Chapter 524: with translation of chapter title

Things have somewhat exceeded our expectations.

Yin corpses first ambushed Dang Pu, but thanks to early warning from the Yin Dang Hang side, everyone escaped disaster, including Bai Shulan.

No one expected that Sān jiǎo yā, while fleeing, would deliberately make a trip to Wufu Town, massacre Bái Jiā Yīguǎn, and abduct Bái Sōnglán and Bái Jīngmò.

It is obvious that Sān jiǎo yā came for Bái Sōnglán.

His target is too clear; even Bái Jīngmò is not spared, which can only mean he urgently needs these two to do something for him right now.

What the Bai Family excels at and takes pride in is, of course, medical skill.

Sān jiǎo yā has just succeeded in Tribulation Hitching; his body cannot have any problem, so who is he abducting Bái Sōnglán for?

Could it be for Dìshì's true form?

I suddenly thought of Wuling; she also disappeared—could she too have been sent to Dìshì's true form?

If Dìshì wants to use them, he probably won't readily take their lives, right?

As long as we stay alive, we will certainly persist in trying to rescue them.

I asked Fang Chuanzong: 'Fang Lao, any movement from the Empty Silence Abbott?'

Fang Chuanzong shook his head: 'This person is too crafty; we simply can't outplay him. Every time we pick up a clue and go after him, we're always a step behind.'

'So from the start, Empty Silence has been Dìshì's most capable vanguard,' I said. 'Regardless of whether we can keep an eye on him, we must watch him; my biggest worry now is, if he also goes to Zàng Qū, that would be troublesome.'

Fang Chuanzong immediately said: 'For now he probably hasn't gone there; we've already locked onto his next lecture point. Even if we're still a step behind him, we won't be far behind—Zàng Qū is quite distant; not just anyone can get there by passing through the formation array of Wǎngsǐ Chéng, right?'

I agreed with Fang Chuanzong's view.

The key is that Empty Silence's task is very important; he should not abandon his current mission for something else for the time being.

Fang Chuanzong said: 'I'll go back now to rally the brothers to check the materials, aiming to lock onto the target early, then make further plans.'

For now, that's all we can do.

After seeing Fang Chuanzong off, everyone's mood, which had been lifted by my successful Nirvana, plunged back into despair.

I also feel not great, with a sense of defeat.

Before, Nirvana was one of my biggest worries—I feared failure and never returning.

Now that I have clearly succeeded in Nirvana and my abilities have indeed strengthened, why do I still feel a faint sense of helplessness when facing these matters?

Is it my mindset that's the problem?

After thinking, perhaps I urgently need to accomplish something big to affirm myself.

Hu Sanmei was captured.

Wuling went missing.

Now Bai Shulan and Bai Jingmo have also been captured.

One after another, people I care about are being controlled by the enemy, yet I have no idea where to start rescuing them… How did I become so passive?

Where should I look for a breakthrough?

Liu Junyan, passing through the formation array of Wǎngsǐ Chéng, may have directly achieved a reversal of heaven and earth, a yin-yang shift, and appeared in some temple or monastery in Zàng Qū.

This is the breakthrough he found.

But this breakthrough has a major problem: the other side controls that territory, so he is likely to be immediately controlled by them upon entry.

The worst case is that he gets inside but cannot break out from within.

And what about me?

As for familiarity with Dìshì, probably few know him better than Dìluán.

Dìshì would not feel that Dìluán poses any threat to him, after all, that is merely a work he created using evil bones.

He who can create him can also destroy him.

Therefore, to keep this vessel in good shape, Dìshì has also gone to great trouble.

And Dìluán left me a box of things; I ought to study them thoroughly.

I returned to my room, took out the bronze box again, emptied its contents, sorted them on the table, and examined each item.

I had looked at those medicine boxes before; they are all elixirs, with no issue, so I put them back.

The maps of the Feng Clan and the underground cavern have no research value left, but I didn't discard them; I placed them in a hidden compartment.

The hand‑drawn architectural diagram fragments have been thoroughly studied; I set them aside for now.

Those tokens and such… I picked them up and examined them closely; I can confirm a few are related to the Feng Clan and the Nether Realm, while two others I couldn't tell where they're used, so I took them out separately to photograph, then put them all back.

Finally, my gaze settled on a string of skull prayer beads that had been polished well.

I impulsively picked it up, brought it to my nose, and smelled a pleasant incense aroma.

This string of prayer beads that looks rather sinister has actually received incense offerings?

In fact, the items Dìluán gave me can prove useful at certain times.

He originally stood opposed to us, but as his understanding of his own identity deepened, he was eventually skinned and abandoned; his loyalty to Dìshì ultimately turned into hatred.

Precisely because of that hatred, and because he wants to avenge himself, his sincerity toward us is all the more genuine.

Could this string of prayer beads be what he received when he underwent Buddhist baptism in a temple?

In his life, what good thing has he not seen?

What kind of prayer beads has he not used?

He alone kept this string; it must be of extraordinary significance.

Thinking of this, I took a few more photos of the skull prayer beads, together with the earlier token photos, and sent them simultaneously to Fang Chuanzong and Jin Wuya, asking them to help study them.

After sending the information, I tidied everything up and put the bronze box back into the Soul‑guiding Lamp.

Looking at that dainty Soul‑guiding Lamp, I think: what a fine magical treasure; what other important things could I put inside it?

Just then, a scratching sound of cat claws came from the door.

Hearing it, I knew it was a gentleman's little cat; I immediately laughed and said, 'Come on in, it's our own home—what's there to be shy about?'

The black cat swaggered in.

It walked over to my feet, jumped up, and stood on my leg.

It cocked its head at my belly, its small head seemingly full of doubt.

The black cat really likes the Little Guy in my belly; it probably can sense the Little Guy's Buddha dharma-body, and as long as it stays with me, it likes to rub against my belly.

But today it stared at my belly for a long time, then suddenly lifted its head and kept calling out at me.

Its cry was filled with worry, like a kind of forewarning.

My heart skipped a beat, and I instinctively put my hand on my lower abdomen.

I had also noticed earlier that the Little Guy was a bit off.

The Little Guy's growth is special; if he were like an ordinary baby, taking only the mother's nutrients, he would grow very slowly.

It would be even several times longer than a normal fetus's gestation period.

But whenever he absorbs Spiritual Qi, Merit, Dragon Qi, and other good things, he grows rapidly.

But this time I successfully achieved Nirvana, Feng Wu and the Soul-guiding Lamp both made progress, and even the Three-legged Crow advanced, yet my belly shows no movement at all.

I don't know if it's because I'm too nervous, but I even feel my belly is a bit smaller than before Nirvana.