PDLP Chapter 127 The Mysterious Fog of the South Seas
Chapter 127 The Mysterious Fog of the South Seas
Currently reading: Chapter 127, The Mysterious Fog of the South Seas. Latest chapters available here.
Nanyang, a certain country, Chinatown.
A Taoist temple with Lingnan style is built against the mountain, its green tiles and white walls standing out against the lush tropical vegetation.
The plaque above the entrance of the Taoist temple reads "Wanfu Temple," indicating that it is a branch of Maoshan in Southeast Asia.
In the early morning, four inconspicuous black SUVs rolled over the gravel road and stopped in front of the Taoist temple.
The car door opened.
Master Qingxu got out of the car first. He wasn't wearing a Taoist robe today, but only a dark gray Zhongshan suit and cloth shoes. His expression was calm.
Immediately afterwards, more than a dozen people got out of the other cars.
These men all had buzz cuts, were lean and wiry, and wore ordinary long-sleeved shirts and casual pants, but their every move exuded an aura of iron-bloodedness.
After getting off the bus, they stood in silent lines, their eyes scanning their surroundings warily.
The leader was a middle-aged man who looked to be in his early forties with dark skin. His face bore the marks of wind and sun, and his hands were large with thick knuckles, as if he had been holding heavy objects for many years.
What was most striking was the bulging canvas bag he was carrying, the contents of which were unknown.
"Senior Brother Qingxu!"
The gates of the Taoist temple opened, and an elderly Taoist priest of about sixty years old strode out to greet them, followed by seven or eight disciples also dressed in Taoist robes.
This old Taoist priest was the head of the Maoshan branch in Southeast Asia, and his Taoist name was Qingxuan.
"Junior Brother Qingxuan." Daoist Qingxu nodded, his gaze sweeping over the disciples behind him. "Let's go inside and talk."
The group filed into the Taoist temple.
After passing through the front courtyard, we arrived at the reception hall behind the main hall.
There were already people waiting inside the hall.
On the left sat three Taoist priests dressed in Quanzhen sect attire. The one in the lead was a gaunt-faced old Taoist priest with the Taoist name Yuzhen, who was in charge of the Quanzhen sect's Southeast Asian branch.
On the right sat two middle-aged men dressed in Zhongshan suits, exuding a calm and composed demeanor; they were representatives of a local family of practitioners.
Upon seeing Master Qingxu enter, everyone stood up to greet him.
"Master Qingxu!"
"No need for formalities, everyone." Master Qingxu walked to the main seat and sat down, gesturing for everyone to take their seats as well.
The dozen or so men with crew cuts consciously dispersed to various parts of the reception hall, subtly forming a guard.
Master Qingxuan glanced at the group of men and asked in a low voice, "Senior Brother Qingxu, who are these men...?"
Master Qingxu said calmly, "He is a fellow Daoist from a reclusive lineage."
The dark-skinned middle-aged man stepped forward, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "I am a turtle fisherman from the South China Sea. Greetings, fellow Daoists. We have lived overseas for a long time. Hearing of the changes in Southeast Asia, we have come to do our part."
His voice was loud and clear, full of energy.
"Thank you for your righteous act, fellow Daoist!"
Qingxuan and the others quickly returned the greeting, but some doubts remained in their hearts.
A reclusive lineage? I've never heard of them before. And these people exude a heavy aura of malevolence; they don't seem like people who cultivate in seclusion at all...
Everyone sat down again.
Master Qingxuan spoke first, his tone heavy: "Senior Brother Qingxu, you have come at just the right time. A week ago, the Voodoo Cult held a large-scale sacrificial ceremony in the Northwest Rainforest, supposedly to reinforce an ancient seal."
"The ritual went wrong, causing the seal to break and the evil energy to leak out, forming a strange mist. None of the people who performed the ritual in the voodoo cult escaped!"
"Currently, the area shrouded by the eerie fog has reached nearly two hundred miles and continues to spread to the surrounding areas."
He paused, then added, "The local government had previously sent troops to try and resolve the issue, but they suffered heavy losses and were unable to handle it. They also couldn't contact the Voodoo Cult headquarters, so they had no choice but to turn to us for help."
Master Qingxu frowned slightly: "What's inside the seal?"
"I don't know." Master Qingxuan shook his head. "The ancient books provided by the locals only contain scattered records, saying that the seal was left by ancient cultivators from Southeast Asia to suppress some kind of extremely evil entity. The Voodoo Cult has guarded it for generations and reinforced it regularly, but this time..."
Master Yuzhen interjected, "We have investigated the outer perimeter of the contaminated area. The eerie mist is sinister and strange, containing strong blood evil and vengeful spirits, which is not something that could be produced by a broken seal."
Upon hearing this, Master Qingxu and the turtle fisherman from the South China Sea exchanged a glance, both seeing the solemnity in each other's eyes.
"Any other discoveries?" Master Qingxu asked.
Master Qingxuan hesitated for a moment, then lowered his voice: "We sent two disciples to risk infiltrating and investigate, but only one returned, and..."
He paused, his voice filled with sorrow: "The one who came back is already out of his mind, and keeps repeating 'sea of blood' and 'white bones'."
The turtle fisherman from the South China Sea suddenly spoke up: "Where is that disciple now?"
"He's in the side room now, and we've temporarily calmed him down with a calming talisman," said Master Qingxuan. "But I'm afraid he won't be able to hold on for long."
"Take me to see it." The turtle fisherman from the South China Sea stood up.
Master Qingxuan looked at Master Qingxu.
Master Qingxu nodded: "This fellow Daoist from the South China Sea is skilled in medicine; perhaps he has a solution."
The group moved to a side room.
The room was filled with the strong smell of medicine and incense. A young Taoist priest lay on the bed, his face ashen, his eyes closed, and his body convulsing violently from time to time.
A yellow paper talisman was pasted on his forehead, emitting a faint, clear light.
The turtle fisherman from the South China Sea walked to the bedside and bent down to examine it.
He first examined the young Taoist's eyelids, then checked his pulse, and finally placed his palm on his forehead, closing his eyes to sense his pulse.
He first examined the young Taoist's eyelids, then checked his pulse, and finally placed his palm on his forehead, closing his eyes to sense his pulse.
A few seconds later, he opened his eyes, his face grave.
"His soul has been severely corrupted by evil energy, and most of his three souls and seven spirits have been scattered," the turtle fisherman from the South China Sea said in a deep voice. "He's only been able to hold on until now thanks to the calming talisman."
Upon hearing this, Master Qingxuan's face showed sorrow: "This child was the first disciple I took in Southeast Asia. He was quite talented, but I never expected..."
"There's still hope," the turtle fisherman from the South China Sea interrupted him.
Everyone was taken aback.
The turtle fisherman in the South China Sea took out a palm-sized peach wood plaque from his canvas bag.
The wooden plaque was crudely made, with some burrs on the edges, and the front was decorated with simple cloud patterns drawn in vermilion.
But the moment the peach wood plaque was pulled out, the cold and evil aura that permeated the room seemed to have met its nemesis, and it quietly dissipated a bit!
Master Qingxuan and Master Yuzhen both widened their eyes at the same time.
They could clearly sense that the peach wood plaque faintly exuded an aura of grandeur and righteousness!
"This is..." Master Qingxuan's voice trembled.
The turtle fisherman from the South China Sea offered no explanation, but simply placed the peach wood plaque on the young Taoist's chest.
hum!
The surface of the peach wood plaque gleamed with a barely perceptible golden light.
The young Taoist priest's convulsing body gradually calmed down, and a trace of color returned to his pale face.
"This..." Master Qingxuan exclaimed in disbelief, "This thing is so miraculous?!"
The turtle fisherman from the South China Sea said calmly, "This peach wood plaque was bestowed by a senior, and it has the effect of warding off evil spirits. Now your disciple's life has been saved, but his soul has been severely damaged and he needs to recuperate for several months."
As he spoke, he looked at Daoist Qingxu and said, "Brother Qingxu, we need to go and check out the contaminated area."
Master Qingxu nodded: "That's right. Hearing is unreliable, seeing is believing."
Master Qingxuan quickly said, "Senior brother, I'll lead the way!"
"No need," Master Qingxu waved his hand. "Fellow Daoist from the South China Sea and I will go."