24: Ruined Temple

The three of them moved swiftly, the crows perched on the dead branches, their blood-red eyes fixed intently on them.

Perhaps they were thinking that soon they would feast again!

The wind howled around them, and in its sound, there seemed to be faint sobs. If an ordinary person encountered this scene, they probably wouldn't dare to take another step forward.

With Luo Weiyu leading the way, the three quickly arrived at an open clearing.

In the center of the clearing stood a dilapidated temple.

At the temple's entrance were Buddhist Listen carefully (Buddha's Voice) statues. The Listen carefully (Buddha's Voice) were baring their fangs and brandishing their claws, lifelike and vivid. Though they were Sacred Beasts of Buddhism, at this moment, they exuded an air of evil and demonic intent.

The originally vermilion main gate was now mottled, revealing its original wood color due to the passage of time.

Flakes of paint, peeled and scattered on the ground, looked like streaks of blood.

Most of the temple was shrouded in darkness, like an ancient Vicious Beast opening its bloody maw, ready to devour everything.

“This is it, Senior Brother Lin!”

Luo Weiyu's face was filled with excitement: “To be honest, I once obtained a map that showed that within this ruined temple lies a supreme Buddhist Opportunity! As long as we can get our hands on it! Just as we discussed before, it’s a fifty-fifty split!”

“Mm.” Lin Ye nodded noncommittally.

The three walked towards the temple. The two Listen carefully (Buddha's Voice) statues seemed to have come alive, watching them no matter which direction they looked from.

Creak… The dilapidated gate let out a harsh, decaying sound.

The three entered the ruined temple.

Looking around, the entire temple was not large. Besides a dilapidated room straight ahead, the courtyard only contained a single withered Bodhi tree.

If this Bodhi tree were still alive, it would undoubtedly be a supreme treasure.

After all, a monk once attained Dao under a Bodhi tree, eventually achieving the Buddha fruit status.

But now, this Bodhi tree had withered, clearly having lost all use.

Peering through the window frame of the dilapidated room, one could vaguely see a Buddha statue.

The three slowly walked towards the Buddha statue, simultaneously circulating their spiritual power, wary of their surroundings.

Opportunity is accompanied by danger.

If they were not careful, not only would they fail to obtain the Opportunity, but their lives would also be lost here.

Stepping into the room, the old wooden floor creaked, and the air was filled with a scent of decay and deterioration.

Lin Ye looked up at the Buddha statue.

This Buddha statue was only about a ten feet (zhang) tall, making its face easily visible.

When Lin Ye was in Yu City, because he yearned for the world of immortal cultivation, he had read various strange books, and Buddhist scriptures were naturally among them.

However, he had never seen the face of this Buddha statue before. Not only that, but half of the Buddha statue's face was normal, while the other half had its mouth upturned, and blood seemed to be seeping from the corner of its mouth.

One thought, Buddha; one thought, demon?

What kind of ghost Buddha statue was this? There was no sense of compassion emanating from it at all, only endless mockery and an eerie feeling of disdain for all living beings.

“The mechanism is up ahead! Senior Brother Lin, please stay close, lest you get left behind.”

Luo Weiyu, without turning his head, walked towards the base of the Buddha statue, reaching out to grasp a candlestick behind the statue, spiritual power surging in his hands.

Click, click, click, click… Under Luo Weiyu's force, the candlestick slowly rotated.

One Restriction after another also emerged at this moment.

“Junior Sister! Now’s the time! Take out the Seal-Breaking Talisman Revered Master gave you!”

“Oh!”

Zi Yuan fumbled to pull a Talisman from her qiankun ring. Complex runes were inscribed on the Talisman, and just looking at it seemed to pierce one's Divine Soul.

This showed how high the Talisman's Rank was, undoubtedly from the hands of a great power.

Zi Yuan held the Talisman and threw it directly towards the candlestick.

Boom!!!

A tremendous roar erupted, and the entire ruined temple began to shake. Such violent tremors, however, only caused a bit of dust to fall from the dilapidated temple.

Its main structure remained completely unaffected.

With the appearance of the Talisman, the Restrictions on the candlestick were broken one after another.

Each time a Restriction was broken, a corner of the Talisman would disappear.

All thirty-six Restrictions were completely destroyed after the last corner of the Seal-Breaking Talisman vanished.

Luo Weiyu's face showed a hint of madness.

He had succeeded!

Rumble… As the Restrictions were completely broken, the ground of the ruined temple began to vibrate violently. Immediately after, a dark and deep tunnel appeared on the ground.

A sense of decay and wisps of black smoke poured out from the tunnel. Within this ruined temple, faint sounds of Buddha's Voice seemed to echo.

But that Buddha's Voice did not bring a sense of peace; instead, all three felt their Qi Sea become chaotic and their spiritual platform clouded.

The few of them quickly circulated their spiritual power throughout their bodies to maintain their sanity.

“Senior Brother Lin, this is where the Opportunity is. How about we go together?”

“Good.”

Lin Ye was now extremely sparing with his words, completely different from when he was in Righteous Qi Sect.

Luo Weiyu didn't mind. Perhaps fearing Lin Ye might overthink, he jumped down first.

Zi Yuan took one last look at the already dim sky outside, took a deep breath, and then jumped down as well.

Only Lin Ye remained, thoughtfully looking up again.

Only he noticed that the eerie Buddha statue had actually lowered its head, looking at the three with a mocking expression.

The blood flowing from the corner of its mouth also became increasingly obvious.

“Mocking me? When I come out later, I'll smash you! I’ll show you who’s watching who!”

After leaving this harsh remark, Lin Ye leaped into the abyss-like opening.

A moment later, accompanied by a rumbling sound, the entrance slowly closed again. The ground was still covered in dust, and the Buddha statue returned to its normal appearance; everything was as it was.

Bang!

This tunnel was not deep. Within three breaths, Lin Ye landed on the ground.

At this moment, Luo Weiyu took out an illuminating crystal, and the surrounding environment was completely revealed to the three.

Mottled ancient paths, walls carved with eerie patterns.

The patterns were called eerie because they depicted clusters of black Qi enveloping the earth, while monks facing these black Qi had tears in their eyes but their mouths wide open, laughing madly as if in a frenzy.

Just looking at the patterns seemed to stir ripples in one's heart, causing one's mouth to inexplicably curl into a smile.

“Good! We found the right place!”

Luo Weiyu was ecstatic, holding the illuminating crystal and walking forward.

Lin Ye followed closely.

In this mottled and dim ancient path, there was only the tiny glimmer of the crystal.

Luo Weiyu was rushing forward headlong at this moment, seemingly having completely forgotten his image as a good gentleman.

Zi Yuan also sensed her Senior Brother's abnormality. In her panic, she could only come to Lin Ye's side, instinctively grabbing the corner of his clothes.

“Hmm?”

Lin Ye frowned slightly but didn't say much. The most important thing now was to figure out what kind of Opportunity lay within.