Black Journey to the West: The Imposter Star Lord

Chapter 90 This kid, is he a member of the Northern Emperor's faction? (Five chapters combined)

No wonder the teahouse owner was crying so heartbreakingly; every time a disciple of Baolin Temple dies, Baolin Temple's points drop significantly.

It only took the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

The Five Plague Temple had already been decimated by Cao Xing.

With the Golden and Silver Hands combined with the Five Phases Dragon Transformation Technique, the dragon claws, as large as door panels, shone with dazzling golden light, annihilating all magic.

What protective Buddha light, Vajra talisman? They're all more fragile than paper. A sweep of the enormous dragon claw is enough to kill anyone who touches it, and cripple anyone who rubs it.

Buddhist ritual implements, such as the vajra, the eight-treasure kasaya, and the three-precept glazed pagoda, were slapped down by Cao Xing before they could even get close. The dragon claw gleamed with silver light and was incredibly powerful. These ritual implements simply couldn't withstand that slap.

What? You want to run away?

Cao Xing's [Azure Gold Ruyi] is no pushover; with a gentle wave, it glitters with golden light and riddles you with holes while you're still in mid-air.

"You evil Taoist priest, you've gone too far!! You deserve to go to the eighteenth hell!!"

Cao Xing glanced sideways and saw that the monk's lower body had been smashed by him. His face was full of resentment, and he was cursing him fiercely. Cao Xing had no intention of arguing and raised the Azure Gold Ruyi to strike him directly.

"Pfft~"

A beam of golden light struck, and a fist-sized hole exploded in the monk's chest.

In an instant, the surrounding area was littered with severed limbs. Cao Xing picked up the corpses and quickly searched them, and sure enough, he found several relics.

Without any hesitation, it immediately vanished into the earth.

The entire process was swift and efficient, as if it had been planned countless times in advance.

Some people timed it and found that it hadn't even been the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

Now, those who were previously complaining in the comments that the matchmaker was useless, and that she could even seduce a Foundation Establishment cultivator, have shut up.

Whether Hong Niangzi is skilled or not, they don't know.

But Cao Xing, as seen from above, is truly ruthless.

If you come to kill me, I'll retaliate and march on your lair.

If the golden incense in the incense burner hadn't been protected by the three gods, Cao Xing would have given it away.

Now look what's happened. I bet when Fa Hui comes back and sees this, he'll be furious.

Cao Xing's performance was not only noticed by the members of the Xianghui, but also by the three gods, Xin Tianjun.

"What a brilliant general! Whether this boy is a descendant of the Star Lord or not, I am already considering taking him under my wing." General Jin stared at Cao Xing, his eyes full of admiration for his talent.

There are countless demons and monsters in the Three Realms and Four Continents that are easy and easy to kill.

But not just anyone can meet their standards.

Cao Xing had just escaped death from Fa Hui's clutches. Most people would have run as far away as possible, but Cao Xing dared to directly raid Baolin Temple's stronghold. His courage and insight were beyond the reach of ordinary people.

In addition, their work methods are clean and neat. If they were my own subordinates, they would save me a lot of trouble.

"Hahaha, not bad, not bad, not bad at all. But General Jin, the Heavenly Aspect Palace is not a place of killing. I'm afraid this boy will not fall into your hands."

Yang Wenhui joked from the side.

Although Tianxiang Palace belongs to Ziwei, Ziwei is also divided into factions.

The Tianxiang Palace governs auspicious omens in the human world. Auspicious stars such as Zuo Fu, You Bi, Wen Chang, Wen Qu, Tian Kui, and Tian Yue can enhance one's luck with benefactors and provide assistance with documents.

In layman's terms, it's a logistics and cultural department.

So secretly everyone called them the Wenchang Party.

When it comes to the path of killing, one must look to the Seven Killings Star, but the Seven Killings Star belongs to the Arctic Exorcism Academy and is also known as the Northern Emperor Party.

The Wenchang Party and the Beidi Party greet each other with smiles on the surface, but behind their backs—well, you know what I mean.

Yang Wenhui's words immediately made Jinlang lose face, and he quickly changed the subject, saying, "Hey, will we be in charge of this kid in the future? If he really is a descendant of the Star Lord, the Star Lord will pave the way for him. Why should we worry about it?"

""

"Ahem!"

Xin Tianjun coughed lightly, interrupting Jin Langjiang, "Watch your words!"

Jin Lang realized he had said too much and immediately shut up, then asked, "Isn't it about time?"

"Hmm, about a quarter of an hour left."

Yang Wenhui realized he had said the wrong thing and stopped bringing up the previous topic, calculating the time on his fingers.

"Phew, this time it's really easy. In the past, the harvest was either done covertly or the harvesters would personally get involved at the end. This time, we can just watch from the sidelines." Xin Tianjun couldn't help but stretch.

"Heavenly Lord!"

At this moment, Yang Wenhui seemed to have thought of something and leaned close to Xin Tianjun, asking in a low voice, "Star Lord, do you think this plan is related to the higher-ups' plan to rectify official corruption?"

Xin Tianjun looked up at Yang Wenhui: "Where did you get this information?"

"The Plague Ancestor once mentioned it, but I don't know the specifics. It seems to have something to do with that mischievous monkey back then," Yang Wenhui said in a low voice.

"Heh!" Xin Tianjun sneered, patting Yang Wenhui on the shoulder: "The Jade Emperor sealed off the Peach Garden, Laozi lost the Nine-Turn Elixir, and who's this monkey's farce for?"

"Everyone's so narrow-minded right now, trying to do both things at once. I only have seventy years left before my tribulation. If I don't accumulate enough luck now, what will I use to withstand the heavenly tribulation?"

"This—" Yang Wenhui frowned and said in a low voice, "Isn't there still the Wuzhuang Temple?"

Xin Tianjun's lips twitched a few times: "Yes, you already know, do I need to tell you? I'm afraid they've already planned their escape route, just waiting for someone to take the stage."

Jin Lang, who was standing to the side, became increasingly confused as he listened, and hurriedly said, "Stop, stop! You two are still within the Heavenly Net. If you have something to say, go to the Dark Web."

While the three gods were chatting.

Cao Xing had completed his large-scale flanking maneuver, going around in circles before finally returning to the Five Plague Temple.

When Cao Xing returned to the Five Plague Temple, he saw that Wu Peng was already digging a pit, while Lu Hao and Xing Haitao were sitting cross-legged, recovering from their injuries.

Three corpses lay on the ground nearby: Yang Shengshui, Li Tong, and Zhang Jue.

"Thank God, you're finally back."

Upon seeing Cao Xing, Wu Peng immediately dropped the shovel in his hand, ran over, and excitedly hugged Cao Xing, patting him on the back with both hands: "Damn it, how come you were gone for so long? I was worried something had happened to you."

It's no wonder Wu Peng was so agitated; after all, a highly accomplished Buddhist monk with a golden relic had come to kill him, and Wu Peng himself had narrowly escaped death.

If he hadn't run so fast, he might have been one of those three corpses.

Cao Xing didn't mind Wu Peng's physical abnormality and gave him a big hug.

If he hadn't led Lu Hao and the others to risk their lives and use talismans to give himself a chance to escape, he probably would have had to recite secret incantations or be beaten to death by this bald monk.

This life-or-death bond is so strong that even if Wu Peng were to become a transvestite, he would still consider him his brother.

"It's alright, I went out this time to avenge you."

"revenge??"

Cao Xing stomped his foot, and the ground cracked open, from which bald corpses rolled up.

Wu Peng, Lu Hao, and Xing Haitao's eyes widened immediately, recognizing them all as monks from Baolin Temple.

The four corpses on the left and right were all incomplete.

"I just found the hiding place of that bald monk from Baolin Temple and killed them all in one go. There were eight of them in total, but I smashed the other four corpses to pieces."

Upon hearing Cao Xing's words, Lu Hao quickly opened the leaderboard and saw that Baolin Temple, which was originally ranked first, had its points plummeted and dropped to fourth place.

On the contrary, they took advantage of the situation and advanced to the third level.

"Hahaha, good, good, well done!"

Lu Hao was so excited that his eyes filled with tears. He burst into laughter and gave Cao Xing a thumbs up: "Junior Brother Cao, I was ignorant before, but because of what you did today, from now on I, Lu Hao, will admire no one but you."

Xing Haitao, standing to the side, trembled with unspoken words, but when the words reached his lips, he didn't know how to begin. He could only bow to Cao Xing and say, "Me too."

They had previously mocked Cao Xing, and even just now, the two thought Cao Xing was nothing but a shameless scoundrel. In order to save him, Zhang Jue and the other two died, but he had run away and they hadn't even seen a trace of him.

At this moment, after Cao Xing brought back the corpses of the four bald monks, his previous displeasure and opinions vanished instantly, and he even admired them from the bottom of his heart.

"We're brothers, no need for such formalities."

Cao Xing helped Lu Hao and Xing Haitao to their feet, then turned to look in the direction of the temple: "Where is Senior Brother Chen Xiang? Did he succeed?"

"Uncle Chen just fought with that bald monk and was slightly injured. He's still healing." Lu Hao had now changed his address to Uncle Chen.

He is now at the Golden Core stage. Regardless of whether he joined the sect before or after, he is now a true disciple. After returning to the Upper Temple, he will have a transcendent status, so naturally we should call him Martial Uncle.

"Are you injured?"

"Yes, it's fortunate that you, Junior Brother Cao, killed those bald monks from Baolin Temple, which alerted Fahui to the danger and made him flee immediately. Otherwise, Uncle Chen's outcome would have been uncertain."

"Okay, I'll go take a look."

Cao Xing entered the hall and saw Chen Xiang sitting cross-legged on a futon.

The moment Cao Xing's gaze fell upon Chen Xiang, his heart skipped a beat.

Why?

The situation is not right.

Cao Xing had met both Hong Niangzi and Fa Hui before, and knew what it was like to be a Golden Core cultivator.

As stated in the Crimson Blood Scripture:

Those who achieve the elixir.

Essence, Qi, and Spirit are in perfect harmony, like a pre-natal embryo, with a perfect and complete state, without form or constraint.

He is perfect in himself, without any flaws or defects, and has already stepped into the gate of immortality.

At this moment, Chen Xiang's eyes were sunken, his cheeks were thin, and his eyes were dull and lifeless.

What's going on here?

This state is like a breeding bull that has just come out of the Juxian Temple, turned into dried-out tofu dregs.

How could this possibly be the Core Formation stage?!

Cao Xing felt puzzled. He quickly scanned his surroundings and spotted the pill bottle lying on the ground. He raised an eyebrow, stepped forward, and bowed to Chen Xiang, saying, "Greetings, Uncle-Master Chen. I wish you success in your alchemy journey."

Chen Xiang opened his eyes, his sinister gaze sweeping over Cao Xing.

He heard everything that happened outside.

However, this did not change Chen Xiang's impression of Cao Xing. Even if he had deep opinions about Cao Xing, at this point, he had to place high hopes on Cao Xing.

Thinking of this, Chen Xiang forced a smile on his pale face: "Junior Brother Cao, let's not be so polite. If it weren't for your selfless protection, I probably wouldn't have made it this far."

"Our master is blessed with great virtue and divine protection; we are merely icing on the cake."

"Haha, stop calling me 'Uncle-Master'! We're all fellow disciples. I'll need your help a lot in the future."

After speaking for a while, Chen Xiang showed signs of fatigue. Upon seeing this, Cao Xing immediately got up to take his leave, and of course, he also put the pill bottle on the ground into his sleeve.

With the elixir bottle in hand, Cao Xing and Bi Xia immediately reconnected through the Heart Mantra.

After leaving the temple, Cao Xing sat down in a corner to meditate and rest, silently calling out to Bixia through a mantra: "Sister, did you succeed?"

"It's done."

After receiving his sister's affirmative answer, Cao Xing felt a great sense of relief, but then he also had a question: "Sister, are you sure you're okay with cultivating so fast?"

Before attending the Qiongshan Incense Gathering, Cao Xing and Bixia had only just reached the Foundation Establishment stage.

The incense gathering is only halfway through, and Bixia has already formed her core. This speed is simply outrageous, enough to crush those so-called geniuses in the sect.

Although Bixia's advancement speed entirely relied on the resource assistance of Chen Xiang, this big fat sheep.

But with such rapid progress, Cao Xing couldn't help but worry that Bixia's foundation was unstable.

"Brother, I'm fine. It's Chen Xiang who's in trouble."

Bixia's voice was light and even carried a hint of schadenfreude.

"Chen Xiang? Yes, he looked like a wilted eggplant just now. What happened? Did he successfully form his core?"

Cao Xing voiced the question that had been lingering in his mind.

Bixia broke things down and explained them to Cao Xing one by one.

First, there's the issue of advancing to the Golden Core stage. Advancing to the Golden Core stage isn't just about having sufficient cultivation; the most important thing is luck. The process of forming the Golden Core is a process of burning one's own luck.

If one's luck is insufficient, various troubles will arise during the pill-forming process, and there is even a risk of the pill breaking. Furthermore, the quality of the resulting pill will vary greatly.

Although this realm is uniformly called the Golden Core Realm, the quality and the results after forming the core are completely different.

The lowest grade pill is a lucky pill thread. This kind of inner core has the worst potential. Once it is formed, it is the peak. There is little hope of becoming an immortal in this lifetime. If there is, then one can only try to become the lowest level of beggar immortal.

There are only two paths for Ma Xian: reincarnation or starting over in the next life.

Xi Yao means to enter the underworld and become a beggar.

The road is incredibly narrow, with almost no upward access.

A mid-grade Yuan Dan, though in excellent condition, has limited potential. It requires supplementing one's innate constitution through acquired means and accumulating through rigorous cultivation. This process can easily take hundreds of years, and only with certain fortuitous opportunities can one potentially achieve perfection.

Of course, if one were to switch to cultivating to become a Beggar Immortal, the starting point would be stronger than that of a low-grade alchemist. Becoming a distant beggar official would be no problem, and if one were to be reincarnated, one could be born into a family that has accumulated good deeds.

A top-grade Golden Elixir—that's extraordinary. If one is willing, it's easy to attain the status of a Human Immortal.

If one is willing to settle down and continue to refine one's skills, it is possible to become a Celestial Immortal when one's cultivation is complete; if not, one can at least become an Earthly Immortal.

If one were to switch to the path of the beggar, that would be even more extraordinary. One would be reborn into a superior family, blessed with the power of the stars, possessing both literary and martial talents, and accompanied by extraordinary good fortune.

You say you're too lazy to fix things? Fine, then come work in the underworld. You'll start as a seventh-rank underworld official.

Further up are the Flawless Golden Elixir, and even the Dragon-Tiger Golden Elixir, the Boneless Relic, the Eight Treasures Relic, and so on. These are all called Extraordinary Elixirs.

This is an extremely rare Golden Elixir, which leads directly to the Path of Celestial Immortality.

Chen Xiang was actually quite lucky; without the aura, he would have been guaranteed a mid-grade Yuan Dan.

However, Bixia formed her core with him, which devoured most of his luck, causing his mind to be impure when he formed his core. In addition, Fahui suddenly attacked and killed three people. The barrage of fines kept flashing before his eyes. He was just a little short at the last step, which caused him to condense a low-grade core despite having excellent aptitude.

So this is ah.

Cao Xing suddenly realized that the second pill was damaged, resulting in a deficiency and lack of fullness, which explained why he looked like he had kidney deficiency.

"Sister, what about you?"

"A mid-grade Yuan Dan." Bixia didn't hide it.

"Mid-grade?" Cao Xing's heart sank.

For others, reaching the Yuan Dan stage is not bad, but how could my sister's aptitude only be able to reach the Yuan Dan stage?

This gave Cao Xing a distant idea, and he tentatively asked, "Is it because of me?"

Bixia paused for a moment before saying, "Brother, one of us must go faster."

Although he had already guessed it, he still felt a strong sense of guilt.

This woman is sacrificing her own future to pave the way for herself.

Sensing Cao Xing's feelings, Bixia continued, "Brother, I am a demon. Even if I have a flawless golden core, my future prospects are limited. At most, I will only be a minor demon. No, you are human. If you cultivate to become a celestial immortal, you will be a true celestial immortal."

Cao Xing took a deep breath; he knew Bixia was right.

A demon is a demon. Even if it possesses a flawless golden core and cultivates the path of celestial immortality, it cannot change its identity as a demon.

In the world of Journey to the West, being born a demon is tantamount to being born with an original sin.

The root of all evil, wrongdoing, is the object of the gods' exercise of justice.

So you're saying, why can't I be a good monster?

Hmm—if the Heavenly Court says you are a vicious and wicked monster, you'd better really be vicious and wicked.

But if you want to become a wicked demon, that would be against all reason and law.

The Yellow Lion Spirit, the grandson of the Nine-Headed Lion in Journey to the West, is a prime example.

This yellow lion demon usually controls his underlings, holds banquets with rakes, and even sends his underlings to buy chickens, ducks, pigs, and sheep.

Look how fresh this is! Are you buying food from a Hai person?

When Sun Wukong, Sha Wujing, and Zhu Bajie disguised themselves as merchants and drove cattle and sheep to the Yellow Lion Spirit's mansion.

Sun Wukong transformed into a small demon and told the Yellow Lion Spirit that he had sold eight pigs and seven sheep, a total of fifteen animals, for two and a half taels of silver, and still owed five taels of silver.

The Yellow Lion Spirit readily paid the money, and even when Sun Wukong asked to stay and watch the Rake Meeting, the Yellow Lion Spirit agreed.

This easy-going monster stole something from afar, and as a result, his entire family was almost wiped out.

In contrast, the black bear spirit became the guardian deity of Luojia Mountain.

The Roc has devoured people from an entire country, yet it still holds a place among the immortals.

Although the novel *Journey to the West* is a classic tale, it mentions that while some demons converted to Buddhism, very few of the truly virtuous and benevolent demons met a good end.

Ultimately, it's because you're a demon. If even demons start doing good deeds, what's the point of having gods?

By doing this, Sister Shi is actually the best solution.

Concentrate your resources to allow yourself more time to reflect, refine your cultivation, and walk the path of the celestial immortals.

It's like the family could only afford to support one college student, so the older sister dropped out of school early to work and support her younger brother's studies so he could get into Tsinghua University.

Cao Xing could understand this good intention, but he could only keep his guilt deep in his heart.

At the time of this gathering.

Fa Hui stared blankly at the corpses scattered all over the yard, her eyes bloodshot.

The air was thick with the stench of blood and the earthy smell of soil.

Wherever the light reached, there were severed limbs and broken arms; scarlet blood soaked through the blue bricks on the ground, pooling into glaring dark red puddles.

He recognized the familiar fragments of the kasaya and the broken, dull vajra scattered in the pool of blood.

"Master—Junior Brother—Faming—Fajue—"

Fa Hui's voice was dry and hoarse, each name sounding like a piece of gravel squeezed out from the depths of his throat, tinged with blood and foam.

When Fa Hui saw the stone claw embedded in the wall, his head buzzed.

All the causes and effects surfaced in my mind.

"It's him!!"

This method was exactly what that kid had done. He had failed to kill him in one fell swoop, and instead, he had let him escape. Fa Hui never expected that this kid would turn around and kill his family's hiding place and slaughter his entire family.

As the saying goes, cause and effect are cyclical and retribution is inevitable; if you harbor murderous thoughts, you will bring misfortune upon your family.

Fa Hui's eyes were blank.

Was I wrong?

Was it wrong of me to break the precept against killing and violate the Buddha's teachings?

"puff!"

A mouthful of scalding golden Buddha blood suddenly spurted from Fa Hui's mouth. As he spat out the blood, Fa Hui's face gradually contorted: "No, I did nothing wrong. The Buddha's teachings are compassionate, but they are not without the wrath of Vajra. It was I who failed to eradicate the root of the problem. My soft heart and leniency have brought about disaster."

Thinking of this, the sorrowful light in Fa Hui's eyes faded.

Fa Hui clasped his hands together, the grief and indignation on his face faded, replaced by a compassionate expression and a cold gaze.

"Namo Amitabha Buddha, Fa Hui respectfully wishes all fellow practitioners a glorious return to the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Namo Ratna Trayaya —"

""

After reciting a page of the Great Compassion Mantra, Fa Hui seemed to gain enlightenment, his body radiating Buddhist light, and his state of mind became even more perfect.

But when he looked again at the dragon claw embedded in the wall, a cold killing intent still lingered in Fa Hui's eyes: "Let's see how long you can hide."

"Thump!! Thump!! Thump!!!"

Three chimes echoed down from Qiongshan Mountain.

At the foot of Qiongshan Mountain, the crowd looked up blankly, many with expressions of despair.

As expected, the combined attack by the Sanqing Temple, Bailian Sect, and Guangyuan Temple failed.

The giant red-scaled python single-handedly slaughtered the three families, leaving only a few survivors.

With three teams at the bottom of the standings, they ultimately couldn't escape elimination.

Strands of golden threads fell from the sky.

These golden threads, dazzling and captivating, disregard spatial distance and architectural barriers, precisely locking onto people's heads.

[Your investment in Sanqingmang has resulted in a loss. Please make up the loss promptly, otherwise it will be deducted from the loss fee.]

Your spending has severely exceeded your limit. Please top up immediately!

[Your expenses have exceeded the budget. Tianluo has provided you with a loan of 3000 taels of silver for emergency use.]

Your usage fee has exceeded the limit. Please top up immediately!

"No! I still have money! I still have—uh!"

Some people screamed hysterically, begging for more time so their families could send the money over.

But the golden thread still swiftly pierced through the space between the eyebrows, leaving no room for negotiation or reversal.

A cultivator in the late Foundation Establishment stage had a deathly pale face.

He bet everything on Sanqinggao, and now the comments show that he owes as much as 58,000 taels of silver!

He frantically pulled out pills and magical artifacts, trying to use them as collateral to recharge his account, but the appraised value displayed by Tianluo was pitifully low, a drop in the ocean.

"This is outrageous! I'll fight you to the death!"

His eyes were crimson, and he suddenly summoned a holy sword, his magical power surging around him, attempting to cleave through the golden threads and force his way out.

But under the heavenly net, how could a mere mortal possibly resist?

"laugh!"

The holy sword struck the golden thread like rotten wood hitting divine iron; it shattered inch by inch without even a spark.

The gold penetrated his layers of magical shields without any hindrance and precisely entered his brow.

Before he could even form the idea of ​​self-destructing his golden core, his body rapidly decomposed and annihilated under the entanglement of golden threads, turning into specks of golden light and disappearing without a trace.

On the streets, in the squares, in the restaurants—the tragedy shrouded every corner of the Qiongshan Xianghui.

"Swish, swish, swish——"

The sound of golden threads piercing the air blended into a symphony of death.

Hundreds and thousands of golden threads pierced down, accompanied by desperate screams, choked sobs, curses, and countless expressions of grief—all part of the tragedy.

"father!!"

The noodle shop owner's daughter was clinging to her father's leg.

With tears streaming down his face, the man stuffed all the silver he had into the girl's arms: "Go home, head east, remember, don't wander off, stay on the main road, go home, you must go home, Dad was wrong, Dad is sorry."

"Whoosh!!"

As the golden light descended, the man's myriad words came to an abrupt halt. The next moment, along with the silver coins in the girl's arms, they all turned into specks of golden light and vanished without a trace.

As the thousands of rays of light gradually dissipated.

The once bustling Qiongshan incense fair was eerily quiet. Ya Xi could hear the cries of a child and the wails of a woman and child.

Those who survived, aside from a sigh, looked at the power they had poured into the present moment, their faces no longer showing the fervor they once had, but only a deep sense of fear.

The five most prominent families are Shangfangmang, Baolin Temple, Lingqianfu, Rukunling, and Yalongshan.

Leaving aside Shangfanggao, the other four families are all favorites in this incense-grabbing contest, and the lives of tens of thousands of people are involved in the fate of each family.

Soon after, the rules for the third round of incense-grabbing were also introduced.

Holding the golden incense stick, head straight for the mountaintop. If the golden incense stick is destroyed during the process, you will be eliminated.

If the incense burns out and you fail to reach the top, you will still be eliminated.

If a player voluntarily withdraws during the event, they must apply in advance, one incense stick's time prior. Withdrawing will result in a penalty and deduction of points. The player will be removed from the stage and their score will be calculated based on the length of the incense stick that falls into the incense burner in the palace. The player with the highest total score wins.

However, the journey up the mountain is not easy, as there are extremely fierce plague beggars guarding the mountain.

Of course, if you feel that the incense in your hand is not long enough, you can steal incense from others to increase its strength.

However, the more money each side bets, the more benefits they receive. For example, Baolin Temple is only 30,000 taels short of unlocking the first benefit: a magical artifact specifically designed to counteract the plague horse.

[Baolin Temple will definitely be able to cook, there won't be any problems. Everyone, please support me and add to your bets on Baolin Temple.]

The teahouse owner kept sending out barrages of messages, urging everyone to increase their bets on Baolin Temple.

At this point, whether or not one can survive depends on the strength of Monk Fahui. Considering Monk Fahui's performance in the previous brief exchange with Chen Xiang, he has already defeated Chen Xiang. The number of people who have been defeated is not small.

The teahouse owner finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the amount steadily increasing and the first reward had been triggered.

"Shopkeeper, would you like a sip of your fine wine?"

Zhang Qiang carefully walked up and brought out a cup of tea. He noticed that the shopkeeper had been standing inside the counter for quite some time without taking a single sip.

The shopkeeper didn't even glance at the cup of tea; instead, he stared at Zhang Qiang and pressed, "Did you raise the stakes?"

"I listened to the shopkeeper and bet all my money."

Zhang Qiang quickly nodded and said.

Hearing Zhang Qiang's words, the shopkeeper finally showed a hint of displeasure and nodded: "Not bad, you do have some brains. Don't worry, Baolin Temple is bound to win. As for that high-level Core Formation cultivator above, many people have said that he seems to have formed some kind of Lower Core, so he's nothing to worry about."

"Yes! Yes! Yes!"

Zhang Qiang just kept nodding, his face showing no anger or resentment. No matter what the shopkeeper said, he kept nodding, his clear black and white eyes staring at the shopkeeper's increasingly distorted face. It was a face that was very familiar, but why did it feel more and more unfamiliar to him the more he looked at it?

"What are you standing there for? Go get to work!"

"Shopkeeper, there's no one here."

Zhang Qiang glanced back at the teahouse lobby.

The lobby was empty; apart from the still-warm teacups on the table, there wasn't a single guest in sight.

Upon hearing this, the shopkeeper belatedly stood up from the counter, looked at the empty teahouse, and seemed to wake from a dream: "They're all dead?"

""

"No, but no one is drinking tea anymore. I heard from one of the guests that he wants to go to the Blind Lookout to see the distant view clearly, and a few other guests want to have a good meal and then go to the Red Smoke House to take a nap."

Zhang Qiang's words were devoid of emotion, unusually quiet.

The shopkeeper grinned and laughed, "Hahaha, they're all dead! It's good that they're dead. With you all dead, I'm the winner."

As he spoke, the shopkeeper glanced at Zhang Qiang again.

"Put out the stove. You're not going to stay here either. Go out for a walk and see what's going on."

"Shopkeeper, I have no money, what am I going to do outside?"

Zhang Qiang scratched his head and patted the purse at his waist with his other hand. The purse was already empty, showing that there really wasn't a single tael of silver in it.

Seeing this, the shopkeeper squinted at Zhang Qiang and took out five taels of silver from the counter: "Go on, it's the end of the year, take a good rest."

Zhang Qiang's eyes lit up, and he snatched the silver. However, as he touched the silver in his hand, he looked up at the shopkeeper and said, "Shopkeeper, why don't you just keep betting this money? I won't bet."

Hearing Zhang Qiang's words, the shopkeeper nodded with satisfaction and waved his hand generously: "I don't need your little bit of gambling. I plan to take out the deposit for this shop and put it in as well."

"You're really generous, shopkeeper."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Qiang no longer stood on ceremony, took the money, and turned around to extinguish the stove.

These stoves are charcoal stoves used for burning charcoal. They are wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, and are filled with charcoal. When Zhang Qiang used his charcoal knife to burn the fire, it immediately went out, but thick smoke billowed out, which was very irritating to the eyes.

"Shopkeeper, I'll take the stove out and go have a good meal."

The shopkeeper waved his hand, then turned back to post comments, urging everyone to continue placing bets.

Zhang Qiang walked to the door, glanced back at the shopkeeper, and left without saying a word, carrying the stove.

When they reached the corner, they pushed the stove over and pulled out a metal box from the charcoal.

Ignoring the fact that it was hot, Zhang Qiang quickly took out the tin box.

Upon opening it, one finds scattered pieces of silver and copper coins inside.

Zhang Qiang stuffed the five taels of silver the shopkeeper had given him into the iron box, then turned and left, clutching the box.

"Swish swish——"

Four auspicious clouds swept across the forest, only settling down at the foot of Qiongshan Mountain.

Chen Xiang was in front, Wu Tuo was behind, holding a golden incense stick that was four feet tall, and Lu Hao and Xing Hai Chou were on the left and right sides, protecting him.

Chen Xiang looked up at the mountain in front of him.

Originally, I thought Qiongshan was not high, a small mountain whose top could be seen at a glance. But now, thanks to the changes in the ground network, this mountain has become towering into the clouds.

Once you get to this point, the Cloud-Soaring Talisman will lose its effectiveness.

However, at this moment, the soil beneath the four people loosened, and Cao Xing's figure emerged from the soil. The surrounding earth energy quickly gathered around him, transforming into a four-zhang-long earth dragon.

"Come on up, I'll take you up!"

Everyone looked at Cao Xing's four-zhang-long dragon body and couldn't help but feel envious.

This Dragon Transformation Technique, though it cannot reach the heavens, can burrow underground. When killing, it can absorb the surrounding earth's energy, move mountains and rocks, and is infinitely wondrous, truly unparalleled among its peers.

Even Chen Xiang was extremely envious of Cao Xing's methods.

After the four of them jumped onto the dragon's body, Cao Xing did not take the main road to the mountain. Instead, he went straight up the steep mountain wall and quickly climbed the tent. His speed was not exactly like walking on the ground, but it was as fast as a saint.

If it weren't for the fact that he couldn't use earth-遁 (earth-遁 is a technique in Chinese fantasy novels) to carry others, Cao Xing would have already used earth-遁 to travel directly to the mountaintop.

Just as they reached the mountainside, the five were suddenly engulfed by surging gloom.

Thick, inky fog, carrying a biting chill, instantly blocked out all light, making it impossible to see one's hand in front of one's face.

Chen Xiang suddenly raised his hand, and flames burst forth from his palm as he slapped at the gloomy clouds ahead.

"Snapped!"

With a loud bang, flames burst forth, illuminating the gloom.

The dark figure flashed by quickly in the distance.

"What is that thing?"

The dark figure was moving too fast for Wu Tuo and the others to see what it was.

"monkey!"

"What??" Everyone turned to look at Cao Xing.

"It's an ape—"

Cao Xing paused for a moment, then said, "It doesn't seem like that."

Everyone was now confused. Wu Tuo said, "Old Cao, what do you mean by 'it is and it isn't'? Is it or isn't it?"

Cao Xing shook his head, his eyes flashing with light. With the help of the "Jia Mu Qing Ling Fu", he had indeed seen several monkeys.

Even though these apes maintain a standing posture and look just like humans at first glance, their long monkey tails are unmistakable.

But what he wasn't sure about was that the monkeys had disappeared too quickly; it wasn't the movement of monkeys, but more like—

beggar.

"Sister, did you see it clearly?" Cao Xing asked Bixia.

"I don't recognize him."

Bixia recognized the monkey, but she didn't recognize the monkey she had just seen. Her limited knowledge was a weakness of hers.

Bixia then added, "It's not alive."

"Whatever it is, let's speed up and rush over there. Leaving it here is a waste of time."

At this moment, Chen Xiang said to Cao Xing that Wu Tuo's incense had already burned a small section in a short time. If they continued to delay, the incense would burn out before they could even rush up the mountain.

"Hold on tight, I'm going to speed up!"

Cao Xing took a deep breath, mobilized more of the surrounding earth energy, and forcibly raised the four-zhang earth dragon to five zhang, its huge body rushing straight into the forest like a bulldozer.

This action immediately triggered a chain reaction.

Countless incoherent, rambling words echoed from the surrounding smog.

The sound came, and after listening for only a short while, I felt a splitting headache and my vision was filled with strange images.

"go!"

Sensing something was wrong, Chen Xiang formed a hand seal, and a precious talisman appeared.

Southern Dipper Calamity-Slaying Talisman - Golden Light Mantra.

The talismans activated by a cultivator at the Core Formation stage are far more powerful than those activated at the Foundation Establishment stage.

A warm sensation spread through everyone's body, followed by a golden light enveloping their entire being, and the noisy whispers immediately disappeared.

Before everyone could catch their breath, Cao Xing spoke up, reminding them, "They're here! Make your move!!"

As he spoke, Cao Xinglong swung his claws out, his golden and silver hands covering them. The huge palm slammed down in front of him, and several dark figures were directly slammed to the ground.

There was no blood, no corpses, only a wisp of black smoke drifting away beneath the dragon's claws.

Seeing this, everyone took out their talismans and threw them around. With the help of the talismans' light, Wu Tuo and the others were able to see the appearance of the dark figure.

Just as Cao Xing said, they were apes, but these apes had festering sores and pus all over their bodies, their skeletons exposed, and they were slashing at the crowd with bone sickles.

Lu Hao's protective magic weapon was struck by the sickle wind, instantly becoming covered in gray dust and its spiritual light dimmed.

"what!"

Xinghai Chou suddenly screamed in agony. Without warning, fine, bloody cuts appeared on the back of his bare hand, and grayish-black buds, like maggots, crawled out of the flesh and wriggled.

Unlike the fleshy sprouts that grew at the Five Plague Temple, these sprouts were pitch black, emitted a strong stench, and were rapidly spreading up the body along the mouth.

"Pfft!" Upon seeing this, Wu Tuo slashed at Xing Hai Chou's hand, severing it directly. The intense pain made Xing Hai Chou wince and instinctively greet Wu Tuo affectionately.

With just a turn of his head, Xinghai Chou saw that the severed hand had rotted into a pile of rotten flesh, with black maggots crawling out of the flesh. He felt somewhat fortunate. If Wu Tuo hadn't cut off his hand, it probably would have turned into this pile of rotten flesh as well.

"Here, I'll take it!"

At this moment, Wu Tuo handed the golden incense to Xing Haichou, who then took over blocking the left-hand man.

Wu Tuo didn't have many tricks up his sleeve, but he was very decisive. With one hand holding a willow-leaf-shaped talisman, he continuously unleashed talismans. The two protective magic artifacts alternated in front of him, and for a time, he truly made it impossible for Wu Tuo to defend himself.

On the high tower, Xin Tianjun and his two companions watched the actions of the crowd below. When they saw the plague monkeys, Xin Tianjun's heart skipped a beat, and he asked, "What are these monkeys—?"

"Yes, they are the monkeys from Flower Fruit Mountain." Yang Wenhui knew what Xin Tianjun was asking and directly stated the origin of these monkeys.

"Back then, Bi Ma Wen destroyed the Book of Life and Death of the monkeys in Huaguo Mountain. After Xian Zhenjun was in chaos, he ordered the Meishan brothers to kill all those monkeys. After these monkeys died, because there was no Book of Life and Death, the underworld would not accept them. They were all sent to the Plague Department and imprisoned in the Plague Capital, where they became Plague Monkey Beggars."

"I see!" Xin Tianjun suddenly realized.

It can only be blamed on the fact that Bi Ma Wen was too reckless back then. Life and death are predetermined. You destroyed the Book of Life and Death, which seemed to grant them endless lifespans, but in reality, it only meant they lived a few more years.

He deserved to die.

On the contrary, because they have no name or surname in the Book of Life and Death, they fall into the underworld and are not accepted. Their souls have nowhere to rely on, so they can neither enter the cycle of reincarnation nor go to hell.

These rebellious monkeys were eventually banished to the Plague Capital, which was worse than going to hell.

"Can they handle so many plague monkeys?"

Jinlang couldn't help but worry as he watched Cao Xing's swarm of plague monkeys grow larger and larger.

Fairy Qing'e said she was putting pressure on those above, but isn't that going too far?

"It's alright. Let's see what this junior of the Star Lord can do. If he really can't hold on, he can recite a secret incantation and I can drive away these plague monkeys." Yang Wenhui waved his hand, indicating that everything was under control.

But before he could finish speaking, his eyebrows twitched uncontrollably, and he glared down at Cao Xing: "Black Law? No?? This kid really is a member of the Far Northern Imperial Party??"

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