CHAPTER 384: CHAPTER 0381: A SMALL TEMPLE

Lin Fan and Xiang Fei didn’t want to deal with Qin Yang.

For Xiang Fei, it truly was because of the other party’s background. A direct bloodline of the Immortal Venerable Family could not be killed; otherwise, a catastrophic war would inevitably erupt.

But in Lin Fan’s view, this kid wasn’t even worth the impulse to kill—he was so absurdly poor that it was frightening. Just look at this shabby appearance; utterly disgraceful.

"I told you, we don’t want to deal with you. Why are you still tagging along with us?"

Lin Fan asked. He and Xiang Fei were preparing to raid the lair of the Three Immortals of Jiao Yun Island, but this guy was like a shadow, trailing behind them, a bit irritating.

Qin Yang’s heart was as clear as a mirror. He could swear to the heavens that the two didn’t make a move against him because they were wary of his status and position. Still, his current situation was quite miserable.

He needed someone to protect him.

The best outcome would be getting escorted back to the Qin Family.

If he roamed around outside recklessly and encountered enemies he couldn’t afford to provoke—ones who wouldn’t care about his name—the potential outcome was chilling to think about. The ending would surely be grim.

Qin Yang said, "Surely the two of you know who I am and what kind of family I hail from. Right now, I’m down on my luck, but as long as you escort me back safely to the Qin Family, I promise to reward both of you with either a Tao Level Divine Skill or two pieces of Immortal Treasures usable by Immortal Monarchs."

The conditions were indeed lavish.

In fact, he’d already envisioned the scene: these two would surely turn into bootlickers, clutching his thigh and serving him like loyal servants.

Moreover, the first thing he planned to do was slap Lin Fan’s dog head in anger.

For daring to slap him earlier.

But...

"Not interested. Go find someone else." Lin Fan waved his hand dismissively, full of disdain. The meaning in his gaze was clear—wherever you came from, hurry up and roll back there.

He’d already seen through Qin Yang.

Wasn’t he just looking for someone to play bodyguard and escort him home?

As for the rewards he mentioned, only a fool would believe them. Did he really think Tao Level Divine Skills were as common as cabbage? Or that Immortal Monarchs’ treasures were roadside junk?

Xiang Fei rubbed Lin Fan’s arm. "I’m saying, these terms sound pretty good."

"You actually believe him?" Lin Fan was genuinely surprised. For someone who looked so smart, how could he fall for such nonsense?

Xiang Fei rolled his eyes. "To be honest, I do believe a little. The Immortal Venerable Family isn’t like other families, and he’s a direct bloodline descendant. They wouldn’t boast recklessly, as it would create karmic repercussions. I think it’s worth a shot."

Lin Fan mulled it over.

Even though Xiang Fei believed it.

He remained skeptical.

"Fine, follow us." Lin Fan said.

Qin Yang’s face lit up with a smile. As expected, in the face of absolute benefits, anyone would become so humbly servile.

"Rest assured, as a direct bloodline descendant of the Immortal Venerable Family, my word is my bond. For you two, meeting me is indeed your fortune..."

"Now, my clothes are unwearable. Do either of you have clothes to lend me..."

Smack!

Unable to tolerate Qin Yang’s pretentious attitude, Lin Fan angrily slapped his dog head. "Shut up. Just wear the clothes as they are. Right now, you need us, yet you’re so arrogant. Clearly, you haven’t experienced true despair and don’t understand what it means to stay humble."

Xiang Fei spread his hands helplessly.

Brother, your temper is a bit too fiery, but I do pity Qin Yang. Alas, here’s yet another spoiled brat accustomed to life in a prestigious family who hasn’t put real effort into cultivation.

After all, being a descendant of Immortal Venerables, his bloodline and talents are far beyond ordinary people.

If only he’d cultivated diligently, he wouldn’t be as miserable as he is now.

"You..."

Qin Yang’s head buzzed from Lin Fan’s slap, and anger surged within him, but he endured it. A wise man doesn’t eat immediate losses. I’ll tolerate you for now, but don’t get too cocky. Just wait and see how I’ll deal with you later.

Jiao Yun Island.

"If I’m not mistaken, this should be Jiao Yun Island. Aren’t you supposed to escort me home? Why did you bring me here?"

Qin Yang was baffled. The direction was all wrong, and it was far off course. Damn it, were these guys playing tricks on him?

Unfortunately, nobody paid him any attention.

"Let’s go see if there’s anything good here."

Lin Fan was brimming with excitement—it was treasure-hunting time again. Here’s hoping for some gains this time.

The island had arrays, but Lin Fan was quite skilled in arrays, so cracking them was easy.

Qin Yang grumbled as he followed. Despite his high status, none of them acknowledged him. If ordinary people had this kind of opportunity, they’d treat him like a divine ancestor, terrified of failing to serve him properly.

But these two were different.

Both acted as though he wasn’t even human.

"The opportunity is right in front of you, and you’ve missed it. You’ll regret it later, mark my words."

Complaints aside.

On the island, Qin Yang scavenged for clothes. His current ragged outfit was truly humiliating. If people saw him dressed like this, how could they possibly believe he came from the Immortal Venerable Family?

In the cave mansion.

"Are the Three Immortals of Jiao Yun Island really this poor?" Lin Fan asked.

He and Xiang Fei had turned the cave mansion upside-down but found nothing—only a small herb garden filled with relatively common herbs. Nothing remarkable at all.

Xiang Fei shrugged. "Based on the current situation, yeah, they’re really that poor."

"What a waste of a trip. Let’s go." Lin Fan waved dismissively, disappointed by the place. He’d expected to find mountains of treasure waiting for them.

But looking at it now, they were pathetically broke.

Of course, even though he wasn’t impressed by the herb garden, he still emptied it out, unwilling to leave completely empty-handed.

As they exited the cave mansion, they saw Qin Yang organizing his newly-found clothes, criticizing them for being inadequate. He reminisced about the heavenly clothes he usually wore, feeling that ordinary fabrics were torturous to his refined skin.

The next day!

Along the journey, Qin Yang was dominated into submission by Lin Fan. Initially, he kept urging to return to the Qin Family, but after being beaten several times, he became much more well-behaved. To Qin Yang, as long as they got him home, he didn’t care what they wanted to do.

"Huh!"

Lin Fan suddenly stopped, locking his gaze onto a dense forest below. His brows furrowed in thought as he activated the Great Divine Power, Illusion Demon Eye, to peer through the foggy obscurity below.

"Brother Lin, what’s wrong?" Xiang Fei asked.

Lin Fan replied, "I noticed something strange. There’s an unusually heavy aura of resentment down there."

Off to the side, Qin Yang sneered. "The Immortal Realm is vast, with countless strange places and innumerable areas heavy with resentment. What’s so unusual about this? If others don’t provoke us, why bother poking our noses into their affairs? Besides, if I step in, the opposing party..."

Smack!

"Hey! I’m warning you, stop hitting my head! Sure, I can’t match you, but I’m still..."

"Alright, I get it. My bad."

"Stop hitting me."

Qin Yang scurried away, clutching his head, thoroughly embarrassed, mentally cursing him. Damn it, have they no respect?

He considered himself someone who understood respect. Even when being a little arrogant, that stemmed from his position—how else would people know he had status?

It was wisdom distilled from years of experience.

"Let’s go down and take a look." Lin Fan said.

After brief contact.

He had already figured out what kind of person Qin Yang was—weak inside yet pretending to be overbearing and arrogant. Based on some context markers he’d noticed, this was a deliberate act stemming from events in his past.

The specifics weren’t clear; the clues weren’t detailed enough.

Xiang Fei followed Lin Fan as they descended, landing on the ground. He remarked, "There’s definitely something off about this place. While areas filled with resentment aren’t rare, ones with such concentrated resentment are."

If there were a Demon Treasure that could absorb resentment, it would be perfect for crafting something extraordinary.

Before long.

The three began searching around.

Lin Fan noticed a dilapidated ancient temple in the distance. It appeared to have existed for ages, with plant growth crawling up its walls. Surrounding the temple were many small relic towers.

But the towers contained no relics.

This scene.

Reminded him of a certain classic movie.

Creak!

Lin Fan pushed open the temple door, the old wood groaning under the strain, as though it could collapse at any moment.

"Something’s off."

Xiang Fei nodded. "Yeah, definitely off."

Qin Yang was surprised. "The ground scriptures look like the Demon Crossing Scriptures."

It was then that Lin Fan noticed the central area of the temple—a ring of dimmed and intricate markings, densely packed and indistinct. In the circle’s center was an intricate swastika symbol, which seemed rather curious.

"You know this?" Lin Fan asked.

Qin Yang, brimming with pride, replied, "Of course I do. Look at where I come from! These Demon Crossing Scriptures are immensely profound, legendary ancient scriptures. Rumor has it, during ancient times, the world was enshrouded in foul energies, driving all life forms to madness. Feeling the chaos, the Heavenly Dao inscribed these scriptures across the skies to cleanse the foulness."

"Who would’ve thought such a small, shabby temple would house remnants of these scriptures?"

"Certainly, such scriptures have long been lost to time."

"But it’s a pity. The scriptures here have endured untold ages and are now faint and barely legible. If they were complete, we’d hit the jackpot. Even Tao Level Divine Skills can’t compare to these scriptures."

Qin Yang examined them closely, clearly hoping to learn something. But no matter how hard he stared, his eyes nearly bursting, he found nothing useful and ultimately gave up.

Xiang Fei said, "I’ve heard of the Demon Crossing Scriptures too. It seems this place once witnessed a major event. A Buddha must’ve been here, attempting to purify demons. But if the scriptures are here, they must’ve succeeded. That begs the question—why is there still such heavy resentment lingering around?"

The three exchanged glances.

Nobody had any answers.

Lin Fan stroked his chin and began theorizing, "Do you think it’s possible the purification wasn’t successful, and they ended up sealing the demons here? Over time, the demons’ resentment leaked out bit by bit."

"Or maybe the purification succeeded, but the Buddha who carried it out tragically died here. Without anyone to remember and honor his deeds, the temple fell into decay, his dedication forgotten. Over centuries, resentment grew, transforming him into a ghostly Buddha, vowing to seek justice?"

Clap! Clap! Clap!

The sound of applause rang out.

Lin Fan and Xiang Fei thought someone had arrived. They turned to see it was only Qin Yang clapping.

"Impressive, impressive. Your mind is exceptionally creative. You can think of such elaborate stories? I’d say you’re better suited to storytelling at a tea house—you’d have a packed audience, guaranteed."

Smack!

Lin Fan angrily slapped his dog head.

Arrogant.

Mocking who now?