Chapter 95: Where's the Divine Nature of the Temple Deity? He's a Thief! [Seeking Monthly Votes]

Chapter 95: Where's the Divine Nature of the Temple Deity? He's a Thief! [Seeking Monthly Votes]



"Two Temple Deities?"

"How can there be two Temple Deity auras?"

In front of the City Governor's Mansion, the four confronting figures were all momentarily stunned.

None of them spoke, but their eyes flashed beneath their masks.

In the distance, a Temple Deity aura rose, mixed with surging and terrifying vital energy. In contrast, the Temple Deity aura within the mansion was purer, with interwoven divine energy waves carrying a powerful rank suppression.

To be precise, both Temple Deity auras possessed strong rank suppression.

However, the Temple Deity aura that erupted in the distance seemed to blend with the bloodlust of an extremely aggressive Vital Energy Warrior.

It was like an invincible ferocious dragon stretching its body, with its sinews and bones resonating as it roared at the heavens.

"What's going on?"

The Neonate Dharma Lord narrowed his eyes. "Didn't Cao Guang say... that they would only sacrifice to one Temple Deity? How did another Temple Deity aura appear?"

"Sacrificing to two temples in one city? Are they treating the Temple Deity like a plaything?"

If there were two Temple Deities in Thunder City...

It would be too dangerous!

This didn't align with their planned strategy!

The situation had changed.

He had already started to hesitate about whether to flee.

With two Temple Deities... he might get beaten to death, right? Especially in Cao Guang's plan, the Thousand Buddha Feast even intended to promote Thunder City's Ten Cities Strange Temple to the Nine Stars rank.

That would be a Nine Stars rank Temple Deity...

If not in their prime state, they might not be able to defeat it.

Moreover, there was another Temple Deity that appeared out of nowhere, completely outside of their plan...

Li Qingshan's front foot had already started to exert force, preparing to make a run for it.

The experts of the Corpse Deity Sect wearing the big nose and big eye masks also planned to retreat.

The Neonate Dharma Lord had even turned around, holding the large red robe by its hem, and with small, quick steps, he was about to escape.

...

...

Inside the City Governor's Mansion.

The air was thick with a pungent bloody smell. In an enormous secret room, Cao Guang knelt and sat in the center, wearing a white robe with his hair loose. On the ground, a wooden plate was engraved with intricate patterns, and flowing within it was a vermilion liquid. Surrounding him were numerous spirit infancy wood sculptures in various poses.

These wood sculptures were all crafted by the woodcarving masters of Thunder City.

Cao Guang had paid a hefty price to have these masters take on this task.

But where could he easily get Cao Guang's money?

Cao Guang's palms suddenly clapped together, and he recited obscure words from the Three-Eyed Wrathful True Monarch Divine Foundation Technique.

It was more like a sacrificial chant.

His expression was both devout and respectful, as if he had offered his soul and presented his faith, all for the sake of gaining power and achieving transformation.

At the same time.

Throughout Thunder City, all the woodcarving masters who had carved wood for the Thousand Buddha Feast felt their minds go 'buzz,' and they lost all will, as if they had seen a deity, their faith stripped away.

They moved like mindless zombies, unconsciously walking out of their houses and kneeling on the rain-washed green stone ground, their arms spread wide, filled with devotion.

Divine energy, like slender snakes, emerged from these woodcarving masters and wriggled crookedly, like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea, rapidly drifting towards the direction of the City Governor's Mansion.

Inside the City Governor's Mansion.

Cao Qingyuan's hair stood on end, and he took several steps back, standing outside the room, afraid to step inside.

But in his heart, there was also a sense of fervor. The power of the Temple Deity...

This was an opportunity for his Divine Foundation cultivation to break through to the middle realm.

If he relied on his own cultivation, he didn't know how long it would take, and even in this lifetime, the hope was slim.

Borrowing the power of the Temple Deity was the simplest and most direct method.

Just like his father, who had already given up on the possibility of breaking through to a higher realm with his own talent and planned to rely on the Temple Deity's power.

The appearance of the Strange Shrine in the mortal world was like a dawn for many cultivators who had reached a dead end.

It allowed them to touch heights they had never reached before.

As for the price to be paid...

The sacrifices required...

What did it matter to these cultivators?

The ones who would die were just common folk, no better than pigs and dogs.

Cao Qingyuan stepped back to the doorway, also feeling a sense of devotion. He yearned for the power of the Temple Deity.

Sacrifice to the Deity!

Worship the Deity!

With the blood and divine energy of a thousand spirit infants, plus a thousand wood sculptures, although they were not divine energy wood sculptures, they could still extract divine energy from the woodcarving masters through the spirit infancy wood sculptures, as these sculptures were the painstaking works of the masters.

These... were all offerings!

Deity, it's time to awaken!

Rumble—

Above the sky, it was as if a thunderclap had sounded.

In the secret room of the City Governor's Mansion, the ground began to collapse and shatter, and countless dust particles rose, like crushed gravel swept by a whirlwind, flying endlessly.

Cao Guang opened his eyes, and a vertical line appeared between his eyebrows. His white robe was stained with more and more blood.

He kept retreating, and a satisfied look appeared on his face.

"The Thousand Infants Carving Sacrifice is complete!"

"The Temple Deity has accepted our offering!"

As his words fell.

The scene within the secret room began to change dramatically. Countless flying gravel started to pile up, forming a structure identical to the layout of the Tri-Eye Wrathful Lord Strange Shrine outside the city! There was even an altar, flickering red candle lights, and a Tri-Eye Wrathful Lord spirit infancy temple deity statue sitting atop it!

However, this temple deity statue trembled slightly, as if about to stand up.

But it seemed a little weak, unable to stand.

Its eyes flowed with unparalleled wrath, and the third eye between its eyebrows emitted a faint glow.

Everything around was changing.

Cao Qingyuan felt an invisible wave spread, and the secret room seemed like a two-sided puzzle, transforming as the sides flipped! Or, it was as if the Strange Shrine was slowly replacing... the City Governor's Mansion!

And Cao Guang knelt before the temple deity statue.

The vertical line between his eyebrows glowed, and the crimson color on his body became more and more intense.

"Temple Deity, descend upon the mortal realm."

"My body shall be the divine body!"

"Awaken—"

Cao Guang spread his arms, his expression devout, and his white robe turned completely blood-red, blindingly bright.

Cao Qingyuan was horrified. He saw that on the temple deity wood sculpture, a little by little, black qi spread out, and a terrifying divine rank pressure that almost completely froze the divine energy within his body spread and interwove around him.

Thump!

Sweat covered Cao Qingyuan's forehead. This was the first time he had learned that the method of worshipping and inviting a deity was like this.

Cao Guang, his father, was planning to use his own flesh to replace the temple deity wood sculpture, allowing the temple deity to descend into his body...

This... was too outrageous!

Was this Cao Guang's plan? Not only to break through the Divine Foundation Rear Realm but also to use this to break through to the Divine Form Realm?

The moment a temple deity takes over a physical body, will Cao Guang still be Cao Guang?

Once the flesh is invaded by the temple deity's power, will it eventually be corrupted and turn into an evil spirit like the Shrine Guardian Corpse?

It's too dangerous, like skinning a tiger and walking on a tightrope!

But Cao Qingyuan couldn't dissuade his father. The Thousand Buddha Feast and this sacrifice had been Cao Guang's sole hope for too long, and no amount of persuasion could make him turn back now.

Cao Qingyuan dared not even breathe as he watched the scene of the black energy from the temple deity statue pouring into Cao Guang's body.

Cao Guang's body trembled slightly.

No one knew how long it had been...

The black energy from the temple deity statue surged into Cao Guang's body, and countless black froglet patterns covered his flesh, wriggling and spreading to the vertical line on his forehead.

Then, the vertical line split...

It was as if an eye suddenly opened.

The third eye opened!

The eye was filled with a deep red, an endless crimson like a red-hot branding iron.

A look of pain appeared on Cao Guang's face.

"This is wrong... something's not right..."

"Ah... why... where's the divine nature? Where's the temple deity's divine nature?! Where's the power? Where's the power I need?!"

Cao Guang covered his face, and countless froglet patterns wriggled.

The divine nature was so weak that Cao Guang almost thought the temple deity that had descended upon him was just a fake with a tranquil cultivation nature! What good is this divine nature?

What good is it?

Cao Guang roared in anger, filled with wrath, unwillingness, despair, and confusion.

It shouldn't be like this!

Suddenly, Cao Guang's face became extremely angry and sensitive, like a child whose pride had been hurt, and his voice turned shrill and sharp.

"Shut up!"

"Ah—"

"You're not allowed to speak!"

Boom!

Cao Guang screamed, his hair flying wildly, the froglet patterns on his body writhing rapidly, and the redness in his third eye becoming more intense!

At the same time, a surge of temple deity divine nature rose from the direction of the Xu Family Courtyard, as if a second temple deity had descended.

Cao Guang's eyes became extremely wrathful and frenzied, and his will was completely suppressed.

It was as if he had become a cultivator whose will had been completely eroded by the wrathful divine nature.

"Thief... thief..."

"Ah, a thief who touches the head!"

Boom!

Transforming into a temple deity, Cao Guang roared, instantly turning into a blood-red streak of light and rushing out of the strange shrine that had invaded the City Governor's Mansion at an extremely terrifying speed!

Boom!

Cao Qingyuan, who was lying at the entrance, was suddenly affected, his divine nature almost bursting out of his body. His divine foundation nearly shattered under the pressure.

He fell to the ground, panting heavily, his Nine Stars Lower Grade 'Wrathful Maitreya' divine nature powerless before the temple deity's rank.

Was this... the power of a temple deity that was unmatched among its peers?

But Cao Qingyuan, in disarray, managed to get up shakily.

"It's bad... something seems to have happened..."

Cao Qingyuan wiped away the blood from his mouth and nose, his face changing repeatedly.

Then he ran towards the treasure house of the City Governor's Mansion.

...

...

Li Che felt the terrifying power surging within his body at this moment.

His condition was excellent!

Better than ever before!

It was as if his body had broken through human limits, shattering the shackles that bound his flesh and blood! After crushing the temple deity's divine nature, his body in the Ascend State seemed to become even more excited, and with each breath, the temple deity's divine nature power completely merged into his body.

It was as if a car needed oil, and the temple deity's divine nature was that oil...

He could even manipulate the temple deity's divine nature to launch attacks.

"In the Ascend State, the fusion of the body and divine nature is so perfect... even more harmonious than I imagined."

Li Che felt the transformation and was even more amazed at the integration of the body and divine nature in the non-Ascend State.

Because Vital Energy Martial Dao and divine nature cultivation were incompatible.

Vital Energy Martial Dao was mainly to enhance the strength of the body, preventing the erosion of the divine nature, but divine power and vital energy were independent forces.

But at this moment, in the Ascend State, the temple deity's divine nature and the body were almost perfectly integrated.

If he used martial techniques, he could also unleash divine nature bursts! It was as if every punch he threw was a divine nature martial technique, and it originated from the temple deity's divine nature!

Although it wasn't long-lasting, and as the temple deity's divine nature was consumed, he would no longer be able to maintain the Ascend State.

Apart from the suppression of the rank level, Li Che also felt the strength of his physical tempering.

His vital energy might have barely reached the Divine Meridian level, but his physical strength was far too powerful.

His inner qi also turned blood-red, extremely violent and powerful.

"I wonder how it compares to the true qi of a Vital Energy Master?"

Li Che shook his head, not wanting to think about these things anymore.

He raised his head, and a faint golden smoke filled his pupils, calmly gazing into the distance.

That was the direction of the City Governor's Mansion.

Just as the Three-Eyed Neonate Temple Deity had sensed him, he also sensed the presence of the temple deity.

The black and vigorous hair that hung down to his waist like a cloak, Li Che felt the surging Ascend State, the hazy red inner qi robe burning around him, and the thick muscles on his neck and spine twitched like a roaring dragon.

The timing was just right...

Old Master Xu was too fragile, easily shattered with a touch.

He needed a stronger opponent.

It was also a good opportunity to personally experience... just how powerful the temple deity's power was.

Boom!

A crimson light shot out from the distance at an incredible speed, shattering countless raindrops in its path, which exploded into a misty spray!

A dull thud sounded, and the long street's ground instantly caved in, forming a spider web of cracks that expanded outward, causing the accumulated water to gurgle and roll.

The crimson divine energy twisted and radiated like radioactive light, constantly venting.

Cao Guang's exposed skin was covered with wriggling frogspawn patterns, and the third eye that opened between his eyebrows was completely crimson red.

"Thief..."

A sharp voice emerged from Cao Guang's throat, like a child going through puberty, filled with wrath and shrillness!

Li Che wore a cute ox mask, his tall and sturdy body had an inverted triangle back like a devilish face, looking at someone who was not Cao Guang...

Li Che laughed, "Oh, it's you."

"Thief!"

Cao Guang screamed, his body suddenly pressing down, and within a ten-meter radius, everything fell into a state of terror. The raindrops seemed to be boiling in a hot pot, leaping like pearls.

"Come, let me touch you."

Li Che's fingers stretched out.

As he spoke, he reached out and wiped in front of him.

Instantly, the remaining seven Temple Deity energy chess pieces floated up, like seven small black holes suspended in front of him.

One had just been crushed, and the energy from refining the Temple Deity essence was used up by the Tri-Eye Wrathful Lord Divine Foundation Technique.

The remaining seven were all of Li Che's stock.

The Temple Deity's scream abruptly stopped.

It was as if someone had grabbed its throat.

...

...

The City Governor's Mansion had completely turned into ruins, and within the ruins...

A strange temple with a strong Temple Deity aura sprouted from the ground, as if breaking through from the earth, appearing within the city.

Spider web-like cracks spread out from the strange temple as the center, like the branches of a heavenly tree extending towards all directions of the city.

"Thunder City is doomed..."

"This Cao Guang... is truly ruthless, completely disregarding the lives of the people in Thunder City. Perhaps... in his eyes, the commoners are no different from pigs and dogs."

Li Qingshan, wearing a cat face mask, narrowed his eyes.

With the strange temple's migration into the city, the entire city would be invaded by the Temple Deity's energy. If it didn't leave for a long time, everyone would become Temple Deity's evil influence and turn into Shrine Guardian Corpses.

This was the main reason why the various aristocratic families in the city decided to move out after learning that City Governor Cao Guang was going to hold a Thousand Buddha Feast and wanted to take advantage of the situation.

Cao Guang had obtained the power of the Temple Deity and could even control these Shrine Guardian Corpses.

Initially, Cao Guang had planned to sacrifice not only a thousand spirit children but the entire Thunder City!

"A scumbag!"

Even Li Qingshan couldn't help but turn pale with anger and curse.

In reality, this was the overall situation of the remote cities on the outskirts of Great Jing. Cultivators would go to extreme lengths to obtain power from the strange temples.

Additionally, various sects secretly stirred up the situation.

In this world, the commoners had it too hard.

The two experts from the Corpse Deity Sect and the Spirit Infancy Sect's Dharma Lord all stared intently.

The Dharma Lord's face under the mask was filled with excitement, "It's done, it's done..."

"But, how can there be two Temple Deities fighting?"

"Near Thunder City... there's only one strange temple. Where did the two Temple Deities come from?"

The Dharma Lord was completely confused.

Not only him, but Li Qingshan and the experts from the Corpse Deity Sect were also puzzled.

Boom!

As Cao Guang, possessed by the Temple Deity, was blasted out from the ruined City Governor's Mansion, transforming into a blood python piercing through the sky and rushing towards the distance.

The eyes of the few people flashed, and they felt an urge to go and watch the show.

"Temple Deity conflict?"

"A rare opportunity in a thousand years... where did this intruding Temple Deity come from?"

Li Qingshan opened his mouth, feeling like a bystander.

But after thinking about it, he suppressed this emotion, his gaze swept over, and he weighed the Horned Heaven Smashing Hammer in his hand.

Then, his gaze fell on the two experts from the Corpse Deity Sect and the Dharma Lord.

Under the cat face mask, his eyes suddenly turned cold, and a terrifying killing intent surged out.

Let the Temple Deities fight among themselves...

Let them fight each other.

These trash... all must die!

Kill them and run!

As long as the two Temple Deities didn't target him together, it would be easy for him to escape.

Just do it!

Li Qingshan took a step forward, and the divine energy from the Horned Heaven Smashing Hammer surged out, causing countless winds to twist and stop.

His body swayed, and his toes tapped the water surface, creating splashes as he rushed towards the small Spirit Infant!

"Li Qingshan, you're crazy! The Temple Deities are out, and you're not leaving?"

"Aren't you afraid of being left in the city?!"

The Dharma Lord screamed and hurriedly counterattacked.

The two experts from the Corpse Deity Sect also took action, and the Six Desires Divine Nature raged, with one wave after another of Divine Foundation energy suspended behind their heads, the divine light bursting and flowing!

Li Qingshan shook his sleeves, and the horned hammer lightly fell, but suddenly exploded with an earth-shattering terror power!

"Hmph... I just want to kill you all!"

...

...

The rain kept falling.

It gathered on Cao Guang's chin, dripping like silk threads, like broken beads, continuously falling.

Cao Guang felt his consciousness returning to his body.

He felt a bit numb and angry!

The divine energy... the Temple Deity's divine energy was so thin and pitiful!

It was as if it had been drained long ago.

Such a Temple Deity had actually taken him several years to carefully prepare, intending to sacrifice the entire city...

Was it worthy?

"What a scam of a deity!"

Cao Guang clenched his teeth, his heart turned cold. Now, he only hoped that the thin Temple Deity's divine energy could help him break through to the latter stage of the Divine Foundation. That was all he wanted.

Hmm?

Suddenly, Cao Guang regained control of his physical body.

He saw the scene before him clearly.

A mask, a cute ox.

Then, there was the terrifying vital energy and divine rank pressure!

"Ox Demon?!"

Cao Guang's eyes narrowed.

A sense of disbelief surged in his heart...

What the hell?

How could it be you, the ox, again?

However, what truly made him feel horrified, fearful, and trembling was...

The seven pitch-black chess pieces floating in front of the Ox Demon, emitting an extremely dense Temple Deity energy aura.

So, the Temple Deity's divine energy he craved so much...

Was right before his eyes, within reach, easily obtainable...

Wait!

Cao Guang suddenly understood why his consciousness could control his body again.

You want to show off? I'll teach you a lesson!

"Damn, what a scam of a deity!"

Cao Guang only had time to scream.

Then, he was kicked, exploding into a cloud of blood mist and flying out.

PS: It's a new month, please vote! Can we break into the top 500? Old Li begs for your support!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end