“But when I led my fellow disciples to break into the Mother and Child’s room, we discovered that the woman had already hanged herself. She wore an unusually bright red dress, and there seemed to be a faint smile at the corners of her mouth. The child was nowhere to be seen…”
One day, Master finally returned, and things could finally be resolved.
I hurried to find him and report the situation, but Master said there were too many eyes during the day and told me to wait for him in my room that night.’
The writing at the end was extremely sloppy, revealing that the diary’s owner was far less calm than the words implied.
Bai Nian kept flipping through the pages.
The middle part had been torn out, but she soon found the continuation.
“Night fell. I was on edge, and at last the sound of knocking came. But when I opened the door, it wasn’t Master I saw—it was Senior Brother, missing for three days. His movements were stiff, his eyes vacant, and he was covered in blood…”
“He kept repeating the same words to me: Don’t trust Master…hurry…”
Turning further, the diary was nothing but blank pages; there was not a single clue left.
“So was all of this Nanyi Abbot’s doing? Or was he in cahoots with the Mother and Child? Or were the Mother and Child just victims?”
Bai Nian pondered, but it was hard to glean anything useful from these scattered words.
What role did the construction crew play in all this?
When they ascended the mountain, had this Temple truly been abandoned?
Wait.
Bai Nian realized she’d overlooked something.
The woman killed herself—but where did her child go?
Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of the bronze mirror on the ground, and her body went rigid.
Cold, clear moonlight shone across the mirror’s surface, reflecting her own image.
But on her back, someone was clinging.
That person’s face was deathly pale, covered in cracks, lips tinged purple, and a pair of blank white eyes without pupils stared fixedly at Bai Nian.
A chill shot straight up her spine.
Instinctively, Bai Nian leaped up, the half-crouching posture making her fall directly onto the ground, her heart pounding wildly.
“Damn, you almost scared me to death!”
She scrambled to her feet, patting at her shoulders, but found nothing there.
Picking up the bronze mirror from the floor, Bai Nian decided to leave the room immediately.
But just then, footsteps sounded from outside the door.
“Damn it,” Bai Nian cursed under her breath, hurriedly crouching down.
Those steady, echoing footsteps, like the approach of the Grim Reaper, came closer and closer until they reached just outside the room.
Then the sound stopped.
It was right outside!
Moonlight poured through the window, casting a latticework of shadows on the floor.
The window wasn’t high—about half a person tall.
Bai Nian looked down.
If something was outside, its shadow would surely be cast in, but she saw nothing.
A moment later, the footsteps started again.
It didn’t come inside, but moved away instead.
Squatting on the ground, Bai Nian finally let out a breath.
As her adrenaline faded, she realized her condition was worsening.
She felt cold all over, her shoulders ached terribly, and when she touched her forehead, it was burning hot.
Bai Nian understood—this must be the work of the Mother and Child.
Had they killed everyone in the Temple?
Based on her current task, uncovering the truth should let her clear this place.
But if she wanted to remove the Gate, she’d probably have to lay these two to rest…
Bai Nian picked up the bronze mirror and immediately left the room, heading back toward the main hall.
From the moment she’d entered, footsteps had followed her.
But as she reached the main hall, they suddenly ceased.
Bai Nian guessed this area might be a safe zone.
Otherwise, in her current state, she’d never last long enough to explore every room.
In just a few dozen meters, Bai Nian was already breathless.
As she staggered into the main hall, she seemed to hear a shrill scream, and her shoulders instantly felt lighter.
“Phew…”
She leaned against the wall, gasping, wiping sweat from her brow with her arm.
“I gambled right…”
After resting for a while, Bai Nian gradually calmed down.
Trying to eliminate these two herself—she realized it was almost impossible.
She wasn’t a Taoist, after all.
Unless the Temple held some exorcising artifact…
By comparison, getting to the bottom of the truth seemed much easier.
[Reward: Eye of Delusion]
[Penalty: You will gain the favor of a Ghost]
Just then, a voice echoed in Bai Nian’s mind—it was the system.
She’d thought some cheat was coming, but it was just another empty promise.
Still, it meant that it was now the early morning hours—she had entered a new day.
“They say Midnight is when the yin energy is strongest?”
Bai Nian withdrew the foot she’d just been about to put outside the door.
“Forget it, I’ll wait a bit longer.”
Who knew if the Gate of Calamity had a time limit?
Would she be trapped here forever if she didn’t clear it…
The massive Buddha statue glared down with wide, furious eyes, making her skin crawl.
Why was the main hall safe?
Perhaps it just hid something even more terrifying.
“Shit,” Bai Nian muttered, suddenly certain of her own suspicions, not daring to stay longer.
She turned to leave immediately.
Dong dong!
The best way to conquer fear is to face it!
Today’s random task:
Quell the turmoil within the Temple.
At that moment, a muffled sound rang out.
It wasn’t loud, but in the silence of the night, it was especially clear.
Bai Nian’s heart pounded faster.
She looked back at the enormous Buddha statue behind her—the sound was coming from inside it.
Listening closely, it was like someone knocking on a wooden board.
Why muffled?
Because it was underground.
There’s something behind the Buddha statue!
Bai Nian glanced at the pitch-dark courtyard outside, steeled herself, and stepped onto the altar table, approaching the statue.
Circling to the back, she discovered a hole had been cut in the back of the statue, leading into utter darkness.
A plank sat to one side, likely used as a cover, but it had already been removed by someone at some point.
Dong dong!
She heard it even more clearly this time.
The sound came from inside that opening.
Bai Nian hurried back into the main hall and tried to move a candle, but it wouldn’t budge at all.
So she tore off the construction worker’s protective clothing, wrapped a bone in it, and finally lit it.
She returned to the back of the Buddha statue, tossed the burning bundle inside, and used the brief flare to get a look at the interior.
The passage wasn’t deep—less than three meters, sloping downward.
With her stature, Bai Nian could easily enter just by ducking her head.
The knocking continued, rhythmic and unhurried, not coming closer, meaning whatever was inside was temporarily safe.
Bai Nian took a deep breath and lowered her head to enter the opening.
A wave of intense stench, mixed with the earthy smell of mud, hit her, making her want to retch.
Bai Nian fought the urge, bent down, and picked up the nearly extinguished bone torch on the ground, using its faint glow to survey her surroundings.
On both sides of the earthen walls were grooves, each holding some sort of liquid that reeked terribly, blending two distinct odors.
Every so often, a torch was fixed into the wall.
She tried lighting one.
With a whoosh, a line of fire shot along the groove’s liquid, illuminating the passage ahead and driving away the darkness.
Yet the flames burned an eerie blue, adding another layer of strangeness to this place.