Behind the side hall of the Immortal Peak Temple is a mountain road with no buildings, and only after passing this road, can one truly enter the Buddhist architectural complex of the Immortal Peak Temple.

After the four of them walked out of the side hall, Black Conical Hat Li instinctively leapt onto the roof.

He needed to go ahead to scout the situation and eliminate any guarding ninjas.

But before he left, Lann instructed him to regroup immediately if anything went wrong.

The ninjas in the front hall were completely cleared out, but any professional ninja group would be alert from observing such a situation.

The three warriors, who were not moving efficiently, traveled on the regular path.

Old Robert, like an empty suit of armor, moved forward sullenly.

Lann appeared calm, but the Demon Hunter's extraordinary senses were constantly at work.

His entire field of vision was now in an unusually vivid, high-saturation state.

Walking last was Iwami Yixin, even though he was a skinny elder wearing a Celestial Dog mask, he looked as leisurely as if he were going on an outing.

But the fingertip that occasionally tapped on the hilt of the sword at his waist always maintained a high level of sensitivity.

If he wished, the next time his fingertip lightly tapped, the Golden Iron Dragon-Slaying Blade would unleash an exaggerated Air Stream Blade Drawing Technique.

Things did not go as Lann anticipated; as they stepped out from the side hall, they weren't immediately surrounded by alerted monks and ninjas.

To the contrary... the surroundings were eerily quiet.

"Relax for now, Lann."

Iwami Yixin, experienced in battles, seemed more adept in such situations than the young Demon Hunter specialist.

The elder smiled like an old cat about to enter a mouse's nest, ready to wreak havoc.

"The current terrain isn't spacious enough; the enemy can't make use of their numerical advantage. They will meet us further ahead, in a larger area."

Lann inconspicuously shut down his heavily operating Demon Hunter senses.

"So, we're supposed to fight them in a spot they chose? Letting them dictate the traps and formations?"

"What else?" The elder smiled indifferently. "'Siege battles' are fought this way, aren't they? To achieve final victory, you must crush the enemy's traps and strategies one by one... Afraid?"

"Not exactly afraid, just... it's not clean and elegant enough," Lann casually shrugged his shoulders.

"But since we're in East Japan Iwami, you're the local expert, it's your call."

The three had already reached a wooden gallery built over a cliff edge.

Continuing forward, there would be a vast open space, followed by the Immortal Peak Temple complex.

Their footsteps on the wooden floor were steady and calm, with sunlight slanting through the wooden lattice, casting grid-like shadows on them.

There wasn't even the sound of birds, and the safety signals that Black Conical Hat Li was supposed to send every ten minutes were also absent.

Lann, looking at the end of the wooden gallery, where shadow met sunlight, already had his left hand gripping the hilt of his sheathed sword.

The smile beneath Iwami Yixin's mask grew wider.

And Old Robert's pace quickened from a walk to a jog.

There were no disturbances as they exited the wooden gallery.

The trio continued through the expansive terrain toward the complex, unimpeded.

However, when they reached the very center of this land...

More than fifty flying projectiles came hurtling towards them with a howling wind, filling the sky!

Old Robert roared, "You demons!"

Then, he spread his arms wide, allowing his armor to absorb the impact of the projectiles head-on.

The armor crafting techniques of this world's Europe far surpassed those of East Japan, and these projectiles, aside from their impact force, couldn't harm the Old Robert inside the armor.

A dazzling blade light suddenly flashed from Iwami Yixin's sword sheath.

The blade carved an agile arc in the air, producing a series of sparks along the way, deflecting all the projectiles aimed at the Celestial Dog-faced elder.

Even wearing only a cloth and straw raincoat, a sharp flying knife that doesn't hit its mark causes no harm.

Lann's movements combined elements from both of them.

With his sword, he deftly deflected these ranged weapons. Simultaneously, he caught one in the howling wind with his other hand.

Once the wind of the projectiles subsided, the Demon Hunter carefully observed the weapon in his hand.

It was a half-palm-sized Buddhist wheel.

Originally intended as a solemn symbol used in Buddhist ceremonies and decorations, it had become a ranged concealed weapon in the hands of the monks at the Immortal Peak Temple.

Now, even the materialistic Lann couldn't help but curse quietly, expressionless.

"This really is... heretical!"

He tossed the wheel aside, prompting low laughter from Iwami Yixin.

"Well said, 'heretical'. These monks have violated the highest precepts of Buddhism. So even if we slay them all, the Bodhisattva will not blame us."

The precepts of Buddhism are none other than 'killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, false speech'. That is, killing, theft, sexual acts, deceit.

And above these four major precepts, surpassing all evil acts within the Buddhist context, the greatest and most heinous karma would be... falling into heresy!

From believers to non-believers.

From followers of Buddha to followers of others.

Now at the Immortal Peak Temple, the monks, rather than believing in Buddha and cultivating goodness for the next life, undoubtedly, they put their faith in the practical 'immortal body'!

In the surrounding buildings, rocks, and branches of this open space, dozens to nearly a hundred people stood up.

Just as Black Conical Hat Li had reported, among them were members of the Chaos Wave Group, monks of the Immortal Peak Temple, and helmeted men wielding Double-Bladed Glaives.

Perhaps because of Lann and Iwami Yixin's comments, these still monk-dressed individuals finally got angry, unable to maintain their deadpan expressions.

A monk wrapped in a headscarf and face veil, appearing to have several bamboo dragonflies tied to his waist, shouted loudly.

"People of the mundane world, how dare you recklessly comment on men of the otherworld?! By intruding upon our Immortal Peak Temple today, I see you are the heretical ones disrupting Buddhist cultivation!"

"Kill them!"

With nimble postures, they leapt from high places, descending.

The shadows of the people briefly blocked out the sun, enveloping the three in darkness.

But without a doubt, all three expressed... this was exactly what they came for!

"Demons! Die!"

Old Robert crouched, unbelievably pressing his armored body so low as if defying the weight of full-plate armor.

At that moment, in terms of bone and muscle structure, he resembled a beast!

The greatsword whistled forward, not even waiting for the shadows to descend, directly charging at a tree as thick as a person's leg!

The iron greatsword didn't slash the tree, it smashed it apart!

The body of the Chaos Wave Group member who originally stood on the tree swayed as he fell along with it.

Iwami Yixin's Golden Iron Dragon-Slaying Blade had returned to its sheath at some unknown time, now he lowered his stance, assuming a drawing pose.

The Demon Hunter took a bottle of [Thunder], which boosts muscle explosiveness, from his Alchemy Pouch at the back of his waist, and drank it down.