Desolate Temple

"Roar!" Angry snarls rang out one after another.

The Black Panther bound by the Demon Vine struggled desperately, but could hardly break free of its restraints.

Fang Mu borrowed the Bee Tail Sword from Fang Jing and shot it toward the Black Panther in a flash.

The Black Panther had already been paralyzed by the Demon Vine and could no longer evade the sword Fang Mu fired at it.

"Roar!" Amid a snarling, agonized scream, the Black Panther, pierced through by the Bee Tail Sword, let out a shrill cry of pain.

Fang Mu hurried forward to withdraw the Demon Vine, then activated the Demon Refining Mirror, turning it into a streak of golden light that enveloped and refined the Black Panther.

In the blink of an eye, the Black Panther turned into blood, and a mid-grade Essence Blood Pill soon appeared in Fang Mu's hand.

"Xiao Jing, swallow the pill."

Fang Mu set down Fang Jing, whom he had been carrying on his back, and handed her the pill he had just obtained.

Although Fang Jing was curious about the origin of the golden light and the pill, she was clever enough not to ask.

After tilting her head back and swallowing the pill, she felt warmth spread through her body. The pain and illness afflicting her seemed to have eased considerably.

Picking up the Bee Tail Sword nearby, Fang Jing flourished it, feeling newfound strength surge through her hand.

"Brother! My body seems to have recovered. Look, I can even wield a sword."

Seeing Fang Jing wave the Bee Tail Sword with a smile all over her face, Fang Mu could not help smiling as well.

"Brother! I want to cultivate too. I'll protect you in the future!"

"Good—be careful!"

Before Fang Mu could finish speaking, he suddenly cried out. The long sword left his hand in a streak of light and struck a streak of azure radiance, ringing with a clang.

The Demon Vine was like a spirit snake, shooting toward the azure radiance in an instant.

But the azure radiance was incredibly fast. Just as the Demon Vine was about to bind it, it had already fled into the distance.

Fang Mu let out a furious shout, turning into a streak of light as he pursued the fleeing azure radiance.

That azure radiance was the Green Snake. It had been launching sneak attacks from the shadows all along, leaving Fang Mu extremely annoyed.

After chasing for some distance without catching the Green Snake, Fang Mu instantly turned back and returned to Fang Jing's side.

"Xixi!"

At that moment, Xixi poked its little head out from Fang Jing's arms, and vines stretched toward Fang Mu as he returned.

Fang Mu raised the arm bearing the contract runes. The vines spread over and instantly merged into the runes.

Xixi turned into a streak of green light and was drawn into the runes. A message flowed through the contract into Fang Mu's mind.

Fang Mu was somewhat surprised, but a smile soon appeared on his face. He felt that Xixi's abilities could be kept as a trump card.

Carrying Fang Jing on his back, he continued deeper into the forest. After walking for some time, he encountered no further attacks.

When he emerged from the dense forest, Fang Mu discovered traces of blood on the wild grass not far away.

"Brother! Look, there's a temple over there." Fang Jing pointed at a temple in the distance, speaking with some curiosity.

Fang Mu glanced at the distant temple suspiciously but did not pay it any mind.

After pondering for a moment, he carried Fang Jing over to the wild grass and carefully examined the bloodstains.

The blood had not fully coagulated. It seemed to have been left there only recently.

Looking through his Black Eyes, he saw no trace of Demonic Energy remaining on the blood. He leaned down and sniffed the faint scent of blood.

Fang Mu determined that it was human blood. After slaying demons for so long, he might not have learned much else, but his ability to identify blood was quite accurate.

"Could someone from Wen Xuan or Qi Zhu have been injured?" Fang Mu wondered suspiciously, making a silent guess.

Remaining on guard, Fang Mu followed the bloodstains on the ground all the way to the desolate temple nearby.

The blood trail ended outside the temple, making it impossible to tell whether the injured person had entered.

At that moment, Fang Mu noticed that the wild grass in front of the temple clearly bore traces of being trampled.

Seeing that dusk was approaching, Fang Mu did not dare linger.

The temple might be dangerous, but once night fell, it would be even more perilous. Thus, without hesitation, Fang Mu lightly tapped his toes and swept through the air like a qinggong expert, flying over the ancient temple wall.

Glancing at the tightly locked temple doors, Fang Mu ignored them and flashed forward.

"Qi Zhu! Wen Xuan!"

Fang Mu shouted several times, wanting to determine whether anyone was inside the temple.

As for whether this would alarm whatever was hiding within, Fang Mu did not care.

Perhaps it was somewhat reckless, but hiding and playing cat and mouse only to be ambushed and schemed against was worse than openly drawing out the enemy and facing it head-on.

The ancient temple was somewhat dilapidated, and quite a few skeletal remains lay scattered across the courtyard.

There were also many objects resembling black clay jars placed throughout the compound. No one knew what they contained.

The temple consisted of only a main hall and a side hall, both built from black stone.

Carrying Fang Jing, Fang Mu flashed to the entrance of the main hall. Looking at the tightly shut doors, he slowly set Fang Jing down and motioned for her to retreat two steps.

The two tightly closed doors looked thick and heavy, like a pair of black wooden doors.

Carved upon them were two half-human, half-divine guardian statues. Both statues glared furiously with scarlet eyes, looking more like demons than gods.

This place clearly did not seem like a benevolent one, but Fang Mu still activated the Demon Vine and smashed open the two doors.

After an unpleasant creaking sound, the wooden doors were knocked open.

Inside was a Buddhist Hall, with meditation cushions for worship, incense tables for offerings, and other such objects.

Stepping into the hall, Fang Mu saw several enormous Buddha statues dressed in kasayas.

The main hall was somewhat dark, and Fang Jing grew frightened, hiding behind Fang Mu.

Looking at the Buddha statues that were both similar and strangely different, she asked in a hushed, bewildered voice, "Brother! Why do all these Attendant statues have human bodies and demon heads?"

Fang Mu did not answer Fang Jing. He circled the statues and studied them for a while, discovering that the three largest Buddha statues all had snake heads atop human bodies.

This was very likely a demon temple, a temple built by demons to obtain faith.

Pulling Fang Jing as they slowly withdrew from the main hall, Fang Mu remained extremely vigilant. This was not a good place, and it was best not to stay.

The main hall was silent. When Fang Mu and Fang Jing exited it and reached the outside, the sky suddenly darkened.

"Not good!" Fang Mu muttered inwardly. He grabbed Fang Jing, lightly tapped his toes, and quickly headed outside the temple.

Just as he was about to rush over the temple wall, a streak of azure light shot toward him, reaching him in the blink of an eye.

Unable to dodge in time, Fang Mu, who had been prepared, instantly produced the Golden Sword and slashed into the azure light.

A shrill cry of agony rang out as the azure light was cleaved in two and sent flying beyond the temple wall.

At that moment, darkness descended. Countless shadows rapidly spread over from the distance.

Watching the Golden Sword transform into a streak of golden light that enveloped him and Fang Jing, Fang Mu felt worried but managed to remain calm.

He had to test whether the Golden Sword's golden light could withstand the corrosion of the darkness.

If the Golden Sword could block the darkness, Fang Mu would undoubtedly possess a protective talisman, allowing him to come and go freely through the darkness without ever again fearing its arrival.

Soon, the darkness swept rapidly over, enveloping him before continuing to spread ahead.

The Golden Sword did not disappoint Fang Mu. Like the Golden Buddha, it possessed the ability to resist the darkness.

As he watched the darkness envelop the temple, a hazy wall of light shone from within the main hall, slowly driving the darkness back to a distance of three zhang.

The temple walls were not covered by the light. At that moment, Fang Mu heard a terrified, shrill cry.