Chapter 70: The Enigmatic Temple’s Awakening

The wind outside the city felt especially biting, brushing against the body, siphoning warmth and piercing the spine.

Li Che wore the Cute Cow Mask, silently watching Li Qingshan don his Cat Face Mask.

The masked men stared at each other, an oddly serene atmosphere hanging between them.

“What are you staring at? You picked up a few tricks from me—you know I was once a man of honor…”

Li Qingshan crossed his arms and replied coolly.

Once masked, he grew noticeably colder, his emotions flirting with unpredictability.

The mask hidden his features, almost as if it freed the inner emotions long kept in check.

Just like Li Che—each time he donned the Cute Cow Mask, his body and mind felt incredibly light. Every act, every kill, became utterly unrestrained.

“So your meridian opening is complete? Three days… not bad at all.”

“In that case, a quick look inside the Bizarre Temple should work.”

“Hurry and return—we must be out of the temple before dusk.”

Li Qingshan spoke in a deep tone. In the next moment, a surge of power burst from his toes, turning the little old man’s body into a straight black streak as he shot along the snow-covered official road.

Li Che staggered, as the inner energy, unleashed after his meridian breakthrough, surged through his legs, pushing him to catch up.

Whoosh—

The fierce wind roared as gusts swept in from the sides of the mask.

Outside, the scenery blurred past like a speeding train.

The old man’s speed was astonishing, and Li Che struggled to keep pace—especially since he hadn’t yet unleashed the unparalleled Dragon Elephant Vajra.

In truth, Li Qingshan racing ahead was already deeply impressed.

“Solid foundation, clear meridian entry, and a vast, enduring inner energy… truly impressive.”

Li Qingshan silently admired.

“A promising talent indeed. Even if Li Che isn’t the 22-year-old Prodigy, I’d gladly take him into the Divine Sect.”

The two raced on for about fifteen minutes.

Then Li Qingshan eased his pace.

Coming to a sudden halt, he gracefully landed on a snow-laden branch of an old pine. Behind his Cat Face Mask, his eyes shimmered.

Li Che followed suit, controlling his inner energy as he mirrored Li Qingshan’s landing on the old pine.

Glancing at Li Che, Li Qingshan said, “Since you’ve joined the Qianyuan Divine Sect—most likely under my wing—since we’re here at the Bizarre Temple, I’ll have you train a bit in advance.”

Li Che said nothing more; he nodded and looked up to see a temple obscured by dense trees. Only a corner of its sweeping eaves, painted in vermilion as if smeared with fresh blood, was visible.

“This Bizarre Temple is rated among the top ten. It’s best visited during the day. By night, the Temple Spirit grows restless—once awakened, it’s a handful.”

“I was once held up for two months by an awakened Temple Spirit… a real nuisance.”

“When the Temple Spirit awakens, it unleashes its divine essence, infecting nearby creatures and twisting them into malevolent beings. The elite ghosts of a top-ten Bizarre Temple aren’t even at the Celestial Foundation level—should be manageable. You should give clearing them a try.”

“It’s the perfect chance to solidify your meridians and blood.”

With that, Li Che said no more, and with a swift movement, he dashed into the dense forest ahead.

Using controlled inner energy, he left no trace on the snow with each step.

As if parting the forest’s veil, a solitary temple suddenly emerged in Li Che’s sight.

The temple boasted intricately carved beams, upturned eaves, and dark tiles tainted by pristine snow. Its weathered vermilion lacquer exuded a pungent, bloody scent.

Li Che’s gaze fixed on the large door; a plaque slightly above it caught his eye.

Inscribed were the characters: Three-Eyed Furious True Lord Prodigy Branch Temple.

Just a glance made Li Che feel the irate divine essence within him stir, as if it were about to break free and drift uncontrollably toward the temple!

Yet, by activating his Divine Essence Technique to regain control—and with his Unsullied Heart pounding in his chest—he managed to shatter that binding.

In that instant of release, Li Che’s pupils contracted sharply.

Before he knew it, he was standing at the entrance of the Bizarre Temple, one foot already raised, nearly stepping inside!

Countless strands of black Qi seeped from the temple, coiling around his feet, icy and piercing.

In the distance.

Perched on a pine branch, the little old man in a Cat Face Mask muttered in surprise.

“First time with a Bizarre Temple and you managed to break free from the Temple Spirit’s hold on your divine essence all by yourself… remarkable resolve!”

In front of the temple.

After Li Che freed himself from the Temple Spirit’s grasp, the black Qi entangling his legs was washed away by his blood Qi.

Then, malevolent entities surged from the Bizarre Temple.

They were corpse-like beings, their bodies woven with dark, web-like membranes and milky white eyes.

They moved with incredible speed and boasted formidable defenses. But now that Li Che’s meridians were open, his inner energy refined, and having mastered the White Tiger Turbulent Wind Fist at the Transformation stage, he easily dispatched them.

After turning these entities into a pool of flesh, the little old man, Li Qingshan, reappeared gracefully by his side.

“Not bad. These entities are the temple’s elite guardians. The protective ghost corpses in a top-ten Bizarre Temple reach Blood Exchange level – their physical forms even surpass that stage. Unfeeling and numb to pain, they’re the bodies of temple raiders transformed by the Temple Spirit’s infection.”

After a brief explanation from Li Qingshan,

he looked to the sky and motioned for Li Che to follow.

The two stepped inside the temple.

Inside, the temple was utterly dark, without a shred of light, except for rows of red candles lining both sides. Once lit, they burned softly, illuminating the space.

What sent shivers down Li Che’s spine was the sight of the temple filled with wooden carvings.

They were all carvings of children—some holding lotuses, some clutching plums, some with both hands raised around a furious Buddha, and others encircling a smiling Guanyin…

The expressions on these carvings were strikingly lifelike: some beaming with laughter, others filled with terror or sorrow, some screaming in anger, others clutching their throats in agony, with various poses of intertwined children.

Countless wooden carvings depicting the gamut of human emotions stood in rows.

“This…”

Li Che took a deep breath, instantly reminded of how the carpenters summoned by the City Lord’s Residence used to carve these figures.

“They’re here to worship the Temple Spirit,” said Li Qingshan, his tone devoid of emotion.

“I’m saying that Feilei City’s time is short, so it is what it is…”

“Some sacrifice the entire city’s divine essence to worship the Temple Spirit, while others seize the opportunity to profit.”

“The Dajing Temple Authority and the Divine Sect Temple Raiders—sometimes what gets destroyed isn’t just the temple, but the hearts of people.”

Li Che’s eyes narrowed. Though he didn’t fully grasp it, he understood this worship was far from a blessing.

Only a few prosper while most bear the sacrifice.

Li Che clenched his fists, his sinews trembling with inner energy swirling in his palms.

“You want to destroy these wooden carvings? I advise against it… They’re intertwined with the Temple Spirit. Destroy even one, and you’ll awaken the slumbering deity. I struggled to keep it asleep—don’t go and rouse it again…”

“I can leave, but you… you might end up beaten to death by the Temple Spirit and turned into one of its loyal, cursed guardians.”

Just as Li Che was about to unleash his inner energy, he reined it in immediately.

The little old man under the Cat Face Mask shot Li Che a warning glance, “Don’t take action inside the Bizarre Temple… Anything linked to the Temple Spirit should not be destroyed lightly. Provoking it is extremely dangerous.”

“Especially this Temple Spirit—it’s no ordinary entity… the Three-Eyed Furious True Lord Prodigy Branch Temple.”

“Branch Temple?”

“In other words, this Temple Spirit is likely a fragment of a higher-level deity’s divine essence…”

Li Qingshan, hailing from the Divine Sect and well-versed in the mysteries of the Bizarre Temple, explained to Li Che.

“Especially with the temple’s name, ‘Three-Eyed True Lord’—it’s quite intimidating. It even brings to mind that Four Sovereign Level Bizarre Temple suppressed by the main Qianyuan Divine Sect, where the Temple Spirit—clutching slender divine hounds and a three-pronged, double-edged divine blade—once reigned!”

Li Qingshan murmured, “When it comes to the Temple Spirit, you must tread carefully…”

Li Che’s pupils contracted as his mind buzzed—why did that description sound so familiar?

“Enough talk. Haven’t you become a master of top-ten wooden carvings? You still have about two hours to observe the aura of the Temple Spirit… For a master to ascend, one must capture the spirit’s rhythm, and it’s a perilous undertaking.”

Li Qingshan said.

“Senior… will the Temple Spirit awaken? Is it still alive?”

Li Che asked.

Li Qingshan paused.

Behind the Cat Face Mask, his eyes shone mysteriously.

“They’re all dead.”

“Only a dead god can awaken from within the Bizarre Temple…”

With those words, his foot touched the ground, and the little old man drifted away from the temple.

“I’ll come to pick you up in two hours…”

“Remember, do not damage any of the worship carvings around you. Seriously, remember that!”

Instantly, the Bizarre Temple fell silent.

After Li Qingshan departed, Li Che stood as straight as a spear, an inexplicable sense of dread creeping in from all sides.

His Unsullied Heart pounded, its pure divine essence dispelling the terror.

Li Che regained his composure, his eyes gleaming beneath the Cute Cow Mask.

He looked toward the altar, where the Temple Spirit statue was displayed.

Three-Eyed Furious True Lord Prodigy!

The Prodigy Temple Spirit sported a vertical third eye on its forehead, glared fiercely, its robes billowing, hair streaming, with bare feet upon a lotus and fists clenched…

Li Che studied the Temple Spirit intently.

His Unsullied Heart pounded ever faster in his chest…

Yet Li Che failed to truly absorb the deity’s aura.

In his mind…

A daring idea flashed through his thoughts.

“Could the Chess Sage, paired with the 【Xiangong】 technique, use the budding Thousand Analysis Hand to draw divine essence from the dead and condense it into a Divine Chess Piece…”

“The Temple Spirit… a dead god is still considered dead.”

“Can I absorb its divine essence?”

The thought barely had time to form.

Li Che immediately sprang into action, silently leaping onto the altar adorned with two large red candles.

On his tiptoes, he squatted before the Prodigy Temple Spirit statue, his eyes alight beneath the Cute Cow Mask.

He slowly reached toward the head of the Prodigy Temple Spirit…

gradually extending his hand.

ps: The concept of the Bizarre Temple originally came from an earlier book. After revision, it has been reworked into this story. Please continue reading, vote for a monthly pass, and recommend it!