Chapter 1319: Aren’t You Glad To See Me?

“Ignore them. Once I am recovered, I will naturally make them regret living in the same world as me.” Xuanyuan Kun said coldly, “Your first and only priority is catching Ye Qing. I don’t care what method you need to use or what price you have to pay to do it. I only want Ye Qing, and I want him alive.”

He might still be alive right now, but he had used up nearly all of his remaining strength in order to escape Xiahou Zun, Wan Lingxiao, and Long-browed Divine Monk. If he could not capture Ye Qing and take over his body, then he would never return to his former heights.

Therefore, his objective was still Ye Qing and nothing else.

“As you command, celestial sovereign,” Ghost Taisui responded.

Xuanyuan Kun said, “I will now teach you a celestial art that heals your wounds swiftly. Once you are recovered, you will capture Ye Qing as soon as possible.”

Ghost Taisui exclaimed in joy, “Thank you, celestial sovereign! This junior will fulfill his duty!”

Ghost Taisui’s eyes became even more delightful after Xuanyuan Kun was done teaching him the celestial art. The celestial art was called the “Deity Prayer Spell”, and it was a prayer art used to pray to ancient deities. Although the name of the art was perfectly ordinary, the actual method was cruel and evil beyond imagination. After all, the deities the practitioner would be praying to were ancient evil gods and Strangers.

The celestial art was very simple. The practitioner simply needed to set up an altar and sacrifice a sufficient amount of flesh, blood and soul to the evils to form a contract with them. The practitioner would then receive a proportional amount of power.

In other words, not only could the ritual swiftly recover his wounds, he could even grow stronger given enough sacrifices. “Hahaha... thank you again for the gift, celestial sovereign!”

Ghost Taisui sat up and exclaimed in delight, “I will order the men to prepare the sacrifices right now. The day I recover my strength is the day Ye Qing appears before you!”

“You best hope that is the case,” Xuanyuan Kun said coldly. “I’m going to rest and recuperate now. Do not disturb me unless it is urgent.”

𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Ghost Taisui answered obediently, “Yes, celestial sovereign.”

After Xuanyuan Kun fell aslumber, Ghost Taisui slowly climbed to his feet. The delight on his face slowly faded away to savagery and hatred.

“No one will escape retribution. Everyone, everyone must die...”

......

Wu Ling (commandery), White Bone Monastery.

“Caw! Caw!”

A black crow was cawing noisily on Sunlao Taijun’s shoulder. After it was done, it disappeared into a puff of fog. She then looked at the Taoist of Sleep, Old Man of Zhi, and everyone else inside the room and said, “Ghost Taisui just messaged us to collect these materials. He also commanded us to control the entire populace of Wu Ling in preparation for his return.”

Sunlao Taijun flicked a finger and injected a wisp of spiritual energy into everyone’s mind. At the same time, she sealed off White Bone Monastery and cut it off from the outside world.

The Taoist of Sleep yawned and said lazily, “Heh. Ghost Taisui really is still alive. The young master really is a wonderful schemer.”

Old Man of Zhi said coldly, “Shouldn’t he be hiding right now? Why is he ordering us to collect these materials and take control of the populace? Is he trying to draw attention to himself? What on earth is he planning?”

“Who knows? Whatever he’s planning, it cannot be a good thing!”

The Taoist of Sleep said lazily, “It doesn’t matter anyway. It’s already too late for him to change anything.”

“Indeed.” Old Man of Zhi nodded. “The day young master arrives is the day he dies.”

“Speaking of which, should we make some preparations before the young master shows up?”

“No.” Sunlao Taijun shook his head. “Ghost Taisui is as cunning as he is wicked. The slightest oddity may alert him that something is wrong. Let us do as he says first until the young master arrives.”

“Very well.” Old Man of Zhi and the Taoist of Sleep nodded before taking their leave.

After the duo were gone, Sunlao Taijun looked at the clear sky outside the monastery and cracked a smile. “Everything will be over soon.”

......

It was a cold and stormy night.

The sky was clear, and the sun was unbearably hot during the day. But now, it was cold, bitter, and unbearable in a completely different way.

This was Wei. This was the commandery of Wu Ling.

During this time, the large majority of people would be staying in the comfort of their houses and sitting at the table of a restaurant or an inn. They would guard the fire like their life depended on it, take small sips of alcohol, and talk a big talk.

There was a wizened old man who defied the norm, however. With just a walking staff to support him, he bore the cold, bitter storm shakily and shambled his way to White Bone Monastery.

Knock knock knock!

After he arrived at the entrance, the old man lifted his hand and knocked lightly on the door.

The old man’s strength was so very weak. It was so weak that the soft, almost indiscernible knock it elicited was instantly overwhelmed by the raging storm outside. It should not have been enough to alert anyone.

And yet, the door swung open, and a chorus of greetings hit him. “Welcome back, Taisui.”

When the old man set foot inside the temple, Sunlao Taijun, the Taoist of Sleep, Old Man of Zhi and more were all standing inside the house and bending their backs in salute.

“Rise...”

The old man waved and gestured for his subordinates to rise. “You all did very well for the past few days. I am pleased with your handiwork.”

The old man was, of course, Ghost Taisui.

In fact, Ghost Taisui had already reached Wu Ling two days ago. However, instead of entering the White Bone Monastery immediately, he instead hid himself in the shadows.

For one, he wanted to check if his subordinates were still loyal to him.

And two, he was worried that Xiahou Zun, Wan Lingxiao or Long-browed Divine Monk might be keeping an eye on them.

That was why he stayed hidden for two days straight, spying on his subordinates and observing the ebbs and flows of Wu Ling. He did not reveal himself until he was absolutely certain he was safe.

Some people might think that he was paranoid and cowardly. They were right. After all, only the paranoid and cowardly could steer a boat for ten thousand years!

“We dare not accept your praise. It is simply our duty.” Sunlao Taijun and the others did not rise despite his command, giving Ghost Taisui the utmost respect.

“I reward those who serve me well and punish those who fail me. Since you all have served me well, I will of course reward you handsomely.”

Ghost Taisui entered the White Bone Monastery and stepped into the center hall.

However, as soon as his right foot crossed into the center hall, he abruptly froze like someone had cast a spell on him.

He was freezing because he saw a person.

It was the person he wanted to meet the most, but wasn’t expecting to meet at all.

“Ye... Qing...?”

Ghost Taisui squeezed out the name through gritted teeth.

“It is I, Ghost Taisui. Long time no see.”

Ye Qing was sitting at the head of the table. He smiled at Ghost Taisui and asked, “What’s wrong? Aren’t you glad to see me?”

“Why do you look like you’ve just swallowed a piece of lemon? I thought you wanted to catch me? You should be happy that I’m here, shouldn’t you?”

Ghost Taisui did not say anything. Instead, he withdrew his right foot and took one step backward.

The storm outside split away from each other like curtains. No, it wasn’t just the storm. Even the night sky was split into two.

For an instant, Ghost Taisui looked like he was still inside the White Bone Monastery, but he really had moved hundreds of kilometers away.

At the same time, the night sky squirmed a little before transforming into a gigantic ghoul. Then, it raised its foot and stomped down on the White Bone Monastery.

The monastery might as well be as ant compared to the ghoul’s foot.

Ye Qing did not panic or show any signs of agitation, however. Inside the center hall, he simply curled his lips into a smile.

Ghost Taisui saw the smile, of course.

That was precisely why his shock and fear were growing.