Creating gods? More like creating beasts!-Eerie Immortal Cultivation: I Became the Yellow-Clad Taoist Master(Jade Skies Above the Severed Arm)

"My Pure Immortal Temple is truly magnificent! So imposing!" Chen Huangpi was stirred, for Xu Qingshan carried two divine statues through the air, allowing him to gaze down and see the temple's entirety for the first time.

By day, the Pure Immortal Temple consisted of only a handful of halls, neither grand nor impressive. At night, it transformed, but that was a forbidden zone—his master never permitted him entry. Even when he’d snuck in, it was only for brief glances. Moreover, then he couldn’t fly. Not that he could now, either. But to finally overlook the entire Jade Qiong Mountain and the temple, Chen Huangpi at last understood the scale of the legacy he would inherit as the future temple master.

Suddenly, a bell rang.

Dong...

The sound echoed through the heavens. Xu Qingshan frowned and muttered, "It’s not time yet—why is the Nine Separation Bell ringing?"

"Never mind, three strikes of the Nine Separation Bell means we must hurry."

Soon Xu Qingshan, bearing the two statues, entered the mountain gate and arrived at the main hall within moments. One after another, the Daoists brought their statues inside. Some familiar faces teased him.

"Brother Xu, you brought two statues?"

"Trying to impress the temple master, are you?"

Xu Qingshan replied, "If I could perfect one, why bother with two?"

The Daoist laughed heartily and strode into the hall, Xu Qingshan following.

Inside, were many cultivators, but only Xu Qingshan had brought two statues, making him stand out. Chen Huangpi noticed each cultivator wore an identity jade token, and his heart felt even more sour.

"They all have one, so I must get one too."

Xu Qing moved ahead, and Chen Huangpi saw numerous statues scattered throughout the hall—some familiar, others alien. Among them was the mutated statue with a head covered in lumps, its body blue-black, devoid of features, but with a fissure across its chest and two giant eyes in the palms of its outstretched hands.

Yet, it was not yet tainted by black smoke. Its chest-fissure had not sprouted fangs or a tongue, so it lacked that sinister aura.

Chen Huangpi used to steal its offerings. Remembering this, he felt guilty.

"Unknowingly, I’ve already turned nine. Thinking back, at eight I was so childish, always stealing your offerings—really, I shouldn’t have."

"But you can’t blame me; the offerings tasted wonderful."

As he spoke, he regretted not having eaten more back then.

Now, offerings lay before the mutated statue—pastries, fruit. Chen Huangpi’s mouth watered. "I’m only nine, still a child. I haven’t eaten today; I’m hungry. Surely it will forgive me."

Instinctively, he reached out for the offering.

The next moment, something astonishing happened.

He actually extended his own hand—not that of the Fox Mountain God, but his own.

"Huh, I can appear in the Fox Mountain God’s memories?"

Delighted, he looked at his hands and touched his face.

"This really is me!"

The change surprised him. He didn’t know why it hadn’t worked before, yet now, in the Pure Immortal Temple, he could step out of the statue. Chen Huangpi was pleased, swaggering up to the mutated statue—but his hand passed right through the offering, as though he were a phantom.

He realized, "In the Fox Mountain God’s memories, I exist as I am, unable to alter its recollections, so naturally I can’t steal the offerings."

At this moment, more and more cultivators gathered within the hall. Suddenly, a Daoist’s voice rang out.

"The master commands: a celestial anomaly has appeared, day and night are confused, and in six days and nights all will be redefined. Today is the last day; thus, the statue consecration must be held early. Brothers, quickly, follow me to see the master."

"Yes, senior brother!"

All the Daoists spoke in unison.

Hearing this, Chen Huangpi moved among them, eager to find this senior brother. He was curious about his master’s first disciple.

The Daoists proceeded to the innermost wall of the hall, which was different from Chen Huangpi’s memory. Ten meters high, it displayed a painting of flying immortals—countless elegant figures ascending to a celestial mountain, alongside sharp-beaked cranes, water-avoiding beasts, and more.

On the painting’s gate, luxurious and resplendent, were words resembling flowers, birds, fish, and insects.

"The Gate of All Wonders."

Chen Huangpi studied the inscription, murmuring, "Only those with the Ascension Token may enter; otherwise, they are doomed to endless suffering, forever lost to the Yellow Springs, never to rise again."

That was what the Gate of All Wonders declared.

He watched the Daoists, statues in tow, step through the gate and into the painting, as if another world lay hidden within—a realm of marvels.

Yet, Chen Huangpi had never seen this painting before. In his memory, the wall was always bare.

"So Master must be inside; I want to see his past self."

With that, Chen Huangpi strode toward the Gate of All Wonders.

Bang.

He crashed into the wall.

"Trouble, I can’t get in."

"What now?"

Chen Huangpi was anxious, watching as the Daoists entered while he remained barred—a frustration hard to describe.

They were his master’s disciples, just as he was. Why could they pass, while he could not? They only called him master the temple lord!

Then he noticed that as the Daoists entered, their identity jade tokens flashed briefly.

"Is this the Ascension Token?"

He froze. If only that token allowed entry, would he never be able to go in?

"No, the Fox Mountain God said it had seen Master, so it must have been brought inside by Xu Qingshan. I need to return to the statue to enter."

Realizing this, Chen Huangpi waited by the Gate of All Wonders for Xu Qingshan.

Soon, he saw Xu Qingshan approach, and seized the moment to dive headfirst into the Fox God statue.

The next instant, Xu Qingshan stepped through the gate.

Chen Huangpi felt the world spin, darkness enveloping him.

Yet, in a blink, he found himself in the world beyond the Gate of All Wonders.

It was not as he imagined—a celestial abode or immortal estate—but rather as if a mountain had been hollowed out, creating a vast cavern.

At the summit hung a golden oil lamp, identical to the bronze lamp. Yet Chen Huangpi’s intuition told him: this was not Huang Er.

The golden lamp shone brightly and gently, illuminating the space. Strangely, though, a large portion remained shrouded in darkness. Light and shadow divided the realm starkly.

At that moment, the senior brother’s voice rang out.

"The master commands: awaken the gods!"

With that command, the golden lamp blazed forth, beams of gold streaming out.

The statues beside the Daoists rose into the air, the golden light entering each one, causing them to tremble.

Chen Huangpi, within the Fox Mountain God, sensed a consciousness brewing inside the statue—but something was missing.

Boom...

Thunder exploded, though no lightning flashed.

The statues descended. Some had come fully alive, like true deities; others, like the Fox Huang Er God, merely shuddered and stilled, their budding consciousness stagnant.

"I knew it would fail," Xu Qingshan muttered in frustration.

A nearby Daoist said, "Don’t fret, you’re not the only one. All the usable materials in Ten Thousand Mountains have been scoured; it’ll only get harder from here."

Xu Qingshan replied, "Senior brother, soon there will be no 'from here.' The temple master says in six days and nights, day and night will be redefined. After that, we may not be able to create gods like this again."

His senior brother reassured him, "The temple master is no ordinary man; he’ll find a way."

"Perhaps, but I doubt I can go on," Xu Qingshan said, rolling up his sleeve to reveal an arm with a mouth growing from it. "It’s devouring my cultivation. I’ve severed this arm before, letting it regrow, but the mouth remains. I suppose my true form must be like this now."

"You only grew a mouth. Look at the back of my head," his senior brother replied, turning and lifting his hair to reveal the face of a baby—ashen, unmoving, like a stillborn.

Xu Qingshan stared, then said, "It’s lifeless, nothing to fear."

His senior brother sighed, "Perhaps, but I hear it speaking to me every day."

Chen Huangpi didn’t understand their anxiety. His second master had told him it was normal—growing things as you matured. And to start so late was already underdeveloped. Unlike himself: at nine, he was already emitting black smoke. At this rate, who knew what he’d become?

"I always knew I was gifted," Chen Huangpi thought smugly, eager to see what strange things would sprout from him in the future.

Just then, a Daoist to Xu Qingshan’s right spoke quietly, "Three hundred years ago, the temple master brought us from Great Qian to these Ten Thousand Mountains to create gods, working day and night to craft ten thousand deities, though I know not for what purpose. Look, the gods are being sent inside once more."

He gestured ahead, and Chen Huangpi saw the gods step into the darkness.

"But are ten thousand gods enough?"

The Daoist continued, "Ten days ago, my mother said even Great Qian has become tainted. His Majesty intends to seal the entire realm. I regret following the temple master here."

Xu Qingshan and the others fell silent at this.

Chen Huangpi sympathized with these competitors for the temple’s succession.

"So they aren’t native Daoists of Ten Thousand Mountains—they came from a place called Great Qian, which must be far away, too far to return in ten days."

These Daoists must be powerful cultivators. Though Chen Huangpi couldn’t tell, being chosen by his master to help create gods must mean at least Golden Core or Nascent Soul level.

At that moment, a half-dragon, half-human god lagged behind. A Daoist whipped his horsetail whisk, urging him, "Hurry inside! Delay the temple master’s plans, and you’ll be reduced to dust!"

The dragon god roared, "I am no rotten wood or clay effigy! I am a deity, yet you dare treat me as livestock, as a dog! I—"

Bang.

Before he could finish, the Daoist lashed him, shattering him into powder.

"Had it not been the temple master’s decree, you dead things would never be enlightened by the Golden Lamp. Move quickly; hesitate, and this is your fate."

At those words, the gods dared not linger, rushing headlong into the darkness.