Chapter 2

At midnight, the bright moon hung high, the palace gates of Xiongzhen were tightly closed, yet the palace lamps within were all lit, the red candlelight illuminating the interior furnishings brightly.

Ning Qinshui stood at the palace gate, frowning.

The person who greeted him was still the same Song Ce from the daytime. Song Ce explained, "This is the main hall of General Wang Yangyu. Since the general's sudden death three days ago, this hall has been sealed. However, every night, the palace candles light themselves, and occasionally, a faint, elderly voice can be heard."

Ning Qinshui frowned and asked, "What kind of voice?"

Song Ce replied, "It's very faint, no one can hear it clearly, but the palace maids say it's General Wang Yangyu's voice."

Ning Qinshui asked again, "Where is General Wang's body?"

Song Ce seemed to recall something, subconsciously clenching his fists, and sighed, "It was cremated."

Ning Qinshui was puzzled, "Cremated so quickly? Was it due to an epidemic?"

Song Ce shook his head, his expression complex, "It also spontaneously combusted, and couldn't be extinguished."

Ning Qinshui's expression changed slightly. He stroked his gray beard, and with a flick of his sleeve, his fingers began to calculate rapidly.

Song Ce sighed, "If the old master decides to retreat, we won't make it difficult for you."

Ning Qinshui ignored him, his hand already on the door. He removed the seal and pushed the door open, the candlelight in the hall casting a reddish glow on his beard and hair.

As he stepped over the threshold, a copper coin slipped from his sleeve and landed on the threshold.

"Hmph, mere tricks to create an illusion," Ning Qinshui scanned the surroundings. With a wave of his robe, most of the candles in the room were extinguished. He said in a deep voice, "Changjiu, Xiaoling, follow me to subdue the demon."

The young man and woman glanced at the dimly lit, deep hall, feeling a chill, but they responded in unison:

"Yes, Master."

As Ning Qinshui spoke, his steps slowed. His hand reached into his sleeve, and seven small objects, resembling animal teeth, emerged and floated around him, like protective talismans.

The young woman, dressed in a thin robe, hugged her arms, secretly glancing at the old man with a hint of annoyance.

The young man beside her, however, followed the old man like a fool, his eyes fixed on his nose, not daring to look around.

The old man didn't care about the lives of the young man and woman. They were merely good prospects he had gathered from the market a few years ago. Although precious, they were like talismans, to be used when necessary, no matter how much it pained him.

Ning Qinshui unfurled a talisman, which burned up in the air as soon as it was released. The ashes turned into a yellow bird, circling the hall. After a moment, the bird let out a sharp cry, and the old man's expression changed. He coldly said, "I've found you!"

He took a step, and a gust of wind swept through the hall. In an instant, he had crossed several yards, as if the distance had shrunk, and he stood before a statue in the hall.

Experienced, Ning Qinshui wasted no time. His fingers, now holding eight yellow talismans, pushed them out, forming a chain that tightly bound the stone statue. The remaining candles flickered as if responding, their flames wavering and clustering together.

"Old master..." a voice suddenly sounded from behind him.

Ning Qinshui, about to strike, froze, his expression showing a rare moment of confusion.

"Old master..."

The voice called again, sounding familiar, like an old friend greeting him on the street.

"Stop confusing my mind!"

Ning Qinshui bit his tongue, the pain bringing him back to his senses. His vision quickly refocused.

Before him stood a tall, armored man, his eyes lifeless, his face, body, and hands rotted to the bone, his armor cracked. He grinned, revealing rotten flesh and blood-soaked white flesh, with maggots wriggling inside.

Ning Qinshui didn't recognize the man, but his intuition told him this was the deceased General Wang Yangyu!

According to Song Ce's introduction, Wang Yangyu had practiced for many years and was honed by battle, his martial arts formidable, making him impervious to evil spirits. What force could have corrupted him to such an extent?

Ning Qinshui hesitated for a moment, but he soon found his body stiffening. His wrinkled fingers were rapidly losing warmth and color. Soon, he would suffer the same fate as Wang Yangyu!

"Confusion of the mind?" He made a quick decision, shouting, his frail body swelling as if filled with wind. His fingers, like eagle claws, shot forward: "Evil spirit, cease your arrogance!"

Dozens of golden lights burst from his sleeves, each like a powerful arrow, piercing forward.

The corpse of Wang Yangyu opened its bloody mouth, letting out a heart-wrenching scream. The scream was short, like a sudden bird's cry, and he fell backward.

With a loud thud, Ning Qinshui's expression changed. All he saw were broken pieces of the statue. Where was the general?

He retracted his hand, believing he had dispelled the illusion. However, the young man behind him suddenly screamed.

"Master! Your hands!"

Ning Qinshui instinctively looked down, his face changing dramatically. His hands were covered in thick, flowing blood, and he was certain it wasn't his own!

He tried to draw more talismans from his sleeve but found his body too stiff to move. A chill rose from his back, freezing his spine, as if centipedes were crawling up his spine.

A black spot appeared in his vision, spreading rapidly, like a giant ghost emerging from a cave, moving with an eerie speed.

As his consciousness was about to be consumed, Ning Qinshui's expression hardened. He turned his head with great difficulty and glanced at the young man and woman behind him.

The young man had never seen his master look so terrifying and instinctively took a step back. The young girl, on the other hand, collapsed to the ground, her legs giving out.

The old man's stiff lips curled, and he shouted, "Heavenly Lord's decree, summon the spirits!"

The young man and woman's shirts split open, and the yellow talismans on their chests pulled them toward the old man.

These talismans, which the old man had given them as protective charms, had now become deadly hooks!

"Little Sister!" Ning Changjiu called out, taking a step forward to shield the young girl.

Ning Xiaoling tried to tear off the talisman, but it was as if it had taken root, causing her to feel as if she were tearing her own flesh.

The talisman pulled her forward, and she collided with Ning Changjiu's back. She instinctively hugged the young man, but it was futile. Both were dragged forward.

Ning Changjiu was the first to reach the old man.

Ning Qinshui mercilessly slapped him on the top of his head.

Ning Changjiu didn't have time to scream. His limbs went limp, and he remained in front of the girl, unable to kneel. His body, like an unsealed wine jar, was filled with evil energy from the top of his head.

This was an ancient method used by cultivators to suppress demons with their bodies! The old man had spent years finding suitable "containers," and he would not have used them if not for the current crisis.

As the evil energy flowed into Ning Changjiu's body, Ning Qinshui gained a moment of respite. He looked at the struggling girl, his expression changing.

Ning Xiaoling raised her hand, not in surrender.

Behind her, a faint, snow-white shadow appeared—a curled-up snow fox.

The snow fox's spirit was missing a tail, and it snarled at Ning Qinshui, but it was too afraid to approach.

Ning Qinshui was surprised, "You little thief, when did you secretly learn Daoist arts, and even reach the stage of innate spirit?"

You've hidden it from me for so long.

Indeed, a one-in-a-million talent, far superior to her foolish senior brother.

Unfortunately...

Nothing is more important than my own life.

Ning Qinshui's hesitation lasted only a moment. He shouted, activating the talisman. The girl let out a faint cry, pushing Ning Changjiu aside and coming to the old man. The old man's palm struck her, and the snow fox's spirit was dispelled, causing her to faint.

The two "containers" quickly absorbed all the surrounding evil energy.

Then, his hand reached deep into his sleeve.

It was a pair of purple-gold talismans, so precious that his fingers trembled as he drew them.

But he knew he didn't have many years left. Nothing was more important than achieving immortality, and the promise of the great lord was his only hope.

With this thought, the old man no longer hesitated. He slapped the talismans onto their foreheads.

The young man and woman were already unconscious, their skin pale and almost transparent, the blood vessels beneath clearly visible, like hellish flowers, eerie and beautiful.

As the talismans were pressed onto them, their twitching bodies gradually calmed.

The dust settled.

Ning Qinshui wiped the sweat from his forehead, took a deep breath, and gestured for the people outside to enter.

Song Ce, seeing the hall quiet down, also sighed in relief. He and a few others entered the hall, bowed, and were about to speak when they suddenly froze.

Ning Qinshui, seeing they were hesitant to approach, thought they were afraid of the bodies of the young man and woman. He smiled and waved his hand, "It's fine, they are only in a state of false death. Once I extract the evil energy from their bodies, they will come back to life."

In reality, he was just making excuses. He knew better than anyone that they had no chance of survival.

"Old master..."

Song Ce's eyes widened, pointing at his body, his voice trembling.

Ning Qinshui's expression changed. At the same time, the candles that had been extinguished suddenly lit up one by one. Ning Qinshui's expression changed dramatically. He suddenly felt a pain in his chest and touched it.

He realized that his chest was covered in blood, the flesh torn and mangled. A blood-soaked hand, devoid of skin, tore through his body like a maggot, and before Ning Qinshui could react, his hand was clamped and pulled into the body.

It was as if a demon was breaking out of a cocoon, ready to devour this flesh.

"Save me!" Ning Qinshui screamed, but the others only retreated.

His face was also mangled, his expression so grotesque it was no longer human. The flesh was no longer his own.

It was the face of Wang Yangyu!

The sound of bones breaking echoed, the old Daoist's robe torn, and he couldn't even scream as his body collapsed.

"It's a sparrow ghost! It's a sparrow ghost!"

Someone in the crowd shouted, and everyone fled out of the hall.

The deformed old Daoist, like a walking corpse, crawled up and stared at the unconscious young man and woman, his gaze greedy.

He slowly crawled over.

His fingers touched the pale, doll-like face of the girl, gently tracing the soft curve of her cheek, then grabbed her neck, ready to tear off her robe.

This was the evil desire that had been awakened in the old Daoist's heart.

Such a young and beautiful girl always by his side, how could he not have evil thoughts? But for greater gains, he had suppressed these thoughts, maintaining the appearance of a noble Daoist.

Now, all his evil desires burst forth.

Ning Xiaoling could not struggle at all.

The sky was dark, and the candles flickered.

In the dimly lit hall, the young man's body was hidden in the shadow of the old Daoist.

At the moment no one noticed.

As the sound of tearing fabric echoed.

The supposedly unconscious young man opened his eyes.