Chapter 83

Despite being somewhat curious, he didn't ask Leng Yue, because he knew that even if he did ask, Leng Yue, with her high and cold attitude, wouldn't tell him.

He remembered very clearly that when they first met, he had asked Leng Yue why she joined the company, and she cruelly ignored him.

Now, although they had become more familiar, they were far from being friends or good buddies, so he decided to wait before asking about his doubts.

To avoid being ignored and making a fool of himself.

After that, they found a place that could somewhat shelter them from the wind and rain, and discussed what they needed to do next.

As the sun rose, the cold and rainy night finally passed with difficulty.

After a night of fear and rain, Xia Tianqi and Leng Yue were in extremely poor condition, almost collapsing and falling unconscious in the mud.

But reality forced them to continue, as the battle for survival was far from over.

It took them almost the whole morning to revisit almost every household in Hulu Village. Although the process was complicated by the burning of Hu Daniu's house and the significant changes at Chen Lao Da's place, which made the villagers uneasy and caused some trouble, they still managed to find out the truth they wanted to know.

That is—Xu Chong indeed did not exist.

He had been missing for more than a year.

According to the villagers' descriptions, Xu Chong was a very ambitious person who had a fierce conflict with Chen Lao Da while he was alive. The incident was very serious, and he almost rallied all the villagers to resist Chen Lao Da.

However, during the confrontation with Chen Lao Da, the villagers turned against him, and Xu Chong disappeared a few days later.

The villagers privately speculated that Xu Chong might have been eliminated by Chen Lao Da, but Chen Lao Da denied it, saying that Xu Chong felt he had offended all the villagers and left the village to make a living elsewhere.

Although the villagers were skeptical, over time, the matter was forgotten, especially since Xu Chong had little interaction with them.

Since then, people in the village often said that the乱坟岗 (graveyard) was haunted, and every night, someone who looked very much like Xu Chong would wander there.

From the almost unanimous descriptions of the villagers, Xia Tianqi was able to confirm that Xu Chong was not missing but had been eliminated by Chen Lao Da, and the ghost that had been lingering in the graveyard was likely Xu Chong's spirit.

This matched their previous speculations.

There was also something that caught their attention: some villagers were experiencing severe dehydration, and the condition was rapidly worsening.

Considering that the villagers had betrayed Xu Chong, this situation was likely part of his revenge.

It could be foreseen that if they didn't eliminate the cunning ghost, the entire Hulu Village would be wiped out.

Standing on the muddy road leading to the graveyard, Xia Tianqi rubbed his sore eyes, looked at the time on his honor board, and turned to Leng Yue, who was continuously filling the mud pit with stones, and said:

"It's almost 5 o'clock. How much longer do you need to place these stones?"

"It's a ghost-trapping array," Leng Yue emphasized, giving Xia Tianqi a glare.

"Okay, it's a ghost-trapping array, but how much longer do you need to set it up?"

Xia Tianqi didn't care about the dirt on the ground and sat down in the mud, his legs trembling so much that he couldn't stand.

"It's almost done. Setting up this ghost-trapping array is very energy-consuming."

Leng Yue's condition was even worse than Xia Tianqi's. Not only did she have to place the stones, but she also had to stick yellow talismans marked with her blood on them. According to Leng Yue, these yellow talismans were low-level ghost-trapping talismans, but when used in large numbers and combined with the array, they could unleash powerful effects.

They could be used to trap the ghost for a short time.

"Exorcise evil, trap ghosts, ultimate array.

Done!"

With Leng Yue's shout, the ghost-trapping array was completed.

Despite being very tired, Leng Yue's face showed a rare smile when the array was completed, and she spoke to Xia Tianqi:

"The skills we exorcists need to master are divided into two main categories.

One is called 'techniques,' or spells.

The other is called 'arrays,' or formations.

However, compared to these two, spells are easier to learn, while formations are much more difficult.

Some exorcists, despite being at a high level in spells, find it hard to advance in formations and remain at the lowest level.

Although formations are more powerful than spells, they require a certain amount of time to set up and the use of special items.

This ghost-trapping array, although a low-level formation, is the first time I've successfully set it up."

As she spoke, Leng Yue's usually expressionless face finally showed a rare smile.

Xia Tianqi didn't try to dampen Leng Yue's spirits this time. This was the first time he had seen her smile, but he found it hard to describe, as neither a cold smile nor a sly smile seemed appropriate.

"If this array is successful, can we go after Xu Chong's ghost next?"

Xia Tianqi was eager to expose the cunning ghost.

"Yes. I can find the ghost as soon as I open my Heavenly Eye. The main problem is with the fierce ghost. It won't give up easily."

At this point, Leng Yue suddenly looked at Xia Tianqi, her expression inexplicably strange, making him feel uneasy.

"Why are you staring at me like that? What are you up to?"

As soon as he said this, Xia Tianqi realized something and exclaimed:

"Leng Yue, you're not thinking of using me as bait for the fierce ghost, are you?"

"Hey, why aren't you saying anything...! What does your nod mean... I won't go, I don't want to be killed by that fierce ghost...!"

Although Xia Tianqi verbally refused, he knew that only he could do this.

Physically and mentally, he was in better condition than Leng Yue, who was almost collapsing after setting up the stone array. It was unrealistic to expect her to lure the ghost.

Moreover, the most important point was that Leng Yue needed to deal with Xu Chong's ghost, as she currently lacked the ability to eliminate it.

The last time she managed to eliminate a possessing ghost was a stroke of luck, and Xu Chong would never possess her.

"You should know what I need to do next," Leng Yue emphasized to convince Xia Tianqi:

"Although Xu Chong doesn't have the ability to kill, he is still a ghost, and brute force won't work."

"Alright, I get it. I'll go."

Xia Tianqi waved his hand and interrupted Leng Yue:

"Just tell me what to do next."

"..."

After giving Xia Tianqi a few simple reminders, Leng Yue began to prepare to open her Heavenly Eye. Xia Tianqi thought it would be a cool and flashy process, but Leng Yue just made a few hand gestures, pressed her fingers to her temples, and said:

"Heavenly Eye, open!"

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