Chapter 285: Another Dark Serenity Sect
Xu Qing’s eyes narrowed. The Captain’s eyes glittered brightly.
Both looked at the huge tomb, which was pitch black and seemed extremely sinister. At the same time, it pulsed with an ancient feeling, as if it had seen countless years of time pass by. It was shaped like a household altar, with two pillars on either side that had once been inscribed with calligraphy. However, the writing had long since faded to the point of being illegible. Within the shrine was a stone statue of someone seated cross-legged. The statue’s facial features had long since been erased by the wind. The facelessness of the statue seemed incredibly gruish. [1]
Xu Qing and the Captain exchanged a glance. Both were completely on guard, and neither was inclined to do anything rash. In fact, they both started backing up. Instead of exploring this area, they both knew it would be best to report the matter to the sect.
Not only was the grave very strange, but also, the three characters written on the top of the gravestone were very odd and mysterious. The Dark Serenity Sect was one of the supervisory sects in the Eight Sect Coalition. However, there seemed to be another Dark Serenity Sect right here. Thinking of the Dark Serenity Sect made Xu Qing suddenly recall Arch-Immortal Plumdark and her eyes. And that was a somewhat unsettling feeling.
However, before they could leave, the area behind the grave suddenly blurred as more graves appeared behind it, rising up out of the ground. It appeared to be an entire graveyard, filled with hundreds of graves. The eerie atmosphere grew even stronger.
Xu Qing and the Captain immediately started backing up even faster, but then the first grave rumbled loudly and split open. Out from the crevice walked a boy wearing fancy, ancient clothing. His skin was pale white, and he had a red dot on his forehead. His clothing definitely made it seem like he hailed from distant antiquity. Once out in the open, he clasped hands to Xu Qing and the Captain.
“Don’t panic, gentlemen. My Master has invited you in to see him.”
Before Xu Qing and the Captain could reply, everything around them changed again, blurring. When the surroundings were clear again, they were no longer in a graveyard in the jungle. Instead, they were inside of a vast, pitch-black temple. All of the building materials were black, and though there were lamps letting off faint light, the entire place seemed very sinister.
What was more, a hair-raising pressure weighed down on them from all directions. The source of the pressure was seated cross-legged in the position of honor. It was a shadowy figure cloaked in such thick darkness it was impossible to make out any details of their features.
Xu Qing’s pupils constricted, as did the Captain’s. They exchanged a glance, and both could see how alarmed the other was.
The Captain inhaled sharply. “Form Displacement Transposition? Greater Void Teleportation? Earth Contracting Manipulation?”
Meanwhile, the shadowy figure seated cross-legged at the other end of the hall spoke in a raspy voice. “You two young friends must be here because of the diversion channel from the Everlasting Immortal Profundity River.”
Xu Qing didn’t respond. Instead, he sent his senses out to try to determine where exactly he was. He also checked to see if teleportations were locked down in the area. After determining that they weren’t, he breathed an inward sigh of relief. That said, he still kept his guard up.
Remaining calm and collected, the Captain attempted to send a message to the Special Security Division, while simultaneously chuckling and saying, “We wouldn’t dare to be dishonest with you, Senior. We’re disciples from the Eight Sect Coalition. And yes, that’s why we’re here. It’s our job. Please, don’t take offense, Senior.”
The pressure in the hall suddenly got more intense. “In recent days, I’ve been concocting a darknether good fortune pill, and I need to cleanse it with water from the river. I only need five more days, and I’ll be done. After that, I’ll get rid of the diversion channel.”
“Senior, that’s absolutely no problem at all!” the Captain said with a smile. “We don’t even need to report the matter to the Eight Sect Coalition. In fact, don’t feel the need to finish after five days. Take as long as you want, then get rid of the diversion channel when you’re done.” The Captain was being very respectful and friendly. However, he had been keeping an eye on the surrounding darkness, and had also placed his right hand behind his back and made a signal to Xu Qing.
Xu Qing glanced at the Captain’s signal, then casually looked at his shadow beneath him. The shadow had formed an image of an old man eating bugs. The shadow had obviously improved its skills, as the image was very lifelike, and even included a cringing expression on the old man’s face. The bugs he was eating were thumb-sized, and as the old man’s anxiety increased, he ate the bugs faster and faster. He was seated on a boulder, and the more bugs he ate, the more solid the boulder became.
At the same time, the old man emitted bubbles that floated into the air toward Xu Qing and the Captain to surround them. Beyond that, the shadow’s image made it clear that, beyond the range of the bubbles were seven or eight shadowy figures, all of them looking very nervous.
Xu Qing opened his eyes wide and looked straight at the cross-legged figure, cloaked in shadows and emanating a terrifying pressure.
“That’s wonderful,” the cross-legged figure said. “The two of you have no reason to be nervous. Given that your coalition also has a Dark Serenity Sect, I won’t cause any trouble for you. You can just turn around and leave. You’ll be out of here after walking a hundred paces. Just remember... don’t look back. I’m worried that I might lose control and accidentally eat the two of you.”
The figure spoke in a very sinister voice, and accentuated his final words with a loud gulp, as though he were working very hard to control himself. Overall, it came across as very terrifying.
“Get out of here!” he snapped, and the lamp light in the temple flickered dramatically. The atmosphere suddenly became much more tense.
As for the Captain, he blinked rapidly as he looked at the other figures in the darkness.
“What are you waiting for? Leave!” This time, the shadowy figure’s voice seemed to tremble slightly.
“Son of a bitch,” the Captain said. “You put on a good show. You almost got us to leave!”
He suddenly stood up and rushed to the darkness off to the side. A cry of alarm rang out from that spot as the Captain reached toward it.
Xu Qing also took action, sending balefire rumbling out. In the blink of an eye, the surrounding temple vanished, as did the graveyard. They were still in the jungle in the Supreme Arbiter Salvation Mountains, and they were still in front of the same grave. But all the other graves were gone, and in their place was a small sect that consisted of seven or eight log cabins. Beyond the cabins were crumbling ruins. It was completely different from what Xu Qing and the Captain had seen before.
But not everything they had seen was an illusion. Just outside the sect’s main gate was a stone stele upon which were written the characters Dark Serenity Sect.
Xu Qing and the Captain were just outside of the sect. And in front of them was a disheveled old man, a look of astonishment on his face, and a stone bowl of bugs held in his hand. He was currently backing away from them. There were seven or eight disciples surrounding them. They were all sallow and emaciated, and their eyes shone with terror.
When the old man saw the vicious look in the Captain’s eyes, he cried, “Show us mercy, Elder Brothers! We’re all humans here! Please, don’t judge us too harshly!”
The Captain ignored the old man’s pleas, and instead headed directly toward him.
Xu Qing scanned the area and confirmed that the emaciated disciples were real. What was more, using his shadow, he made sure that their surroundings weren't an illusion. He also identified the boulder the old man had previously been seated cross-legged on. It was a grayish blue color, and was clearly extraordinary in some way.
As Xu Qing examined it through narrowed eyes, the Captain latched his hand onto the old man’s neck and then slammed him onto the ground.
The old man was clearly not on the same level as the Captain; he appeared to have two life flames.
With the old man on the ground, the Captain stomped his foot onto his dantian region. Then he grinned viciously. “How dare you try to scam us, you old codger! You wanted to eat me? How about I eat you instead!”
The surrounding disciples were visibly distraught, and one of them, a middle-aged man, blurted, “Please calm down, sir! We had no choice. Can you please let us go considering you’re from a supervisory sect, and we’re all humans? Our Master had no other option than to do things this way.”
Xu Qing’s expression remained placid, but he was fully on guard. He didn’t show compassion to enemies, no matter how difficult it was to tell how malicious they were.
“Spare me, Elder Brother!” the old man said, trembling as blood oozed out of his mouth. “We also fear the power of supervisory sects. My plan was never to hurt anyone. I just wanted the two of you to leave!”
“How did you create that illusion?” Xu Qing suddenly asked.
“Elder Brother, my sect has a treasure that has the ability to create an illusory region. It can’t be moved away from this spot, though, which is why our sect moved to this location.”
The old man didn’t dare to hide any of the truth, and thus, he pointed out the boulder off in the distance.
“We’re a small sect, so to earn enough to survive, and keep on living, we had to create a diversion channel from the river. Please, we beg you not to vent your fury on us!”
The Captain glanced at the boulder, his eyes glittering.
Xu Qing walked over, inspected the boulder, then looked back at the old man. “Why are you called the Dark Serenity Sect?”
The old man looked stunned, as did the surrounding disciples. “Elder... Elder Brother, we’re just called the Dark Serenity Sect, that’s all… ohhhhhh. I get it. Elder Brother, you must be new to the Revered Ancient mainland. Are you from Seven Blood Eyes?” The old man clearly knew about the recent changes to the coalition.
The Captain pushed his foot down harder onto the old man. “Tell us what you know.”
The old man shivered and tried to act even more respectful. “Elder Brothers, in Revered Ancient, if there aren’t 10,000 Dark Serenity Sects, then there are at least 8,000. Any sect with even the slightest connection to Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity will take the name Dark Serenity Sect. We all follow the same basic teachings.”
Xu Qing was a bit surprised by that explanation. As for the Captain, he focused on one specific aspect, and it wasn’t the name Dark Serenity Sect. Instead, it was...
“What ‘slight connection’ do you have to Ancient Emperor Dark Serenity? A technique? A treasure? A legacy?” The Captain’s eyes were shining, and he seemed to be salivating, as if he were having trouble not just devouring the old man.
The light in his eyes caused more terror to well up in the old man, and he shouted, “Disciples, bring out the sect’s precious treasure!”
1. Household shrines come in a variety of shapes, styles, etc. However, given the description, of what this one is probably supposed to look like. ☜