To be honest, Lin Chen really fell for that. A woman, after all, needs to be gentle, weak, and a bit cutesy to make a man feel protective.
Mu Ningxue understood Lin Chen very well and naturally knew his preferences. Seeing Lin Chen easily manipulated by Jiang Shaoxu, she felt secretly pleased.
"Alright, big brother will accompany you guys for a trip!" Lin Chen said, somewhat reluctantly.
Jiang Shaoxu smiled and hooked her arm through Lin Chen's, saying, "Let's go, my dear big brother!"
...
Lin Chen, with a woman on each arm, left Yanming Temple. Under many envious gazes, they finally reached the city.
Once in the city, the atmosphere became lively. Nishikuma City was very clean, with unique island-city style slopes, winding mountain roads, and houses built in a staggered fashion on both sides, independent small courtyards, a few old trees—the kind of place where you could spend an entire afternoon...
Along the way, the three chatted and laughed. With Jiang Shaoxu's addition, Mu Ningxue's face held more smiles than before. Jiang Shaoxu would occasionally tease and playfully bicker.
Women are naturally fond of shopping. Upon reaching the more bustling main street, the two women only bought some skincare products and snacks. Even so, they still had a blast shopping.
As they were about to head back, they spotted an izakaya. It was located at the intersection of two less busy streets, backed by a rising hill, adorned with lanterns and wooden boards displaying dishes in Little Japan language!
As soon as Jiang Shaoxu saw such a small izakaya, she seemed to lose all resistance. She said to Mu Ningxue, "Come on, let's have a few drinks!"
Perhaps Mu Ningxue had always lived like a good girl, and finally having a 'best friend' with a contrasting personality by her side, out of curiosity, Mu Ningxue nodded without hesitation. The two women, without waiting for Lin Chen's consent, walked directly into the izakaya!
Little Japan's sake isn't high in alcohol content, but it has a strong kick. After a few drinks, Jiang Shaoxu and Mu Ningxue's little faces turned rosy. Perhaps it was the effect of the alcohol; between the two women's every gesture, there was a hint of enchanting, alluring freedom, but more so, a haziness in their eyes.
All three had awakened their Spirit, and their physiques were very strong, making it difficult for them to get truly drunk, no matter how much they drank!
The izakaya owner was in good Spirits and started chatting with the three. Upon learning that they were staying at Yanming Temple, he even shared some stories about the temple.
After eating and drinking their fill, Lin Chen escorted the two women out of the izakaya. As the saying goes, it's not the wine that intoxicates, but the person themselves. In such a beautiful setting and good time, Lin Chen was already in the mood. On the way back, he found an uninhabited place, and Lin Chen brought the two women back to the Spirit Realm.
Suddenly changing environments to a beautiful paradise shocked Jiang Shaoxu. After Lin Chen's explanation, Jiang Shaoxu finally calmed her mind.
At the same time, Mu Ningxue realized why Lin Chen had suddenly brought them back to the Spirit Realm.
But when she figured it out, she found it was too late. Lin Chen had already brought the two women back to the bedroom in the Spirit Realm.
For a moment, the atmosphere in the room became ambiguous. The two women, already a bit tipsy, yielded to Lin Chen under his gentle persuasion, allowing Lin Chen to experience a different kind of sensation!
Late at night, the three successively washed up and left the Spirit Realm. Although the living environment in the Spirit Realm was very comfortable, they still chose to return to Yanming Temple. After all, it was an expedition, and leaving the team always felt a bit off.
After this wonderful memory, the 'best friend' bond between Jiang Shaoxu and Mu Ningxue became even stronger. The bond forged through shared experiences is not to be trifled with.
The three quickly returned to Yanming Temple. The temple residents usually didn't turn on electric lights to save money, typically using oil lamps, which was indeed very ancient. However, when Lin Chen and the two returned, the electric lights were on, and they could already see the blurry shadows emanating from the houses, with people walking back and forth inside.
"Did you find him?" Ai Jiangtu asked.
"No, he seems to have really disappeared!" Jiang Yu said.
As the two were talking, Lin Chen and the two pushed the door open, and a group of people's gazes immediately shot over, as if they had seen a ghost.
"What's wrong? What happened?" Seeing the strange atmosphere in the room, Jiang Shaoxu asked curiously.
"Zhao Manyan is in trouble. He's currently unconscious, his soul having fallen into a deep sleep," Nan Jue said.
"Are there really ghosts trying to take souls?" Jiang Shaoxu asked in surprise.
Ai Jiangtu asked, "Do you know what's going on?"
Jiang Shaoxu explained, "People down the mountain say that this temple often has soul-snatching incidents, and the victims are all men..."
The more Jiang Shaoxu spoke, the more frightened she became, her voice even trembling!
Girls, after all, are afraid of things like ghosts and Spirits!
Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions turned very grim. Mo Fan seemed to have thought of something and asked Lin Chen, "Brother Chen, do you know how to solve this?"
In Mo Fan's heart, Lin Chen was somewhat mysterious. Lin Chen knew many things that he didn't. Zhao Manyan was also Mo Fan's best friend, so Mo Fan placed very high hopes on Lin Chen.
Lin Chen also briefly explained the soul-snatching incident, serving as supplementary information to Jiang Shaoxu's account.
"Now, for Zhao Manyan to recover, we must first deal with that ghost!"
"Where is the ghost?" Ai Jiangtu asked. As the captain, he couldn't escape responsibility for a team member's disappearance.
Lin Chen shook his head and said, "When we came back, we didn't notice anything unusual, so the possibility of it being in the back mountain is quite high!"
Ai Jiangtu said, "Let's split into a few groups. But never go alone. A few of you go ask the old monks what strange things are in this temple. A few of you go retrace Zhao Manyan's steps and look out for certain plants, because it's highly likely he was poisoned..."
After Ai Jiangtu's instructions, everyone began to split up. Lin Chen, Mo Fan, Nan Jue, Ai Jiangtu, Jiang Shaoxu, and Mu Ningxue formed one group. Regardless, Zhao Manyan was also from the Imperial Capital Academy, so Lin Chen naturally had to do his part!
Jiang Shaoxu and Mu Ningxue, needless to say, naturally followed Lin Chen. Nan Jue and Ai Jiangtu, however, were more willing to stay in this group. Not only was Lin Chen's team strong, but there wouldn't be any of those scheming issues.
The path up the back mountain was longer than expected. The stone lanterns along the path were already covered by weeds, and even some lush branches extended onto the path, crossing and blocking pedestrians.
Clearly, the plants here were not very welcoming to people entering. Lin Chen directly used fire magic to burn away the weeds in front of them.
The path began to ascend along the slope of the mountain. Just as it extended to a high platform at the edge of the valley, everyone saw a very ancient brick and tile building. It was hidden beneath thick tree canopies and further obscured by weeds and bushes.
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