The Nestorian representative took out a crossbow and shot a barrage of bolts at the back of the Yang Corpse, making a series of "clink, clink, clink" sounds. The black nails from the crossbow failed to penetrate the back of the Yang Corpse and instead were rebounded. The Nestorian representative then took out Holy Water and splashed an entire bottle onto the Yang Corpse. The Yang Corpse seemed like a glowing metal plate, causing the Holy Water to bubble up fervently, yet the back of the Yang Corpse showed no change at all.

The Young Taoist saw clearly that the Yang Corpse did not have a single scratch on its body. Even Mr. Zhao’s ruler could not harm the Yang Corpse.

At this moment, the Yang Corpse shook its head, ready to get up from the sand.

The Nestorian representative grew anxious, grabbed his Sheepskin Scroll, and slammed it heavily onto the back of the Yang Corpse.

The Yang Corpse, seemingly unable to withstand the weight of the Sheepskin Scroll, staggered and fell back to the ground.

The Young Taoist seized the opportunity, drew his Golden Sword, and struck down at the neck of the Yang Corpse.

"Ding!"

The Young Taoist’s wrist ached from the shock, nearly causing him to drop his Golden Sword.

After steadying himself, the Young Taoist blew his nose hard toward the Yang Corpse, releasing two clusters of fire that enveloped the Yang Corpse’s head. After a while of burning, there was still no change in the Yang Corpse’s head.

The Yang Corpse was nurtured and tempered by yang energy, while the Young Taoist’s spells, being Yang Techniques meant for Exorcising Demons and Eliminating Evil, were effective against Yin Corpses but not against the Yang Corpse.

At this moment, the Sheepskin Scroll on the back of the Yang Corpse began to change, twisting, turning black, and smoking before bursting into flames.

Both the Young Taoist and the Nestorian representative began to retreat.

The Sheepskin Scroll soon burned up completely, and the Yang Corpse stood up again, reinvigorated, and charged again at Mr. Zhao.

Mr. Zhao raised the ruler and swung it once more. The Yang Corpse raised its spear to catch the blow, and its entire body, from the chest down, was nailed into the sand.

"Shine the Water Moon Mirror on him!" Mr. Zhao shouted to the Young Taoist.

The Young Taoist took out the Bronze Mirror previously used on Liu Bai, using the moonlight to reflect into the Yang Corpse’s golden-glowing eyes.

An image appeared in the Water Moon Mirror.

A childhood pair, the boy went off to join the army, and the girl waited for the boy to marry her, but she was abducted and sold to an opera troupe, violated by the troupe leader, performed while pregnant, and hanged herself. The boy, returning home gloriously with honor, became a renowned general, yet could not find his beloved. Later, the opera troupe came to perform, and the General, dreaming of his beloved, slaughtered twelve people in a fit of rage but was sentenced to prison and tortured to death by his enemies.

The two corpses were sent to the frontier, buried in the yellow sand. East Lake dried up when it buried the General, and West Lake accumulated water when it buried the singer. The two, separated by yin and yang, faced each other day and night but could not reunite. Their resentment was overwhelming.

Chapter 2002: Yin Fire

There were still more images, but the Water Moon Mirror could no longer withstand the Yang Corpse’s fury. With a "ding" sound, the Bronze Mirror shattered into two halves from the middle.

The Yang Corpse snapped back to its senses, as if recalling painful memories, its body flashing with intense golden light, so dazzling that Mr. Zhao couldn’t swing the ruler down. The Yang Corpse stood up, grabbed the spear, and charged at Mr. Zhao once more.

Mr. Zhao swung the ruler again, but the Yang Corpse did not evade and directly blocked it with its chest. With a "bang," the Yang Corpse took a step back, and Mr. Zhao spat out a mouthful of blood, with the golden light behind him dimming.

Mr. Zhao quickly pulled out a porcelain bottle from his bosom, the Fire Yuan Pill that Song Xiaodong had given before. He swallowed three pills in one go, his face immediately flushed with a rosy hue, as if intoxicated. Seeing the Yang Corpse pause momentarily before charging again, Mr. Zhao gathered his strength. A golden phantom behind him conjured a giant brush from the void, made of black wood and as thick as a beam, sweeping toward the Yang Corpse.

The Yang Corpse saw the ruler couldn’t harm it, let out a triumphant howl, its eyes filled with contempt.

Song Xiaodong, seeing the expression of the Yang Corpse, thought to himself, "This Yang Corpse still retains consciousness, the spellcast by the one who refined this body is truly exquisite."

Seeing the brush sweeping toward him, the Yang Corpse did not panic and raised its spear to catch it, but the giant brush had no substance and passed right through the Yang Corpse’s body.

The golden glow on the Yang Corpse was dimmed by the brush stroke.

The Young Taoist, observing Mr. Zhao’s divine skills, couldn’t help but say, "Hmph, if you’re in such a hurry to Yama’s Palace, don’t forget to take me with you!"

Having said that, the Young Taoist took out a porcelain bottle, swallowed a few elixirs, and as soon as he did, his appearance began to change. The sixty-year-old white-bearded Young Taoist turned back to black-haired, his wrinkles disappeared, his figure became upright again, and in an instant, he had reverted to the appearance of a sixteen-year-old.

"Heaven and Earth Furnace, Mankind as Fuel, Samadhi True Fire, Creation Essence!"

After speaking, the Young Taoist’s eyes suddenly turned red, and in his pupils, a small flame was burning, looming like a lava giant demon, a ghost-capturing celestial being, scaring people to their wits’ end!

As soon as the Young Taoist finished reciting the Mnemonic Incantation, he leaped three meters forward to the Yang Corpse and struck with the horsetail whisk. The Yang Corpse used its spear to block, but the horsetail whisk, light as nothing, made a booming sound like a bell when it hit the Yang Corpse, though its body remained impenetrable. The Young Taoist could not leave a single mark on the Yang Corpse, let alone strike a vital spot.

The Nestorian representative, looking at his already-turned-to-ash Sheepskin Scroll and the Yang Corpse in the distance glowing like a Heavenly God descending to the mortal world, felt his faith wavering.

The "Jing" in Nestorianism signifies brightness and righteousness, once confused with the Fire-worshipping Sect by the common people.