I offered sacrifices to the gods

The spirit insect flapped its wings and flew towards Lin Mo.

But he seemed to have anticipated this, gathering spiritual energy in his palm and instantly casting an insect-repelling spell.

The few spirit insects that Guo Sheng had just released were instantly stunned.

After all, they were all low-level spirit insects collected from the orchard, not some exotic or rare insects, and they quickly lost their fighting ability.

After switching to insect control techniques, Guo Sheng was virtually untouchable without the help of the spirit insects.

Lin Mo's expression turned icy cold. He mobilized his internal energy and unleashed a powerful punch.

boom!

The terrifying force of the punch even created a whooshing sound in the air, and in the blink of an eye, it landed on Guo Sheng's chest, sending him flying.

"puff!"

Guo Sheng, who was sent flying backward, spat out a mouthful of scarlet blood and fell directly into the deep, dark pool.

Having taken that powerful punch, his chest almost caved in.

After struggling in the icy water for a long time, completely exhausted, Guo Sheng swam to the shore and asked loudly with a look of extreme fear on his face, "How did you find it? This shouldn't be happening..."

Lin Mo walked towards him with a cold expression, while simultaneously gathering his qi and blood within his body, preparing to end his life with the next strike.

After cultivating the Blood Transfer Scripture to the point of internal blood energy cultivation, his physical strength was already quite remarkable, far surpassing that of other cultivators at the same level.

He had no intention of explaining too much to Guo Sheng. Since he had already taken action, he naturally had to eliminate the threat completely and prevent any future troubles.

However, the next moment, the man pinned to the stone wall chuckled and said, "Stop. If you kill him here, you'll be in big trouble too."

However, Lin Mo still did not intend to listen to his opinion, and his fists were clenched tightly.

"If you kill him, you will be completely at odds with the Hall of Punishments, facing enemies everywhere on the mountain. How can you possibly survive against the Abbot?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Mo sighed and finally stopped in his tracks.

Reason told him that this person was not lying to him.

"My name is Chen Guan. Now you can join the ranks of the Punishment Elders and plot together to deal with the Abbot." Chen Guan looked at Lin Mo with an appreciative gaze.

Lying trembling on the shore, Guo Sheng asked in a shaking voice, "Junior Brother Lin... how did you discover all this?"

Lin Mo took two steps back, standing on the other side of the pool, away from the two of them, and coldly said:

"First, you didn't die. The Punishment Hall clearly said they wanted to execute you as a warning to others, but you survived. And as soon as you came in, Senior Brother Chen inside immediately made a sound."

"Secondly, you were far too shocked when you heard that I was going to be used as the main ingredient in alchemy. Your reaction was even more exaggerated than mine as the person involved."

"Afterwards, on the way to get food, you didn't say a single word of comfort. Instead, you steered the conversation toward the pond, as if you couldn't wait for me to come back here."

"Third, the Punishment Hall probably wants me dead more than anyone else, but they are unwilling to completely break ties with the Abbot and put the conflict on the table."

"Therefore, locking me in the Evil Water Cave and having this Senior Brother Chen kill me is the best option."

Lin Mo was well aware of his current situation; the abbot, who wanted to refine him into a pill, did not want him to die.

The Punishment Hall, which did not want him to be refined into elixirs, still wanted to kill him.

"As expected of Lin Yang's brother, he's really smart. I like working with smart people." Chen Guan praised.

"Now we can talk about cooperation. With the abbot's abilities, he should be able to get you out of here as soon as possible."

"Before that, we need to come up with a solution as soon as possible."

Lin Mo shook his head and said coldly, "I can't trust you right now. If you want to cooperate, at least let me see your sincerity."

Chen Guan said in astonishment, "Are you crazy? You still want benefits at a time like this? Aren't you afraid of dying?"

Lin Mo turned around, left the area near the pool that was not affected by the water mist, and returned to the cave.

He left only one sentence: "The fact that the Master wants to use me as the main ingredient in alchemy has been your only story from beginning to end. Why should I believe you?"

After saying that, he left Chen Guan and Guo Sheng alone in the darkness, staring at each other in bewilderment.

...

Back in the cave, the water mist assaulted him once more. Lin Mo took a deep breath and immediately activated the Blood Transporting Scripture to resist the pain of the water vapor eroding his body.

In this process, he also began to seriously consider his own position.

What Chen Guan said is probably true.

The reason he didn't intend to cooperate readily with the Hall of Punishments was because he wasn't entirely sure he could trust them.

"The reason I'm still alive is because I still have value in watering the Dragon Blood Tree."

"The abbot grasped this point, which is why he chose a hostage from the royal family to cultivate the Blood Transporting Scripture and serve as the main ingredient for alchemy."

Within the Golden Sun Temple, though heaven and earth are vast, the Golden Sun Ancestor is the greatest.

After figuring all this out, Lin Mo breathed a slight sigh of relief. Ironically, it was his identity as a blood slave hostage that allowed him to survive for the time being.

"But ultimately, you have to make yourself strong, only then can you take control of your own destiny."

With this in mind, Lin Mo cultivated the "Blood Transporting Scripture" while pondering the correct ritual for paying homage to the True Lord of Xuanyuan Zhenming.

If you can successfully worship once, you will receive the blessing of this deity.

After thinking for a long time, Lin Mo reopened his eyes and stopped cultivating the Blood Transporting Scripture.

"The statue was unlocked after I first encountered the peculiar mist in the Evil Water Cave."

"After that, I kept circulating my inner blood energy to resist the erosion of these strange water mists. Perhaps the correct worship ritual should involve a deep contact with these strange water mists."

After thinking for a while, a resolute and ruthless look appeared in Lin Mo's eyes.

He voluntarily crawled down and knelt in the puddle at the bottom of the cave, then devoutly scooped up some of the foul water with his hands.

Immediately afterwards, he poured the water from his palm into his mouth and swallowed it.

Glug~!

If anyone else saw this, they would definitely think Lin Mo had gone mad, daring to swallow these vile waters that corrode the flesh.

In fact, Lin Mo himself was somewhat insecure.

After drinking it, his whole body immediately convulsed, and an indescribable pain exploded in his abdomen.

The sensation was as if countless blades were twisting and turning in his abdomen.

At that moment, he truly understood what it meant to be heartbroken.

But just as he was about to faint from the pain, the deep blue statue in the immortal palace in his mind emitted a faint light once again.

In an instant, the excruciating pain disappeared, and a halo of light flashed in my vision.

[Successfully paying homage to the statue of the Mysterious Abyss Suppressing the Sea True Lord once, the reward is: the method for refining the Water-Drawing Inner Elixir!]

[Next worship reward: Water Elemental Body]

...