Once the female ghost vanished, the suffocating gloom around them thinned, and the dim forest path brightened again.
“She’s gone?” Bai Yu poked his head out from behind Yun Jiao, glancing about. Seeing no sign of the ghost, he finally exhaled in relief. “Girl, if you had a purple talisman you should’ve said so earlier! You scared me half to death. That was given to you by the Ancestral Master, wasn’t it?”
“…” Yun Jiao didn’t answer, only drew in a deep breath.
Unbothered, the old man peered into the distance and muttered, “Should we chase after her? That ghost has already taken lives—she’ll harm more people if left unchecked. Maybe we should… eh? Girl, where are you going?”
Before he could finish, Yun Jiao’s face hardened. She spun around and started striding quickly back the way they had come.
“Girl, hey! Where are you going? The market’s this way!” He hurried after her, bewildered, as her pace quickened to a jog. “What’s wrong with you?”
“Shut up!” Yun Jiao snapped. “Get back! Now!” If not now, then when? Run!
“Wha—? Huh? Don’t we have the purple talisman? What’s there to be afraid of?”
Yun Jiao shoved the “talisman” into his hand and walked faster.
Bai Yu instinctively looked down. In the earlier gloom he hadn’t noticed clearly, but now he saw it: a thin purple leaf with veins, tinged faintly green. Oval-shaped, not square like a talisman. Recognition struck—Perilla?! The herb Yun Jiao used in cooking!So the ghost had been scared off by… perilla leaves?
(д)b
Bai Yu froze, realization dawning with icy dread. The cold shot up his spine, his breath catching. The relief he’d just felt vanished. Shivering, he bolted after her.
“Girl, wait for me!!”
If we’re running for our lives, we’re doing it together!!
Yun Jiao knew the trick wouldn’t last. The ghost would soon realize she’d been fooled, return even more vicious than before. But at least it had bought them precious time.
Sure enough, as they sprinted back toward the temple, the ghost returned, pursuing them with a shriek.
“You dared trick me!” Rage radiated from her, her killing intent surging. Her long hair whipped wildly, transforming into a thousand black needles that shot toward them.
Luckily, the temple was less than a hundred meters away. And since they’d forgotten to shut the gate, they were able to dash straight inside.
“Close it, close it, hurry!” Bai Yu shoved one side of the gate while Yun Jiao pushed the other.
But the ghost was faster. With a sweep of her hand, her hair lengthened like arrows loosed from a bow, streaking toward the gate.
Suddenly, golden light flared. On the battered old doors, two glowing runes ignited, flashing outward to strike the ghost. Her hair disintegrated to ash in the blaze.
“Aaah!” The ghost screamed, blasted backward more than ten meters. Her shadowy form flickered, edges thinning, as if wounded badly.
Holy crap—that strong?
Yun Jiao blinked, staring at the decrepit gates. “The doors… do this?”
“I… I didn’t know either!” Bai Yu was equally stunned. He’d never realized the temple gate bore warding sigils. In all these years, no spirit had ever tried to break in, so it had never shown itself.
They both breathed in relief. At least, for now, they were safe.
The ghost staggered upright, glaring at the door with dread. Yet her eyes still burned with hatred as she stared at the two peeking nervously from behind it. She dared not advance, even retreating a step.
Her expression twisted, then she suddenly laughed—low and chilling, growing louder and more triumphant. “Do you think hiding inside will save you? Perhaps this door can block me alone… but can it withstand a hundred ghosts attacking together?”
What?
Yun Jiao’s stomach sank. An ominous feeling pricked at her.
The ghost’s laughter grew harsher, her form dissolving into smoke. “Two days from now, I’ll return for your lives.” Then she vanished, her sinister cackle still echoing in the hills.
“At last, safe!” Bai Yu dropped heavily to the ground with a sigh. Nothing like the temple. He never wanted to leave again.
But Yun Jiao’s eyes darkened. She recalled the ghost’s words and asked, “When she spoke of a hundred-ghost siege… does that mean she’s going to find allies?”
“Impossible!” Bai Yu shook his head dismissively. “Vengeful spirits can’t stray more than a hundred li from where they died. And only those with immense grudges become such spirits in the first place. How could there be so many within a hundred li?” He frowned. “It must be the Li family. They ignored our warnings, refused to move. That’s why they died to her hands.”
Yun Jiao frowned. She could easily imagine it—those three selfish, vicious people. They’d been warned, but unwilling to abandon their land and property, they’d paid with their lives. Suniang, meanwhile, had become a murderous spirit, tainted with blood-qi, doomed to be consumed until she was nothing but a killing machine before scattering forever.
“Don’t worry, it’s fine.” Bai Yu patted the gate. “That ghost was bluffing. With these runes, she can’t get in. And besides, the Ancestral Master is still in the tower. Worst case, he’ll intervene.”
Yun Jiao wasn’t convinced. After a pause, she asked, “Do you know the terrain near the Lis’ place well?”
“Fairly well, been there a few times.” He nodded. “Why?”
“Then…” She pointed to the north beyond the gate. “What’s in that direction?”
“The north is…” Bai Yu began, then suddenly froze. His eyes went wide, face draining of color. “Shit!”
How could he have forgotten?!
Spinning around, he bolted deeper into the temple, screaming at the top of his lungs,
“Ancestral Master, save us!!!”
(Д≡Д)
(End of Chapter)