Yinshan Record

Chapter 530 Evil Spirits and Demons Lurk Deep Within (Part 1)
The moon hangs high in the sky, a gentle breeze blows the idle clouds above, and the dim starlight falls, unable to dispel the gloom in people's hearts.

A dilapidated temple, the clumsy-looking mountain god statue has long since collapsed, leaving only half of its body covered in dust standing there.

In the darkness, rustling sounds filled the air, as countless snakes, insects, and rodents were reveling in the shadows.

Zeng Mozhou picked up the gourd beside him and poured the clear wine into his mouth. This most intense wine in the world could not numb the mind of the Void Step Master. It was just like pouring hot oil on the burning regret in his heart, making the pain even more intense.

This night was destined to belong to the disheartened.

He had a noticeable knife wound on his chest, a wound that snaked like a centipede from his left shoulder all the way to his lower abdomen, with a drop or two of fresh blood occasionally seeping from the tender red flesh.

This is a knife wound left by Feng Buxing. The condensed fist intent of a fifth-rank martial artist is now penetrating the wound, and only time can heal it.

It's been seven days.

Seven days have passed since the dramatic changes in Jiankang City.

For Zeng Mozhou, every day was like being tormented in the underworld.

Su Gui's assassins and killers were virtually omnipresent, and Zeng Mozhou's every move was completely under their control. No matter where Zeng Mozhou went, he would almost always be hunted down by Su Gui's men within moments.

And all of this stems from Lao Su.

Zeng Mozhou looked at his left hand, where there was a faint finger mark on his palm. It was this finger mark that had become his shackle. Old Su's casual finger strike had almost completely affected the flow of his magic power, and even the spells and supernatural abilities that he used to be able to use with ease were now flawed.

This was almost fatal for Zeng Mozhou, who was skilled in illusion.

The art of truth and illusion is like dancing on a knife's edge; a slight misstep can mean the difference between life and death.

At this moment, Zeng Mo was severely injured, and even under the siege of a group of fifth-rank warriors, he could only manage to catch his breath.

He slowly exhaled a breath.

The knife wound in his chest still throbbed with pain, making him uneasy. Zeng Mozhou didn't know how much longer he could breathe; the assassins led by Feng Xingbu might be nearby.

It could even be worse; perhaps Lao Su has already set aside time to prepare for his final blow.

Zeng Mozhou looked at the dilapidated mountain god statue not far away; this was almost his last chance.

The rustling sounds continued, and a plump, almost distorted white cat had somehow climbed to the top of the broken mountain god statue. Its eerie green eyes, like burning will-o'-the-wisps, stared silently at Zeng Mozhou's brow.

It's like looking at some interesting toy.

Zeng Mozhou looked at the white cat, its aura emanating from it, as if it were facing some formidable adversary.

Just at this tense moment...

Squeak.

Suddenly, the door of the dilapidated temple opened, and a stranger dressed in hemp clothing waved his sleeve to shake open the temple door, which was already mostly decayed. He carried four long swords of different colors on his back, and wore a silver-white mask with patterns that looked like snake scales. His pair of dark blue eyes quietly stared at Zeng Mozhou in front of him.

"You are finally here."

Zeng Mozhou raised the gourd in his hand: "Any later, my head will be hanging outside the Vermilion Bird Gate."

The swordsman wearing the silver mask ignored him and simply stood quietly opposite him. This man possessed a strange aura, as if anything that approached him would fall into an eerie silence. When he took a step, all the rustling sounds in the dilapidated temple stopped instantly.

It was so quiet that Zeng Mozhou could hear his own heartbeat.

The large white cat slowly licked its paws, its eyes fixed on him with a chilling gaze. "The Ancestor said that there are only a few people in the Central Plains worthy of his attention, and Su Gui is one of them. The Heavenly Man Seal, a fist intent imprinted within you, can constantly interfere with your use of magic power and can even seal the connection between you and the various laws of heaven and earth. Even if you are a Void Step expert, how much of your combat strength do you still have? Moreover, Feng Buxing is now relentlessly pursuing you; you cannot withstand his Annihilation Blade Intent in your current state."

The white cat's voice was incredibly hoarse, like a demon crawling out of the ground. In particular, the hatred for countless living beings in its voice was enough to make one's hair stand on end.

"If you're here to make sarcastic remarks, then there's no need to say anything more."

Zeng Mozhou looked at the Taoist carrying four swords: "When the Great Liang Dynasty was founded, the Jade Scenery Sect supported us from behind. After the founding of the dynasty, they were supported by the court for generations. Over the years, no matter what you wanted, the court never shortchanged you. Now that the Su family wants to change the landscape, are you going to stand idly by?"

The Taoist priest remained silent, his eyes fixed quietly on Zeng Mozhou, his expression serene.

The white cat let out a hoarse laugh, the sound reaching Zeng Mozhou's ears and fueling his resentment.

"Hahaha, Zeng Mozhou, think about it carefully. Wasn't the previous dynasty established with the support of the Jade Scenery Dao? Not to mention your Great Liang and the previous dynasty, since the Middle Ages, which dynastic change in the south didn't involve the Jade Scenery Dao? You actually expect them to do this?"

Zeng Mozhou looked at the Taoist priest in front of him.

He knew that the Jade Scenery Dao possessed the supreme method of detachment from emotions, and that all worldly joys and sorrows were mere distractions to these people. The white cat's sarcastic words were nothing more than a gentle breeze to the Daoist before him, causing not a ripple in his heart.

"Okay, so what are you doing here?"

Zeng Mozhou looked at the person and cat in front of him and said, "If you want to see us make a fool of ourselves, just watch us with a cold eye."

The white cat grinned, its mouth agape, a smile that held a sinister malice that defied description.

"Zeng Mozhou, are you mistaken? We're here to collect a debt."

"Debt collection?"

"of course."

The white cat looked at Zeng Mozhou and said, "Don't forget what made you reach this Void Step cultivation level in the first place?"

"Years of hard work, a Daoist heart tempered through countless trials—what else could I rely on?"

Zeng Mozhou sneered, "Apart from His Majesty, I owe no one anything..."

"No, no, no, think about it again, think about it carefully."

The white cat laughed: "If it weren't for those few drops of primordial blood essence from that ancient species, would you have been able to get to where you are today?"

"you……"

Zeng Mozhou clenched his fists, his eyes fixed on the man and cat in front of him.

Indeed, if it weren't for that fortuitous encounter in the East China Sea, he wouldn't have been able to achieve the Void Step cultivation level. But he had already refined the essence and blood of that primordial beast, so how could he repay the "debt" these people were demanding?
"Without us, you are nothing."

The white cat looked at Zeng Mozhou and said, "You have two choices now. One is to let us take back what you owe, and the other is to obediently eat this meat pill and come with us to the East China Sea."

As the white cat spoke, it opened its mouth, and a small fleshy tumor rolled out of it. This black tumor floated in mid-air, with countless thread-like tentacles extending from it, trembling violently in the air.

Zeng Mozhou looked at the tumor in the air and swallowed hard.

"What if I don't agree?"

The white cat shook its head: "Then there's nothing I can do."

(End of this chapter)