Half an hour after Li Yan and the others arrived, Daoist Gong came whistling through the air. But after he arrived, he didn't speak. Instead, he landed directly from the air onto a prayer mat in the middle of the platform, facing the square, with his back to the majestic gate of the main hall. Inside the gate, under the lamplight, yellow curtains hung. Several giant pillars that would take several adults to encircle rose from the ground. On the pillars, dragons soared among clouds, lifelike, as if about to ascend into the sky. Incense smoke curled up in the hall. Three statues, forty zhang high, were located in the center. They were the Three Pure Ones of Daoism: the Primeval Lord of Heaven, the Numinous Treasure Lord of Heaven, and the Way and its Virtue Lord of Heaven. The entire hall was filled with a radiant glow, as if a solemn Daoist chant were being softly recited, echoing within. On both sides of the main hall were also statues of the Jade Emperor, the Four Extremes Great Emperors, the Five Directions Elders, and other immortals. Although the statues were also magnificent and majestic, they were much shorter than the three Heavenly Venerates in the center.
After Daoist Gong sat down cross-legged, he closed his eyes tightly. If one looked closely, two extremely fine blood-red threads were entwined on his skin, entering from the middle fingers of his left and right hands and going up his arms. With each breath he took, these two blood-red threads would flash and disappear.
This scene was noticed by Li Yan and the others long ago. As Li Yan focused his eyes, he heard one of the black-robed figures say in a low voice, "This is the Blood Oath Formation. I heard that only those with extremely profound attainments in formation arts can comprehend it. Xuanqing Temple truly lives up to its reputation."
With the arrival of Daoist Gong, this part of the world gradually quieted down. Only in the gentle breeze did the bright moon gradually rise and then slowly sink in the west.
...
When it was the hour of the Tiger, although the eastern sky was still dark, it was time for the daily morning recitation in the temple. Perhaps due to the special circumstances of the day, the morning recitation had already begun on the square below. Many disciples were already reciting softly. Twenty disciples on the square stood up in formation. They all had extraordinary auras and should be the elite of the temple, representing their respective halls to offer incense in the main hall.
After they stepped onto the white jade steps, they first bowed deeply to Daoist Gong, who was sitting on the platform in the center of the steps. Then, led by Luo Sanpang, Qin Chengyi, and Kong Nantai, ten of them entered the main hall. The rest remained seated outside the main hall.
As for Li Yan and the others, they were once again surrounded by ten new disciples who had just come up.
From time to time, the melodious sound of bells and chimes came from within the main hall, followed by a thicker fragrance of sandalwood drifting out. This sandalwood was not the ordinary kind used by mortals but was refined from spirit grass. It not only had the effect of clearing the mind and calming the spirit but was also very beneficial for cultivation. Smelling the clear fragrance coming to his nostrils, Li Yan felt all the pores in his body open up. The spiritual qi in the air jumped and danced, happily coursing through his meridians with his breathing, his mind clear and upright.
'This incense is comparable to a first-tier medicinal pill. If I can find some, it will be somewhat beneficial for my cultivation,' Li Yan thought to himself. In his Divine Sense, the few people beside him also seemed to be taking the opportunity to absorb the spiritual qi of heaven and earth.
In this peaceful scene, a terrified voice suddenly broke the tranquility of the early morning. "Senior Martial Uncle Luo, Senior Martial Uncle Luo..."
Then came more voices.
"This is bad, Senior Martial Uncle Luo is in trouble..."
"Senior Martial Uncle Kong... Junior Martial Uncle Qin, come here quickly..."
For a time, cries of alarm came from within the main hall. In the midst of the chaos, Kong Nantai's scolding voice came out, "All of you, shut up." Like a muffled thunder in the suppression, the main hall instantly fell silent again.
And at the same time, Daoist Gong's figure on the platform blurred and had already disappeared. At the same time, his powerful voice came from the air, "No one is to move rashly. All of you, stay where you are."
The five people, including Li Yan, and the ten disciples on the platform also stood up one after another, but they did not enter the main hall because of Daoist Gong's words.
The hundreds of cultivators on the square in front of the main hall also broke into discussion in an instant, but overall, they did not fall into chaos, showing the foundation of Xuanqing Temple as a sect with a long heritage.
Daoist Gong stood in the main hall. His originally pale face from the exhaustion of controlling the Blood Oath Formation was now ashen. A dozen or so disciples stood around, trembling. Kong Nantai and Qin Chengyi also stood at the side with ugly expressions.
Daoist Gong looked at Luo Sanpang, who was respectfully offering incense in front of the giant statue of the Three Pure Ones. He was still holding three thick incense sticks. As the incense burned and died, clear smoke curled up, as if he were about to insert the incense into the incense burner. But he just stood there, motionless.
Daoist Gong had held his breath when he came in. He stood two feet away from Luo Sanpang and scanned him from top to bottom with his Divine Sense several times. He then looked around again and said in a low voice, "What happened?" These few words seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth. In his Divine Sense, Luo Sanpang was already dead, and his soul was also completely dissipated.
After his question, the main hall was as silent as death. The surrounding disciples trembled all over. They felt as if a volcano was about to erupt from the Sect Master.
Kong Nantai frowned, let out a cold snort, and pointed at a rather strong Daoist, saying, "Bai Kui, you tell me. You were the first one to discover it."
The Daoist pointed at by Kong Nantai turned pale and hurriedly stepped forward. "Disciple Bai Kui greets the Sect Master. Just now, under the instruction of the several senior martial uncles and junior martial uncles, we were cleaning and offering incense. It's just that the Three Pure Heavenly Venerates have always been cleaned and offered incense by the senior martial uncles and junior martial uncles, so we went to the side hall to offer incense to the Great Emperor, the Six Regents, and the Five Directions Elders.
Today, the immortal seats of the Three Pure Heavenly Venerates were still offered incense by the three senior martial uncles and junior martial uncles. When we disciples passed by several times, we saw that Senior Martial Uncle Luo was still respectfully holding the incense. We thought he was silently praying for blessings or something, so we didn't pay much attention. But after a while, I noticed something was wrong. When I went forward to ask, Senior Martial Uncle Luo didn't answer. I felt even more that something was wrong. Then I mustered up my courage and went forward, only to see that Senior Martial Uncle Luo's eyes were dull, and there was no life in his body. A sweep of my Divine Sense showed that Senior Martial Uncle Luo was already... already..." At this point, Bai Kui's face was filled with terror. As a high-level disciple selected to enter the hall today, he knew more about the events of the past two days in the temple than the other disciples on the square due to his status in the sect. He hadn't expected that under the watchful eyes of so many, a powerful mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator would die just like that. And there was another Foundation Establishment senior martial uncle in the hall, and the Sect Master was at the entrance. How could this not frighten him?
"Oh, you didn't notice anything at all at first?" Daoist Gong's voice was suppressing his anger. This time, he looked at Kong Nantai and Qin Chengyi.
"Reporting to the Sect Master Senior Brother, people were coming and going here, either cleaning or offering incense in the side hall. After we came in, the three of us first dusted everything and then each offered incense to the Three Pure Ancestors. After I and Junior Brother Qin finished offering incense, we saw that Senior Brother Luo was still seemingly in silent prayer, so we went to arrange for the other disciples. We... we... didn't notice anything unusual," he said, his face also uncertain.
After hearing this, Daoist Gong fell silent. He scanned Luo Sanpang's body repeatedly with his Divine Sense several times. The incense that was still emitting smoke was not poisonous. Otherwise, everyone in this hall would be dead by now.
Daoist Gong slowly walked to the front of Luo Sanpang. He suddenly opened his mouth, and a green, round bead emitting a rich, green wood spiritual power flew out of his mouth. The green bead instantly flew to Luo Sanpang's forehead. The moment it touched Luo Sanpang's forehead, a ripple-like green wave fluctuated. Then, with a "buzz," it entered everyone's ears. The green halo of the green bead dimmed for a moment, then quickly flew towards Luo Sanpang's body. After circling Luo Sanpang's whole body, the bead finally flew to the three sandalwood incense sticks held in Luo Sanpang's hand, and with another "buzz," it shot back.
Looking at the bead floating in front of him, which was flickering with green light, Daoist Gong probed it with a wisp of his Divine Sense. This bead was called the "Qinglan Bead." It was a mid-grade magical treasure, and it had a particularly strong restraining effect on evil and yin poison. It was Daoist Gong's natal magical treasure.
Daoist Gong looked at the two silk-like gray threads in the vibrant green bead. They were currently ramming left and right inside the bead. But the gray threads seemed too small compared to the vast, surging green spiritual power inside the bead, yet they were extremely fierce, showing no signs of falling behind at all.
His face couldn't help but become grave. He let out a low shout, "It's actually Grey Datura Water coated on the sandalwood incense. No wonder Junior Brother Luo is like this. I'm afraid his Sea of Consciousness has long been devoured, leaving only an empty shell."
Hearing this, the disciples around him were still confused. Even Qin Chengyi had a look of doubt. But Kong Nantai's expression changed drastically, and he couldn't help but exclaim, "Sect Master Senior Brother, are you sure that Junior Brother Luo was poisoned by Grey Datura Water? Doesn't this poison only occasionally appear in the extreme southern seas? Even collecting it is extremely difficult. The slightest carelessness, and touching it means instant death. Someone actually obtained this potent poison? This poison hasn't appeared in our Western Region for at least several thousand years. It's said that those who are poisoned by this poison become completely stiff, but their minds remain clear. They can feel their souls being entwined by this poison, like countless king datura snakes, until their souls are finally devoured completely, making the poisoned person's soul feel as if it's being pulled out thread by thread, yet they can't make a sound. Even their expression doesn't change due to the paralysis. Although the whole process only lasts for a short two or three breaths, it feels like an eternity in purgatory for the poisoned person."
Daoist Gong looked at the gray threads that were about to disappear in the green bead and nodded slowly. "It is indeed this poison. I didn't expect someone to use such a vicious method against my Xuanqing Temple. Although there are only a few threads of this poison, it's more than enough to kill a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Even for my natal magical treasure to refine these two remaining threads, it would probably take nearly a year. It seems my Xuanqing Temple has provoked a powerful enemy." At this point, he narrowed his eyes and his mind raced. For a moment, he couldn't figure out where this powerful enemy had come from. After a few breaths, his body suddenly trembled slightly, and a thought flashed through his mind. 'Could it be... related to the two missing sects nearby?' Thinking of this, Daoist Gong couldn't help but feel a chill run down his back. The two missing sects had over a thousand people combined, and they disappeared mysteriously overnight. They all had Golden Core cultivators presiding over them, and now his own sect's Ancestor was not here.
The more Daoist Gong thought about it, the colder he felt in his heart. But he had been in charge of the sect for decades. Although he was shocked, his face remained gloomy.
He felt the terror of his opponent. Every murder left no useful clues. Even in killing Junior Brother Luo in this main hall, it seemed the killer must be among Senior Brother Kong, Junior Brother Qin, and the ten disciples, but that was not the case. After these sandalwood incenses were offered daily, they would be replaced in the same position for reuse. Even if you found the person who placed the incense, you couldn't be sure. They had only gathered here late last night. Had these incenses been touched by anyone during the day? And how many people had touched them? So it couldn't be determined that the poisoning happened this morning.
Moreover, there was another problem that puzzled Daoist Gong. Since the killer wanted to kill someone, why did they only poison the few incense sticks that Junior Brother Luo held? If they were only targeting Foundation Establishment cultivators, this person must have already known that the Three Pure Heavenly Venerates must be offered incense by Foundation Establishment cultivators. Why not just poison all three of them? Of course, Qin Chengyi was someone whose seniority and realm did not match.
For a moment, Daoist Gong felt his head was about to explode. The killer's methods, whether it was killing without a trace, a direct kill, or a planned murder, had no pattern at all, making him more and more confused.
And just at this moment, a crimson light flew rapidly from the distance. The light came so fast that it didn't stop at all. In the eyes of the crowd, it had already flown into the main hall. After the light dissipated, it revealed Hall Master Ji's ashen face. He had flown back directly from his patrol after receiving a message from a disciple. He first glanced at the crowd in the main hall, then came to Daoist Gong's side in a few steps. The two then whispered to each other. A moment later, Daoist Gong and Hall Master Ji moved and circled the main hall several times. Then they went directly out of the main hall. After the time it takes for half a stick of incense to burn, the two returned to the main hall.
"The clues here are even more chaotic than at Junior Brother Song's place. Too many disciples came in and out yesterday. It's impossible to rule anyone out," Hall Master Ji's eyes seemed to be about to spew fire. As the Hall Master of the Disciplinary Hall that guarded the gate, he felt as if he had lost his divine abilities this day, being constrained at every turn. He no longer looked like an immortal at all, which made him extremely frustrated.
Seeing this, Daoist Gong pondered for a moment and said via voice transmission, "Senior Brother Ji, don't blame yourself either. I've thought about it for a long time and feel that this matter may be related to the two missing sects nearby that Master sent word about a few days ago. There were Golden Core cultivators there, and something still happened. I don't know if Master has any clues."
This time, he didn't call him "Hall Master Ji," but "Senior Brother Ji," which showed his intention to comfort him. Hall Master Ji had actually joined the sect earlier than him and was the Eldest Senior Brother of this generation. It was just that since Daoist Gong became the Sect Master, he also followed others in calling Daoist Gong "Sect Master Senior Brother." Daoist Gong couldn't call him senior brother in return, so he always called him "Hall Master Ji."