“This is quite…”

Inside the small cave, three people looked at each other, all feeling a bit awkward. One undercover agent sat by himself, two undercover agents sat opposite, three undercover agents sat in a group…

Even the three of them didn’t bother to put on their hats anymore, after all, there were no “outsiders” here.

If everyone is an undercover agent, then there are no undercover agents.

“Cough.” Chu Liang cleared his throat lightly, looking at the monk named Pǔ Shàn, he laughed, “I really didn’t expect… that among us, there is a high monk from the Buddhist sect.”

“I wouldn’t call myself a high monk, just a humble wandering monk.” Pǔ Shàn shook his head repeatedly, then laughed, “I have been practicing silent meditation for years, rarely interacting with others, not very worldly. I came down the mountain for experience, I didn’t expect to encounter such a bizarre story.”

Huh?

Chu Liang was incredulous.

You practiced silent meditation?

Master, if you go out under the sun, even your teeth can get sunburned, are you sure you practiced silent meditation?

Seeing the surprised looks on their faces, Pǔ Shàn seemed to sense something and quickly explained, “It’s precisely because I practiced silent meditation for thirteen years that after I lifted the ban, there was some backlash…”

So that’s how it is, Chu Liang finally understood.

So it’s because he hadn’t spoken for thirteen years, now he’s making up for it by being talkative.

The Buddhism in this world came from the unknown west of the extreme west, and it has only been a thousand years, so its foundation is still shallow.

But with its profound Buddhist principles and powerful Buddhist methods, it has already gained a large number of followers and is widely spread, ranking alongside Taoism and Confucianism as the three religions.

Among the nine heavens and ten earths, it has already occupied two seats, namely Yun Que Temple in the Nine Heavenly Immortal Gates and Zhong Lou Temple in the Ten Earth Sects.

The rapid development of Buddhism as one of the three religions in a thousand years is inseparable from the strong support of the Yu Dynasty. Perhaps it’s because the Taoist sect had dominated the cultivation world, occupying a large share of the discourse.

Therefore, the emperors of the Yu Dynasty have strongly supported the Confucian and Buddhist religions. Institutions like the Sheng Long Academy and Zhong Lou Temple of the Ten Earth Sects were established with the support of the court, and the full name of Zhong Lou Temple is Zhen Guo Zhong Lou Temple.

As for Yun Que Temple, it is the first place to teach Zen Buddhism, and its status is even more revered. It is said that its gate is truly built above the clouds, known as “Above the Clouds, the Highest Buddhist Law”.

However, due to some sectarian disputes, the Heavenly Pivot Pavilion’s promotion of Buddhism is very limited. Zhong Lou Temple is widely known because of the halo of the court, but Yun Que Temple, one of the Nine Heavens, is rarely known.

And Yun Que Temple, located high above the clouds, seems to not interfere much with the affairs of the cultivation world. This makes young disciples like Chu Liang have almost no impression of this temple, only knowing its name, not its people.

It was also for this reason that when Pǔ Shàn was fighting Luo Yao earlier, he used a series of Buddhist magical tools, but the two of them could only guess roughly and could not determine Pǔ Shàn’s origin based on this.

“…So, I used a ‘Reverse Heavenly Strength’ to reflect his soul-capturing magic back onto himself, trapping himself in the Underworld Book. This evil cultivator finally harmed himself while trying to harm others. That’s how I got the Soul Summoning Order.” While Chu Liang was lost in thought, Pǔ Shàn had already finished telling how he got the Soul Summoning Order.

A story that could have been told in two sentences, he managed to stretch it out for half an hour.

Chu Liang politely laughed, “With Brother Pǔ Shàn joining us, our demon extermination mission is even more secure.”

Then Luo Yao yawned, “I’m tired.”

For a cultivator at her level, feeling tired is quite rare. But after listening to Pǔ Shàn’s rambling for so long, it’s no wonder she felt that way.

“It’s getting late, let’s rest.” Chu Liang quickly said, seizing the opportunity to find a way out for himself, “Miss Luo is a woman, why don’t you stay in this cave, we’ll go out…”

“No need.” Luo Yao refused, then opened her white paper umbrella with a flip of her hand, and a soft white light immediately enveloped her.

It looked like a pure white female ghost shadow had enveloped her entirely, giving a strong sense of security.

“Rest here then…” Pǔ Shàn looked at Chu Liang with a sense of regret, as if he wanted to chat with him a little longer.

Chu Liang immediately said, “We have a challenge tomorrow, it’s good to rest and recuperate early.”

“Alright.” Pǔ Shàn nodded regretfully, then raised his hand, and the phantom of the bright glass bell covered him again, forming a closed space.

Looking at the two of them, Chu Liang felt that he couldn’t let down the Shu Mountain Sect, so he raised his hand, summoned the Green Leaf artifact, and a green light wrapped him up like a dumpling.

Hmph.

Who doesn’t have one?

…

For them, the so-called “rest” time didn’t need to be too long. If they really slept until dawn and the Earth Fiend arrived early, one look at these artifacts and all three of them would be exposed.

Not long after, the three of them crawled out one after another and sat cross-legged in the cave. Pǔ Shàn tried several times to strike up a conversation with the two of them, but only Chu Liang occasionally chatted with him. Luo Yao kept a straight face and didn’t say a word.

These two were like ice and fire, Chu Liang had a premonition that this journey together would be quite bittersweet.

As dawn broke, the Soul Summoning Order shook again.

【Fiend】: “I’m almost there.”

【Fiend】: “Get ready, we’ll meet up with the Guide as soon as I arrive.”

【Fifty-eight】: “Received.”

【Sixty】: “Received.”

【Fifty-nine】: “Okay.”

【Fifty-nine】: “I’ve been waiting for your arrival for a long time.”The trio had already prepared a plan for this Earth Fiend Envoy. Firstly, if he did not discover their disguise, they would not act against him. After all, they needed him to lead them to the main force, as the Soul Arresting Envoy could not bypass the Earth Fiend Envoy to contact the upper echelons.

However, once they met the Guiding Envoy and joined the main force of the Underworld Sect, this Earth Fiend Envoy would be the first one they needed to deal with. After all, he would be the only one who could possibly discover their disguise.

After a slightly tense wait, a dark figure once again approached the small cave.

The trio neatly went out to meet him.

Before they even saw the figure of the Earth Fiend Envoy, the Red Slashing Sword in the White Tower trembled. Chu Liang’s heart settled at that moment, it seemed that this person from the demonic sect was indeed a pure breed!

Originally, the people of the Underworld Sect who absorbed living souls should trigger the Red Slashing Sword. The previous two did not react because they were fake. He could only ignore the agitation of the Red Slashing Sword for now, as it was not yet time to slay this beast.

This Earth Fiend Envoy was also dressed in a black robe, but his protection was not as tight as the trio’s. He only wore an ordinary black robe with some minor divine abilities to hide his face.

“Honorable Envoy!” Seeing him approach, the trio saluted in unison.

“Hehe, long time no see.” The Earth Fiend Envoy smiled and turned his head, “Follow me.”

This further confirmed Chu Liang’s previous speculation. The subordinates under the Purple Gold Marquis did not know each other at all. The Earth Fiend Envoy did not exchange any pleasantries with his direct subordinates, treating them as strangers.

Because for the likes of the Soul Arresting Envoys, the turnover rate was extremely high. When one died, a new one would be recruited. With a wisp of soul fire, they would inherit the previous Soul Arresting Order, and there was no familiarity between them.

The advantage of this management style might be higher efficiency, and it could reduce some internal consumption among the lower-level disciples. However, the disadvantage was that they were not familiar with each other. If the Soul Arresting Order was cracked, it would be easy to infiltrate their ranks.

The Earth Fiend Envoy led the trio on a fast journey, passing through large tracts of jungle and mountains, and arrived at a dangerous valley.

Standing on the hillside, they could see dark figures below.

The Earth Fiend Envoy instructed again, “Be careful when you meet the Guiding Envoy.”

“Yes!” The trio responded.

Thanks to the other two’s loud voices, they covered the slight tremble in Chu Liang’s voice. Otherwise, they might have given themselves away.

It was not Chu Liang’s fault for having poor psychological quality.

He was not nervous about infiltrating the enemy’s nest, but… he was shocked.

That’s right.

The Red Slashing Sword in the White Tower space began to tremble violently after sensing the group of black-robed men at the foot of the hill!

A strong killing intent continuously bombarded Chu Liang’s consciousness, as if urging him time and time again to wield his sword to exterminate evil. The righteous sword’s fury soared to the sky.

It was about to explode!

All villains!

——Author’s Note——

Good morning.

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