Chapter 417: Chapter 42 Let Them Have a Look
The water vapor rose, and a misty haze filled the view.
Streets intersected chaotically, with rubble and debris scattered on the ground.
Through the water mist, one could still see dilapidated temples, shattered courtyard walls, collapsed gates, and precarious withered trees...
Buzz.
The Kun Whale spread its fins, hovering a hundred meters above the ground.
In theory, with the Kun Whale’s speed in sky-controlling flight, it would only take half a day to traverse the Purple Sun Palace, but the rainwater posed a hazardous challenge.
After all, the rainwater carried an indescribable and terrifying taboo.
If touched, even a Tattooed Beast couldn’t escape misfortune, so Li Mo had no choice but to slow the Kun Whale as much as possible to avoid danger.
Li Mo could sense the Kun Whale’s spiritual power being consumed.
Estimating that every two days, it would need to rest for half a day, at which point he would release the Sun Treasure Bottle to protect the Kun Whale, ensuring it could endure for another half a day without issue.
From this, it was evident that an ordinary Sword Cultivator attempting to flee the Purple Sun Palace was indeed unrealistic.
The spiritual power of the Divine Separation Stage was not endless, and within the range of the Purple Sun Palace, the proportion of water attribute spiritual energy was steadily increasing.
Li Mo pointed toward another Teaching Daoist Temple, and the Kun Whale nodded in response.
The Purple Sun Palace was on the verge of becoming ruins, and the state of the Teaching Daoist Temple remained uncertain, but a visit was necessary nonetheless.
Meanwhile, Ye Zhuo Daoist was already contemplating candidates for the Sword Ghost.
"Senior Brother Taiyi, how about heading to the Zimu Temple in the Northwest District first? The Sword Ghost there is beneficial for nourishing the sword pill."
Ye Zhuo Daoist turned his head, only to see Li Mo sitting cross-legged, exuding an aura that repelled strangers, as he had already begun meditative cultivation with his eyes closed.
"The Black Coffin is spacious enough for two people, and with the Sword Ghost weakened under the current circumstances, its taboo has diminished by more than half, so why not..."
Ye Zhuo Daoist, upon hearing this, thought of the fake magical treasure Black Coffin he had acquired. Nodding ingratiatingly, he said, "Of course, sealing the Sword Ghost hardly requires Senior Brother’s personal effort."
"The resources produced by the Sword Ghost are best if related to corpses; otherwise, it doesn’t matter."
"Heh heh heh, rest assured, Junior Brother is too familiar with the Purple Sun Palace. Regardless of the type of Sword Ghost, I know them inside and out."
Li Mo took out more than ten trapped sword platforms, all of which were high-quality Hundred Refinement Magical Artifacts, and he explained their functions to Ye Zhuo Daoist.
"The Northwest District? It shouldn’t be far from here."
"Ye Zhuo, just give the specific location directly, and the Kun Whale will head there."
Li Mo continued contemplating the Sword Scripture Sword Meridian Circulation Method, muttering to himself, "Refining the Black Coffin into a magical treasure is actually simple."
Ye Zhuo Daoist’s pupils enlarged as he couldn’t help letting out a strange laugh of "heh heh heh."
He suddenly realized that the Sword Ghosts’ importance was far less than Li Mo’s—mere scraps leaked from the lips of the Thirteen Immortals were already incredibly precious.
Ye Zhuo Daoist swallowed a gulp of saliva and patiently guided the Kun Whale forward.
The Northwest District, close to the Fire Spirit Hall, had most of its structures submerged by rainwater, and the stench of corpses permeated the air, infiltrating their five internal organs.
The Kun Whale halted as desolate Sword Intent from the stream blanketed the ground-level Daoist Temple.
Ye Zhuo Daoist dry-heaved for a while, then carefully tread on the Black Coffin as he slipped into the temple, searching for the Sword Ghost Furnace.
Li Mo had instructed Ye Zhuo Daoist to seal the Sword Ghost alone, but he would still monitor the situation through a Divine Split.
Yet, shortly after Ye Zhuo Daoist entered the main hall, he rushed out pale-faced, climbing onto the Kun Whale without any hesitation.
"What the hell is that thing?"
Bang.
The main hall door was flung open, and a grotesque, indescribable abomination revealed itself.
The Furnace Pill, which should have retained human form, was now riddled with pits of various sizes under the erosion of the rainwater, while the rest of its flesh frenziedly grew to fill the voids.
"M-milord, spare me!!!"
The Furnace Pill stumbled toward Ye Zhuo Daoist, its body slowly dissolving into nothingness.
"Damn it, I don’t believe this!"
Ye Zhuo Daoist took a deep breath, saying, "Five hundred meters east lies the Dishan Temple, where the Sword Ghost’s output can replace internal organs."
Once the Kun Whale arrived, Ye Zhuo Daoist once again fled in disarray.
The situation was graver than he had anticipated. The Northwest District was most likely overrun, and the number of Sword Ghosts lost in the Purple Sun Palace was nearing a hundred thousand.
Ye Zhuo Daoist soon grew numb.
Under the relentless downpour, ordinary Cocoon Swords had virtually no chance of survival.
After spending most of the day, Ye Zhuo Daoist only managed to capture one Sword Ghost, "Grass Green," which barely met Li Mo’s requirements.
Grass Green’s taboo could accelerate the growth of grass and wood, causing them to actively attack living beings to absorb their blood. If adequately nourished, its branches could bear palm-sized tongues.
Ye Zhuo Daoist followed beneath the Kun Whale, conducting sky-controlling investigations of Daoist Temples along the way.
As long as a temple had not reached the Night Wander stage, even out-of-control Sword Ghosts posed no threat to Ye Zhuo Daoist, as he quickly discerned their nature within a few instants.
"Alas, even if normalcy returns, the resource output of the Purple Sun Palace is bound to plummet."
Ye Zhuo Daoist sighed to himself as he dutifully dived toward a Daoist Temple, only for the Black Coffin to suddenly stir.
Bang bang bang.
"Hmm?"
Daoist Bai Shuo opened his eyes, his expression terrified as he banged against the lid. "The door—the door."
Ye Zhuo Daoist recalled the scarred words on Bai Shuo Daoist’s right arm and felt a chill run down his spine.
Before he could react, Li Mo appeared in the temple doorway.
Inside the temple, a Sword Ghost seemed to sense a living presence, scrambling out of the window on all fours. It was shaped like a bamboo stick insect, with its entire body covered in holes.
Li Mo frowned slightly, and a burst of Sword Qi shot from his fingertip.
The Sword Ghost’s head was impaled, and it dissolved into nothingness as it fell into the water.
However one looked at it, this Sword Ghost was nothing remarkable—not even strong enough to reach the Divine Separation Stage. Why, then, did it cause Daoist Bai Shuo’s reaction?
Once the Sword Ghost perished, Bai Shuo Daoist’s eyes turned bloodshot.
"It’s coming, it’s coming!!!"
Only after Li Mo unleashed Dark Moon Sword Intent did Bai Shuo Daoist fall into a deep sleep, his hands bloody from attempting to force open the coffin lid.
"Ye Zhuo, what’s the story with this Sword Ghost?"
Ye Zhuo Daoist stared at the temple’s plaque for a long while before hesitantly replying, "Corpse Sect Temple, Corpse Sect Temple... Hmm, its specific resource output doesn’t seem significant. The Sword Ghost is called ’Inverted Suspension.’"
"What is Inverted Suspension’s taboo?"
Ye Zhuo Daoist shuddered and blurted out, "The taboo is ’Do not open doors.’ Inverted Suspension hides behind all doors."
The two exchanged glances.
Could Bai Shuo Daoist, who might not even exist, be warning another version of himself about Inverted Suspension?
Li Mo carefully recalled that Bai Shuo Daoist had never left Zhi Mountain Temple, and his usual position was far from this area.
"Senior Brother, something’s wrong. Bai Shuo’s injuries are worsening," Ye Zhuo Daoist said hoarsely, his eyes filled with dread.
Li Mo swiftly looked over.
The pits on Bai Shuo Daoist’s right arm had unknowingly expanded by a third, leaving the flesh tenuously connected. New scars emerged again.
Li Mo activated cancer cells to stimulate the right arm, revealing first, "Remember, there’s someone behind the door," followed by newly formed scrawl:
"Don’t look back when you step out; don’t see the shadowed one behind you."
"What kind of nonsense is this?"
The scars were of varying depths, the second line clearly later-formed, and the handwriting was also Bai Shuo Daoist’s, filled with deep despair.
"Does the Purple Sun Palace have a Sword Ghost whose taboo is related to shadows?"
"There are many like this..."
Li Mo shook his head slightly, signaling the Kun Whale to proceed toward Qingxin Temple, intending to personally assist Bai Shuo Daoist in locating suitable Sword Ghosts.
The taboos within the rain were excessively bizarre, as though countless eyes were observing their every move.
They sealed a Sword Ghost that produced human eyes, "Eye Float," and Qingxin Temple came into sight.
Qingxin Temple no longer displayed its former liveliness. Due to its low elevation, all buildings were soaked in the corpse-reeking rainwater.
Li Mo abandoned any hopes of fortune and planned to forsake any sword inheritance here.
The main hall of Qingxin Temple abruptly trembled, suggesting that the Teaching Elder within had not yet perished and sensed the arrival of Sword Cultivators.
"I’ll check it out."
Li Mo drew the Illusion Fish Sword, with Sun Sword Intent intertwining around him.
A flash of golden light swept past.
Upon entering the main hall, he was greeted by the sight of a Teaching Elder already half-consumed by taboos, his upper body barely holding above the water’s surface.
The inheritance minds remained intact.
Li Mo understood that even if the Teaching Elder perished and the Taoist inheritance faded, as long as the Great Sun Sword Tomb endured, the Sword Way would not be extinguished.
Nonetheless, the Teaching Elder’s dogged effort to protect the inheritance minds, driven by instincts from his lifetime, was worthy of respect.
Li Mo approached within half a meter of the Teaching Elder, and the latter struggled to block his way.
The Blood Soul lashed outward, intestines extending to snatch the largest inheritance minds, which recorded the Taoist inheritance of the Yangqing Sword Body.
"Thank you, Elder, for granting this disciple the inheritance."
Li Mo bowed respectfully and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Predictably, Qingxin Temple would turn to ruins within half a year, with no one left alive.
The Kun Whale’s speed gradually increased as Li Mo summoned the Golden Toad to aid their journey.
The two of them resembled brigands, employing ever-cruder methods to inspect the temples, usually using trapped sword platforms for testing. If the Sword Ghost responded, it indicated the taboo had not consumed it yet.
Li Mo had collected over thirty Sword Ghosts, the majority being Cocoon Swords, attainable only during such extraordinary times.
After acquiring two more sword inheritances, the Kun Whale sped directly toward the southeast.
As they distanced themselves from the Fire Spirit Hall, the rain gradually lightened.
In the southeast, at Yu Xin Palace, there was indeed no rain, yet the Sword Cultivators, having realized the catastrophe within the Purple Sun Palace, had already evacuated entirely.
Ye Zhuo Daoist watched for a long time.
Then suddenly—
Bang!
From the direction of Fire Spirit Hall, a sky-piercing blaze erupted, formed by eight pillars of Spirit Flame.
All the Sword Cultivators within the Great Sun Sword Tomb received an influx of information in their minds—it was a Magic Technique for tracking rain patterns, "Elephant Eye."
"Disciples of the Great Sun Sword Tomb, after mastering Elephant Eye, proceed to the Fire Spirit Hall within six months."
Though the message conveyed no warnings, both individuals felt an icy dread, suspecting the six-month limit was tied to an even graver calamity.
"What should we do?"
Li Mo said gravely, "We must go to Fire Spirit Hall. If you wish to preserve yourself, I’ll drop you off outside Yu Xin Palace."
Ye Zhuo Daoist replied, "No, no, no, staying with Senior Brother is my only hope of survival."
"Very well, assist me in refining the Sword Shuttle so we can traverse the Great Sun Sword Tomb."
"Sword Shuttle? A trinket sold in the black markets?"
"This Sword Shuttle is not like those. Let’s give our fellow disciples something to marvel at."