Chapter 223: Chapter 222: Taoist Yan Ling’s "Return Gift
Taoist Yan Ling was cultivating in the rear courtyard of Daluo Temple.
After his breakthrough in Dao Practice, he did not continue to Eradicate Evil and Accumulate Merit in order to Accumulate Evil Qi. Instead, he accepted the post of Observatory Master for the Daluo Temple in Bai Shi Prefecture and began a period of secluded cultivation.
As the saying goes, the path to mastery requires a balance of tension and relaxation. After his recent rapid advancement, it was time to consolidate his gains and prepare for the next push in his cultivation, such as...
"Observatory Master, there’s a visitor from White Bone Mountain!"
"Hm?"
Taoist Yan Ling, sitting peacefully in his meditation chamber, snapped his eyes open. A divine light flashed within them as two invisible beams shot out, sweeping across the entire Daluo Temple.
Waiting in the Spirit Official Hall, the verdant-robed handmaiden from White Bone Cave, Li Cuicui, felt a sudden shiver, as if she had been seen through completely.
Then, an aged voice resounded in her mind, "A visitor is a guest. Please, come to the rear courtyard."
Li Cuicui’s eyes darted. The blue-robed man beside her seemed to receive the message as well. He bowed slightly to her and made a guiding gesture. "This way, miss!"
Li Cuicui nodded and followed the man. They went around the Spirit Official Hall, crossed the front courtyard, passed two great halls in the back that were still under repair, and entered the rear courtyard. There, she saw an old man with white hair and a white beard sitting under the eaves of the main building.
"You’re Yan Ling Spirit Master?" Li Cuicui asked, taking the initiative.
Taoist Yan Ling sized her up, a murderous glint flashing in his eyes before vanishing. A faint smile touched his lips as he nodded. "I am Yan Ling. To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit, miss?"
Li Cuicui failed to notice his killing intent, sensing only his pleasant demeanor. Her nerves settled, and her confidence grew. "I am Li Cuicui of the White Bone Cave on White Bone Mountain. My Mistress has sent me to speak with you on her behalf."
Taoist Yan Ling inclined his head slightly, indicating that he was listening.
"My Mistress and the Yellow Heaven Altar Master and his wife were good friends. However, the conflict between the Yellow Heaven Altar and the Daluo Palace was a battle for worshipers’ incense, so she could not interfere. Now that Daluo Palace has emerged victorious, she does not wish to make things difficult for you."
Seeing Taoist Yan Ling’s impassive expression, Li Cuicui continued, "My Mistress is willing to befriend you of Daluo Palace."
Taoist Yan Ling actually laughed. It was the first time he had ever heard of wicked Demons and Ghosts coming to a Taoist Temple to make friends with a Daoist. Finding the notion highly amusing, he replied with a hint of sarcasm, "I am deeply honored."
Li Cuicui missed the sarcasm and assumed he was intimidated. She nodded and said, "Our White Bone God Monarch’s Dao Practice is profound and his Magical Power is immense. For him to be willing to befriend you is an honor in itself."
Taoist Yan Ling’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Did you come here just to deliver this message, miss?"
Li Cuicui nodded, then shook her head. "Besides delivering the message, I have another matter to inquire about."
"What is it?" Taoist Yan Ling asked.
"Since the Yellow Heaven Altar Master and his wife died at your hands, my Mistress’s Bone Soul Lamp must have fallen into your possession as well," Li Cuicui stated.
"The Bone Soul Lamp?" Taoist Yan Ling’s eyebrow twitched. Only now did he realize that the White Bone Lamp held by the female Weasel had been borrowed from the White Bone Cave.
’No wonder it was so thick with Ghost Qi. It didn’t seem like something the Yellow Heaven Ancestor and his wife would use.’
They had thought it was a trophy the Yellow Heaven Ancestor and his wife had seized from some Ghost adversary, never expecting it was a treasure borrowed from the White Bone Cave.
Taoist Yan Ling made no effort to hide his realization, and Li Cuicui naturally noticed. She took a step forward. "My Mistress said that as long as you return the Bone Soul Lamp and deliver ten male children born in a Yang month, on a Yang day, at a Yang hour, our two houses will be friends."
At this, Li Cuicui reached into her sleeve and took out two small Bone Arrows. "And let it not be said that the White Bone Cave lacks courtesy. These are Bone Soul-Chasing Arrows, personally refined by our Divine Monarch. They lock onto a person’s Divine Soul and arrive with a thought. They dissolve the bones and devour the soul—their power is immense!"
"Bone Soul-Chasing Arrows?"
"That’s right. They are refined from the arm bones of six-year-old ’triple-yang’ children. It takes ten children to make a single arrow, so they are incredibly rare," Li Cuicui added.
Taoist Yan Ling looked at the small, jade-like bone arrows in Li Cuicui’s hand, took a deep breath, and then slightly raised his hand.
Li Cuicui felt her hands lighten as the two small arrows vanished. When she looked up again, she discovered that the two Bone Soul-Chasing Arrows were now in Taoist Yan Ling’s hands.
Li Cuicui was startled at first, then looked indignant, but finally managed a smile. "Since you’ve accepted them, Mage..."
The next moment, she saw Taoist Yan Ling press the Bone Arrows between his palms and rub them lightly, grinding the two small arrows into a pile of white powder that drifted softly to the ground.
A wisp of Yin Qi emerged from the Bone Arrows, but before it could erupt, it was suppressed by Taoist Yan Ling’s profound and natural Magical Power. It was completely dissipated in the space of a breath, as if it had never existed.
Shocked and terrified, Li Cuicui instinctively waved her hand.
WHOOSH—
A piercing whistle sounded as a white afterimage shot from her sleeve, disappearing in a flash.
But Taoist Yan Ling’s eyes flared. Taiyi Divine Light shot out from them, shining directly on the white afterimage and pinning it firmly in mid-air, revealing the true form of a Bone Soul-Chasing Arrow.
Li Cuicui watched, wide-eyed, as this incredibly rare and powerful Magical Artifact crumbled in mid-air, disintegrating at a visible rate until it turned into a puff of dust that slowly drifted down.
"You... You..." Li Cuicui staggered back two steps, her expression a mixture of shock, anger, and fear.
Although Taoist Yan Ling hadn’t said a single harsh word, Li Cuicui could clearly see that he had no intention of being friends with White Bone Mountain.
"When two powers are at war, the envoys are not to be harmed," Taoist Yan Ling said coolly.
Although Li Cuicui was also brimming with Evil Qi, she had come on official business, so Taoist Yan Ling didn’t plan to kill her. After all...
’It’s only a matter of time!’
Just as Li Cuicui breathed a sigh of relief and prepared to say a few placating words, she saw Taoist Yan Ling wave his hand. A piece of Yellow Paper, folded into a triangle, floated slowly toward her.
Li Cuicui instinctively caught it. The faint aura it emanated made her extremely uncomfortable.
"Since White Bone Cave brought a gift, it would be rude not to return the favor. I have a gift for you as well." Taoist Yan Ling pointed to the Yellow Talisman in her hand and smiled leisurely. "This is a Celestial Spirit Talisman. Its functions include nourishing life, strengthening the body, and vanquishing evil and driving out ghosts."
Li Cuicui’s eyes went wide. ’But I’m a ghost!’
"Take it back to your Divine Monarch or your Mistress," Taoist Yan Ling said with a smile. "Let them feel the aura of this Celestial Spirit Talisman and make some preparations in advance. When they’re ready, I will be waiting for them here at Daluo Temple."
Taoist Yan Ling even added a kind reminder, "Miss, be careful not to use any of the Ghost Qi in your body on your journey. If you accidentally activate the Divine Talisman and your soul is extinguished, don’t say I didn’t warn you."
Li Cuicui couldn’t help but swallow hard, feeling that the object in her hand was a hot potato she could neither hold nor discard.
"If you please," Taoist Yan Ling said, dismissing her.
Clutching the Celestial Spirit Talisman, Li Cuicui fled in disgrace.
