Duan Rong successively picked up the corpses of Kong Bin and Zhang Zheng and placed them into the pit!
Then he walked to the edge of the courtyard wall not far away and picked up a shovel that was leaning there!
At the base of the wall, there were also two brooms and a wooden basin full of water stains!
Duan Rong gripped the shovel, first piled the loose earth from the two small mounds beside the grave pit on top, then shoveled layers of soil from nearby, slowly forming a slightly raised grave mound!
Duan Rong patted the soil down firmly, threw away the shovel, and picked up so dead branches nearby to slightly cover the gently mounded grave!
After finishing all this, Duan Rong raised his head. The mountain wind was blowing through the temple, making the dead branches and leaves on the ground rustle!
At this mont, Duan Rong suddenly noticed a tabby wildcat, half a ter long, crouching on the top of the courtyard wall, staring at him with an eerie gaze!
Duan Rong’s heart skipped a beat; he didn’t know when the wildcat had perched there!
When the wildcat saw Duan Rong looking up at it, it lazily rose, leaped into the air, and its form vanished into the nearby forest!
"This old temple must have been abandoned for too long! Not only is there bird droppings everywhere, but it seems even wildcats often visit!"
Duan Rong couldn’t help but sigh and went to the front of the temple gate, pulled out the door bolt, and pushed open the now-cracked wooden door!
Duan Rong walked out of the temple gate, turned back, and gently closed the wooden door...
He looked up again at the words "Kudu Temple" above the temple gate, and suddenly felt that the initial doubts he had were now answered.
Duan Rong walked slowly across the platform in front of the temple gate, bypassed the large white stone he passed on his way here, and retraced his steps along the mountain path!
However, Duan Rong had always felt that the Kudu Temple, just with its courtyard walls constructed of three layers of bricks, was thick and solid!
Clearly, the person who built it had great aspirations!
But how could such a temple have beco so deserted?
In fact, this matter must be traced back six years ago to a serious case in Xianggu County related to the Filthy Blood Sect!
The Filthy Blood Sect had always been a rebellious force lurking in Qingzhou!
The leader of the Filthy Blood Sect is nad Fu Yi!
This person was born into the Taiyi Sect and even beca one of the core disciples of the Taiyi Sect!
A core disciple is essentially the power nucleus of the next generation of the Taiyi Sect!
In layman’s terms, his status is akin to a crown prince!
Of course, he was not the only core disciple.
Though the Taiyi Sect has a Sect Leader, the real power lies with the Elder Hall!
The Grand Elders in the Elder Hall have the authority to decide the sect’s affairs of the Taiyi Sect!
The Sect Leader convenes the Elder Hall etings!
The core disciples are the successors of the Grand Elders in the Elder Hall!
Despite such status, this person suddenly defected from the Taiyi Sect thirteen years ago!
And founded the Filthy Blood Sect!
The Filthy Blood Sect worships the Demon God—Wutong Shen as the main god and practices the Filthy Blood Technique!
The Filthy Blood Technique is a secret technique that involves collecting the essence blood of virgins at defloration for refining and cultivation!
It is rumored that the leader of the Filthy Blood Sect—Fu Yi, has collected the essence blood of nearly a thousand virgins and refined it into a Blood Infant that accompanies him!
This Blood Infant is connected to his mind and possesses many mystical and strange thods!
Fu Yi relied on this Blood Infant to escape multiple sieges by the Taiyi Sect!
And over the past decade, due to his painstaking efforts, the Filthy Blood Sect has flourished everywhere, growing ever stronger!
Fu Yi and the Filthy Blood Sect have been the thorn in the Taiyi Sect’s side for many years!
About six or seven years ago, a branch of the Filthy Blood Sect in Yuanyang Prefecture was destroyed by the Taiyi Sect!
Its Squad Leader, along with a group of followers, broke through the encirclent and fled to Xianggu County!
There, they discovered Kudu Temple on the outskirts of the county, which had thick and tall walls and was in a remote location!
The Squad Leader then led the followers to kill the monks at Kudu Temple, tonsured himself, burned a scar of ordination, donned a monk’s robe, and posed as monks!
Believe it or not, they actually evaded pursuit this way!
The followers of the Filthy Blood Sect lived in peace at Kudu Temple for a while, and when the coast was clear, they slowly resud their old practices!
They captured local maidens and brought them to the temple to ravish them at will!
In such a remote place, with the temple as cover, these perpetrators of the Filthy Blood Sect gathered here, committing cris repeatedly yet remaining at large!
As ti went by, these followers beca increasingly audacious!
One day, after getting drunk, they carelessly allowed several female slaves to escape naked!
That night, a cataclysmic case erupted!
The then County Magistrate of Xianggu County, Wang Zhentang, coordinated with major forces in the county overnight and launched a siege on Kudu Temple at dawn!
They exterminated the Filthy Blood Sect followers entrenched in the temple, rescued dozens of captured innocent maidens, and discovered dozens of skeletons, all confird by the Forensic Doctor to be female!
Because this case was so sensational and bloody, County Magistrate Wang Zhentang wrote a report on the sa day detailing the case to the Taiyi Sect!
He also simultaneously issued a strict order to block all news, forbidding the dissemination of information about this case within Xianggu County, with severe punishnt for violators!
Due to his effective handling of this case and the extermination of the remnants of the Filthy Blood Sect, Wang Zhentang received top-tier comndations in the political evaluation three years later, and was promoted to Prefect of Yuanyang Prefecture the following year!
It was after Wang Zhentang left that Shen Yanliu took over as County Magistrate of Xianggu County!
When the case broke out, the original self was only ten years old, and Wang Zhentang had sealed off the information, so Duan Rong was unaware of the reasons behind it!
After six or seven years, this once-thriving Kudu Temple seed to have been forgotten by the world and had beco a haven for wild cats and dogs!
Wu Hui, noticing this, selected Kudu Temple as a base to attack Duan Rong!
It’s worth ntioning that this Wu Hui was also one of the monks at Kudu Temple back then. He managed to escape the massacre of the monks by hiding in a dry well!
However, for so unknown reason, after surviving, he did not report to the authorities. Instead, he returned to lay life and since then, beca drastically changed, prone to killing!
Duan Rong arrived at the foot of Silver Mountain and saw the old horse and broken cart still tied to the birch tree. The old horse was lowering its head, munching on a patch of wild grass by the tree roots!
Duan Rong approached, untied the harness, took the bridle, smiled, patted the horse’s behind, and said, "Old buddy, go on, you’re free now!"
The old horse snorted, with a mouthful of grass it hadn’t swallowed yet, seed to be in a daze for a mont before understanding Duan Rong’s words, suddenly neighed, raised its hooves, and galloped away, disappearing into the forest...
Duan Rong watched the horse disappear into the distance before turning back to look at the broken cart!
Duan Rong’s Inner Breath circulated, the muscles on his right arm bulged, suddenly grabbing the cart handle, spinning half a circle, and swinging his arm!
The broken cart soared into the air, smashing onto a boulder on the mountain, shattering with a loud crash!
Duan Rong watched the splintered wood scatter across the forest, clapped his hands, and turned around, leisurely heading from the foot of the mountain toward the main road!
From here to the city of Xianggu County, it was only a six or seven li walk, and he intended to walk back!
Moreover, it was the ti of spring with blooming flowers, the fields were lush green, the young wheat had sprouted, presenting an endless sea of green! It was a view that was refreshing and uplifting!
"Endless bitter cultivation! Today’s just right for an outing!"
Duan Rong smiled, clasped his hands behind his head, and walked leisurely along the main road!
Though called a main road, it was rely a dirt road!
Occasionally, villagers passing by would see Duan Rong, clad in short attire with a knife at his waist, and keep their distance!
Duan Rong entered the city at dusk, and by the ti he reached the vicinity of West Main Street, it was almost dark!
The al tis at the eateries had passed, so Duan Rong found a small tavern in an alley near West Main Street!
He ordered two hearty dishes and began to eat and drink slowly!
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