Chapter 98: Chapter 97: Subduing the Ghost
His eyes watched in horror as the female ghost’s pitch-black fingers neared his chest; Ninth Master hurriedly conjured a burst of Spirit Light in his hand to block the strike.
But in his haste, he didn’t manage to channel much of his True Yuan. Although he raised his hand to his chest, the ghost’s fingers still curled inwards, and with a ripping sound, tore through his arm.
At the same time, her other hand lashed forward, her nails growing exponentially as they pierced into Ninth Master’s palm, causing him to roar in agony.
But no matter how he struggled, he couldn’t break free from the grip of the female ghost.
Moreover, with the ghost having struck, her Ghost Energy could no longer be concealed by her bridal gown as it had before, allowing Ninth Master to easily sense her cultivation level. To his shock and anger, she was above him, already at the Peak of the Qi Refining Realm, only a step away from becoming a Foundation Establishment Ghost Cultivator.
This realization both startled and enraged him. Seeing no way to free himself from the clutch of the ghostly hand, he flipped his hand to pull out a Heavy Hammer from his Storage Bag. While swinging it at the female ghost, he called for several of his underlings to come to his aid.
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By the time his subordinates arrived, the surrounding townsfolk had already scattered in panic.
Everyone was completely taken aback, unable to fathom how the beautiful bride had suddenly turned into a ghost.
The only one who didn’t flee was the Groom.
The young man stood there, dazed, as memories of his encounters with the female ghost from the beginning played through his mind. At that moment, all his past confusions unraveled, and his previously deluded mind became completely clear.
His face turned pale, thankful that today’s wedding had been disrupted; otherwise, he would likely have died on what was meant to be his wedding night, doomed to become a deadly pair with the female ghost.
His father stood not far away, shivering as he hurried to grab his son and join the fleeing crowd.
After all, this was their only son; they could not afford to lose him.
Ninth Master didn’t last long; soon enough, he felt his arm turn chillingly cold, and half of his body stiffen.
This was the result of the Ghost Energy invading his body.
If he hadn’t been caught by the ghost’s palm from the start, with his strength and items like the Magic Artifact and Spirit Talismans, he might have been able to escape unscathed even if outmatched.
But now, one of his hands was still firmly held by the ghost, with relentless Ghost Energy pouring into his body through the wound on his palm.
His underlings, only at the Qi Refining Middle Stage, failed to pose any significant threat to the female ghost. Instead, one of them had his innards torn by a sudden extension of the ghost’s arm, which scared the others not to approach carelessly, only daring to circle the periphery, trying to contain her without getting close.
Although they were his subordinates, they definitely wouldn’t risk their lives to save him.
As Ninth Master’s condition worsened, his men retreated further and further, ready to flee the scene at any moment.
Otherwise, once Ninth Master was killed, the ghost would surely come after them.
Their intense Yang energy couldn’t compare to ordinary people’s. If the female ghost devoured their Yang energy, it would certainly advance her Dao Cultivation.
Feeling increasingly cold and stiff inside, Ninth Master’s eyes filled with despair.
Even though the female ghost had let go of his palm, he knew he was bound to die.
His lifeforce was being eroded, and his True Yuan was thrown into disarray by the Ghost Energy; he no longer had any chance to escape.
It seemed today was the day he would meet his end.
But soon, a vicious gleam flickered in his eyes.
After all, he was a Bandit Cultivator who had taken many lives; even in death, he refused to let his enemies off easily.
He began to thrash wildly, swinging the Heavy Hammer in his right hand, forming a barrage of hammer blows.
But the female ghost moved elusively, dodging left and right, making it hard for him to pin down her figure.
Suddenly, his body staggered, his True Yuan depleted, his grip on the hammer faltered, and he almost dropped it.
Before he could recover, he felt a sharp pain in his chest.
Looking down, he saw a ghostly hand emerge from his chest, clutching a heart that was still beating.
“This is… my heart…”
In an instant, Ninth Master realized this truth.
With the last of his strength, he swung the Heavy Hammer behind him.
And in the moment he swung the hammer, his palm released it, and he took out a Spirit Talisman from his Storage Bag at his waist. With a thunderous roar, it was promptly activated, transforming into a roaring flame that enveloped a space of three yards around him.
Since he was about to die anyway, there was no need for him to hold back any longer.
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So, he directly activated the Spirit Talisman, planning to perish together with the female ghost.
Bang!
The female ghost clearly did not expect him to have this move up his sleeve. By the time she reacted and tried to dodge using her Ghost Energy, it was already a moment too late. Although she ultimately managed to escape, she could not avoid being severely injured by the Spirit Talisman, her Ghost Body and Yin Qi considerably damaged.
Before the female ghost could regain her stance, suddenly, a young Taoist sprang out beside her, shaking his hand and releasing twelve Talismans. He quickly set up a simple Talisman Array, trapping her within.
The female ghost’s Yin Qi surged, and her two Ghost Claws tore towards the Talisman Array.
She sensed danger from this little Taoist and wanted to escape.
However, before she could tear through the Talisman Array, she saw the little Taoist reach for the oil-paper umbrella slung on his back.
With one stretch of the umbrella, a loud pop reverberated, and countless Runes emerged, enveloping the female ghost, leaving her no chance to resist and was directly captured by the little Taoist into the umbrella.
All of this happened in an extremely short span of time, fast as a lightning bolt. In a few instants, the female ghost was suppressed by the little Taoist.
It was only then that the man who had ignited himself with the Spirit Talisman collapsed with a thunderous sound, disintegrated into ash. Not even a single bone was left behind, as he was burned to ashes by the flames released from the Spirit Talisman.
As for his subordinates, by this time, they had already mounted their Red Flame Colts and were nearly out of the village.
Qin Feng and Ma Jiu did not try to stop them.
They still needed these few to lead the way for them, to guide them to the adversary’s lair.
“Infinite Heavenly Venerable.”
The little Taoist slung the umbrella over his shoulder, bowed to Qin Feng and Ma Jiu, “I, Daoist Fellow Xiu Xin from Ghost Controlling Sect, have the honor of meeting two Daoists from Beast Taming Sect.”
Apparently, the little Taoist could tell their origins from the badges on their Magic Robes.
“Daoist Fellow is polite.”
They returned the salute and exchanged names. Only then did Qin Feng curiously ask, “Daoist Fellow Xiu Xin, your sect is far in the East Domain, a great distance from here. How did you come to this place?”
“Hehe, actually, I came here following my Grandmaster.”
Daoist Fellow Xiu Xin said with a chuckle, “Recently, strange events have been happening in all the domains, and many great forces are interacting with each other. Although our Ghost Controlling Sect is far apart from your Beast Taming Sect, our two sects have collaborated on many occasions during the Ancient Great Tribulation. My sect’s Ghost Teeth Ancestor and your sect’s Heavenly Destruction Ancestor were also close friends.
This time, my Grandmaster came to the Southern Domain to visit your sect and also brought along some juniors to experience the Southern Domain.
Chaotic Sky Valley is one of the battlefields left from ancient times, rumored to hold many opportunities. I came here specifically to explore and just happened to see a young man from this household wrapped in Death Qi. I paused to help them solve this trouble and did not expect to meet two Daoist Fellows here. It is indeed a fortune for me.”
“I see.”
Qin Feng and Ma Jiu nodded upon hearing this, now understanding why the Daoist could cross such a vast distance to arrive here with his mere Qi Refining Realm cultivation.
“Do the two Daoist Fellows have matters here that require assistance, or do you need a little help from Daoist?”
Daoist Fellow Xiu Xin inquired.
“We do have some matters, but we can resolve them ourselves, so there’s no need to trouble Daoist Fellow.”
Ma Jiu declined promptly.
What a joke. An extra person would mean one more share of the spoils to distribute. Of course, they couldn’t let this little Taoist get involved.
“Since the female ghost has been subdued, my brother and I have matters to attend to and cannot delay. We will take our leave now, and hope to meet again if fate allows.”
While they were speaking, those Bandit Cultivators had already ridden the Red Flame Colts seven or eight miles away. They didn’t wish to stay long and planned to follow after them, to find the adversary’s lair and eradicate all the bandits in one fell swoop.
Seeing this, Daoist Fellow Xiu Xin naturally could not insist on detaining them, so he bowed and said, “Then, I will not see you off any further. Daoist Fellows, I bid you farewell.”
“Take care.”
After bidding farewell to the little Taoist, they left the courtyard. To avoid being detected by those Bandit Cultivators, they did not summon their flying mounts but instead used their own techniques to stealthily follow behind.