The Unruly Immortals

After carefully inspecting the temple complex, Li Huowang headed back to the path in the mountains.

Gently patting Mantou's head, Li Huowang, with lips pursed and without uttering a word, continued onward.

It wasn't long before Li Huowang discovered another of the Cross Temple constructions, which seemed to be concentrated in the area.

This particular Cross Temple was clearly more complete—the head of the divine oxen statues had not disappeared without a trace.

The head of the divine oxen was charred black, as if it too had suffered the torment of flames.

Yet, carved upon such a head were expressions of intense jealousy and extreme longing.

Staring with what had become two lumps of charred coal for eyes, the statue gazed straight up at something above the temple.

Li Huowang also looked up, only to see at the top of the temple a montage of things combined with an assortment of colors and shapes.

From the statue's expression, it seemed to long intensely for the murals painted on the temple's ceiling, although Li Huowang couldn't understand what those conglomerations were.

"Woof—Woof woof woof!!" The barking of Mantou instantly tensed up Li Huowang's body.

He quickly turned around, looking in the direction where Mantou bared his teeth and snarled.

It was a side door, beyond which the light from outside couldn't penetrate, leaving the entrance engulfed in darkness.

In that darkness, he spotted the broad grey robes of someone.

As Li had learned from the Nun, the followers of the Ao Jing Sect wore robes frequently to cover the wounds that marred their bodies

However, at the moment, he could only see the lower half and not the upper half of the figure.

Feeling that something was amiss, Li Huowang immediately took out the human skin letter given to him by Master Jingxin and threw it into the darkness.

"I am Xuan Yang from Qingfeng Taoist Temple, and I have come seeking urgent assistance from your sect!"

Li Huowang announced himself to the person in the robes, but they gave no response.

As Li Huowang wondered whether the figure was even alive, the figure stepped out of the darkness.

Upon seeing the person for the first time, Li Huowang knew this had to be a follower of the Ao Jing Sect beyond doubt, as the face, marred with scars, had no skin left.

Just as the nuns from An Ci Nunnery had said, the Ao Jing Sect wore broad robes and tall hats.

The hat was so large it covered the eyes and nose, leaving only the bloody, fleshy skin of the chin exposed for Li to see.

Li Huowang swallowed a gulp of saliva and watched the figure before him with great caution.

"So far so good, at least they didn't make a move immediately after seeing that I was Xinsu," he thought.

Li Huowang glanced at the other person's bulging, hidden sleeves and calmly repeated his request.

The figure still did not respond to Li Huowang, but it was clear that they understood why he was there.

He silently turned around and started walking out of the Cross Temple.

Li Huowang took a deep breath and followed with unease.

As he trailed behind the person, Li Huowang ventured deeper into the mountains.

Looking at the wide robes of the person ahead, he harbored a doubt in his mind.

Wasn't the Great Thousand Record an artifact of the Ao Jing Sect? Why didn't he see it with the figure, or was it hidden within the robes?

With this question in mind, Li Huowang proceeded deeper, occasionally encountering other members of the Ao Jing Sect.

All of them were dressed the same, and upon spotting Li Huowang, they would fix him with a stare from beneath their tall hats.

The strange atmosphere made Mantou feel scared; with its head hung low and tail tucked, it almost clung to the hem of Li Huowang's clothes as they moved forward.

Under the watchful eyes of these people, a gourd-shaped cave finally appeared before Li Huowang.

Seeing the cave, an aversion rose within him—Li Huowang disliked caves.

The cave was not as dark as Qingfeng Taoist Temple had been initially, but rather, it was extremely bright.

The crackling fire torches illuminated the entire mountain cave with unparalleled brightness.

So many torches even raised the temperature of the cave, making Li Huowang feel a certain restlessness in his heart.

Associating this with the flames on the statues he had seen earlier, Li Huowang figured that flames might hold significant importance within the Ao Jing Sect.

After walking for the time it takes two incense sticks to burn in this brightly lit cave, Li Huowang finally saw the person in charge.

It was someone lying on the cold ground, their body scorched black. To say it was a person was perhaps inaccurate; it was more akin to a charred corpse.

However, the gaze that pierced through from that direction made Li Huowang realize that this was not just a corpse.

Seeing this person also answered one of the questions Li Huowang had just moments ago.

A blood-red "Great Thousand Record" lay unfolded and spread over his chest.

It was evident that it had been there for a long time, as the bamboo slips used to make the record had even started to sprout.

Roots of bamboo, stained with blood, pierced through his entire body, with flesh and skin dangling from the ends that emerged from his back.

Watching the person who had led him here reverently present the human-skin letter with both hands, Li Huowang immediately understood that this individual must hold no low rank within the Ao Jing Sect.

Yet the charred corpse did not look at Jingxin's human-skin letter; instead, it stared at Li Huowang without blinking an eye.

Just staring, it continued to gaze for a long time.

"Have you been seen by Bahu?"

Being able to communicate was a good start. Li Huowang nodded and replied, "That's right."

"Speaking of which, every Xinsu is a promising seedling, for they can get closer to the sea of suffering with ease. It's a pity they all go mad in the end," the other's tone started with a trace of regret.

Then he glanced at the "Great Thousand Record" at Li Huowang's waist.

"Old man Shou San, nice to meet you. Could you tell me how you accomplished the Cangqiong Ascension? You should know, even among us, not everyone can achieve it."

Li Huowang heard a compliment in those words but felt no joy at all.

"Cangqiong Ascension? Is that the name of the ritual that requires extreme dual pain?"

Li Huowang held back some details, but he told Shou San about what had transpired before.

"Heh, using it against the eighteenth of La is really an overkill, but fortunately, you also benefited from the misfortune."

Li Huowang was not there to discuss this with the other party. Since they could communicate normally, he reiterated the purpose of his visit.

"That's possible."

Before Li Huowang could breathe a sigh of relief, the conditions followed immediately.

"However, as an exchange, I need you to perform the Cangqiong Ascension before us again."

"Why do you want an outsider like me to perform a ritual internal to your sect?" Li Huowang couldn't quite grasp the other's thinking,

"I've never seen a Xinsu perform the Cangqiong Ascension, so I want to watch. Maybe I can find a way to steal Bahu's power from it."

"Steal... Bahu's power?" Li Huowang almost thought he'd misheard.

"You've seen Bahu, you must know how powerful it is. When you were looking at it, didn't you ever think that you could possess that power too?"

Upon hearing this, Li Huowang belatedly realized what had been represented by the mass atop Cross Temple – it was Bahu.

Only because it was impossible to fully describe Bahu's appearance, they used that thing as a stand-in.

They exchanged pain for power with Bahu, but they did not worship Bahu; instead, they worshipped Gushen.

The Gushen they worship were equally desperate to steal and snatch away Bahu's power.