"Damn it!" Wu Xuan snorted. The temple was completely empty and not a shadow of any living being. "San Jie, Luo Cheng??" Yu Lingyu shouted several times. But there was no answer. There was no evidence of a conflict, and they had all vanished into thin air. "Wu Shixiong, how do we find them now?" Lingyu asked, scanning almost every place in the temple. He even checked the holes in the wall, even no one could be there.
"I'm sure it came here, but where did it hide?" Ruffled his hair, Wu Xuan muttered to himself. Although Yu Lingyu did not show it openly, he was angry with Wu Xuan. Certainly, Xuan had never regarded his sect brothers even as a speck of dust. All he wanted was the glory of capturing the devil. But having to sacrifice San Jie and Luo Cheng for his selfish feelings, Yu Lingyu was obviously angry. Throwing out his arms, he slammed his clenched right hand down hard on the statue's base.
"Did you sacrifice them without preparing for these things?" Yu Lingyu asked, trying to be as controlling himself as he could. "Hump," Wu Xuan hummed. The air was very peaceful and very quiet without any sound. From time to time the yellow torches inside swayed in the wind and their shadows created different patterns on the walls. Lying on the ground amid this gloomy light, Wu Xuan continued to search, making various noises with his mouth, searching for some hidden mechanism. Sometimes he gave a triumphant tsk and sometimes hummed.
"The position of the statue is different." Yu Lingyu, who had been circling the statue for a long time, finally said. "What?" Wu Xuan asked as he stood up, dusting off his body. Approaching Lingyu, he looked for a change in the statue, but nothing caught his eye. Recognizing the look in Wu Xuan's eyes, Yu Lingyu reached out to the fly whisk resting on the statue's right hand. "It's two degrees different."
Wu Xuan: ?????
He stared at Yu Lingyu with wide eyes and lips pressed together. Ignoring him, Lingyu reached for a demon-repelling talisman from his purse and flicked it at the whisk in the statue's hand. As he expected, the talisman burned away.
"Hmm? That's no ordinary demon." Xuan said as he examined the brightness of the burning flame. Raising his sword, he threw it straight up and it collided with the large marble whisk, spinning it upwards. Now its head was pointing towards the statue's face.
Suddenly the temple began to shake violently and with a sudden gust of wind, all the fire lights went out, plunging the surroundings into complete darkness. Yu Lingyu felt a firm grip on his wrist and the touch was very cold. But at the same time, the earth beneath their feet melted away and both fell rapidly into the darkness.
'Thud'
Yu Lingyu quickly hit a rough surface and Wu Xuan collapsed onto his body, interrupting his breathing. "Ah." The pain from the head and Wu Xuan's heavy body crushed Lingyu's body. Although Lingyu tried to roll aside, they were in a very confined space and could not see anything in the darkness. Yu Lingyu tried to retrieve a Luminous Talisman from his wallet but was unable to do so due to the Wu Xuan on top of him. "Don't struggle." Wu Xuan said in a grumpy voice.
Yu Lingyu sent his hands around the space and touched the wall that surrounded them. Its surface was neither rough nor smooth and the surface felt like it was made of wood. Also above was a hard surface and because of that neither of them could stand up. At the same time, Wu Xuan placed his hands on either side of Yu Lingyu's face and pushed Lingyu's legs to the sides, placing one knee between them and raising his body slightly. This eased the burden on Lingyu's body.
Wu Xuan's silky hair touched Lingyu's face, and his brown eyes, bright even in the darkness, rested directly above Lingyu's eyes. Unburdened by Wu Xuan, Lingyu reached into his purse took out a luminous talisman, and lit it. "Is this- a coffin?" Yu Lingyu whispered in a cold, trembling voice. He turned his head away, trying to ignore the expression on Wu Xuan's face, which was just above his face.
"Yu Shidi," Wu Xuan's soft whisper managed to send a chill down Yu Lingyu's spine. "Hmm?"
"Don't struggle, don't make any noise. I'll try to open this." Closer to Lingyu's ears, he whispered. At the same time, Wu Xuan quickly lifted, and his broad back slammed into the lid. "A shit." The lid didn't budge, and Wu Xuan quickly fell onto Lingyu again. His lips touched Lingyu's forehead and although he didn't feel the sensation due to the mask, Lingyu still blushed in embarrassment. "Oh," Wu Xuan sounded anxious, but there was no worry on his face.
"Your mask is so cold." Wu Xuan said as he lay completely on top of Yu Lingyu. "Why can't this be opened?" Lingyu asked, trying in vain. He could even hear Wu Xuan's heartbeat and Lingyu was startled by the sound of blood coursing through his veins. Lingyu opened his mouth to say something else, but Wu Xuan interrupted.
"Shhh..listen."
A drum was heard outside. It sounded far away, but it was ticking along in a pleasing rhythm. From among them came the sound of a flute and the sound of a guqin, and apart from that, there was no human voice at all. "What kind of lunatic holds a ceremony at a grave?" Wu Xuan whispered. "Can you open this?" asked by Yu Lingyu, Xuan stared at him for a while. Then he suddenly lifted again and as before he had to fall on top of Lingyu. "Use spiritual energy," Lingyu said through gritted teeth.
"You try it. Thought I didn't try?" Wu Xuan said, leaning weakly on Lingyu's shoulders. He was enjoying the moment. Deluded, Yu Lingyu tried to use his spiritual energy but was unsuccessful. The coffin was holding it back. "This is very embarrassing," Lingyu whispered. Wu Xuan raised his head slightly and glared at Lingyu with eyes filled with unspeakable emotions. After that, shaking his head again, he raised his hands on the sides of Lingyu's face and lifted himself faster than before, this time the lids slightly twitched and tilted. "Ah," Xuan muttered as if in pain. Slamming the lid once more, he pushed it away and was off Lingyu in an instant, giving him room to breathe.
"Damn it." Xuan cursed as he fell to the ground. Hugging his head with his right hand, Yu Lingyu sat down in the coffin. His shoulders and back were hurting badly due to the fall. He took a quick look around. Several coffins of the same shape, with bright green, emerald lids, and dark wood, were respectively piled on plinths slightly raised from the ground, where the ground was muddy and overgrown with weeds. Coffins were located in a large area and surrounding them was a large forest. There was no light except the dying light of the moon. Many wooden plaques were hanging from the huge, tall trees in the front, which looked like memorial plaques.
What in the world is this? seems like temple is connect with a magical array. But why on the earth it has to be a coffin? DAMN YOU!
Lingyu's mind is on a race.
Fixing his fallen mask, Yu Lingyu jumped out of the coffin without a second glance and slipped away as if he had stepped on something fragile. He fell face down on the muddy ground and drank a lot of salty mud water. "Aw," Wu Xuan hummed in pain. Yu Lingyu had placed his foot on his head. Standing up, Yu Lingyu coughed and tried to wipe the mud off his face, but it only caused more mud to spread all over him. "Sorry Wu Shixiong." He whispered in a low voice.
"Are you going to take revenge now that I fall into your body?" Wu Xuan asked as if worried. Yu Lingyu's kick were stained like a brown pattern in his silky black hair. He let out a raspy sound but didn't seem angry. "Oh no no, it's really a mistake." Smiling awkwardly, Yu Lingyu muttered as he waved his hands to his sides. 'I'm sorry for disturbing your noble hair.' Yu Lingyu hummed from within. He had carried all of Wu Xuan's burden for so long. Therefore, Lingyu was not really worried about stepping on Xuan's head.
Rubbing his back, Wu Xuan stood up and approached another coffin. Grabbing one of its corners, he pushed the lid back. He hoped that the missing disciples were buried in those coffins, but as soon as the lids opened, he quickly backed away, startled by something. Yu Lingyu glanced at it. Swarms of mice were jumping out of the coffin, taking advantage of their freedom. Wu Xuan's lips pursed, and he twirled as if dancing to escape the rats running from between his legs.
"The music has stopped," Lingyu said, remembering the drumming from earlier. His right hand was wrapped around his wallet as if to pull out a talisman at any moment. "Where are we?"
"In the forest," Wu Xuan growled, still fighting with the rats. Yu Lingyu moved closer to Wu Xuan as he swung his leg to knock off a mouse that was hanging on his leg. Grabbing his sword and turning away from the rats, Yu Lingyu shot a provocative look at Xuan. Calm down, calm down. he shouted to himself. Ignoring Wu Xuan, he still opened several coffins and still received the same answer as before. There is no one in them. "San Shidi, Luo Shidi can you hear me? Luo-" Lingyu had to swallow his words as someone tightly covered his mouth. "Shut up!" Standing behind Lingyu, Wu Xuan covered Lingyu's mouth with his right hand.
"What?" Yu Lingyu asked impulsively, slapping Wu Xuan's hand, taking a step back, and looking directly into Wu Xuan's eyes. "Look," said Wu Xuan, who had quietly observed Yu Lingyu for a while, pointing to a coffin in the corner. "It's a different color," Wu Xuan said, pointing to the blue coffin among the other green coffins. Due to the dimness of the light, it was not visible at first glance. Grabbing Lingyu's hand, Xuan quickly took a step towards it, pulling him along.
"Hmm?" Observing the locked coffin, Wu Xuan knocked on it from time to time. The casket with silver patterns around the body looked more advanced and luxurious. "There's something inside," Yu Lingyu said as he stepped aside and folded his arms across his chest. Wu Xuan, who was kneeling on the ground and inspecting the coffin, looked at him in surprise. "The earth beneath the base is more diged, and this coffin is similar in size and material to the others. So, the reason for digging more is because there is something else heavy inside." Yu Lingyu patiently explained.
A mischievous smile appeared at the corner of Wu Xuan's mouth. "There is indeed something there, but it could be dangerous. Did you see the guardian talismans at the base?" Yu Lingyu nodded his head as if to indicate yes. But he didn't expect Wu Xuan to take off all the talismans so quickly and break the lock to open the coffin. "Wu Shixi-" Yu Lingyu tried to say no, but Wu Xuan had already opened it.
Inside the coffin lay a young woman dressed entirely in black, lying on a bed of red flowers. Her cheeks were still red and her body was full of life. Wu Xuan furrowed his brows. He brought two fingers close to the young woman's nose and then examined the trachea of her neck. "She's dead," he said, drawing back his fist at last. Yu Lingyu never thought that there would be a woman lying there. Releasing his grip on his Qiankun wallet, he stood next to Wu Xuan and close to the coffin.
Climbing onto the pedestal, he crouched down and carefully studied the young woman. "She's been dead for years." He said. "Why is the body so alive?"
"Do you know her?" Wu Xuan asked, pressing into the coffin again.
"No, I don't know. But her clothes are rotting, and her nails have grown so long. Did you know that nails don't stop growing after we're dead?" Yu Lingyu said, pointing at the young lady's abnormally long nails. "Even the flowers are fresh," Wu Xuan said, grabbing a red rose from inside the coffin.
"Even her body is warm, Wu Shixiong, could it be the effect of the coffin?" He asked Wu Xuan, who was giving his full attention to the flowers. "It's dying," Wu Xuan said grumpily as he handed Yu Lingyu the rose that was already shedding petals. "You're right, it must be the effect of the coffin. If that's the case, since we opened it, the body must have started to decay." Pulling Yu Lingyu off the pedestal, Wu Xuan leaned towards the young woman's face to examine her more closely, and he did not notice the movement of her hand. Her long clawed hands gripped him with almost invisible speed and pulled him completely into the coffin as they ripped through his skin. "Wu Shixiong!" Yu Lingyu tried to quickly pull him out, but before he could reach it, the lid of the coffin automatically closed tightly. It all happened in the blink of an eye.
Yu Lingyu screamed and tried to push the lid away, but it didn't budge an inch.
"Oh, stop that, will you?" Hearing a cold yet familiar voice, Yu Lingyu turned towards the forest behind him. "I promise, she'll give him a good time."
A tall person dressed in all black and wearing a hooded head slowly approached Yu Lingyu with heavy footsteps. He looked like a night hunter walking in the moonlight.
"I thought I was very lucky tonight," he said with a sigh. "But it looks like all those victims are your brothers." The stranger folded his arms across his chest and the bells hanging from his sash jingled in the wind. Feeling a little dazed at first, Yu Lingyu quickly recovered and stared directly at the stranger without saying anything.
"But look who I met." He said, moving closer to Lingyu. "So urgent that I even stopped my party and you still won't even give me a hug?" Extending his arms to his sides, he tried to hug Yu Lingyu, but Lingyu took a step back and turned away, allowing the stranger to hug the coffin. "Oh." The stranger let out a disgruntled sound as he bumped into the coffin.