Soon after, the students arrived one after another at an ancient temple complex. This was the Dongyue Temple, the site where ancient emperors performed the grand sacrifices to worship heaven. Standing before the majestic gates, a profound sense of antiquity and solemnity washed over them, overawing the soul and inspiring a deep reverence for the majesty of the heavens.
About ten minutes after all the students had gathered here, the four scarred men also arrived at the Dongyue Temple. Observing that Lin Tianchen and Su Shanshan were lingering at the back of the group, they did not make a move right away.
After wandering around for a while, the two of them did not go inside the temple, but instead slowly walked toward a remote corner of the temple complex. The four scarred men exchanged smirks. Heaven had a road, yet these fools refused to walk it, running off to a secluded spot all by themselves and saving them unnecessary trouble. Once they took care of that punk in a moment, the four of them could have some fun with the pretty little thing. With lewd grins plastered across their faces, the four men quietly tailed Lin Tianchen and Su Shanshan.
Leading the four-man group a merry chase through twists and turns, Lin and Su ducked into a dead-end alley.
Lin Tianchen pulled Su Shanshan close and said, "No matter what happens in a moment, don't panic." With that, he extended his sword fingers, channeled spiritual power to his fingertips, and shot a beam of spiritual energy in four different directions, setting up the Four-Image Concealment Array. Instantly, the figures and auras of both Lin and Su vanished into thin air. This array possessed the power of invisibility, capable of concealing both the physical body and one's presence.
Moments later, the four scarred men indeed rushed into the alley. The scarred leader cursed, "Where did they go? I clearly saw them run in here just now." The four immediately turned around and searched everywhere, yet they still could not find Su Tianchen and Gu Shanshan.
Right then, Lin Tianchen, hidden at the entrance of the alley, voluntarily dispelled the Four-Image Concealment Array, and the two figures materialized. "What are you four looking for out here so late at night? Do you need my help?"
The four scarred men jumped in fright, their bodies trembling slightly as they stammered, "How did you guys just appear out of nowhere? Are you human or ghosts?"
Lin Tianchen replied, "That doesn't matter. What matters is, were the four of you looking for us? We noticed you tailing us the whole way. Speak—what is your objective? Who sent you? If you don't confess right now, guess whether I'll turn you into human beings or ghosts?" With that, he flashed a warm, genial smile.
Yet in the eyes of the four scarred men, this smile was the grin of a demon, plunging them into an icy abyss and making their entire bodies run cold.
Green-hair panicked and blurted out, "We'll talk, we'll tell you everything! Someone paid us to take you out here on Dongyue Mountain, make it look like an accidental fall off a cliff, and then bring this chick back."
"Who ordered you? Fast!"
The scarred leader cowered. "It was Sun Yang. He found Brother Fei, and then Brother Fei sent the four of us to handle it."
Su Shanshan said angrily, "So it was Sun Yang! I never imagined he was such a sinister villain. Let's head back and call the police at once."
"No need to call the police. That lets him off way too easily. I have plenty of ways to deal with him," Lin Tianchen said.
Su Shanshan asked, "What should we do with these four?"
Lin Tianchen answered, "Judging by their heavy burden of evil karma, they're all incorrigible scoundrels. Let's make them hopelessly muddle-headed for the rest of their lives."
"No, please, great master, spare us! We'll never dare do it again!" the four wailed loudly.
Lin Tianchen immediately flicked out four strands of spiritual energy that sank directly into the glabellae between the four men's eyebrows. Their eyes instantly lost their luster, turning completely vacant and foolish.
Su Shanshan said, "This Brother Fei is a ruthless underworld boss in Jizhou who commits every conceivable crime, yet for all these years, no one has been able to touch him. We definitely can't beat him. As soon as we get back, I'm calling my dad. Hopefully, he can give my dad some face and let us go."
Lin Tianchen replied, "No need. If he wants to avenge these four fools, he's welcome to come find me. Soldiers will be blocked with arms, and water will be dammed with earth. If he doesn't come, fine; but if he dares show up, I'll make sure he never leaves."
After dealing with the scarred men and their cohorts, Lin Tianchen and Su Shanshan turned around and began walking back.
"Ah!" With a startled cry, Su Shanshan lost her footing and fell backward. Lin Tianchen instantly caught her and pulled her into his embrace. "Shanshan, what's wrong?"
Su Shanshan winced. "I accidentally twisted my ankle."
Lin Tianchen scooped Su Shanshan up in his arms, strode over to a bench by the path, and gently set her down. "Sit still and don't move. Let me take a look."
With that, he slipped off the shoe from Su Shanshan's right foot, revealing a delicate, fair little foot. The mere touch of his hand made Su Shanshan wince with a stab of pain from her ankle.
Lin Tianchen gripped Su Shanshan's foot with his right hand while gently cradling her ankle with his left. Su Shanshan's pretty face flushed bright red, as her feet had never been touched by a man before.
Lin Tianchen said, "Shanshan, don't tense up. It'll be fine as soon as I count to three."
"One, two—" Right as he spoke, his right hand gave a sudden, sharp jerk. With a crisp "crack" and a soft gasp from Su Shanshan, the pain in her foot vanished. She stood up, tested her right foot, and found it completely healed.
Su Shanshan gently leaned against Lin Tianchen's chest and said softly, "Tianchen, thank you. Having you by my side is wonderful. What should I do if I grow to rely on you forever?"
Lin Tianchen replied, "Woman, then I sentence you to stay by my side for the rest of your life." As he spoke, he reached out and wrapped his arm around her slender waist. She offered no resistance; ever since Lin Tianchen saved her, coupled with their days spent in each other's company, a seed had taken root and sprouted in her heart without her even knowing.
As for Lin Tianchen, since she had set her heart on him, he resolved to grant her eternal youth and make her his lifelong companion. He needed to grow stronger as fast as possible and find suitable spiritual herbs so his woman could also embark on the path of cultivation.
Su Shanshan rested her head against Lin Tianchen's chest, and after lingering together affectionately for quite a while, the two finally turned back toward the temple.
~~~~~
When the two returned to the main entrance of the temple, they found that all the students had already gone inside. Stepping across the threshold, they entered the sanctuary, where various ancient imperial sacrificial vessels met their eyes.
Suddenly, Lin Tianchen found himself transported to a strange environment. Towering all around him were multiple statues of immortals from the primeval celestial era, while a majestic voice echoed in his mind: "After a hundred thousand years, someone has finally been able to reach this place. Your arrival proves that you are a person destined for this fate. I am Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li Jing. During the ancient immortal era, the Ghost Race and the Demon Race jointly invaded the Human Realm and the Immortal Realm, triggering a cataclysmic war. In the end, humanity and the immortals paid a horrific price to banish the demons beyond the heavens and seal the Ghost Race away in the netherworld. My natal divine artifact, the Exquisite Pagoda, is what suppresses the netherworld. Over the past ten thousand years, I have sensed the seals of the netherworld loosening, and thus the seals will need to be reinforced in the near future."
Lin Tianchen asked, "Can't they be completely annihilated instead of just sealed?"
"How terribly difficult it is to completely annihilate them! The Lord of the Netherworld possesses boundless magical power, and it took the combined might of almost all the great immortal masters to seal him away; he cannot be completely obliterated. The consciousness clone I left behind here is on the verge of dissipation. Before it fades away, I will impart the Sealing Technique to you, hoping you can save all living beings in this world," Li Jing said.
Lin Tianchen replied, "Why me? I am merely a cultivator in the Tianquan Realm; surely I am powerless to help."
"Young friend, do not belittle yourself. You possess the Taiyi Physique. 'Taiyi' represents variables—you are that sliver of a chance of survival. You need only act in accordance with your heart. For those who practice immortality, one must follow the heavenly Dao and keep one's thoughts clear and unobstructed."
"My clone is about to dissipate. Compose your mind at once, and I shall transmit the Sealing Technique to you."
Lin Tianchen felt a profound and arcane influx of information flood his mind: *The Sealing Technique, capable of sealing all things...*
"I shall help you one last time." As Li Jing's voice echoed in Lin Tianchen's mind, he instantly felt his cultivation surge rapidly upward, breaking through to the Tianquan Consummation Realm, growing preternaturally stable with a rock-solid foundation.