217: The coffin in the hall is resurrected!

Lin Ying glanced at the sky; it was already faintly bright.

He dared not delay any longer, wiped away his tears, straightened his clothes, and prepared to ascend the mountain.

But as soon as he approached, he discovered that the path up the mountain was actually a heavenly path paved with white jade steps, extending upwards, with no end in sight.

Upon each step, densely packed ancient characters were inscribed.

Curious, he leaned closer to examine them carefully.

"Maoshan's purpose: To align with the heavens, benefit all beings, save the world, and eliminate demons..."

"I, Li Taixian, once slew the Millennium Corpse King who plagued the human world in ancient times..."

"I, Zhu Yun, once suppressed the Ten Thousand Year Dragon that stirred up trouble on the shores of the East Sea..."

Lin Ying read as he ascended the mountain, his heart already filled with immense awe and shock.

It turned out that Maoshan was actually such an immortal Sect dedicated to protecting all living beings under heaven!

His reverence deepened even further.

What surprised him even more was this:

He had been climbing the mountain for several hours, yet he felt no fatigue at all; instead, he felt his whole body filled with endless energy, and even his stomach, which should have been rumbling with hunger, felt no hunger whatsoever.

In the air, it was as if something cool and refreshing was continuously flowing into his Physical Body.

Unbeknownst to him, a certain unscrupulous Master was secretly giving him special treatment, using pure magical power to cleanse his Physical Body and veins, allowing him to experience the presence of Spiritual Qi in advance.

...

Finally, when the sun was high in the sky.

Lin Ying arrived at the summit.

A majestic and grand mountain gate appeared before him.

Upon the plaque, three large characters, written with the flourish of a Dragon and Phoenix, read—

Maoshan Sect!

Lin Ying's heart pounded once more.

He knew that he was now just one step away from the legendary immortal destiny!

With a pilgrim-like reverence, he stepped, one by one, into the mountain gate.

However, as soon as he entered, he froze.

The entire Maoshan Sect was empty; not even a ghost could be seen.

It was eerily quiet.

"Excuse me... is anyone here?"

He tentatively called out.

Only the hollow echo answered him.

Filled with confusion, he walked towards the most magnificent main hall.

As soon as he stepped in.

A solemn and dignified Aura washed over him.

Inside the main hall, enshrined were the statues of the Three Pure Ones of the Daoist faith.

Three sticks of incense in the censer had long since burned out.

Yet, it was still empty.

Only in the very center of the main hall, a huge coffin lay quietly.

The coffin was pitch black, emanating a chilling coldness that made one's heart palpitate.

When Lin Ying saw the coffin, his heart dropped, and a chill shot from the soles of his feet straight to the crown of his head.

What... what is this situation?

How could an immortal Sect place a coffin in its main hall?

He bravely walked back and forth in the main hall several times.

"Hey! Is anyone here?!"

"Junior Lin Ying, I have come with a token, seeking an immortal!"

He shouted for a long time, his throat almost hoarse, but no one responded to him.

He also circled the coffin several times, but he dared not go forward and touch it.

Are you kidding? This thing looked ominous; who would dare to move it carelessly?

...

In the shadows, Lu Yuchen looked at the boy's cowardly demeanor, also speechless.

"Damn it..."

"Is this kid a dawdler?"

"I’ve set up the stage, and the actors are in place, but you, the protagonist, are strolling around like you’re on the street?"

"Open the coffin! If you don't open the coffin, how can this play continue?!"

He waited for a long time, seeing that Lin Ying was actually preparing to turn around and look at other halls.

Lu Yuchen panicked!

He could bear it no longer!

He directly channeled his magical power into the coffin.

"Cough, cough."

A light cough echoed from within the silent coffin.

Lin Ying's steps suddenly froze!

All the hairs on his body stood on end at that instant.

He slowly, extremely stiffly, turned his head, his eyes filled with fear.

A... a reanimated corpse?!

"Who... is making noise... outside?"

An ancient voice, as if it hadn't spoken for thousands of years, faintly emanated from within the coffin.

"Ghost... ghost!"

Lin Ying let out an extremely terrified scream and, without thinking, turned to run.

"Bang!"

A muffled thud.

The heavy coffin lid was suddenly pushed open by an invisible force, crashing heavily to the ground.

Immediately after, under Lin Ying's horrified gaze.

A figure dressed in a bright yellow Daoist robe, holding a peach wood sword, slowly sat up from within the coffin.

His eyes, which should have been tightly closed, slowly opened, shooting out two beams of light that locked onto Lin Ying.

Lin Ying felt as if his heart was about to stop beating from fright.

He looked at that face, which he had seen in his dreams, yet was incredibly real, even carrying a hint of decay, and his voice was tinged with a sob.

"You... you, you... don't come over!"

"I... I'm telling you, I'm not afraid of you!"

That "corpse," which was "Lin Zhengying" controlled by Lu Yuchen, also looked at his cowardly demeanor with some exasperation.

He walked out of the coffin, his movements unusually agile, without any of the stiffness a corpse should have.

He spoke to the petrified Lin Ying.

"Foolish child, do not be afraid."

"This Venerable One is not a ghost."

"Just a wisp of obsession, remaining within this Physical Body, having waited for a million years, already at the end of its Qi."

(Four chapters have been updated today)