Welcome to the Bizarre Games

Chapter 484 Going up the mountain
The past ten days or so have passed in the blink of an eye.

They encountered no further danger along the way, as if the 'thing' in the village had exhausted all their misfortune, and the convoy smoothly reached its destination.

At the foot of the mountain, Xuan Cheng impatiently opened the car door and chased all the children out.

Although his eye sockets were still suddenly sunken, his complexion had finally improved after nearly half a month of rest—he waved the riding whip and said impatiently.

"Listen up, today is your time to enter the temple, so all of you better behave yourselves. Especially you!"

The person he specifically mentioned was Zhou You.

However, the person only made an extremely innocent expression in response.

These past few days he has kept a low profile. Apart from eating, drinking, and using the restroom, he has stayed in the prison van and hasn't moved an inch. He hasn't caused any trouble, and his presence has almost disappeared.

However, Xuan Cheng had no intention of letting him off the hook. He first examined him carefully for a while, but did not whip him. Instead, he chuckled coldly.

"Don't look at me like that. I'd love for you to make a mistake in front of those old monsters. If you offend me, I'll just kill you, but if you offend them, hehehehehehe."

Xuan Cheng didn't finish his sentence, but ended with a sinister and vicious laugh.

Before long, the children were lined up in a row, with Xuancheng and several Taoist priests leading the way.

but.

As he passed the carriage at the front—the one his martial uncle was riding in—Xuan Cheng still lowered his head and respectfully greeted him.

"Uncle-Master, Xuancheng is leaving."

There was no reply from inside the carriage.

Hanxuzi, who was guarding him, shook his head, his expression somewhat heavy.

Xuan Cheng quickly understood what it meant, bowed again, and then left without looking back.

Just as Zhou You was passing by, he suddenly heard some faint sounds coming from the carriage.

It's not that the response was delayed, but rather... how should I put it?
It was like the sound of insects rubbing against each other as they crawled, a particularly eerie sound.

The mountain paths were exceptionally difficult to traverse.

It's unclear what Xuancheng's intentions were, but he deliberately bypassed the main road to the temple and instead chose a rugged and difficult path.

These children were all quite young and generally malnourished. Coupled with the hardships of the journey, including the cold and hunger, many of them were already showing signs of exhaustion. Even so, they gritted their teeth and squeezed out their last bit of strength to keep up with Xuan Cheng's pace.

after all.

Those who lacked willpower, were too weak, or had little perseverance had already died halfway through.

As for the rest, no matter what, they are absolutely top-notch in terms of 'enduring hardship'.

I don’t know how long it took.

After climbing another uphill slope, a winding, long blue stone wall and a vermilion gate came into view.

Upon finally reaching the destination, many children could no longer hold on and collapsed instantly—including the little girl named Lin Yunshao. Seeing that she was about to sit down on the ground, Zhou You shook his head, reached out, and quietly supported her small body.

as predicted.

The next second, several whips lashed out, causing the children who dared to sit down to scream in agony.

"Did I tell you to sit down? Alright, now that we're up the mountain, I'll teach you your first lesson."

Xuan Cheng gripped his riding whip, pointed at the children, and said with a sinister grin.

“Inside the temple, you are at the very bottom. Don’t think that just because you’ve entered the temple you’re my junior brothers. Your current status is even lower than that of the livestock in the back mountains. So from now on, if I tell you to stand, you stand; if I tell you to rest, you rest. Do you understand?”

The children, already terrified of being beaten, dared not utter a word, and simply gathered together as quickly as possible—even those who had been whipped until they were covered in blood.

Seeing this, Xuan Cheng nodded in satisfaction and then knocked on the vermilion door.

A moment later, a lazy voice came over.

"Who?"

Who would have expected.

Upon hearing this voice, Xuan Cheng, who had been displaying a vicious demeanor, suddenly bent down and put on a fawning smile.

"Senior sister, it's me, Xuancheng."

The speed at which it changed its expression was like that of a lapdog.

However, it took quite a while before a response came from inside the door.

"Why so late? Has the goods arrived?"

Xuan Cheng nodded and bowed in response.

"There was a minor mishap along the way. We encountered a powerful monster, but fortunately, my martial uncle intervened, and we had a scapegoat, so we didn't suffer too many losses. However, it did delay us considerably, which is why we're only arriving now."

Silence again.

A moment later, the vermilion gate was slowly opened.

The next moment, almost everyone's expression froze.

The woman leaning against the door.

Very beautiful woman.

No, perhaps the word 'beautiful' alone is insufficient to describe it.

She was wearing a Taoist robe, but the front was not fastened, leaving large swathes of her snow-white skin exposed to the air. Her face was as beautiful as a flower, with a slight upturn at the corners of her mouth, but her eyes were half-closed as if she hadn't woken up yet, and she even yawned lazily.

This woman was like a blooming rose; simply by leaning lazily against the door frame, she exuded a beauty that was beyond compare.

however.

Xuan Cheng dared not raise his head, not even for a single glance.

They didn't even dare to speak first.

The woman scanned the crowd before speaking in a seemingly bored manner.

"It seems there aren't any good goods available this time. Master and the others are just about to hold an initiation ceremony for the next batch of goods, so you can just happen to be able to join them."

Xuan Cheng quickly agreed, and then planned to lead the group of children to continue up the mountain.

But before he could take a few steps, the woman suddenly said something.

"stop."

Xuan Cheng obeyed perfectly and immediately stopped in his tracks.

Without his guidance, the children also stopped, looking completely bewildered.

The woman paid no heed to any of this. With her graceful figure, she seemed completely unconcerned about the fact that her private parts were exposed—the proper Taoist robe looked like a prostitute's attire on her—and then walked step by step to the middle of the group, stopping in front of Zhou You.

What are you looking at? Trying to drive a big truck?
Zhou You took a small step back, feeling a little uncomfortable—but the woman only glanced at him a few more times before walking to the back of the line.

Finally, at the very end, they picked up a dusty but still somewhat handsome little boy.

"Although the quality is a bit poor, it's still barely edible. Junior Brother Xuancheng, I'll take this." Upon hearing this, Xuancheng immediately became anxious.

"Senior sister, these people have already been counted at the foot of the mountain. If you take one, I won't be able to explain it to my uncles and grandmasters later."

The woman laughed heartily, her smile both alluring and utterly unconcerned.

"Then we can make up for it later. Anyway, quite a few will be allocated to my department. I'm just withdrawing it in advance. As those businessmen would say, it's just a loan."

"Grandma, you make it sound so easy, but how am I supposed to explain this later?"
Unfortunately, Xuan Cheng ultimately showed no intention of resisting and could only watch helplessly as the woman carried the boy away. In the end, he could only lash out with his whip in a fit of rage.

"You son of a bitch, so what if you're a higher generation? One day when I rise to power, I'll make you pay!"

However, he was only halfway through his rant when he suddenly noticed the envious looks on the faces of the oldest children in the group, and he abruptly burst into laughter.

Surprisingly, Xuan Cheng didn't whip them, but instead tapped each of their heads with the whip handle.

"Let me give you a friendly reminder: don't envy that kid. That place is the most dangerous place in the entire temple. If he falls into someone else's hands, he might be tortured and then find a way out, but if he falls into her hands..."

Xuan Cheng chuckled and then continued walking inside.

After passing through the side hall, you arrive at the mountain gate in no time.

—And then, there were countless people.

Honestly, Zhou You hadn't seen many villages or towns along the way, and he originally thought this was some remote place—or perhaps it had just suffered a major disaster a few years ago. Who would have thought that as soon as he entered, he was almost squeezed out of the place by the crowd.

Fortunately, those dressed as commoners recognized Xuan Cheng. The moment they saw the Taoist robe, they hurriedly knelt down and respectfully kowtowed repeatedly.

As for Xuan Cheng, his expression changed again at this moment.

He now had that dignified, otherworldly look on his face. He first told the people to get up, then explained the rules for offering incense inside the temple, before leading the children out of the crowd.

Seeing the confused looks in their eyes, Xuan Cheng smiled.

"You're probably curious why the temple is so popular, right? No problem, it's not a big deal. I can tell you—this whole area for hundreds of miles around is protected by our Five Elements Temple. Without us, they would be eaten by those ghosts the next day. Naturally, they have to go to great lengths to please us. You'll understand once you've been here a while. We're not far from the main hall, so hurry up."

— Xuancheng's statement that it wasn't far was indeed not that far.

After bypassing the mountain gate and climbing another remote mountain path, the group finally arrived at their destination.

According to Zhou You's memory, this should be the location of the Ancestral Hall in the Taoist temple—but at this moment, in his view, there is only a dark room, and even though it is broad daylight, it exudes a chilling aura.

Xuan Cheng dared not delay. He left the group of children behind and carefully went in through the side door. After a while, he came out with a look of lingering fear and then greeted them.

"Alright, the patriarch didn't blame you for anything. The last group just left, so come in."

Although they were terrified and even a little scared, the children obediently followed Xuan Cheng into the eerie building.

—It was also very dark inside.

In the large room, only a dozen or so candlesticks cast a dim light, and seven or eight people sat on futons on either side, their faces obscured by the hazy light. At the far end of the room, there was a large bed surrounded by curtains, from which a strong, pungent medicinal scent emanated and permeated the entire space.

Xuan Cheng quickly told the children to kneel down, and then he also kowtowed.

"Disciple Xuancheng pays respects to Master, Uncle-Master, and Grandmaster!"

Neither side responded.

Even though Xuan Cheng's 'master' was among them, no one spoke. Their gazes were cold and indifferent, devoid of any emotion.

After a while, the person behind the curtain finally spoke.

"Cough cough cough cough, is he Cang Haizi's disciple?"

Xuan Cheng kowtowed forcefully on the ground several times.

"Yes. This disciple pays respects to the Ancestral Master!"

Ancestor?

Zhou You slightly raised his head from behind.

It looks mysterious, almost like Empress Dowager Cixi. Could this also be an obsession?

However, the moment he mentioned this idea, it seemed that a gaze swept over from behind the curtain.

Upon seeing this, Zhou You quickly lowered his head, not daring to entertain any further thoughts.

His gaze swept across the area quickly, and after a moment, the person behind the curtain spoke again.

"Only three batches of disciples arrived this year. I already know about your situation. Although there were some twists and turns, it's not your fault. I've already given the instructions for what to do next. You can go and collect your rewards now. Go ahead."

Upon hearing this, Xuan Cheng dared not say another word and left through the door.

The room fell silent.

The patriarch and the people around him remained silent, and the children, being at the very bottom of society, naturally dared not utter a sound; few even dared to raise their heads.

Time passed slowly, and after an unknown amount of time, the patriarch finally spoke again.

Surprisingly, compared to his previous dry, lifeless tone, his voice sounded incredibly kind at this moment.

"Alright, why are you all so tense? Anyone who didn't know better would think that our Five Elements Sect is a cannibalistic sect. Stand up. No, sit down."

Then, the figure behind the curtain gave instructions to the other side.

"Non-action."

A tall figure immediately stood up and responded.

"The disciple is here."

"I don't know how that kid took care of them. They're all pale and thin, like they're about to starve to death. Go to the kitchen and get some food and water, then have them bring it over."

The tall figure nodded in agreement, then turned and left.

Before long, several Taoist priests came in carrying a pile of bags. First, like Xuancheng, they bowed to each of the children in a circle, and then they distributed the bags to all the children.

Zhou You opened one and glanced inside.

Then, he stared blankly for a few seconds.

The bag contained very little: a plump, pickled chicken, two white flour buns, and a bowl of water from a leather bag.

In later times, it wouldn't be much; it's worth at most a few dozen yuan outside. But in this world...
This was the first time he had seen a fleshy star since he entered the script.

Not to mention the children, some of whom couldn't contain themselves and had already started drooling—and the patriarch was very understanding, smiling as he spoke.

"These are all things that were rushed out in a hurry, don't worry about them, eat up, we can talk about it after we finish eating."

His tone was kind, just like that of an elderly neighbor.

Upon hearing this, one child finally couldn't resist breaking off a chicken leg and stuffing it into his mouth—and after that, the others couldn't resist either, and began to feast.

Seeing this scene, a series of laughs came from behind the curtain.

Kind, gentle, and
There was not a trace of malice in it.

(End of this chapter)