San Lang glanced at him, smiled, and said, "I'll be back in a moment."
He casually dropped this line and turned to leave.
Normally, Xie Lian would have followed to ask him more, but he had a strange feeling that since the young man said he would be back soon, he probably wouldn't be gone for long. So, he went into the shrine by himself.
Xie Lian rummaged through the things he had gathered while wandering the streets last night. With his left hand, he pulled out an iron pot, and with his right hand, he found a kitchen knife.
He looked at the pile of fruits and vegetables on the offering table and got up.
After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, footsteps sounded outside the Pugilistic Shrine.
These footsteps were neither hurried nor slow, and one could easily imagine the young man's calm demeanor as he walked.
By this time, the things in Xie Lian's hands had turned into two plates. He looked at the contents on the plates, sighed deeply, and didn't want to look anymore.
So, he went out to have a look and, sure enough, saw San Lang again.
The young man stood outside the shrine, perhaps because the sun was shining brightly, he had taken off his red clothes and casually tied them around his waist.
He was wearing only a light white shirt, with the sleeves rolled up, making him look very clean and neat. His right foot was on a long rectangular wooden board, and he was spinning a hatchet in his left hand.
The hatchet seemed to be borrowed from a villager's house, looking dull and heavy, yet he wielded it effortlessly as if it were extremely sharp, occasionally slicing the wooden board as if peeling it.
He glanced over and saw Xie Lian coming out, and said, "Making something."
Xie Lian went over to see that he was making a door panel. Moreover, it was just the right size, neat and beautiful, with a very smooth surface, showing excellent craftsmanship.
Because this young man seemed to have an impressive background, Xie Lian thought he was probably someone who didn't know much about manual labor, but unexpectedly, he was quite adept at it. He said, "Thank you for your hard work, San Lang."
San Lang smiled without replying. He casually tossed the hatchet aside, installed the door, and knocked on it, saying, "If you want to draw talismans, wouldn't it be better to draw them on the door?"
After saying this, he nonchalantly lifted the curtain and went inside.
It seemed that the strict talismans on the curtain had no deterrent effect on him, and San Lang didn't care at all.
Xie Lian closed the new door, couldn't help but open it again, then closed it, opened it again, and closed it, thinking to himself that this door was really well made.
After opening and closing it several times, he suddenly realized how silly he was being. San Lang was already sitting inside the room.
Xie Lian left the door and brought out a plate of steamed buns that the villagers had offered in the morning, placing it on the offering table.
San Lang glanced at the buns but didn't say anything, only chuckled softly as if he had seen through something.
Xie Lian nonchalantly poured two bowls of water and was about to sit down when he noticed the small row of tattoos on San Lang's arm, revealed by his rolled-up sleeve.
The tattoos were in strange characters. San Lang noticed his gaze, pulled down his sleeve, and smiled, "Got it when I was young."
Since he pulled down his sleeve, he didn't want to talk about it. Xie Lian understood. He sat down, looked up at a painting, and said, "San Lang, your drawing is really good. Did someone in your family teach you?"
San Lang poked the buns with chopsticks and said, "No one taught me. I just draw for my own enjoyment."
Xie Lian asked, "How do you even know how to draw the Crown Prince of Divine Joy's Harmony Picture?"
San Lang laughed, "Didn't you say I know everything? Of course, I know how to draw it too."
Although this was a rather cheeky answer, his attitude was so open and carefree that it seemed he wasn't worried about Xie Lian's suspicion or questioning. Xie Lian smiled and didn't press further. Just then, a commotion came from outside. The two of them looked at each other.
They heard someone outside knocking on the door urgently, shouting, "Great Immortal! Something terrible has happened, please save us!"
Xie Lian opened the door to find a group of people standing at the entrance, forming a circle. The village chief was delighted to see him open the door and said, "Great Immortal! This person seems to be dying! Please save him!"
Hearing that someone was about to die, Xie Lian hurried over to check.
The villagers were surrounding a Taoist priest, who was disheveled, covered in dust, and his clothes and shoes were tattered, as if he had been traveling for days and finally collapsed here.
He had been carried over unconscious. Xie Lian said, "Don't worry, he's not dead." He bent down and tapped a few spots on the priest's body.
During this process, he noticed some items hanging on the priest, like a Bagua and an iron sword, which were all effective magical tools, indicating that he wasn't an ordinary wandering Taoist.
Xie Lian's heart sank. After a while, the priest slowly woke up and hoarsely asked, "Where am I?"
The village chief replied, "This is Pugilistic Village!"
The priest mumbled, "I got out, I finally escaped..."
He looked around, suddenly opened his eyes wide in fear, and shouted, "Help, help!"
Xie Lian had anticipated this reaction. He said, "Fellow Taoist, what's going on? Whose life needs saving? Don't worry, take your time to explain."
The villagers also said, "Yes, don't be afraid. We have a Great Immortal here who can handle everything!"
Xie Lian: "???"
The villagers hadn't actually seen him display any divine power, yet they truly treated him like a living deity. Xie Lian didn't know what to say, thinking, "Handle everything? That's really not something I can guarantee." He asked the priest, "Where did you come from?"
The priest replied, "I... I came from the Half Moon Pass!"
Upon hearing this, everyone looked at each other, confused: "Where is Half Moon Pass?" "Never heard of it!"
Xie Lian explained, "Half Moon Pass is in the northwest region, quite far from here. How did you get here?"
The priest said, "I... I barely escaped to here."
He spoke incoherently, his emotions very unstable. In such a situation, the more people around, the harder it is to speak clearly. Xie Lian said, "Let's talk inside."
He gently lifted the priest and helped him into the house, turning to the villagers, "Please, everyone, go back. No need to crowd around."
The villagers were very eager to help, saying, "Great Immortal, what's wrong with him?" "Yes, what's going on?" "If there's trouble, we can help!"
The more eager they were, the less helpful they might be. Xie Lian had no choice but to lower his voice and solemnly say, "He... might be possessed."
The villagers were shocked. Possessed? That's serious! Better not watch, quickly disperse. Xie Lian couldn't help but laugh, closed the door, and saw San Lang still sitting by the offering table, playing with chopsticks.
He gave the priest a scrutinizing look. Xie Lian said to him, "It's fine, you keep eating."
He let the priest sit down while he stood, saying, "Fellow Taoist, I am the head of this shrine and also a practitioner. Don't be nervous. If there's anything you need help with, you can tell me. If there's anything I can do, I'll try my best.
You mentioned earlier, what happened at Half Moon Pass?"
The priest took a few breaths, and it seemed that being in a quieter place and hearing Xie Lian's comforting words helped him calm down. He said, "Haven't you heard of this place?"
Xie Lian replied, "I have. Half Moon Pass is in an oasis in a desert. The scenery during a half-moon night is beautiful, making it a lovely sight, hence the name."
The priest said, "Oasis? Beautiful scenery? That was a hundred or two hundred years ago. Now, it's more like Half Life Pass!"
Xie Lian was slightly taken aback and asked, "Why do you say that?"
The priest's face turned a frightening shade of green as he said, "Because no matter who passes through there, at least half of them disappear without a trace. Isn't that why it's called Half Life Pass?"
This was something he hadn't heard before. Xie Lian asked, "Who told you this?"
The priest replied, "No one told me, I saw it with my own eyes!" He sat up, saying, "There was a caravan passing through there. Knowing the place was strange, they hired our entire sect to escort them. But in the end..." He said angrily, "In the end, I was the only one left!"
Xie Lian raised his hand to signal him to sit down and not get agitated, asking, "How many of you were there?"
The priest said, "Our entire sect, plus the caravan, about sixty people!"
Sixty people. That ghost lady Xuan Ji caused trouble for a hundred years, and even then, True Lord Ling Wen calculated that the number of victims didn't reach two hundred.
But according to this priest, such incidents seemed to have been happening for over a hundred years.
If every time so many people disappeared, it would indeed be a significant number. Xie Lian asked, "When did Half Moon Pass become Half Life Pass?"
The priest replied, "About a hundred and fifty years ago, when it became the territory of a demon daoist."
Xie Lian wanted to ask more about the incident they encountered and the "demon daoist" he mentioned, but throughout the conversation, he had a nagging feeling that something was off. When they reached this point, he couldn't shake the strange feeling in his heart, so he paused and frowned slightly.
At this moment, San Lang suddenly spoke.
He asked, "Did you escape all the way from Half Moon Pass?"
The priest said, "Yes, barely made it alive."
San Lang simply replied, "Oh," and said nothing more. However, just this one sentence was enough for Xie Lian to realize what was wrong.
He turned around and said gently, "You must be thirsty after escaping all the way here."
The priest was taken aback. Xie Lian had already placed a bowl of water in front of him, saying, "Here's some water, fellow Taoist. Have a drink."
For a moment, a look of hesitation flashed across the priest's face. Xie Lian stood quietly with his hands in his sleeves, waiting patiently.
This priest claimed to have come from the northwest, fleeing in panic all the way, and must be thirsty and hungry.
Yet, after waking up and talking so much, he hadn't asked for food or water. Even when he entered the room, he showed no interest in the food and water on the offering table, not even glancing at them.
This was not like a living person.