“Wen Jiong!”
The ghost roared fiercely and hurriedly turned to look toward the manor entrance. “You dare come to the yang world!”
“You, a mere ghost corpse, dare sneak into the yang world. Why can I not come?”
“And…” Wen Jiong’s voice echoed faintly throughout the manor, reverberating everywhere. “What qualification do you have to address me directly by name?”
At these words, not only did the ghost’s face turn deathly pale instantly, even Madam Qin’s expression changed dramatically. She bowed in salute. “Greetings, Literary Ghost King!”
Yet the ghost still tried to hold firm, shouting angrily, “Literary Ghost King, do not forget. My lord died in the yang world just days ago. The Great Jing court will not allow thousand-year ghost kings like you to roam freely here!”
A white shadow flashed. Wen Jiong appeared at the manor gate, stepping in leisurely.
“That is why I say you lack experience. You believe rumours blindly. Just as yang world sages can enter the nether realm, why can we not enter the yang world?”
Wen Jiong spoke casually, as if he could wander the yang world at will.
“You… you…”
The ghost was clearly extremely wary of Wen Jiong, retreating constantly. “I am merely a ghost general under my lord. Debts have owners. My lord is already dead. Why would you…”
Wen Jiong said indifferently, “The problem is, who allowed your greed to exceed your grasp? In Valley King Cave, you could have taken anything. Why take the Refining Corpse Chapter that I wanted?”
The ghost was stunned upon hearing this and shouted, “You are a ghost body. You do not cultivate the corpse path. Why do you want the Refining Corpse Chapter?”
Wen Jiong curled his lip. “What I want the Refining Corpse Chapter for has nothing to do with you.”
The ghost bared its teeth. Ghostly green flames flickered in its eyes. It drew the sabre at its waist, holding it across its chest, retreating another step. “I am willing to copy a portion of the technique for you.”
“You pig-brained fool. You think you can cultivate the Refining Corpse Chapter?” Wen Jiong’s gaze sharpened as he cursed sinisterly. “Hand over the Refining Corpse Chapter honestly. This king will spare your life. Otherwise, this king will refine you into the Green Nether Lamp, boil oil from your corpse body, and burn it for a hundred years!”
Insulted by Wen Jiong, murderous aura surged from the ghost’s body. Yet it forcibly suppressed its anger, retreating again. “I… I will copy a portion. Just a duplicate, alright?”
Wen Jiong shook his head and sighed. “I do not wish to create more killing. Pitiful that worldly people are ignorant. So many do not know when death approaches. Alas, alas…”
The ghost flew into a rage. “Literary Ghost King, I have retreated again and again. Do not push too far! If I fight desperately, you may not take me unscathed!”
“I had intended to let the one who should kill you do it. Why seek death yourself?”
Wen Jiong looked at the ghost. His hands emerged from his sleeves. “If you can step one foot outside this manor, I will not pursue you.”
The ghost’s eyes flashed. It immediately shot backward, trying to escape through the rear gate.
But Wen Jiong merely reached out lightly. The entire manor seemed to transform into a nether ghost domain, filled with sinister yin qi.
Then, massive yin qi nets suddenly condensed in the ghost domain, dropping down toward the ghost.
The ghost drew its sabre and slashed horizontally. Sabre qi raged fiercely. The yin qi nets paused, shattered into seven or eight layers by the sabre qi.
However…
Seven or eight layers broke ahead, but seventeen or eighteen remained behind. Wen Jiong stepped forward leisurely. With a point of his finger seal, three curse seals flew out, shooting straight at the ghost.
The ghost was shocked. As it prepared to shatter the three curse seals, the net above suddenly solidified into a curse seal. Black light flashed, piercing into the ghost’s head.
“Ah!!!”
The ghost cried out in pain. Its body swelled by a chi. Ghostly qi surged. It slashed horizontally, shattering the three curse seals, then bolted toward the nearest exit.
Wen Jiong’s figure floated forward, lightly blocking ahead of the ghost.
“Aaah!”
The ghost roared loudly. One hand wielded the sabre, the other clawed, grabbing toward Wen Jiong simultaneously.
Wen Jiong reached out. A zhang-long ghost hand appeared, slapping down.
“Boom!”
The ghost hand scattered. The ghost’s feet staggered, its figure halting.
The next moment, countless yin qi nets appeared again from nowhere, binding it tightly. They seeped into its body, attacking and sealing its magic power and divine soul.
The ghost struggled but to no avail.
“A mere ghost corpse. Who gave you the confidence to think you could harm me?”
Wen Jiong floated lightly before it. Reaching into its chest, he pulled out a human-skin scroll from a gap in its armour.
He opened it, glanced, nodded, then turned toward the manor entrance, smiling faintly. “Friend Lu, this ghost general. Shall Wen kill it, or will you deliver it to the city god temple?”
Hearing Wen Jiong speak, the ghost and Madam Qin turned together. They saw the air at the manor gate flicker, revealing two figures.
“So Friend Wen discovered us.”
“I arrived a bit earlier, before Friend Lu had cast the concealment spell.”
Lu Zheng and Yuanjing revealed themselves. Yuanjing was warily staring at Wen Jiong when he heard Lu Zheng chatting with Wen Jiong like old friends.
Yuanjing: Õ_Õ
Chatting with a thousand-year ghost king like an old friend. Does Master have that ability?
No… Master probably does not know any thousand-year ghost kings…
Nor thousand-year demon kings…
“Has Friend Lu also come for this ghost?” Wen Jiong asked.
“No, for Madam Qin.” Lu Zheng shook his head with a smile.
Madam Qin was startled upon hearing this. She looked timidly at Lu Zheng. “This humble concubine merely resides here. I never appear in daylight and have never harmed lives?”
She could not understand. She was just a weak female ghost. How had she attracted a great expert who conversed equally with Wen Jiong?
Could her information be wrong? Was the yang world now so intolerant of ghosts?
“But your midnight qin playing has frightened the local people greatly!” Lu Zheng said.
“Ah?” Madam Qin looked bewildered. “So far away, they could still hear?”
Lu Zheng was momentarily speechless. “So you simply forgot to set a sound barrier?”
“This humble concubine… merely plays the qin at night. I did not expect they could hear from so far…”
Madam Qin said weakly, “Then can I set a sound-isolating array in the future?”
“You do not wish to return to the nether realm?”
“This humble concubine just escaped Valley King Cave. I do not want to return and become a plaything for certain people.”
Lu Zheng turned back, looking at Wen Jiong.
“She was one of Valley Corpse King’s concubines, bearing his mark. But now that Valley Corpse King is dead, the mark is useless. So she escaped.”
Wen Jiong said, “That Valley Corpse King was an old lecher. Hundreds of living concubines remain in Valley King Cave. With his death, many have benefited.
By the way, this Madam Qin was one of the most favoured among Valley Corpse King’s concubines.”
Lu Zheng spoke gently, but his gaze toward Wen Jiong carried amusement. His eyebrow arched.
Wen Jiong’s face darkened slightly, but he said nothing. Indeed, he had taken several carefully selected ghost beauties, no less than this Madam Qin.
