Vol. 1 Chapter 12: The Yellow Emperor? King in Yellow!

### Chapter 12: The Yellow Emperor? King in Yellow!

"I finally feel a long-lost excitement. My life has been unbearably dull, repeating the same things day in and day out. Even when there are changes, they are just another kind of repetition! Repeating school, repeating classes, I can even foresee my future being the same, repeating work. Such a life is far too boring!" Lu Li spoke with fervor, but upon seeing the silent marionette, he shook his head. "You wouldn't understand."

"You could have hidden in the temple and waited for me. Do you realize you almost... you almost destroyed your own and my master's hope?" The marionette suddenly spoke with agitation, looking at Lu Li as if he were a madman.

"Yes, I could have hidden, but first, I was delayed by something, and second, why should I hide? Isn't this situation incredibly interesting?" Lu Li shrugged off her reproach. "I don't refuse anything interesting, just like I know you've been plotting against me, yet I still followed your plan."

"… Fine, as long as you can bring this item back to reality and give it to my master, I will be eternally grateful." This time, the marionette dropped the honorifics, her voice cold and detached. She suddenly felt that Lu Li was incredibly dangerous.

With the marionette's help, Lu Li stood up, limping to the temple entrance. Without a left arm and with a broken right hand, he used his head to push open the temple door. As he stepped inside, he felt the allure of the so-called treasure.

The marionette quickly followed him, her red tear glinting eerily. She hurried to the altar, opened the hidden compartment, and took out a box. Her wooden face lit up with joy as she opened it to reveal a piece of cinnabar, cut into a rectangular shape and inscribed with large characters: **"Immortal Sand Soul Returning Talisman"**.

Behind the cinnabar were lines of small characters: **"A single flame can burn all things, when the thing perishes, where remains the flame? A single breath can govern all things, when the thing perishes, where remains the breath?..."**

"This is wonderful, the item is still here. Master…" The marionette rejoiced, her wooden hands clutching the cinnabar talisman. Strange waves of energy spread through the temple. Lost in her fantasies, she imagined using it to become human, revive her master, and live happily ever after. In this blissful daydream, she didn't notice the revived old man had become a living corpse, enduring endless pain...

The marionette snapped out of her reverie, all strange thoughts forgotten. She turned to see Lu Li leaning against the doorframe, smiling calmly. "I need you to take this to the real world!"

Her red tear shone beautifully, like a dangerous poison. The atmosphere grew tense with invisible currents.

She placed the cinnabar talisman in Lu Li's pocket, triggering a notification:

**[Side Quest: Source of the Ghouls Completed, Reward: 500 Game Points!]**

**[Obtained Xuanjun's Seven-Chapter Secret: Immortal Sand Soul Returning Talisman (Incomplete)]**

**[Item Description: From the manual "Xuanjun's Seven-Chapter Secret," consisting of seven volumes, each recording one or more spells. The Immortal Sand Soul Returning Talisman is from the first volume, describing the deeds of the Yellow Emperor and his invention of the resurrection technique.]**

**[Ability Description: Can resurrect bodies with intact corpses. Holding the talisman allows control over them. The talisman's cinnabar can awaken inanimate objects...]**

**[Usage: Hold, consume, or use as paint, etc.]**

**[Item Evaluation: This thing truly can resurrect the dead, but the effects... well, who uses it knows! Maybe ask the ghouls?]**

"Are you really just going to hand this over to me?" Lu Li asked, leaning against the doorframe lazily.

"Of course, you will do as I say, right? Didn't you just say you won't refuse anything interesting?" The marionette responded calmly, as if all that mattered was saving her master.

"Perhaps." Lu Li shrugged nonchalantly. "Was this all part of your plan from the beginning? Ever since I appeared, you had this plan in mind!"

"Yes, that's correct!" The marionette admitted. "Even though the temple's defenses were weakened after the Buddha head was stolen, it's still beyond my reach. The Buddha statue, though turned into a monster by the talisman, is the temple's core. Even missing its head, it significantly strengthened the temple's defenses, hiding it from us."

"So you led me to the headless Buddha, using my ability to handle fire to eliminate it, revealing the temple's location?" Lu Li's question was rhetorical, his tone sure.

"Yes, I am not very afraid of fire due to my special nature, but I can't get too close because of my wooden body. You arrived just in time!" The marionette answered straightforwardly.

"Moreover, the temple symbolizes protection, repelling all ghosts. I couldn't ensure entry. My original plan was to connect with the talisman inside and force an entry. But with you, everything went smoothly, including retrieving the talisman!"

"So, how did you plan to retrieve it initially?" Lu Li's curiosity was piqued, probing for any missing details.

"By using the ghouls. Implanting the talisman into a ghoul, though risky and partially absorbed, was my only option. The talisman would instinctively guide the ghoul to me. Retrieving it then depended on fate." The marionette explained, her tear made from the talisman fragment connecting her to its power. Her original plan was fraught with risks, but it was her only option.

As they conversed, the eerie atmosphere persisted, unnoticed by Lu Li, who seemed oblivious to the marionette's actions.

"One last question," Lu Li said. "How do you know so much?"

"I had contact with the source of the talisman, gaining much information." The marionette explained. Her tear had facilitated a distant connection with a powerful entity, granting her insight.

"The source?" Lu Li pondered, recalling the talisman's details. It mentioned the Yellow Emperor inventing it. Could the Yellow Emperor still be alive? That would overturn history!

"Indeed, that entity is known as the King in Yellow!"

End of the chapter.