The people in the Demon Path have been away for a long time, and it is not easy to follow the traces.

The tracking skills on the rivers and lakes are quite exquisite, and there are also many ways to judge the shape and track the enemy, Hua Bushi and Li Hu can be regarded as experts in this way, but no matter how good their tracking skills are, they are still not as strong as another master in the team.

This great master is the princess.

Some things require talent, and no one's nose can be as sensitive as a dog, not to mention that the big white dog has the noble bloodline of the authentic "French Bear Hunting Dog", and is a natural hunter.

During the previous fight, the iron-masked giant had thrown down a cloak, and Hua Bushi brought it to the princess and sniffed it for a while. The big white dog raised his head and snorted a few times, and then set off with everyone.

At Hua Bushi's command, the princess stretched out her nose to smell the air, and ran on all fours, while everyone followed closely on horseback, and soon traveled several miles.

The road was all through the mountains and forests, surrounded by trees, and the ground was full of dead branches and leaves, and when it came to the dense woods, it was difficult for the horses to gallop, and several times they had to slow down to pass.

In the first part of the tracking, some broken branches and scratches were often seen in the trees below, and traces of people could be seen on the grass and dirt, but after five or six miles, these traces disappeared, and further on, there was no sign of anyone ever passing through.

Liu Yuanhe couldn't help frowning, and said, "There are two hundred of those demon thieves, but there are no footprints in the woods here, are we following the wrong direction?"

Hua Bushi said: "The princess's sense of smell should not be wrong, there are no footprints here, presumably the other party deliberately eliminated the traces." ”

He took a deep breath and said, "There are two hundred people in these demons, and they are carrying the wounded, and they can walk through this forest without leaving a trace, which shows that they are not weak, and they are cautious and cautious, and they have long been wary of tracking. ”

Everyone followed the direction of the princess and began to go east, but after a while, they turned south, Daimei Mountain was originally at the eastern foot of Wangwu Mountain, and Fugui Villa was located in the northwest.

This walked out of more than ten miles, and the big white dog still led a group of people to wait in the deep mountains and old forests, and according to the distance traveled, this should be near Yuyang Mountain in Jiyuan County. If it weren't for the princess's sense of smell to guide the way, I'm afraid I would have lost it a long time ago.

However, after walking for several miles, even the master of tracking could no longer lead the way, because there was a babbling stream in front of him.

The creek in this mountain field is five or six feet wide, not too deep, and can be easily crossed on horseback. But the princess could smell only as far as the stream, and when she crossed the stream, the big white dog went back and forth on the shore a few times, but could no longer smell the smell that could be traced.

"I think the other party didn't cross the stream, but followed the stream, but I don't know if they were going upstream or downstream. Hua Bushi judged.

Because the stream is constantly flowing, the smell on the surface of the water will not remain, and if those people in the demon path walk along the stream, the princess's sense of smell will be useless no matter how sensitive it is.

Hua Bushi instructed: "Li Hu, you take some Thunderbolt Camp disciples and search along this stream to see if you can find some traces." ”

Li Hu responded and ordered twenty knights from each of the two banners to search the upper and lower reaches of the stream, but after the tea time, the two teams returned one after another, but they did not find anything.

Chu Yiyi said: "Those people in the demon path have left no traces at all, and there is no smell to follow, it seems that we can't chase anymore!"

Hua Bushi pondered for a moment and said, "Those people in the Demon Dao went to raid, all on foot and not on horseback, and according to common sense, their assembly place must not be too far away. We have now traced fifteen or sixteen miles, and if they had not deliberately led us in the wrong direction, we would have almost reached their assembly point. ”

Chu Yiyi said: "But in this barren mountain range, where is there any place where two hundred people can survive?"

Hua Bushi said: "I don't think their place of existence will be in the mountains, we might as well search around here separately to see if there are any villages, houses or cottages within a few miles of the vicinity, and maybe we can get something." ”

Since there is no other way, it is only necessary to use dead horses as live horse doctors.

Hua Bushi immediately divided the group into eight groups, and searched in different directions, agreeing to send a fireworks signal in case of danger, and if there was no accident, he would return to the stream to rendezvous after an hour.

The move paid off.

After an hour, eight groups of people returned, and although they did not find village houses or cottages, they found a Taoist temple behind a mountain seven or eight miles to the southeast.

After half a pillar of incense, Hua Bushi led everyone to climb the hillside, and the Taoist temple appeared in front of their eyes.

Looking at it from a high place, the Taoist temple is actually located in a low flat place between the mountains and gorges, the peaks on both sides are very steep and straight, and the valley is full of green trees, the scenery is very good, a corner of the Taoist archway is revealed from between the branches and leaves of the ancient trees, quite a bit of elegant meaning.

Li Hu said: "It must be unusual for this Taoist temple to be built in this barren mountain and wilderness, most of it is the hiding place of the demon thieves, let's rush in together and kill them by surprise!"

Hua Bushi shook his head and said, "It's not proper." There are more than two hundred people in the Demon Dao, this Taoist temple is not big, it doesn't look like their lair, the princess has not reacted yet, and she can't smell the previous smell, which means that the iron-masked giant has not arrived. And even if there is a problem with this view, it is not a good idea to rush into it. ”

Li Hu said: "Okay, what should the boss say?"

Hua Bushi said: "You stay here for the time being, I, Ximen Tong, and Elder Liu will dress up as tourists and go to that Taoist temple to investigate." ”

Chu Yiyi said: "How can this be done, if that Taoist temple is really a thief's hole, wouldn't the son go to the net like this!"

Hua Bushi said: "Since the people in the Demon Dao don't want to reveal their traces, we will only pretend to be tourists to go to the Dao to take a look, I think they won't do it, besides, Elder Liu's martial arts are strong, with his protection, there will be no problem." ”

If it was an ordinary enemy, Hua Bushi would be protected by two masters, Ximen Tong and Liu Yuanhe, and naturally there would be no danger. However, the terrifying people in the Demon Dao are extraordinary, and others are just fine, the strength of the iron-masked giant is really unrivaled, seeing that this eldest young master is going to go to danger in person, Chu Yiyiyu's face couldn't help but show worry.

Hua Bushi smiled slightly, and said, "Mrs. Yiyi don't worry, if we really encounter danger, we will send a signal, and it will not be too late for you to rush down to respond." ”

Li Hu, Chu Yiyi, Meng Huan, Thunderbolt Camp and Qingyunwei all stayed on the hillside, Hua Bushi called the big white dog princess to his side, and rode down the hill with Liu Yuanhe and Ximen Hitomi, heading towards the Taoist temple.

From the hillside, the scenery of this Taoist temple is very good, and when you get closer, you can feel more quiet and elegant. In front of the Taoist temple is a curved bluestone path, on both sides of the road are thick locust trees, many branches are intertwined, it is obvious that it is an ancient tree that has grown for hundreds of years.

The archway in front of the mountain gate is made of bluestone, although it is not high, but it is the eaves picturesque, built very exquisitely, there are four seal words inscribed on the horizontal plaque in front of the door: "Lingdu wonderland".

Seeing the words of this plaque, Hua Bushi suddenly said: "I heard that in the canyon of Yuyang Mountain in Jiyuan, there is a 'Lingdu Temple', which is the place where Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty pardoned and forgave his royal sister Princess Yuzhen to become a monk in ancient times. ”

Liu Yuanhe said: "Yes, the name of 'Lingdu Temple' has also been heard by Elder Ben, which can be regarded as one of the famous places in northern Henan, but I have never been here, but I don't know how this view can be so deserted?"

This Taoist temple is indeed very deserted, but after seeing the archway, the two mountain gates are closed, and the outside of the door and the road are empty, and even a person who makes incense can't see it.

The three of them galloped to the foot of the front steps of the mountain gate, and then they dismounted, tied their mounts to the trees by the roadside, and walked up the stone steps, and the princess also wagged her tail and followed closely behind Hua Bushi.

Ximen Tong stretched out his hand and slapped the door more than ten times, but there was no movement in the door. It was only after a long time that the black lacquer door "creaked" and was pulled open by a small crack.

A head poked out of the crack in the door, but it was a twelve or thirteen-year-old little Taoist girl. But I saw that she was wearing a blue gown, and her black hair was coiled into a bun on the top of her head, pinned with a wooden hairpin.

Xiao Daogu looked the three people outside the door up and down, and then glanced at the big white dog squatting on the side, and said to Hua Bushi: "This son came to our spiritual capital to watch, is there anything wrong?"

Among the three, Ximen Hitomi was originally dressed in a short shirt, Liu Yuanhe was also wearing a black cloth shirt to play a horse thief, and only Hua Bushi wore a brocade flower robe, and the clothes and accessories were very luxurious. This little Daoist aunt asked him, thinking that he was the master, and Ximen Tong and Liu Yuanhe were both servants.

Hua Bushi arched his hand and said: "This fairy boy is invited! This young master's surname is Hua, he came from Kaifeng City, I heard that the Lingdu Temple of Yuyang Mountain is a famous spot in northern Henan, I want to come to the incense to worship, by the way, I wonder if the fairy child can let us in?"

The little Dao Gu's little head shook from side to side, and said, "Master said that this Taoist temple is a place for our monks to practice, and outsiders are not allowed to come in and visit casually. ”

She glanced at the five or six golden jade wrenches on Hua Bushi's fingers, and said, "It's not ......."

Hua Bushi said: "But what?"

Xiao Daogu said: "But Master also said that if there are devout believers who are willing to donate money to the Daoists of this meditation, they can be an exception. ”

Even immortals love money, and monks who are still cultivating and have not yet become immortals are of course even more vulgar.