novellk #671 - Formation loopholes, causal entanglement
#671 - Formation loopholes, causal entanglement
As Lin Yu had expected, Xuan Yunzi's so-called Taoist temple was indeed the one that Seagull and the others had seen before.
This made Snow Owl, Seagull, and Gaoshan feel suspicious and guarded.
"Taoist Master Xuan Yunzi, this bandit stronghold is right next to your Taoist temple. Why have you been sitting idly by for so many years?"
Gaoshan was the most straightforward in such matters, asking directly.
After all, Xuan Yunzi came from a famous and upright sect, and it was his responsibility to eliminate demons and defend the Dao—besides eliminating demons, he shouldn't have ignored villains like bandits who were harming the local area.
Xuan Yunzi sighed, "The reason for this is also related to why I am alone in this mountain. You will understand when we arrive."
Xuan Yunzi said, "The Taiqing Sect currently has more than 300 disciples traveling between these Two Mountains and Six Prisons. Do you know how many Twelve-Guan-level demons there are in these Six Prisons alone?"
Naturally, none of the six could answer, as they didn't know much about the Prison Mountain Realm.
Lin Yu also didn't know, as long as Old Zheng didn't speak and the little cheat sheet Shen Bingmiao gave him beforehand didn't mention it.
Seeing that the six couldn't answer, Xuan Yunzi continued, "According to the Four Great Daoist Sects' calculations, there are as many as three thousand Twelve-Guan-level demons that are still active and confirmed not dead!"
Hearing Xuan Yunzi's words, the crowd, who had already prepared themselves for a potentially large number, was still shocked.
"Three thousand?!"
Twelve-Guan-level demons were no ordinary small demons. Even Sanyang, who led a group of demons and occupied a mountain, was only at the Seven-Guan level!
Even though the Prison Mountain Realm was vast and full of countless mountains, this number of three thousand Twelve-Guan demons… was still too many.
"How did the humans in this world survive?"
Li Nian couldn't help but mutter.
"Judging from what we've seen along the way, they haven't really survived."
Seagull said with some dark humor.
Taoist Master Xuan Yunzi said, "Yes, this is one of the reasons why I am the only one guarding near this Double Saw Mountain… Although the seal on Double Saw Mountain is loosening, it's not considered an urgent matter compared to the entire Two Mountains and Six Prisons."
He sighed, "Deqing Temple has already sent people twice, but unfortunately, it's only a second-rate sect, and the people who came weren't deep enough in realm and Daoist practice to see anything… That Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Thread Demon Lord is no ordinary demon either. Its abilities are good at hiding, and it is extremely insidious by nature."
On the way, Taoist Xuan Yunzi spoke slowly, and soon they arrived at the Taoist temple.
"Everyone, we've arrived!"
"This Taoist temple is exactly the same as the one we saw before!"
Flying Dagger couldn't help but say, his tone a little doubtful.
"This… what's going on?"
Feeling that things were strange, Flying Dagger stood at the door, unwilling to go in.
Lin Yu also took the opportunity to say, "Indeed, Senior Xuan Yunzi… we saw an identical copy of your Taoist temple inside Double Saw Mountain not long ago."
Xuan Yunzi looked at Lin Yu, seemingly not surprised, "As expected, you also found the Taoist temple in Double Saw Mountain."
"Little friend, don't worry, this is my method of restricting that Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Thread Demon Lord," Xuan Yunzi said with a calm smile, "There are five such Taoist temples in Double Saw Mountain and the surrounding four mountains."
"Although the ancestor's methods were exquisite, and I dare not tamper with the original formation, I can still modify a new formation on top of this formation," Xuan Yunzi said, also feeling somewhat ashamed, "But the role this formation can play is only to limit the activity of the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Thread Demon Lord's main body… Over the years, many of the merchants and residents who have traveled to this area have still been killed."
Xuan Yunzi said, pushing open the door of the Taoist temple.
Lin Yu nodded and followed Xuan Yunzi directly into it.
After all, he could feel that Xuan Yunzi was not lying or acting, and there was no malice in his spirit towards his group.
The scene inside the Taoist temple was exactly the same as the one inside that temple, even the damage to the statue and the wear and tear on the floor were similar.
Lin Yu quietly went around to the backyard, where there was indeed an identical skeleton wearing a tattered Taoist robe sitting in the courtyard!
Seeing this skeleton, Lin Yu asked again.
"Senior Xuan Yunzi, I'm afraid you didn't build five of these Taoist temples. It is indeed the same one, right?"
Xuan Yunzi nodded, "Little friend, you have good observation and comprehension… The five Taoist temples on different mountains are indeed all one."
"I only built one Taoist temple inside Double Saw Mountain. The remaining four Taoist temples… I calculated against the Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Thread Demon Lord and used the demon's own ability to counter it, which is how they appeared."
"You must have seen some of the abilities of this Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Thread Demon Lord. In addition to releasing those spider silks and the spider demons that belong to it, its most core ability is to make people disappear silently and then turn them into puppets."
"Although the records within the Taiqing Sect are not detailed, I have dealt with it for decades in this mountain and have roughly figured out the most core ability of this demon," Xuan Yunzi said solemnly, "That is the innate divine power called 'Causal Thread'—this demon can rewrite a person's past through spider silk."
"The deeper you are entangled with it, the shallower your own karma is, the easier it is to be tricked. The only way to resist is to stick to your original heart—once you find a deviation in your memory, you must quickly recall your true past and reorganize your karma."
"Although it doesn't really change a person's past experiences, it can deceive the heavens and others… It's like covering the truth with the false past it creates."
"And what this divine power consumes is people's souls—once it completely overwrites the past, the soul will become a puppet for it to manipulate."
"This is also why I didn't report to the Taiqing Sect and didn't even dare to spread this matter too much, because this Thousand-Eyed Thousand-Thread Demon Lord has been trying to release itself over the years by modifying its own past."
"And the fact that modifying the past is too heaven-defying. For this, it needs a large number of souls… The closer it is to its imprisonment back then, such as us Taiqing Sect people, the more effective it is for it to modify."
Xuan Yunzi said here, then said, "And I am using this in reverse… I don't resist at all, and I actively let the demon devour my past."
"What it doesn't know is that I have also cultivated the natal divine power 'Qi Transformation External Body'. After it devoured 'Xuan Yunzi'… I immediately activated the external body, causing my main body to die and disappear, and at the same time activated the arranged formation!"
"In the end, the 'Xuan Yunzi' made into a puppet died immediately, and with the formation launched at the moment of death, it covered the four formation loopholes that it created for itself in the 'past'!"