Chapter 35 : Qingyue Temple

After sitting for about half an hour, Hua Qi’an got off at one of the stops.

Back when Hua Qi’an first heard about this temple, she already thought it was a bit remote.

Now, after getting off the bus, according to the map, she still had about half an hour’s walk ahead.

Seeing the increasingly desolate scenery around her, Hua Qi’an silently took the electric stun baton out of her backpack and slipped it into the pocket of her jacket.

Just in case.

Every so often, a car or two would drive by, and they all seemed to be fairly expensive models.

As time passed, the outline of a temple finally appeared in Hua Qi’an’s field of vision.

She let out a breath of relief.

It seemed that the blank account hadn’t lied to her.

Around Qingyue Temple, Hua Qi’an spotted the same cars that had passed by her earlier.

Clearly, this temple was so secluded, and there wasn’t any special online promotion.

Yet, all the guests who came here seemed to be either rich or powerful.

It seemed there really was something special about this place.

With this thought, Hua Qi’an walked up to the temple gates.

“Qingyue Temple…”

Looking at the three bold, powerful characters above the temple gate, a majestic feeling surged toward her.

Hua Qi’an couldn’t help but believe a little more in her heart.

Stepping into the temple, Hua Qi’an suddenly felt her whole body stiffen.

“Ugh…”

She frowned slightly and quickly braced herself against the wall with her hand.

Her vision went black, her body felt so heavy, and a horrible sensation rampaged inside her, almost draining her of all strength.

What’s happening to me?

Looking up, she saw the main hall doors in the center of the temple were open, and a massive Buddha statue stood within.

At that moment, as Hua Qi’an looked, it felt as if she was meeting the Buddha statue’s gaze.

An indescribable feeling pressed down on her, and her mind went completely blank.

It was as if a white light swept away all thoughts from her mind.

“Are you all right, young friend?”

A woman’s voice came from beside her, and Hua Qi’an strained to look up.

She saw it was a young woman dressed in casual clothes, looking to be in her twenties.

The woman looked at her with concern.

The young woman glanced around the empty temple, then exhaled as if steadying herself.

“Those bald donkeys…”

Vaguely, Hua Qi’an heard the woman mutter, and she couldn’t help but look at her in surprise.

“I’ll take you to a meditation room to rest for a bit.”

“The monks in this temple are probably off entertaining guests.”

The guests here were clearly the owners of those expensive cars parked outside.

Because they were important guests, most were given “private service.”

Maybe because this remote temple rarely had visitors, when Hua Qi’an arrived, there had been no one at all to greet her.

This young woman…Hua Qi’an looked at her profile and, judging by her tone, it seemed she was quite familiar with the people here…

Just now, she’d called her “young friend.”

Could she also be staff at this temple?

But she was wearing casual clothes right now…

With her mind still in a muddle, Hua Qi’an couldn’t make sense of her thoughts.

The woman helped her to an empty meditation room and motioned for her to lie down for a while.

Then she poured Hua Qi’an a cup of hot water, looking as if she was quite used to this place.

Hua Qi’an sat up, accepted the water the young woman handed her, and took small sips.

“Thank you.”

Once she entered this room, she felt much better.

There was some distance between here and the main Buddha statue.

Hua Qi’an didn’t know if that had anything to do with it.

“How should I address you, young friend?”

Seeing that Hua Qi’an’s complexion had improved, the woman sat cross-legged on the cushion in front of Hua Qi’an, looking curious.

Since this young woman had helped her, Hua Qi’an did feel some goodwill toward her.

She replied warmly, “My surname is Hua.”

The young woman nodded. “Alright, Miss Hua.”

“Just call me Liu Yu.”

With that, Liu Yu studied Hua Qi’an’s face carefully, her expression turning grave.

“Your situation is pretty serious.”

“Judging by your appearance, you’re still a student, right? You must have been recommended here by someone who knows this temple, right?”

Hua Qi’an nodded.

It was indeed the blank account that had sent her the address.

But her attention was on the word “serious” from earlier.

“Um… Miss Liu Yu, are you someone from this temple?”

This woman named Liu Yu seemed to be able to see something about her.

Liu Yu shook her head, then nodded.

“I’m not from this temple. It’s just that my master is staying here for a few days, and I’m staying with her.”

“But, I do know a thing or two.”

She’d been in a hurry helping Hua Qi’an earlier and hadn’t taken a good look.

Now, sitting face to face in the meditation room, Liu Yu looked at Hua Qi’an’s face and couldn’t help being shocked inside.

This girl…She had the look of someone on the verge of death.

Remembering her reaction upon entering the temple, Liu Yu basically understood the situation.

“Have you been to any Evil Ground these past few days?”

“There’s something unclean on you.”

Evil Ground?

Hua Qi’an’s heart skipped a beat.

Wasn’t that the haunted house?

“And it seems it’s not just one…”

Staring at the wisps of black aura clinging to Hua Qi’an—only visible to her—Liu Yu still maintained an air of depth outwardly, but inside she was already giving up.

Her intuition told her she’d better go find her master.

This girl was so young—she looked like a college student at most…

How could the aura of death be so heavy on her?

For a normal person to have such heavy deathly energy, they’d probably be dead already…

But aside from being weak, she didn’t seem to have any other major issues.

This was clearly beyond Liu Yu’s understanding.

Aside from that…

“Um…”

Liu Yu rubbed the back of her head, as if she felt a bit awkward asking the next question.

“Have we met before? Your voice sounds kind of familiar to me.”

She didn’t know why, but she felt Hua Qi’an’s voice gave her a sense of déjà vu.

As if she’d heard it somewhere before.

Looking at Hua Qi’an’s face—though thin, it didn’t affect her delicate features; if anything, it lent a fragile charm.

If she’d ever met such a person, she would never forget.

Meanwhile, hearing her question, Hua Qi’an also searched her memory.

Unlike Liu Yu, Hua Qi’an was filled with hesitation.

Had she ever met Liu Yu?

She was sure she was hearing this name for the first time.

But if they really had met somewhere before, Hua Qi’an couldn’t recall it.

Because she couldn’t remember faces.

However, in her memory, she had never interacted with any mystics or the like.

So, she shook her head.

“I think this is our first meeting.”

Liu Yu also found no trace of Hua Qi’an in her memory, so she nodded as well.

“Your situation is a bit tricky. I’ll contact my master and have her come take a look at you.”

As she spoke, Liu Yu took out her phone and sent a message to someone.

Then, she noticed that Hua Qi’an seemed hesitant, as if she wanted to ask something.

“What is it? Young friend, feel free to ask.”

Liu Yu had no airs about her and casually spread her hands to Hua Qi’an.

Hua Qi’an stared at her now-empty cup, her fingertips gently tracing the rim.

“You said there’s something unclean on me…”

“Is it what I think it is?”

Her tone was still rather tactful.

But Liu Yu understood what she meant.

Though she knew that, for a college student, this might really be a blow to her worldview…

Looking at Hua Qi’an surrounded by black mist, Liu Yu nodded.

“Yes, and more than one.”

She felt this was no longer just a matter of worldview.

If this wasn’t dealt with, this young woman would lose her life sooner or later.

Just then, steady footsteps sounded outside the meditation room.

Liu Yu sensed it and glanced at the door, quickly getting up to greet the newcomer.

In Hua Qi’an’s line of sight appeared a mature woman in a classical qipao, looking gentle and graceful.

The woman sensed something, turned her head toward Hua Qi’an, and their gazes met.

Then, she smiled and nodded at Hua Qi’an.

But when she spoke, her words didn’t match her gentle appearance at all.

“This little sister… seems you’ve got a few too many debts of love, haven’t you?”