Under Ye Ru's lead, the group walked into the Taoist temple.
"Greetings, benefactors." Immediately, two pretty Taoist nuns approached the ladies and eagerly said, "May we have a moment of your time? We would like to introduce you to the Creator and Savior of all humanity, Wusheng Laomu."
Everyone: ???
[T/N: Wusheng Laomu (无生老母) is a figure in Chinese folk religion and certain sects of Daoism and Buddhism. It can be translated as 'Unborn Old Mother' or 'Eternal Mother.']
"Shoo, shoo!" Before anyone could respond, Ye Ru impatiently drove them away, "They are all my friends. Don't try to convert them!"
"Hehe, since they are friends of Protector Ye, we won't disturb you further." The two Taoist nuns smiled and excused themselves gracefully.
"You're a member of the White Lotus Sect?" Wang Wanrou suddenly asked with a frown.
It was the first time Cheng Jinyang had seen such a serious expression on her face.
"Yep." Ye Ru admitted straightforwardly, "But don't ask me about the doctrines; I haven't memorized them at all. I joined only to help more people."
"The White Lotus Sect is helping women?" Xing Yuanzhi asked.
"Yeah." Ye Ru said, "Since there's oppression from society, it's natural for people to form small groups to resist, right?"
"But the White Lotus Sect…" Cheng Jinyang was about to say, "I remember this sect is considered a cult," when he saw Wang Wanrou giving him a look that said "not now."
"Ye Ru." She smiled perfectly, "I'm very interested in your sect. Could you tell us about it?"
"Interested?" Ye Ru was a bit surprised.
So far, their conversion success rate was about 5%. That is, out of every 20 pretty girls they preached to, only 1 on average would eventually agree to join.
Now encountering a girl who actively wanted to learn about the White Lotus Sect, she found it a bit strange.
"Sure, our sect originated from the north of the Yangtze River." Ye Ru began, "The sect worships a deity called 'Wusheng Laomu'."
"To join the sect, one must drink water blessed by the leader. It is said that this way, one will be marked by Wusheng Laomu and, in the future, can go to the 'True Void Homeland'… The leader says it is a place of neither birth nor death, a world of eternal peace and joy, like a beautiful dream."
"Is that so." Wang Wanrou smiled and said, "Can you introduce us to your leader?"
"Are you serious?" This time Ye Ru was really stunned. After thinking for a moment, she replied, "It's not impossible, but..."
She glanced at Cheng Jinyang and apologized with a smile:
"Our leader doesn't see men."
"That's okay, I'll wait outside." Cheng Jinyang replied, "You can accompany Wanrou inside."
"Qingqing accompanying her is enough," Xing Yuanzhi said. "Xiao Wangshu and I aren't interested."
Clearly, unlike Wang Wanrou who was willing to take risks, she had no interest in exploring the secrets of the White Lotus Sect.
Moreover, she wasn't comfortable leaving Cheng Jinyang alone outside, in this perilous temple—especially considering how strange these beautiful Taoist priestesses were.
"Yes, yes," Yang Wangshu echoed.
"Then I'll go with her," Chu Qingqing said with a smile.
The two of them followed Ye Ru into the inner hall of the temple, while Cheng Jinyang found a secluded corridor and sat on a bench nearby.
Xing Yuanzhi came up beside him and said:
"Ha, who would've thought that after defeating the ghost, we'd end up in such a strange place, without encountering any monsters..."
Cheng Jinyang knew she was concerned about the increase in bloodline concentration after killing demons, so he smiled and said:
"Don't you think this place... resembles someone's memory?"
"Memory?" Xing Yuanzhi was surprised. "Whose?"
"That Ye Ru." Cheng Jinyang pointed behind him.
"Are you sure?" Xing Yuanzhi asked cautiously.
"In terms of experience entering others' dreams, I'm at a master level." Cheng Jinyang said confidently, "I have an eighty percent certainty that this is her memory."
"What about the other twenty percent?" A twin-tailed masked head peeked over his shoulder and typed.
"That's me being modest..." Cheng Jinyang chuckled. "If I said I was a hundred percent sure, wouldn't you think I'm as arrogant as Miss Wang?"
"I wish you would learn from her in this aspect," Xing Yuanzhi sighed. "Of course, I mean her intelligence, not her personality."
"If this really is her memory, are you planning to bring in another girl?" Yang Wangshu typed.
"No," Cheng Jinyang shook his head and said, "For girls like you, my presence is hidden at first, only becoming apparent to you later."
"Ye Ru noticed me right from the start and could interact with me normally. That's the biggest difference."
"You mean," Xing Yuanzhi suddenly thought of a possibility, "the same type as Su Lili?"
"If Ye Ru is a demon..." Cheng Jinyang also sighed, and the meaning behind it was self-evident.
"Proves that you are a two-way plug?" Yang Wangshu tried to complete the unspoken implication, "Both humans and demons can be plugged in?"
Moments later, the sound of a girl crying could be heard.
After retrieving the mask from Sister Ah Zhi, Yang Wangshu typed while sobbing:
"I'm talking about dreams! Dreams! You think wrongly and still want to bully me!"
"Nonsense! What are you hinting at? Don't I know?"
Yang Wangshu was about to argue when she saw Wang Wanrou and Chu Qingqing coming out, each holding a bottle of murky water, as if someone had stirred all the ash from an ashtray into it.
"What is this?" Cheng Jinyang asked.
"Talisman water," Wang Wanrou said.
"Their leader is a beautiful middle-aged woman," Miss Qingqing added. "She said our looks met the requirements to join their cult and gave us this bottle of talisman water."
"Joining a cult based on looks?" Cheng Jinyang laughed heartily. "Sounds like something out of a demon tale..."
Suddenly, the expressions on Xing Yuanzhi and Chu Qingqing's faces changed.
In the real world, in the divine capital of Luoyang, at the Wanshang Divine Palace.
Yao Guang was standing on the balcony of the high palace, leaning on a long sword and looking towards the south.
Ah Si was sitting on a long bench behind her, seemingly humming a tune, in a very cheerful mood.
Suddenly, her expression changed.
"Someone has triggered my sealed memory!"
"Who?" Yao Guang asked.
"Not sure." Ah Si shook her head and gritted her teeth. "Xiao Qi! Guard me, I'm going to enter the dream here!"
"Alright," Yao Guang nodded.
So Ah Si sat cross-legged on the ground, her hands embracing her heart, her head bowed, and quickly fell into a meditative state.
Her consciousness swiftly traveled between reality and the dream world, soon reaching the original marked target.
In the Taoist temple, Ye Ru suddenly looked up, revealing a bitter smile:
"It's actually him? This... If he gets injured here, Xiao Qi will definitely roast me into a mummy, right?"
She extended her slender hand and made a pulling motion in the air.
Outside the Taoist temple, everyone was still analyzing the current situation.
Suddenly, Wang Wanrou frowned, and Cheng Jinyang... disappeared abruptly.