Patrol Captain

Lightning flashed and thunder roared, a torrential downpour ensued, and the sky darkened.

“kuala”

A pale white bolt of lightning tore through the sky, like a giant axe swung down by a god, slamming into the clouds.

In an instant, a grand hall on Benlei Mountain was illuminated as if it were daytime.

The spiderweb shadows in the corner of the beams and pillars were violently pulled away, and the enshrined statue in the center suddenly appeared—a blue-faced, fanged, and fierce-looking deity holding a magic sword, with arcs of electricity crackling around it, and every raised ridge was clearly illuminated by the electric light.

In front of the hall, the electric light illuminated the figures of Qingyangzi and Li Guanyi.

A few days ago, the two received an invitation from Miss Qin to meet in Chengdu. They gladly accepted and visited her on their way, before heading to Chengdu together.

It has been a long time since we last met, two years ago, when we led our disciples to fight alongside the Ninth Mountain and earned the title of "Eight Heroes of Weiyuan".

However, halfway there, they received another message from Miss Qin, saying that she couldn't contact Fellow Daoist Yuan Kun of Benlei Mountain and asked the two of them to try to contact him.

So the two of them went to Benlei Mountain and found it deserted, with no one around.

The scene seemed eerie.

In the vast mountains, the pavilions and towers were lifeless, with only thunder and rain rumbling around them.

No obvious signs of a struggle were found here!

“The vast Benlei Mountain has at least several hundred disciples, and they just vanished without a trace.”

"The hall is covered in dust and cobwebs, it hasn't been cleaned for some time, which means it is indeed missing."

"We hadn't heard a thing about it before, which is very strange."

"This is beyond our capabilities!"

"We should not stay here any longer; we must get the message out quickly."

Li Guanyi and Qingyangzi stood before the enshrined statue, their faces showing surprise and solemnity.

At this moment, Master Li took out a recording stone from his sleeve, threw it into the mountain, and flicked his whisk. The recording stone immediately turned into a white light and flew towards the buildings in Benlei Mountain, flying around the beams and pillars.

About half a cup of tea's time later, the white light shot back, preparing to circle the hall one more time before finishing its work. Just then, the image-recording stone flew to the statue in the hall. Suddenly, the statue's large hand moved, grabbing the image-recording stone and squeezing it with its five fingers, shattering the white light.

In the originally dark hall, the candlelight suddenly leaped up and ignited, and then the five-zhang-tall statue of the god came to life.

The blue face gleamed with a chilling light, its features cracked with spiderweb-like lines, and its mouth twisted into an inhuman arc, revealing gleaming white fangs. When its eyes widened in fury, two clusters of eerie green light rose from the depths of its eye sockets, and an inhuman roar escaped its throat.

"Boom——"

The altar beneath their feet suddenly shattered, its carved railings and jade steps turning to dust. Amidst the billowing smoke and dust, the statue, with its menacing eyes and fangs, gripped its magic sword tightly and slashed forward, the sound of air being torn apart whistling through the air.

The air was torn apart wherever it passed, the glazed tiles on the roof of the temple shattered in pieces, and the fragments fell like a rainstorm. The sword wind swept past the offering lamps, and the flames instantly fell to both sides, revealing the hideous face of the deity, which flickered in and out of the shadows.

The event happened suddenly; the statue suddenly rose up, accompanied by a thunderous roar and billowing dust. A startlingly cold light, like thunder illuminating the night, flashed like lightning.

"not good!"

"evil creature!"

Qingyangzi and Master Li's pupils shrank suddenly, and the hairs on their bodies stood on end. This statue was so close to them, yet they hadn't noticed it at all.

He cried out in shock and anger, reacting swiftly as he retreated like a storm, leaving the main hall and disappearing into the rain-soaked mountains.

The two attacked at the same time.

Qingyangzi formed a sword-finger gesture with one hand, made a hand seal, his fingertips glowing, and his eyes flashing with cold lightning.

"Draw the sheath!"

In an instant, a clear and resonant sword rang out, and two swords were drawn from their sheaths behind him, slashing straight forward like shooting stars.

On the other side, as Li Guanyi retreated, he flicked and spun his whisk forward, causing the white whisk to grow in the wind, moving as nimbly as a snake, and coiling towards the sword's edge.

In the blink of an eye, Qingyangzi's twin swords, like ox horns striking a mountain, slashed at the sword beams from the left and right.

Ding Ding

The two swords struck from both sides, creating dazzling sparks on the massive sword beam that slashed down.

The sword light showed almost no signs of slowing down and was about to come close to his face. Qingyangzi's pupils shrank rapidly. Just then, his long, white beard shot out and rolled towards the sword light, pulling it away.

The sword light shifted, and suddenly, Master Li appeared in the sky, holding a whisk in his hand. The white beard on the whisk resembled that of an immortal, imprisoning the bronze sword light!

The blue-faced statue let out a roar, its eyes flashed with a dark light, and brilliant silver lightning crackled and leaped on the bronze magic sword in its hand.

The electric arcs crackled and struck the white-bearded figure, igniting a great fire, before the magic sword cleaved the white-bearded figure in two.

With a loud "boom," the blue-faced statue kicked up a cloud of dust, crashed out of the main hall, and soared into the rain.

His eyes, gleaming with a chilling blue light, were truly terrifying. He roared to the sky and pointed his bronze magic sword at the heavens.

Suddenly, thunder roared like a tidal wave in the sky, and lightning flashed wildly like serpents, crashing down upon this direction.

"Qingyangzi, hurry up! This statue is inanimate; something's strange about it."

Master Li of Fulong Temple, who had rushed up to the top, now had his Hunyuan scarf flying on his head, his beard and hair fluttering, and his eyes shining with intense white light.

Under the white light, the view was a vast expanse of white, like a curtain. The rain in the sky and earth was like pale black ink, seeping into it. The blue-faced god statue below was outlined like a sketch, with black lines appearing bit by bit. There was no other color inside. Even the blue pupils were reflected in the curtain as a lifeless, dead black, without any vitality.

This indicates that the statue is lifeless and soulless, more like a puppet being manipulated by someone!
He urged Qingyangzi to leave quickly.

He flicked his sleeve, sending out several streams of yellow light that shot towards the blue-faced deity casting a spell below.

Then he made a hand seal and chanted a mantra.
"Heaven is round, earth is square; laws and decrees are in nine chapters!"

"I hereby command: All demons, lie in wait!"

Imperial Edict

Master Li recited Taoist scriptures, exuding authority without anger, and pointed downwards.

The yellow streaks of light leaped through the void, appearing as if teleported around the cyan statue, and then several golden talismans appeared.

Then, streaks of vermilion red appeared on the talisman, flying out and transforming into red threads that wrapped around the clay sculpture of the blue-faced god, imprinting the runes onto it and even reaching into the god's blue-green eye sockets.

The blue-faced deity roared in terror, its blue eyes seeming to shed tears of blood, and it brandished its magic sword.

"boom"

A pillar of lightning tore through the sky and crashed down, striking the blue-faced statue directly along the magic sword.

In that instant, silver arcs of electricity crackled and leaped across the clay sculpture's entire body, shattering the vermilion lines on it one by one, just like silver molten metal bursting open. The statue's aura surged wildly, and its size grew larger and larger, becoming increasingly terrifying.

The entire statue was as if it had been forged by lightning, and its pair of eerie green eyes coldly stared at Master Li and Qingyangzi.

At this moment, Qingyangzi had already retreated quickly when Li Guanyi gave the signal to retreat and delay the enemy.

Seeing the statue's aura surge, Master Li frowned, quickly flicked his whisk, and soared into the air towards the foot of Benlei Mountain.

The two of them, one after the other, hurtled through the rain, leaving two white streaks in their wake. They rushed towards the forest below, hoping to use the rain to conceal their tracks.

At this moment, the blue-faced statue, imbued with heavenly lightning, had swelled to over a hundred zhang in size, resembling a small mountain. Arcs of lightning crackled and gathered on its body, and it swung its lightning-summoning sword sharply, pointing it towards the two figures. "Boom!"

Inky clouds churned and boiled above the mountains, the leaden sky was torn apart by thunder, and silver lightning hovered between the chaotic clouds before crashing down with a deafening roar.

The first bolt of lightning seemed to fall straight from the heavens, striking the two behind them with a destructive shockwave, instantly blasting rubble and broken wood into dust.

The second and third bolts of lightning followed in quick succession, their divine might overwhelming. Silver lightning exploded through the mountains and forests, relentlessly pursuing Qingyangzi and Master Li of Fulong Temple.

"Master Li, what exactly is this thing? You say it's not alive, but what can you tell?"

Dodging lightning strikes and riding on sword light, Qingyangzi, who was flying through the mountains and forests, was in a sorry state. He dodged the lightning and broke through the flying wood chips and mud, feeling an urgent sense of crisis.

That thing is getting more and more powerful; its aura and pressure have already reached Musashi.

"I don't know. It has no life or soul, like a puppet! Someone is driving it from behind."

Master Li waved his whisk, his figure as swift as wisps of smoke, appearing much more agile than Qingyangzi.

As the peak master of the Shu Mountain Sword Sect, Qingyangzi's cultivation had leaped from the Heavenly Gate Dao Soldier stage to the second stage of Dao Fruit in the past two years. Even now, facing the sky filled with lightning, he remained cautious.

"careful!"

Just then, Master Li's warning suddenly rang in Qingyangzi's ears.

Qingyangzi's expression hardened, and he subconsciously drew circles in the air with both hands. The sword shadows under his feet split into light and immediately transformed into a sword and shield!

Next second,
There was a loud "boom".

The sword and shield were struck by lightning in an instant, and they hummed loudly as they were blasted down into the forest and crashed into a ravine.

Soon, Qingyangzi flew out of the muddy water. To his surprise, apart from his clothes being charred, he was otherwise unharmed and no further lightning strikes followed.

Looking up again, they were shocked to see that Master Li from Fulong Temple had his hair and beard flying, his blue Taoist robe was being lifted by the wind, the jade clasp on his Hunyuan scarf swayed with his movements, and his long black beard was fluttering in the wind. A powerful aura roared and impacted the thunderclouds.

When the lightning bolt, as thick as a water bucket, struck down, it crashed down with the force to shatter mountains and split rocks.

With a flick of his whisk, Master Li's silver hairs snapped straight as steel, his eyes widened, and a surge of energy erupted from his dantian. In an instant, a phantom nearly a hundred feet tall rose from behind him, clad in a Taoist robe, holding a Bagua mirror in his left hand and a magic sword in his right—it was none other than his primordial spirit dharma form.

"Musashi!" Below, Qingyangzi couldn't help but open his eyes wide, his heart trembling.

Master Li of Fulong Temple had somehow broken through the Musashi level and was ahead of them. He was overjoyed but also felt a mix of emotions.

Then, Master Li revealed his primordial spirit form, raised his giant hand, and the peach wood magic sword, with a whooshing sound, soared into the sky to meet the descending lightning. With a loud bang, the lightning was instantly shattered into pieces, turning into countless arcs of electricity that fell to the ground.

Another bolt of lightning struck, and Faxiang snorted angrily, raising his left hand. The Bagua mirror in his hand shone brightly, and white light shot out from the mirror like a waterfall, splitting the lightning in two. The crackling plasma was like a silver bottle exploding and water gushing out.

Next, the primordial spirit and dharma form unleashed a barrage of attacks, shattering the successive onslaught of lightning.

Thunder roared in the sky, yet it could never penetrate the small area surrounding the Dharma Image.

"Fellow Daoist Qingyang, what are you waiting for? Before this thing can react, you retreat first, and I will cover the rear. We will meet at Falling Sun Ridge, eight hundred miles away!"

Just as Qingyangzi was watching Li Guan unleash his divine power, he heard a voice transmission from the Taoist priest Li.
His voice was somewhat hurried, clearly indicating that he was not at ease either.

Qingyangzi felt a chill run down his spine. Was that thing really so troublesome? Who was the guy behind it? Even Master Li, who had entered the Musashi realm, needed to catch it before it could react.

Without giving it a second thought, he quickly made a hand seal, leaped forward, and a sword light flew out from the mud, carrying him southward through the rain and speeding away.

As he was about to disappear into the horizon, he turned around and saw the blue-faced deity rushing toward Master Li's primordial spirit.

The two sides fought a fierce battle!
...............

Eight hundred miles away lies Zhui Ridge, a mountain range with steep, continuous slopes.

As dusk approached, the mountains were bathed in amber light. The setting sun melted the mountain ridgeline into a golden-red arc, and the long, slender shadows of the pine trees draped across the mountains swayed gently in the mountain breeze.

On one of the cliffs, several wild chrysanthemums were unfurling their petals in the evening breeze, their golden flower heads shining brightly in the twilight.

On the edge of the cliff, a long sword was stuck in the ground, and next to it sat Qingyangzi, dressed in a gray robe with graying temples, sitting cross-legged.

Every ten or so breaths, he would flick the sword stuck in front of him with his finger from a distance.

The sword vibrated, producing a faint hum.

As time passed, Qingyangzi's brows and eyes became somewhat anxious.

Why haven't you come yet?
After a while, he suddenly stood up.

No, he thought.

He was going back to take a look.

He regretted leaving first, wondering if something unexpected had happened.

Just as he drew his sword from the stone, a returning bird's wings cut through the deepening twilight and flew to the edge of the cliff.

It hovered and landed, then a puff of smoke appeared, from which a person emerged.

It was Master Li who reappeared after half a day!

At this moment, Master Li was clutching one shoulder, breathing rapidly, and his face was pale.

"Fellow Daoist Li!"

Seeing that he was strong, Qingyangzi went to help him up.

Master Li waved his hand, "I don't know if I've gotten rid of that thing yet, let's hurry!"

As he spoke, two pieces of yellow paper carved with talismans flew out from the Taoist priest's sleeve.

Li Guan blew a puff of white breath towards the horse, and the two pieces of yellow paper immediately swelled up.

"This thing can travel ten thousand miles a day to Chengdu."

Then, Li Guanyi mounted a cloaked horse.

Qingyangzi did as instructed and sat on another seat.

Then, the Taoist priest flicked his whisk, and the two of them, along with the talisman, transformed into a white column of smoke that shot into the sky.

The two figures then disappeared.

Not long after, a streak of light rushed over and landed above Sunset Ridge.

In a flash of light, the "Master Li" from before reappeared here.

"Where is Fellow Daoist Qingyangzi?"

The light streamed down across Falling Sun Ridge, but Li Huan found no trace of his fellow Daoist. He frowned.

I said we would meet here!

Li Guanyi sensed that something was vaguely amiss.

A white light appeared in his eyes, and he searched around.

Finally, he stopped on a precipice, his brow furrowed in confusion. (End of Chapter)