Bear School Astartes

The pills from Iwami Country are as potent as always. Even without using techniques infused with alchemical knowledge, the medicinal power of the herbs here is akin to the basic version of the [Swallow] magic potion.

Nothing dramatic happened with Lann after coming out, no bloody scenes of discovering Black Conical Hat Li's body.

In fact, when the Demon Hunter walked out of the dark Buddhist Hall, Black Conical Hat Li had almost regained his ability to move.

The Short Melon Ninja shook his arms and stretched his legs, clicking his tongue in dissatisfaction.

"Tsk, too much blood loss makes my limbs weak. I guess I can only scout now, can't fight... you okay?"

The latter part was directed at Lann, who had just come out.

Everyone present, except for Old Robert, knew why he had climbed Vajra Mountain.

Seeing a friend become worse than death, if Black Conical Hat Li didn't trust the Demon Hunter's mental resilience, he wouldn't have wanted to call Lann over.

The young Demon Hunter gently shook his head, his expression calm.

"It's fine. Like you said, I was swift, he didn't suffer much."

Having said that, he walked forward, passing between the three, up the mountain path.

Black Conical Hat Li and Iwami Yixin exchanged a glance and nodded to each other. If it were anyone else, they might worry that it was mere bravado talking.

But when it came from Lann, they chose to trust him.

Old Robert, with his full helmet, had no face visible. He just silently followed behind Lann, climbing the mountain path.

The path leading further into the depths of Immortal Peak Temple, to the Hall of Thirty-Three Rooms, was rugged and winding.

Moreover, there were many tamed or wild beasts lurking on the mountain path.

There were monkeys that stood as tall as a person, wolfhounds that were one meter and two or three on all fours, and newts with an abnormal secretion of venom...

These creatures were not difficult to deal with, a single throw from Lann's and Black Conical Hat Li's knives could take each down.

The people in Immortal Peak Temple worked on cultivating an undying body, to the detriment of their mental state.

Their minds could no longer hold anything else but the undying body.

And so, Immortal Peak Temple, once a noble and renowned temple, had no defensive walls, no tools or personnel for defense. Not even a single strategist to rationally deal with an invasion.

After the most intense wave of attacks was cleared by the trio, the path that followed was eerily quiet.

It seemed that all the defensive forces had been committed to the previous fight, leaving nothing behind.

Following the mountain path, covered with blood-red maple leaves, the expressions of the four remained stable.

But in their hearts, a flame burning deeply was growing ever stronger.

In the earlier part of Immortal Peak Temple, Lann had already grasped the meaning behind those baby statues and small pinwheels.

Underneath every baby statue, beneath every pinwheel, lay the corpse of a real child.

In the earlier part of Immortal Peak Temple, these little pinwheels and statues appeared scattered around tree roots and corners of walls.

But when they reached this part of the mountain path...

On both sides of the winding and rugged road, pinwheels and baby statues were crowded in!

The congestion was like a traffic jam. The sides of the road could barely accommodate them, with some statues and pinwheels even pressing into the middle of the road.

How many children died here?

How were these children killed?

At this point, the four of them deeply hated their own human brains for their imagination.

"They must have started this long ago."

Walking slowly but resolutely, Lann spoke softly without turning his head.

Iwami Yixin's voice also lowered in depth.

"Yes, judging by this... they started even back when I was the Lord of Iwami."

"It was my oversight... Haha, truly, aging does make one muddled."

Although he was laughing, the laugh coming from the thin old man's mouth brought no relief; quite the opposite—

It made one's heart muscle tense for an instant!

Old people probably hate the realization of their own uselessness?

As the [Sword Saint], Iwami Yixin hadn't felt such anger since the war to usurp the country.

Unhindered, the four passed through the mountain path laden with pinwheels and statues to a high platform fire pile burning an unknown number of corpses...

Guided by Black Conical Hat Li, they went straight to the main entrance of the Hall of Thirty-Three Rooms.

This was a grand hall built on a solitary peak, with its terrace jutting out from the cliff, overlooking the entire rugged and magnificent landscape of Vajra Mountain and the architectural complex of Immortal Peak Temple.

But now, none of the four had the heart to enjoy the view.

"Creak~"

Lann opened the heavy door of the Hall of Thirty-Three Rooms with one hand.

The thousand statues of Thousand-Armed Guanyin, made of gold foil and brass, reflected the light from the candelabras, presenting a solemn Buddhist spectacle.

But when one shifted their gaze from the lofty Buddhas downward...

There were chaotic ground surfaces, cobwebs, crickets, and... one after another enshrined monks wrapped in shrouds!

"Such a prestigious congregation of high monks and virtuous masters, now a group of commoners indulging in worldly desires, in a temple that once revered cultivating good karma in this life and seeking bliss in the afterlife..."

Lann spoke with a face full of sarcasm.

Inside the hall, the enclosed monks not directly in front of the main gate seemed to have been entirely overtaken by the large centipedes within them.

Their shriveled and dried bodies maintained a meditative posture, slowly moving by dragging towards the four who had entered.

They all wore white undergarments, garments for the enshrined monk ceremony, perhaps because the ceremony had been successfully completed too many times within Immortal Peak Temple.

Thus, these 'high monks' who could have been worshipped for generations elsewhere didn't even get ceremonial robes to change into after their rites ended here.

Only one enshrined monk...

The one sitting directly in front of the biggest Bodhisattva statue wore a deep green monk's robe accompanied by a high hat symbolizing the identity of a 'Master'.

The Immortal Peak Master.

He seemed not to care at all about Lann's sarcastic words.

In Lann's perception, he was still the most vital entity in the hall, yet he hadn't been controlled by the insects in his body.

The throat and voice already close to a worn burlap state rolled as if speaking now was a difficult and cumbersome task for the Immortal Peak Master, given his current physical condition.

Though his life might extend unknowably into the future, the bodily decay wasn't something the Undying Insects could salvage.

The immortality brought on by the insects, rather, was an endless decline.

"Beneficiaries... safe and sound... thanks... to the Bodhisattva's blessing."

He spoke with such difficulty that it allowed Lann to reach into his alchemy pouch and retrieve the only two bottles of [Residue Oil] he had, enough time to distribute them to the three others behind him.

"You don't want us to die?"

"Anger and outrage of the esteemed lord... is only natural... my fault... opened the gates to researching immortality... but as of today..."

Even as enunciating became this challenging, it wasn't hard for the four to hear the regret in his tone.

However, the four raising their blades to apply sword oil didn't show a moment's hesitation.

If mere regret were enough to forgive a perpetrator, then who would be accountable for the victim's suffering?

"I am aware... your resolve to kill... is the correct decision... but, one request, please listen quietly..."

Lann tilted his head slightly, the silver hair falling beside his ear.

The katana in his hand, already nicked in many places, reflected a uniform oily sheen.

"Please speak."

The Demon Hunter approached the Immortal Peak Master with his sword.

From the mouth of the master came a heavy sigh.

"I ask... that you be extremely cautious."

Just as he finished speaking, Lann's pupils constricted sharply.

He sidestepped, at the same time raising his blade to guard against his other side.

"Whsh! Clang!"

Two blasts tore through the air, followed by a metallic clash.

Pushed by the force he parried, Lann took two steps back.

In front of him, the decayed Immortal Peak Master was now facing them directly.

A centipede coiled like a spring settled on the ground, two more from his back twirling like the tongues of a slithering snake.

"I... cannot control..."

His consciousness wasn't because he had command over his body... the insects couldn't control his mind, so they concentrated on controlling his flesh!