I have heard of this person. He was a confidant of Emperor Taizu of Song and supported Emperor Taizong Zhao Guangyi in succeeding to the throne. He was deeply favored, but later demoted due to a palace change."

"During the chaos in the Heavenly Mansion back then, this person was the commander."

Li Yan pondered for a moment and said, "The Dragon Lady mentioned this matter when entrusting me with a dream, but her words were not detailed."

"Li Bing built the Dujiangyan, and sorcerers suppressed Great Lord Jiang Shen. His dragon energy was hidden in Mount Daba and was suppressed by Erlang of Guanjiang."

"Back then, the Later Shu granted Erlang the title of 'Protector of the Country and Miraculous Response King.' Emperor Taizu of Song, in order to suppress Bashu and unify the national sacrifice, stripped him of his title."

"Later, the people in Shu were living in misery, so they rebelled under the name of Erlang. Erlang God was famous among the common folk in Bashu. Wang Ji'en likely wanted to tamper with things here to strike at Erlang God's reputation."

Upon hearing this, Wang Daoxuan's eyes flashed with a trace of disgust, "If the dragon-suppressing stake is destroyed, Great Lord Jiang Shen's dragon energy will run rampant, and Bashu will surely suffer from floods. This person is truly insane!"

Li Yan shook his head, "People like them, for the sake of power, even dare to participate in the struggle for the throne. What does it matter if a few people die?"

"Sigh~"

Wang Daoxuan sighed, "Before the Song Dynasty, they sacrificed to the Haotian God. The Great Song promoted the belief in the Jade Emperor, and Emperor Huizong of Song even claimed to be the son of the Jade Emperor."

"There is a rumor among the folk that Erlang listens to the call but not the proclamation; most of it started because of this matter, being interpreted and arranged by others."

"These are not important..."

Li Yan looked at the remains on the ground and said in a deep voice, "It seems they only pulled out a few dragon-suppressing stakes before being killed."

"The dragon-suppressing stake here was set up by the Fangxian Dao back then. The Divine Spirits guarding this place also have traces of Fangxian Dao sorcery modification."

"These people were likely killed by Fangxian Dao experts, and that expert stationed the Divine Spirit tribe here to guard it."

Wang Daoxuan also nodded, "During the Five Dynasties, there were still many experts in the Fangxian Dao. Although they were unknown, they stirred up the winds and clouds in the world, causing the establishment of the Taixuan Orthodox Sect."

"I don't know who this expert is."

"Brother Li Yan, that Black-Scaled Gentleman likely obtained that wisp of dragon energy because of the destroyed dragon-suppressing stake. Did the Dragon Lady say how to deal with it?"

Li Yan said helplessly, "I don't know either, but the dragon energy has already leaked. I'm afraid tampering here won't be of any use."

"If we alarm Great Lord Jiang Shen and a few more wisps of dragon energy run out, that will be troublesome."

"Forget it, let's seal this place first, lest anyone else make trouble."

After saying this, he led the crowd to close the bronze door and left the cave.

Rumble!

Just as they left the cave, they saw dark clouds pressing down on the sky, wild winds howling, and thunder rolling, permeating the entire sky.

Upon seeing this, Wang Daoxuan was horrified:

"Oh no, the battle of Dharma was lost!"

Rumble!

No sooner had he finished speaking than another burst of thunder sounded.

It was as if the sky had a hole torn in it. Visible to the naked eye, rain poured down from the sky in the southwest like a waterfall, rushing toward Shennongjia.

In an instant, heavy rain poured over the mountains.

"Ang——!"

!.

A long, drawn-out hiss sounded from the southeast.

Wang Daoxuan pinched a Dharma seal and looked up, only to see a black energy, like a long dragon, rolling up and flying up and down in the heavy rain.

"The dragon is leaving..."

Wang Daoxuan gritted his teeth, not knowing what to say.

The others also fell into silence.

They never expected that after working hard for half a day, something would still go wrong.

Although they were on an imperial court mission, they were ultimately upholding the righteous path. After the dragon left, the Ju River would surge, and there would surely be countless deaths and injuries downstream.

Just thinking about that scene was terrifying.

"Roar!"

Just at this moment, the Mountain God "Zouyu" also roared at the sky, seeming very angry, its fur bristling all over.

Lu San said in a deep voice, "The Black-Scaled Gentleman is leaving, the earth energy of Shennongjia will also be disordered, and many living things will die. The Mountain God 'Zouyu' wants to go take a look."

Li Yan gritted his teeth, "Let's go, we'll go too!"

"Roar!"

"Zouyu" let out another roar, and those coffin beasts appeared again, carrying the crowd, along with many fierce beasts and donkey-headed wolves, running toward where the Black-Scaled Gentleman was.

The heavy rain poured down, and the mountain road quickly accumulated water.

First, it gathered into a small stream, then turned into a mountain flood, carrying astonishing momentum, wrapping broken wood and gravel, and rushing down from the top of the mountain.

Many animals were fleeing; if they were not careful, they would be swept away by the mountain flood, not knowing where they would be washed.

The Mountain God "Zouyu" let out roars, the earth energy surged along the way, the soil and rocks collapsed, causing the mountain flood to change its course, not affecting the crowd's progress.

In the heavy rain, the figures of the crowd gradually disappeared...

………………

"Retreat! Retreat!"

The sound of gongs and drums rang out, and the imperial army retreated rapidly.

The short, sturdy general was furious. He never thought that he would fall short at the last moment, but he couldn't think too much at this time; he had to run to the top of the mountain.

If they were slow, the troops in his hands would suffer heavy casualties.

In the team, several Daoists were carrying the unconscious Yulongzi, dejected, and the Five Dragons were even gnashing their teeth in anger.

They had already set up a sword formation and tried their best to block them.

But they never thought that Xiao Tianxiong was a master expert. Although he hadn't fully recovered, it was enough to drag down the sword formation.

And that Master Huang Liu took the opportunity to cast a vicious curse, causing Yulongzi to fail in the battle of Dharma and suffer a backlash, falling into a coma.

Thinking of this, they looked fiercely into the distance again.

On the hill opposite, the Lord Lord Tian Sheng Sect and Ghost Sect troops were also climbing the mountain crazily, wanting to reach the top.

They knew that the area where the trapped dragon Black-Scaled King was located had several huge lakes connected. If it poured down, and they couldn't dodge in time, even they would suffer.

The short, sturdy general saw their appearance and sneered, "Everyone, you Wudang people are too arrogant. You caused such a thing; let's see how you explain it."

"There is still a chance!"

Gulinzi's expression was cold and stern. He didn't care about his mockery and said in a deep voice, "We had already sent a letter back to Wudang before, asking experts on the mountain to come and help."

"After going up the mountain, immediately build a dragon-slaying platform. When that trapped dragon rushes down, we will suppress and kill it!"

The short, sturdy general gritted his teeth, "Fine, we'll listen to you all."

Things had come to this, and he had no other way. He could only listen to these Daoists. If he were to be blamed in the future, he could push it onto them.

"Take action, cut down the trees!"

Upon reaching the top of the mountain, the general gave an order, and the soldiers immediately cut down the trees on the top of the mountain and built a Dharma altar together with the Daoists.

In the heavy rain, everyone worked together.

In the face of this great disaster, there was no difference between sorcerers and mortals...

…………

"We're here, it's right in front!"

In the dense forest, Li Yan suddenly let out a low shout.

Although the heavy rain was pouring all around and he couldn't see clearly beyond ten meters, and his sense of smell was also weakened, his sense of hearing could still be used.

He had already heard the sound of people in front.

Clatter!

Rushing out of the dense forest, a large lake suddenly appeared before their eyes.

Originally, this place was surrounded by mountains, but on the side close to Baokang County, a ditch had been dug, winding and twisting toward the outside of the mountain.

The rain was getting heavier and heavier, and the lake had turned yellow, with a huge whirlpool in the center, and a huge black shadow could be seen rotating along with it.

Beside the lake, the craftsmen of the Lord Lord Tian Sheng Sect had long since cut down wood and built a large ship. The appearance was very rough, but it was strong enough.

At this moment, they were waving large hammers, smashing the wooden frames used for fixing, looking like they wanted to use this large ship to go downstream after the dragon left, and break through the imperial army's interception in one fell swoop.

"Roar!"

The Mountain God "Zouyu" rushed out of the dense forest with a roar.

"What... what is that?"

The Lord Lord Tian Sheng Sect followers looked up one after another, dumbfounded.

Before they could react, fierce beasts rushed out of the dense forest—tigers, leopards, bears, donkey-headed wolves, coffin beasts... the fierce beasts in Shennongjia almost all gathered here.

"The Mountain God is angry!"

Many people's faces turned pale, and they retreated in fear, climbing onto the ship in a panic.

The main forces of the Lord Lord Tian Sheng Sect and Ghost Sect had all run to attack the imperial camp, and most of those left here were ordinary followers.

How could they not be afraid of such a formation?

However, it was all too late.

The furious wild beasts galloped in the heavy rain, rushed directly into the crowd, and bit crazily. Very quickly, screams were constant, and blood flowed on the ground.

Li Yan and the others rode on the coffin beasts, their eyes indifferent.

No matter what the origins of these people were, they were not worth pitying.

This large ship was huge. Those who escaped climbed up along the ropes and hurriedly drew their bows to shoot arrows.

The heavy rain was too big, and firearms were of no use.

This height was not something ordinary wild beasts could reach, but the donkey-headed wolves spread their toes and jumped up like mountain goats, continuing the pursuit.

Very quickly, the deck was a mess.

And Li Yan couldn't care about dealing with it; he stood by the lake with his sword, staring fixedly at the water in the distance.

"Roar!"

The Mountain God "Zouyu" let out another roar.

Clatter~

Instantly, a wave of water rolled toward the lakeside...

(End of chapter)