Chapter 73: Delivering the Message

Shen Changan had been walking for the better part of the day. Although the book in his embrace was still radiating warmth, he had yet to find the legendary Taisui.

Pausing to rest by a small stream, he intended to scoop up some water when his brows suddenly furrowed, and he stood straight up.

"Which friend is hiding out there? There is no need for concealment; show yourself."

As his voice trailed off, several figures emerged from the shadows, eyeing Shen Changan with a degree of cautious vigilance.

"May I ask if you are Daoist Master Lingxiao?"

Shen Changan nodded without denial.

"Good. Since you are indeed Daoist Master Lingxiao, then we have not found the wrong person."

"And you are?" Shen Changan raised an eyebrow, asking in confusion.

"We are merely wandering couriers of the pugilistic world. We have come today to deliver a message to Daoist Master Lingxiao."

"A message?" Shen Changan frowned. The number of people he knew in this mortal realm could be counted on one hand; who could possibly be sending him a message?

The man nodded and spoke, "This message is sent by Zheng Xin of the Loyalty Hall."

Shen Changan was taken aback. Back when he captured Li Qingqing, she had used Zheng Xin as leverage to bargain for her life. Later, upon learning that Zheng Xin had managed to shake off the heretics of the White Lotus Sect all by herself, Shen Changan simply decided not to visit her, lest the young lady insist on following him around.

He never expected that Zheng Xin would actually send people to track him down.

"How did you find me?" Shen Changan asked, puzzled.

"Daoist Master Shen recently slew the Holy Son of the White Lotus Sect. The news has spread far and wide, so we knew Daoist Master Shen must be nearby. We dispatched several squads of brothers to search in all directions, and today, we finally found you."

A human-wave search tactic—truly the most convenient method to track him down.

However, he had not expected the news of him slaying the White Lotus Sect's Holy Son to spread so rapidly. The members of the White Lotus Sect would undoubtedly be eager to trouble him now, and the path ahead would likely be fraught with difficulties. Whether Li Qingqing would try to mediate or stir up trouble remained an unpredictable mystery.

"Very well. Since you have found me, state your business."

Shen Changan grew curious. What on earth could have happened for Zheng Xin to take the initiative to seek him out?

In truth, had Shen Changan not slain General Black Wind and the Holy Son of the White Lotus Sect, creating such a massive uproar, Zheng Xin would have assumed Shen Changan was already dead.

"Right. The message is to be conveyed to you orally."

"It's just a single sentence."

"Wang Yue obtained the Nine Heavens Divine Sword, provoking the Wrath of the Dragon Emperor, and was escorted under arrest to the Heavenly Buddha Pagoda."

Hearing this sentence, Shen Changan felt as though a thunderclap had exploded inside his mind.

Wang Yue? It was actually he who obtained the Nine Heavens Divine Sword? But why would acquiring the Nine Heavens Divine Sword incur the Dragon Emperor's wrath? Wasn't the Nine Heavens a sword specially procured through the Dragon Emperor's own means to protect her?

What manner of pagoda was the Heavenly Buddha Pagoda? Why was Wang Yue escorted there? And why didn't the Dragon Emperor simply execute Wang Yue outright?

A flurry of thoughts rapidly raced through Shen Changan's mind, yet none of them yielded a satisfactory answer.

"What on earth is this all about? Explain it clearly to me!"

Shen Changan's expression turned grave. Since Wang Yue had once been willing to accompany him to slay demons based on a single word from him, Shen Changan certainly could not sit idly by and ignore Wang Yue's predicament.

"Th-that, we wouldn't know either."

The messenger scratched his head and said helplessly, "Eldest Miss Zheng seemed to be locked up at home. Though she learned of this news, she was powerless to act, leaving her no choice but to have us deliver the message to you. But this single sentence is all she managed to get out."

Shen Changan's mouth twitched. Naturally, Zheng Huoyi would never allow Zheng Xin to have any further contact with Wang Yue. One must know that at this very moment, Wang Yue was akin to a ticking time bomb—who could say whether associating with him might provoke the Dragon Emperor?

No matter how decayed the Great Qian imperial court might be, no one dared to provoke the Wrath of the Dragon Emperor at such a juncture.

"Why on earth would the Dragon Emperor imprison her own sword-bearer?"

Shen Changan found it completely incomprehensible. Even if Wang Yue had slaughtered members of the Yu family, the Dragon Emperor had no reason to imprison him. The Nine Heavens existed solely to protect its master; it was the embodiment of the heavenly will, a protection the Dragon Emperor had gone to great lengths to secure.

"Could it be that Xue Lie was actually lying to me?"

After all, most of what Shen Changan knew concerning the divine sword came from Xue Lie, with no one else to verify it. If Xue Lie had deceived him, he had no way of telling.

"The Heavenly Buddha Pagoda—do you know what kind of place it is?" Shen Changan inquired further.

"The Heavenly Buddha Pagoda is not too far from here. If you continue heading east from this spot, you can reach the Heavenly Buddha Temple within five days. And the Heavenly Buddha Pagoda is the tower used by the Heavenly Buddha Temple to suppress evil spirits."

"Suppress evil spirits?" Shen Changan paused in surprise.

"Yes," the man replied. "The eminent monks of the Heavenly Buddha Temple capture demons and fiends from all over the world, imprisoning them beneath the Heavenly Buddha Pagoda to purify them with Buddhist light day after day, sending them off to reincarnate."

A sudden jolt went through Shen Changan's heart, sparking an abrupt realization.

"Could it be that this Taisui demonic intent is located beneath the Heavenly Buddha Pagoda?"

A fungus like Taisui required dark, gloomy places to grow. Coupled with the phrase "demonic intent," it was entirely possible that demonic intent had bred within the Heavenly Buddha Pagoda, strengthening the Taisui and giving rise to a formidable fiend.

The thought made Shen Changan feel increasingly uneasy. If Wang Yue had entered the Heavenly Buddha Pagoda, it would likely not be long before he was corroded by the demonic intent, ultimately turning into one of those creatures Shen Changan had witnessed earlier.

And that had merely been an ordinary Taisui, yet even Yu Qingxian had been affected by it.

What Wang Yue had to face was the Taisui demonic intent—a monstrous entity that had achieved true demonic state.

"This won't do. Even with the protection of the Nine Heavens, Wang Yue cannot hold out for long. Reason and sentiment alike dictate that I must go and take a look."

For an ordinary person, the journey from this location to the Heavenly Buddha Temple would take five days, but at Shen Changan's pace, he could reach it in just two.

As for how he would rescue Wang Yue once he arrived at the Heavenly Buddha Temple, Shen Changan did not have the slightest idea.

After all, it was a Buddhist temple, and one whose prisoners were personally designated and escorted there by the Dragon Emperor; its strength was bound to be formidable.

A temple of such caliber would undoubtedly possess masters of Heaven and Man. If Shen Changan rashly charged in, he probably wouldn't even survive a single exchange before being tossed straight back out.

Though his thoughts churned a thousand times without yielding a conclusion, he had to go and see for himself first. If an opportunity arose, he would rescue Wang Yue; if there was none, he still needed to assess Wang Yue's condition.

With this in mind, Shen Changan thanked the messengers, handed them a modest amount of silver coins, and then accelerated his pace, dashing straight toward the east.

As soon as Shen Changan departed, the men tossed aside the silver coins in their hands and broke into cold sneers.

"Daoist Master Lingxiao? What a grandiose title!"

"Hmph, a mere little trick was all it took to send him stumbling blindly toward the Heavenly Buddha Temple."

"Just wait. When the time comes, we will borrow the blade of Great Qian to slaughter the enemy of our White Lotus Sect."

Those men who had delivered the message were no wandering couriers of the pugilistic world at all; they were thoroughly members of the White Lotus Sect!