Chapter 1227: Unrest Within the Temple

After a moment, Han Li and his group arrived before a massive palace perched halfway up a mountain. The plaque on the palace bore the words "Nine Elements Pavilion" in large characters.

"Please, fellow Daoists." The guide invited the group from Manifest Spirit Sect into the main hall.

From the outside, the Nine Elements Pavilion did not appear large, but its interior was exceptionally spacious, spanning a full thousand zhang. It was evident that materials and techniques imbued with spatial law principles had been employed in its construction.

Several sects had already arrived inside. When they saw the Manifest Spirit Sect group enter, some acquaintances came over to greet them.

Because of his impressive performance in the earlier competition, some people also took the initiative to strike up a conversation with Han Li. Fortunately, Han Li was already well-versed in the identities and relationships of these people with "himself," so he handled the interactions with ease.

Half an hour later, all twelve sects that had emerged victorious had arrived, while the other sects did not appear.

After another moment, the sound of bells and chimes rang out in the main hall.

Everyone in the hall immediately stood in solemn respect. They saw Fengtian Celestial Envoy, Pure Grace True Man, Lu Chuanfeng, Huo Yuan, Heavenly Star Venerable, and others emerge from the rear hall.

Behind Pure Grace True Man followed several elders of the Nine Elements Temple, but Chi Meng was not among them, which secretly relieved Han Li.

"Greetings, Fengtian Celestial Envoy! Greetings, Pure Grace Temple Master!" Everyone in the hall bowed in unison.

"No need for formalities. I won't waste words. Today, I have summoned you to confer the Bodhi Tokens. Those who won in the previous competition, step forward." Pure Grace True Man said with a smile.

Han Li and the other eleven stepped out from their respective sects and stood before Pure Grace True Man and Fengtian Celestial Envoy, forming a line.

Pure Grace True Man stepped aside, while Fengtian Celestial Envoy took a step forward, clasped his hands in a salute to the void, and declared in a loud voice: "I humbly request the Bodhi Tokens!"

As soon as he spoke, dazzling golden light burst forth from the void, and a square golden treasure box materialized.

Fengtian Celestial Envoy bowed to the treasure box, then made a hand seal and pointed. The box opened automatically, revealing twelve ancient golden tokens inside, emitting a peculiar aura as if containing some kind of special energy.

When everyone in the hall saw the twelve tokens, excitement appeared on their faces.

Han Li's gaze swept over the twelve tokens. Although he also put on a look of excitement, he was inwardly indifferent to these tokens that were coveted by all high-level cultivators in the Great Golden Source Immortal Domain.

His purpose in coming here was more for Gold Devouring Beetle. Now that he was only one step away from completing the Reincarnation Palace's mission, once this matter was concluded and he obtained clues about Gold Devouring Beetle, he would have to start considering how to carry out a rescue operation.

Given his current cultivation and strength, the Nine Elements Temple was no different from a dragon's pool or tiger's den. Forcing his way in was certainly not an option. The most ideal scenario was to take advantage of the chaos during the Reincarnation Palace's operation to fish in troubled waters.

But even now, he still hadn't figured out the purpose of the Reincarnation Palace's operation this time, nor did he know if there would be an opportunity he could exploit.

However, since he was already here, he would just take things one step at a time.

While Han Li's thoughts were racing, Fengtian Celestial Envoy made a hand seal and guided the twelve tokens, which flew out of the treasure box and landed in the hands of Han Li and the others.

Han Li took the token with one hand and felt a slight stir in his heart.

The token was extremely heavy in his hand, as if made from some rare heavenly material or earthly treasure. It was cold to the touch, and up close, he could sense a peculiar energy contained within.

"The Bodhi Tokens were personally refined by the Grandmaster. With these tokens, you can participate in the upcoming Bodhi Feast. Please keep them safe." Fengtian Celestial Envoy said slowly.

Han Li was about to probe the token's interior, but upon hearing that it was personally refined by the Time Dao Ancestor, he quickly stopped and even felt an urge to throw it away.

"This Bodhi Feast will still be held in the Jade Pool Sacred Land. With this token, you may bring three people inside. As for what gains you will have at the Bodhi Feast, that depends on your own fortunes." Fengtian Celestial Envoy continued, then drifted back to the side.

"Roar..."

Just then, an abrupt beast roar came from a great distance outside.

The expressions of the elders in the Nine Elements Pavilion changed instantly. Pure Grace True Man merely furrowed his brow slightly and cast an inquiring glance at a short, stout elder with a long beard beside him.

The latter closed his eyes, pressed his two fingers together against his brow, and began to chant softly.

Han Li saw rings of golden light ripple out from the elder's brow, followed by a strong wave of divine soul energy, indicating a special method of divine soul communication.

After a moment, he withdrew his fingers and suddenly opened his eyes, saying:

"Something seems to have gone wrong at the Spirit Beast Mountain's beast pen. The guardian ancestral beast, the Azure-Eyed Qilin, was startled and went berserk. It directly smashed through the pen and is now rampaging across the mountain."

"The Azure-Eyed Qilin is a Da Luo-level guardian spirit beast, always docile and gentle. Why would it suddenly go berserk? And what about Elder Shanyang? Wasn't he the one specifically tasked with its care?" Pure Grace True Man asked in a calm tone.

Judging by his demeanor, he did not seem to consider this a major issue. He was merely inquiring, without any hint of reproach.

"Reporting to the Temple Master, a ferocious beast comparable to an early-Tai Yi stage cultivator had appeared in the lower realm of Shanyuan Realm, causing great havoc. No one in Shanyuan Realm could subdue it, so Elder Shanyang descended to that realm to capture it and has not yet returned." The short, stout elder replied respectfully.

As soon as he finished speaking, the noise outside grew louder. The roars of various spirit beasts and the cries of strange birds rose and fell in succession. Although they were far away, the sounds were incessant.

After the short, stout elder closed his eyes and made some inquiries, his face showed even more tension as he said,

"Abbot, over at the Spirit Beast Mountain, many of the beast pens have been smashed by the Azure-Eyed Qilin, and more than seventy spirit beasts have escaped and gone berserk. Quite a few have already used their innate abilities to break out of Spirit Beast Mountain, and two of them charged into the Harvest Garden. Fortunately, Elder Murong blocked them, or the immortal herbs and spirit plants would have suffered heavy losses."

"Today we are hosting honored guests in the temple, and we must not slight or offend them. Send word for Senior Brother Leijun to handle it personally." After a moment's thought, Pure-Gold True Man ordered.

"Yes." The short, stout elder acknowledged, then closed his eyes to send a message.

"A small incident has occurred within the sect. Please forgive us." Pure-Gold True Man turned his gaze to Phoenix Heaven Envoy and the others, smiling.

"No matter, just some spirit beasts running loose. Catch them and it's done." Phoenix Heaven Envoy said casually, unconcerned.

"It's nothing..." Celestial Venerable Tianxing and the others also said with smiles.

As for the twelve sect members who had come to receive the Bodhi Orders, they naturally dared not say a word and could only sit below, forcing smiles.

Just as everyone felt the ceremony was over and they could soon leave, another "boom" came from outside the Nine Essence Pavilion, and the entire hall shook violently.

Following that came a series of rumbling explosions.

The sounds seemed far away, but the commotion was considerable, not like the noise caused by spirit beasts.

"What's going on?" Pure-Gold True Man's expression finally changed as he asked.

The short, stout elder again probed with his divine soul secret technique, but instead of speaking directly, he transmitted a message to Pure-Gold True Man.

Upon hearing it, the latter's face slightly hardened, and a trace of anger finally appeared between his brows.

"Phoenix Heaven Envoy, Fellow Daoist Huo, Palace Master Lu, Fellow Daoist Tianxing, there are some matters in the temple that require my personal attention. I must ask you to wait here for a moment." Pure-Gold True Man stood up, made a bow with hands clasped, and said.

"Since the temple has business, Fellow Daoist Pure-Gold, go ahead. We'll have a few more cups of tea here." Huo Yuan stood up and said.

"Fellow Daoist Pure-Gold, go ahead, no problem." The others also stood up and said.

Pure-Gold True Man stood up, turned his wrist, and produced a silver-threaded duster. With a casual wave, layers of silver ripples spread before him, and a collapsing void gate emerged in the air.

Han Li watched, his mind stirred. Pure-Gold True Man did not cultivate the law of space, yet he could open that silver light space gate, showing that his duster must be a rare spatial immortal artifact.

"Elder Yu, you entertain the honored guests here. I'll be back shortly." Pure-Gold True Man instructed the short, stout elder.

Then, he stepped back and vanished into the silver ripples, disappearing.

Phoenix Heaven Envoy and the others sat back down, each sipping slowly and occasionally exchanging a few words. Zhou Xianyang and the twelve sect members looked at each other, restless.

"Fellow Daoists, no need to worry. The abbot will be back shortly. Just wait here peacefully." The short, stout elder saw this and spoke to reassure them.

The twelve sect members naturally dared not raise any objection, so they sat down obediently, waiting for everything to settle.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Pure-Gold True Man, who had left, still had not returned.

"Is the commotion outside related to their actions?" Han Li leaned close to Zhou Xianyang and transmitted a message.

"Our task is only to obtain the Bodhi Orders. We know nothing else and care nothing else." Zhou Xianyang transmitted back.

Hearing this, Han Li knew he could not get anything out of him, so he said no more.

But just then, a "boom" shattered the peace inside the Nine Essence Pavilion.

The entire hall shook violently with the roar, and the furnishings inside fell over, scattering all over the floor.

Many people were affected by the shockwave and could barely stand steady.

"What's happening..." Zi Luo Fairy from Tianyou Lake changed expression slightly and asked.

The others also changed expression, nearly all sensing how powerful the explosion just now was, and what made them even more uneasy was that this time the explosion was not far away but directly near the Nine Essence Pavilion.

Han Li swept his gaze and saw a layer of golden light emerging on the floor, walls, and even the ceiling, revealing layers of extremely complex runic formations—clearly a very high-level禁制大阵 (restriction array).

"Everyone rest assured, this Nine Essence Pavilion is an important site of our sect, protected by an independent禁制大阵. Even a mid-stage Da Luo cultivator would find it hard to break through, let alone be harmed by escaped spirit beasts." Elder Yu quickly said.

"Boom"

No sooner had he spoken than an even more violent explosion sounded, and the Nine Essence Pavilion shook violently again.

The golden runic formations surrounding the hall also trembled violently, then blazed with golden light, stabilizing the nearly collapsing hall.

This time, everyone realized something was wrong, and some even showed signs of panic.

Only Phoenix Heaven Envoy and the others remained as steady as a mountain, seemingly unconcerned with the situation, still chatting among themselves, as if everything happening outside had nothing to do with them.