Chapter 228. Lin Nianci——A Woman Burdened With Sin

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TN:- I’m all good now. I’m posting 3 chapters today.

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China once experienced a very dark period. In those years, war raged, demons and monsters roamed freely in the world. The people of the metaphysical society shouldered the heavy responsibility of slaying demons and monsters, and indeed made great contributions to the country and the people, establishing an unshakable position.

Now, more than seventy years have passed, and the mortal world is no longer the same, nor is the Tianshui Sect the same as before. Yet, Taoist Zhi Fei’s perception of both the mortal realm and his own sect remains frozen in the past. He was fully convinced that dispatching twenty-one elite disciples would suffice to resolve this troublesome affair, little realizing that after a mere initial encounter, without managing to rescue a single soul, he had already lost well over half of them.

They represent almost the entirety of the new generation of the Tianshui Sect, the cornerstone that supports the sect’s enduring strength. Their destruction here means that the Tianshui Sect’s glory for the next hundred years will also vanish like a bubble.

Chang Sheng regained consciousness after only a few minutes of unconsciousness, not because of his strong physique, but because he dared not allow himself to remain in a state of unconsciousness. Unable to get up from the ground, he could only anxiously ask, “How are Shidi and ShiMei? Is anyone injured?”

Chang Zhen, looking haggard, remained silent for a long while before saying in a hoarse voice, “ShiXiong, lie down a little longer, don’t rush to get up. All Shidi and ShiMei are fine, the ambulance has arrived and is about to take them to the hospital.” In fact, the situation was completely the opposite of what he said, just now, two disciples had died on the spot.

Lin Nianci and Lin Nian’en knelt on either side of him, silently shedding tears, afraid to speak. They were afraid that if they opened their mouths, they would burst into tears.

The surrounding area was in complete chaos, with Chief Yan’s shouts for help coming from time to time. Even though the people from the Tianshui Sect hadn’t been of any help and had indirectly caused the death of an innocent citizen, he hadn’t abandoned them. Rescuing the public was the government’s duty, and everyone should have the right to live.

Under Chief Yan’s arrangement, the Tianshui Sect’s disciples were carried onto helicopters one by one and sent to the nearest hospital. Several nurses rushed over, put an oxygen mask on Chang Sheng, and then lifted him onto a stretcher. Chang Sheng, however, clung tightly to Chang Zhen’s arm, his voice anxious, “I’m not going anywhere until this is resolved! Put me down!”

“ShiXiong, you should go to the hospital with them. I’ll stay here.” Chang Zhen pried his hand away and pointed at Lin Nianci, “ShiMei, you should go to the hospital too. You look even worse.”

Lin Nian’en turned to look at his senior sister and was immediately stunned. Lin Nianci’s face had developed many more wrinkles, and the lines were even deeper, making her look like a woman in her fifties. When they first arrived in this neighborhood, she looked only in her thirties, but in just over half an hour, she had aged twenty years. If it weren’t for a trace of familiarity remaining in her wrinkled eyes and brows, Lin Nian’en might not have dared to recognize her at all.

“ShiJie, what’s wrong with you——”

Just as Lin Nian’en was about to exclaim in surprise, Chang Zhen pinched his arm hard.

As if sensing something, Lin Nianci quickly touched her face, only to find it dry, rough, and deeply wrinkled. She immediately ran to a nearby shop, looked at her reflection in the glass window, and then froze on the spot.

Upon noticing that his senior sister was trembling violently, as if she couldn’t bear it, Lin Nian’en quickly ran over to comfort her.

Chang Sheng refused to leave, and Chang Zhen patiently tried to persuade him. The two were at an impasse when Chief Yan, who had cleaned up the mess, came over and asked in a hoarse voice, “Two Taoist priests, how do you plan to save the rest of the people? Taoist Zhi Fei said before that your Tianshui Sect would clean up this mess, but look at yourselves, is this what it looks like?” He pointed to a large pool of blood behind him.

“The twelve of you couldn’t even save a single citizen, and the rest of this lot are nothing but cowards clinging to their lives——so what exactly does your Tianshui Sect intend to do? Quit? Wash your hands of the whole affair? Run away?” Chief Yan raised his chin at the nine Tianshui Sect disciples standing not far away and said sarcastically, “You may be able to flee yourselves, but your sect certainly cannot. Your Tianshui Temple is still standing there.”

Chief Yan pointed towards the direction of Xishan Mountain, where the most popular Taoist temple was Tianshui Temple of the Tianshui Sect.

Chang Sheng and Chang Zhen trembled with shame and anger. They realized that Chief Yan was threatening them with the Tianshui Sect’s strongholds in the secular world.

“Let me down.” Chang Sheng glared at Chang Zhen and struggled to get down.

Chang Zhen had no choice but to release his grip on his shoulders and help him off the stretcher.

“Our Tianshui Sect has a long-standing rule, to value human life above all else and to take saving the common people as our mission. At a time like this, we will never be cowards. I will find a way to rescue the rest of them, and I will personally capture Ma You! Even if it costs me my life, I will resolve all the troubles. I will take full responsibility for my actions!” Chang Sheng made this promise while clutching his aching chest.

With tears in his eyes, Chang Zhen called out ShiXiong. As if moved by his words, the nine disciples who had been hiding to the side slowly gathered around, their faces filled with shame as they lowered their heads and stammered, “ShiXiong  we will help you!”

However, Chief Yan remained unmoved by their performance. He simply turned his tablet over, pointed to a news article on the screen, and said, “Not bad, your Tianshui Temple always steps up at the most crucial moment. Taoist Chang Sheng, look, your exorcism talismans are already selling for a sky-high price of 20,000 yuan each.”

Chang Sheng and Chang Zhen stared intently, their faces turning from pale to red, then back to pale was quite a sight! The headline of the news featured a photo of Taoist priests from Tianshui Temple selling exorcism talismans on the street, surrounded by a frenzy of people grabbing them. Some held wads of cash, others scanned QR codes with their phones, business was booming.

In the past, if Chief Yan hadn’t had deeper contact with these kinds of people, he might have believed that these talismans possessed some efficacy. After all, the Taoists of Tianshui Temple weren’t fake, they did have some real skills. But now, he was willing to bet his own life that these talismans were utterly useless against Ma You! The Taoists of Tianshui Temple were profiting from human suffering, to put it more bluntly, they were profiting from the war!

Chief Yan took a deep breath and questioned, “These talismans are completely ineffective against Ma You, but the people don’t know that. What if they buy the talismans and feel reassured, then brazenly go out into the streets only to be killed or imprisoned by Ma You? Who will take responsibility for that? The money is earned by your Tianshui Temple. Can your Tianshui Temple buy back these lives? Do you think the world isn’t chaotic enough already?”

Chang Sheng stared at the Taoist priests in the photo again and again, and actually recognized a few familiar faces, his cheeks burning red.

He has probably lost all the face he has built up in his life today, and the reputation and prestige that Tianshui Temple has worked so hard to establish are probably ruined as well.

“Chief Yan, I will immediately restrain the people from Tianshui Temple and tell them to stop selling talismans.” Chang Sheng took out his phone and sent a strongly worded message to the Tianshui Temple group.

“What are your plans to do about rescuing those people imprisoned by Ma You?” Chief Yan pressed. His patience with the Tianshui Sect was quickly wearing thin due to these endless troubles.

“We still have nine people left who can be responsible for drawing the formation. We can ask the experts from various Taoist Sects to do the task of activating the array.” Chang Sheng immediately thought of a compromise.

“Are they willing to come? “

“The world is in such chaos, of course they’d be willing to come. Besides, our Tianshui Sect still has some influence.” Chang Sheng nodded with great certainty.

Chief Yan had initially intended to pour cold water on him, but after a moment’s reflection, he decided against it. While it was true that the disciples of the Tianshui Sect were, by and large, a bad lot, one could not paint everyone with the same brush. He recalled that back during the years of war and turmoil, these cultivators had actually contributed a great deal. With this thought in mind, he immediately waved his hand, “Very well, let’s go. I will personally escort you to seek out these experts. Ma You has gone completely mad and is currently on a killing spree, the women he has imprisoned could be slaughtered at any moment. We cannot afford to waste even a single second.”

Chang Sheng and Chang Zhen quickly climbed onto the helicopter, and Lin Nian’en and Lin Nianci, who were standing in front of the convenience store, also ran over. The nine disciples wanted to follow, but Chang Sheng waved them away. He got angry just looking at these people.

On the way, Chang Sheng sent a few messages to Taoist Zhi Fei, briefly explaining that the attempt to save people had backfired and resulted in the loss of twelve elite disciples.

Taoist Zhi Fei remained silent for a long time before replying：【It was my oversight. I will first speak with the various sects leader and ask them to fully cooperate with you. 】

【Thank you, Shifu. Sorry for the trouble. 】With the strong support of his sect, Chang Sheng breathed a sigh of relief.

However, he couldn’t swallow his anger shortly after getting off the helicopter. To everyone’s surprise, the Sect Master of the Hengyi Sect who had learned of the situation beforehand from Taoist Zhi Fei chose to avoid the meeting entirely. No matter how Chang Sheng tried to reason with him, the attendant responsible for dismissing him simply shook his head and said that his master was in seclusion and could not receive guests.

Chang Sheng tried to talk himself hoarse but still couldn’t meet the person in question, so he headed to the next location. Then he received the same reply, “What a coincidence! My Shifu is in seclusion. Please come again next time.”

Seclusion, seclusion, seclusion! He visited eight or nine major sects, only to be told that they were all in seclusion. No one was willing to risk their cultivation to save someone. They considered themselves beings beyond worldly affairs, so even their reasons for refusing were so self-righteous and condescending——We no longer concern ourselves with worldly matters, please return.

Matters of life and death were described as trivial mundane affairs by them. Who do they think they are, gods?

Chang Sheng’s frustration deepened, and the pent-up anger in his chest burned away his reason, making him desperately want to find a way to vent. In a daze, he even felt that he could completely understand Fan Jialuo’s feelings of being unable to obtain the formation. When he faced him, did he, too, feel exactly as he himself now felt toward these cultivators ——seething with anger, overwhelmed by helplessness, and harboring a deep-seated resentment toward those who were both foolish and utterly self-serving?

Chang Sheng knelt heavily before the last sect’s Taoist temple, his eyes red and swollen from exhaustion. He had repeatedly rejected Fan Jialuo, insisting that formations were more important than human lives, yet he had never considered himself wrong. But now, as he tasted the bitterness of rejection and heard the fallacy that cultivation was superior to human life, he finally understood how heartless, cruel, and ugly he had been back then.

He bowed again and again, but the majestic and imposing mountain gate remained unopened, and not even an attendant was sent out to respond. Chang Zhen pulled Lin Nian’en and Lin Nianci down to their knees with a thud and shouted out.

They were incredibly patient and didn’t seem ashamed at all, but Chief Yan couldn’t stand it anymore. He shook his head and said, “You can keep lingering here, but the people down the mountain can’t afford to. In just this short time, Ma You has killed dozens more people, and more than twenty women have gone missing. It’s not even 10:30 yet, the nightlife is just beginning, but the entire capital is already deserted. Everyone has gone home and is afraid to go out. You, too——go home. It would be enough if you people simply refrained from inflicting harm upon the world’s populace, one certainly cannot count on you to shoulder the responsibility of saving them.”

He waved his hand and turned to walk towards the helicopter. To place his hopes on these Taoist Priests who have absolutely no sense of social responsibility is simply insane.

“Chief Yan, there’s one last place we haven’t visited yet. The seniors there will surely grant our request.” Chang Sheng hurriedly stood up and chased after him, his knees stained with two patches of blood.

Chief Yan ignored his words.

“Do you know Abbot Changjing of Longyin Temple? He will definitely agree to save people!”

Chief Yan paused, then urged, “Then let’s try Longyin Temple.” Longyin Temple has a better reputation than Tianshui Sect, it’s worth a try.

Half an hour later, the helicopter landed in an open area atop Longyin Temple. Two young monks were already waiting at the entrance. Upon seeing Chang Sheng and the others, they led them into the main hall without asking a single question. Jian Ya remained seated on the altar in front of the hall, striking the wooden fish and chanting scriptures, appearing remarkably detached.

“Please have a seat, everyone. Taoist Zhi Fei just called me and I already know about the matter.” Abbot Changjing said immediately, “The young monk has already gone to pack my things. We’ll be leaving shortly.”

Chang Sheng’s anxious heart instantly relaxed, and tears welled up in his eyes, unstoppable. Heartbroken by the selfishness and indifference of the Taoist Sects, he tightly grasped Abbot Changjing’s hand, too grateful to utter a single word. Now he understood just how terrifying he had been, preferring to defend the formation to the death rather than save those precious lives! If it weren’t for this repeated rejection, he might still be clinging to the ridiculous obsession with the inviolable sacredness of the Tianshui Sect’s heritage.

“Abbot, I have committed a grave sin!” This voice came not only from his mouth, but also from the depths of his soul, a confession.

Abbot Changjing sighed and said, “Amituofu, I could tell from your countenance when you first entered that you are all already entangled in the bitter fruits of your deeds and burdened by deep-seated sin.”

Chang Zhen, Lin Nian’en, and Lin Nianci quickly apologized.

Abbot Changjing’s gaze swept across their faces one by one. When he saw Lin Nianci, he frowned and asked, “Why are you different from them? Their bad karma was unintentional and indirectly caused, and there is still a possibility of redemption. But you are deeply entangled with the cause and effect of karma, beyond redemption, as if you were the instigator! As far as I know, you did not kill the person.”

These words turned Lin Nianci’s face deathly pale, and her expression changed drastically. Chang Sheng and the others also turned their heads sharply to look, and then they were horrified to find that in just a few hours, their junior sister’s face had aged considerably, and she already showed signs of near death. This appearance did not seem like she was burdened by karma, but rather like she had suffered some kind of backlash.

If a cultivator gets entangled in karma, the worst consequence is that their cultivation level will regress, and they will become an ordinary person. They will never age to this extent!

“ShiMei, what’s wrong with you——”

Just as Chang Sheng was about to press further, Lin Nianci prostrated herself deeply, pressing her forehead against the prayer mat, and sobbed uncontrollably, “Abbot Changjing, I was wrong! I was terribly wrong! You’re right, the way things turned out is directly related to me. When I took it upon myself to save Wang Wan, it was intentional. I wasn’t moved by Wang Wan’s parents at all, I was just deliberately going against Fan Jialuo. I was wrong, please save me.”

Chang Sheng and Chang Zhen had their own ulterior motives, but they hadn’t expected their junior sister’s selfish desires to be even stronger than theirs, deliberately sabotaging the overall situation. However, this was understandable, after all, Fan Jialuo was her mother’s killer, how could she possibly do as he said? The fact that she didn’t fight him on the spot was already a testament to her good manners.

“Abbot Changjing, is there any hope for my ShiMei? If this continues, she will grow old and die. Please have mercy and show her a way out.” Chang Sheng immediately kowtowed, and Chang Zhen and Lin Nian’en also knelt down. They had no idea that their junior sister had gotten into such big trouble.

Abbot Changjing carefully examined Lin Nianci’s face, his eyes flashing with an unfathomable light. He wanted to say that such a face was not merely tainted by selfish desires, it clearly indicated deep sin and heinous crimes. But as the young girl wept, she eventually fainted, leaving him unable to utter any words that would have distressed her further.

“Amituofu, if you want to save her, you can only do so by having an expert infusing Qi to transfer one’s life force or use their accumulated merit to offset her karmic debt. However, the amount of merit required to restore her to her original state is not small, so this path is a dead end and cannot be followed.”

Transferring one’s life force, and Qi infusion, only a true expert can accomplish these two feats. In the world today, perhaps only Shizu can save the junior sister, but Shizu is already severely injured. Will he be in danger after saving ShiMei? Without the Shizu’s protection, can the Tianshui Sect retain its position as the number one sect in the Taoist Association?

Chang Sheng was in a state of confusion and had no idea what to do.

Abbot Changjing gazed intently at Lin Nianci’s increasingly aged face for a long time, his doubts growing deeper.

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