Although the villagers had no idea what kind of gods were worshipped in this temple, they all strongly requested to burn a stick of incense here. Anyway, no matter what kind of gods they were, they were all gods, and it would not be bad to worship them. Xie Lian originally expected that there would be few visitors, and few people would come all year round, so he just prepared a few small bundles of incense sticks as a token of his appreciation. Who knew that in an instant, they were all divided up, and the small incense burner was filled with densely packed incense sticks. The fragrance was everywhere. Because he hadn't smelled this smell for a long time, Xie Lian choked several times, and choked and said: "Dear villagers, I really can't bless you with a lot of wealth. Really, please don't ask for wealth here! The consequences are unpredictable..." "Sorry, I don't care about marriage..." "No, no, no, I can't bless you with children either."...

San Lang didn't care about his crooked hair anymore, and just sat beside the merit box, supporting his chin with one hand and slowly eating water chestnuts with the other. When many village girls saw this young man, their faces flushed, and they asked Xie Lian, "Well, do you have..."

Although he didn’t know what they were going to say, Xie Lian instinctively knew he had to stop them immediately, so he said, “No!”

Finally, the crowd dispersed, and the altar was piled with fruits, vegetables, and even rice, noodles, and other things. No matter what, it was finally a wave of offerings. Xie Lian swept away the debris thrown by the villagers on the ground. Sanlang followed him out and said, "The incense is good."

Xie Lian shook his head as he scanned the area, “It was an unexpected situation. Normally, no one would have cared about it for ten days or half a month.”

Sanlang asked, "How come?"

Xie Lian glanced at him and smiled, “I guess it’s because of San Lang’s luck.”

As he spoke, he remembered that he needed to change the door curtain, so he took out a new curtain from his sleeve and hung it on the door. He stepped back and looked at it for a moment. Xie Lian suddenly noticed that San Lang had stopped and turned around to ask, "What's wrong?"

San Lang was staring at the door curtain, looking thoughtful. Following his gaze, Xie Lian discovered that he was looking at the talisman painted on the curtain.

He had drawn this talisman before, with layers of spells on it, and it was awe-inspiring. Originally, it was used to ward off evil spirits and repel the invasion of evil spirits from the outside world. But since it was written by Xie Lian himself, it was unknown whether it would also have the effect of summoning bad luck. However, since there was no door, it was safer to draw a row of spells on the curtain.

Seeing the young man standing still in front of the talisman curtain, Xie Lian’s heart was moved and he asked, “Sanlang?”

Could it be that after drawing this talisman, he was stopped outside the door and couldn't go in?

Sanlang looked at him, smiled, and said, "I'll leave for a while."

He said this lightly, and then turned and left. Logically, Xie Lian should chase him and ask him, but he had a strange feeling that since the young man had said that he was leaving for a while, he should not be gone for too long and would definitely come back, so he went into the temple on his own.

Xie Lian rummaged through the things he had collected while walking around the streets last night, pulled out an iron pot with his left hand, and a kitchen knife with his right hand. He glanced at the pile of fruits and vegetables on the altar, then stood up.

After about an incense stick of time, there was indeed a sound of footsteps outside the Puqi Temple. The footsteps were neither fast nor slow, and one could imagine the young man walking leisurely.

At this time, the things in Xie Lian's hands had turned into two plates. He looked left and right at the things on the plates, sighed, and didn't want to look anymore, so he went out to take a look, and sure enough, he saw Sanlang again.

The young man stood outside the temple. Perhaps because of the scorching sun, he took off his red shirt and tied it casually around his waist. He only wore a light white shirt with his sleeves rolled up, which made him look very neat and tidy. He stepped on a rectangular wooden board with his right foot and turned a hatchet in his left hand. The hatchet was probably borrowed from a villager. It looked blunt and heavy, but it was easy to use in his hand, and it seemed to be very sharp. He would cut the board from time to time, just like peeling skin. He glanced and saw Xie Lian coming out, and said, "Make something."

Xie Lian went over to see that he was actually making a door leaf. It was made to the perfect size, neat and beautiful, with a very smooth surface, showing his excellent craftsmanship. Because this young man seemed to be from a prominent family, Xie Lian thought that he was probably the type who didn't know how to work, but he was actually very efficient. He said, "Thank you for your hard work, Sanlang."

Sanlang smiled and didn't respond. He threw a hatchet at him, put it on, knocked on the door, and said to him, "Since you want to draw a talisman, wouldn't it be better to draw it on the door?"

After saying this, he lifted the curtain as if nothing had happened and went in.

It seemed that the solemn talisman on the curtain had no deterrent effect on him at all, and Sanlang didn't care at all.

Xie Lian closed the new door, but could not help opening it again, closing it again, opening it again, and closing it again, thinking that the door was really well made. He opened and closed it several times, and suddenly woke up, thinking that he was really bored. Sanlang had already sat down in the room. Xie Lian left the door behind, brought out a plate of steamed buns that the villagers had offered as an offering in the morning, and placed it on the altar.

Sanlang looked at the steamed buns and said nothing, but just laughed softly, as if he had seen through something. Xie Lian poured two more bowls of water as if nothing had happened. Just as he was about to sit down, he saw Sanlang's sleeves rolled up. There was a small row of tattoos on his arms, with very strange words tattooed on them. Sanlang noticed his gaze, put down his sleeves, and smiled, "I got them when I was a child."

Since he put down his sleeves, he didn’t want to say more. Xie Lian understood. He sat down, raised his head and glanced at the portrait again, and said, “Sanlang, you are really good at painting, but is there anyone in your family who teaches you?”

Sanlang poked the buns with his chopsticks a few times and said, "No one taught me. I drew it for my own pleasure."

Xie Lian asked, “How come you can even draw the picture of Prince Xianle’s pleasing spirit?”

San Lang smiled and said, "Didn't you say I know everything? Of course I know how to draw, too."

Although this was a very shameless answer, his attitude was frank, as if he was not worried about Xie Lian's suspicion or questioning. Xie Lian smiled and said nothing more. At this moment, there was a commotion outside. The two of them looked up at the same time and looked at each other.

I heard someone knocking on the door, saying, "Great Immortal! This is terrible! Great Immortal, help me!"

Xie Lian opened the door and saw a group of people standing at the door, forming a circle. When the village chief saw him open the door, he was overjoyed and said, "Great Immortal! This man seems to be dying! Please save him!"

When Xie Lian heard that someone was dying, he hurried over to check. He saw a group of villagers surrounding a Taoist priest. He was disheveled, covered in yellow sand, and his clothes and shoes were tattered. It seemed that he had been running around for many days and finally couldn't hold on and passed out here. He was carried here. Xie Lian said, "Don't panic, he's not dead." He leaned down and tapped the Taoist priest a few times. During the process, he found that some of the objects hanging on the Taoist priest, such as the Eight Diagrams and the iron sword, were all effective magic weapons. It seemed that he was not an ordinary Taoist priest. His heart sank. Not long after, the Taoist priest woke up slowly and asked in a hoarse voice, "...Where is this place?"

The village chief said: "This is Puqi Village!"

The Taoist murmured, "...I'm out, I'm out, I finally escaped..."

He looked around, suddenly opened his eyes, and said in horror: "Help, help, help!"

Xie Lian had anticipated this kind of reaction. He said, "My fellow Taoist, what's going on? Whose life did you save? What happened? Don't be impatient. Just explain it slowly."

The villagers also said: "Yes, don't be afraid, we have a great immortal here, he will definitely settle everything for you!"

Xie Lian: “???”

The villagers actually didn’t see him display any divine power, but they really treated him as a living god. Xie Lian didn’t know what to say, thinking, “I can’t guarantee that everything will be settled.” He asked the Taoist, “Where are you from?”

The Taoist said, "I... I came from Banyue Pass!"

Hearing this, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment: "Where is Banyue Pass?" "I've never heard of it!"

Xie Lian asked, “Ban Yue Pass is in the northwest, very far from here. How did you get here?”

The Taoist said, "I...I managed to escape with great difficulty."

He spoke incoherently and his emotions were extremely unstable. In this situation, the more people around, the harder it was to talk. With so many people talking at once, it was hard to speak or hear clearly. Xie Lian said, “Let’s talk inside.”

He gently lifted the Taoist and helped him into the house, then turned to the villagers and said, "Please go back and stop watching."

The villagers were very enthusiastic: "Great Immortal, what happened to him?" "Yes, what happened?" "If he has any difficulties, please help him!"

The more enthusiastic they were, the less help they would probably provide. Xie Lian had no choice but to lower his voice and said solemnly, "This... might be a case of evil spirits."

The villagers were shocked when they heard this. What if he was possessed by evil spirits? They should stop looking and quickly disperse. Xie Lian was both amused and annoyed. He closed the door. San Lang was still sitting by the altar, twirling chopsticks in his hands. He squinted at the Taoist priest, his eyes full of scrutiny. Xie Lian said to him, "It's okay. Keep eating."

He asked the Taoist to sit down, and he stood up, saying, "My fellow Taoist, I am the master of this temple, and I am also a cultivator. Don't be nervous, if you have anything to say, please tell me. If there is anything I can help with, perhaps I can do my best. You just told me, what happened in Half Moon Pass?"

The Taoist took a few breaths, as if he had arrived at a place with few people, and after listening to his soothing words, he finally calmed down and said, "Haven't you heard of this place?"

Xie Lian said, “I’ve heard of it. Half Moon Pass is located in an oasis in the middle of a desert. The scenery is very beautiful on a half moon night, it can be said to be a bright and beautiful sight, hence the name.”

The Taoist said, "Oasis? Beautiful scenery? That was a hundred or two hundred years ago. Now, it's more appropriate to call it the Half Life Pass!"

Xie Lian was slightly startled, and asked, “What do you mean?”

The Taoist's face turned terribly blue, and he said, "Because no matter who passes through there, at least half of them will disappear without a trace. Isn't it a half-life barrier?"

I really have never heard of this. Xie Lian asked, “Who told you this?”

The Taoist said, "I didn't hear it from anyone, I saw it with my own eyes!" He sat up and said, "A merchant caravan was going to pass by there. They knew this place was evil, so they asked our entire sect to escort the caravan. But..." He said angrily, "I was the only one left after this trip!"

Xie Lian raised his hand, motioning him to sit down and not get excited, and asked, “How many people are there in your group?”

The Taoist said, "My entire sect, including the caravan, has about sixty people!"

More than 60 people. The ghost girl Xuan Ji had been causing chaos for a hundred years, but the number of people killed by the Lingwen Hall was less than 200. According to the Taoist, this had been going on for more than a hundred years. If so many people were missing every time, the total number would be extraordinary. Xie Lian asked, "When did the Half Moon Pass become the Half Life Pass?"

The Taoist said, "It probably started about 150 years ago when the place became the territory of a demon."

Xie Lian wanted to ask him more about the murder they had suffered during this trip and the "evil Taoist" he mentioned, but from the beginning of the conversation till now, he had always felt that something was wrong. When he said this, he could no longer hide the strange feeling in his heart, so he stopped talking and frowned slightly.

At this time, Sanlang suddenly said something.

He asked, "You escaped all the way back from Banyue Pass?"

The Taoist said, "Yes, alas! It was a narrow escape."

San Lang said "Oh" and stopped talking. However, with just this one sentence, Xie Lian realized that something was wrong.

He turned around and said gently, "You must be thirsty after all this escape."

The Taoist was startled. But Xie Lian had already placed a bowl of water in front of him and said, "Here is some water, Taoist friend, have a sip."

Facing the bowl of water, the Taoist's face flashed with hesitation for a moment. Xie Lian stood aside, his hands tucked into his sleeves, waiting quietly.

This Taoist priest came from the northwest and fled in a hurry, so he must be thirsty and hungry. Judging from his appearance, it doesn't seem like he had the time to eat or drink on the way.

However, after he woke up, he said so many things, but he never asked for any food or water. After he entered the house, he had no desire for the food and water on the altar, and he didn't even look at them.

This person really doesn't look like a living person.