Chapter 12 Precept Taboo
Wang Yuan moved like a spiritual cat, swiftly increasing the distance once again between himself and the odd entity.
Behind him, the head of the distorted and writhing woman split open, two gaunt hands reached out, grabbing the sides of the skin and tearing it apart with force.
Rip—!
The human skin fell off, and from within emerged a skinny Daoist.
His protruding mouth, flabby cheeks lined with wrinkles, and purple lips were excessively thick; a black and red tongue lingered half a foot outside his mouth.
Just by looking at his face, he resembled a wild dog.
He kicked away the big black dog that had messed up the task and was still wagging its tail.
"Stupid dog, one you pick up midway can never truly be tamed. If you weren't somewhat spiritually aware and had the potential to become a demon or a monster, I would have already butchered you for dog meat!"
The Daoist, ugly as a wild dog, used a pair of slightly greenish eyes to intently stare at Wang Yuan's retreating figure:
"Everyone from the Wang Family says you're a fool, but I find you quite cunning, at least a fool with some luck.
You've actually broken the Precept Taboo of Master Ge's Human Face Painting Skill, costing me a Painting Spirit I had so difficulty found, perfectly compatible with her birth characters.
As long as I made her unknowingly kill someone and take their skin, she would have been permanently bound by the Human Face Painting Skill for me to command."
"Since you're already doomed to die, why not gracefully contribute to my Dao Industry?
One day, when I, Wild Dog Daoist, step onto the path of immortality and achieve everlasting life, there will naturally be a share of merit for you."
He flicked his wrist, and the woman's skin let out a mournful wail, turning into an unidentifiable withered yellow skin of a man, woman, old, or young.
This was what he referred to as the Painted Skin.
Still attached to veins, nerves, and yellow fat, it appeared as though it had just been peeled off someone's face, still twitching and writhing.
Wang Yuan, who glanced back, felt nauseated at the sight.
At this moment, he understood he wasn't someone who attracted calamities everywhere he went, a Death God physique, always passively attracting all sorts of strange occurrences.
Instead, he had just encountered the reinforcements mentioned by Wang Cheng, one of Master Ge's formidable magicians skilled in mysterious Magic!
'Weren't we supposed to start at Midnight?
It's only just nightfall, this dim-witted guy doesn't even know how to slack off properly, such a bad review!'
This thought passed in a flash.
Wang Yuan immediately leaped onto the treetops, rushing like the wind toward Wangren Town, halfway up the mountain.
In this world where Daoist Skills become manifest, the only transcendental force that truly exists comes in the form of the various and astonishing Divine Power Skills!
Even the intimidating Taoist Military Skill and the Thirty-Six Martial Arts Books are nothing but convenient methods for training Daoist Soldiers.
Keep in mind, billions of mortals are completely helpless against Weird phenomena, but accomplished magicians not only have the chance for immortality; they can also control or even make use of Weird entities!
From this, one can appreciate how terrifying these individuals are.
Though Wang Yuan had previously benefited immensely from encounters with Weird phenomena and Deceit Objects, it's often said, "Good swimmers are often drowned, and good horsemen are often thrown."
If he dared to rely on the Small Book of Life and Death and the remaining 72 points of Yin Morality to actively chase and hunt Weird entities, he might end up dead without understanding how it happened.
Even though this Wild Dog Daoist clearly hadn't yet received the Receiving Talisman to be initiated, certainly not as powerful as Master Ge, Wang Yuan still did not want to risk a foolhardy death.
Seeing Wang Yuan run away decisively, the ugly Wild Dog Daoist was not in a hurry; he took out a medicine bottle labeled "Human Face Beast Heart Pill" from his sack.
"This Tomb Guardian Wang Family are truly worthless, allowing someone to escape the Royal Mausoleum and now I have to intervene personally.
However, after this task is completed, it shouldn't be too much if I choose another attractive and proper-looking Painting Spirit in the Daling Village, right?"
After swallowing a red elixir pill from the bottle, the Wild Dog Daoist blew a whistle.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!...
From the dark forest, several wild dogs with mottled fur and gaping fangs sprinted out.
Perhaps they were not as imposing as the big black dog disguised as a wild wolf at the beginning, but their ferocious and malicious temperament was even more terrifying.
Indeed, it was them, who had taken advantage of a mist of mountain haze, to devour that middle-aged couple bringing chicken soup to their elderly mother.
The Wild Dog Daoist then took out another bottle labeled "Beast-Shaped Pill," tossed its contents in the air, and a dozen green-eyed wild dogs jumped up, each swallowing one.
Instantly, swarming as if countless small mice were scurrying within, they stretched their skeletons, muscles, and membranes, enlarging their sizes threefold in midair, and almost reaching the chest level of an adult when they raised their heads.
From a pack of scrawny wild dogs, they had transformed into fierce beasts ready to prey.
The Wild Dog Daoist, having taken the Human Face Beast Heart Pill, was now able to communicate freely in both human speech and beast language with this group of deformed wild dogs.
Awooo—!
At his command, they charged after Wang Yuan.
The gaunt Wild Dog Daoist mounted the biggest dog, resembling a calf, and followed close behind, not worried in the slightest about losing the chase.
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An abandoned fool, chased by a pack of wild dogs with extremely keen senses, where could he possibly flee to on the deserted Beimang Mountain?
To the Wild Dog Daoist, this was at best a hunting game barely worth his amusement.
If it weren't for his interest in the fool's fine skin, why would he ever tolerate his little wits of feigning a wolf or dog?
Thus, the Daoist kept prattling relentlessly, his voice clearly reaching Wang Yuan's ears:
"You, fool, have had your Qi Fortune and blessings snatched away by the 'Weird' summoned by Uncle Ge, leaving you nothing but a clean shell.
Plus, with the fate connections, you are the perfect medicine bait for the Owl God Tomb.
As long as you are near Beimang Mountain, no matter where you run, you will die sooner or later.
Your skin is of no use to you now; why not save your effort and perfect my many years of hard-earned 'Human Face Painting Skill'?"
Realizing that his pursuer was not in a hurry, seemingly waiting for him to exhaust his energy before capturing him alive to avoid damaging the skin,
Wang Yuan simply stopped trying to flee for his life.
Moreover, in this world, only by embarking on Daoist cultivation could one hope for longevity, and he was naturally interested in Divine Power Skills.
Hearing that the other party was in a mood to converse, he tentatively asked:
"People say that cultivation can grant one immortality; does your 'Human Face Painting Skill' grant you long life?"
Hearing the words "long life," the Wild Dog Daoist immediately twitched as if someone had touched a sore spot on his ugly face.
But perhaps having no guard up against a dying fool, he openly shared some secrets of cultivation:
"Ha, even a mere fool dares to talk about longevity?
Do you know that only by Receiving the Talisman can one truly call oneself a Magician? From there, Magician, Mage, Sage, Corpse Dissection Immortal, fourfold and twelve stages, each step is a towering floor.
Only by achieving the status of Corpse Dissection Immortal can one seek the flawless 'Immortality Dao Fruit.'
Although we are from the ancient sect of 'Peach God Tao,' we are merely magicians in name, never having even set foot on the first stage of enlightenment.
One must acquire a skill within the Tao, a technique within the skill, maintain a pure and arduous will unwavering for a lifetime, to lay the foundation in Daoist skill, to inherit the 'Divine Talisman' bestowed down from our lineage's 'West Queen Holy Mother'... "
The Wild Dog Daoist didn't say much of substance, the rest mainly lamenting how difficult cultivation was and how elusive was the quest for immortality.
'Human Face Painting Skill' is both a technique and a magic artifact.
In cultivation, one must collect faces of different demographics according to a certain rule, experience different identities; the more one collects, the greater the endurance, the more perfect is the foundation upon entering the Dao.
For example: youth, adulthood, strength; old age, weakness, sickness, disability;
Lower Nine Streams: government officials, bang, time demon, dog beater, porter, high platform, blower, circus, prostitute.
Middle Nine Streams: child immortal, fortune telling, doctor, Danqing, hermit, Qinqi, monk, Daoist, nun.
Upper Nine Streams:...
The woman who was bringing food to her elderly mother in the 'Elder Care Pavilion' was his newly acquired identity, but it was exposed and ruined by Wang Yuan, leading to a failed disguise.
Moreover, throughout the Wild Dog Daoist's ramblings, one term was repeatedly mentioned—"Precept Taboos."
Every Supernatural skill from the acquired cultivation has its own precepts and taboos, and violating them will lead to great disasters.
Such as with the 'Human Face Painting Skill' precept taboo.
—One must, under the premise that fits the human skin identity, lead someone else to their death in order to fully steal that person's appearance and fate.
if the original owner becomes aware that they are dead, the effort is all undone.
If this step is bypassed and 'Human Face Painting' is used directly,
the dead person's skin will slowly grow onto the face and can never be removed. Over time, the magician will twist into a grotesque blood-fleshed monster.
Having been in this world for so many years, Wang Yuan finally learned some of the secrets of longevity cultivation from a magician's lips.
Yet, he wasn't overly excited but more worried:
"Precept Taboos?
in my previous life, I had heard about the Daoist Precepts such as the Three Precepts for Daoist civilians, the Five Precepts for Talisman receivers, the Eight Precepts for wine officiants, the Nine Precepts to contemplate, and the Twenty-Four Precepts for discerning truth, and so on.
These were meant to rid oneself of the five desires, cultivate the five virtues, and escape the five contaminations.
But these magicians pursuing immortality seem awfully similar to those 'Weird' creatures, who often kill people following certain patterns?
'Human Face Painting' requires playing the role before killing; the 'Oil Seller of Xuanping Square' only kills those who have consumed his pork oil; the 'Great Yan Treasure Ship' bargains lives for goods; then the 'Weird' creature from that night must take a multiple-choice test...
The 'Precept Taboos' that these magicians must abide by during cultivation clearly aren't about self-cultivation, but they seem more like operating procedures for some evil weapon.
Could it be that the path of cultivation has some unknown connection to these man-eating 'Weird' creatures?"
Right at this moment, the clouds before Wang Yuan's eyes slightly parted, revealing a pale moonlight.
He had arrived at his destination—"Wangren Town."
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