The end of the limestone cave was littered with several pieces of bluestone. Upon closer inspection, it became clear that the cave had been horizontally cut off by a stone wall, which someone had broken through to connect the two spaces.
The four of them passed through the opened stone wall and stepped onto a wide stone path.
"Where is this?" Jing Xingzhi scanned their surroundings.
If it was just speculation before, Mo Tiange was now certain—this was undoubtedly a sacrificial temple.
Massive stone blocks were neatly stacked to form the walls. The surfaces were smooth, ancient and profound, carrying a vast, primordial aura that had existed since time immemorial.
As they stood on the stone path, a vast, overwhelming aura of killing intent washed over them. Each person felt their blood surge, boiling and unceasing, as if someone were beating a war drum in their hearts, making their blood run hot.
Jing Xingzhi's flying sword was especially restless, even emitting a clear, sharp hum.
Mo Tiange felt something moving within her Spirit Beast Bag—it seemed to be Feifei. She sent a mental message: "Feifei?"
"Let me out!" Feifei's urgent voice rang in her mind. "Quick, let me out!"
Mo Tiange hesitated for a moment, then opened the Spirit Beast Bag. After all, Jing Xingzhi and Nie Wushang had already seen Feifei before.
The moment the bag opened, Feifei immediately leaped out, lifted its head, and began sniffing the air.
"Feifei?" Mo Tiange was puzzled. What was it doing?
"The Breath of the White Tiger! This is the Breath of the White Tiger!" Feifei's face lit up with joy.
The Breath of the White Tiger... So this really was the White Tiger Sacrificial Temple? Mo Tiange glanced at Nie Wushang and decided to speak frankly. "Fellow Daoist Nie, is this place dedicated to the White Tiger, one of the Four Divine Beasts?"
A look of surprise appeared on Nie Wushang's face. "How did you know?"
"So it is?"
Nie Wushang nodded. "Correct. This place indeed houses a statue of the White Tiger."
Mo Tiange and Qin Xi exchanged a glance, their eyes revealing pleasant surprise. They hadn't expected the White Tiger Sacrificial Temple to simply fall into their laps like this.
Nie Wushang looked at them, confused. "What's the matter?"
"I probably know a little about this," Jing Xingzhi said, suppressing his flying sword and looking at Qin Xi with a questioning gaze. "Is it related to the Vermilion Bird Temple in the Guixu Sea?"
"Correct."
They had mentioned some of this to Jing Xingzhi before, but hadn't gone into detail. "We suspect this is the White Tiger Sacrificial Temple, similar to the Vermilion Bird Temple, dedicated to one of the Five Divine Beasts."
Jing Xingzhi looked at Nie Wushang, then back at them. "How much do you know about this?"
"Let me explain," Mo Tiange took over. "This matter goes back to when I was in Foundation Establishment..."
It took Mo Tiange the better part of an hour to roughly explain the whole story, including the divine beast remains and the Yuan Demon Stone Stele. Jing Xingzhi had participated in the entire experience at the Vermilion Bird Temple, so he would understand once he saw it. Besides, this wasn't some secret matter or an opportunity that couldn't be shared. Both Jing Xingzhi and Nie Wushang were trustworthy people to them.
"So that's the background..." Jing Xingzhi thought for a moment, then suddenly broke into a delighted smile. "Last time it was the Vermilion Bird Temple. Since Qin Shoujing cultivates fire-attribute techniques, he got the opportunity. This time it's the White Tiger—looks like it's my turn for some good fortune."
"Hmph!" Feifei snorted coldly. "Do you think I'm dead?"
Of course, only Mo Tiange heard this.
Mo Tiange smiled faintly and said, "I say, Fellow Daoist Jing, we're not even sure if this is the White Tiger Sacrificial Temple yet. Aren't you celebrating a bit too early?"
"Let me be happy first. It's not like it costs me anything," Jing Xingzhi said with a grin, stroking his flying sword. He refused to believe he was that unlucky. The Vermilion Bird Temple was one thing—he couldn't compete with Qin Shoujing for that. But now it was the White Tiger. Among the four of them present, only he had an affinity with the metal element of the Five Phases. Surely no one would compete with him this time?
Feifei gave him another look of utter disdain.
Its action was too obvious, and Jing Xingzhi noticed. Pointing at it, he said, "Mo Qingwei, why did you let your spirit beast out? This little guy might be clever, but it's not very capable."
"Squeak!" Feifei glared at him angrily, its fur standing on end.
Mo Tiange patted Feifei's head soothingly and said, "We should hurry. There's a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator here. Delaying could lead to trouble."
"That's true," Nie Wushang was reminded by this. "I remember my master set up some kind of trap here. If anyone enters, he'll know."
Jing Xingzhi's expression changed slightly. "So he already knows?"
"If nothing unexpected happened," Nie Wushang glanced at him. "But you don't need to be afraid. Langtu Mountain isn't that close. Even if my master isn't in seclusion, it will take him a day or two to get here. If we're quick, we'll be gone by then."
"Your master is at Langtu Mountain?" Mo Tiange was surprised.
"Yes," Nie Wushang looked at her strangely, not understanding her surprise. "What's wrong?"
Mo Tiange and Qin Xi exchanged another glance, both feeling fortunate.
"When we came to the Far West, our goal was the three great dangerous places. We went to Luoshen Abyss first, then Wind Sand City. It's a good thing we didn't go to Langtu Mountain first, otherwise..." If they had encountered Venerable Songfeng, old and new grudges would have been settled together. Mo Tiange wasn't so arrogant as to think that just because she had formed her Nascent Soul, she could challenge the number one cultivator in the Tianji Region.
"Alright," Jing Xingzhi grew impatient. "Since time is tight, shouldn't we hurry up, grab what we can, and leave?" With that, he took the lead.
After two steps, he stopped and turned to Nie Wushang. "There's nothing strange here, right?"
Nie Wushang glanced at him, stepped past him, and mocked as she walked, "Turns out there are quite a few things you're afraid of!"
"You—!" Jing Xingzhi fumed, wanting to say something to save face, but after a moment's thought, he closed his mouth.
Mo Tiange and Qin Xi couldn't help but smile and followed.
Both Jing Xingzhi and Nie Wushang carried heavy pasts. One was once a heaven's favored son who fell from grace, enduring over a hundred years of exclusion before being forced to betray his sect. The other grew up alone and miserable, suffering abuse, unable to even be a real person. The fact that they could now joke so freely and without restraint suggested they had likely overcome their psychological shadows.
The four humans and one beast moved forward. The aura of killing intent surrounding them grew thicker and more intense. Eventually, Jing Xingzhi had to press down on his flying sword to control the murderous energy.
Qin Xi fared slightly better, but his Three Yang True Fire was also affected.
Mo Tiange found it strange. "Why is the Breath of the White Tiger so strong? Neither the Azure Dragon nor the Vermilion Bird were like this!"
Qin Xi thought for a moment and said, "It might be related to their inherent attributes. The Azure Dragon belongs to wood—gentle and accommodating. The Vermilion Bird belongs to fire—passionate and soaring. The White Tiger is known as the God of Slaughter—stern, violent, and ruthless."
"It could also be that the Breath of the White Tiger here is simply more concentrated," Jing Xingzhi interjected.
"Hmm," Qin Xi nodded in agreement.
As they spoke, a massive stone gate appeared before them.
The four approached, and the murals carved on the stone gates gradually became clear. On the left gate were rows of people wearing animal skins, ancient war chariots, and strong warhorses—depicting a scene of battle. The right gate, however, showed destroyed chariots, fallen horses, and corpses strewn everywhere—seemingly the aftermath of war.
Mo Tiange shook her head, dispelling the strange feeling, and followed the others into the great hall.
The spacious hall had towering stone pillars painted with patterns of interwoven gold and white, extending all the way to a colossal stone statue.
Standing before the statue, a fierce, violent aura assaulted their senses. It had powerful limbs, wings sprouting from its sides, and a massive head held high, its mouth open as if about to roar.
Jing Xingzhi shook his head in disappointment. "Why aren't there any sentient magic treasures here?"
Mo Tiange collected her thoughts and said, "The Vermilion Bird Temple had the Vermilion Bird Bow because of the Cold Ice Palace. It wasn't originally there."
"Then where does the Breath of the White Tiger here come from?"
Mo Tiange smiled slightly but didn't answer.
The Vermilion Bird Temple didn't have Vermilion Bird bones because the Cold Ice Palace had refined them into the Vermilion Bird Bow. Since the Breath of the White Tiger was so strong in this White Tiger Sacrificial Temple, the White Tiger bones should still be here.
"Your goal isn't this place, is it?" Mo Tiange looked at Nie Wushang.
Nie Wushang said, "How about you wait here? I'll be right back."
Cultivation techniques were a cultivator's secret. Mo Tiange didn't press further. "Go ahead."
After Nie Wushang left, the remaining three humans and one beast looked at each other. Finally, Jing Xingzhi asked, "Where to next?"
Mo Tiange spread her hands. "How should I know?"
Jing Xingzhi's eyes widened. "How could you not know?"
The two glared at each other for a moment before Mo Tiange laughed. "If nothing unexpected happens, the White Tiger bones are somewhere within the temple. Let's search."
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Jing Xingzhi tucked away his restless flying sword and was about to leave.
"Wait," Mo Tiange called him back, pointing at Feifei. "With Feifei here, why are you in such a hurry?"
Feifei curled its lip, giving Jing Xingzhi a very disdainful look, then leaped down from Mo Tiange's shoulder and darted away.
"Let's go!" Mo Tiange called out and followed.
Following Feifei as it sped along, the Breath of the White Tiger grew increasingly intense. Finally, they rushed through another stone gate.
What met their eyes was a gigantic White Tiger, over a hundred feet long. It lay quietly on the ground as if resting, yet it was completely devoid of life.
Seeing this, Mo Tiange was stunned. What was going on? After hundreds of thousands, even millions of years, there should only be a skeleton left, just like the Azure Dragon. Why were they seeing a complete White Tiger?
"Feifei?" she called.
Feifei was also dumbfounded, standing at her feet, hesitating to approach.
Hearing her call, it scratched its head and said, "Don't ask me. I don't know what's going on either."
Jing Xingzhi was puzzled. "Alive? Or dead?"
Without a word, Qin Xi waved his hand, and a streak of light split from his Three Yang True Fire, shooting toward the White Tiger.
"Hey, Qin Shoujing!" Jing Xingzhi shouted.
Qin Xi ignored him. The streak of light touched the White Tiger's body and suddenly erupted with brilliant radiance, a wave of scorching heat rushing toward them.
"What's happening?" Mo Tiange exclaimed in surprise.
Qin Xi exerted force and barely managed to pull the streak of light back.
"The Breath of the White Tiger..." His expression changed several times before he finally said, "It seems we can't take this thing with us."
"Why?" Jing Xingzhi looked at him strangely. "No matter how big the White Tiger is, we have Qiankun Rings. How could we not take it?"
Qin Xi didn't explain, only saying, "You try."
Jing Xingzhi thought for a moment, then pointed with his right hand. A sword light also shot toward the White Tiger.
The next moment, his expression changed drastically. Gritting his teeth, he struggled to pull the sword light back.
Just as Mo Tiange was about to ask, the ground suddenly shook.
"What's happening?"