The Quest for Immortality

Chapter 2464: Ominous Signs (2)

The middle-aged cultivator had a gentle appearance and refined features; if Mo Hua saw him, he would be very surprised.Because this person is Elder Shen Xiuyan from the Shen Family, who has had dealings with him in Lizhou Nanyue City.

But at this moment, Shen Xiuyan was somewhat strange, his movements stiff as he walked; at first glance it wasn’t noticeable, but upon closer inspection, one could see that his steps had a slight unevenness, one shallow and one deep.

His gaze was also a bit vacant, staring blankly ahead.

Shen Xiuyan walked alone in the deathly silent forest, like a puppet on strings.

No one guided him, yet he seemed to know where he was going.

Or perhaps, something in the void was "calling" to him.

After walking for an indeterminate amount of time, Shen Xiuyan arrived at a stone wall.

He dazedly extended his finger, rubbing against the stone wall, so much so that his fingertip became bloody and flesh mangled, revealing the ghastly white bone.

Then, he used the white bone to dip into his own blood, drawing a blood-red Formation on the stone wall.

This was a Formation that transcended ordinary boundaries, with each Formation Pattern resembling ghastly faces, howling and roaring eerily.

Once the Formation was complete, the stone wall dissolved, revealing a dark, deep cave.

Shen Xiuyan stepped into the cave; it was pitch black all around, no light or glow, yet he could discern his orientation in the darkness.

He kept walking until he reached the end of the cave.

At the end of the darkness, a blood-red light glowed.

Under the blood-red glow was a dust-covered altar.

After the disaster of the Qian Learning Blood Sacrifice, all Demon Cultivator caves and Evil God altars within the Qianxue State Boundary and surrounding territories were completely destroyed.

The altar in front of him, hidden in the darkness, was the only one to survive the Taoist Court’s purge.

The blackness in Shen Xiuyan’s eyes grew more intense.

He knelt before the altar, biting through his fingers one by one, then drawing strange patterns in front of it.

The blood-red Formation Patterns, shaped like long snakes, flowed into the altar.

In the darkness, the blood-red became thicker, permeating with a eerie glow.

It seemed as though something was being "awakened"; beneath the altar, a sound of flesh squirming echoed, something was incubating.

After completing these tasks, Shen Xiuyan disregarded everything that followed, rigidly turning away from the altar.

After leaving the altar, the blackness in his eyes intensified, his limbs becoming more twisted.

His footsteps on the ground became even more pronounced, one deep and one shallow.

"Who am I?"

"Who... am I?"

"I..."

Shen Xiuyan muttered hoarsely, seemingly having forgotten everything, including who he was.

The deceit Patterns stretched outward, covering his flesh, crawling all over his face.

"I am... Deceit..."

Just as he uttered the word "Deceit," everything changed again.

The blackness like Mo, the previously rigid deceit Patterns, suddenly seemed alive, sinking into Shen Xiuyan’s skin, disappearing.

Once dazed and confused, Shen Xiuyan suddenly snapped awake.

He looked around, his expression changing drastically, terrified at heart:

"Where am I...? What am I doing? What have I... done?"

Yet there was no one around, nothing to tell him what had happened, only the deathly silent night.

"I can’t stay here..."

Fearful at heart, Shen Xiuyan hurriedly fled.

Although he didn’t know where he was, the path he came in seemed faintly imprinted in his mind; though flustered, he surprisingly chose the right path to leave.

Just like that, Shen Xiuyan left the forest, raising his head to see a carriage by the road.

The surroundings were empty and deserted, the carriage seemed to be the one he rode in on, yet he had no recollection whatsoever.

But now Shen Xiuyan couldn’t worry about such details; he boarded the carriage without hesitation and drove away in panic from this "nightmare" of a forest.

Lately, he couldn’t distinguish between nightmare and reality.

What he thought was dreaming might be real.

What he thought was real might be a dream.

He often found himself in a half-dream, half-awake state.

This situation was initially rare, but since the Qian Learning Blood Sacrifice incident, it became more frequent.

Driving the carriage, Shen Xiuyan sped along the mountain path, leaving the desolate mountain, traveling for several tens of miles before the surroundings became familiar, allowing him to find the path back to the Sect.

He was an Elder of the Little Spirit Sect, one of the Qian Learning Hundred Gates.

As an Elder, he naturally had to be responsible for Sect affairs.

If he were too negligent, skipping class and failing his duties, he would be punished by the Sect.

Returning to the Sect, Shen Xiuyan discovered it was the beginning of a break; the disciples were on vacation, and he, as an Elder, did not need to teach, which gave him a sigh of relief.

Shen Xiuyan entered the mountain gate of the Little Spirit Sect, crossed the long stairs, went straight back to his Elder’s Residence, locked the doors and windows, secured the Formation, thoroughly enclosing himself, and only then felt completely secure in the absolute tranquility all around.

Yet with it came a series of terrifying questions:

Where did I go?

What did I do there?

What is happening to me?

I...

The more Shen Xiuyan thought, the more perplexed he became, the more his Sea of Consciousness pained him, the colder he felt at heart, until soon his vision went dark, his mind clouded, and unconsciously he fell asleep again.

While sleeping, he had another dream.

This was a dream he’d often had for a long time.

In the dream, it was still that rundown temple where he, Old Wen, and Young Master Yun were lodging.

Opposite them was a kindly kid and a Taoist shrouded entirely in black mist.