Blade - Unbound

Li Yan frowned slightly and could not help asking, "What happened?"

What kind of place was a City God Temple? It was where the main spirit troops were stationed, a place tied directly to Great Xuan's state sacrifices.

In every province of the realm, the City God Temple remained the institution that suppressed and guarded the region, even in Yuezhou, where Dharma lineages flourished most strongly. It was only the blessed lands and grotto-heavens that were administered by the various Dharma lineages.

At the same time, Li Yan formed the Yang Seal, and his expression changed slightly. The incense aura inside the City God Temple was actually somewhat scattered. As for the divine astral qi within, forget places like Chang'an or Yunyang Prefecture! Even some of the small cities they had merely passed through possessed a stronger divine presence!

Yichang City was a frontline city in wartime. Has disaster struck the City God Temple?

Yu Lingzi looked somewhat embarrassed. "Well... it's a long story. Let's get you guys settled first, then we can talk."

Li Yan and the others exchanged glances and secretly raised their guard.

The inn was only one street away from the City God Temple. In any city in the Divine Continent, an inn capable of operating in such a prosperous district would never be low-class. The rough caravan inns with communal sleeping halls were usually located near the city outskirts.

The large inn consisted of three successive courtyards, with two-storey buildings throughout. It had gray bricks and ancient tiles as well as carved wooden balconies and railings. It possessed a considerable old-world charm.

A huge signboard above the entrance prominently displayed the characters: Longwind Inn.

It was not only richly dressed merchants entering and leaving, but also many people in official robes and even military officers.

Li Yan immediately frowned when he saw the latter. This inn was undoubtedly connected to the local authorities. People of the jianghu generally avoided staying in such places. Their paths were different, and even a minor verbal dispute could become troublesome.

Seeing his reaction, Yu Lingzi smiled and lowered his voice. "Don't worry, fellow Daoists. I registered your rooms under the name of the Taixuan Orthodox Sect. No one will trouble you. Besides, in Yichang as it is now, this is the safest inn..."

"Oh?" Li Yan caught the implication in his words and said no more.

An inn capable of hosting imperial officials naturally employed exceptionally perceptive attendants. Before the group had even entered, neatly dressed servers hurried out to greet them. "Greetings, Daoist. The rooms have already been prepared. As you instructed, we've also prepared a banquet. Please follow me."

The attendant was all smiles as he led them into the rear courtyard.

The layout there was unexpectedly elegant. A rockery and flower pond occupied the center of the courtyard, along with several tall trees. It was surrounded by two-storey buildings on all sides. Although they did not have a private courtyard to themselves, the place was quiet and refined.

Beside the rockery stood a small pavilion where several officials were drinking tea and chatting. They appeared relaxed at first glance, but they all wore grave expressions. When they saw the group enter, they immediately stopped talking and gave Yu Lingzi slight salutes. Clearly, they knew one another.

Yu Lingzi had obviously learned something about Li Yan's group beforehand. He had already reserved four adjoining rooms for them. The rooms were not especially large, but they were clean and tidy, only slightly inferior to the Jiangzhe Guild Hall's accommodations in Yunyang City.

No sooner had everyone put down their luggage than attendants unfolded a round table and laid out the banquet: eight cold dishes, eight hot dishes, various pastries, and a pot of aged yellow wine. Everything was quite exquisite.

"Please enjoy your meal." The attendant smiled. "If you gentlemen need hot water, just call, and someone will bring it."

With that, he carefully closed the door and left.

"Come, come. Please." Once everyone was seated, Yu Lingzi immediately raised a cup of wine and smiled. "Fellow Daoists, you have all traveled a long way and suffered much hardship on the road. Please, drink a toast with me."

"Many thanks, Senior."

Li Yan did not even bother touching the food. After exchanging a few pleasantries, he cupped his hands. "We're merely unknown nobodies. You have treated us with such generosity that it leaves me somewhat uneasy, Senior. If you have something to ask of us, please just say it."

"You are too modest, fellow Daoists." Yu Lingzi shook his head slightly and sighed. "Your names are quite well known now. 'Iron Corpse' Nong Da and the foreign monk Karma have both died at your hands. That isn't something ordinary people could accomplish."

Li Yan stared blankly. "Who are they?"

Yu Lingzi froze at first, then stroked his beard and burst out laughing. "Young Hero Li, if those two knew they died at your hands only to be regarded as nameless nobodies afterward, they would probably be so furious that their coffin lids couldn't hold them down.

"Nong Da was the foreign cultivator you killed on Azure Dragon Mountain. He was originally a corpse herder from western Hunan. Later, under the guise of transporting corpses, he secretly robbed and murdered merchant caravans and was placed on the Enforcement Hall's wanted list.

“He fled into the Jingchu mountains and took refuge there, associating with jianghu scum and strange illegal cultivators. Using an old zombie inherited from his master, he committed several major crimes and built up quite a vicious reputation. By then, he had already joined the Heavenly Saint Cult.

“That old zombie of his could release corpse poison. Fortunately, it died at your hands, Fellow Daoist. Otherwise, once the imperial army entered the mountains, who knows how many soldiers would have suffered...

"As for Karma, he was the man you killed at the phosphate mine near Zhu Clan's Fort. He was originally a secret monk of the Tibetan Red Sect. After causing trouble, he fled to the Central Plains, where he behaved recklessly and was likewise hunted by the Enforcement Hall. Later, no one knew which faction he joined. He disappeared for several years, but in the end, he still died at your hands..."

Li Yan finally understood. He nodded slowly. "Oh. So that's who they were."

He had already felt that those two were anything but ordinary. Unfortunately for them, both had exploitable weaknesses. One had been blown apart by explosives, while the other had been burned to ash by a Nether Torch.

Without assistance, killing either of them certainly would not have been so easy. He had not expected them to have such backgrounds.

Li Yan was not surprised at Yu Lingzi learning about these events so quickly. Both the Taixuan Orthodox Sect and the imperial court used carrier pigeons to transmit messages. Important intelligence in particular could spread throughout an entire province within a matter of days, especially during wartime.

Thinking back over everything they had seen on their journey, Li Yan already had a suspicion. He asked in a grave tone, "Daoist, is Yichang in a dire situation?"

"Dire? That hardly begins to describe it." Yu Lingzi did not conceal anything; he immediately poured out his grievances. "Yichang sits in an awkward position. Although our Taixuan Orthodox Sect is the orthodox tradition and controls the City God Temple, and though we also preside over all major sacrificial ceremonies, the local Dharma lineages hold greater influence among the common people.

"We were already short on manpower, yet every capable practitioner was then transferred away to deal with the uprising among the Jingchu natives, leaving us even more stretched.

"The situation is far too delicate now. Spies from every faction have gathered in Yichang, including sorcerers serving under the various tusi. The imperial court has increasingly had to rely on several local Dharma lineages to keep the situation under control. Signs of disorder have already appeared throughout Ezhou. Demons and evil entities cause trouble from time to time.

“The Dharma lineages do protect their local areas, but according to regulations, every such case still has to be reported to the Yichang prefectural courthouse and then forwarded to the City God Temple. With our limited manpower, how could we possibly deal with all of them?

"You also understand some of the complications. The relationship between the Dharma lineages and our orthodox sect is nuanced. Some of them have connections with the local clans that cannot easily be severed. That makes the Taixuan Orthodox Sect's position even more awkward.

"The stability of an entire region is at stake, so this old face of mine isn't worth much. I've hosted several banquets for the local Dharma lineages, asking them to suppress the various evil entities as much as possible during this period. Still, the situation in the southwest continues to deteriorate. Some villains are also taking advantage of the chaos to use evil arts to disturb the people's hearts and attempt to overturn the state.

"These were exactly the methods once used by the Maitreya Sect's heretics. Whenever great disaster or chaos strikes, if the imperial court and orthodox sects cannot stabilize public sentiment, the common people begin turning toward illicit cults and evil gods. Eventually, it leads to catastrophe."

He revealed a bitter smile and asked, "To tell you the truth, you saw it on the way here. Do you know who damaged the City God Temple?"

Li Yan narrowed his eyes slightly. "Heterodox cultivators?"

"No." Yu Lingzi sighed. "It was destroyed by villagers from a nearby settlement. It's the spring planting season. The rice seedlings they planted all withered overnight. Rice dying like that is already rare, especially considering it wasn't caused by the water source.

"One of my junior brothers went to investigate, but he wasn't skilled enough to find the cause. The village was poor and couldn't gather enough money to hire a Dharma lineage. They replanted several times, but every batch of seedlings withered again.

"Then some unknown villain spread a rumor claiming that the rice had died because the imperial court had lost its virtue. The villagers smashed their Earth God Temple and, after further incitement, came here and attacked the City God Temple.

"Your abilities are plain for all to see, Young Hero Li. You are also quite distinguished, and you have a good relationship with our Taixuan Orthodox Sect. Since you've come to Yichang, this poor Daoist can only shamelessly ask for your help."

"Senior, you're too polite." Li Yan did not refuse immediately. He cupped his hands and explained, "Our abilities are only average, but with the world in such chaos, we'll naturally do what we can."

They had come to the southwest precisely to exorcise evil and hunt demons. It was partly for experience, and partly to accumulate merit so they could use Mount Wudang's resources for cultivation. Moreover, with Wang Daoxuan's influence on their group, even if there were no reward involved, they would not stand by if someone was using evil arts to harm others.

Yu Lingzi was delighted. "Excellent! You gentlemen truly are practitioners of the Dao."

Given Yichang's current situation, the only people he could rely on were independent cultivators who had good relations with the orthodox sect, rather than the local Dharma lineages.

Li Yan's group was merely one such team. Of course, the appropriate rewards would not be lacking either.

Yu Lingzi smiled. "Fellow Daoists, you'll receive True Martial Tokens for the incidents at Azure Dragon Mountain and the phosphate mine. The bounties on those two villains will also be handed over to you in full. Only in times of crisis can one truly see a person's heart. Rest assured, gentlemen. Our Wudang True Martial Palace will never treat you unfairly.

"The matter involving that village is the most urgent. The people who attacked the temple have already been arrested by the imperial court, but public sentiment remains unstable and must be settled as quickly as possible."

Li Yan nodded. "Rest assured, Senior. However, we still have another matter to handle in Yichang. Once we're finished, we'll go to the City God Temple and find you."

𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Yu Lingzi nodded. "That works as well."

Only after promising them a pile of benefits did Yu Lingzi rise and take his leave.

Watching him depart, Wang Daoxuan could not help shaking his head. "The world truly is falling into chaos. In all my years, this is the first time I've seen the Taixuan Orthodox Sect this desperate. Brother Yan, you should go to the Yan residence first. I will remain at the inn and make preparations. I once encountered something similar to that village incident in Jiaozhou. If my guess is correct, it may be rather troublesome..."

Li Yan nodded. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Uncle Sha, Brother Lu, Yichang is dangerous. Stay at the inn and protect Daoist Wang. Don't go out alone."

Sha Lifei immediately grasped what he meant. "Don't worry. I understand."

They had taken The Classic of Lightning and Fire but still had no idea which faction it belonged to. Their enemy remained hidden while they were exposed, so they had to be especially careful.

After giving them a few more instructions, Li Yan changed into a clean set of clothes, gathered his equipment, and left the inn.

The Yan residence was also one of Yichang's prominent households. After asking an attendant for directions, Li Yan headed north through the city alone.

Behind him, at the corner of the street, an old beggar playing an erhu slowly raised his head. As he watched Li Yan walk away, his pupils turned blood-red.