River Deity Temple
The temple was built on the dam of the gorge, and the river water flowed through the gorge, nourishing it for three hundred miles. It was the night of early spring, and the rain had lightened, but the wind brought a bone-chilling chill that made people shiver.
An ox cart was traveling at night. The bells on the necks of the oxen that were pulling the cart had already been taken down. Someone was even carrying a big red lantern, illuminating the surroundings.
In the dark of the night, the scene looked a little gloomy.
The ox-cart suddenly stopped. Listening to the sound of the river, a temple appeared. At night, the red lacquered door of the temple was hung with two large lanterns.
When they reached the door, the Sect Leader and Pei Zi Yun got down and entered the temple.
The temple was neither dilapidated nor grand. A stone tablet was erected there. The stone tablet was mottled with the passage of time, and the handwriting was faintly discernible: River Deity's Merit Tablet.
Pei Zi Yun looked around. When he reached the main hall, someone had already lit up the candles. A statue of a deity dressed in an official's robe sat on top of the candles. His face was solemn and solemn, and he looked somewhat tyrannical.
There were Infernal Judges and Messengers of Hell standing at the side of the hall, all of them baring their fangs and brandishing their claws. Their expressions were ferocious and terrifying. Looking at Pei Zi Yun, Pei Zi Yun immediately understood. The River Deity was usually associated with the river. The river was violent and tyrannical. Hence, the River Deity had to portray a violent and majestic image.
Moreover, the commoners of this era were actually not afraid of power or virtue, and this was also justified.
If he wanted to borrow the River Deity's dojo and the projection of the River Deity's main hall, he had to carefully inform and obtain permission.
The Sect Leader looked at the statue of the River Deity and retrieved six sticks of incense. She then handed three of them over to Pei Zi Yun, "Dao Master Pei, only these special incense sticks can communicate with him."
Hearing the Sect Leader's words, Pei Zi Yun wasn't surprised. The mortal world and the netherworld world were very different. Usually, they wouldn't be able to meet each other. This incense was a technique of the Daoist Sect.
Pei Zi Yun received the incense stick as the Sect Leader lit it. The incense started burning and a green smoke rose up into the air. The two of them then placed the incense stick into the incense burner.
She took out a piece of talisman paper with the matter written on it. The girl silently circulated her magic power, and the talisman paper instantly burned.
Pei Zi Yun stepped forward and bowed, "Free Cloud Sect Leader Pei Zi Yun pays his respects to the River Deity. I'm here to borrow your treasured land."
He took out the Crown Prince Token and tapped it.
Spiritual Realm, River God Temple
As far as the eye could see, there was an expanse of greyish black. A large river flowed within, surging violently and emitting a loud sound.
There was a palace in the middle of the river. It was supported by huge crystal pillars. The palace of the River God was different from other palaces. There was no roof on the palace. There was a skylight, and one could see the river when they looked up. The sparkling waves surged above the palace, but did not fall.
There were a lot of fish, prawns, and turtles swimming around, but these were just a few.
Inside the palace, the three red words "River God Palace" shone brightly. The palace was divided into two rows. One row was for judges and ghost officials, and the other row was for shrimp soldiers and crab generals.
The atmosphere in the hall was eerie. At this moment, a dragon's roar could be heard. The River Deity who was sitting on the main seat was startled awake and said, "Has a noble person arrived?"
He stretched out his finger, and an image of two Daoists lighting two joss sticks appeared. At that moment, two streams of Qi descended from the sky. One was pale white, and the other was pale red. The River Deity took a deep breath, and absorbed the Qi.
Another talisman letter floated down from the sky. The ghost official looked at the letter and hurriedly walked up to it. When he saw the letter, he trembled and handed it over to the River Deity. He then whispered, "Master, there's a letter here. It's asking for your help."
Hearing the ghost official's words, the River Deity took the letter and flipped through it. He was somewhat frustrated. He then leaned against his throne and knocked on it, frowning.
The incense had brought about a great amount of Qi, and the River Deity felt extremely comfortable. He then sighed, "A noble person is indeed extraordinary. It's just that this request of yours has put me in a difficult position."
The River Deity fell silent for some time. His eyes were filled with emotions. A ghost official took out a book and bowed down, waiting for a reply.
Pei Zi Yun walked several steps around the palace before looking at the Sect Leader and asked, "River Deity hasn't replied yet?"
The Sect Leader paused for some time before replying, "River Deity might have some misgivings."
The River Deity looked at his own palace, and could still remember the dilapidated state it used to be. Later on, he invested in a scholar, and the scholar made a name for himself.
He then mumbled to himself, "In this world, if you don't advance, you'll fall behind. Although there will be disasters, there will be blessings as well."
He then looked at the ghost official and instructed, "Agree to their request. Since I have the Crown Prince's insignia, it's not my fault. It's still within the rules of the Imperial Qi, and I won't be viewed as an enemy by the Imperial Qi. Furthermore, they can borrow my name and reputation, which is beneficial to me. Although there will be disasters, I can still carry out my tasks."
As the River Deity spoke, the ghost official wrote a book and prepared to reply.
The River Deity thought for some time before saying, "There's one more thing. Do not use torture. Do not kill anyone within my palace. Borrowing my palace is one thing, but to use torture to kill someone is not beneficial to me."
"Yes, Master." The ghost official finished writing and handed the book over. The River Deity looked at it and said, "Send it up!"
Main Hall
Pei Zi Yun and the Sect Leader stood under the statue of the River Deity. The incense was burning brightly, and smoke was rising into the air. From time to time, a gust of wind would blow by, and the candle would sway slightly, giving off an eerie vibe.
At this point, the both of them felt something and looked at the statue. They saw that the statue was glowing brightly, and had a dignified aura around it. The burning incense formed a word, "Agreed."
Pei Zi Yun closed his eyes and sensed it, "The River Deity has given his permission. We are not to use torture, and not to kill anyone within the temple. These conditions can be agreed to."
"We can make use of this place to set up the array."
When the Sect Leader heard this, she nodded her head, "Alright, let's set up the array."
She then called for several Daoists to enter the main hall of the River Deity and set up the array. Before long, an altar was set up. The altar was inscribed with inscriptions that formed a picture. It looked like the sun, the moon, and the stars. It also looked like the meridians of the human body. Free Cloud Sect had such an altar as well.
Gradually, the altar and the statue started to merge together.
After he was done, he waited for some time before he heard the sound of an oxcart outside. A group of people were pulled down from the oxcart. Pei Zi Yun looked at them and saw that they were all unconscious.
"Sect Leader, Dao Master Qi Ning, our journey was rather successful. When we reached the magistrate's office, the lions in front of the office seemed to be on high alert. We used the Light Concealing Talisman and shut off the spiritual light. If we were to enter, they wouldn't be able to stop us. They wouldn't even be able to see us."
"When we were inside, we didn't get close to the magistrate. Instead, we followed his instructions and found a few old servants of the magistrate and drugged them with incense. We dragged them out and rushed here without alerting anyone else."
"You've done a good job." Pei Zi Yun praised before turning to look at the Sect Leader. The Sect Leader pointed at the array, and a buzzing sound could be heard. She then instructed, "Bring them here."
As she spoke, the Sect Leader retrieved three sticks of incense and placed them into the incense burner, "This is my sect's secret incense. It's perfect to use."
As soon as he lit the incense, he felt the entire hall turn dizzy. It was as if if he wasn't careful, he would fall into a trance.
Sniffing the incense, the Sect Leader then said, "Dao Master Pei, this incense is only effective on mortals. As long as you use your Dao arts, you'll be fine."
Pei Zi Yun nodded his head and purposely breathed in the incense, trying to understand its composition.
Free Cloud Sect was more inclined towards swordsmen, Dao arts, and killing. True Element Sect was more inclined towards scheming and deceiving others. Sniffing the incense, Pei Zi Yun could feel that it was numbing as well. Could it be that this incense was mixed with Datura pollen and opium?
It seemed like there were many other ingredients mixed in as well. Just sniffing it caused him to feel dizzy. Pei Zi Yun circulated his energy, and the hallucinations were dispelled. This incense was rather useful for sneak attacks. If he was caught off guard, he would be killed in a split second.
Thinking this way, several Daoists dragged the servants in and placed them on the altar. The Sect Leader then said, "Let's begin!"
The incense permeated the entire altar, and did not dissipate. The servants were slowly immersed in the incense. Their eyes were closed, and their eyeballs were rolling. They were dreaming.
The Daoist muttered some incantations, and the altar started to glow brightly. Gradually, it started to seep into these servants.
The night was dark, and the sky was filled with wind and rain.
Pei Zi Yun looked on. Actually, these arrays were new to him at first. However, through the use of the Plum Blossom, he was able to absorb the knowledge of many different Daoist sects, especially the basic Dao arts. He then realized that the only difference was the design of each sect, and the principles behind it were the same.
After looking at it for a while, he looked out into the distance. The wind and rain were still raging, and the sky was filled with clouds. Under the drizzle, the valley, the river, the village, and the hills were all covered in mist.
'Because of the Lightning Tribulation, the Daoist's memories of the Dragon Veins had all disappeared.'
'Unless I spend a few years investigating, I will have to find another opportunity. According to my memories and information, this Daoist had once given the map of the Dragon Veins to the Grand Preceptor.'
'The Grand Preceptor was killed by the bandits. Hence, there are two possible locations on the map – the bandits, or the last descendant of the Grand Preceptor.'
'The last descendant of the Grand Preceptor had a higher chance of escaping.'
'Especially since the Daoist knew that he was going to suffer the wrath of the heavens, and thus left behind a shelter.'
'I don't remember the exact details of this shelter, but I do know that it was built using the terrain of the Dragon Veins to form a village. Although one could not directly borrow the Qi of the Dragon, it formed a natural barrier.'
'The sin of killing a dragon would cause one to be punished by the heavens. The descendants of these few people who borrowed the Qi of the Earth Dragon would suffer a backlash. However, they did not have to borrow it directly.'
'Of course, if it was this Daoist or the Grand Preceptor himself, they would not be able to escape. Even if they escaped to a shelter, it would be useless. The only result would be destruction. However, these few people did not have much sin left on them. Perhaps they could live and reproduce within the shelter. After a few generations, their sin would slowly disappear.'
'I want to find the map of the Dragon Veins. Perhaps I can start from there.' Just as Pei Zi Yun was thinking, a voice interrupted him. He heard the Sect Leader say, "Dao Master Pei, I'm sure you've never experienced this before?"
Pei Zi Yun laughed and asked, "Could it be that there's more to this than meets the eye?"
"There are many people who impart their teachings in their dreams. It's all because of our sect's investments." The Sect Leader said.
Pei Zi Yun then understood. This was a way for Dao Sect to spread their Dao and spread their goodwill. It's just that it was done in secret. The Sect Leader then took out a mirror and laughed coldly, "That's about it. Let's see what kind of treatment they received in this True Spirit Mirror."
At that moment, the mirror lit up. The Sect Leader then extended her hand and imbued it with her own powers. Everyone's eyes were fixated on the mirror. The mirror was dark at first, before it started to shine brightly. Several figures could be seen.
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