We landed the plane smoothly, but immediately headed for Western Sichuan without pausing.
We hadn't even had a bite to eat.
The vehicles, however, had already been booked and arranged before we departed.
As soon as we exited the arrival hall, several cars were already waiting by the roadside.
Everyone was in a hurry, and we boarded the cars and set off without any delay.
Our destination this time was a temple outside of Jiandao Peak, the Kumu Temple.
This was a small temple, about thirty li from the Black Demon force's main base.
Currently, the Dao Alliance assembly point was located here.
Seated in the car, we soon got onto the expressway.
At first, it was smooth sailing.
But gradually, we began to see one precipitous mountain peak after another.
By evening, we had reached the edge of Western Sichuan, about to enter Tibetan Buddhist territory.
This was my first time in Tibetan Buddhist territory, seeing those towering snow-capped mountains.
We crossed treacherous rivers and climbed winding mountains and valleys.
After a full day of traveling, our convoy of four cars finally reached our destination at ten past midnight.
Jiandao Peak.
As soon as we got out of the car, we saw a mountain peak.
The peak pierced straight into the sky, like a sharp knife.
The terrain looked similar to Fox Mountain, where the Fox Clan resided.
But the overall structure was vastly different.
Fox Mountain was a sharp sword; this was a dagger.
Fox Mountain was a sharp sword sheathed, harboring spiritual energy and dragon veins.
This was a dagger, thrusting directly into the firmament, as if to tear the heavens.
Fox Mountain was a place of leadership.
But this Jiandao Peak, to me, looked like a place of great ill omen.
Although it was already night, the moonlight revealed the barrenness of the surroundings.
Besides some stunted shrubs and mossy grass, many areas were filled with dead trees and stones.
This place.
The sky was split by the knife, too ominous.
I was studying the Feng Shui of this place.
The rest of the group's buttocks were sore from sitting in the car all day.
Now, getting out, they felt much more comfortable and started stretching.
"Finally here, I was so uncomfortable!"
Old Mo grumbled.
"The spiritual energy here is so thin!"
Xiao Yao observed, looking around.
"It's the plateau, after all. It's bound to be more barren than inland areas, and this is also a place of great ill omen."
I chimed in.
"A place of great ill omen?"
Everyone looked at me.
I nodded:
"That's right, the Feng Shui here is indeed not very good."
As soon as I finished speaking, Luo Yin, with his Yin-Yang eyes, also spoke:
"There is indeed a heavy deathly aura here. My eyes can see it clearly. Beneath that mountain, something very fierce should be suppressed."
Luo Yin pointed at Jiandao Peak ahead.
As soon as Luo Yin finished speaking, Uncle-Master, Bai Lao, and Jiang Ye also walked over:
"Indeed, Jiandao Peak is not a good place. Beneath Jiandao Peak lies a thousand-year Ice Corpse King. The Kumu Temple was built here specifically to guard that thousand-year Ice Corpse King."
Upon hearing this from Uncle-Master, everyone present was startled again.
"A thousand-year Ice Corpse King?"
"Damn, a frozen zombie? That's so cool?"
"Cool nothing, if this thing were to appear, it could freeze a lake in one breath. It would bring disaster to the region. The generations of lamas at Kumu Temple are all accomplished monks. Without their guard, this area would have long ago become a desolate land."
Uncle-Master rebuked.
Old Mo dared not speak further.
Bai Lao then said:
"Alright, alright, let's hurry up and go up the mountain! We've been traveling all day."
As Bai Lao spoke, everyone nodded.
Then, over ten people began to head towards Jiandao Peak.
It was cold here, and there was snow on the mountaintop.
We followed a small path and soon arrived at the foot of Jiandao Peak.
This was the mountain gate of Kumu Temple.
Normally, there might be no one here.
But these days were different; the guard at the mountain gate was extremely strict.
At a glance, one could see disciples from three major sects.
Kongtong, Shaolin, Longhu…
Including other allies, there were over thirty people gathered at the mountain gate alone.
As soon as we appeared, we attracted their attention.
A leading middle-aged man immediately stepped forward.
He spoke into the darkness towards us:
"Who goes there?"
Upon hearing this, the other thirty-odd people became vigilant, their hands resting on their waist swords or magical artifacts.
Uncle-Master walked to the front and produced his identity token.
At the same time, he said:
"This humble Daoist is Hu Xiao, here for the assembly!"
After speaking, Uncle-Master threw the identity token directly over.
At the same time, he brought the few of us into their view.
As we approached now, we could see.
The middle-aged Daoist speaking was a Daoist priest from the Kongtong Sect.
We hadn't seen him at the previous assembly.
He quickly took Uncle-Master's token and handed it to a nearby disciple for verification.
The disciple had a booklet in his hand.
By activating the token, they could quickly find the corresponding records.
Uncle-Master's identity was among those on record, and verification was quickly completed.
The leading middle-aged Daoist then relaxed somewhat:
"Daoist Hu Xiao, welcome to the assembly, but your identity token does not record so many people."
Uncle-Master listened and replied again:
"These individuals are all recommended and guaranteed by me. They should already be recorded."
After speaking, Uncle-Master signaled Bai Lao and Jiang Ye to also produce their tokens.
These tokens were self-made identification plates infused with their true essence.
Bai Lao and the others also produced their tokens and threw them over.
Verification was also quickly completed.
We thought everything would proceed smoothly from here.
But the leading middle-aged Daoist spoke again:
"Fellow Daoists, the demonic forces are strong and difficult to guard against.
A few days ago, a demonic Daoist attempted to infiltrate the mountain.
Therefore, please wait here. After we report and the higher authorities approve, you may ascend the mountain…"