Chapter 43 - 29: A Greater Harvest, Daoist Huang He

Chapter 43: Chapter 29: A Greater Harvest, Daoist Huang He

Thinking of that wretched disciple he had sent back to deliver Li Yinsheng’s message, the Cultivator surnamed Huang gnashed his teeth in hatred. He swore that if he could return to the temple this time, he would definitely punish that wretch severely!

He thought, "He really doomed me!"

After having his fill of playing with the Talisman Crane, Li Yinsheng put it away into his Qiankun Bag.

Then, he took a palm-sized Brass Incense Burner out of the Qiankun Bag.

The incense burner looked deeply antique, engraved with decorative patterns of yellow cranes flying amidst the clouds. The three sticks of incense inserted into it were also made of brass, yet a wisp of yellow smoke slowly rose from their tips.

This was the Cultivator surnamed Huang’s Magical Artifact.

Li Yinsheng had already wiped away its ownership mark and achieved a preliminary Refinement over it.

In his perception, the quality of this Brass Incense Burner was a cut above the Cold Bright Sword, roughly on par with Meng Yu’s Cyan Jade Chessboard.

The wisps of yellow smoke rising from the brass incense tips not only had a body-protecting effect but could also transform into blades to slash at enemies, or even into a nimble yellow crane with an incredibly tough and sharp beak.

It was a pity that during today’s Magical Combat, Li Yinsheng had a sudden whim. Wanting to test his True Blood Secret Scripture, which had over eighty years of foundation, he charged forward with his bare fists.

As a result, he failed to control his strength. Although he didn’t damage his Silver Threaded Magical Robe, he accidentally smashed his fist directly onto the body of the Brass Incense Burner. The impact caused the Magical Artifact to suffer some concussive damage, temporarily reducing its power.

It was also through this battle that Li Yinsheng realized that although his True Blood Secret Scripture only had a foundation of over eighty years, he was, after all, already a Daoist and could not be judged by ordinary standards.

There was no distinction between a Refining Body Daoist and a Qi Refining Daoist; as long as one broke through, they were a Daoist.

The benefits were the same, whether in Qi Refining or Refining Body.

Strictly speaking, in terms of Refining Body, the only difference between him and a Cultivator who achieved the status of a Daoist purely through Refining Body was a slightly weaker foundation.

Because of this, it was truly a pity for the Brass Incense Burner.

Being smashed by his fist, a shallow fist imprint was left on its main body, damaging its foundation. Its power had diminished to the point where it was probably on par with the Cold Bright Sword.

He wondered if nurturing it for a few more days could restore it to its original state after such damage.

However, even if it couldn’t fully recover, he wouldn’t be too disappointed, because the Qiankun Bags of those two Yellow Crane Temple disciples had given him an even greater surprise.

Ignoring the complex expression on the face of the Cultivator surnamed Huang, Li Yinsheng put away the Brass Incense Burner and took out the Netting Magical Artifacts from the two Qiankun Bags.

Two crystal-clear masses of spiderwebs landed in Li Yinsheng’s hands. They were far denser than ordinary spiderwebs, with the gaps between the silken threads being no larger than a grain of rice.

Compared to spiderwebs, they looked more like two silk handkerchiefs.

In his perception, these two webs were very strange.

Judging by the quality of a Magical Artifact, neither should be inferior to the Brass Incense Burner in its undamaged state.

Yet, they seemed different from ordinary Upper Grade Magical Artifacts.

"Fellow Daoist, what is the origin of this item, and what is its use?" Li Yinsheng asked the Cultivator surnamed Huang.

The Cultivator surnamed Huang explained, "This... this item is called a ’Net’, a highly unique Magical Artifact. It isn’t categorized into the upper, middle, or lower grades; it has no formal rank.

"In terms of crafting difficulty and cost, this Netting Magical Artifact is on par with an Upper Grade Magical Artifact. However, its function is single-minded. Unlike an ordinary Upper Grade Magical Artifact, it cannot be used both to fight enemies and for Flying in the Sky.

"Its sole purpose is to bind and trap enemies. Aside from that, it has no other abilities. But precisely because of this, its miraculous effectiveness in trapping opponents leaves all others in the dust."

Li Yinsheng looked down at the two Nets in his hands and nodded thoughtfully.

Li Yinsheng smiled at the Cultivator surnamed Huang. "If that’s the case, they are quite good items. Could it be that you brought them specifically to catch me?"

He thought, "No shit! If not to catch you, were they meant to catch me?"

Despite his inward cursing, the Cultivator surnamed Huang put on a terrified expression. He quickly lowered his head and stammered, "I wouldn’t dare! I wouldn’t dare! You must be joking, Senior."

Li Yinsheng didn’t bother to bicker with him. After all, he had reaped quite a harvest this time, so he was in a good mood.

Even if this Brass Incense Burner couldn’t be fully repaired, it would still be no worse than the Cold Bright Sword.

Although the two Netting Magical Artifacts had a single function, they should be extremely powerful, perfectly making up for his current lack of means to trap and seal enemies.

The only pity was that there wasn’t much hard cash in the Cultivator surnamed Huang’s Qiankun Bag either. It seemed that not liking to save money was a tradition among the people of the Yellow Crane Temple.

Li Yinsheng stroked his chin.

Meanwhile, in the Yellow Crane Temple.

Yang knelt in front of the main hall, panting heavily.

The Temple Master’s beard bristled, his eyes widening in a mixture of shock and fury. "Is everything you just said true?"

"This disciple doesn’t dare speak half a word of falsehood! Master and Senior Brother have already been detained!"

Yang was covered in tattered clothes, looking utterly wretched.

The Armor-Horse Skill that Li Yinsheng had cast upon him was simply too fast. Unable to control his wild sprint along the way, he frequently crashed into dead branches and shrubs before he could react. Not only were his clothes torn to shreds, but he was also left with numerous bleeding gashes.

The most unbearable part was that the blistering speed made it impossible for him to focus his Heart and Spirit, leaving him entirely unable to cast his Body-Protecting Magic.

"What audacity! What audacity!" The Temple Master instantly flew into a violent rage. "To insult my Yellow Crane Temple like this... This junior, this junior is utterly insolent!"

But after his shock and fury subsided, a wave of guilty apprehension washed over him.

Since even his junior brother had lost this time, what could the Yellow Crane Temple possibly do to deal with the other party?

Although, in terms of methods, the Yellow Crane Temple did have more fierce and ruthless options, such as the altar troops specifically responsible for Magical Combat and slaughter...

These altar troops were essentially malicious ghosts or Demon Fiends. Subdued by experts, they were bound with Magic Spells and Talismans, then lured with incense and offerings to be commanded. These vicious entities were known as "Rampaging Soldiers".

Even though a single Rampaging Soldier couldn’t be considered very strong, there were fully hundreds of them within the temple. If they were to form a Killing Array, they would be invincible.

However, this was a Dao-protecting method, the ultimate trump card of the Yellow Crane Temple to be used only when facing a major crisis that could threaten its Dao Lineage. It was absolutely not a tactic that could be deployed under ordinary circumstances.

Setting aside whether the cost of deploying the Rampaging Soldiers was worth it, the Dharma Vein alone was an insurmountable high wall.

Daring to lead a troop of altar Rampaging Soldiers straight into a fierce battle with another Daoist Temple—within a few hours, the Dharma Vein would undoubtedly send someone to hold them accountable.

When that time came, wouldn’t the Dharma Vein whip the Yellow Crane Temple like a spinning top?

Just as the Temple Master was caught in a dilemma, a voice as ethereal as the wind and clouds echoed directly within his mind.

"Gao, what happened? Why are you so irritable, and why are you clutching the talisman seal used to mobilize the Rampaging Soldiers? Huh, speaking of which, since this seal is in your hands, does that mean you are already the Temple Master?"

The Temple Master trembled all over. He hastily put away the talisman seal and looked around in a panic.

Only after a long moment did he spot a young Cultivator standing atop the roof of the main hall. He appeared to be in his early thirties, with a face as flawless as jade, wearing a sandy-yellow cloak.

The Temple Master quickly took a few steps forward, threw himself to his knees, and pressed his forehead against the ground, shouting respectfully.

"This unworthy descendant pays his respects to the Ancestor! I respectfully welcome the Ancestor out of seclusion!"