Yellow Skinned Taoist Master

Chapter 136: Master's Dark Cyan Robe

"Huang Er, I'm scared."

"Stop talking — the more you say, the more frightened I get."

The Brass Oil Lamp and Chen Huangpi surveyed the Old Temple's surroundings with wide, fearful eyes.

Though no evil spirits lurked nearby.

It was as though every one of them had deliberately avoided these areas where the great treasures were kept.

But far from feeling safe.

Both boy and lamp felt a terror that rose from the very marrow of their bones.

A vast formation was hidden within the Old Temple.

Nine great treasures channeling Azure Heaven's death qi. Three thousand immortals serving as formation nodes. All to construct this one formation.

Such an extravagant undertaking — if this Old Temple wasn't suppressing Azure Heaven itself.You could beat the Brass Oil Lamp and Chen Huangpi to death and they wouldn't believe otherwise.

"Azure Heaven might have turned into an evil spirit too."

Chen Huangpi said in a small voice. "Master imprisoned it in the Old Temple. But the formation is missing several components — it's definitely unstable. Let's hurry. I don't want to stay here."

"Keep going. Keep going."

The Brass Oil Lamp's voice was equally faint. "The Guanzhu's robe is up ahead. I can already sense evil spirits in that direction — it's dangerous. Let's rush over there."

Though they'd spent a good while weaving back and forth.

In reality, they'd been drawing closer and closer to the path.

Chen Huangpi had barely walked for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

Then he immediately felt the surrounding environment shift.

Everything was still that same ashen grey.

Many areas were still swallowed by darkness.

The crimson moon overhead still radiated its chilling cold.

But Chen Huangpi felt an inexplicable sense of peace.

In the distance, he spotted a temple.

It was large, standing solitary within the Old Temple grounds.

Chen Huangpi was about to walk toward it.

When the Brass Oil Lamp suddenly warned, "Something's coming."

The moment those words fell, the lamplight went dark.

Chen Huangpi ducked his head.

Boy and lamp melded instantly into the darkness.

Chen Huangpi could feel the Brass Oil Lamp emitting a strange power that wrapped around both of them. Though they appeared to be in total darkness, it was as if they'd slipped into another dimension entirely.

The Brass Oil Lamp explained, "The Third Guanzhu may have beaten the corrupted lamp oil out of me, but not all of it had been tainted. I'm far stronger now than before — there are many techniques I can use."

"This particular power was taught to me by the Stone Pagoda — a first-class concealment art."

"Huang Er, the Stone Pagoda isn't Huang Yi. It's no relation to you. Why would it teach you anything?"

"Because of my boundless potential, naturally."

The Brass Oil Lamp averted its gaze. "Aside from the Nine Separation Bell and the sword, the others all taught me a thing or two. They all had excellent relations with me."

"Really?"

"Of course. When have I ever lied to you?"

The Brass Oil Lamp said this without so much as a blush or a stammer.

In truth, there was no "boundless potential." There were no "excellent relations."

It had wheedled, flattered, declared each one its big boss, and played every side to learn what scraps of skill it could.

But the Brass Oil Lamp would never admit to any of this.

If Chen Huangpi ever learned about its humiliating past, it might as well be dead.

And yet.

Chen Huangpi and the Brass Oil Lamp knew each other far too well.

One look at the lamp.

And Chen Huangpi knew it was lying.

But before he could call it out.

The thing the Brass Oil Lamp had warned about arrived.

It was enormous — nearly thirty meters tall.

Its upper body was bare. It had no head. Its breasts served as eyes and its navel as a mouth. One hand gripped an axe-like weapon; the other clutched a shield bearing a ghastly, fanged face.

Its aura was deeply unsettling.

One look and Chen Huangpi's scalp went numb.

Other than the evil Buddha head and the evil-spirit form of Yi Qingzhou.

This was the most terrifying evil spirit Chen Huangpi had ever seen.

He couldn't even tell what classification it was — a Calamity, a Misfortune, or something beyond even that.

"Huang Er, what is it?"

"I don't know."

The Brass Oil Lamp shook its head. "I've been in the Hundred Thousand Mountains ever since I was created. Never went outside. But this thing doesn't look like a native evil spirit — maybe it came from the outer world."

It couldn't be sure.

The "outer world" was essentially the mortal realm where Da Kang and the West Region Buddha Kingdom existed.

The Great Qian Immortal Dynasty was also in the mortal realm.

"If only the Vast-Sight God were still here."

Chen Huangpi said gloomily. "He was from the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty and had seen much of the world. He'd definitely know what this thing is."

"Look — it's heading toward the temple."

At those words.

Chen Huangpi looked up.

The headless creature was walking toward the temple, axe in hand.

The temple had no door.

Inside, he could faintly make out a blurry silhouette.

Chen Huangpi knew it was no silhouette — it was his master's robe.

"Huang Er, get me over there — now!"

Chen Huangpi snarled through gritted teeth. "This thing has no head — Master probably cut it off. It can't beat Master, so it's taking its frustration out on his robe. I won't let it!"

"Buddy, calm down."

The Brass Oil Lamp whispered. "This thing radiates sheer terror. Even if both of us went in together, we'd be no match for it."

"I know!"

Chen Huangpi explained. "We're hidden in the dark — the enemy's in the open. We sneak in, grab Master's robe, and run." "Hurry — go, go!"

He watched as the creature entered the temple, drawing closer and closer to his master's robe. There was no way he could sit still.

The Brass Oil Lamp had no choice.

It enveloped Chen Huangpi and raced ahead, maintaining the concealment art at full power, arriving at the temple entrance just before the creature.

The temple was vast, yet held nothing but a single dark cyan robe.

Before Master had gone mad, the robe he wore had been neither purple, nor white, nor cyan.

It had been dark cyan.

Simple, ancient, imbued with the essence of the Dao.

The robe hung on a wooden frame.

Below the frame sat a large altar table.

On the table stood a censer, flanked by two candles that had burned to stubs.

It looked like someone had been coming here regularly to pay homage.

The Brass Oil Lamp said in bewilderment, "How strange. The Guanzhu isn't dead. Why would his robe be displayed like this? Talk about inauspicious."

Among mortals, there was such a thing as a cenotaph.

If one wished to pay constant respects to the departed, one might hang the deceased's clothing at home.

And if the family was wealthy enough.

Building a dedicated temple was no great matter.

The arrangement here was exactly that.

Chen Huangpi understood, of course — but right now, he had no time to dwell on it.

Because behind him, the headless thing — with breasts for eyes and navel for a mouth — was already approaching, on the verge of stepping inside.

Chen Huangpi didn't dare waste another second.

He dashed forward in three bounding strides, leaped onto the altar table, and reached for his master's robe to stow it in the Soul-Hooking Manual.

But just as he was about to.

The Brass Oil Lamp yelped. "Chen Huangpi, if you take the robe now, that thing will know we're in here. If it blocks the doorway, we'll be trapped with no way out."

"Then what do we do?"

"Wait for it to leave."

The Brass Oil Lamp gritted its teeth. "The Guanzhu's robe isn't ordinary. This creature may be powerful, but it might not be able to damage it. Otherwise, why would the Third Guanzhu bother having you come here to retrieve it?"

Chen Huangpi sighed in reluctant acceptance.

He had no choice but to stand atop the altar, glaring at the thing as it approached his master's robe.

If this creature dared lay a hand on it.

He would fight it to the death.

But the next instant.

Something he never expected occurred.

The creature entered the temple, set down its axe and shield behind it, then opened its navel-mouth wide. From inside it, two hands drew out a pair of fresh candles.

It replaced the burnt-out candles on the altar table.

Then, from its mouth, it produced a bundle of incense sticks.

The incense ignited spontaneously.

Clutching the bundle, the creature knelt before the robe on the altar and began to prostrate.

Three kneels. Nine kowtows.

But at that very moment, Chen Huangpi was standing on the altar, directly in front of the robe — hidden by the Brass Oil Lamp's concealment art. So the creature wasn't bowing to the robe.

It was bowing to Chen Huangpi.

"It's been the one paying homage here all along."

Chen Huangpi said in surprise. "Could this whole setup be its doing?"

Hearing this.

The Brass Oil Lamp looked around the temple's interior in confusion.

This temple was nothing like the Pure Immortal Temple's construction — it was crudely built from mud, looking both humble and completely out of place.

If you said the Daoists had built it, that didn't add up either.

Perhaps this creature truly had built it.

"Now that you mention it... that really is possible."

The Brass Oil Lamp's mind brimmed with questions. "But why would it do this? It's not one of our Pure Immortal Temple's own."

The Pure Immortal Temple had many Daoists.

Those Daoists had all become evil spirits after death.

Whether any of them, like Yi Qingzhou, lay buried in the God-Burying Mound remained unknown.

But this creature before them was clearly no former disciple.

Thump, thump, thump...

The thing knocked its forehead against the ground nine times, then rose and planted the bundle of incense in the censer.

Afterward, it opened its great mouth and silently began to speak.

"Its throat bone has been removed!"

The Brass Oil Lamp noticed that the creature had no throat bone.

Just like the Vast-Sight God had been — possessed of intelligence and consciousness, but unable to speak human language.

Because its true form likewise had no throat bone.

However.

Chen Huangpi wore a peculiar expression. "But I think I know what it's saying."

"You can lip-read?"

"I can't lip-read. I just... know."

"What is it saying?"

"It says: 'By the mandate of the Heaven Dao, in the seventeen-thousand-four-hundredth year of the Dao Calendar — a condemned citizen of the Celestial Realm hereby pays respects to the Dao Lord. I beseech the Dao Lord to show mercy beyond the law and bestow an Ascension Token.'"

At this, Chen Huangpi said with displeasure. "My Ascension Tokens all belonged to Yi Qingzhou. This thing just kowtows a few times and lights some incense and candles and expects Master to hand one over? What shamelessness."

"A condemned citizen of the Celestial Realm? Could it be a celestial being?"

The Brass Oil Lamp mused. "The Celestial Realm isn't composed entirely of immortals. It also has mortals — only those mortals are extraordinarily powerful, with lifespans far exceeding ordinary people, yet incapable of ever becoming true immortals. They're called celestial beings."

"The so-called heavenly soldiers and generals are exactly that."

"Did this celestial being say anything else?"

"It did!"

Chen Huangpi said through clenched teeth. "It says it's a condemned citizen with only days left to live. If Master doesn't grant it an Ascension Token, it will spend whatever time it has left guarding this temple. And even in death, it will continue pleading with Master to pardon its sins."

The Brass Oil Lamp said in alarm. "If it doesn't leave, then how do we leave? If we don't get out before dawn, we'll be trapped in here for good."