Tang Sect
The mountain path winds its way upwards, passing through a forest full of strange poisonous plants and old bamboo before finally arriving at the Tang Sect's gate.
A tall stone archway stands at the end of the mountain path, with the two characters "Tang Sect" carved in gold on a black background on the archway. The strokes are cold and hard, and tiny mechanism holes are faintly visible between the cracks in the stone, indicating that there is a hidden danger. On the side of the stone archway, a line of small characters is carved. "Trespassers will die."
Beyond the stone archway lies the main gate of the Tang Sect. The gate is forged from thick, dark iron, with intricate patterns on the door panels forming grooves for hidden weapons. The door knocker is made of bronze animal heads, its verdigris gleaming with a cold, eerie luster.
Instead of stone lions, there are two bronze mechanical statues about half a person's height in front of the gate, with dark glass inlaid in their eyes, silently facing the way they came. They can be activated instantly if there is any unusual movement.
The high walls on both sides stretched up the mountain, with countless hidden crossbow windows scattered across their surfaces. At the base of the walls grew patches of strange, dark green flowers with a slightly bitter scent, which were poisonous plants cultivated by the Tang Sect.
A thin mist drifted in from the mountains, carrying with it the scents of herbs, iron, and faint poisonous plants. The smell wasn't pungent, but it made one secretly wary.
Two Tang Sect disciples dressed in gray outfits stood guard on either side of the gate, each with a Myriad Mechanism Box hanging from their waist. They stood calmly, their eyes scanning each visitor who came up the mountain.
"Fellow Daoists, please inform you that I am Zhang Qinwan, and I am here with distinguished guests from the Hogwarts Academy to request an audience with your sect leader."
At the entrance, Zhang Qinwan bowed to the two Tang Sect disciples. After returning the bow, the disciples didn't even glance at Su Yu and the others before turning around and going inside to report.
"These people are so unreasonable!"
Callis complained to Pansy beside her, "They've all come, aren't they going to greet them? They're an exchange group, aren't they?"
But Pansy was still taking care of Malfoy, who was barely breathing beside her, and didn't hear what Callis was saying.
Just as Blaise and the others were starting to get impatient, footsteps finally sounded again from behind the door.
With a low, metallic scraping sound, the massive iron gate slowly slid open to both sides. Behind the gate was not a spacious courtyard, but a deep, winding bluestone passageway. The passageway walls were riddled with hidden holes, allowing sunlight to filter through from above and fall onto the cold stone ground, making every step seem fraught with danger.
Looking inside, the towering pavilions with their overlapping eaves stretch upwards along the mountainside, and you can vaguely see gears and copper locks peeking out from between the eaves. The entire Tang Sect is like a giant beast lurking in the mountains of Sichuan.
"Everyone, the sect leader requests your presence. Please follow me."
The Tang Sect disciple ushered everyone in without showing any remorse for keeping them waiting so long. His tone was even arrogant, as if he looked down on the few Western trash magicians in front of him.
"Hmph! I don't know where you got your confidence from." Blaise snorted, expressing his dissatisfaction. This Tang Sect really didn't take them seriously.
"Don't rush, Blaise, let's go inside and talk."
Su Yu patted Blaise on the shoulder and went inside first. Kids are always so impulsive; wouldn't it be better to throw him a Tailed Beast Bomb once he's inside?
Actually, Su Yu was quite curious about the Tang Sect, a sect that combined assassination techniques with secret poison-making skills and was adept at taking lives with hidden weapons invisibly. However, after seeing them from the mountain gate to here, he not only didn't feel any novelty, but was also somewhat disappointed.
Everyone says that the Tang Sect of Shu Region is unparalleled in its hidden weapons and poison techniques, but in Su Yu's eyes, this sect has long been trapped in old ways and has accumulated many problems.
Everything is meticulously designed and ingenious; hidden weapons are polished in every way, poisoned bait is prepared layer by layer, and the setup of mechanisms involves a great deal of complicated procedures.
Every Isshiki, every weapon, every poison must strictly adhere to the old rules passed down from their ancestors, refusing to make any changes. Their methods are complicated and cumbersome, emphasizing weapons over themselves, trapped in the routines left by their forefathers and stuck in their ways.
Despite the drastic changes in the world, they still cling to the old rules and refuse to let go, indulging in the study of Eight Gates of ingenious and poisonous devices, yet they are too lazy to explore new paths.
Relying on hidden weapons and poisons to commit crimes, but once these layers of external forces are removed, one's own strength is actually quite weak. Adhering to the old house and old rules, blindly following the old ways, even though the methods are insidious, one has long lost some of the pioneering spirit.
To put it simply, take the Shadow Compass Society for example. They have AWMs and 98k rifles, and they're not afraid of your crossbows and darts. Plus, they've affixed talismans to them. When they fire a bullet, it's like a cannonball. Not only does it explode, but it also carries Killing Curse, making it a powerful area-of-effect attack. You and your cover are as laughable as they are. Not to mention, they've brought out rocket launchers and grenade launchers.
I recently heard they're researching how to add Apparition Invisibility Cloak. The cannons fire not just anything, but a massive Vanishing Spell. Su Yu shudders at the thought. On the battlefield, the enemy wouldn't see a thing, and it could freely change position. One Vanishing Spell, and the enemy would be instantly and truly annihilated. Even if the spell fails, wouldn't that be even better? Missing limbs, even a head—that would be even more terrifying.
Furthermore, let's talk about Luna. She's the nemesis of the Tang Sect Clan. Her Domain Expansion, is a natural counter to the Tang Sect. No matter what traps or hidden weapons you have, if she replaces even one part of a trap with cotton, the Tang Sect will be crippled. Not to mention, once her Domain Expansion, anything that enters will be turned into a doll. Even if you use poison, so what? She'll turn herself into a rag doll, and the Tang Sect will be blown up...
Sure enough, after Su Yu and his group entered the Tang Sect and arrived at the reception hall, they waited for two full hours, but the Tang Sect leader still hadn't appeared.
However, Su Yu wouldn't just wait idly. The group went about their business. Kurama even set up the barbecue grill and, together with Goyle and Crabbe, grilled meat skewers for everyone.
"Kurama, could you grill me a skewer of sweet potato noodles? Thank you!"
Phoebe and Olivia have recently taken a liking to this snack, and Su Yu even bought a lot of semi-finished products for Phoebe, which he then stored in his Storage Ring in the freezer.
Clatter... Clatter... Ka-jie, Fa-jie, Isolde, and Zhang Qinwan set up a mahjong table and were shuffling the tiles. Pansy was fanning Malfoy, who was lying on a bamboo chair, and occasionally feeding him a sip of soda. Theodore was leaning against the window, flipping through an old book. He just couldn't stand the noise from the group.
Callis, along with Ginny Cho Chang, and Daphne, Luna playing house with dolls. Hermione clung to Su Yu, refusing to leave. As for Neville, well, let's not even talk about him; he and his girlfriend were so lovey-dovey it was nauseating.
"Holy crap! Kurama... it's on fire! Did you put in too much oil?!"
Blaise couldn't stand the smell any longer. Where was that strong burnt smell coming from? Then he saw Kurama's barbecue stall, and the flames were even reaching the roof. He said it wasn't safe to set up a barbecue stall indoors!
"Fa fa fa fa!" Teddy Bear excitedly ran around Callis, watching the burning house. The other rag dolls were also terrified and ran towards Luna.
"Don't worry."
As she spoke, Luna turned the group of little creatures into porcelain dolls, so they shouldn't be afraid of ordinary fire now.
The little guys were having a great time. Teddy Bear got carried away and knocked over the barbecue stand. Now the fire was even bigger, and he even broke an arm. Howling and cursing, he went to find Luna for help.