Yellow Skinned Taoist Master

Chapter 91: Standing Atop the Mutated Divine Statue

The mutated divine statue was extraordinary to begin with.

Even before the Heaven and Earth Mutation, it had already been a god of the Great Qian Immortal Dynasty.

Back then, even the Golden Top Heavenly Lamp had yet to be created.

The mutated divine statue was a bona fide True God — a Supreme God, a Right God!

Now, with its wits restored, it was corrupted but no longer crazed.

Chen Huangpi wanted to reach the deepest part of the God-Burying Mound.

How could it dare to disappoint him?

The twin streams of black-and-white radiance blasted through the pit wall, tearing open a passage straight to the deepest level — the burial chamber itself.

Inside the chamber—

The sudden breach made the Yellow Peril and the other Disasters exchange subtle glances.They had come precisely for this third level of the God-Burying Mound.

Now, with the mutated divine statue violently connecting the chamber to the outside, even more evil spirits would pour in.

The chamber was large.

But not large enough for this many evil spirits.

There was plenty of fortune to go around.

But if one could have it all, who would willingly share?

They had to be stopped!

The Disasters exchanged a single glance and made their decision instantly.

"Attack!"

The tomb-dwelling Disaster — the one who shared Chen Huangpi's appetite for evil spirits — hurled the tombstone from its back. The stone swelled as it flew, expanding rapidly to block the breach in the chamber wall.

The other Disasters unleashed their own techniques.

"Who dares stand in his way?!"

The mutated divine statue roared, and the black-and-white radiance pouring from its mouth grew even more violent.

No matter what methods the Disasters employed—

Before this twin-colored brilliance, they crumbled like paper.

Even the tomb-dweller's tombstone was blasted to powder on the spot.

The mutated divine statue turned sharply to Chen Huangpi and extended its massive arm, presenting its upturned palm.

"Get on! I'll cut a path straight through!"

Chen Huangpi didn't hesitate. He leaped onto the palm.

The statue raised its arm and set him atop its head.

As if worried Chen Huangpi might find the surface uncomfortable—

Even the fleshy growths covering its skull squirmed and flattened out, creating a smooth platform.

Only after that—

Did the mutated divine statue swing its fists, stride forward on those colossal legs, and charge into the passage, its twin-colored radiance blasting continuously without a moment's pause.

"Let's go — follow it inside!"

Wang Mingdao barely got the words out before Uncle Yang, the shadow evil spirit, wrapped around him and shot after the mutated divine statue.

The pit was still crawling with evil gods.

Stay here and death was certain.

Better to follow — at least there was a chance of survival.

The other evil spirits felt the same.

"The Great King Yellow Skin really is here to save us!"

"It's a good evil spirit!"

"Where the Great King Yellow Skin goes, blue skies follow!"

"Charge!"

Listening to those battle cries—

The Brass Oil Lamp and the Life-reaping Ghost were both stupefied.

'Chen Huangpi, are these idiot evil spirits actually pledging loyalty to you?'

'Master only wears my skin as a disguise. If they saw his true face, the evil spirits certainly wouldn't act this way.'

The Life-reaping Ghost, unlike the Brass Oil Lamp—

Had remained cool-headed throughout.

Evil spirits were evil spirits. Even if some could be called "better" or "worse" —

That distinction only held among their own kind.

The moment Chen Huangpi shed this disguise, they would turn on him in an instant — ready to kill him, eat him.

Even so—

Chen Huangpi paid no attention to their inner mutterings.

He stood atop the mutated divine statue.

And felt an indescribable thrill, an indescribable satisfaction.

Since entering the God-Burying Mound—

Danger lurked at every turn, and there were always evil spirits far stronger than himself.

The Great King Yellow Skin title may have been impressive.

But it paled beside Mang Shan Jun and the Calamity Eye.

Even a newborn Calamity surpassed any Disaster.

Chen Huangpi knew his own strength well — among Disasters he could still throw his weight around, but against a Calamity he was outmatched.

If the As-You-Wish Bodhisattva hadn't overplayed its hand, he could have chased it down with the black smoke for all eternity and never ended up in such a dominant position.

Now, standing atop the mutated divine statue—

The might was overwhelming. Absolutely exhilarating!

Several Disasters blocked the chamber entrance.

Chen Huangpi swept his gaze over them — the very same ones who had stirred up trouble between him and the tomb-dweller outside the God-Burying Mound, sneering and stoking conflict from the sidelines.

"The Great King Yellow Skin!"

The Disasters' expressions shifted.

"Is 'Great King Yellow Skin' something the likes of you can utter?"

Chen Huangpi commanded the mutated divine statue and bellowed, "Teach them a lesson they won't forget!"

"As you wish!"

The mutated divine statue grinned savagely. The Disasters barely had time to register the chill down their spines before a blast of Nine-Colored Soul-Scattering Divine Light swept across them.

Unable to dodge, their eyes glazed over instantly.

"Die!"

The mutated divine statue roared and swung its fists.

The blow was like a plummeting meteor.

Boom.

Several Disasters were pulverized in an instant.

Without breaking stride—

The mutated divine statue took three great strides, hunched its shoulders to clear the passage entrance, and shoved its way into the burial chamber.

A few more Disasters tried to bar the way.

But when they looked behind themselves—

The Yellow Peril, the one who had been shouting the loudest before, had somehow already retreated behind them.

As for Mang Shan Jun and the Calamity Eye — concealing its true body — neither had lifted a finger.

The Disasters took the hint. The battle was lost before it began. Not a single one dared block the path any longer.

Chen Huangpi's gaze was sharp as a blade, sweeping over the scene below. Wherever his eyes fell — Disaster or Mang Shan Jun — all had to crane their necks upward to meet his stare.

More accurately—

To stare at the mutated divine statue beneath his feet.

"Any who bar his way — I will kill."

The mutated divine statue's voice was cold and imperious. It addressed itself as "I" in the manner of a sovereign.

Truly like a god looking down from on high.

The Yellow Peril ground its teeth at the sight. "Great and Terrible Evil God — you bend over backward for this Chen Huangpi. What's in it for you?"

By now, the Yellow Peril had dropped all pretense.

It named Chen Huangpi outright.

The mutated divine statue gave it a cold glance and couldn't be bothered to utter a single word in reply.

A defective product of a failed consecration.

If not for the Yellow Peril's ability to cajole the Calamity Eye into opening the God-Burying Mound, the statue wouldn't have deigned to look at it even once.

Being ignored was the cruelest mockery of all.

The Yellow Peril seethed. "You told me before that you had no interest in the third level! Now you break your word, bring Chen Huangpi and a horde of evil spirits charging in — don't you owe me an explanation?"

"You and I share a history, after all..."

Like the Fox Mountain God, the Yellow Peril carried that same shared memory.

Its feelings toward the mutated divine statue were complicated.

It knew the statue looked down on it.

Because it was nothing more than a failed consecration — a reject. It was only through the fortunate accident of Remnants worshipping it in the Hundred Thousand Mountains that it had eventually become a god.

The mutated divine statue's divine rank was leagues above its own.

The more one lacked something, the more desperately one craved it.

That was why the Yellow Peril kept harping on their connection — trying to forge a link to the mutated divine statue's legitimacy.

Chen Huangpi overhead all of this.

It puzzled him. "Mutated divine statue, do you have a history with this thing?"

The mutated divine statue shook its head. "It's not worthy."

Hearing that, Chen Huangpi had his answer. "I get it now. This Yellow Peril is a shameless thing — loves gilding itself with borrowed glory."

"Ignorant!"

The Yellow Peril erupted in fury, jabbing a finger at Chen Huangpi. "You impudent brat! You have no knowledge, no sense! If you knew who created me, you'd understand just how great an offense your mockery is!"

"Weren't you made by Xu Qingshan, the same way the Fox Mountain God was?"

"How do you know that?!"

The Yellow Peril's expression changed drastically. Its head pressed against the doors of its temple, eyes boring into Chen Huangpi from within.

"Impossible — impossible!"

"Wait — the Fox told you, didn't it? It was the Fox!"

Chen Huangpi's offhand remark had laid bare the one thing the Yellow Peril took the most pride in.

That casual tone—

Combined with the mutated divine statue's deference toward him—

Filled the Yellow Peril with an unspeakable dread.

The other Disasters didn't grasp any of it.

Mang Shan Jun glanced at Song Jiu dangling from its grip and spoke in the man's mind. 'Did you catch any of that?'

Song Jiu answered, 'I did. It's like the imperial court. The Yellow Peril is an unranked outsider. The mutated divine statue is a high-ranking official. That's why the Yellow Peril keeps trying to curry favor. But Chen Huangpi — I can't figure him out. He seems to outrank even the mutated divine statue.'

'He's the emperor!'

'The emperor? The Da Kang Emperor—'

Mang Shan Jun tilted its collection of heads. Its memories were clear.

In the spring of the fourth year of the Qingli era, Buddhist monks from the West Region Buddha Kingdom traveled to Da Kang. Many evil spirits roamed the road, so it — an Arhat — had accompanied them as a guardian.

But on the very night the monks went to meet the Emperor in the capital—

It inexplicably transformed into an evil spirit.

"Interesting..."

Song Jiu's comparison sparked something in Mang Shan Jun. Its curiosity about Chen Huangpi was suddenly piqued.

It itched to snatch the boy up right now, crack open his skull, and see whether this "emperor's" brain tasted better than a cultivator's.

But with the mutated divine statue present—

No matter how many ideas Mang Shan Jun entertained, it dared not act.

Just then—

The Yellow Peril let out a frenzied scream. "I understand now! I understand!"

Every evil spirit turned toward it.

"You — Chen Huangpi!"

The Yellow Peril trembled as it spoke. "You're from the Pure Immortal Temple, aren't you?"

If Chen Huangpi belonged to the Pure Immortal Temple—

Everything made sense.

That was why the mutated divine statue willingly served as his vanguard.

Looking at the half-deranged Yellow Peril—

Chen Huangpi had been about to say that he wasn't from the Pure Immortal Temple — the Pure Immortal Temple was his.

But on second thought, it seemed pointless.

So instead, Chen Huangpi turned to the mutated divine statue and said, "I don't like it. Kill it for me."

"I can't kill it."

The mutated divine statue shook its head. "It may only be a Disaster, but it's unkillable — truly immortal. That's beyond my ability."

The Yellow Peril breathed a sigh of relief.

"But I can strip it of its sanity forever."

As the mutated divine statue spoke, its chest-maw spewed forth a dazzlingly brilliant light.

The Nine-Colored Soul-Scattering Divine Light.

"Chen Huangpi!"

The Yellow Peril's face warped with terror. It howled at the ceiling, "Calamity Eye — save me!"

At those words—

High on the ceiling of the burial chamber, atop the blue-green stone surface, a colossal eye snapped open.

Within that eye, the shadow of a sword flickered in and out of sight.

The Nine-Colored Soul-Scattering Divine Light was fast.

But the sword-light was faster!

In the blink of an eye, it materialized before the Yellow Peril as a shield.

And yet — the Nine-Colored Soul-Scattering Divine Light passed straight through the sword-light and struck the Yellow Peril all the same.