Chapter 597: City of Nightmares

Daoist robes billowed, and wild winds blew against their faces.

The closer they got to Chengdu Prefecture, the more shocked the people of the Qingcheng Sect became.

The entire prefecture city was now shrouded in dense fog.

The great fog blocked the sky and the sun, and from the docks and the slums outside the city, one could not see any scene inside.

Rumble!

Within the dense fog, thunder sounds occasionally came out.

The surrounding air became cold, and the large amount of water vapor brought by the dense fog condensed, turning into snowflakes filling the sky, rolled by the wild winds.

"This evil person, what exactly has he done?"

Mingshanzi watched, his eyelids jumping, gritting his teeth and saying in a low voice.

"Grandmaster, what should we do?"

Ling Yunzi bowed and asked Cheng Jianxin beside him.

The old Daoist heard this, shook his head, and said frankly: "This thing, this old man is also seeing it for the first time. Plus, my brain is slow now, so you all decide."

Seeing his firm refusal to offer an opinion, Ling Yunzi was helpless, having no choice but to discuss it with Mingshanzi, then bowed and said: "Grandmaster, we feel that since that evil person can lead the Dragon Palace Water Mansion into Chengdu Prefecture, there must be arrangements here."

"We have already looked just now; divine abilities cannot investigate. Entering rashly might lead to falling into a trap. The Daoist Qingyang Temple is outside Chengdu city; they also participated in this matter, perhaps they know something."

"Furthermore, I have already sent people back to the mountain to send a letter, asking the sect leader and the others to send reinforcements, and also contacting other fellow Daoists."

"Good, just do as you say."

The old Daoist heard this and nodded in agreement without hesitation.

Seeming to have received the affirmation of Cheng Jianxian Cheng, Ling Yunzi's confidence immediately increased, and he and Mingshanzi carried out arrangements, acting in an orderly manner.

And Cheng Jianxin waited silently to the side.

"Master..."

Looking at the old man's hunched body, Chang Gousheng suddenly felt a sense of sorrow in his heart.

The first time he saw Cheng Jianxin, the other party was already in this decrepit state, but from the mouths of others, he could also imagine the Cheng Jianxian's demeanor of the past.

"Why the long face..."

Cheng Jianxin's expression was calm. He took off the wine gourd at his waist, took a sip, and smiled: "The waves behind the Yangtze River push the waves in front. This old man's era has long passed; this world is ultimately for the young."

"One day, you will also be like this. Looking at the younger generation being able to stand on their own, how is that not a gratifying thing?"

"By the way, the name Gousheng is ultimately unrefined. In the future, when walking in the martial world, carrying my disciple's name, you can't be laughed at..."

Chang Gousheng vaguely sensed something, his tears already unable to stop dripping, and he bowed sternly: "Please bestow a name, Master!"

Cheng Jianxin looked toward the firmament, his eyes turbid, not knowing what he was thinking, muttering: "That step was not my wish. I hope you have a chance..."

"This master will give you a name... Chang Tianque!"

Just as they were speaking, Mingshanzi and Ling Yunzi had already finished their arrangements. One person used a paper horse to return to Qingcheng to seek reinforcements, and two others headed to Iron Buddha Temple and Mount Emei.

By now, it was no longer just the responsibility of the Qingcheng family.

The remaining ones circled toward the southwest of the city.

They moved at high speed and before long arrived near the Daoist Qingyang Temple, but the scene before their eyes once again exceeded their expectations.

The dense clouds covering Chengdu Prefecture did not know when they had spread to this place, but they did not expand, just like a tentacle reaching out, shrouding the Daoist Qingyang Temple within it.

Perhaps because the fog here was relatively thin, they could vaguely see dim yellow lights inside, as well as strange sounds of gongs and drums.

But using divine abilities to investigate, they could perceive nothing at all.

"Go in and take a look, pull a rope..."

Seeing this, Mingshanzi gave the order immediately.

"Wait!"

Before the words fell, Ling Yunzi suddenly raised his hand.

This Daoist moved his ears, lay prone on the ground, pinched a Dharma seal, and brought his ear close to listen.

"There is a large group of troops approaching."

"Careful, go take a look!"

Encountering an accident, the crowd stopped investigating, took a wide detour, and arrived at a mountain ridge near the Daoist Qingyang Temple.

But seeing the river channel in the distance, one warship after another had appeared at some point, and dense armies were landing.

A rough look showed at least tens of thousands of people.

Although the distance was far, the crowd were all sorcerers, and those with brilliant eye divine abilities pinched seals to investigate, immediately distinguishing them.

"It's the army of Chongqing Prefecture."

"Quick, warn them not to approach!"

Mingshanzi heard this and hurriedly gave the order.

He remembered that Li Yan had mentioned in a letter sent by the Six Idlers of the Bamboo Forest that Prince Yushi had already sent experts from the Bagua Sect of the capital to Chongqing Prefecture to seek reinforcements.

Calculating the time, it should be this batch of people.

This was a powerful force, just right for dealing with the army controlled by the Prince of Shu, and they could not be allowed to fall into the city at will.

However, it was already too late.

When they arrived, this army had already entered the dense fog, leaving only less than a hundred people on the ships to receive them.

These soldiers were mostly ordinary people. With such a range of dense fog, they thought it was due to the weather, so they had no precautions.

Clang, clang, clang!

Hearing Mingshanzi and the others' explanation, the company commander receiving them was immediately anxious, ordering people to beat gongs and drums to pass the message to retreat.

The drum sounds roared, resounding through the wilderness.

But within the dense fog, there was ultimately no response.

Just like a monster, it had completely swallowed the army.

"Save them!"

Mingshanzi saw this and gave the order without hesitation.

Immediately, several elite disciples tied thick hemp ropes around their waists and cautiously entered the dense fog.

This was a plan that had been decided earlier.

Bells were tied to the hemp ropes, with secret signals for advancing and retreating. If something happened inside, they would shake the bells and quickly drag the people out.

After joining forces with the garrison army of Chongqing Prefecture, there was another benefit, which was that the cables on the ships were long enough.

In the eyes of the crowd, several Qingcheng disciples entered the dense fog, walked less than ten steps, and completely disappeared into the dense fog.

At a time like this, there was no other way.

The crowd could only hold their breath and wait quietly.

Ding, ding, ding!

After about the time it takes to burn half a stick of incense, the bells suddenly rang.

Mingshanzi's expression changed drastically. "Pull!"

With an order, several disciples immediately dragged the cables, dark strength exploding under their feet, flying toward the riverbank.

But before they had gone far, their hearts sank.

The bell sounds disappeared, and the cables in their hands suddenly became loose.

Sure enough, after pulling the ropes out, the front ends were already broken.

The broken ends were rough and split, as if bitten by something, and the surroundings were covered in blood stains.

"It was bitten by humans!"

A Daoist sniffed and said very affirmatively.

Hearing this, the crowd's expressions were all exceptionally solemn.

Not far away, the dense fog was like a mountain, blocking the sky and the sun, like a wild giant beast, making everyone feel extremely oppressed in their hearts.

"There is no time."

Mingshanzi took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "The sky will be dark soon. Tomorrow is the thirteenth day of the first lunar month. That evil person's plan might be advanced, we must enter, at least to gather the army."

"If we can contact Young Master Li and the others, we can also get strong reinforcements."

Having said that, he turned and said: "Junior Feng Feng Shixiong Ling Yunzi, I will take a batch of people in, you and the remaining people stay here to receive us."

"If we cannot come out, do not approach. The sect leader will arrive in three days, tell him everything here!"

Ling Yunzi gritted his teeth. "Rest assured, Feng Feng Shixiong!"

"This old man will go too."

Just at this moment, Cheng Jianxin suddenly spoke.

Seeing the worried gazes of the crowd, he laughed dumbly, shook his head, and said: "Rest assured, you all do the acting, this old man will only help keep an eye on things."

Mingshanzi hesitated for a moment, a flash of sorrow in his eyes.

He could see that Cheng Jianxin's aging and Qi and blood exhaustion, coupled with the severe injuries he had suffered earlier, meant he was beyond saving.

Following them in, he only wanted to use his own experience to help them avoid some disasters.

After setting the plan, Mingshanzi led dozens of Qingcheng experts, as well as Cheng Jianxin's master and disciple, cautiously walking into the dense fog.

Entering the fog, the scene changed again.

Compared to the outside, the field of vision here was actually much better, with everything within thirty meters clearly visible, while beyond that, everything became hazy, vaguely seeing some shadows. "Feng Feng Shixiong..."

That female Daoist looked at the surroundings, her eyes full of doubt. "This place is strange, why does it feel like a dream?"

"That's right."

"I feel the same."

The others nodded in agreement one after another.

Mingshanzi said in a deep voice: "The Dragon Palace Water Mansion is a Cave Heaven Secret Realm, existing between the virtual and the real, and can only be entered through divine wandering in dreams."

"That evil person doesn't know what means he used, but leading the Dragon Palace into Chengdu must also have similar characteristics."

Having said that, he turned his head to look to the side. "Junior Sister Lanchen, the divine abilities here are still suppressed, try it, how far can you hear?"

The female Daoist nodded and immediately pinched a seal to perform the spell.

Hum, hum, hum!

The thirty-six gold needles on her hair bun trembled in unison.

The female Daoist concentrated for a long time before shaking her head. "I can only hear movement within three hundred steps. Any further, and it will also be suppressed."

!

"That's still fine."

Mingshanzi heard this, his heart slightly at ease.

The divine abilities of the others were all suppressed. Although the female Daoist's secret method also had restrictions, at least they wouldn't be ambushed from the fog.

The crowd braced themselves and continued forward.

They searched along the footprints on the ground and soon made a discovery.

"Look quickly!"

They saw that on the ground ahead, densely packed corpses were lying, all in tattered clothes, many having had their heads chopped off by blades.

Among them were several corpses of garrison soldiers.

Their armor and clothing were all torn to shreds, and their bodies were covered in bite marks.

"They are the commoners from the slums outside the city."

A Daoist said with an ugly face: "They actually dared to besiege the army and even bite people, could it be they are all possessed by evil?"

The only thing that brought peace of mind was that several Qingcheng disciples were not among them.

"Keep searching!"

Mingshanzi's face was gloomy as he led the people to search forward.

But after walking for about half a stick of incense, they discovered that something was wrong.

According to this distance, they should have arrived at the foot of the Chengdu Prefecture city wall long ago, but now, the surroundings were all wilderness.

Within the dense fog, snowflakes filled the sky.

The crowd looked back, and the footprints they had left when they came had actually been covered by snow, becoming blurred.

It was still an illusion formation!

They were experienced and immediately made a judgment.

"Break the barrier!"

Mingshanzi let out a low shout, immediately took a yarrow stalk from his bosom, pinched a Dharma seal, and wound it around his fingers to tie a knot.

What he used was the Northern Emperor Dengshan Technique.

This technique had no too many requirements, was best at breaking illusion formations, was concise and convenient, and was recorded in the "Baopuzi," widely circulated.

The others also simultaneously cast the Dengshan Technique.

Moving forward once again, they finally did not take the wrong path, winding around and arriving at the Fu River dock.

But seeing the ships docked beside the dock, they were covered in dust, and there were also many corpses, excluding those commoners, there were also many garrison soldiers.

In the snowflakes filling the sky, corpses piled up like mountains, blood plasma dyed the ground red, and then froze into ice crystals. The several Qingcheng disciples who had entered to investigate earlier were also among them.

"Junior Feng Feng Shixiong Bai Yun!"

Several Daoists saw this and were immediately filled with grief and indignation.

"Careful!"

Mingshanzi, although also angry, stopped them.

They saw a figure slowly walking out from near the pile of corpses, carrying a huge wine jar and drinking a few gulps with a thud, thud sound.

He was tall and large, wiping the wine stains from his bushy beard.

"People of the Qingcheng Sect?"

"Just in time, follow me into the city to save that Li lad."

There was not a trace of aura leaking from this person's body, but Mingshanzi inexplicably felt his back tighten, unable to help but ask: "Who is your Excellency?"

"Me?"

The man took another gulp of wine and looked toward the direction of Chengdu.

"My name is Yang Jian!"

…………

Unlike outside the city, the scene inside Chengdu Prefecture was another sight.

"It's dark, look at the lanterns!"

"What a big snow, hahaha..."

The dense fog shrouded them in an instant. The commoners in the city were originally in a wrong state, and at this moment, they became even more fanatical, rushing onto the streets one after another.

The fog blocked their line of sight, which they considered to be nightfall.

The eerie great snow was also regarded by them as an auspicious sign.

Today was the Market Opening Day. As the dense fog descended and the sky grew dark, the colorful lanterns were lit one by one.

Because of the Prince of Shu's mansion's order, the whole city

In an instant, the thick fog covering the city turned blood-red.

Yet the common folk seemed lost in a dream, completely unaware of this eerie sight, and even grew increasingly manic.

They carried the old and supported the young, wandering the streets in throngs as if admiring the lanterns, but every one of them had blood-red eyes and long trails of drool hanging from their mouths.

"Damn it, what kind of evil sorcery is this?"

Sha Lifei felt his scalp tingle and couldn't help but curse in anger.

At this moment, they were all standing on the roof of a tall building.

Because they had been prepared, they hadn't touched the "Joy God Coins," and with their profound cultivation, they hadn't fallen into madness.

But precisely because of this, they stood out conspicuously among the crowd.

These manic commoners seemed able to smell them, and once discovered, they would launch a frenzied siege.

"Oh~ oh~ oh~"

In the distance, fanatical shouts rang out.

It was the wandering god procession that had previously sacrificed to the Horse-Headed Lady.

But now, the statue on the bamboo sedan had been overturned and discarded, and a merchant with a face full of terror was tied up tightly and strapped onto it.

This was another person who hadn't touched the Joy God Coins and remained clear-headed.

He had become an anomaly among the crowd; the manic commoners seized him, propped up a wooden frame, and doused it with lamp oil.

Boom~

A massive flame surged upward.

Li Yan and the others were too late to rescue him; the unlucky wealthy merchant was thrown into the pyre and turned to charcoal in an instant.

The shrill, miserable screams seemed to make these commoners even more manic.

"There are evil spirits in the city, find them and burn them to death!"

"Burn them to death, and the Heavens will bless us!"

These commoners were like madmen, their eyes red as they scurried everywhere in the city, searching for those who hadn't been cursed.

The scene before them was simply hair-raising.

Even the old seniors of the Bamboo Forest Six Hermits were stunned.

Having roamed the martial world for so long, this was their first time seeing such a thing.

"This... this is a Divine Nightmare!"

Wang Daoxuan's eyes widened, his voice trembling slightly.

"A Divine Nightmare?"

Li Yan asked in confusion, "What kind of sorcery is this?"

"Borrowing the power of gods to plague all living beings."

Wang Daoxuan clenched his fists tightly, "I read about it in the Scripture Pavilion of Mount Wudang, but I never expected this thing to actually exist."

"Have you ever heard of the 'Imperial Edict Tallies of the Queen Mother of the West'?"

(End of Chapter)