Led by Stone, they soon left the karst cave.
Everyone heaved a sigh of relief when they saw the familiar boulders on the ground.
"There won't be any more problems, right?" Mo Tiange said, but she didn't move.
"I don't think so …" Feifei felt a little guilty. He was protected by Stone, so he didn't see the black water taking shape when he passed through the karst cave, so he thought there wouldn't be a fight. In the end, they were almost trapped inside, so he didn't have much confidence to say that.
Mo Tiange didn't know what he was thinking, but she still cautiously released the puppet and went to test it.
With a stiff expression, the puppet carried the Fusheng Sword and walked step by step into the passage of the sacrificial temple. After walking for three to five hundred feet, there was no movement. Everyone was finally relieved.
Compared to other sacrificial temples, Black Tortoise's breath was much more restrained. Apart from the temple's heavy and simple style, it only vaguely revealed a sense of peace and vastness.
Black Tortoise, water attribute, Kan position, born of extreme Yin, controlled all living things. Its body was a combination of a turtle and a snake, symbolizing continuous good fortune.
Compared to the other four spirits, Azure Dragon symbolized tolerance and vitality, Vermilion Bird represented enthusiasm and vitality, White Tiger represented killing and violence, and Black Tortoise represented integration and good fortune.
Its breath wasn't strong because water was everywhere in the world, but it hid in all things.
Its breath also wasn't fierce because water's characteristic was to nourish all things.
However, this Black Tortoise Temple was different from other sacrificial temples. Its Black Tortoise's breath wasn't so pure.
"How could this be?"
Qin Xi was the first to notice something was wrong. Although Mo Tiange, Jing Xingzhi, and Feifei inherited the divine beast's breath, they couldn't use it as well as he did. He was the only one who completely integrated the Vermilion Bird's breath with his body, so he could feel the divine beast's breath more directly.
The characteristic of the divine beast's breath was that it was superior to all breaths existing in the current cultivation world, so it was the purest.
However, although Black Tortoise Temple was also vast and sacred, it seemed to have a trace of impurities.
"What's wrong?" Jing Xingzhi asked blankly.
"… Don't you think Black Tortoise's breath isn't pure?"
Qin Xi cast a sidelong glance at him. They didn't have a deep friendship before, so he didn't think so. Now that Jing Xingzhi stopped pretending in front of him, Qin Xi finally realized that this guy was smart, but he didn't like to use his brain in front of them. Now that he thought about it, for a person like Jing Xingzhi, how could he act like this if he didn't completely trust him?
Thinking back, although he felt that Jing Xingzhi was a trustworthy person, he didn't like his behavior and manner. He didn't expect that after several hundred years, his cultivation level would rise higher and higher. Among his old friends, only Jing Xingzhi would reach Yuanying.
Thinking up to this point, Qin Xi calmed down a bit. "Black Tortoise Temple is obviously different from other sacrificial temples.
Although there was also a Ghost City beside the White Tiger, there wasn't any Ghost Qi seeping out, so it wasn't affected.
Although the Vermilion Bird had Devil Qi, it belonged to the Prime Devil Stone Stele. The Vermilion Bird's aura and Prime Devil Qi didn't interfere with each other.
As for the Black Tortoise, it's obvious that he's been affected by other auras. "
"Why did this happen?" Jing Xingzhi continued to ask.
Qin Xi paused for a moment, trying his best to smooth the blue veins on his forehead. However, his tone revealed his emotions. "Please use your brain! I'm not your father!"
Everyone: "…"
Jing Xingzhi said, "At our age, it'd be too difficult for you to be my father. You might be able to be my father-in-law."
Everyone: "…"
"Stop talking nonsense. Let's go!" Nie Wushang took the lead and stepped into the sacrificial temple.
Mo Tiange followed closely behind her. When she passed by Jing Xingzhi, she stopped and looked him up and down like she was looking at her son-in-law. "He looks okay, but he's a bit old."
Jing Xingzhi grinned mischievously. "Being old has its advantages. Mother-in-law, when will my fiancée be born?"
* * *
The Black Tortoise Temple was also made of neatly arranged boulders, but the color of the Black Tortoise Temple was darker and carried a cool aura. Moreover, this cool aura was mixed with a lot of indescribable auras.
Mo Tiange wrinkled her brows. "How long have these ghost cultivators been here?
They've actually corroded the Black Tortoise's aura. "
"At least … more than a hundred thousand years, right?"
Nie Wushang said, "Carefree Valley is an ancient relic. So many corpses could only have been buried here before the collapse of the Middle Ages era."
Ling Yunhe agreed. "Correct. Carefree Valley was a paradise in the Middle Ages era, so I'm guessing it was either sealed during the Middle Ages era or it was destroyed at the end of the Middle Ages era, so these people all died in the canyon."
Over a hundred thousand years, countless corpses, and the dead aura gathered in the canyon, gradually turning it into a world of ghost cultivators.
Due to the change of the world and the collapse of the space, the former paradise was polluted by the filthy aura. These ghost cultivators lost their spiritual intelligence and became zombie-like existences.
The fusion of many auras turned into a new kind of aura, which gradually eroded the Black Tortoise Temple here. After a long time, the Black Tortoise Temple became what it was today.
After walking through the wide stone path, they saw a heavy stone door engraved with black totems and densely packed ancient murals, looking solemn and distant.
They pushed the stone door open, and a strong divine beast's aura rushed into their faces. They saw a tall and spacious hall with thick stone pillars and a silent statue at the end of the hall. A Black Serpent was coiled on the huge turtle's back, looking down at them with indifferent eyes.
"Let's go out," Yang Chengji said in a low voice.
Nie Wushang nodded. "The divine beast's aura here is too strong. We'd better avoid it."
"Be careful."
Mo Tiange looked back and said, "Since Demon Lord Moon Shadow knows about the existence of the temple, he probably found his old friends in Starfall City and could come here at any time."
The two of them nodded and went out.
When they turned around, they saw Ling Yunhe looking pensive.
Mo Tiange asked, "Fellow Daoist Ling, is there something wrong?"
Ling Yunhe said, "That year, Starfall City was uprooted by Demon Lord Night Frost. Almost no one escaped this disaster. How could Fellow Daoist Tiancan and Demon Lord Moon Shadow run into survivors?"
Mo Tiange's expression was solemn. "You mean …"
He said softly, "I'm afraid this is Demon Lord Moon Shadow's trap!"
As soon as Ling Yunhe finished speaking, Mo Tiange felt something was wrong outside.
She cultivated the Soul-Refining Art, so her divine sense was very sharp. Soon, she found someone else had entered the temple.
Qin Xi, Jing Xingzhi, and the others all looked serious. Xiaofeng also frowned. They knew Ling Yunhe's guess was probably right.
They had Shitou with them, but it was already so difficult for them to reach this place. Now, someone else had come in such a short time. It was obvious they had been prepared for a long time.
"Let's get our things first and meet up with Fellow Daoist Nie and Fellow Daoist Yang," Qin Xi said.
Everyone nodded. They quickly left the hall and went to the back.
Mo Tiange took some time to send a Sound-Transmitting Talisman to Nie Wushang, telling them to come quickly.
While following behind Qin Xi, Mo Tiange said in a low voice, "Why did Devil Lord Yue Ying set up this trap?"
Demon Lord Moon Shadow's actions could be said to have mobilized a lot of people. In addition to him, there were three Nascent Soul cultivators, seven or eight Nascent Soul cultivators, and twenty or thirty early stage cultivators.
Among them, only Nie Wushang and Yang Chengji were Devil Cultivators, so they might have something he was interested in.
If it was just for the two of them, why did he need to make such a big scene?
Many people made things complicated. What if someone else took it?
Hearing her words, Qin Xi said, "In my opinion, he just took advantage of the situation."
"Oh?
What do you mean? "
Qin Xi said, "If we hadn't arrived in time, Fellow Daoist Nie probably wouldn't have been able to escape. Why did he need to set a trap?
I'm afraid Demon Lord Moon Shadow only used the fish in Starfall City to test whether she had the Primordial Devil Great Technique or not. As for the temple, he just mentioned it casually. "
Mo Tiange thought about it and nodded.
Without the Primordial Devil Stone Tablet, the temple wasn't very valuable to Devil Cultivators. For Demon Lord Moon Shadow, it was only valuable to gain Nie Wushang's trust.
She continued, "… In the end, we arrived. He couldn't defeat us and knew we were coming to the temple, so he simply spread the news and called a group of Nascent Soul cultivators to fight with us for the Black Tortoise. Then he dealt with Nie Wushang himself and snatched the Primordial Devil Great Technique."
"There's also Yang Chengji."
Qin Xi added, "If he confirmed that Nie Wushang practiced the Primordial Devil Great Technique, then there's no need to mention Yang Chengji." Their devil auras were similar. If he confirmed one, he could confirm the other.
Mo Tiange was stunned and asked, "If that's the case, isn't it the same for him to snatch Yang Chengji?"
"It's not the same."
Qin Xi shook his head with a smile. "Yang Chengji is Guifang Devil Lord's disciple and the master of the Devil Venerable's holy object. Fellow Daoist Ling also said he easily defeated a middle stage cultivator. Demon Lord Moon Shadow lost a refined corpse, so it's not easy to deal with him.
Besides, other people might not know about Fellow Daoist Yang's personality, but how could we not?
He's watertight. I'm afraid it'll be hard for Demon Lord Moon Shadow to stop him. "
Mo Tiange couldn't help but laugh when she recalled the dozens of years in the Immortal Palace in the Returning Ruins Sea.
Wasn't Yang Chengji guarding the Primordial Devil Stone Cave and not coming out to guard against them?
Fellow Daoist Yang, because of his outstanding talent, had been a thorn in the side of his senior martial brothers and sisters since he was a child. His growth was a history of fighting against all kinds of conspiracies, so he was very experienced in dealing with this kind of situation. It was just that this time, the enemy was a bit stronger.
"However, Demon Lord Moon Shadow didn't expect that Wushang's master wasn't inferior to Guifang Devil Lord, and his experience was more complicated than Yang Chengji's. It wasn't easy to catch Wushang."
Qin Xi smiled. "Yes, otherwise, he wouldn't have waited until we arrived."
As they spoke, they went through the last stone door and saw a huge square.
Mo Tiange had seen the Azure Dragon Sacrificial Temple. Inside it was a complete Azure Dragon skeleton. In the Vermilion Bird Sacrificial Temple, the Vermilion Bird's remains had been made into the Vermilion Bird Bow and enshrined in the sacrificial temple. The White Tiger Sacrificial Temple was different. The whole White Tiger was preserved intact, and its body belonged to Feifei. The White Tiger Pearl, which gathered the White Tiger's breath, recognized Jing Xingzhi as its master. Now, in the square of this Black Tortoise Sacrificial Temple, there was a glowing blue pearl floating. The water inside the pearl was billowing, as if it contained the whole world.
They couldn't be more familiar with this pearl. Aside from the difference in color and breath, it looked exactly the same as the White Tiger Pearl.
"This is … the Black Tortoise Pearl?" Jing Xingzhi said.
"It should be. Let's quickly subdue it, or it'll fall into someone else's hands."
Right after they finished talking, Nie Wushang and Yang Chengji ran over.
The two of them were Devil Cultivators, so they didn't dare to come close. They just stood at the door. Yang Chengji even summoned the Heavenly Devil Tower and turned to face the stone path.
Mo Tiange understood what they meant. They wanted to block the people behind them.
Mo Tiange didn't have time to be moved. She summoned Xiaofan and said, "The Black Tortoise's attribute is water. I reckon you'll have to practice a water attribute cultivation technique to be able to trigger the Black Tortoise's breath and make it recognize you as its master.
However, this is only my personal opinion. We can try it together. "
Ling Yunhe nodded. "That's natural. The opportunity belongs to everyone."
Jing Xingzhi said, "I only have metal spiritual roots, so I probably won't be able to do it. Besides, I already have the White Tiger's breath, so I won't fight with you guys." Right after he said that, he retreated and went to guard the door with Yang Chengji and Nie Wushang.
Qin Xi also shook his head and said, "I also don't have water spiritual roots. You guys can do it."
There was no need to mention Xiaofeng. She was now a genuine descendant of a divine beast, so how could she possibly inherit another divine beast's breath?
In the end, only Mo Tiange, Ling Yunhe, and Xiaofan, who was released from the spiritual beast bracelet, remained.
"Fellow Daoist Ling," Mo Tiange said with a smile, "I also have water spiritual roots, so I have to fight with you."