novelraw Chapter 1023: How Could There Be a Path to Immortality in This World? (31)
Chapter 1023: How Could There Be a Path to Immortality in This World? (31)
Summary of "Six Ding Six Jia Divine Strike Essentials," "Thirty-Six Heavenly Gang Sword Seals," and "Longyang Yin Sha Sutra."
From the bodies of a few Daoists lying at the cave entrance, Song Da and Song San found several strange scriptures—along with some artifacts, which they did not leave behind either.
Since they were unsure of these Daoists' true strength, the brothers only looted them and did not intend to kill.
Of course, Song Da and Song San were no longer the young monks who once lived by the ancient Buddhist lamps on Shaoshi Mountain. Having been immersed in the mortal world for over twenty years, they had long since broken every Buddhist precept multiple times.
Take greed, for example.
Not satisfied with just the scriptures and possible artifacts, the two quickly decided—within less than a minute—to enter the cave. After all, judging by the cave's condition, someone had already paved the way ahead.
Although they were weak compared to these Daoists, if they followed the mysterious "pioneers" and picked up whatever was left behind, it would be enough to benefit them for a lifetime.
As for the idea of stopping while ahead? To hell with that!
—
"Over there! Looks like they went that way!"The cave was an extremely complex labyrinth. However, as martial artists, their senses were sharp, and they could vaguely hear the sounds of battle in the distance.
Based on what they could gather, the invaders and defenders had already clashed, engaging in a chase within the cave. This chaos allowed Song Da and Song San to remain unnoticed—because they had neither spiritual power nor demonic energy fluctuations.
Fortunately, not only did they avoid being discovered by the cave's defenders, but they also didn't trigger any traps along the way. The path was already marked with warnings like "Trap ahead," along with notes like "Discovered by Daoist XX."
It was as if someone had deliberately left these signs for those coming later—just like warning signs for tourists in scenic areas.
—
"Ah Da, look! More over here!"
Song San's eyes lit up as he spotted two more Daoists lying in a spacious stone chamber.
"They're already dead."
Song Da carefully examined them and found that both had died from broken necks.
The two exchanged a glance. Without hesitation, Song San dragged the corpses into a corner to loot them again, while Song Da kept watch at the entrance.
Among the spoils were:
"Five Elements Secret Arts: True Fire Technique"
"Five Elements Secret Arts: Earth Condensation Formula"
"Chamber Arts"
Various strange items
Two wallets
Greed knows no bounds. After easily acquiring several Daoist scriptures, something inside Song San was fully awakened.
Excitedly, he lifted his head. "Ah Da! Let's move and—huh? Ah Da?"
But Song Da was slowly retreating, his expression serious.
Standing before him was a mysterious figure—small and slender, wearing a white, featureless mask.
The masked figure stepped forward as well.
Song Da quickly backed up to Song San's side and whispered, "This guy… might be one of the invaders who entered before us."
After all, if this person were part of the original cave defenders, their attire would be far too strange.
—
"Senior, we only entered this cave out of curiosity... We just picked up these things. If you're interested, consider them our humble offering."
Song Da had always been quick to read the situation.
Anyone they randomly encountered here could easily kill them. Treasure was great, but survival mattered more.
Although reluctant, Song San slowly placed all the loot on the ground, raised his hands, and said, "No hidden stash. If you don’t believe me, I can strip down to prove it."
The masked figure merely glanced at them before looking at a piece of beast hide in their hand. The brothers vaguely heard a murmured, "Strange… back here again… Where did those two go… Could it be…?"
Those two?
Song Da and Song San exchanged a look. It seemed the masked figure didn't care about them, so they carefully moved along the wall toward the exit.
—
"Stop."
The masked figure's sudden command made them freeze.
They immediately raised their hands. "We didn’t move! Really! Not at all!"
"Who are you?"
Song San quickly replied, "We're followers of Blind. We got bored and went for a walk, accidentally stumbling in here. We didn’t know this was your… uh, mission. If we disturbed you, please forgive us! Report complete!"
"Blind? Who’s Blind?" the masked figure asked suspiciously.
Song Da quickly added, "People call him Qingxiaozi!"
"Qingxiaozi?" The masked figure stiffened, seemingly in disbelief. "You mean Qingxiaozi, the heir of Plain-Clothed Dao… the great sinner Qingxiaozi?"
What the hell? Blind, does your mom know how infamous you are?
I only wanted to use your name for some street cred—why the hell are you a 'great sinner'?!
"Senior, mercy!" Song San hurriedly pleaded. "We really were just passing by! We don’t know anything about Blind’s identity. We were just hired by him!"
"Hmph." The masked figure snorted. "Seeing how you looted corpses, you’re clearly not good people. I can’t let you live."
Tonight, they had hidden their identity and sneaked in while Kunpeng Manor and Crouching Dragon Estate were hosting a gathering. They couldn’t afford to let anyone discover their presence.
At that moment, Song San suddenly flicked his wrist, releasing a thick cloud of smoke from his sleeve that filled the chamber.
"Ah Da! Run!"
"You dare?!"
The masked figure’s voice turned cold. Shadows shot out from the ground.
Song Da and Song San couldn't see them—though even if they could, they wouldn’t care. They were already sprinting toward the exit as if their lives depended on it.
But just as they were about to escape, a strange force struck them and sent them flying back into the stone chamber.
The impact was overwhelming. Both of them slammed into the wall, coughing up blood.
Song Da, having trained in body-hardening techniques, barely managed to get up. Song San, however, struggled to move at all.
Meanwhile, the masked figure’s shadows seemed to be blocked by something, unable to advance.
The masked figure waved a hand, recalling the shadows. Their posture grew wary.
At the entrance, another figure slowly stepped inside.
—
Song Da wiped the blood from his mouth and glanced over.
Another masked figure. This one wore a thick, heavy bronze mask.
Not only that—this person held a long, thin iron chain.
The chain slithered like a living snake, continuously writhing. Several people were bound by it—some of whom Song Da recognized as the Daoists they had looted earlier.
Among them were also two young men who didn’t wear Daoist robes.
"It seems quite lively here tonight." The mysterious figure wearing a bronze mask scanned the stone chamber before finally fixing his gaze on the faceless masked man. Suddenly, he said, "Shadow Power? A rare sight indeed. You must be from the Greedy Wolf Clan of the highlands, right? Not many from the Greedy Wolf Clan have come to the Mt. Tai Penglai Gathering this time. The Shadow Power is one of the more advanced inheritances of the Greedy Wolf Clan… Hmm, are you a Wolf God Guard or… the young master of this generation?"
"Who are you?" The faceless masked man asked in a deep voice.
"Just a man on the verge of death," the bronze-masked man replied indifferently. "But before I die, I have some things I need to do."
"Is that so..." The faceless masked man seemed to be contemplating something.
However, at the very moment of his hesitation, dozens of shadows suddenly shot out from beneath his feet, blooming like a black lotus.
The bronze-masked man shook his head and flipped his palm, revealing a row of strange black needles. These needles shot out from his palm, pinning every single shadow in place!
The black needles seemed to possess extraordinary power—once they nailed the shadows down, the shadows were completely immobilized!
At the same time, the bronze-masked man suddenly spread his palm wide, releasing a bolt of lightning! The electricity crackled through the air, striking the needles one by one.
Zzzt—!
The sound of electricity surging!
The dispersed lightning followed along the shadows, ultimately converging onto the faceless masked man!
A painful grunt!
After suffering the impact of the combined lightning strike, the faceless masked man nearly collapsed to the ground.
The bronze-masked man coughed several times, seemingly struggling to remain standing, but he quickly recovered. Wielding his chain, he flicked his wrist, and the end of the chain shot out, wrapping tightly around the faceless masked man, completely binding him.
The faceless masked man struggled fiercely, but for the moment, he couldn't break free.
The bronze-masked man spoke in a hoarse voice, "This Spirit Lock Chain is forged from Mt. Tai’s Shoushan Bronze and infused with the lingering soul of an East Sea Flood Dragon. It possesses remarkable spiritual power—you won't be able to escape. Give up."
The faceless masked man struggled a few more times but ultimately fell silent.
"You must feel quite unwilling..." The bronze-masked man shook his head. "In terms of raw strength, we may be evenly matched… But I simply understand calculations better. Any attack, as long as its trajectory can be predicted, can be countered. Unless the power is overwhelming beyond my ability to react… Never mind."
Shaking his head again, the bronze-masked man dragged the chain behind him and slowly walked deeper into the stone chamber. "I don't have much time left. Originally, I planned to go out and find more sacrifices… but it seems my luck is good. I won't need to search anymore. Even mosquitoes, no matter how small, are still meat. You two will do."
The end of the chain suddenly shot out again, quickly wrapping around Song Da and Song San, pulling them toward the bronze-masked man.
"Hmm?"
At that moment, the bronze-masked man noticed a piece of beast hide lying on the ground—it had fallen from the faceless masked man when he was injured.
As the bronze-masked man picked up the beast hide, the faceless masked man struggled again, but it was futile.
The bronze-masked man unfolded the beast hide and examined it.
After just a few glances, he suddenly stretched out his hand, forming intricate finger gestures as if performing calculations. His voice carried a hint of excitement: "Where did you get this map?"
The faceless masked man let out a cold snort and turned his head away.
"If you won’t say, do you think I can’t figure it out myself?" The bronze-masked man scoffed, then sat cross-legged on the ground.
From his robes, he pulled out a small turtle shell, took out a handful of bronze coins, and tossed them into the shell.
He shook the turtle shell, allowing the coins to spill out.
But soon, he picked up the coins again, tossed them back in, and repeated the process—again and again, as if trapped in some kind of trance!
No one knew how much time passed before the bronze-masked man suddenly clutched his chest, as if spitting out a mouthful of blood… Blood slowly seeped from beneath his mask!
"Even with Heavenly Heart, I still… can't calculate it?"
The bronze-masked man pressed both hands against the beast hide map, repeatedly studying it, muttering to himself, "I can’t determine its origin, but this map… I see, I see! I understand! I understand!!! The heavens are helping me! The heavens are helping me! Hahahaha!! So this is the entrance to Penglai!! Hahahahahaha!!!!"
From that point on, neither Song Da, Song San, nor even the faceless masked man knew what happened next—because their consciousness was already fading…
---
---
Windchaser was utterly astonished.
After following his elder brother through the passage in the stone wall, he had expected a place filled with traps and mechanisms.
However, what unfolded before him was an open landscape—with sky, earth, and a gentle breeze. Mountains and rivers stretched out in all directions, shrouded in mist, resembling a paradise.
Windchaser turned back to look at the path they had taken—there was a dark tunnel, but they had long since passed through it.
The tunnel entrance was now slowly closing.
At the same time, Windchaser felt an unusual lightness in his body. It was as if, with just a slight push from his feet, he could float into the air.
He and his elder brother, Mo Xiaofei, were sitting beneath a lush peach blossom grove.
"Weren't we supposed to be inside a cave? Why can we see the sky here?" Windchaser asked in confusion.
‘Mo Xiaofei’ clasped his hands behind his back and walked leisurely. He suddenly stopped by a peach tree, gently touching its branches, and calmly said, "If I were to explain it in modern terms that you’d understand, this place is a subspace."
Windchaser… well, he didn’t get it.
"This is Penglai," ‘Mo Xiaofei’ said, his words astonishing. He turned to look at Windchaser and continued, "A dead Penglai."
(End of Chapter)