Chapter 1161 - 1158: The Trap
Qin Fang stood beside Lin Chuan, pointing at the building and said, "Lin Chuan, that is probably the main hall of Maoshan Tao. Look at that building, it's built halfway up the mountain and has a name."
Lin Chuan said surprisedly, "What name does it have?"
Qin Fang said, "Look carefully at what the peak where the building is located resembles."
Lin Chuan looked closely. The entire mountain peak was tall and upright, connected with the relatively lower peaks behind, resembling the head of a dragon.
"It looks a bit like a dragon's head," Lin Chuan said.
Qin Fang nodded and said, "Indeed, this building is built on the dragon's head and has a name, called 'Azure Dragon Entering the Clouds Formation.'
"Azure Dragon Entering the Clouds Formation, what's the meaning of this?" Lin Chuan asked.
Qin Fang said, "The so-called Azure Dragon Entering the Clouds Formation is a feng shui formation. In feng shui, finding the spot is important. Azure Dragon Entering the Clouds is that spot. According to records, the Azure Dragon Entering such a formation can gather dragon energy, allowing the house built here to have lasting fortune."
Lin Chuan listened, his mind clouded with confusion as he couldn't understand, simply saying, "Let's not talk about this anymore, let's go."
Qin Fang said, "Lin Chuan, can you spare a moment to listen to me?"
Lin Chuan looked at Qin Fang and said, "What is it?"
Qin Fang pondered and said, "In the main hall of Maoshan Tao, there are many experts. Are you not afraid of barging in like this?"
Lin Chuan smiled slightly and said, "In the realm of heavens and earth, there are many things one must do knowing they are insurmountable. Maoshan Tao often engages in wrongful acts. It is my duty to eradicate them."
Lin Chuan had his reasons for saying this. Being the head of Quan Dao Sect, and since Maoshan Tao branched off from Quan Dao Sect, he had the responsibility both in sentiment and principle.
"What a good phrase, knowing the insurmountable and still taking action," a voice suddenly said from behind.
Both Lin Chuan and Qin Fang were startled and turned to see that somehow a strange old man was standing behind them.
The old man was dressed oddly, had a goatee, and looked at Lin Chuan with eyes that seemed half-smiling.
Lin Chuan's cultivation now should be good, yet he didn't hear any sound until the old man reached him from behind.
Qin Fang looked at the old man, and a trace of imperceptible killing intent flashed in her eyes.
This killing intent flashed by so quickly that even standing face-to-face with Qin Fang, Lin Chuan might not perceive it.
Lin Chuan steadied his mind and looked at the old man, asking, "Who are you?"
The old man stroked his goatee with his right hand, still looking at Lin Chuan with a half-smiling expression, and laughed, "Boy, don't bother with who I am. Do you know in Maoshan Tao's main hall, there are at least seven or eight experts like you? Moreover, there's Qin Zhengtian, an expert much more formidable than you. What makes you think you can compete with them?"
Lin Chuan was taken aback, not knowing how to respond to the strange old man.
The old man glanced at Qin Fang, then Lin Chuan heard the old man's voice in his mind, "Boy, follow me."
The old man said this in a voice only Lin Chuan could hear. As soon as he finished speaking, he turned around and disappeared into the woods.
Though surprised, Lin Chuan said to Qin Fang beside him, "This old man is really strange. Wait here for me, I'll go see what he's up to."
Watching Lin Chuan disappear in direction, the killing intent in Qin Fang's eyes flared up again. She bit her silver teeth tightly and moved quickly, her speed surpassing Lin Chuan's, disappearing in the opposite direction.
Lin Chuan followed the old man into the woods but lost sight of him. After wandering in the woods for a while, he couldn't see the old man anywhere.
Just when Lin Chuan couldn't find the old man and was about to turn around to find Qin Fang, he heard the old man's laughter to his left.
Lin Chuan turned to look and saw the old man sitting on a tree branch, still looking at him with a half-smiling expression.
"Who exactly are you, and what do you want with me?" Lin Chuan asked.
The old man chuckled and said, "Young man, don't you know I'm saving your life?"
Lin Chuan was taken aback slightly, not quite understanding the old man's words.
Seeing Lin Chuan looking somewhat bewildered, the old man continued, "Kid, you have the Illusion Pearl, the Quan Dao Sect's chief artifact, and the Yin Yang Double Jade. Those Maoshan Tao brats have been hoping you'd walk into their trap for a long time."
Hearing that this old man knew he had the Illusion Pearl and Yin Yang Double Jade, Lin Chuan was shocked and immediately became wary. Staring at the old man, he said, "How do you know I have the Illusion Pearl and Yin Yang Jade?"
The old man laughed heartily and said, "That I can't tell you just yet, kid. You are Tian Mang, and you're also the only one who can unify and revitalize the Quan Dao Sect. I can't just sit by and watch you fall into the trap set by Maoshan Tao."
Lin Chuan was taken aback; the trap set by Maoshan Tao? That statement only confused him more. He said, "You mean to say that the Maoshan Tao people deliberately lured me here?"
The old man smirked, "You're a teachable kid; you've finally caught on. Do you even know who that woman accompanying you is?"
Regarding Qin Fang, to be honest, Lin Chuan didn't really know her; she was introduced by Qin Zhenghe, so he shook his head at the old man, indicating he didn't know.
The old man continued, "This woman is remarkable; she's the only one in Maoshan Tao who can rival Qin Zhengtian. Do you really think she's helping you out of the kindness of her heart? You're too naive, kid."
Lin Chuan found it hard to believe that Qin Fang was an expert and said, "You say Qin Fang is Maoshan Tao's second-best expert, but how come I didn't notice?"
Indeed, with Lin Chuan's current cultivation, he should be able to discern Qin Fang's level, but he couldn't sense that unique aura of an expert from her.
The old man, hearing Lin Chuan's words, stared at him strangely, "You call that woman a girl?"
Qin Fang was about twenty-two or three years old, younger than Lin Chuan; wasn't she a girl? Lin Chuan couldn't help but nod and said, "Yes, she's just in her twenties. If she's not a girl, is she an old lady?"
The old man chuckled, "Kid, let me tell you, that woman is over ninety years old. Do you call her a girl or an old lady?"
Ninety years old? That was incredible; Qin Fang looked like a young girl, nothing like a ninety-year-old. Lin Chuan was momentarily stunned and couldn't speak.
Though Lin Chuan was silent, his mind was racing with questions. If what the old man said was true, then the entire situation was a trap from the start.
The Maoshan Tao people captured Huang Bo, Zhou Kai, and the others to lure Lin Chuan into their game. To make him believe, they deliberately left clues that seemed to lead smoothly, like the two eyewitnesses and surveillance footage.
Through the witnesses and footage, they must've known he'd find Qin Ping, and so led him to Qin Zhenghe. To make the scheme believable, Qin Zhenghe spared no effort to convince him he was helping him.
With Qin Zhenghe's introduction, Qin Fang naturally became one of his helpers, and this meticulously crafted plot slowly closed in on him.
However, there was one thing he couldn't understand: the Maoshan Tao had numerous grudges against him. Why didn't they confront him directly instead of going through all this trouble?
The old man seemed to have read Lin Chuan's thoughts and said, "Kid, let me tell you, Qin Zhengtian is very cautious in his actions. You have the backing of the Tai Chi Sect; they can only act without scruples if they lure you to the Maoshan Tao's main hall. Once they get the Illusion Pearl from you, they can openly rally the Quan Dao Sect. Besides, the Yin Yang Jade on you is a treasure unparalleled in the world, more tempting to Qin Zhengtian than the Illusion Pearl."
"Why are you helping me?" The more Lin Chuan thought, the more alarmed he became, looking at the old man and asked.
The old man's expression turned serious, "Kid, I told you long ago that you are Tian Mang, the only one who can counter the heavenly catastrophe. By helping you, I'm helping all living beings."
Tian Mang was a term Lin Chuan had heard from two people: Chu Qiuyan's father Chu Tianhan and Feng Lingfeng. However, neither had explained what the heavenly catastrophe really meant, causing him to frown and ask, "Since you know I'm Tian Mang, you must know what the heavenly catastrophe is?"
The old man said, "The world's catastrophe is born from the cycle of reincarnation, controllable by only two people: one is the Human King Fu Xi, and the other is the Human Mother Nuwa. For thousands of years, Fu Xi has been avoiding the world to escape Nuwa. Out of love turned to hate, Nuwa incessantly searched for Fu Xi, so whenever she finds him, there arises a world-shattering battle between them, known as the heavenly catastrophe."
The Human Mother Nuwa and the Human King Fu Xi—these two Lin Chuan had also heard about from Feng Lingfeng, but he never took it seriously. Fu Xi and Nuwa were legendary figures; could they still be alive?
"No way, are you saying Fu Xi and Nuwa are still in this world? How old would they be then?" Lin Chuan couldn't help but frown and asked.
The old man replied, "Kid, both of them indeed still exist in this world; they have transcended life and death to become beings of eternal life."
Lin Chuan pondered for a moment and said, "What's with all those exotic beasts appearing in Kunlun Mountain recently?"
The old man said, "Calamities multiply in the world before demons run rampant. Those Exotic Beasts are products of the Ancient Times, and someone deliberately unsealed them. Kid, it was a woman named Yaoji who opened this seal, and she had a complicated relationship with Fu Xi too."
"How do we manage these Exotic Beasts and reseal them?" Lin Chuan asked.
The old man shook his head and said, "These seals were laid during Laozi's enlightenment; no one knows how to reseal them. You'll have to figure it out, but I can tell you that if you completely unlock the secrets of the Yin Yang Jade, you will obtain a way to restart the sealing process."
It seemed there were indeed countless secrets in the Yin Yang Jade. Lin Chuan frowned and asked, "Do you know how many secrets are in the Yin Yang Jade?"
Although he'd known the old man for less than an hour, Lin Chuan could feel that the old man harbored no malice toward him, so his manner of address began to change.