Temple Keeper

Feng Nian did not hesitate. Just as she was about to step through the door of the Mountain God Temple, a white-haired old man suddenly appeared beside the door. He was dressed in gray clothes and held a walking stick in his hand. He was the Keeper.

"Excuse me, did you come to the Mountain God Temple to make a wish?" He was all smiles.

"Will a wish be fulfilled?" Feng Nian looked at the Keeper and raised her question. Under the sunlight, the shadow of the Keeper was drawn out.

"If you're sincere, it will work," he replied with a smile, like an accomplished monk.

"Then it seems that you're not sincere. Otherwise, why didn't the Mountain Goddess make you immortal? Why would you need to borrow someone else's shadow to pretend that you're still alive?"

She had already seen through that the Keeper had died a long time ago and had become the binding spirit of the Mountain God Temple. The so-called binding spirit was because its obsession was too deep, or because it was bound by something, it could not leave a special area after death. Just like how the Keeper could not leave the range of the Mountain God Temple.

In order not to let ordinary people see his abnormality, the Keeper even used the shadows snatched by the shadow-eaters to weave into complete shadows to step on. However, these shadows could not last for long. When the time was up, they would turn into fragments. Every once in a while, he would have to weave new shadows again.

He did not expect a young girl to see through his identity as a Binding Spirit. He flew into a rage out of humiliation. He raised his walking stick and saw a gust of wind heading straight for Feng Nian's face. The wind was mixed with sharp icicles.

Feng Nian raised her left hand, and the bracelet immediately transformed into a protective barrier in front of her. The wind and ice cones hit the protective barrier at the same time. The Keeper increased his strength. He could not let this person who knew his secret leave the Mountain God Temple.

However, he did not get what he wanted because all the wind and ice cones were absorbed by the bracelet.

He raised his walking stick and jumped into the air, heading towards the top of Feng Nian's head.

Wei Cong looked at all of this from afar. His palms were covered in sweat. He could not do anything and could only worry. He knew that once he moved forward, he would only become Feng Nian's burden. At this moment, all he could do was shout, "Be careful."

With a clang, a pitch-black walking stick and a purple dagger were in a deadlock in midair.

The keeper had a ferocious expression on his face. He gritted his teeth. He could not lose. If he lost, he would not be worthy of being the Keeper of the Mountain God Temple and would have to leave it forever.

The two forces kept fighting back and forth, sweeping up the dead leaves and gravel around them. The Keeper suddenly realized that a crack had appeared on his walking stick. Before he could think, the crack grew larger and larger. With a crack, the walking stick broke into pieces in midair, and the fine pieces fluttered in the wind.

He opened his eyes wide. No, this was impossible. His strength was bestowed by the Mountain Goddess. How could he lose to this little girl? Who was this girl? How could she have such great ability at such a young age?

Seeing that the Keeper was no match for Feng Nian, Wei Cong forgot about Feng Nian's advice and ran to her side. He smiled and said, "You're too amazing. Hurry up, let's go in and bring Yulin away."

"Wait." Feng Nian stopped Wei Cong with a solemn expression.

A gust of wind that was even stronger than before appeared and sucked the Keeper directly into the Mountain God Temple. The two ancient doors of the Mountain God Temple then closed tightly with a bang.

If she had not stopped Wei Cong in time, he would have been dragged into the Mountain God Temple.

The surroundings fell silent again, causing a series of hissing sounds to clearly enter their ears.

The hissing sounds around the Mountain God Temple caused Wei Cong to have goosebumps all over his body. He slowly turned around and looked into the grass. With just one glance, he confirmed that his bad premonition had come true. Behind him and Feng Nian, numerous black snakes suddenly appeared. Those hissing sounds were the sounds of the black snakes flicking their tongues.

"What are you waiting for? Run." Feng Nian did not expect Wei Cong to be still after seeing so many snakes. She immediately reached out and patted his shoulder, signaling him to run forward. There were so many snakes, she could not handle them at all. Moreover, she did not know if they were poisonous.

As the two of them ran, they realized that not only were there black snakes in the grass, but there were also black snakes slowly hanging down from the surrounding trees. Black snakes also surged out from the bushes. These black snakes were completely black and kept swimming in the direction of the two of them, flicking their tongues.

After running for a short distance, they realized that there were countless black snakes coiling on both sides of the path. They raised their heads in unison, as if welcoming them.

"This…" Wei Cong stood on the spot and did not dare to move. Now that the black snakes surrounded them from the front and back, they had nowhere to go.

Feng Nian glanced at Wei Cong. He was okay. Although he was afraid, he was not panicking. It was fine as long as he could run. "In a while, I will throw the talisman out. Once I do, you will run forward. Don't worry, with me around, these black snakes won't be able to hurt you."

Wei Cong was about to agree when he suddenly stopped in his tracks. He saw a snake larger than the rest of the snakes slithering over from the left tree trunk.

Feng Nian quickly grabbed the snake's weak spot and exerted force with her thumb. The snake's spine snapped. She impatiently threw the black snake into the group of snakes, and they scattered.

"Let's go." She pushed Wei Cong's back, urging him to leave quickly. As she retreated, she threw a Flame Talisman into the bushes, stopping the black snakes and giving them enough time to leave. However, her heart ached. The cost of making this Flame Talisman wasn't low. If she threw it out like this, it was like throwing out money. No, she had to put it on Wei Cong's tab later.

They finally arrived at the foot of the mountain.

"Alright, once we reach the foot of the mountain, we will be out of the range of the Mountain God Temple. Those snakes won't chase us anymore." Feng Nian gestured for Wei Cong to rest for a while. She took a few steps forward. As she expected, the black snakes couldn't leave the mountain. They could only stick out their tongues and stare at the two of them.

Wei Cong sat on the ground. He really did not have the strength to care about the dust on his body. "Where's Yulin? What about him?" He still remembered the scene of Cai Yulin kneeling sincerely on the dilapidated futon.

After confirming that the black snakes could not leave the border of the mountain, Feng Nian sat down beside Wei Cong. "I've already warned him, but he didn't listen. Moreover, his five senses should be sealed now. He can't hear anything at all." She was a little angry. He had clearly seen the Shadow-Eating Worms beside the Mountain God Temple, but he was actually not afraid of death and came to the Mountain God Temple. If something happened, who could he blame? Cai Yulin could only blame himself.

Humans generally have seven senses, which are seven spiritual and sensory phenomena, namely sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, will, and last.

Cai Yulin had made a wish to the Mountain God Temple, so he had to pay the price. When Feng Nian and the temple guardian were fighting outside the door just now, Cai Yulin did not react at all. It was obvious that his five senses had been sealed. Soon, the remaining two senses would be sealed together. At that time, even the gods would not be able to save him.

"Tell me, as long as you're willing to help save people, I can pay any amount." Wei Cong could not just watch as his good friend got into trouble. He knew that Feng Nian was a money-grubber.