Chapter 646: Luoyang Dharma Battle

Crack!

Lu San, who had been dancing the Nuo dance, suddenly stopped.

He looked toward the entrance of the cellar, his ears twitching slightly, his face devoid of any expression.

Lu San's character had always been cautious.

When he first met Li Yan, he had already planned his escape route, ready to jump down from the mountain using a paper kite.

After shouldering all the blame in Guanzhong, from the imperial Commandant's Office to the local underworld bosses, so many people had searched for and besieged him, yet none could even discover his trail; one could imagine Lu San's capabilities.

Under such circumstances, how could he not have made preparations?

What exceeded his expectations was that the attackers outside had used some unknown technique, actually managing to evade the detection of the rat swarm.

In the blink of an eye, the rumbling sound of wooden ball explosives rolling and the hissing sound of burning fuses grew louder and louder in his ears.

Lu San was not the least bit panicked; he brushed his waist, and an iron awl appeared in his hand.

The mace and the iron awl were his habitual weapons, already mastered to perfection.

Lu San gave a light toss, and the iron awl flipped and turned in the air, after which he gripped the sharp end and whipped it out violently.

Whoosh!

The iron awl whistled out.

The passage leading into the cellar was a slope.

The wooden ball bomb had just rolled into the cellar when it was struck and sent flying.

Lu San's strength was astonishing; after being bounced out of the passage, the wooden ball actually flew seven or eight meters high.

At the same time, the fuse reached its end.

The Eastern Island monk's pupils constricted, and he lunged and rolled, hiding behind a wall.

Boom!

Firelight roared, and smoke scattered in all directions.

The splashed mud and dust instantly shrouded the surroundings.

Amidst the dust, a figure suddenly emerged from the ground—it was Lu San, his eyes filled with murderous intent.

He lunged out with lightning speed, using the footwork of the Zoomorphic Fist, his body nearly tilted.

Only a "whoosh" was heard, and an arc of dust appeared on the ground; Lu San had already arrived at the wall, lowering his body, his mace aimed downward.

However, there was no one behind the wall.

A trace of surprise flashed in Lu San's eyes.

After he accidentally built the Three-Story Pavilion at the Wushan Goddess Palace, because he was unprepared, he had not opened his second divine ability.

The benefit was that his hearing divine ability had been greatly enhanced.

His understanding of bird, beast, and plant languages was clearer, and his auditory range was even stronger than Li Yan's.

He had clearly heard the sound just now,

Why was there no one there?

Clang!

Just then, a blade light whistled from the dust behind him.

Lu San turned abruptly and pulled the trigger.

A loud boom rang out, and the figure opposite, along with the blade light, exploded.

However, there was not a hint of the smell of blood; it was all scattered wood shavings.

And on the other side, several hidden weapons transformed into a fierce wind and struck.

Not only that, but a figure also leaped violently from the dirt pile behind Lu San.

It turned out the attackers were two people.

What Lu San did not know was that both of them came from the Ikko-shu.

Their core doctrine was "Other-Power Original Vow," meaning attaining rebirth in the Pure Land by chanting "Namu Amida Butsu"; it shared the same origin as the Maitreya Sect and was extremely similar, so they were also the ones inciting the commoners to riot.

During the Warring States period, the Ikko-shu had organized the "Ikko-ikki," which were armed uprisings to confront the power of the daimyo.

Because it was simple to join, coupled with the lure of profit, many people from Eastern Island dharma lineages joined.

Just like these two monks, they were originally Koga ninjas, proficient in assassination.

The two attacked in unison, coordinating tacitly, and having calculated the human heart, they were extremely ruthless.

If it were an ordinary sorcerer, facing this pincer attack from front and back, they probably wouldn't have been able to dodge it at all.

However, Lu San was not the least bit panicked, not even moving.

Oh no!

A chill inexplicably rose in the hearts of the two monks.

However, it was too late.

Hum!

A roaring sound suddenly erupted in the darkness above.

Only to see the falcon Lidong grabbing the demon gourd and swooping down rapidly from the sky, a dense swarm of poisonous bees whistling out like a black cloud, shrouding the two monks almost instantly.

This was Lu San's true preparation.

Rat Da and Rat Er controlled the surrounding rat swarm realm.

The falcon Lidong grabbed the demon gourd to launch a sneak attack from the sky.

Not to mention that the little white fox was still hiding in the dark, ready at any moment to confuse the enemy into fighting each other.

It could be called a three-dimensional defense, without a single gap.

These two monks thought that by luring Lu San to fire his gun, they would succeed, but they didn't know that Lu San's true power had never been any firearm, but the numerous spirit beast companions by his side.

In just an instant, their screams were drowned out by the bee swarm.

Lu San paid them no mind, instead looking into the distance, a trace of worry flashing in his eyes.

He had been attacked here; he feared the same was happening elsewhere.

But in such a situation, all he could do was stabilize the formation eye and trust his companions.

Without the slightest hesitation, Lu San returned to the cellar once more.

Sure enough, in this short time, all the green grass on the gloomy wood turtle statue had withered, black smoke was emerging again, and frost was constantly spreading to the surroundings.

As Lu San's Nuo dance sound rose, the frost slowly contracted again…

…………

Lu San had guessed correctly; all formation eyes had been attacked.

But the speed of the conclusion was even faster than his side.

On the Tianjinqiao, it was already a scene of total devastation.

Wu Ba's eyes were blood-red, his large hand gripping the head of an Eastern Island monk.

Beside him, the ground was already covered in wreckage.

Apart from the two Eastern Island monks, there were many men holding sharp blades.

These were all local Maitreya Sect followers in Luoyang.

The Ikko-shu monks attacking here were not ninjas, but true Pure Land monks; their Han Chinese was fluent, and they incited the Maitreya Sect followers rioting in the city to charge toward the Tianjinqiao.

Their minds were vicious, thinking that as long as Wu Ba showed the slightest hesitation, he would be overwhelmed by the mob.

But for Wu Ba, enemies were just enemies; there was no difference.

Under the bridge, there were still many Maitreya Sect followers.

They held torches and sharp blades, yet no one dared to step forward.

Crack!

As Wu Ba crushed the Eastern Island monk's head and lifted the Tiger-Crouching Cannon nearby, the dense crowd of Maitreya Sect followers below finally grew afraid, turned, and ran, scattering in all directions…

And at the Chenghuangmiao, the situation was even more bizarre.

On the street outside the temple, blade lights and blood shadows flashed, and shouts of killing were constant.

The Eastern Island monks and Maitreya Sect followers were currently all slaughtering each other as if possessed.

Above, "Frost Moths" flew back and forth, like stars in a bloody night sky.

Inside the Chenghuangmiao, Long Yan'er stood guard before the formation altar, watching all this with cold eyes…

…………

And on Yin Jiuge's side, it was another scene entirely.

In the center of the long street, the originally pitch-black Soul-Summoning Banner had already been bound.

It was bound with rags from a patchwork garment, greasy and filled with the smell of sweat.

Who would have thought that this was actually a Heavenly Spirit and Earthly Treasure, and one with a significant background at that?

This patchwork garment was stitched together from 108 cloth patches of different materials; it looked greasy and dirty, but in reality, it contained Han Shu brocade, Tang hemp cloth, Song cotton silk, Daxing felt wool… beneath the grease and dirt, Sanskrit, Daoist talismans, and folk auspicious patterns were faintly visible.

During the Red Turban Rebellion of the previous dynasty, the Beggar Sect elder "Iron Bone Liu" stitched these remnants together with beggars' rags into a "Ten Thousand People Garment," which was offered before the Ancestor Altar, absorbing the incense of refugees to resist the Wolf Kingdom's army from slaughtering the city.

In the 18th year of Zhizheng, Liu Futong attacked Bianliang; this garment helped Beggar Sect disciples rescue three thousand women and children from the chaotic army, and the corners of the garment were soaked in sheep fat and blood filth, gaining spirituality, and since then, it became a Heavenly Spirit and Earthly Treasure.

Many years ago, it was obtained by a treasure-seeker using a "Scent-Seeking Earth Dragon" and eventually fell into the hands of Yin Jiuge.

With this item suppressing it, let alone the "Soul-Summoning Banner," even the former formation eye of the Myriad Phenomena Divine Palace below remained safe and sound.

But on this long street, the atmosphere remained bizarre.

The mist was hazy, and what was different from before was that the yin-cold intent of this mist was not dense.

There was no frost on the ground, and the mist was like thin gauze, with figures looming within it.

In the middle of the street, two elderly Eastern Island monks were working together to support a green lantern.

The green ghost fire inside the lantern jumped, reflecting a miserable green color all around.

And above the green lantern, a pale female figure appeared and disappeared.

The hem of her kimono was soaked in blood stains, every lapel was stitched with white talisman paper, and her pupils were two jumping green flames.

Where the green lantern shone, those commoners and soldiers who had originally been possessed by ghosts and then rescued by Yin Jiuge were now all standing up, hunching their bodies, their eyes bloodshot, filled with madness.

Behind the green lantern, there was another old monk, his hands forming the Outer Lion Seal, chanting the "Nine-Character Mantra" in reverse.

Under his incantations, one figure after another stood up.

Standing beside Yin Jiuge was another person, none other than "Jin Jin Yanfeng."

The reason he was called "Golden-Eyed" was because he had awakened an eye divine ability, capable of observing Qi.

But because his aptitude was poor, he hadn't practiced cultivation when he awakened the divine ability, and he had contracted an eye disease, causing his pupils to turn golden; after stepping into the First Story, he made no further progress and could only work as an appraisal expert in the Luoyang ghost market.

Attracted by the green lantern in the distance, he couldn't help but use his divine ability to observe.

But with just one glance, he felt his whole body stiffen, and his consciousness and thoughts drifted further and further away…

Slap!

At the critical moment, Yin Jiuge slapped the back of his head.

"Jin Jin Yanfeng" immediately regained his clarity, shuddering and not daring to look again, trembling as he said: "What a powerful evil technique; the senior has already suppressed all the yin mist, how can they still drive ghosts to harm people?"

"It's not ghost-driving technique."

Yin Jiuge glanced at the woman's white shadow and said coldly: "This is Nightmare Technique."

"I have heard that in Eastern Island, there is Shintoism, and ghost-driving is called 'Serving Gods'; this should be that thing."

"Your Excellency, stop spouting nonsense!"

The old monk in the distance heard this, a trace of anger flashing in his eyes, and said in a deep voice: "This is the Green Lantern Woman, the Nightmare of the Hundred Tales; it is not ghost technique. Although it cannot compare to your Central Plains' long history, it is an authentic God-Inviting Technique!"

"Hahaha…"

Yin Jiuge was amused upon hearing this, "What kind of mess is this? A ghost is a ghost. You don't know where you learned some techniques, blending demon-calamity Qi into them, and you dare to call it God-Inviting? My teeth are almost falling out from laughing at you."

Yin Jiuge was one of the Five Directions Yin Priests of the Underworld Sect, sitting in the Central Earth, and his seniority was the highest.

Although his Qi and blood had weakened due to old age, causing his cultivation to fall, his discernment was still sharp, and he saw through the trickery at a glance.

That ghost was strong, but what was truly powerful was that it had absorbed demon-calamity Qi.

That was why it could cast Nightmare Curses over a large area.

If Li Yan were here, he would discover that the method used by this old monk was exactly the same as the method used by the Eastern Island monk he found in the Guo Du Town outside Chang'an City to refine the Rakshasa Bird; both came from the "Record of the Hundred Ghost Night Parade."

Yin Jiuge saw the Eastern Island old monk get angry and sneered even more: "Absorbing demon-calamity Qi, I don't know where you got the guts. If I'm not mistaken, this technique has huge hidden dangers; I'm afraid it will backfire at any moment, right?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the faces of several old monks changed slightly.

"Divine Master, stop wasting words with him!"

(Divine Master, stop talking nonsense!)

An old monk holding the lantern flushed red, and Eastern Island words blurted out.

"Hmph!"

The old monk in the rear gave a cold snort, his hand seals changing constantly.

In an instant, the green light of the lantern surged, and the controlled commoners all let out wild beast-like roars, charging from all directions toward the flagpole in the center.

Yin Jiuge's expression also became solemn; he stepped out the "Yu Step," grabbed a handful of five-colored soil from his leather pouch, scattered it in all directions, and simultaneously chanted: "The constant hanging reeds, dare to report to the Gate Historian, left halberd and right battle-axe, demons and monsters stop their tracks…"

The technique he used was the "Five Sacrifices Suppression Technique," from the Qin dynasty's "Day Book."

The so-called "Five Sacrifices" were the sacrifices of the Qin period: Gate, Door, Well, Stove, and Central Courtyard.

The Gate governs closing, the Door governs opening, the Well connects to the nether, the Stove generates calamity, and the Central Courtyard suppresses the four directions; the Five Sacrifices bring peace to the eight wildernesses.

In many regions of the Divine Land, relevant sacrificial customs still remain to this day.

What Yin Jiuge used was the "Gate Sacrifice: Hanging Reeds Aversion."

The inheritance was ancient and not at all inferior to the great sects of the Mystic Sect.

Whoosh~

As he chanted the incantation, a wild wind suddenly rose, sweeping up the dust on the ground and enveloping the two of them.

Strangely, the people controlled by the Nightmare Curse around them seemed to have hit an invisible wall, roaring like a pack of wild beasts, yet unable to get any closer.

Seeing this, "Jin Jin Yanfeng" widened his eyes.

It was his first time seeing such a magical technique.

And the three Eastern Island old monks opposite were also greatly shocked.

They had infiltrated the Central Plains, apart from the Sect Master's order, to steal technical inheritances.

It was also their first time seeing something of this level.

The leading Eastern Island old monk had gloomy eyes and suddenly drew a circle under his feet.

Bang!

On the long street in the distance, the sound of gunfire suddenly rang out.

Yin Jiuge, who was performing the technique, let out a muffled groan and retreated repeatedly.

The opponent used ordinary firearms, but even so, his left arm was wounded, and the bone was shattered.

The technique was interrupted, and the wild wind around them suddenly ceased.

"Despicable and base!"

"Jin Jin Yanfeng" was filled with anger and hurriedly shielded Yin Jiuge behind him.

"It is you who are stupid!"

The Eastern Island old monk's expression was calm as he said: "The emergence of the Yuzhou Tripod is the trend of the times. You two are both outstanding figures; why throw your lives away here? Just hand over the technique from just now, and I will spare your lives."

Jin Jin Yanfeng spat directly, "Screw your mother!"

"Hmph!"

The Eastern Island old monk heard this, his murderous intent rising, and he chanted the incantation again.

"Roar—!"

Countless frantic roars rang out, and the surrounding crowd swarmed over.

Bitter fate~

Jin Jin Yanfeng let out a sigh of grief and closed his eyes.

Just then, an old voice suddenly rang out from behind:

"Millet, rice, and sorghum, the Stove Lord governs fate, the Yang Fire takes the flame, the Yin Talisman turns to ash…"

It was Yin Jiuge standing up again, actually using one hand to form seals and chant.

The leather pouch on his body had already scattered completely.

Countless dust particles drifted along with the incantation.

Wherever it passed, those frantic commoners roared in pain one after another.

And the white female figure on the green lantern burned with blood-colored flames.

The Eastern Island monks used the green lantern as a medium to cast Nightmare Curses on ordinary commoners.

And these commoners, in turn, became Yin Jiuge's medium for the technique.

What he used was the "Stove Sacrifice: Five Grains Burning Yin" from the "Five Sacrifices Suppression Technique."

Suppressing evil and killing ghosts, it could be called unique.

The three Eastern Island old monks opposite had their expressions change drastically.

The leading old monk hurriedly turned his head and roared into the distance: "Do it quickly!"

However, there was no movement in the distance.

In the darkness, Sha Lifei, who had just arrived, pulled out his Guanshan blade with a squelch.

The Eastern Island gunman's throat spurted blood, and he fell to the ground, dead.

At the same time, Yin Jiuge reached the last line:

"Six armies of hungry ghosts, feast on you for a meal!"

"Ya—!"

A shrill scream rang out, and the Green Lantern Woman turned into green smoke amidst the blood fire.

And the three Eastern Island old monks also had their eyeballs explode simultaneously, falling to the ground dead.

"Senior!"

Sha Lifei and Wang Daoxuan rushed over from the street, hurriedly supporting Yin Jiuge, who was about to collapse.

"I am fine."

Yin Jiuge gritted his teeth and stood up, turning his head to look at the Luoyang Prince's Mansion, "You came just in time; Little Brother Yan is likely trapped. Join forces with me to break the formation!"

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 647 =====