Chapter 472: Chapter 436: Thousand Faces Out of Control
Jinzhou, Pu’an County, heavy snowfall.
When Sang Que’s group returned to Jinzhou from Jingzhou, it was already near the end of the year. A heavy snowfall buried the official road leading back to Bright Moon Mountain, so they had to stay temporarily in Pu’an County.
When they arrived, the Monk from Nine Songs was already waiting in Pu’an County. The Ghost Vendor went out to make contact, leaving Sang Que and the others to wait in their temporary inn.
Before going to Shengjing, Sang Que wanted the Monk to come along to Shengjing. The Ghost Vendor sent a message, but no reply came, so they arranged to meet here instead.
Also, they had Jia Liang, who controlled a ghostly delivery man. While Sang Que was in Shengjing City, he stayed in the modern era with plans to bring him out when needed. However, Hua Qianmian’s disguise as Zuo Jinye was so flawless that they didn’t need Jia Liang for guidance and left Shengjing smoothly.
Jia Liang is still in the modern era. During his free time, Sang Que visits to help the research institute train Yin Walkers. Jia Liang, as the first Yin Walker in Huaxia, later learned from Yu Da for a while. He is experienced and is now an instructor for these modern Yin Walkers.
After the Shengjing incident, Sang Que’s wanted poster spread everywhere. Fortunately, the people from the Shengjing Exorcism Bureau never discovered the true identities of the others. The wanted poster for Sang Que simply stated that he had accomplices, without any images.
Yao Zhen went out today to set up a fortune-telling stall and gather information. Qin Ze remains in the painting, staying with Puppet Master Chu Mo Wei.
Cheng Ge also went out alone without mentioning his purpose. Sang Que guessed he might be trying to contact the people in Yunzhou to explain the situation.
Hua Qianmian stayed by Sang Que’s side. Using the powers of the Five-layered Painted Skin Ghost, her hands kneaded Sang Que’s face, completely changing his appearance and aura.
In the process, Hua Qianmian kept muttering, crafting a memory of a wandering martial artist who reformed and became a female escort master. Surprisingly, Sang Que’s mind was filled with this memory.
Being a Yin Walker with the strength of the fifth level, Sang Que couldn’t resist this memory invasion but could distinguish reality.
If it were an ordinary person, they might directly fall under Hua Qianmian’s hypnosis and change entirely.
Inside the inn room, after helping Sang Que change his appearance, Hua Qianmian said, "This ability of mine isn’t permanent and can only mislead others temporarily. During the day, it lasts an hour or two before they regain clarity, but at night, it can last about four hours. You should change into these clothes now, and later we’ll go to the inn’s main hall for something to eat."
Sang Que nodded, taking the escort agency attire handed by Hua Qianmian and heading behind a screen to change.
Once dressed, stepping out, Sang Que saw someone standing by the tea table and instantly felt a chill down his spine.
Zuo Jinye!
"You’ve been quite hard to find!"
Zuo Jinye’s eyes were fixed on Sang Que. Sang Que instinctively stepped back, about to jump out the window, but then realized that when he changed clothes earlier, there hadn’t been any sound, nor did the Yin Child within him sense any abnormal aura.
He suppressed the creepy feeling and squinted to examine the person by the table carefully, tentatively calling, "Qianmian?"
’Zuo Jinye’ shook, immediately raised a hand to rub her face. After a bout of kneading, her body began to shrink, and her clothes changed like an illusion, eventually returning to Hua Qianmian’s form.
Sang Que let out a huge sigh of relief, nearly scared to death.
"Don’t joke around like this in the future; I’m afraid I’ll reflexively hurt you."
After speaking, Sang Que didn’t hear a response from Hua Qianmian. Looking up at her, he found her equally bewildered.
"Qianmian?"
"Ah?" Hua Qianmian snapped back to reality, meeting Sang Que’s probing yet concerned gaze, her head drooping. "I’m sorry, I really didn’t mean to earlier. Even though you’ve strengthened my Heart Lamp, after the Painted Skin Ghost reached the fifth level, I can’t describe it, it’s just... chaotic!"
"I’ve noticed that sometimes I can’t tell who I am, I suddenly zone out, and suddenly become someone else. Because I have to impersonate many people, I write in various handwriting. To avoid confusion, I roughly note down daily events using a unique font I designed—round and without angles as a reminder."
"But in recent days, the records have been in different handwriting each day, and I didn’t even realize it. Some things I don’t even remember jotting down. I think reaching the fifth level is my limit. Beyond this, even with the Heart Lamp, I can’t withstand the unforeseen influence of the Painted Skin Ghost, which will definitely drive me mad."
Sang Que understood what Hua Qianmian meant. In the Deceit Dynasty, Yin Walkers reaching the Ghost Level are scarce, even more so at the fifth layer, and the sixth layer is nearly unheard of.
The side effects of Hua Qianmian wielding the Painted Skin Ghost are becoming increasingly intense, inevitably leading to a personality split and uncontrollable alter ego manifestations, and Hua Qianmian herself lacks the confidence to suppress such a condition.
Sang Que pondered for a moment and said, "There are no secrets between us anymore, so I’ll be honest with you. As a Witch of Nine Songs, I have a power to leave an imprint on you, making ghost control easier for you, but from then on, you’ll never be able to harm me. Do you want to try it?"
Hua Qianmian immediately nodded upon hearing. "Why would I harm you? You’re my benefactor. Of course, I’d love to try it if there’s a method. Just let me know what you need, and I’ll prepare it at once."
"I need you to come here for a moment."
Hua Qianmian briskly walked to Sang Que. Sang Que seized her left hand, and perhaps sensing something, Hua Qianmian’s face started to show signs of melting.
But before Hua Qianmian could react, her palm heated up, making her instinctively pull back her hand.
"All done."
"That quick!"
Hua Qianmian was utterly astonished, immediately raising her left hand to check. Slowly, she noticed the characters ’Mountain Ghost’ appearing in bright red on her palm.
Sang Que said, "Of course it’s quick if you don’t resist. I left the mark in an obvious place, and if you show signs of losing control, these characters will appear to keep you alert. But you should also take note yourself. When the Painted Skin Ghost resists you, these characters will surface, so be careful not to let others see them."
Hua Qianmian smiled, "Understood, I’ll be cautious."
"I’ll head downstairs myself. You should stay here and ponder the effects of this imprint."
Sang Que went downstairs alone. Currently, she had placed the Mountain Ghost Seal on four living people: Liu Tianyou, Yu Da, Zhang Junyao, and Hua Qianmian, without feeling any fatigue.
Based on past experiences and Sang Que’s hypothesis, she might be able to place the Mountain Ghost Seal on up to eight people, corresponding to the Eight Diagrams, and nine members excluding her in Nine Songs.
The Ghost Vendor went to find the Monk. At present, apart from the Old Gu Master, the storyteller, the assassin, and the Shopkeeper, she had met with the remaining members in Nine Songs. She was ready to tell the members that Nine Songs as an organization would end here, and they no longer needed to bear the responsibility of saving the world.
Those willing to leave she wouldn’t stop, and those wanting to stay, she would take back to Bright Moon Mountain.
Next, there would inevitably be a battle between her and Zuo Jinye.
This return to Bright Moon Mountain, if all goes well and she has no immediate responsibilities, she must plan for entering the Ghost God Realm.
The Yin Child is currently at the Sixth Floor. Entering the sixth floor of the Nine Netherworld isn’t difficult, but the hardest is the transition from the sixth floor to the seventh. Sang Que is clueless about this and harbors anxiety.
But only by crossing this threshold successfully can she possess the strength to rival Zuo Jinye and protect everyone.
So even if it’s a life-and-death struggle, she’s determined to press onward!
