Chapter 124: Long-Browed Arhat

The golden swastika illuminated the gray Niutou Mountain, and after shattering the giant bull image, a red kasaya several meters long flew out from within Niutou Mountain.

Hua Changxi stared wide-eyed, seeing over twenty people either standing or lying prone on the kasaya—most of them were presumably those trapped in the Soul Devouring Well.

She hadn't expected them to escape so quickly, and when she saw the red kasaya racing straight toward her, she wasted no time and flew on her cloud toward the green river.

Hua Changxi wanted nothing to do with those cultivators; since they had caused such a commotion, the yellow bulls of Niutou Mountain would definitely be hunting them down, and she had no intention of getting caught in the crossfire.

"Clang, clang, clang~"

However, the next moment, a round gong radiating white light flew out of Niutou Mountain, and then three consecutive thunderous gong sounds rang through the sky.

The instant she heard the gong, Hua Changxi felt an invisible force strike her head three times, causing unbearable pain that made her plummet from her spirit cloud and crash heavily onto a street where cultivators had gathered to trade.

The cultivators trading on the street also suffered the attack; some clutched their heads in agony, others collapsed to the ground like Hua Changxi, all enduring tremendous suffering.

Hua Changxi lay on the ground recuperating for several minutes before her mind stopped being a blank slate and she could think a little. By then, the others on the street were gradually recovering, and the aftermath was overwhelming panic.

"Not good! Niutou Mountain has sounded the Soul Gong! Everyone, get indoors and hide!"

"When the Soul Gong rings, close your doors."

"Run, everybody!"

"Bang, bang, bang!"

Before Hua Changxi could even stand up, the busy trading street was empty—people had all ducked into the nearest houses and slammed their doors shut.

Seeing the street suddenly deserted, Hua Changxi realized danger was approaching. Gritting her teeth, she staggered to her feet and headed for the nearest house.

"Bang, bang, bang~"

Hua Changxi knocked on several doors, but no one opened for her.

At this, Hua Changxi let out a self-deprecating laugh. She had been caught up in this because she saved the cultivators in the Soul Devouring Well, yet now that she needed help, no one lent a hand.

Just as she regretted saving those people, a black dog suddenly appeared on the street. The dog dropped a black robe in front of Hua Changxi.

"You're the one Niutou Mountain wants to capture—no one dares to save you. This is a Dharma robe that blocks divine sense probes. The ghost messengers will arrive soon. Put it on and flee."

After speaking, the black dog ignited spontaneously—it was a dog folded from talisman paper.

Seeing the black robe, the surging rage boiling in Hua Changxi's heart subsided a little. She quickly stepped forward, picked up the robe, condensed a fire lotus in her hand, and roasted the robe carefully. Finding nothing suspicious, she draped it over herself.

"Thank you for your help, fellow Daoist."

The black dog had appeared out of nowhere, so she didn't know who had sent the robe. She could only thank the empty street and then stumble into the misty gloom beyond the reach of the skull lantern's light.

She knew danger lurked in the mist, but it was her only hiding place.

"Clatter~"

Just as Hua Changxi's figure vanished into the gray mist, the sound of iron chains scraping along the ground echoed through the street. Soon, two fierce-looking men with iron claws and chains and two with white whips appeared.

The standard gear of ghost market ghost messengers: Soul-hooking Claws, Soul-lashing Whips, and Soul-locking Cuffs.

Clearly, these four men were all ghost messengers of the ghost market.

Since ghost messengers had no spiritual power, Hua Changxi could not detect them in advance by sensing fluctuations of spiritual energy. She could only rely on sounds—footsteps, the clanking of chains, and other noises—to narrowly avoid them in the mist.

Fortunately, each time one's cultivation realm advanced, the sharpness of the five senses improved a level. Plus, she practiced body refinement, so she could not only hear extremely faint sounds but also smell the cold, yin aura emanating from the ghost messengers.

Every time she dodged one of those fierce men, Hua Changxi silently thanked the unknown cultivator who had given her the black robe. Without it, she would have been a moving target in this ghost market.

Soul attacks were hard to defend against. Even though Vermillion Bird Fire could harm ghost market residents to some extent, if too many people surrounded her or if a strong being like the Yellow Bull was drawn out, she wouldn't be able to hold out long.

Over the next period of time, Hua Changxi nervously played hide-and-seek with the ghost messengers in the thick fog.

Of course, she wasn't entirely passive.

Not all ghost messengers were grouped together; there were loners, and she had opportunities to kill them.

However, she chose not to act. Right now, she just wanted to leave the ghost market as soon as possible. Killing a ghost messenger would easily expose herself.

But when she finally reached the green river with difficulty, she found ghost messengers everywhere along the riverbank. The wooden bridge across the river was already secured by them.

Hua Changxi's heart sank. She had considered simply flying across the green river on her cloud, but looking at the eerie green water, instinct warned her of danger and she didn't act rashly.

Several dozen ghost messengers guarded the wooden bridge, holding either iron chain claws or iron whips. Seeing no way to cross, whenever she encountered a lone ghost messenger, she struck.

Hua Changxi first "accidentally" appeared in the mist, luring a lone ghostly envoy into the isolation array she had set up, then directly summoned her Fire Lotus, trapping the ghostly envoy inside it.

The Fire Lotus could not burn the ghostly envoy; only the Vermilion Bird Flame spewed by the fire bird could incinerate the ghostly envoy.

Once the Vermilion Bird Flame attached to the ghostly envoy, white smoke rose from its body. It burned for a full several minutes before the ghostly envoy was completely reduced to ashes.

As for why it took so long, Hua Changxi knew it was because her soul power was too weak, utterly unable to unleash the god-slaying power of the Vermilion Bird Flame.

Hua Changxi stepped forward and picked up the iron chain claw dropped by the ghostly envoy. With the iron chain claw, she could actively hunt ghostly envoys without revealing herself.

"Bang~"

The iron chain claw could hook Hua Changxi's soul body, and could also hook ghostly envoys. She hooked a lone ghostly envoy and pulled it into the isolation array, then burned it with Vermilion Bird Flame.

This time, she obtained another silver-white iron whip.

Because of the isolation array, the screams of the ghostly envoys being burned to death by Vermilion Bird Flame were not transmitted. In this manner, Hua Changxi used the iron chain claw to burn ten ghostly envoys to death, obtaining four iron chain claws, four iron whips, and two iron manacles.

Just as Hua Changxi was absorbing spirit stones to replenish her spiritual energy, that red kasaya appeared again, speeding through the air. Then, a white arrow shot out from Bullhead Mountain, accurately striking the kasaya and directly knocking it down.

"Bang~"

Hua Changxi heard the sound of a heavy object hitting the ground not far away. She did not go to investigate; instead, she quickly retreated in the opposite direction.

She had not run far when two ghostly envoys descended silently from the sky, coming face to face with Hua Changxi.

These two ghostly envoys were even taller than the ones she had encountered before, about three or four meters high. Hua Changxi was startled, and with no time to set up an isolation array, she directly flung out her Fire Lotus, trapping the two ghostly envoys inside it.

As soon as the fire bird appeared, the two ghostly envoys sensed danger, and one of them raised the white bone hanging from his neck to blow it.

At that moment, two golden "卍" characters flew into the Fire Lotus, directly smashing the two ghostly envoys into pieces.

"Amitabha!"

A middle-aged monk wearing a kasaya, with eyebrows that swept straight into his sideburns, walked out of the gray mist.

Hua Changxi looked at him with a wary expression, stepping back a few paces to increase the distance between them.

Seeing this, the middle-aged monk smiled, stepped forward, and picked up the white bone from the ground: "This is a Soul Bone Whistle. Benefactor, don't you want it?"

Hua Changxi: "You killed the ghostly envoy, so the things naturally belong to you."

Hearing this, the middle-aged monk smiled again: "Thank you, benefactor, for saving us earlier in the Soul-Devouring Well."

Hua Changxi said bluntly: "Now I regret saving you all."

The middle-aged monk laughed: "Benefactor's act of rescue came from the kindness in your heart. If you regret it, what you regret is your own decision to show kindness."

Hua Changxi did not want to argue with the monk and asked: "How did you all escape so quickly?"

The middle-aged monk thanked her again: "All thanks to the Soul-Unbinding Pill and healing pills you left behind, benefactor."

Hua Changxi still thought their movements were too fast, but she was too lazy to press further: "Just now, Master also helped me kill two ghostly envoys, so we're even." With that, she turned to leave.

Seeing this, the middle-aged monk quickly called out to her: "Benefactor, please stay. I am..."

Hua Changxi interrupted him: "We just happened to meet by chance; there's no need to exchange names."

Seeing Hua Changxi's eagerness to get rid of him, the middle-aged monk could only say: "Benefactor, if you want to leave this place, I'm afraid doing it alone won't be enough."

These words did make Hua Changxi stop. She knew too little about the ghost market and feared falling into unknown traps, but she didn't fully believe him either: "What do you mean, Master?"

The middle-aged monk: "I am an Arhat from Xiangguo Temple. Benefactor may call me Long Brow."

Long Brow Arhat was somewhat startled to see that even after he revealed his identity, the other party remained indifferent: "...To cross the Nine Nether River, one can only use the wooden bridge. Now that the wooden bridge is guarded by ghostly envoys, crossing it will be very difficult."

Hua Changxi remained silent. She could not reveal her ignorance; once others knew she knew nothing about the ghost market, she could be manipulated and exploited.

The Nine Nether River should be that green river.

Seeing no reaction from Hua Changxi, Long Brow Arhat added: "If we can't cross the river, we can't stay in the ghost market either. Huang Mang will soon use the Gate Mirror to search for us."

Hua Changxi finally reacted: "Not 'us,' but 'you.' That yellow ox doesn't know I exist."

Long Brow Arhat laughed: "Benefactor, I'm afraid you're mistaken. Barring any surprises, the first person Huang Mang will search for should be you."

Hua Changxi frowned: "Master, are you threatening me?"

Long Brow Arhat shook his head, his expression turning serious: "It seems you don't know what the demons fear most. What the demons fear most are human beings who have inherited the will of the Four Spirits."

"The Four Spirits suppress ten thousand demons, and are the most feared existence among the demon race. And you, benefactor, used Vermilion Bird Flame in the Soul-Devouring Well, leaving behind the aura of the Vermilion Bird."

Hua Changxi's heart trembled, but she still put on a look of disbelief: "With so many cultivators in the Ghost Market, I don't believe he can find me."

Long-Browed Arhat: "The dharma robe on you, benefactor, can defend against ordinary divine sense detection, but it cannot withstand Guan Jing's."

Seeing Hua Changxi's hesitant expression, Long-Browed Arhat directly took off his kasaya: "This kasaya of mine has Buddhist script defenses and can take you, benefactor, across the Nine Nether River."

Hua Changxi: "What does the master wish for me to do?"

Long-Browed Arhat pressed his palms together: "Amitabha, I wish to ask you, benefactor, to also bring the others who escaped from the Soul-Devouring Well across the river. Rest assured, when you cross the river later, I will stay behind to cover the rear and ensure your safe crossing."

Hua Changxi: "Why don't you bring them across yourself?"

Long-Browed Arhat smiled: "I was just hit by a Soul-Devouring Arrow. Even if I cross the river, I won't live long. I might as well do something useful."

Hua Changxi looked at him: "If one is hit by a Soul-Devouring Arrow, there is no way to live?"

Long-Browed Arhat: "If a fifth-rank alchemist were to appear right now, I might still be saved, but... now even a second-rank alchemist is hard to find, so where would one find a fifth-rank alchemist?"

Hua Changxi: "Master, aren't you from Xiangguo Temple? Can't you seek help from the royal family? The royal family should have high-rank alchemists, right?"

Long-Browed Arhat shook his head: "As far as I know, the most powerful alchemist in the royal family can only refine third-rank spirit pills."

The royal family indeed has deep foundations, but alchemists need spirit plants to refine pills. Hundreds of years ago, Da Jin did indeed see a batch of blessed lands and cave paradises emerge one after another, but limited by spiritual qi density, high-rank spirit plants cannot grow.

Without spirit plants of the corresponding rank, how can one refine corresponding spirit pills?

Hua Changxi could not discern whether Long-Browed Arhat was genuine. Although she indeed did not perceive any malice from him, she was still hesitant about whether to cooperate.

At that moment, in the dim mist, a skeleton radiating bright white light emerged, followed by the ghostly figure of a huge ox.

As soon as the skeleton and the giant ox appeared, they dispersed the gray mist, greatly improving visibility.

"Not good, Huang Mang has summoned Lady White Bones."

Long-Browed Arhat's expression changed drastically. Holding the kasaya, he approached Hua Changxi and directly placed it in her hands, told her the mantra to control it, then took off the bodhi bracelet from his neck:

"Benefactor, when you get out, if you have time, please return my bodhi bracelet to Xiangguo Temple. If it can be enshrined before the Buddha, then I will not have come to this world in vain."

Having said that, without waiting for Hua Changxi's response, he flew up to meet Lady White Bones and Huang Mang.

Hua Changxi saw this and quickly asked: "Master, you haven't told me where the others are?"

Hearing her question, Long-Browed Arhat's eyes showed a smile: "Benefactor, take the kasaya to the riverside, and someone will naturally come out to see you."

"Remember, in the future when you enter the Ghost Market, do not come to the Gen Gate side again."

With that, he left without looking back.

Hua Changxi watched him, looked at the kasaya in her hands, gritted her teeth, and flew on her cloud toward the riverbank.

"Rumble~"

A towering several-dozen-meter-tall arhat spirit image, radiating golden light, floated in the air, dispersing the fog for dozens of li in all directions.

Hua Changxi saw this and shuddered.

The arhat spirit image stood before Lady White Bones and Huang Mang, and the two sides confronted each other.

Hua Changxi glanced at it and continued flying toward the river. As soon as she approached the bank, more than ten people ran out from various places.

Some of these people held iron chain hooks, others iron whips; they had clearly already fought with the ghost messengers.

"Whoosh~"

Hua Changxi unfurled the kasaya, and it grew larger in the wind. Without her needing to say anything, those people quickly boarded the kasaya.

"Is there anyone else?"

Hua Changxi asked, and when no one spoke, she waited a while longer. A few more cultivators arrived one after another.

By then, the ghost messengers had already spotted them and were rushing over.

Seeing this, Hua Changxi decided not to wait any longer. She controlled the kasaya to fly across the several-hundred-meter-wide Green River.

Just as the kasaya was crossing the Green River, Long-Browed Arhat and Lady White Bones and Huang Mang broke into a fierce battle. The battle was so intense that the very air seemed to tremble.

"Master Long-Browed... he burned his own golden core."

The person in the kasaya wept.

"Elder Eyebrow Master sacrificed himself to save us."

Hua Changxi glanced at them and said nothing. At this moment, she was staring solemnly at the green river below.

On the kasaya, golden swastika symbols appeared one after another. Under the suppression of the swastikas, the green river, which had begun to churn and boil, calmed down a little.

"Ming Dragon, attack!"

Bone Lady's shrill voice rang out, and in the next moment, the green river began to churn again.

"Splash~"

A long green dragon formed from the green water slowly emerged.

Seeing the green dragon, Hua Changxi's heart skipped a beat. Traveling on the green river, unable to advance or retreat, she was so anxious that cold sweat broke out on her forehead.

Just then, she happened to see the spiritual giant hand of the Elder Eyebrow Arhat slapping toward Bone Lady.

Hua Changxi saw this and her expression shook. As the green dragon attacked, a brilliant spiritual light burst from her right hand, and a phantom spiritual hand flew out, growing larger and larger, like a mountain, slapping toward the green dragon.

Seeing the giant hand, the green dragon initially paid no attention and charged straight at it. However, when its head struck the giant hand, it discovered that each of the five fingers of the giant hand was engraved with a swastika.

"Boom~"

The deafening impact sound of the green dragon crashing into the giant hand, along with the Elder Eyebrow Arhat's final strike against Bone Lady and Huang Mang, rang out simultaneously.

The violent impact made heaven and earth tremble.