Chapter 431: Chapter 395: Transformation of the Yin Child
The transformation of the Yin Child began with her level; standing beside Sang Que, she emanated a strong sense of oppression similar to that of the Five Spirits God, at least reaching the Sixth Level.
Thus, when the Yin Child appeared, all the ghosts in the Opera House fled, and Old Tian hid inside without daring to come out.
The next change was in the Yin Child’s body, which was initially a pure soul but now composed of the Five Spirits of Yunzhou.
The appearance and existence of the Five Spirits are complex; originally born from raising Gu, they were later worshipped by the Yunzhou people for hundreds of years, becoming akin to Divine beings, no longer merely a pure soul.
This existence is somewhat similar to the Golden Child on Sang Que; Sang Que can grant spiritual blessings to children’s souls through the Golden Child, turning them into Little Golden Children, like the Little Ghost at her home protecting her mother, possessing part of the Golden Child’s power.
Now, the Yin Child can also grant spiritual blessings, bestowing powers from herself—snake, scorpion, centipede, toad, and gecko—to five individuals, each enhancing the person’s power to use the corresponding Gu.
Previously, the Five Spirits God selected the Holy Daughter and Child in this manner to grant spiritual blessings, making them exceptional.
Besides, the Yin Child is now the supreme Ghost God in Yunzhou, invulnerable to any Gu technique, with all Yunzhou Ghost Kings required to obey the Yin Child’s orders.
The Yin Child can freely mobilize all Gu and Ghost Kings in Yunzhou, and she possesses five special Gu to use within her body, which Sang Que, as the Yin Child’s wielder, can also employ.
The Scorpion Gu attacks, the Snake Gu controls, the Toad Gu defends, the Centipede Gu disrupts, and finally, the Gecko Gu possesses healing abilities, effective for both humans and ghosts. Combined with the Yin Child’s powers of dismemberment, assembly, Ghost Eye, and Words Followed by Law, her abilities are becoming increasingly versatile.
After understanding the Yin Child’s transformation, before Sang Que could ask, the Yin Child raised her hand, reached into her thoracic cavity, and pulled out Sang Que’s heart, holding it in both hands to present to Sang Que.
As the heart left the body, the Yin Child’s aura rapidly declined, and her Miao clothing reverted to a tattered ordinary dress, even her appearance became more like herself, losing that resemblance to Sang Que from childhood.
The heart appeared still ’fresh,’ perhaps made special by the Witch’s bloodline.
The Yin Child was now docile and compliant. Sang Que couldn’t determine whether it was due to the Mountain Ghost Seal or if the Yin Child truly felt grateful, willing to get along well with her.
Sang Que did not accept, "We’re still in Yunzhou now; you need to appear before them as the new Five Spirits God. The heart will temporarily reside with you; return it to me when I need it, and also keep these embroidered shoes and these already damaged items with you."
Upon hearing this, the Yin Child’s eyes curved, her mouth splitting into a startling smile; she tucked the heart back, and then immediately stuffed the damaged veil and phoenix hairpin into her mouth and ate them.
When the Yin Child returned to Sang Que’s body, a surging cold swept from her feet to her head, and Sang Que briefly glimpsed the scene of the Five Layers of the Nine Netherworld Hell, where she was seized rapidly by numerous ghostly hands in a boiling cauldron, sinking quickly, feeling the utmost pain and spine-chilling terror throughout her body.
Sang Que broke into a cold sweat on her forehead, frowning and enduring.
This was because the present Yin Child was too formidable, dragging her swiftly down into the lower layers of the Nine Netherworld. Fortunately, her Heart Lamp was strong enough to sustain her till mid-Fifth Layer without issue.
Once her condition stabilized, Sang Que teleported the five mischievous kids back, putting away the Opera House.
At the altar’s center, the original Five Spirits God Stone Shell remained in place, Sang Que raised her hand to touch it, and the entire stone shell collapsed, burying the passage beneath leading to the Hidden Realm, which would naturally close over time.
Stepping off the altar, Sang Que saw the surrounding Five Poison Statues and remembered the Children who previously were only left with their skin after the retrieval of the Five Spirits.
The Yin Child wished to abolish the system of Holy Daughters and Children henceforth, reclaiming all divine powers to herself, preventing the sacrificial offerings of male and female children from happening again.
Sang Que thought it through carefully, contemplating and advising.
"Those Children essentially died when chosen by the Five Spirits God to receive spiritual blessings, but they retain memories of their past, and to their kin, they are alive. I feel this shouldn’t be too hasty; with Qinzhou becoming a Death Domain, Yunzhou’s populace is already anxious and tense, and if you further strip away the divine authority from the five great villages, Yunzhou might also descend into chaos."
"The five great villages govern Yunzhou because they hold these Children representing the Five Spirits God, and thus have deterrence over other small villages, stopping them from rebelling. Consider this the last generation; when the world stabilizes, I’ll join you in completely abolishing the human sacrificial customs."
Granting spiritual blessings won’t cause significant harm to the Yin Child, similar to the bank example; the Yunzhou people’s belief in the Five Spirits God is like money in the Five Spirits God’s account. Ordinary folks require procedures and pay interest to access these funds.
Spiritual blessings grant those five Children the privilege to use these funds without procedures or interest, merely with a limited quota to prevent overdraft, and the Yin Child can revoke this privilege at any time.
The Yin Child considered, and Sang Que didn’t press her for an immediate decision.
"By the way, where do you want to bury the bodies of those kids brought out earlier?"
After asking, Sang Que’s hand involuntarily rose, pointing towards the direction of Mojiang Ridge, towards the Holy Lake.
Sang Que understood and instantly teleported there, selecting a mountainside location overlooking the Holy Lake at Mojiang Ridge, as per the Yin Child’s wishes, to bury all those bodies.
The Yin Child even emerged from Sang Que’s body, controlling a nest of spiders, gathering many fresh flowers to place before the grave.
After completing this, Sang Que noticed a marked decrease in the Yin Child’s oppressive aura, likely due to the fulfillment of a longstanding wish; had she been an ordinary ghost, she might have dissipated by now.
At dusk, Sang Que returned to the city with the Yin Child, summoned Cheng Ge, and told him about the Yin Child replacing the Five Spirits God.
Cheng Ge was not overly surprised; he had anticipated this well in advance, considering that anything could happen to the Witch.
Moreover, Cheng Ge had lived in Tianliang City for many years, so the Yunzhou’s Five Spirits God neither held to fanatic levels of devotion as long as there was no harm, he was indifferent to who replaced the Five Spirits God.
Cheng Ge only made one request to Sang Que, asking to return Xingzhu, whom he saw as a brother, not just the Dragon and Snake Child.
Sang Que released the Yin Child, having Cheng Ge take the Yin Child to meet the chiefs of the five great villages; she preferred not to get involved, lest it give Yunzhou folks the impression that Nine Songs intended to seize Yunzhou, which was not among her current thoughts.
With Cheng Ge as mediator, following Sang Que’s advice, the Yin Child agreed to compromise, allowing the five Children to recover as before, resolving the issue smoothly.
The arrangements on the Ghost Vendor and Qiao Ling’s side were also complete; Cheng Ge decided to leave Xingzhu in Yunzhou, choosing to follow Sang Que.
Sang Que no longer delayed, having them set out immediately towards Bright Moon Mountain in Jinzhou.
