Chapter 751: Night Exploration of Taishan

"Taishan is haunted?!"

Wang Fu stroked his beard and laughed dumbfoundedly: "How is that possible? This news is too outrageous. What kind of place is Taishan? The head of the Five Sacred Mountains, the territory of the Great Emperor of the Eastern Peak!"

"Haunted in a heavy place of the Mystic Sect? It's simply the height of absurdity! If there really were something making trouble, the Yin soldiers and divine generals under the Taishan Prefect would have torn it apart long ago."

Fatty Lin also interjected: "Yeah, Brother Sha, did you hear some idle person bragging in a teahouse somewhere? Rumors are flying everywhere these days, and we just experienced those messy things in Jinan Prefecture; we can't just stir up trouble blindly."

Only Li Yan furrowed his brows slightly, thoughtful.

His trip this time was originally for the "change in the position of the Taishan Prefect."

Could it be because of this?

Seeing that everyone didn't believe him, Sha Lifei stomped his feet anxiously and shouted: "Hey, this isn't made up! Ordinary people might spread rumors, but if those who listen to the wind talk nonsense, their signs would be smashed within two days."

He cleared his throat, took a crumpled piece of paper from his bosom, and began to tell in detail: "First, the rumors of haunting didn't come from nowhere."

"Since last month, at the Hour of the Rat every night, 'wailing ghost cries' have come from near the Dai Temple, the sound shrill like a knife scraping iron. What's even weirder is that some people have seen human-shaped 'ghost fires' drifting around in the ruins of the Your Majesty Shrine."

Sha Lifei paused, saw Wang Fu's expression was solemn, and continued: "The second case is a disappearance case. Students from the 'Taishan Academy' in the city sold the news that several old Daoist priests from the Shangqing Palace on Taishan suddenly disappeared."

"There was a Daoist priest named Zhang Mingzhen who usually guarded the incense at the Jade Emperor Peak. He disappeared into thin air while on night duty three days ago. His fellow disciples found his peach wood sword on the stone steps, broken in two, and stained with black blood!"

"The last case is a local yamen runner spilling the truth after drinking. Yesterday, people from the Commandant's Office patrolling Taishan at night ran into a team of 'paper people carrying a sedan chair.' The paper people were painted with red cheeks and black eyes, carrying a black sedan chair. The sedan curtain was lifted a corner, revealing a pale human face."

"They wanted to chase, but were rolled over by a gust of Yin wind. With so many strange things piled together, and the government even mobilizing troops to seal the mountain, it's clear they are suppressing evil spirits!"

Seeing Sha Lifei's serious face, the others looked at each other.

Just at this moment, Li Yan finally opened his mouth: "This matter might not be false. I can't say, but something big has indeed happened on Taishan."

After saying this, he pointed to the sky.

Wang Fu, Sha Lifei, and the others understood instantly.

This meant that the heavenly secrets could not be revealed.

Fatty Lin, Kuai Dayou, and the three were full of confusion.

Sha Lifei looked at Li Yan, and seeing no objection, he mysteriously smiled: "We are all our own people, and there is one thing I won't hide from you. Yan Yan Xiao Ge Yan is not only a Master Master Huo Yin Messenger but also has the identity of a Heavenly Official, so, you understand..."

"Heavenly Official?"

The three were all blank-faced.

Not many people know about the Master Master Huo Yin Messenger, let alone a Heavenly Official.

Even in the Mystic Sect, only a few people understand.

Sha Lifei briefly recounted it, and the three guessed why Li Yan couldn't say much about this matter.

"Tsk tsk, there are indeed many secrets in this world."

Kuai Dayou let out a low laugh, his eyes full of interest.

He tried to join the Twelve Yuan Chen, firstly because of Li Yan and their fame, and the wonderful encounters on the road, and secondly because he wanted to keep Kong Shangzhao company.

To put it bluntly, he was just joining the fun.

But traveling all the way here, he felt more and more that Li Yan and their team were hiding deep secrets.

Wang Fu's expression also became solemn, thoughtful: "It seems this matter is indeed problematic. Taishan is a place where Yin and Yang intersect. If Yin and Yang are out of balance due to certain things, it is reasonable for ghosts and demons to take advantage of the situation."

Saying this, he looked at Li Yan, "Yan Yan Xiao Ge Yan, what do you think we should investigate?"

Li Yan said in a deep voice: "The situation is unclear, and I have no clue for now."

"For now, the government has sealed the mountain. Tonight, the Daoist and I will use escape techniques to investigate. Old Sha, you all continue to gather news. What the situation on Taishan is, we don't know for now, so it's better to be careful in everything."

At night, Tai'an City was still lively.

This is Taishan, the place where emperors performed the Feng and Shan sacrifices. Since ancient times, the incense has been flourishing, and many people even formed incense-offering groups, rushing here from all over the Divine Land.

These incense-offering groups take several months for a round trip. The government suddenly sealed the mountain, so they were naturally unwilling to leave just like that, so they all stayed in the city.

The inns were full, and the teahouses and wine shops were brightly lit.

And approaching Taishan, the noise in the city disappeared completely.

The night was thick like ink, the mountain wind carried a damp, earthy smell, the shadows of the trees were dancing, and the huge outline of Taishan was lurking in the darkness, with an indescribable sense of oppression rushing toward them.

On the official road leading to the mountain gate, torches stretched into a long dragon, and the sound of armor colliding and shouting was unusually harsh in the quiet night.

Teams of government soldiers holding guns and carrying knives guarded all entrances and intersections.

They were murderous, even carrying a large number of firearms, their eyes scanning the mountain forest under the night color vigilantly, as if enemies would jump out of the darkness at any time.

Passing through this outer blockade line formed by government troops and approaching the starting point of the winding road, the atmosphere suddenly became different.

The air was filled with the faint burnt smell of sandalwood and burnt talisman paper, as well as the vague, mixed aura of various complex spiritual energy fluctuations.

At several key nodes, two or three cultivators were patrolling in teams.

Although they were of the Mystic Sect, their clothing was different.

Those in Daoist robes with high crowns and cloud patterns embroidered on their sleeves were disciples of the Shangqing Palace.

The female cultivators with hairpins and elegant clothing came from the Your Majesty Yuanjun Mansion.

Those wearing mysterious black martial outfits, with magic swords inserted on their backs and eyes shining like thunder, were law-enforcement disciples of the Taishan Thunder Academy.

Besides these, there were those wearing bright yellow Daoist robes, holding a heaven-facing tablet in their left hand and a magic sword in their right, who were cultivators of the Jade Emperor Temple lineage.

This is the characteristic of the Taishan Orthodox Sect.

The eighteen winding paths of Taishan, from the foot of the mountain to the top, have countless temples and views, plus the Buddhist temples and small sects within a hundred miles, and the number of personnel is quite large.

Like Mount Emei, it is more like a sect alliance.

There are big ones and small ones, Buddhist and Daoist, and their positions are also different.

But at this moment, these bottom-level cultivators who usually have sectarian prejudices and even disputes were forcibly bound by invisible pressure and orders.

They were not far or near to each other, mostly silent.

Even when talking, their voices were kept very low, and every word was filled with caution.

"This is the seventh day, and the elders still haven't made a move?"

A middle-aged Daoist priest from the Shangqing Palace was worried, raising his eyes to look above the winding road swallowed by darkness and clouds.

A female disciple from the Your Majesty Yuanjun Shrine next to him interface softly, carrying a hint of complaint: "Who knows? They only let us guard below, not leaving an inch, and said the mountain is sealed off from all outside investigation. But in this mountain..."

She paused and looked into the darkness, "I always feel like something is staring at us."

"Silence!"

A Thunder Academy disciple scanned the surroundings vigilantly and scolded in a low voice: "Just guard your duty. Since the elders are meeting on the Jade Emperor Peak, there must be a reason. I observe that the spiritual energy in the mountain is indeed abnormally chaotic, fearing a great disaster, which is extraordinary."

"Great disaster?"

The Jade Emperor Temple cultivator snorted, his voice rough, "I'm afraid the disaster happened long ago. That night patrol disciple... Zhang Mingzhen, what good roots he had, and he was gone just like that! Even his body-protecting Five Thunder Tablet was shattered!"

"Our Jade Emperor Temple is close to the water, and we can feel the heaven and earth energy veins twisting abnormally like pulled tendons; it's not as simple as ordinary demons making trouble!"

"Precisely because it's not simple, the elders need to gather and discuss. Maybe... they are setting up some incredible magic array." The Shangqing Palace Daoist tried to comfort. ===== CHAPTER 752 =====