He Yiliang Came Calling

The man moved fast, landing right in front of Lin Chen in the blink of an eye.

Lin Chen looked him up and down but didn't recognize him.

Besides, this was Sect Leader Peak. There was no need to worry that anyone would try to harm him here.

His gaze sharpened, but his voice stayed calm. "Who are you? How do you know my name?"

"My name is He Yiliang. I'm an Outer Elite Disciple."

The newcomer didn't seem hostile. He stopped three meters away.

"I came here unannounced today because of Lord Qin of Clearwind City."

At those words, Lin Chen immediately grew wary. "So you're that accomplice who helped Lord Qin commit his crimes?"

He Yiliang frowned. He didn't understand what the phrase meant, but he could guess Lin Chen was insulting him.

So he hurriedly explained, "Junior Brother Lin Chen, I mean you no harm, and I'm not here to avenge Lord Qin, because..."

As he spoke, his voice trembled slightly. "They killed my family, too."

What?

Lin Chen's pupils contracted to pinpoints, and a murderous intent shot from his eyes.

"Why should I believe you?"

The man had shown up too suddenly, and his intentions were unclear. Lin Chen remained on guard.

He Yiliang looked grief-stricken. "I investigated your Lin Family. Your whole family was killed, and you were the only one who survived.

"The same happened to my He Family. I was the only one left alive."

Even after hearing this, Lin Chen still couldn't trust He Yiliang.

He even suspected that the man had taken part in the massacre.

A surge of anger rose within him.

"Have you ever seen a pair of Purple Eyes in your dreams, or even found yourself sleepwalking?" He Yiliang's face was ashen, his lips trembling slightly.

Lin Chen felt as if he'd been struck by lightning. He froze on the spot.

He had seen those eyes only twice.

The first time had been in the illusion on Heavy Mountain Path.

The second had been in his dream the night before.

Could the illusion on Heavy Mountain Path have been the key to awakening those eyes?

Lin Chen suddenly thought of a crucial question.

Perhaps that illusion hadn't been restoring his memories at all. Perhaps it had been awakening the eyes.

If so, Green Mountain Sect couldn't escape any connection to the whole affair.

"How do you know about this? What do those eyes mean?" he pressed.

As he spoke, fear suddenly appeared on He Yiliang's face. Terror threatened to spill from his eyes.

Lin Chen could tell he wasn't pretending. His fear was genuine.

"Because I've seen those eyes in my dreams, too. They're the nightmare of the Soul Trial!"

Seeing He Yiliang's dazed, lost expression, Lin Chen stepped forward and grabbed him by the collar. "Explain yourself! What do you mean, 'Soul Trial'?"

"The hatred of a destroyed family, the fury of a life taken—the flames of vengeance scorch the soul. Endure them, and you enter the next trial. Fail, and your soul is scattered!"

Listening to He Yiliang's incoherent rambling, Lin Chen felt a nameless agitation rise in his chest.

He shoved He Yiliang away.

The man had already lost his mind.

It looked as though he'd been suffering for a long time.

Lin Chen drew a deep breath. Thinking of those eyes, he felt his eyelid twitch. "Will I end up like this, too?"

"Bro—ugh! Senior Brother, why did you come looking for me?" Lin Chen looked at He Yiliang, speechless.

He hadn't even said anything yet, and the man had already broken down. How were they supposed to talk?

"Hahahaha..."

He Yiliang suddenly burst into wild laughter, then bolted away and vanished.

What was that supposed to be?

Lin Chen stood at the foot of the mountain and slowly calmed down.

In truth, He Yiliang had already given him some information.

First, Lin Chen wasn't the only one who could see those Purple Eyes.

Second, the eyes tormented those who bore them and could drive them mad.

Third, this seemed to be some kind of trial: pass, and you moved on to the next stage; fail, and your soul was scattered.

Fourth, Green Mountain Sect was likely connected to all this.

Or rather, someone within Green Mountain Sect was.

After putting these pieces together, Lin Chen decided to keep quiet.

He Yiliang was a case in point.

Perhaps those eyes could sense the thoughts of whoever bore them.

If they sensed that their secret was about to be exposed, they would drive that person mad.

Lin Chen walked slowly up the mountain, his mind heavy with worries.

All his good mood from earlier had vanished.

Halfway up, he turned straight into the Sect Leader's Hall.

Ming Bufan was still reviewing Jade Slips and memorials.

"Lin Chen? Is something weighing on your mind?" Ming Bufan's gentle voice came before he even looked up.

Lin Chen walked over and asked quietly, "Eldest Senior Brother, do we have any historical records about Green Mountain Sect?"

"Hmm?"

Ming Bufan stopped what he was doing and looked up, his expression calm. "Are you trying to investigate the massacre of the Lin Family?"

Lin Chen wasn't surprised that Ming Bufan knew about his background.

Every disciple who joined the sect underwent a thorough investigation.

It was both to protect the sect and to protect the families of its disciples.

Lin Chen nodded, then shook his head. "Yes and no. I want to look into the origins of Heavy Mountain Path."

"Heavy Mountain Path?" Ming Bufan stood and walked to the huge bookcase behind him, where layers of Jade Slips were arranged in neat rows.

He searched for quite a while before finding one. He took it down and handed it to Lin Chen.

"You can read it here, but you can't take it away."

Lin Chen accepted it with both hands. "All right!"

Holding the Jade Slip, he sat right down on the steps of the hall and focused on reading.

It turned out that Green Mountain Sect had a history of a thousand years.

A thousand years ago, this place had been called Purple Demon Abyss.

A Purple-Eyed Giant Demon had wreaked havoc on the mortal world there.

Later, a Daoist master came and personally suppressed the Purple-Eyed Giant Demon.

But by accident, he opened the Barrier of Purple Demon Abyss. Within it were tens of thousands of giant demons, all eager to descend upon the mortal world.

After a fierce battle, the master sealed the Barrier at the cost of his life.

He died here, and his soul fell into slumber on Heavy Mountain Path.

The name Heavy Mountain Path was a homophone of "retreat," because it was actually the master's life-bound treasure—the Heavy Mountain Blade.

The Barrier of Purple Demon Abyss lay sealed beneath it.

A Purple-Eyed Giant Demon?

Lin Chen's expression grew grave. Could the Demonic Beasts be reviving?

He continued reading.

Before the master died, he had set up a Formation here and left behind his inheritance.

Green Mountain Ancestor had happened to pass by at the time. He entered the place and obtained the inheritance.

Using it, he founded Green Mountain Sect.

He also took over the task of maintaining the seal.

For a thousand years, the seal had never known peace.

It had been violently attacked three times, but the cultivators of Green Mountain Sect had driven the demons back each time.

Later, Heavy Mountain Path became a place where disciples were tested.

Lin Chen read all the way to the end, but found no record of anyone encountering Purple Eyes on Heavy Mountain Path.

"Could I have been mistaken?" Lin Chen put down the Jade Slip.

Those Purple Eyes had appeared on the day of the Lin Family massacre.

Could he have already been afflicted by them then?

And was Green Mountain Sect connected to this after all?

Lin Chen's doubts only multiplied.

He needed more evidence before he could prove anything or draw a conclusion.

More than anything, he worried that if he reported this now, he would be treated like a monster.

That was what concerned Lin Chen most.

"What is it? Didn't find what you were looking for?"

Just then, Ming Bufan walked over quietly.

"Actually, the Jade Slips here were all organized later. If you want to see a more complete record, you'll have to go to the Scripture Depository. They have older texts there."

Lin Chen stood and cupped his fist toward his eldest senior brother. "Thank you, Eldest Senior Brother. I'll head back and get lunch ready."

"Sure. Just give me the Jade Slip."

Lin Chen returned it and turned to leave.

Watching his back, Ming Bufan furrowed his brow slightly.