Second Master Holds the Line, Bodhisattva Crosses the Realm

Looking at those words, he remembered carving them at the foot of a Yellow Turban Warrior statue when he was a child and ignorant. A memory surfaced in his mind.

At that time, he was only eleven or twelve years old, and had been at Xunzhen Temple for less than half a year. Influenced by Sun Wukong leaving words on Tathagata Buddha's finger in Journey to the West, he had a flash of inspiration and carved those words at the foot of the Yellow Turban Warrior statue.

Later, Great Daoist Master discovered it. Although the Yellow Turban Warrior was an insignificant Deity, Great Daoist Master still punished him by making him offer incense every morning and evening for a full month, praying to the Deity for forgiveness.

Now, seeing the Yellow Turban Warrior statue again, Huang Huai felt a sense of familiarity and closeness.

He cupped his hands and bowed to the Yellow Turban Warrior statue, then stepped over the nearly person-height statue and walked to a ceramic painted Guanyin Bodhisattva statue about a foot tall.

Compared to clay, ceramic Buddha statues were indeed more resistant to the ravages of time. Although the painted colors on the Guanyin Bodhisattva statue showed signs of oxidation and fading, overall, it was harmless and did not damage the statue itself.

Huang Huai was also familiar with this Guanyin Bodhisattva statue; he had bowed to it more than once. However, in comparison, he only offered incense on festivals and holidays. More often, he would bow to the Holy Lord Emperor Guan statue, as he had invited that statue up the mountain to ward off evil and prevent disasters.

Huang Huai looked at the benevolent Guanyin Bodhisattva statue, which brought peace to the mind upon viewing. He respectfully bowed to the Bodhisattva, then carefully wrapped the Guanyin Bodhisattva statue in red cloth and held it in his hands.

As Huang Huai prepared to leave the storeroom, his gaze swept over the intact Yellow Turban Warrior statue. His heart stirred, and a hint of hesitation appeared on his face. However, he quickly turned off the lights in the room, plunging the storeroom into darkness.

A figure slipped into the side hall, bowed to the Holy Lord Emperor Guan statue enthroned above, and carefully picked up the statue.

The storeroom door creaked open. Huang Huai, holding the Holy Lord Emperor Guan statue, chuckled softly, "This time, I'll need Lord Second's help to hold the line."

It turned out Huang Huai planned to send the Guanyin Bodhisattva and the Yellow Turban Warrior statues into that Otherworld to see if there would be any changes. However, compared to the Otherworld, if his calculations were correct, it should be midnight in the present world.

In the present world, it wouldn't be a big deal even if you stayed out all night. But in the Otherworld, it was another matter. If you were unlucky enough to encounter a Malevolent Spirit, you wouldn't even know where to cry for help.

A faint, mysterious portal appeared out of thin air. Huang Huai, holding the Holy Lord Emperor Guan statue, stepped into the portal. In an instant, he reappeared in the side room he had just left.

It was equally dark. If Huang Huai had night blindness, he would be no different from a blind man.

He looked around. The entire courtyard was quiet. Huang Huai placed the Holy Lord Emperor Guan statue on the altar, his heart at ease.

Soon, Huang Huai returned to the storeroom of Xunzhen Temple in the present world. He first looked at the Guanyin Bodhisattva statue, then his gaze fell on the Yellow Turban Warrior statue. He took a step forward, slightly bent his knees, hugged the Yellow Turban Warrior's waist, and exerted force. The strength of over a hundred pounds was not too difficult for Huang Huai.

Picking up the Yellow Turban Warrior statue, Huang Huai stepped out and instantly crossed the mysterious portal. In the next moment, he heard a rumbling explosion. That thunderclap must have disturbed many people's dreams.

Huang Huai, who had been mentally prepared, looked at the Yellow Turban Warrior as the thunderclap sounded. He saw a faint, almost imperceptible divine light flash across the Yellow Turban Warrior. If Huang Huai hadn't been staring, he might not have noticed the change at all.

"It didn't break!"

Seeing that the Yellow Turban Warrior was unharmed, Huang Huai was greatly encouraged. Next, he had to bring the Guanyin Bodhisattva statue. Then, his guess might be confirmed.

With a thought, the mysterious portal appeared. Huang Huai returned, holding the Guanyin Bodhisattva statue with both hands. Amidst a clap of thunder, he returned to the Otherworld.

Under Huang Huai's gaze, the originally dim Guanyin Bodhisattva statue instantly emitted an unusual brilliance. The light flashed and disappeared, just as he had seen on the Yellow Turban Warrior earlier.

The Guanyin Bodhisattva statue also showed no signs of damage. At this point, Huang Huai was certain that the statues he brought from the present world must have Incense and Fire Prayer Power to be unaffected by the heavenly lightning.

There was still one point that was not certain: if the Incense and Fire Prayer Power the statue received was too little, would it still be able to withstand the heavenly lightning?

However, regardless, this verification had yielded great results.

Looking at the two statues he had brought to the Otherworld, Huang Huai hesitated for a moment and decided to leave them in the side room for the time being.

He had already instructed Master Ma Xing not to disturb this side room, and it was sufficient for enshrining Guanyin Bodhisattva and the Yellow Turban Warrior.

If a residence did not have statues to guard the house and protect the family, it would seem rather odd. Huang Huai had no intention of enshrining the unknown Deities of this World.

He straightened his clothes, took out incense and candles from the side, lit them, and respectfully bowed to the Holy Lord Emperor Guan and Guanyin Bodhisattva statues in the center. Then, he took out more incense and candles and bowed to the Yellow Turban Warrior statue.

The incense and candles burned slowly, and wisps of Incense and Fire permeated the air, enveloping the Guanyin Bodhisattva, Yellow Turban Warrior, and Holy Lord Emperor Guan statues.

On the quiet, deserted street late at night, a gust of chilling wind suddenly blew. A phantom and eerie figure appeared, drifting towards Shun'an Ward.

Fortunately, there was no one on the street at this time. Otherwise, if people saw this figure, they would be terrified to death or suffer some shock.

This was clearly a massive figure composed of countless distorted and twisted faces filled with endless resentment. A bull's head and a human's body could be vaguely discerned.

Seeing such a phantom, the first thing that came to mind was the bull-headed, human-bodied statues often enshrined by villages for protection.

However, statues were sacred and majestic, but this figure, just a glance at it, could trigger trypophobia, let alone the distorted and eerie faces that made up its body, each so ferocious and terrifying.

"I want you to die, die, die... Return my life, return my life..."

Invisible mental fluctuations spread out from this eerie figure, covering a radius of more than ten feet. Wherever it passed, the statues of Guardian Spirits and Guardian Deities enshrined in households rippled with a faint divine light, shielding them from the invisible mental fluctuations.

Otherwise, if a normal person were subjected to the impact of these bizarre and frantic mental fluctuations, they would die or become insane.

In the distance, two figures stared at this eerie figure as it moved with clear purpose. A smell of alcohol permeated the air.

Han Song, who was following his master, couldn't help but look at Zhang Yan and ask, "Master, can this Evil God really lead us to the Mo that slaughtered Niujia Village?"

Zhang Yan had a wine gourd hanging from his waist. Although he appeared drunk, his eyes shone with divine light. He glanced at his disciple and asked, "Do you know why this Evil God was formed?"

Han Song was stunned for a moment and instinctively replied, "My disciple guesses that it must be because the villagers of Niujia Village died with their resentment unappeased, and by chance, it merged with a wisp of remnant spirit from the bull-headed, human-bodied Deity enshrined by the villagers, thus giving birth to this Evil God."

[It's Monday again, two chapters released in advance. Please follow, collect, and tip!]