1298 A Taoist Temple

If three Blood Saints escaped, they could call over even stronger figures at any time. With Zhang Ruochen's current health, he naturally couldn't care about more matters. He had to leave immediately.

He thought for a moment and said, "You shouldn't ask me. You should ask the experts of the Ministry of War at Zhilin Pass. If the imperial court army comes, any kind of enemy can be defeated."

Saintess Liuli shook her head. "Once we enter Xianji Mountain, we can't send messages to the outside world. A mysterious force shrouds the mountain. The communication runes can't fly out."

"Oh? That's possible?"

Zhang Ruochen was slightly surprised. Even with his current level of Spiritual Power, he still didn't notice any changes after entering Xianji Mountain.

Thus, he took out a communication rune and sent it in one direction. It only flew out a few miles and then fell onto the ground. It was like an invisible force was stopping it from flying out of Xianji Mountain.

"This mountain is indeed a bit strange!" Zhang Ruochen muttered to himself.

"The Immortal Vampires have a great number of Saints from the four tribes in Xianji Mountain," Saintess Liuli said. "There must be a portion guarding the entrance. Yuansu and I are both injured. We can't fight through them. Now, we can only beg you to help us. As long as we can escape from Xianji Mountain, we'll be able to send the message and have Zhilin Pass send the army to rescue the Martial Saint and kill the Immortal Vampire Saints."

If the Ministry of War really came, the Immortal Vampires wouldn't be the only one killed. Zhang Ruochen would probably also be attacked.

"I came into Xianji Mountain for something important," Zhang Ruochen said. "I can't backtrack."

Qing Mo understood Zhang Ruochen's awkward situation. It was already difficult for him to help them. He couldn't continue doing so, because it would be hurting himself.

She bit her lip and whispered, "Lord, the three Blood Saints can return at any time. With their injuries, they won't be able to defeat the Blood Saints. How about we bring them with? We won't have to care about this anymore when they heal."

"Sure," Zhang Ruochen said.

Qing Mo was surprised. She didn't think that Zhang Ruochen would agree so easily.

Zhang Ruochen chuckled. "It's good that you want to help others. If I keep disagreeing, I'll become the bad guy."

Saintess Liuli and Yuansu also understood that they were being troublesome. Thus, they didn't continue speaking. The most important thing now was to heal before making other plans.

Xianji Mountain was boundless. Some places were filled with ancient trees that reached to the sky. Other places had green bamboo forests. There were sharp abysses, waterfalls, and rivers.

There were many spiritual medicines on the mountain. They shone with small halos of light. Of course, there were also many deathly formations from the middle ages. Any misstep could cause you to die without even leaving a corpse behind.

Zhang Ruochen's group were already in the Saint Realm. They naturally didn't care about average spiritual medicines. They wouldn't risk their lives to pick any.

Saintess Liuli and Yuansu were from Ziwei Palace and had great clan backgrounds. They didn't lack any healing medicines. After taking some medicine, their injuries stabilized, no longer worsening.

Zhang Ruochen walked forward while checking the traces on the ground. He also divided his Spiritual Power to check the surroundings. Thus, he didn't move quickly. They could keep up.

Xianji Mountain is filled with danger, Zhang Ruochen analyzed in his mind. Even if Gu Songzi lives in the mountain, he must be in the outer regions. But Xianji Mountain's outside is extremely vast. Looking for someone is like searching for the pin in the haystack.

He sighed. Looking up, he saw that the clouds had separated. A looming mountain appeared.

The mountain was shaped like a stone elephant. It was probably more than 10,000 meters tall and was magnificent. There was a large cluster of ancient buildings at the peak. They shone with saintly light.

"This must be an important area of Xianji Mountain," Qing Mo said. "I can sense the auras of saintly medicines coming from there."

Zhang Ruochen found traces left by living beings at the foot of the mountain. However, he couldn't be sure if they were made by humans.

"Let's climb to the top of the mountain. Even if we don't find Gu Songzi, we might find other things."

The four started climbing the mountain. It was extremely quiet. They didn't run into any danger along the way. However, there was a very strong "might" on the mountain. The closer they got to the peak, the stronger the "might." It repressed a cultivator's five senses, strength, Spiritual Power… Every aspect of their body was weakened.

When they neared the mountaintop, a Taoist temple appeared before them.

It had been damaged long ago. The walls had collapsed and it was filled with weeds. Even the roof had fallen to the ground and rusted.

Zhang Ruochen glanced at the Saintesses. Their snow-white faces were covered in sweat and they breathed heavily. They were injured and had to endure the "might" from the mountain. Clearly, they were at their limits.

"No one knows if the mountain will still be so peaceful at night. Tonight, let us stop and rest in this temple."

With that, Zhang Ruochen started walking and took a step over the temple's doorway.

With just that step, strange noises sounded in his ears. There were sharp cries, the roars of savage beasts, women's sobs, and the clashing of weapons and battles. It was like stepping into another world.

Zhang Ruochen's expression changed. He quickly took his foot back. The noises instantly vanished.

What was going on?

He had to re-observe this ratty old temple. A moment later, he stepped in again. The noises returned to his ears immediately.

This time, he used his Heavenly Eye to observe the temple. He saw various black shadows zooming through the temple. Deep inside, there was a cloud of black Qi. Even the Heavenly Eye couldn't see clearly.

Those strange noises came from deep within the temple.

Zhang Ruochen had even gone to the netherworld before. He'd seen everything, so he was fearless. Continuing to be on-guard, he carefully entered the temple.

Immediately after, Qing Mo, Saintess Liuli, and Saintess Yuansu followed him in. However, they seemed very calm as if they couldn't see or hear anything.

"Qing Mo," Zhang Ruochen asked. "Do you hear anything strange?"

"No! Lord, what's wrong? Don't scare me?"

Qing Mo paled in fright. She moved closer to Zhang Ruochen, almost pressing her small frame against his body.

The Saintesses were also shocked. They spent all their time in the palace and hadn't even seen ghost soldiers before. They naturally feared getting involved with unclean things.

"No, I'm just joking."

Zhang Ruochen saw that the temple was quite peaceful. The black shadows seemed to fear humans and all retreated deep within the temple. Thus, he didn't tell the women what he'd seen and heard.

Perhaps only Spiritual Power Saints could see and hear it. Their cultivations were high, but their Spiritual Powers were far from Zhang Ruochen's level.

"You all stay here," Zhang Ruochen said. "I'll go set things up outside. Remember, do not venture deep within the temple."

He walked to the outside of the temple and took out the Time and Space Secret Guide. He prepared to use Spatial Twist and create a Spatial Maze.

If the Immortal Vampires found this place, he had to have ways to counter them.

Qing Mo and the two Saintesses were unsettled. Their eyes kept darting toward the deep end of the temple. They felt that Zhang Ruochen was hiding something. Were there really unknown creatures in the temple?

Zhang Ruochen hadn't set up a Spatial Maze before. He had to learn as he went.

A Spatial Maze was a chaotic space using multiple Spatial Twists. Each Spatial Twist had to follow a certain pattern. They had to connect with and complement each other. That way, enemies wouldn't be able to escape after venturing into it.

It was his first time making a Spatial Maze and it was quite tiring. Zhang Ruochen made many mistakes. He didn't manage to finish until the sun had set.

After completing, Zhang Ruochen felt quite accomplished. Smiling, he said, "With this Spatial Maze, even a Heaven Pass Blood General will have to suffer some losses."

He returned to the temple and saw that the Saintesses had taken off their armor. They wore silk palace robes embroidered with phoenix feathers. They had white undershirts and large patches of snowy-white skin exposed. One could see a tempting crevice.

They sat cross-legged on the ground, performing techniques. Thirty-six layers of Holy Qi enveloped their slender frames. They looked extremely holy and pure, like two beautiful jade statues of goddesses.

The female officials of Ziwei Palace were all known as fairies by human cultivators. Ziwei Palace represented the highest center of authority in Kunlun's Field. It was also the interconnection point of Spiritual Qi, the Qi fate of the human race, and rules of the world. It was like a world beyond the nine skies. Average people couldn't get close at all.

Saintess Liuli and Yuansu were indeed beautiful. They were elegant and holy. To cultivators below the Saint Realm, they were practically angels.

Qing Mo could see Zhang Ruochen's fatigue. She hurriedly got up and helped him sit down and rest.

"Lord, shall I roast a dragon claw for you?"

Qing Mo was confident in her cooking and wanted to try. She was also a foodie and had been wanting to cook one to eat.

Zhang Ruochen looked deep into the temple. Feeling worried, he didn't have much of an appetite, so he shook his head. "I'll cultivate first and try to reach level 53 for Spiritual Power. If you wish to eat, make it for yourself. Remember, don't let the smell spread, lest some scary creatures are lured over."