90 The Temple

They took to their flying swords the moment they felt a spike in resentful energy. But when Liu Sumeng and Yuan Xuelan arrived at the Wayward Wind Temple, it was already too late.

There were no more cries as they approached, only groaning sounds typical of the undead.

The main gate was left ajar.

"It looks like you are too late," Huo Tang huffed from her perch in the branches above. She took a glance at the temple from above the walls and saw the waddling corpses that dotted the place. A strange chill caught her off guard and she no longer felt safe in her little spot atop the tree.

Huo Tang flew back down and nestled in Liu Sumeng's robes.

"How does it look?"

"No powerful demonic spell afoot yet. Just the usual corpses, nothing too difficult for the likes of you…Though. Well, I'm not entirely certain but there might be something creepy inside."

"Creepy?"

"Yes," was all Huo Tang gave as an answer. Unfortunately, her power was still too weak and unstable to discern what she felt clearly.

Without the mist, there was only the groaning bodies of Wayward Sect disciples and Elders aimlessly waddling about.

Liu Sumeng wondered if the Hidden Mist would have looked like this too, without the fog obstructing their view.

Probably not. The Hidden Mist had a lot more people than the Wayward Wind when destruction struck.

"That trash…" Yuan Xuelan raged when his eyes fell upon the horror. He had no doubt about the perpetrator of this tragedy and it pissed him off knowing that Peng Jipei would really go this damned far.

His fingers curled around Silei but Liu Sumeng's hand reached over and covered his. The fire in his heart instantly stuttered. Yuan Xuelan's rage turned into shame, "I just-"

Liu Sumeng only shook his head, "Don't draw Silei yet. I'll take care of things."

Yuan Xuelan lowered his eyes and nodded, which made Liu Sumeng feel inexplicable pity. What…was this? A giant puppy pouting at him? The Ivory Sword Saint reached over and patted Yuan Xuelan on the head before moving on.

"...?" Yuan Xuelan was not given a chance to ask questions about the sudden action. He could only blink dumbly as the Ivory Sword Saint left him standing at the gate. "W-wait!" He called after.

They advanced quietly, without attracting too much attention.

Yuan Xuelan had grown used to depending on Silei in the past few months and almost forgot about the myriad of spells and talismans he had at his disposal. Woops. And so he tested out binding spells and barriers on the lumbering corpses that caught his attention.

But it wasn't as if the Ivory Sword Saint needed his assistance in the first place.

He felt a little down, like a hunting dog left without a task. He could sit around and whine at his master's heels. Should he wag his tail more, or give more puppy eyes? Maybe he'd win more attention that way…

Yuan Xuelan grumbled internally, chiding himself for thinking such ridiculous things.

In front of him, Liu Sumeng made quick work of any corpses that dared venture too close.

Past the front gate was a quaint pebbled path that wove through thickets of bamboo, with the towering Wayward Wind Temple that hid far back. It was large and grandiose and there was a time when the Wayward Wind sect competed for a spot among the top sects in the cultivation world.

Such a time was long over, and evident with how sparse their foes were. Compared to the rampaging hordes they faced in Hidden Mist's cavern, the random corpses they were fighting now seemed like a joke.

Still, it paid to be cautious.

There was still Peng Jipei and the corrupted corpse of Cao Hong out there.

And who knew what other monsters they brought with them.

Before they made it to the temple that was nestled in the back of the court, Liu Sumeng noticed something in the corner of his eye. There was a small group of corpses hunched over something, clawing and fighting among themselves.

It was a curious thing and Liu Sumeng decided that it was worth investigating.

Those hideous things didn't even have the chance to realize what was coming before they were cleaved apart, leaving behind heaps of twitching gore.

"What's that?" Yuan Xuelan asked as he joined the Ivory Sword Saint's side. With the corpses moved out of the way, they saw a young man lying on the grass.

"Huh, is he dead?" Yuan Xuelan asked curiously as he knelt at the young man's side to get a closer look.

He was donned in greens and Gray's typical of his sect. There was a little bit of blood on his head and a thin layer of a protection spell barely still flickering on his body.

Liu Sumeng suspected if they were a moment later, the corpses would have been tearing away at his flesh. "He's alive."

Yuan Xuelan seemed to take this as permission to slap the young Wayward Wind disciple in the face. When that didn't work he took the man by the collar and began to shake him.

Liu Sumeng only watched.

And Huo Tang, stared incredulously at this entire scene. For the first time, reason squawked out of her little beak, "I am doubtful those ridiculous actions of yours will work."

Yuan Xuelan clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes, "Can't say I didn't try." He put the man back down and began to rummage through his robes. Only then, did the Ivory Sword Saint speak up, "What are you doing?"

"Hmm?" Yuan Xuelan hummed as he continued to grope around for hidden pockets and pouches. He was at least trying to do it in a way that didn't involve stripping the man of all his clothes. That felt a little inappropriate in front of Liu Sumeng. "These Wayward Wind guys are sure to have some useful restorative pills on them won't they?"

"..." Yes but that didn't warrant ransacking through an unconscious man's clothes like a thief. "We have restorative pills too," Lou Sumeng said. And to prove his point he pulled one out and knelt down to give it to man.

"Huh? What but that's ours," Yuan Xuelan whined but didn't stop Liu Sumeng from feeding it to the unconscious man. But something else distracted his interest from rummaging around under the Wayward Wind guy's clothes, "Oh hey! I guess this is why our buddy here wasn't torn to pieces."

He pulled out a clumsily carved lucky cat from the man's robes. It was not made with much skill but probably a lot of care and love. Though it was definitely luck that allowed him to survive long as he did. A telling crack was already deep upon the innocent little lucky cat.

Liu Sumeng got the man to swallow the pill, but the effects were not immediate.

A growling sound was heard behind them with resentful energy thick.

It was a Wayward Wind Elder, a woman, who had met her end not long ago. There was not yet rot settling into her muscles and her visage appeared almost alive.

There was something different about this corpse and it did not reach at them with savage clawing fingers and instead, raised her sword and charged at them.

Liu Sumeng eagerly met her with his blade. Her strength as well, was not ordinary, even for a corpse. And the Ivory Sword Saint recognized immediately that he could not overpower her with strength alone.

Still, he had skill.

But what had originally seemed like a wild swing, the corpse maneuvered delicately to twist from the powerful down cut into a counterattack.

Interesting.

But still it was not enough to challenge the Ivory Sword Saint's skills…

At least not alone.

There was rustling as brushes were pushed aside, grass crunching beneath steps.

Half a dozen more of these ghouls inched forward, their eyes sharp and swords in hand.

This wasn't good.

Liu Sumeng looked over his shoulder, "Xuelan."

Yuan Xuelan nodded, "Guess it can't be helped." He reached into his robes and pulled out a set of talismans and unleashed them on the fiends that surrounded them. While the ghouls retained their swordsmanship and could react to human movements, they seemed less wary of the talismans that stuck to their heads that made them stutter in their movements.

The stun was only temporary and Yuan Xuelan did not waste time hauling the unconscious man onto his back.

Liu Sumeng aimed his sword at the closest corpse, using the momentary stun to the maximum effect and cleaved off the thing's sword arm before making short work of it before it could react.

However he couldn't say the same for the rest of the surrounding fiends as the talismans on their heads began to burn off with a black flame.

They didn't stay around any longer and made their escape toward the looming tower.

There were only a few corpses that tried to stand against them but they were small fry that fell easily to Mingshin's silver edge and Yuan Xuelan's talismans.

The wide green gates were heavy but otherwise had no resistance when Yuan Xuelan and Liu Sumeng pushed it open. They were quick to seal it shut, buying more time from those warrior corpses.

However, the interior of the tower was arguably no safer than outside.

There was a dense cloud of resentful energy. Low grumbling and tearing sounds echoed across the wide first floor.

The hall was spacious and was wide with a square floor planning. An elevated stage sat upon the center of the hall with stairs that hugged the side of the hall. A winding wooden stairwell could be seen weaving above, no doubt leading to higher points.

The floor was scattered with the dead. Their movements, unlike the creatures outside, were suspended. Blood was abundant with globs of gore that littered in disgusting clumps on the ground with robes torn to shreds.

A single figure sat in the middle of the room, where a small pile of corpses were piled. The figure was hunched over, busy stuffing its face and tearing at flesh with bloodstained teeth. Its eyes were red and glowing, overflowing with resentful energy and its robes, once green, were unrecognizable under a layer of blood and filth.

It ate and ate, unaware of the two cultivators and one unconscious man that have entered its territory.

"Not sure if this is a good idea…" Yuan Xuelan grumbled.

Liu Sumeng remained quiet.

The little phoenix that hid itself in the Ivory Sword Saint's robes had opinions to share as well, "Hm, is the man you are searching for even here?"

It was a good questiont. There was no reason to waste energy on the fiends littered in the Wayward Wind Manor if Zhao Fanyu wasn't even here.

Currently, Liu Sumeng was interested in a few things.

One, was the information the unconscious man could divulge. Surely he had more of an idea about what happened and could more easily lead them to Peng Jipei's location.

It was alarming that they have yet to see any trace of Cao Hong in the vicinity and it led Liu Sumeng to believe Peng Jipei wasn't here after all, at least not anymore.

But there was something else that interested him as well.

The Ten Thousand Eternal Star Bead.

He knew for a fact it was hidden somewhere in the depth of the Wayward Wind Temple. It was imperative they find this treasure before the likes of their enemies.

And Liu Sumeng had a good feeling that if they locate the Ten Thousand Eternal Star Bead, they will surely come across both their missing person and their enemies.

"We have to remain in the temple," Liu Sumeng said. He pressed his lips together, wondering how he should explain his reasoning. "The treasure is here."

Yuan Xuelan raised a brow, "Treasure?"

"...Peng Jipei will come."

Yuan Xuelan stared back. He wasn't entirely sure what the Ivory Sword Saint was saying or entirely sure about his train of thoughts and reasoning. But it was only news that Liu Sumeng was bad at words and blunt in his opinions.

"Okay," he said, "You're going to have to explain a bit better…but I trust you."

Liu Sumeng looked down. A pink flush colored his cheeks out of embarrassment. Well he'd definitely been a bit sparse with his explanations. "The Ten Thousand Eternal Star Bead is here…Zhao Fanyu has hidden it in the temple. Peng Jipei…will come to find it."

"Wait, wait. That's a lot to unpack there," Yuan Xuelan blinked, "How did Zhao Fanyu-- wait no more importantly, why is Peng Jipei even bothering with the Ten Thousand Eternal Star Bead?"

"Yang Sehan and Hui Ziwang."

"Sumeng…" Yuan Xuelan sighed and scratched the back of his neck, trying to fill in the words unsaid.

"...They need it.The reason…isn't clear. But they are after the treasures…This is something I know." Something he knew from his previous life. But the true reasoning was never uncovered, even then.

Yuan Xuelan thought about this. He wasn't able to come up with any sort of conclusive answer before they were interrupted.