Yellow Skinned Taoist Master

Chapter 3: Get In, Master Will Teach You How to Cultivate

"Second Master, the true fire of the alchemy furnace is too fierce. You won't be able to handle it."

"I'll just add more firewood and let it simmer slowly."

Chen Huangpi felt helpless. He had only lied about making medicine by calling it cooking, but who would have thought Second Master was so hungry that he lay down in the pot as soon as it started boiling.

He was worried this might affect the medicine's efficacy.

But Second Master was too stubborn.

Chen Huangpi couldn't persuade him and could only let him be.

In any case, the medicine had to be consumed to take effect inside the body. Stewing the medicinal power into Second Master's body might work just the same.

At this very moment.

Hiding outside the kitchen, concealing their auras to spy, Elder Lin and Zhang Wu were terrified.

They had already tried to imagine Chen Huangpi and his master as being as evil as possible.But now it seemed that a person's perception truly had its limits.

"This is how the kid said he'd cook for us?"

"He's stewing his Second Master?"

"And it seems like this isn't the first time he's done it."

"This is his Second Master. What about his First Master? Could it be..."

Elder Lin and Zhang Wu communicated secretly, both feeling a chill as they thought about it.

The master was not normal.

The disciple seemed even more unsettling.

"What do we do?"

Elder Lin was also in a panic, completely at a loss.

Even though he had cultivated for nearly a hundred years and had encountered countless evils and cultivators, he had never experienced a situation like this.

Zhang Wu was also at a loss. Gritting his teeth, he sent a message, "Run. Run now. The farther away from this master and disciple, the better."

As soon as he finished, Zhang Wu silently retreated.

But then, he discovered that Elder Lin was moving even faster than him.

Inside the kitchen.

Chen Huangpi was still adding firewood to the stove.

The temperature in the entire kitchen was frighteningly high. If anyone were to enter now, their skin would likely be scalded off by the boiling steam.

But Chen Huangpi was fine.

After a good while.

Chen Huangpi estimated the time and shouted to the white-robed old Daoist in the pot, "Second Master, are you cooked yet?"

There was no sound from the large pot.

"Second Master?"

"Master?"

Chen Huangpi quickly jumped onto the stove and lifted the pot lid.

However, lifting the lid was one thing, but a cloud of black smoke billowed out to meet him.

That black smoke was faintly similar to the black smoke spewed by the mutated deity.

It seemed to possess some kind of magical power.

"Oh no, I've burned Second Master to a crisp!!!"

The next second, as if it heard Chen Huangpi's voice, the black smoke enveloped him.

Chen Huangpi was engulfed by the black smoke.

His whole body felt as if it had been struck by lightning. His eyes rolled back, and he plunged headfirst into the boiling pot.

Scalding hot water splashed out and fell back into the pot.

In the last moment of his fading consciousness, Chen Huangpi had only one thought: "This is bad, I'm going to be burned to a crisp too."

Then there was a bang.

The pot lid moved without any wind and covered the pot by itself.

The firewood did the same. The entire kitchen seemed to come alive, or perhaps it was being controlled by a large, invisible hand.

...

The hazy red moon had already climbed halfway up the night sky.

Under the moonlight, guided by the identical brass oil lamps, Elder Lin and Zhang Wu cautiously made their way back to the guest rooms along the path they had come.

The two of them had just discussed for a long time.

Although they wanted to escape, where could they possibly escape to now?

It was better to meet up with the others first and then think of another plan. Even if it came to the worst, they would have more courage to resist together than as two individuals.

However.

Just then.

A strange voice suddenly sounded in their ears.

"Do you want some longevity noodles?"

"Today is Huangpi'er's birthday."

"The longevity noodles Huangpi'er makes are delicious."

A chill ran down Elder Lin and Zhang Wu's backs. The hairs on their immortal bodies, which were impervious to heat and cold, stood on end.

It was that white-robed old Daoist!

Run!

Without a second thought.

Elder Lin and Zhang Wu fled in two different directions.

Both were Golden Core stage experts.

They also possessed exceptional escape techniques.

In the blink of an eye, they had disappeared.

Run, must run.

The farther, the better.

Elder Lin could no longer care about Zhang Wu, let alone the comrades waiting in the guest rooms.

"If I can survive this, I must call people over and raze this cursed temple to the ground!"

Elder Lin's heart was filled with both terror and rage.

But strangely, after fleeing for a long time, just as he was about to exit the temple's mountain gate, the white-robed old Daoist had not pursued him.

Could he have gone after Zhang Wu?

Who cares? The mountain gate is right ahead.

Escape first, and as for the evils in the darkness, he couldn't worry about them now.

Elder Lin gritted his teeth. His Golden Core, which had been depleted of spiritual energy while being chased by the mutated deity, cracked under his frantic urging.

But this also allowed him to transform into an almost colorless streak of light, as fast as lightning.

In the blink of an eye, he rushed out of the mountain gate.

But...

What greeted him was not the scene outside the mountain.

It was the temple's mountain gate.

The words "Pure Immortal Temple" on the gate had changed to "Suppress Immortal Temple."

Looking ahead, he could vaguely see the temple hidden in the darkness, and dots of yellow light, which were the brass oil lamps.

Giant figures, like gods or demons, stood behind the temple, looking at him greedily.

Elder Lin laughed in despair, "Huangpi kid, I'll f—"

On the other side.

Zhang Wu's face was filled with extreme terror.

In front of him, a white figure was hunched over, holding a dripping, warm intestine in both hands, as if it had just been pulled out. It was asking him, "Do you want some longevity noodles? Huangpi'er made them, they're delicious!"

As it asked, it walked towards him.

With each step, the surrounding brass oil lamps went out one by one.

"Senior, please spare my life."

Zhang Wu begged, "This junior truly did not mean to offend. Please spare my life, senior. I am willing to be your ox or horse."

But the white-robed old Daoist continued to press forward.

"Do you want some longevity noodles? Huangpi'er made them, they're delicious!"

"Junior..."

Zhang Wu turned to flee, but as he turned, the white-robed old Daoist appeared in front of him again.

This bizarre scene was completely beyond his comprehension.

Because this was not some kind of magical technique at all.

It was more like an evil entity.

"Spare me, spare me..."

Zhang Wu pleaded desperately.

But the white-robed old Daoist just kept repeating his earlier words.

"I... I'll eat..."

"Senior, I'll eat, I'm willing to eat the longevity noodles, can't I just eat them?"

This cry seemed to awaken the white-robed old Daoist.

"Eat? You'll actually eat it?!?!"

All the brass oil lamps were extinguished in an instant.

The entire Pure Immortal Temple was plunged into complete darkness.

Zhang Wu let out a blood-curdling scream, but before he could finish, his voice was cut short.

It was as if even his voice had been swallowed.

Only a chewing sound that set one's teeth on edge could be heard, followed by a satisfied gulp.

"Human qi..."

"Human qi!!!!!!"

"Hahahahaha!!! It's human qi!!!!!"

The voice was half mad, half lucid, but no matter how one heard it, it revealed extreme cruelty and a terrifying chill.

...

Chen Huangpi felt like he had a dream.

He dreamed that he had fallen into an iron pot.

The pot was big, the water was hot, and the fire was strong.

He desperately tried to climb out, but the iron pot was too big and slippery. He was only eight years old, and his outstretched hands couldn't even reach the rim. No matter how many times he tried, he couldn't climb out.

Damn it, if only I were a little taller.

As soon as this thought appeared, Chen Huangpi felt as if he had really grown a little taller.

But just as he was about to climb out of the big pot.

The surrounding scene changed again.

He was actually in the main hall of the Pure Immortal Temple.

The Daoist in the purple robe was now facing away from him, bent over, holding something in his hands and gnawing on it.

"First Master, why did you come into my dream?"

The purple-robed old Daoist's body trembled. His bent back slowly straightened, then became increasingly tense. With a crack, his entire body folded in half.

"Disciple! Delicious!"

"Do you want some?"

Only then did Chen Huangpi see clearly that his First Master was holding a large string of bloody intestines and a few dim, round, golden stones.

"First Master, you can't eat stones!"

Chen Huangpi wanted to go forward and take the stones from his master's hand, but in the next second, he woke up.

He opened his eyes.

He was sitting on a meditation cushion in the main hall. His First Master, in a purple robe, had his back to him, staring intently at the three Daoist portraits.

"First Master?"

Chen Huangpi called out tentatively.

The purple-robed old Daoist's body trembled, and he slowly turned around.

Unlike in the dream, his First Master was not holding any intestines or stones.

Chen Huangpi breathed a sigh of relief.

You can't eat stones; they'll give you a stomachache.

"Huangpi'er! You've grown another year older. You're finally nine."

"First Master, you're mistaken again. I'm clearly eight..."

Before he could finish, Chen Huangpi felt a change in his body.

His clothes seemed to have become a size smaller.

It was as if he had really grown a year older.

The purple-robed old Daoist reached out and stroked Chen Huangpi's head.

His eyes seemed both mad and clear.

"I have three treasures."

"They are called Essence, Qi, and Spirit."

"I have three attainments."

"Attaining the Dharma, attaining the Arts, attaining the Dao."

Only then did Chen Huangpi realize that his First Master was teaching him the methods of cultivation. It seemed the medicine he had brewed was really effective.

"First Master, I can't cultivate."

Chen Huangpi shook his head in disappointment.

"No, you can."

"Watch closely. This is how you cultivate to become an immortal!"

The purple-robed old Daoist's eyes gleamed, and Chen Huangpi was filled with anticipation.

However...

Just then, the purple-robed old Daoist's stomach suddenly rumbled.

"Slurp..."

"Huangpi'er, your master is hungry again!"

Chen Huangpi was even more disappointed. "First Master, you just said I could cultivate."

"Cultivate? Are you going to cultivate?"

"Cultivation is good, cultivation is good. Cultivating makes you grow, and growing allows you to cultivate."

The purple-robed old Daoist clapped his hands in approval and excitedly leaned in front of Chen Huangpi, his cloudy eyes shining with an unsettling light.

"Huangpi'er, your master will teach you how to cultivate right now!"

Without another word, the purple-robed old Daoist pulled Chen Huangpi's hand and walked away.

After leaving the main hall, Chen Huangpi realized that it was already daylight outside.

"First Master, what about those cultivators from yesterday?"

"Your master doesn't know. Maybe they ran away."

The purple-robed old Daoist didn't care about any cultivators. Nothing was more important than Huangpi'er's cultivation.

Chen Huangpi's face fell.

Those cultivators were too wicked. They had agreed in black and white that if he brought them to the Pure Immortal Temple, they would give him a lot of money as a reward.

But now they had run off without a word.

Could it be because he fell asleep last night and forgot to bring them food, and they left in a huff because of his poor hospitality?

But even so, they shouldn't go back on their debt.

And First Master, too, for not helping to keep an eye on them.

"Forget it, First Master has lost his mind. He probably couldn't outsmart them."

As Chen Huangpi thought this, he suddenly felt a chill inside his clothes.

It was that yellowed little booklet.

But before he had time to check it, Chen Huangpi was led into the alchemy room by the purple-robed Daoist.

Inside the alchemy room was a huge furnace.

Nine gilded coiling dragons were wrapped around the furnace.

Without any visible action from the purple-robed old Daoist, the nine coiling dragons seemed to awaken, slowly swimming around the furnace. The nine dragon heads corresponded to the nine directions, their mouths open, spitting crimson true fire into the furnace.

"Huangpi'er, get in quickly. Master will teach you how to cultivate!"

The purple-robed old Daoist gave Chen Huangpi a push from behind, urging him on anxiously.

(End of Chapter)