When hearing this answer, You Siqi's expression immediately turned grim. He wasn't a fool and didn't need much explanation to understand what the man was implying.
The man was clearly stating that they had set their sights on someone's treasure. Because the owner refused to hand it over, they had waited until the strongest person in the Daoist temple died and then, as a group, they had killed everyone else.
All for the sake of snatching a magical artifact.
Though he knew the cultivation world was in chaos, facing this reality directly still left You Siqi with an indescribable sense of vexation and suffocation.
Glancing at his reaction, Liu Buli, who was standing beside him, finally spoke. He said, "You shouldn't have asked in the first place. The aura on this person is already chaotic, with too much killing intent and malevolence. It seems he's done similar things before. If he says the jade pendant isn't his, then murder and robbery were bound to happen. It's just that I didn't expect you to kill everyone in a Daoist temple just for a jade pendant. Isn't that going a bit too far?"
The spotlight of conversation shifted back to the man. Even if he didn't want to answer, with everyone's gaze fixed on him, he had to provide some sort of response.
After a moment of hesitant mumbling, the man gave his answer. He said, "Honestly, I didn't intend to go that far at first. But they insisted on protecting it and refused to give it up. When my anger flared, I couldn't quite control myself."
He made it sound so pleasant, as if he just "couldn't control himself."
Liu Buli scoffed, shaking his head. "Then it seems your 'can't control yourself' situations happen quite often? Judging by the aura on you, if this were the only time, you wouldn't be in such a disgusting state now."
The man's face immediately turned extremely ugly, the look of someone whose thoughts had been exposed.
However, Liu Buli didn't have much interest in digging into the past misdeeds of a villain. He merely let out a cold laugh and changed the subject. "Just lead the way honestly. We're not interested in the past anymore. You don't need to say more, let's leave it at that."
Liu Buli's words were like a pardon for the man.
He was actually very worried, as his life was in these people's hands. If they knew what he had done before and decided he was a bad person who shouldn't be kept alive, then even offering all his magical treasures wouldn't save his life.
Fortunately, Liu Buli stopped him from talking.
If it was just this one thing, it shouldn't affect his life or death, right?
The man reassured himself inwardly and continued to lead the way with his head down.
They had initially thought that the place where the man hid his magical treasures would be far from here. But in reality, after walking for only about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, the man suddenly looked up at the cliff face ahead and said softly, "Ah, we're here. It's that place."
Actually, without his reminder, the jade pendant in Liu Buli's hand had already begun to hum. As if seeing a loved one, it was urgently emitting a call.
Holding the jade pendant, Liu Buli felt an inexplicable sense of comfort. It was as if he and this jade pendant had a predestined connection. He could feel the spiritual energy flowing within the jade pendant was also filled with a sense of acceptance towards him.
This feeling made Liu Buli very happy. Thinking that this jade pendant was part of a pair, if he gave the other one to Lu Wuming, perhaps their connection would become even stronger. Just the thought made Liu Buli incredibly happy. So, he looked up at the cliff face ahead and, without any hesitation, followed the jade pendant's guidance towards the precipice.
Perhaps because everything around them appeared too normal, and the man's expression showed no significant emotional changes, everyone had let down their guard. It wasn't until he approached the cliff face and the surrounding environment suddenly changed that they finally realized something was wrong.
Li Qingcheng and Tan Wu were walking at the very back. So, when they saw the problem, Tan Wu immediately pulled Li Qingcheng back.
The ground instantly collapsed and undulated, and the cliff face beside them closed in. There was no time for people to enter. The puppet Tan Wu had thrown out only managed to grab You Siqi and Shen Muzhi, pulling them out of the area being engulfed. Liu Buli, Lu Wuming, and the man who had led them were all dragged into the collapsing cliff face, their fates unknown.
Once they were out of the danger zone, Shen Muzhi immediately stood up and looked at the closed ground and cliff face. He couldn't help but say, "Doesn't this look like a giant monster closing its mouth?"
His words were indeed accurate.
After the cliff face and ground closed, they maintained a very unnatural angle. If it were a normal geological collapse, such a formation would be impossible. The only reason for this situation to occur was the reason Shen Muzhi had stated.
Hearing his guess, Li Qingcheng's eyes widened, and she murmured, "If this is a monster, and its mouth is this big, how terrifyingly large must its body be..."
Tan Wu pursed his lips, clearly thinking of the same thing. His expression was grim. He sent out the puppet in his hand again, probing towards the closed top. He hoped to find traces of Liu Buli and the others this way.
Unlike Li Qingcheng's exclamations and speculations, Shen Muzhi hesitated for only a moment before turning his gaze directly to You Siqi.
Fortunately, he had been quick enough to pull You Siqi into his arms. Otherwise, with this sudden change, given You Siqi's cultivation, he probably wouldn't have even known how he was swallowed.
However, You Siqi clearly misunderstood Shen Muzhi's look of lingering fear. Feeling Shen Muzhi's gaze, he shook his head and said, "This situation is beyond my knowledge. Nothing I know involves this. But I don't think your guess is wrong; perhaps it really is such a large monster."
Li Qingcheng's expression of surprise became even more pronounced.
Tan Wu frowned and released the puppet's strings. He said, "This place is indeed strange. The puppet sent out senses intense malevolence. If we stay any longer, it will definitely affect us. So, the priority now isn't to identify what this is. We need to find a way to rescue them. After all, the damage sustained on the periphery is already so great. If they were directly swallowed..."
"Wait a moment," You Siqi raised his hand, interrupting Tan Wu's muttering. "Tell me again, you said the aura emanating from this area is all malevolence?"
Tan Wu blinked.
He didn't know why this was important, but since You Siqi asked, he nodded and said, "The puppet sent out has been infected. The malevolence is too strong; they lost control, and I can't pull them back."
As he spoke, he showed his hand to You Siqi.
Indeed, only five loose spiritual threads remained at his fingertips, with nothing attached at the ends. It was clear he had chosen to sacrifice the pawns to save the king.
The situation had become so critical that Tan Wu expected You Siqi to outline a battle plan next.
However, to his surprise, You Siqi simply waved his hand and said, "Since the entire area is filled with malevolence, let's not be affected and quickly get away from here."
Tan Wu was stunned.
Li Qingcheng blurted out, "But Liu Buli and the others are still inside!"
Upon hearing her words, You Siqi chuckled and said, "I know, but you told me that the entire area is filled with malevolence. If that's the case, then this is Lu Wuming's domain. If we stay here, we might be accidentally injured by him. When that guy gets serious, he doesn't see us. If you're not afraid of dying, you can stay. Mu Zhi and I will be leaving first."