Chapter 314: With You Here, I Feel Better

Xu Ziyang followed the woman in yellow through a dimly lit corridor, the glow of red candles casting flickering shadows. Faint joyous music played in the background, but in this gloomy and eerie setting, the hoarse and low tones sounded more like mourning music than a celebration.

"The path ahead will be dangerous," the woman in yellow turned back and warned.

"Okay," Xu Ziyang said with a gentle nod. A trace of exhaustion and gloominess occasionally flashed in his eyes.

After passing through a moon gate, the chilling wind intensified around them. They had taken only a few steps when a sudden coughing sound broke the silence.

"

Cough, cough...

" An elderly woman, moving with a staggering gait, was tending to the flowers and plants in the courtyard. When she noticed someone enter, she asked, "Who is it?"

"Granny Lin," the woman in yellow explained, "I'm here with a friend, just passing by."

"Oh..." The old woman looked up at Xu Ziyang with a faint smile. "Where did you come from, young man?"

"Mount Shu," replied Xu Ziyang.

Immediately after he spoke, he leaped into the air! In the next instant, thick black vines surged from under his feet, bursting through the ground and swiftly morphing into arms with sharp claws, all reaching out to seize Xu Ziyang!

The seemingly harmless old woman had actually launched a sneak attack while asking questions, revealing her incredibly sinister nature!

Swordlight swirled around Xu Ziyang, instantly severing the black claws. When he glanced back at the old woman, her left arm had vanished!

"I didn't catch you with one hand?" Even though the old woman had lost an arm, she still sneered as she spoke and then shook her remaining arm.

With a crack, her right arm also shook off and fell to the ground.

Suddenly, black hands emerged from the ground in layers, resembling the branches of a tree.

Seeing the increasing number of limbs, Xu Ziyang wasted no time. He was surrounded by golden light as his geng metal qi filled his body, transforming him into a vajra warrior.

This was the fifth-realm Metallic Body!

Swish—

As a streak of golden light flashed by, Xu Ziyang lifted his fingers and formed a finger seal, invoking the art of thunder as he pressed the seal against the old woman's forehead.

Boom!

A black hole formed above the old woman's head. Her body began to crack into pieces with smoke swirling around. In an instant, she disintegrated into countless specks that dissolved into the world around her.

The woman in yellow looked on with a flicker of fear in her eyes. Perhaps witnessing Xu Ziyang swiftly and decisively kill the ghost made her realize that she too could end up in a similar fate as that old woman.

In fact, if she hadn't warned Xu Ziyang not to alert the evil spirit, Xu Ziyang would have used a more powerful sword technique to eliminate the old woman even more quickly.

As the black arms covering the ground disappeared, leaving freshly turned black soil behind, she sighed and explained, "Granny Lin was the residence butler's mother, responsible for tending to the plants in the residence. She was always a kind and gentle old lady. But now, she’s met such a tragic end."

"It doesn't matter," Xu Ziyang said with indifference, "I have assisted her in finding peace in the cycle of reincarnation."

The woman in yellow was stunned by Xu Ziyang's resolute tone that conveyed the message, "I killed her for her own good."

After a brief pause, she said, "Let's continue walking."

They passed through the garden and arrived at a place with a pond and rockery. They were just about to circle around the rockery.

The woman in yellow suddenly said, "Be careful of this pond!"

As soon as she spoke, a giant fish with black spots leapt out of the pond, its mouth gaping wide like a blood-filled basin, emitting a deep roar.

"

Roar—

"

In terms of pure yin energy, it was even stronger than the old woman from earlier.

But this time, Xu Ziyang acted with even greater decisiveness. With a swift horizontal slash of his sword Force Slayer, his figure blurred as the three-zhang sword light cleaved the black fish cleanly in half.

Boom—

As the black fish disintegrated in mid-air, the woman in yellow remained composed. She led him forward as she explained, "This fat black fish was originally a pond ornament and it has always been quite clever. It used to play dead to scare the family. Everyone in the family loved this fish... but it transformed into this monstrous form."

Along the way, they dealt with two or three more ghosts, each being stronger than the last, but it made little difference. In front of Xu Ziyang, getting rid of them didn't pose much of a challenge.

After spending some time, the woman in yellow finally led him to a section of the courtyard wall, where there was a gap in the wall.

"You can get out through this gap," the woman in yellow said, "Once you're out, run far away and don't come back."

Xu Ziyang looked at the dark gap, which indeed seemed to lead to another world. He appeared ready to move, but before doing so, he turned back and asked, "Did you see a demonic creature that barged into this place before I did?"

...

"The area that my divine sense can scan inside is limited, so we must be careful," Jiang Yuebai calmly reminded.

As the three stepped into the abandoned Shen Family Residence, they immediately felt ghastly winds and became alert.

After crossing the empty front courtyard, they were startled by shouts and the sounds of fighting coming from the other side of the wall!

Since they weren't sure if it was Xu Ziyang or the person who had flown in earlier with the sword, Chu Liang, being the closest, was the first to draw his Dustless Sword and swiftly fly to the top of the wall.

As he peered over the other side of the wall, he saw a green-clad cultivator fighting with a ghost who was dressed as a maid. The ghost maid looked terrifying with her long, messy hair and hollow, bleeding eyes. Her ten blood-red claws were ready to strike the cultivator in green, desperate to land a fatal blow.

It was surprising to see the green-clad cultivator, who was at the third realm of cultivation, struggling against this relatively weak vengeful spirit. He seemed to be running out of energy and soon fell into a disadvantage.

As Chu Liang watched, the ghost's dark hair suddenly came alive. Thousands of strands sprang up, swiftly entangling the cultivator's limbs and binding him tightly!

However, her actions clearly indicated she had no intention of killing the cultivator. Instead, she seemed determined to take him away somewhere.

At this moment, Chu Liang stopped observing and flew out with his sword.

Swish—

With the activation of his two ultimate-tier Golden Cores, foundational qi surged into the Dustless Sword, transforming into powerful sword qi!

The ghost didn't even have time to see Chu Liang clearly before being killed with a single sword strike!

Boom.

After the ghost disintegrated, the cultivator collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily and looking visibly weak.

"Young hero, thank you for saving my life..." he said, lying on the ground but still mindful enough to express his gratitude.

"No need for formalities." Chu Liang helped him up, preparing to ask why he had barged in.

But then, the green-clad cultivator noticed Jiang Yuebai and Ling Ao approaching and suddenly asked, "Are you Fairy Jiang from Mount Shu?"

"Yes, I am." Jiang Yuebai nodded lightly.

"I've seen you in Jiangnan..." the man said with a smile. He looked up and continued, "You must have been invited by my older brother? I didn't expect him to act so swiftly, bringing three of Mount Shu's top four disciples to rescue me. I'm truly sorry..."

Hearing his tone, Chu Liang immediately guessed who he was.

At the station in Shaonan Town, there were two cultivators: Chen He and his younger brother, Chen Luo. Chen Luo had been injured recently, but the appearance of this person matched the description of Chen Luo.

Only Chen Luo knew that the top four disciples of the Mount Shu Sect had been sent to handle matters in Shaonan Town.

"So it's Officer Chen." Chu Liang smiled and nodded, "No need to apologize, we..."

"We did not come here to rescue you in the first place," Ling Ao interjected.

"

Uh...

" Chen Luo's smile froze for a moment.

Chu Liang silently nodded to himself, thinking that while this way of speaking lacked social grace... It was quite satisfying.

Jiang Yuebai timely asked, "Officer Chen, why did you enter this abandoned Shen Family Residence?"

"

Haaaaa...

" Chen Luo sighed lightly.

He took out a half-withered white moon osmanthus petal and showed it to the three.

"I came to find my lover. Her name is Mu Xi... She is a flower demon who lives in the Moon Osmanthus Woods."

"Whoa!" Chu Liang exclaimed slightly.

This guy, despite his weak cultivation level, has commendable courage. As a government official of the City Supervisory Division, he dared to defy the norms and fall in love with a demon.

"Mu Xi gave me this moon osmanthus petal earlier, allowing me to sense her condition and location. I can feel that she is here and in great danger..."

A Moon Osmanthus Flower Demon?

The three of them frowned slightly.

"This abandoned Shen Family Residence should have been inaccessible, but the restriction suddenly disappeared. This place is full of dangers. If we don't find Mu Xi quickly, she will be in danger!" Chen Luo said anxiously.

"We came here to find Senior Brother Xu from the Mount Shu Sect as well. Maybe they are in danger together." Chu Liang said. "Let's search together then. Officer Chen, do you know the specifics of this abandoned Shen Family Residence?"

Hearing this, Chen Luo said, "This abandoned Shen Family Residence was here even before my brother took office in Shaonan Town. It has always been sealed by a restriction, with only some information about it left by the previous officer in charge."

"The Shen Family was once a wealthy household in Shaonan Town. However, they were later accused of being remnants of the previous dynasty and plotting a rebellion. During the court's investigation, despite the Shen family having no cultivators, two experts from the Imperial Supervisory Bureau died in their house! Later, it was discovered that not only the court officials but the entire Shen family had died there. This place became known as a land of death."

"Coincidentally, the master of South Melody Conservatory in the Terrestrial Ten passed by and sealed this place, claiming that there was something demonic within and forbidding anyone from approaching. She said the evil thing would vanish in twenty years. The court also sealed the news, stating that the Shen family rebelled and this place harbors vengeful spirits, forbidding anyone to approach.

"It's almost twenty years now, and the restriction has suddenly lifted..." he said with a worried tone. "I'm uncertain whether it's a blessing or a curse."

"Whether it's a blessing or a curse, we will need to explore and find out." Chu Liang raised his hand and took out a puppet pill.

Whizz—

With a sudden burst of light, the divine ability Army of Beans was invoked, and the puppet materialized, leading the way with swift strides.

"Let the puppet scout ahead, and we'll follow closely," Chu Liang instructed.

Jiang Yuebai glanced at Chen Luo and asked, "Officer Chen, can you manage?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Luo wanted to say "yes" immediately, but his weakened body prevented him from feigning strength. He was already seriously injured, and his fight with the ghost earlier had completely drained his energy.

Despite his injuries and his brother's warning against interacting with the demoness Mu Xi, Chen Luo rushed here alone because Mu Xi was in danger.

It seemed he was going to be a burden at this point.

Before he could contemplate the decision further, Ling Ao bent down and hoisted him onto his back. "I'll carry you," he said.

"

Haaa...

" Chen Luo sighed, feeling deeply moved.

Although this person doesn't speak in a way that pleases others, he has a kind heart

, Chen Luo thought to himself.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, he added, "Sorry for the trouble."

"No problem," Ling Ao said, "It's rare to have someone weaker than me in the team. With you here, I feel better."

"..." Chen Luo fell silent for a moment, thinking to himself,

He has a kind heart, but why does every word he says seem so irritating?