Chapter 21: The Divine Jade Guanyin

"Longshan Jade Temple?"

To Dai Longmei, a Jade Temple was always a place of mysterious, superstitious nonsense. As the most flourishing religion in the Tianyu Kingdom, the Jade Sect’s Taoists and followers were spread across all three provinces. The symbols of this prosperous sect were those Jade Temples, adorned with refined jade stones and resembling palaces nestled in the mountains. Among them, the Longshan Jade Temple was the most extraordinary, for it did not stand upon a mountain like the others, but rather on an island in the middle of a lake.

"Fifth Master! Let’s head to that Jade Temple quickly; it’s close to us."
"This old man is likely some kind of immortal himself. It’s better to listen to him than to run around blindly on our own!"

Dai Longmei had originally intended to race toward Jinchuan to rendezvous with his eldest brother and the others, but the old teacher’s request made him reconsider.

"You cannot go to the Jinchuan Province!" Lily, having seen through Dai Longmei’s decision to spur his horse westward, warned him. "These White Lion riders are powerful; anyone who doesn't know how to use Void Qi cannot defeat them. If you lead them to the Liaodong Army camp, I fear..."

"There are only a few dozen mad hags. My Liaodong soldiers could spit them to death with a single collective mouthful..." Dai Longmei’s words carried a hint of hesitation, as he was well aware of the power of Void Qi.

"No, that’s not how it works. That Void Qi is devastating to mortals. Once the Qi ignites into fire, water cannot extinguish it; it continues to burn even if smothered! Even if I... work with the old man to suppress these Star-people’s Void Qi... they are still very difficult to handle!"

Lily raked her claws against Dai Longmei’s hand. "Go south! To Longshan, go to Longshan quickly!"

"Oh, stop clawing at me, I know! It’s ticklish and annoying!"
"Hmph! Then why haven't you turned the horses around yet?"
"Fine, fine, fine!"

Zhuifeng and Xiaolang wheeled around, narrowly brushing past the pursuing White Lion riders in a sharp turn, and galloped straight toward Longshan.

"Damn it! Those guys! Why are they not heading toward Jinchuan?"

Sorna, who had anticipated them fleeing toward Jinchuan, was taken aback as she saw her prey veering southwest. She quickly ordered the White Lion cavalry to pursue. On the boundless tundra of eastern Longyou, the tug-of-war between the fine horses and the vicious riders continued. While Dai Longmei and Long Zhu were not superior to the White Lion riders in terms of Void Qi mastery, they were absolute experts in horsemanship, and their steeds, Zhuifeng and Xiaolang, were the finest warhorses in all of Liaodong.

Their hooves thundered forward, leaving nothing for the White Lions behind them but a spray of moss. The White Lions, though adept at raids and boosted by Void Qi, gradually lost steam during such a long-distance pursuit.

"Fire! Fire! You idiots!"

Sorna, previously calm and collected, now appeared flustered and desperate. The Void-infused arrows rained down, but they were met only with the rhythmic clatter of steel. The arrows either missed their marks or were deflected by the blades of Dai Longmei and Long Zhu.

"Chase them!" Sorna’s scarred cheeks twisted in rage.

"Nyah, nyah, nyah! You just can't catch us, ha!" Lily chimed in, looking gleeful as she occasionally spat out Void-pellets to annoy the struggling White Lion riders.

"Oh no!" Just as Lily was grinning happily, Dai Longmei pulled hard on the reins, slowing their pace. "Damn, I forgot about this!"

They had galloped all the way to the foothills of Longshan, but as Lily turned her head, she realized the trouble ahead. A vast expanse of water appeared before them—the Long Lake, home to the island temple. The lake was over a hundred meters deep and stretched for hundreds of miles. To cross such a vast body of water, one needed a boat. With the Star-people’s pursuers closing in, where were they supposed to find one?

As the roars of the White Lions grew louder, Dai Longmei heard the teacher’s voice once more in his ears: "Children, head into the water, quickly!"

"Head into the water?" Horses were neither fish nor sea dragons; Dai Longmei knew that much. But ever since the teacher had taught him this strange Qi, he knew he had to trust him.

"What do we do, Fifth Master? They’re catching up from behind!" As the Void-arrows landed around them, Dai Longmei looked at the vast, shimmering surface of the lake.

"Listen to the old man, Dai Longmei! He will surely be able to get us out of this!" Lily said firmly, twitching her fox ears.

"Alright! Let's go!"

As the snarling, gaping maws of the White Lions loomed right in front of them, Dai Longmei let out a roar and urged his horse forward, charging into the deep lake water.

"BOOM!"

The moment their hooves touched the water, a massive sound erupted from the island in the center of the lake. A pillar of white Void energy surged out from the temple, forming a dome of energy that enveloped the entire Long Lake.

"Channel your Qi into the horses' hooves, children!"
"Got it!"

Two pads of Void energy instantly formed beneath the horses' feet, buoying them up just as they were about to sink. Zhuifeng and Xiaolang both let out long neighs, galloping forward across the lake on the energy cushions.

"Wow, water-striding dragonflies! It’s just like something out of those novels, haha!" Dai Longmei looked at the grinning Long Zhu, a faint smile appearing on his own face. He glanced back to see the White Lion riders blocked by the energy dome. One rider, attempting to force her way through, was vaporized by the white energy on the barrier along with her mount. The wicked could not enter the god-blessed Jade Temple!

"Damn it! Another one of that false god's twisted tricks! Infuriating!"

Outplayed and defeated, Sorna glared at the group fleeing toward the island. She had no choice but to give up, and with a grunt of frustration, she led her White Lion riders south, vanishing into the tundra.

"Those guys actually just left..."
"Don't be careless, Zhuzi. Who knows where they might have set an ambush?"
"They won't. The old man said that ever since the Void Gate at Huining Fortress was closed, the Stardust people can have no more than a hundred people active in Tianyu at a time. Besides, this group will be transmitted back to Dongsong in a few days; they rotate in and out. They won't be able to stay in our territory for long."

Watching Lily’s tail wagging happily, Dai Longmei finally had a moment to mutter, "What... what exactly is going on here?"

...

"Taoist! I came here to ask about my marriage fortune, yet you talk such nonsense!"

The old Taoist merely smiled at the jade sword held against his throat. "Young General, do not be agitated. If you wish to ask about your marriage, I shall answer."

"Believe it or not, your marriage in this life is the little fox hiding on the rafters."

Seeing Dai Longmei’s bewildered expression, the old Taoist laughed heartily. "It is not that beastly form, but the soul within it."

"What beast soul?! I... I am clearly a human!" Lily, who had been eavesdropping from the rafters, leapt down. The abundant Void energy within the temple allowed her to land steadily on the energy cushions. "Who has a marriage fortune with this second-generation military brat? I have always traveled the world alone... I would never... like this rough brute!" Lily said, flicking her fox tail.

"Fine, fine, you’re precious, you’re a lady... a grave robber, so what’s there to be so proud of?"
"Hmph! So what if I’m a grave robber? A grave robber makes an honest living! If we didn't go into the underground cities, where would those wealthy families get their fancy immortal chariots to show off? Would you find them yourself?"
"Fine, fine, grave robbing is precious. Then might I ask, my dear lady, have you managed to buy a house in Jinzhou, Jinyuan, the Capital, or Liaoyang?"
"You! Dai Longmei!"

Seeing the two of them, barely reunited yet already bickering and flirting, the old Taoist smiled and shook his head before coughing softly.

"Enough, enough. The Young General asked for a marriage reading, and now my words have only caused you two to quarrel." The old Taoist chuckled as he looked at them. "But it is thanks to the adventures you shared before that you have this level of rapport and destiny."

The old Taoist raised his whisk and stroked his beard. "Only then could you listen to this old man's words and come to this god-blessed Jade Temple."