Uncle Nine: Scattering beans to create soldiers? I'm using plants and trees to create soldiers.

The three of them quickly arrived at the door of the house.

The door was tightly closed, and a brass lock about the thickness of a thumb hung on the outside.

The lock was wiped very clean, indicating that people frequently come and go.

Uncle Nine glanced at the doors and windows, and after confirming that there was no sign of life inside, he suddenly raised his right hand and slammed it onto the wooden door.

boom!

The door lock and door frame shattered simultaneously, and the two wooden doors flew inwards and crashed to the ground.

Uncle Nine stepped inside first, followed by Lin Xuan and Chen Bingwen.

This is a study that is decorated quite elegantly.

The four walls are lined with tall bookshelves, densely packed with all kinds of books.

A dark purple desk was placed by the window, complete with an inkstone, Xuan paper, and paperweight. There was even a celadon vase with dried orchids next to it.

Everything here looks normal, but the white-robed scholar said before he died that someone was hiding here, so there must be a secret room!

Uncle Nine took out the dark blue scale he had taken from the Li family steward, put two fingers together, and gently wiped the surface of the scale.

A wisp of Daoist Qi was then injected into it.

hum-

The fine lines on the surface of the scales suddenly lit up.

The next moment, the scale flew up from Uncle Nine's palm on its own, circled slowly in the study, and finally flew straight to the innermost wall, hovering in front of a row of bookshelves.

Uncle Nine's eyes narrowed slightly. "There."

Lin Xuan stepped forward, pushed aside the books in front of him, and tapped the wall twice.

dong dong——

A hollow echo came from inside.

"It's hollow!"

He looked around and his gaze quickly fell on a kerosene lamp by the wall.

The kerosene lamp was fixed to the wall, its base shiny with oil, as if it had been touched frequently.

Lin Xuan reached out and grasped the lamp base, then gently turned it.

Click!

The sound of gears turning and mechanisms engaging immediately came from inside the wall. The bookshelf, along with the stone wall behind it, slowly moved to the side, revealing a dark, downward passage.

At the same time, a damp and cold aura wafted out from inside.

The three exchanged a glance and descended the spiral stone staircase. Soon, they arrived at an underground chamber.

On either side of the secret room were rows of ironwood cells, each holding several young women.

Some were only fifteen or sixteen years old, while others were already in their early twenties...

Most of them were disheveled, their faces were haggard, and their exposed wrists and ankles were covered with bruises and marks.

Heavy shackles bound their hands and feet.

Upon hearing footsteps, the women initially thought it was the Li family arriving, and their faces immediately showed fear as they scurried into the corner of the cell.

Several people even clutched their heads, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.

When they saw through the dim light that the person was wearing a Taoist robe, they were taken aback.

The next moment, as if grasping at the last straw, they rushed to the prison door.

Whoosh!

The chains dragged across the ground, making a series of piercing noises.

"Tao...it's a Taoist priest?! Save us! Save us!!"

"Thank God! Finally, someone has come to rescue us!"

"It wasn't the Li family who came?! Then what happened to those bastards from the Li family...? Were they killed by these Taoist priests?! It's truly a miracle!!"

"Waaaah... Three, three Taoist priests, my mother is still waiting for me at home, please save me!"

"..."

In an instant, the entire secret chamber was filled with the cries of women. Some of them were so emotional that they knelt down in front of the cell door and kept kowtowing.

Chen Bingwen's forehead veins throbbed with fury. "These beasts!"

The Li family has been operating in Huaiyuan Town for many years. They are known for their kindness and generosity, repairing bridges and roads, and donating money to build temples, earning them the praise of countless people.

But who could have imagined that they were secretly imprisoning so many innocent women!

Lin Xuan's face darkened. The Li family had hidden so many women in a secret room, presumably using them as breeding machines to produce water seeds.

The question is whether these women are pregnant.

Lin Xuan looked up and around, and soon found several sets of keys on the wall.

The keys were given to Chen Bingwen and Uncle Jiu, and the three of them then went their separate ways.

Click—

Click—

One by one, the prison doors were opened, and the heavy handcuffs and shackles were removed.

The women, now free, helped each other out of their cells.

Some people, having been imprisoned for so long, were so weak in their legs that they collapsed to their knees as soon as they stepped out of the cell.

Lin Xuan reached out to support her, and then channeled a wisp of gentle Dao Qi into her to help alleviate her weakness.

"Can you still walk?"

With tears in her eyes, the woman nodded vigorously, "Yes! I can! I'll crawl out of here if I want to get out!"

Lin Xuan didn't say much, but simply handed her over to another woman beside him.

Whenever they rescued someone, Lin Xuan and his companions would use their Daoist energy to examine the woman's heart meridian to determine if she was carrying an evil seed.

After checking everyone, Lin Xuan and the other two breathed a sigh of relief.

None of these women have been corrupted by the evil energy. Apart from being a little weak, they are otherwise normal.

It's unclear whether the Li family didn't have time to plant the seeds, or whether the white-robed scholar refrained from taking action due to his kind heart.

Soon, all the cells were opened.

Lin Xuan checked again to make sure no one was missed before pointing to the stone steps they had come from.

"Keep going up the stairs."

"After leaving the courtyard, immediately head to a crowded street and do not linger alone."

The women nodded repeatedly, then bowed to Lin Xuan and the other two.

"Thank you so much, Taoist priest, for saving my life!"

"Thank you, Taoist priest!"

"..."

After thanking them, the group of women stumbled and ran out of the passage.

Before long, they passed through the study and came to the courtyard.

When the sunlight fell on their pale faces, it stung so much that many people instinctively closed their eyes.

After their eyes adjusted to the light, someone looked up at the sky and suddenly froze in place. She hadn't seen such a bright sun in a long time.

"They're out..."

The woman's lips trembled slightly.

"We're really out!"

This sentence seemed to shatter the last line of defense in everyone's hearts.

Many people knelt down on the spot, tears streaming down their faces.

Some people grabbed handfuls of soil from the ground, some looked up at the sky, and some clung tightly to their companions, crying so hard they could barely breathe.

They lingered in the courtyard for a moment, then quickly helped each other out through the back door.

After everyone left, Lin Xuan and his two companions continued to explore deeper into the underground chamber.

Soon, they arrived at a stone wall at the end of the secret chamber.

The stone wall was covered with strange patterns, which intertwined with each other and looked very similar to the patterns on the bluish-black scales.

In the center, there is also a diamond-shaped groove.

Uncle Nine raised his hand and the dark blue scales floating beside him fell into his palm. He then pressed the scales into the groove.

Click!

The patterns on the scales lit up one by one, and the bluish-black light spread rapidly along the stone wall.

The stone wall trembled slightly and slowly opened to one side, revealing a more hidden stone chamber to the three of them!

This stone chamber is not large.

In the center stands a stone platform about half a person's height, upon which sits a strangely shaped clay statue.

The clay figure has a dragon head and a fish body, with its mouth wide open, two dragon horns curving backward, and its fish tail coiled around a lotus-shaped base.

The surface of the clay body is covered with a layer of bluish-black glaze, and a faint golden incense-like glow can be seen flowing between the gaps in the scales.

It is Chiwen, one of the nine sons of the dragon.

In front of the clay statue is an incense burner with an antique design.

The incense ash in the burner had piled up into a thick layer, but there were still more than a dozen incense sticks that had not been completely extinguished, emitting faint wisps of smoke.

At the same time, Lin Xuan clearly saw a blurry soul struggling on the surface of the clay figure.

It was the white-robed scholar who had just died!

His soul felt as if it were trapped in a thick swamp; with each struggle, his soul would sink a little deeper.

The incense smoke emanating from the gaps between the clay scales was like countless fine threads, tightly binding his limbs and neck, dragging him little by little into the depths of the clay.

Lin Xuan glanced at it, and a panel appeared first on the Chiwen clay statue.

【Chiwen Incense Clay Figurine】

[Quality: Green]

[Description: This Chiwen clay figure, reshaped from riverbed spiritual mud, incense-infused soil, exotic scales, and the remnants of dragon blood, can absorb incense, blood, and souls to nourish itself, strengthen the essence within the clay figure, and enhance its purity.]

[Entries: Incense Offerings Transformed into Spirits, Serpent Essence and Blood]

......

Green quality clay sculptures?!

This thing is even more powerful than the evil artifact from the Yellow Heaven Cult!

Moreover, this clay sculpture actually contains the essence and blood of a dragon!

So, what Li Fuhai meant by using flesh and blood to nourish the spirit mud was this?

Lin Xuan's pupils contracted, and his mind started working at lightning speed.

Both the clay sculpture and the water vein map of the Dragon King Temple contain the phrase "incense transforms into spirits," indicating that the two are likely from the same origin.

Moreover, the clay figurines contain the essence and blood of dragons and are related to "dragons".

The image of the water seed and the mutated white-robed scholar flashed through Lin Xuan's mind; they did indeed resemble a "demon"!

After the death of the White-Clad Scholar, his flesh and blood turn into mud, and his soul will automatically enter the clay body of the Chiwen.

This suggests that the bloodline of the Li family members may have long been integrated with that demon.

When they were alive, they were puppets who raised water spirits and collected incense offerings for each other.

Even after death, flesh and soul will still be used as provisions, to be completely devoured by the enemy!

The demon that could spread its bloodline evil magic throughout the entire family, steal incense offerings from temples, and meddle with local water veins must be incredibly powerful.

That "monster" was very likely born from the clay statue in the Dragon King Temple!

Thinking of this, Lin Xuan felt goosebumps all over his body.

If that's the case, then the "monster" behind the Li family must be a powerful demon!

Just then, a low, miserable scream came from ahead.

The white-robed scholar's soul had already been mostly pulled into the clay figure; if no rescue was provided, he would soon be devoured by it!

Lin Xuan quickly took out a Soul-Gathering Talisman from his Qiankun Bag, held the talisman between two fingers, and poured his Dao Qi into it.

"The profound origin of heaven and earth, the root of all vital energy."

"Return the soul to its body, by imperial decree!"

hum!

The soul-collecting talisman suddenly lit up, and a pulling force burst forth from the talisman, instantly binding the white-robed scholar's soul.

The soul shadow, which had been sinking continuously, suddenly stopped.

Lin Xuan pulled his wrist back, and the soul shadow was forcibly torn half a foot off the surface of the clay figure!

But the dragon-kissing clay figure was unwilling to give up the soul it had already captured.

The pale gold incense flames within the gaps in the scales suddenly surged violently.

The thin threads binding the soul's shadow tightened simultaneously, and a faint, low hissing sound came from the open mouth of the clay statue.

woo-

The entire stone chamber seemed to vibrate slightly.

The few remaining incense sticks in the incense burner burned almost completely in an instant, and billowing blue smoke surged towards the clay sculpture.

The white-robed scholar had barely separated from his soul when he was quickly pulled back.

The light on the surface of the soul-collecting talisman then flickered violently.

Lin Xuan's eyes narrowed, and he immediately activated his perfected tongue technique, uttering a soul-suppressing Daoist chant.

"Certainly!"

The sound resounded like the morning bell and evening drum, and the incense threads binding the soul's shadow suddenly stopped.

"receive!!!"

Lin Xuan infused his Daoist Qi into the Soul-Gathering Talisman, which shone with golden light!

Inside the incense burner, the incense threads vibrated violently, and then one after another they snapped.

The binding force on the white-robed scholar greatly diminished, and finally, his soul separated from the clay body.

Swish!

The grayish-white soul shadow transformed into a stream of light and was forcibly absorbed into the soul-collecting talisman.

A faint human figure outline immediately appeared on the surface of the talisman. The outline flickered twice before returning to silence.

Lin Xuan folded the talisman into a triangle with two fingers and put it into his system inventory.

Then, Lin Xuan looked at the clay sculpture in front of him.

Dengdengdeng-

The clay Chiwen statue on the offering platform seemed to be enraged and began to sway uncontrollably from side to side!

"How dare you, a mere manifestation of incense offerings, be so insolent before this humble Taoist?!"

"town!!!"

Uncle Nine snorted coldly and threw out a talisman to suppress evil.

The talisman, shrouded in golden light, descended vertically onto the clay figure's head, resembling a golden plaque bearing the six-syllable mantra used to suppress the Monkey King.

next second!

Brilliant light shines!

The riotous clay figures instantly fell silent, and the entire secret chamber became quiet.

"Master, this clay statue has been nourished by the Li family's incense offerings; it's almost demonic!"

"Why don't you let your disciple take it and use scriptures to help it pass on?"

Lin Xuan spoke, his face full of hope.

Uncle Nine glanced at Lin Xuan, knowing that his eldest disciple had noticed something extraordinary about the clay sculpture and wanted to keep it for farming.

"Um--"

"Thank you, Master!"

Lin Xuan smiled and walked directly to the offering platform to take away the clay figure.