novelraw Chapter 126: The Mystery of the Old Temple — Where Is the Sword?
Chapter 126: The Mystery of the Old Temple — Where Is the Sword?
Listening to the purple-robed old Daoist.
Chen Huangpi was immediately confused. First Master's words were all over the place.
He seemed to say a great deal, yet nothing at all.
So Chen Huangpi couldn't help but ask, "First Master, what did you go to ask the sun?"
The purple-robed old Daoist replied hazily, "The sun blinded your eyes. But the sun is your master's Yang God. Your master doesn't remember doing it, so he went to ask the sun whether your master had gone mad."
Hearing this.
Chen Huangpi's heart surged with excitement. "What did the sun say?"
Master had never been willing to admit he was mad.
If he was finally willing to acknowledge it, that would mean his condition was showing signs of improvement.
Because a person only knows they're a lunatic when they're lucid.The purple-robed old Daoist shook his head. "The sun said your eyes were blinded by the sun of the outer world."
"That outer sun is so wicked!"
"Worse than Second Master and Third Master combined!"
"Yes, First Master — you're the best."
Chen Huangpi chimed in agreeably.
Earlier, First Master had mentioned that the sun was formed from his Yang God.
Chen Huangpi hadn't understood at the time and had assumed the outer world's sun was the same one.
Now it was clear: there was a difference between the two suns.
"So First Master, the sun of the Hundred Thousand Mountains is your Yang God, right?"
"Naturally."
The purple-robed old Daoist said proudly, "And the moon, too. The moon is your master's Yin God. Sun and moon in rotation, light and dark in alternation."
"Guanzhu, your methods are truly astounding."
The Brass Oil Lamp smiled awkwardly. "Splitting your Primordial Spirit into the sun and moon — does that mean you know everything that happens within the Hundred Thousand Mountains, day and night?"
The purple-robed old Daoist ignored the Brass Oil Lamp.
He simply muttered to himself, "The outer sun is a bad one. The moon is bad too. Once this poor Daoist's sword returns, he'll gouge them both blind."
Chen Huangpi hurried to ask, "First Master, when is the sword coming back?"
The Void-Piercing Sword in his hands.
In essence, it was merely the reflected shadow of his master's sword as it streaked across the sky, glimpsed and imprinted by the Calamity Eye.
Though already peerlessly sharp, it was constrained by the Calamity Eye's fragile constitution.
Unless Chen Huangpi decided he was done playing nice and released that sword shadow entirely, the blade always felt awkward to wield.
Sometimes, the crane-beak pickaxe was even more practical.
Heavy, powerful — one swing, one crater.
And so, Chen Huangpi desperately wanted his master's personal sword.
But the purple-robed old Daoist's gaze drifted into vacancy.
"When is it coming back?"
"Right — why hasn't your master's sword returned yet?"
"What did your master send it to do again?"
"First Master, did you send it to the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty?"
"The Great Qian Immortal Dynasty?"
The purple-robed old Daoist looked northward, then tilted his head. "Where's the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty?"
"Your master doesn't see it anywhere."
"All right."
Chen Huangpi was deeply disappointed.
Master was always like this — lucid one moment, then losing the thread mid-sentence. You could never get a straight answer.
It seemed he wouldn't be getting his hands on that sword.
But his dejection was written plainly on his face. Though he couldn't see, the purple-robed old Daoist read it crystal clear.
"Huangpi, don't be upset."
The purple-robed old Daoist said hastily, "Even without that sword, your master has left you plenty of other treasures. Many people have begged your master for them, and your master refused every single one. Your master is saving them all for you."
"I don't care," Chen Huangpi said. "I want that sword."
"Fine, fine, fine — the sword it is."
The purple-robed old Daoist paced in frantic circles, pounding his head with both fists, gnashing his teeth. "Wretched sword! It's been so long and still hasn't come back — is it trying to make this poor Daoist look foolish?"
"If this poor Daoist looks foolish, the Third will surely poison Huangpi's ears against me."
"The Third can even make candied hawthorns on a stick."
"Given enough time, Huangpi's heart will turn to him instead, and then Huangpi won't look after this poor Daoist in his old age. This is bad — this is very bad!"
Though Chen Huangpi couldn't see, hearing the purple-robed old Daoist's words filled him with a sudden pang of guilt.
"First Master, I'm sorry."
"I shouldn't have thrown a childish tantrum. I don't want the sword anymore."
Chen Huangpi wrapped his arms around the purple-robed old Daoist and said softly, "First Master, in my heart, you've always been all-powerful. You'd never look foolish."
"Your master doesn't believe you."
"Then what do you need me to do before you'll believe me, First Master?"
"Swear an oath. A poisonous oath. Say that the one you love and respect most will always be your First Master — not your Third Master."
"Fine — I swear!"
Chen Huangpi swore immediately: "The one I love and respect most will always be my First Master — not my Third Master, and even less my Second Master. If I break this oath, may I never grow up!"
"Good — your master believes you now!"
As the purple-robed old Daoist said this, a smug grin crept across his face.
Huangpi was still too young.
Though the Second and Third had been leading him astray.
He still wasn't crafty enough.
A few well-chosen words and he'd tricked Huangpi into swearing such a dire oath. The next time the Second or Third dared get uppity, he'd use Huangpi's own words to humiliate them thoroughly.
But what had he sent that sword to do again?
The purple-robed old Daoist stroked Chen Huangpi's head and mumbled under his breath, "The Third was trapped in the Old Temple for all those years — he certainly wouldn't know. But the Second sometimes sneaked out while this poor Daoist was asleep. Maybe he knows more."
"This poor Daoist remembers there was also a sword technique — what was it called..."
"The Life-Slaying Sword Formula?"
Chen Huangpi ventured a guess. "First Master, I know a bit of it."
Back in the Old Temple.
The evil spirit formed from Xu Qingshan's severed arms had been able to execute the techniques its owner had mastered in life.
Among them was the Life-Slaying Sword Formula.
But the severed-arm evil spirit had only demonstrated the opening stance — Soul-Slaying.
Chen Huangpi had learned it, but could never actually use it.
"Life-Slaying Sword Formula?" The purple-robed old Daoist looked puzzled. "This one is also a sword formula, that one is also a sword formula — then it should be this sword formula, right?"
Chen Huangpi asked, "Master, is the Life-Slaying Sword Formula connected to that sword?"
The purple-robed old Daoist answered as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "That sword formula is something your master's sword created on its own. Once you've mastered the formula, you'll have earned the right to draw it. Otherwise, the sword qi alone would wound you."
"Does anyone in the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty know the Life-Slaying Sword Formula?"
The purple-robed old Daoist wagged his head proudly. "All of your master's techniques were left here — not in the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty. And that formula can only be learned by you."
Chen Huangpi's spirits soared.
He immediately felt the urge to charge into the Old Temple right now and learn the complete Life-Slaying Sword Formula from the severed-arm evil spirit.
He was strong now.
He could definitely endure long enough for the evil spirit to demonstrate the entire formula.
But the purple-robed old Daoist seemed to read his thoughts.
He frowned. "The Old Temple is no good. Don't go in there often."
"Then teach me the Life-Slaying Sword Formula yourself, First Master, and I won't have to go."
The purple-robed old Daoist said urgently, "Your master already taught you the Five Viscera Spirit Refining Art! Why do you need the Life-Slaying Sword Formula? Once you've perfected it, you'll be invincible under heaven — far more powerful than the Yin-Yang Harmonization and Spirit Transformation Art the Second taught you."
Chen Huangpi smiled with dawning understanding.
He knew it — First Master simply couldn't remember the complete Life-Slaying Sword Formula.
Couldn't teach it, so he was deflecting.
And throwing in a dig at Second Master while he was at it.
"All right. I won't go to the Old Temple."
"Good — don't."
The purple-robed old Daoist spoke with solemn gravity. "After the sun and moon of the Hundred Thousand Mountains set, they both return to the Old Temple. There's something imprisoned in there that even your master can't handle."
"If it gets out, your master — along with the Second and Third — will all cease to exist."
"It must be kept suppressed."
"The Nine Separation Bell is in there. The Earth Scripture is in there too. The Grand Millstone as well. Huang Er is out here. Hmm... your master seems to remember now what he sent that sword to do."
The purple-robed old Daoist's face lit up with sudden realization. "Your master didn't send it to the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty — your master sent it to find Huang Yi!"
"Ha ha ha!!!!"
"Your master remembers now!"
"Find Huang Yi — once Huang Yi returns, your master can light the heavenly lantern for you!"
The purple-robed old Daoist howled with manic laughter, stumbling and swaying out of the alchemy chamber.
As he ran, he shouted the words "light the heavenly lantern" over and over.
"Once the heavenly lantern is lit, Huangpi's flesh will be even more succulent!"
"Hee hee — this poor Daoist will beat the Second and Third to it and claim first dibs on Huangpi!"
Inside the alchemy chamber.
The Fox Mountain God gaped at the scene in utter disbelief.
It had been at the Pure Immortal Temple for some time now.
But it had spent most of that time cowering in the guest quarters, clinging to survival.
Never in its wildest dreams had it imagined the Guanzhu and Chen Huangpi interacted like this.
Gulp...
The Fox Mountain God swallowed hard and said cautiously, "Chen Huangpi, aren't you scared?"
"Scared of what?"
"The Guanzhu seems like he wants to eat you..."
"First Master would never eat me."
Chen Huangpi frowned. "First Master would only want to refine me into a pill. The one who wants to eat me is Second Master. The one who wants to kill me is Third Master. If you mix them up, you're violating the hierarchy of seniority, and Master will be furious!"
"That's not..."
The Fox Mountain God said in horror, "You clearly know all this — so why don't you run?"
"Why would I run?"
Chen Huangpi said matter-of-factly, "First Master's pill furnace is cozy and warm. Second Master's stomach is also cozy and warm. As for Third Master wanting to kill me — as long as I agree with his reasoning, he'll go kill someone else first."
"Besides, Master is just mad. Once I cure him, he'll go back to the way he used to be."
With that, Chen Huangpi directed the Brass Oil Lamp to prepare the Dispelling Darkness and Restoring Sight Powder.
He had made up his mind.
Heal his eyes as quickly as possible.
Then venture into the Old Temple to learn the complete Life-Slaying Sword Formula — and visit Second Master while he was at it.
Moreover, the sun and moon were two halves of Master's Primordial Spirit.
And both returned to the Old Temple at night.
He absolutely had to go see them. Maybe Master's Yin God and Yang God hadn't gone mad.
The Fox Mountain God didn't know Chen Huangpi's plans.
All it knew was that the Guanzhu was insane.
But was Chen Huangpi really any more normal?
Just then, the Brass Oil Lamp shot the Fox Mountain God a long, meaningful look and whispered via spiritual transmission: "Chen Huangpi has been with the Guanzhu since he was still an egg. Their bond runs deep. You could talk yourself blue and he still wouldn't listen."
"This lamp tried to convince him to leave thousands of years ago. It didn't work."
"Before you and A Gui arrived, the most normal being in this Pure Immortal Temple was yours truly."
Having said that, the Brass Oil Lamp turned to Chen Huangpi. "The Second Guanzhu's favorite food is gods. If you're going to visit him, you can't show up empty-handed, can you?"
Chen Huangpi said with displeasure, "Huang Er, gods are just clay and wood carvings! Eating them gives you an upset stomach! But I do still have Mang Shan Jun in my Soul-Hooking Manual. It's a Calamity, and it has lots of heads — perfect for serving Second Master some monkey brains as a tonic."
"Speaking of — do you want some too?"
"Do you?"
"I'll pass."
"Then I'll pass too."
Listening to this exchange between boy and lamp.
The Fox Mountain God gave a rueful smile.
The Brass Oil Lamp's words were not to be trusted. "I tried to convince Chen Huangpi to leave the Hundred Thousand Mountains" — what a joke.
It communicated with Chen Huangpi so seamlessly.
Could anything about it possibly be normal?
The only normal one in this entire Pure Immortal Temple was clearly the Fox Mountain God itself...
Just then, Chen Huangpi suddenly turned. "Fox Mountain God, would you like some tonic too?"
The Fox Mountain God's eyes lit up. "Yes! Absolutely! I'm so weak right now — I definitely need a good boost!"
Once it had properly fortified itself, it would beg Chen Huangpi to leave the Hundred Thousand Mountains.
It couldn't take this cursed place for a single day more.