There wasn't much to worry about for the rest of the journey; it was just a matter of killing some monk soldiers and slaughtering the Senpou Assassins.
However, in one of the rooms, Xia Yu encountered those Long-arm Centipede things. In the game, the name seemed to be Sen'un, and he had no idea why such a monstrosity would have a name like that.
The name was a total scam compared to its actual appearance, like a girl in an online relationship claiming to be a Ferrari, only to turn out to be a Tiger tank when meeting in person. While it lacked the beauty of a sports car, it did possess a certain militarized aesthetic.
One could only say that Ashina was truly a place of outstanding people and spiritual land, where all sorts of demons and monsters appeared one after another.
A moment later, Xia Yu arrived at the Main Hall of Senpou Temple, built upon the cliffside. This was also the cultivation site for the high-ranking members of Senpou Temple.
But calling it a cultivation site was an understatement; it was more like a demon's den. Not only did it lack the Zen atmosphere of an orthodox temple, but it also exuded an air of eeriness everywhere.
The air was thick with the scent of death and decay, as if wood that should have rotted long ago remained in a state of perpetual, partial decomposition.
And on this wood, swarms of insects that favored dark and damp environments crawled everywhere, with cockroaches and centipedes being the most prominent among them.
Upon entering the Main Hall, Xia Yu flicked out sparks of fire in disgust. These drifting sparks landed on the mutated insects crawling all over the floor.
In an instant, flames erupted. Before the insects could even scurry away, they were reduced to ash by the fire.
If it weren't for the fact that this place connected to the Hall of Illusions, and that the Inner Sanctum where the Rice Maiden resided might be attached to the Main Hall, he would have burned the whole place down long ago.
However, even if he couldn't burn it all, he could still manage to clean up the insects here.
As he walked toward the monks sitting in meditation, the undying centipedes within their bodies seemed to sense danger. They suddenly burst out of the monks' bodies, baring their fangs and claws to threaten the intruder.
Yet, this threat seemed hollow and cowardly; at the very least, the monks parasitized by the undying centipedes were still trembling in fear.
"Oh? You can actually sense danger?" Xia Yu sneered. With a flick of his finger, flames instantly spread across the centipedes, completely engulfing the parasitized monks as well.
In the searing heat, the undying centipedes and the monks were slowly charred. Just seconds later, fresh statues of struggling, blackened charcoal were formed.
After dealing with this Infested, Xia Yu continued his cleanup through the Main Hall. He didn't spare a single one of the seated monks, nor any of the other insects still crawling on the ground.
However, when he came before an old monk in green robes, the old monk actually spoke.
"Oh, forgive me, Children of Corruption... Only that child remains. It must be very lonely, living in seclusion all alone, so lonely..."
The old monk was as thin as a stick, looking as terrifying as a Sokushinbutsu, constantly muttering about his regrets.
But when Xia Yu stood before him, he stopped his whispered repentance and raised his dim, yellowed eyes.
"Hmm? Who are you? What have you come to Senpou Temple for?"
"Me?" Xia Yu looked at the repenting old monk before him, flames igniting in his palm. "I'm here to send you all to hell."
Looking at the still-lucid old monk, he remembered—this was one of the few monks in the game who actually repented for his actions.
But repentance was useless. The dead were gone, and remorse couldn't bring those deceased children back to life. Nor did he have any desire to forgive the perpetrator on behalf of the victims.
"Ah, so it is." The old monk's voice was hoarse, seemingly aware that he couldn't escape death, yet he still pleaded, "I do not fear death, but I have a request."
"That child, that noble child, has always wanted to know the reason for her destiny. If you see her, please deliver this for me..."
"By what right!" Xia Yu sneered, cutting off the old monk.
Not expecting Xia Yu to say this, the old monk said urgently, "But, that child..."
"I mean, by what right does she not get to have her own choice?"
Xia Yu reached out and knocked away the book the old monk had pulled from his robes. On the cover of the book were the words: Holy Chapter: Infested.
"This..." The old monk was suddenly speechless.
"You forcibly turned her into a Child of Corruption without any regard for her wishes. Now, you're wallowing in self-indulgent sentiment, thinking you've repented, yet you're still forcing a destiny that shouldn't belong to her upon her."
"Do you think that by bringing this out and letting her understand the destiny of a Child of Corruption, you can compensate for your past mistakes?"
"Give it a rest. From start to finish, you've been the ones forcing everything onto her. Whether it's her identity as a Child of Corruption or her destiny, it's all just your own wishful thinking."
"She never had a destiny she was required to fulfill. What she needs is her own choice, not the answer you provide."
Scolded like this, the old monk seemed to fall into a trance, unable to utter another word.
But after his cloudy eyes swept over the person before him, he didn't give up. Instead, he shakily bent down, preparing to pick up the discarded Holy Chapter.
Seeing this, Xia Yu coldly picked up the scripture first. Then, right before the old monk's eyes, the book burst into flames with a loud whoosh.
Under the illumination of the fire, the old monk's face appeared utterly terrifying.
"Ah... Ah..."
Staring at the burning Holy Chapter, the old monk opened his mouth and let out a few gasps, unable to speak a single clear word.
Xia Yu showed no mercy. He casually tossed the burning scripture onto the green-robed monk. In an instant, the old monk was also set ablaze.
"Hiss, aaaaah!!"
The undying centipede parasitizing the old monk instantly burst out. Yet, even in the flames, the old monk remained expressionless. Under the searing heat, he and his centipede were gradually reduced to charcoal.
Having dealt with the old monk, Xia Yu didn't bother to finish the rest off one by one. He directly unleashed a rain of fire, burning the remaining monks to charcoal before finally arriving in front of the numerous Buddha statues.
The Buddha statues bore expressions of compassionate mercy, but ironically, what lay before this mercy was an overflow of desire and greed.
On the offering table in front of the statues sat a bell. It was the Illusory Bell that led to the Hall of Illusions. By lightly ringing it, one could enter the Hall of Illusions and play the game of catching monkeys.
Only after catching the monkeys could one meet the Child of Corruption.
Back in the game, catching these monkeys had nearly driven him insane. Even with a walkthrough, it was still infuriating. They were just too damn agile, those three cursed monkeys.
"Ding-ling~"
Xia Yu reached out, picked up the Illusory Bell from the table, and gave it a light shake. An ethereal, crisp chime echoed around him. As space distorted, the scenery before his eyes began to shift.
A second later, he had arrived within a magical space. The main architecture of this space was still that of a Buddhist temple hall.
The Hall of Illusions was based on the real-world temple, so it made sense for its structure to be that of a temple.
Upon entering the Hall of Illusions, two folding screens appeared before Xia Yu. On the screens were paintings of three monkeys in different poses, while the last panel was completely blank.
These four monkeys were the Hear-no-evil Monkey, See-no-evil Monkey, Speak-no-evil Monkey, and the Invisible Monkey.
Seeing the scenery that was identical to the game, the painful memories of catching monkeys flooded back into Xia Yu's mind. In the game, he might have been unable to resist and forced to play their game, but here, he wouldn't be so polite.
Looking at this sturdy yet fragile space, Xia Yu raised both hands, releasing his mental and soul power simultaneously. In an instant, the entire Hall of Illusions began to shake, as if heaven and earth were collapsing.