Starting as The Young Master of A Pharmacy, He Trained Swordsmanship in Seclusion For Twenty Years - Chapter 59

The abbot of Liansheng Temple quickly scanned his surroundings, confirming that the Black Raven Guard had not followed him.

Only then did he relax, stepping into the dilapidated Buddhist hall and approaching the statue of the Buddha at its center.

With a gentle push against the statue’s foot, a deep pit suddenly appeared beneath the altar in front of the Buddha.

The pit was filled with an abyssal darkness, and a stone path paved with bluestone slabs led straight down into its depths.

Just as the abbot was about to move the altar blocking the pit’s entrance—

A long shadow, stretched by the bright moonlight, fell across the ground at his feet.

The abbot froze, beads of cold sweat trickling down his forehead. He jerked his head up to look toward the hall’s entrance.

Reflected in the depths of his pupils was a tall, imposing figure, standing with arms crossed, gazing down at him with an air of superiority.

“You—!”

The abbot’s eyes widened in shock and disbelief.

He couldn’t understand how the other man had found him.

But it didn’t matter—Lu Xuan had no intention of giving him time to figure it out.

Channeling his inner energy into his legs, Lu Xuan vanished from his original position like a ghost, leaving only a blurry afterimage behind.

Whoosh!

A sharp gust of wind—

Thud!

The abbot’s body was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing into the temple wall and embedding itself in the cracked stone.

Lu Xuan now stood where the abbot had been moments before.

“Hmm?”

“Still alive?”

Lu Xuan’s eyebrows rose in surprise as he looked at the abbot’s broken form embedded in the wall.

He hadn’t held back—that strike should have been enough to kill even a Blood Refining realm martial artist.

Yet this mere Marrow Refining realm monk was still clinging to life.

Barely, of course.

The abbot’s shattered body hung limply against the wall, his tattered kasaya fluttering faintly in the breeze.

From his sunken, hollow eye sockets, a faint, eerie white glow flickered. His parched, cracked lips parted slightly as he gasped out broken words.

“Heh heh heh…”

“Black Raven Guard… you can’t kill me… The White Lotus Sacred Scripture… bestowed by the Holy Church… protects my body… undying… unperishing…”

“White Lotus Sacred Scripture?”

Lu Xuan’s mind raced—likely the name of the old man’s martial arts technique.

When his inner energy had invaded the abbot’s body earlier, he had sensed a familiar aura—one identical to that of the White Lotus Blood Infant.

But this aura was far weaker, muddled and incomplete.

Lu Xuan lightly tapped the ground with his foot.

Crack!

The solid stone floor instantly fractured, spiderweb-like fissures spreading outward.

Swish!

A sharp whistle cut through the silent night as a shard of stone shot toward the abbot’s head.

Splat!

The abbot’s skull exploded, brain matter and blood oozing down the temple wall.

With the abbot dealt with, Lu Xuan turned his attention to the pit beneath the altar.

“An underground chamber?”

“From what they said, there’s some ‘Incense Master’ down there?”

“I wonder how strong this ‘Incense Master’ really is.”

Lu Xuan stood in thought for a moment before deciding to descend.

If the situation proved beyond his expectations, he could always rely on his Wind-Chasing Steps to escape immediately.

…..

Beneath the Temple—The Underground Chamber

The underground chamber of Liansheng Temple was a vast plaza, nearly half the size of the temple above.

At the center of the empty plaza stood a massive lotus platform, surrounded by scattered white bones.

Atop the platform was a pure white lotus, large enough to dwarf five or six grown men.

Its petals were tightly closed, emitting an eerie white glow.

Within those petals lay something dark red—something that pulsed like a living heart.

Before the great lotus platform, numerous prayer mats were arranged. On the foremost mat sat a middle-aged man.

He wore loose white robes embroidered with white lotuses, his thick black hair tied neatly into a Daoist topknot.

A white crown adorned his head, also embroidered with lotus motifs.

At this moment, however, his face was twisted in fury as he berated two monks standing beside him.

“Where is that useless fool, Kongxin?!”

“Why hasn’t he delivered the blood offerings yet? Does he not realize the Sacred Infant has been waiting?!”

“I made him abbot of Liansheng Temple because I trusted him!”

“And yet, at this critical moment, he dares to disappoint me!”

“Both of you—go and see what’s happening!”

“Yes, Incense Master!”

The two monks bowed and turned toward the stone staircase leading upward—

Tap. Tap. Tap.

A soft but distinct set of footsteps echoed from the stairs.

The middle-aged man’s head snapped up, his anger vanishing as he stared at the staircase.

“Hm?”

“Is that idiot Kongxin finally back?”

But when he saw the unfamiliar young man descending the stairs, his expression shifted to confusion.

After a stunned pause, he spoke in a wary tone:

“Who are you?”

“Why have you come down here? Where is Kongxin?”

The newcomer was none other than Lu Xuan.

After a quick scan of the underground plaza, Lu Xuan noted only three figures present.

Hmm?

His eyebrows lifted slightly—one of them was actually at the Blood Refining realm.

But he paid them little mind.

Instead, his gaze locked onto the massive lotus platform behind them.

“This—!”

His eyes burned with intensity as they settled on the enormous white lotus at the platform’s center.

“The White Lotus Blood Infant!”

There was no mistaking it—the blood-red mass pulsing within the lotus radiated the same aura he had encountered in the Junling Mountains.

But this one was stronger.

Its energy had nearly reached the Inner Energy realm, just one step away from breaking through.

“Bastard!”

A furious roar erupted.

The middle-aged man, enraged at being ignored, shot to his feet and barked at the two monks:

“Capture him! Now!”