The Quest for Immortality

Finally!

Caught a weakness at last...

Mo Hua was elated inside, but on the surface, he remained composed, merely maintaining a stern face as he asked, ”What altar?”

”The altar where offerings are presented to the Divine Lord...”

”Where is it?”

”In...” Mr. Witch hesitated.

Mo Hua kindly reminded, ”Master Xiao is not a patient man. If you don’t speak, he may well cut you open.”

Mr. Witch panicked and hurriedly said, ”It’s in the inner hall of the Dragon King Temple!”

Mo Hua’s eyes flickered slightly, then he shook his head and said,

”Something’s not right. You didn’t ask for anything in return, not a single condition, just revealed the altar’s location so easily? There’s definitely something off...”

Mr. Witch smiled wryly, ”The blade is in your hands; I am just fish on the chopping block, how dare I make any demands. It’s enough if you spare my life. If I die, I can’t serve the Divine Lord with loyalty and devotion.”

This Mr. Witch, even in the face of death, still thought about his ”Divine Lord.”

Who knows how his brain has been washed.

Mo Hua shook his head.

Nearby, Master Xiao pondered for a moment; unwilling to delay further, he pointed his longsword at Mr. Witch’s throat. Between his narrowed eyes, there was a gleam, and he said coldly,

”You lead the way to the altar and fetch the Fish Bone Token you have hidden, and I won’t kill you.”

Mr. Witch, trembling with the sword pointed at him, said, ”Alright, I’ll take you there...”

The long-desired altar, Mo Hua was eager to go there too.

But with so many watching, he had to pretend and said with a worried look,

”I fear it might be a trap...”

Master Xiao shook his head, ”It doesn’t matter.”

Mo Hua added, ”This Mr. Witch may not have good intentions, and that altar might not be a good place either...”

Master Xiao said, ”With so many of us, and four Golden Cores, in this Dragon King Temple, there’s nothing to fear. As for Mr. Witch...”

”On this journey, at the slightest stir, I’ll have Mr. Witch meet his end first.”

Mr. Witch’s face twitched, but he dared not say anything.

He only had Foundation Building Cultivation; unless he turned into the invulnerable Dragon Scale monster, he was not a match for Master Xiao.

Mo Hua then sighed and said, with some reluctance,

”If that’s the case, let’s follow Master Xiao’s advice and go take a look at the altar.”

Master Xiao nodded and, with his sword, gestured to Mr. Witch, ”Please lead the way, sir.”

Mr. Witch’s face turned sullen, but under the circumstances, he had no choice but to agree.

”Everyone, follow me...”

Mr. Witch glanced around, paying his respects guiltily to the corpses of the temple guards on the ground, and then turned to proceed toward the Yaksha Hall. ṛ𝘼NоΒĘS̈

Entering the Yaksha Hall, they saw statues standing on both sides of the path, with limbs, covered in scales, bearing grotesque blue faces and fangs—these were yakshas.

Seeing this, Mo Hua mumbled to himself.

The appearance of these yakshas somewhat resembled the monster that Mr. Witch transformed into.

Mr. Witch did not glance at these statues and continued deeper inside.

Passing through the Yaksha Hall and several other halls, they arrived at the central hall of the Dragon King Temple.

The moment they reached the central hall, blood was everywhere, and everyone’s expressions subtly changed.

As far as the eye could see, the entire central hall, with countless pavilions and halls, had mostly been dismantled. Beams had collapsed, leaving behind ruined walls. It appeared desolate and barren.

And the ground all around was soaked with filthy blood.

The blood was dark, fetid, and seemed to conceal abundant evil power.

Mo Hua pondered for a moment, pulling out an iron rod. After soaking it in the water for a while and retrieving it, the rod had been corroded by evil qi, its iron loosened—and inside was black and red.

Mo Hua turned his head to Mr. Witch and asked,

”Is this bloodwater used to draw an Evil Formation?”

Mr. Witch’s heart pounded, but on the surface, he appeared confused and flustered, saying, ”Young master, what Evil Formation, I don’t know...”

”Aren’t you a Formation Master?” Mo Hua asked.

”I am indeed a Formation Master, but I truly know nothing about this bloodwater.”

”Then what happened here in the main hall? Why is it all collapsed?”

”This...” Mr. Witch hesitated.

Mo Hua’s voice turned slightly cold, ”Those people outside, whom you killed and consumed, you can claim ignorance. But this destruction of the temple is evidently not an overnight affair, and as the person in charge at the Dragon King Temple, don’t tell me you don’t know even this?”

Mr. Witch’s face twitched lightly and he said, ”By the order of the Divine Lord, this Dragon King Temple was to be renovated and rebuilt. Therefore, the halls were dismantled for reconstruction, but...”

Mr. Witch said helplessly, ”...we hadn’t started before this happened. All the temple guards died, and I don’t know how I ended up like this, or where all this bloodwater came from...”

Mo Hua frowned and remained silent.

Master Xiao, scanning around with indifferent eyes, spoke,

”Enough, discussing this is futile, let him quickly lead the way. Finding the altar, getting the Fish Bone Token, and leaving this wretched temple is what’s important.”

Mo Hua nodded and said nothing more.

Mr. Witch dutifully led the way.

The bloodwater on the ground was both filthy and bloody, unsafe for cultivators to touch, so they had to find another path through the ruins, taking more time.

After a bumpy journey, they made their way through the ruined central hall, across the sprawling pool of crimson blood.

And beyond the central hall, there stood a massive gate before them.

The gate was five or six people tall, topped with temple eaves, wide and heavy, adorned with murals. Between the two closed doors lay a grotesque ram’s head stone lock.