Chapter 86 Do you need my help? Approaching Malice, Mission Impossible (Part Two)
As Miss Jun's head fell to the ground, the severed head quickly revealed dense patches of livor mortis, turning the dreamy goddess's face the men had been obsessed with instantly nauseating.
Even the most ignorant of people now realized there was something wrong with Miss Jun.
In that moment, the entire place was shocked.
A look of bewilderment filled everyone's eyes.
If the reanimation of the red-haired evil corpse was still within their comprehension, then the fact Miss Jun had been parasitized by an evil spirit touched upon everyone's blind spot of knowledge.
"Ladies and gentlemen, haven't you seen what's going on yet?"
Yi Chen held the Dragon-Slaying Sword in his reverse grip and sighed as he spoke to the crowd.
Seeing that everyone was still looking puzzled, Yi Chen continued to ask:
"Escort leader Zhang, a noble lady without a guard, carrying a copper coffin escort mission, have none of you felt something was amiss?"
"The task you took on, if I'm not mistaken, has been a setup from start to finish."
"The Towning Coins on top of that golden-horned copper coffin should have been knocked off by this ghost that was parasitizing Miss Jun."
"Had I not chanced upon the scene today, all of you would have died."
Escort leader Zhang scratched his head in confusion. He felt he was about to have an epiphany, but there was still something he didn't understand, so he inquired:
"Taoist, you say our escort mission was a setup, so why didn't they just kill us halfway through? Why bother waiting until this Mosen Posthouse to make a move?"
"And she even paid us three times the market price in silver, without making any moves during the journey."
"Well said. But has anyone among you ever fished?"
"Who doesn't bait when fishing?"
"You are like the fish attracted to the bait, selectively chosen at that, all strong men, with even a few possessing some shallow mana, practitioners. That female ghost was like a trained osprey."
"As everyone knows, when an osprey catches a fish, it must hand it over to its master." Yi Chen's somber voice carried.
"Am I right, my friend?"
Suddenly, Yi Chen called out toward the gate of the posthouse.
At that moment, the gate of the posthouse swung open, and white fog surged in.
Through the distance mist, four white-clothed female ghosts, biting their cheeks, carried a sedan chair, their feet not touching the ground as they approached.
The sedan chair had no curtain, revealing an old woman with a sinister complexion inside. The part of her body below the abdomen was all writhing roots, instead of legs.
"Taoist, you're somewhat clever. But you've killed grandmother's most astute ghost servant. How will you compensate grandmother?"
"This is going to be difficult to resolve."
"How about you serve as grandmother's face for a year, and grandmother will let you go. How about that?"
The strange, fluctuating voice of a man and a woman emerged from the mouth of the old crone, her small mung bean eyes staring intently at Yi Chen's robust chest, her wrinkled hands like old tree bark incessantly fondling.
If she could drain this Daoist before her, it would be a thousand times greater than any ordinary person, and her powers would make a great leap forward.
With the eerie old crone's appearance, everyone suddenly woke up as if from a dream, filled with retrospective fear.
Upon hearing this, Yi Chen's face instantly darkened as if it were the bottom of a pot. He raised the Dragon-Slaying Sword straight up, his deep purple Pure Yang Inner Qi vibrating, and transformed into a purple flame path that slashed toward the weird crone.
This strike was ferocious.
However, the reaction of the weird old crone was swift as a massive root suddenly burst up from the ground, striking the Dragon-Slaying Sword held by Yi Chen.
Boom.
A terrifying sound wave followed the collision between the sword and the root, and three visible ripples of water waved through the air.
The eerie old crone's complexion changed as she grimly stared at the root in front of her, now left with only a layer of tough skin still connected at its base.
"Taoist, it seems I've underestimated you."
"Your sword is formidable, and so are you. Let's stop this now. I'll allow you to leave, and the others will stay. What do you say?"
After just one clash, the weird old crone rolled her eyes and suddenly spoke.
Upon these words, the onlookers immediately grew anxious, desperately hoping Yi Chen wouldn't agree to the ghoul's terms the next moment.
However, their worries were clearly unnecessary.
Just as the demon craved Yi Chen's astonishing vitality, Yi Chen himself lusted after her Deep Red Value.
Yet, even if his true desires were such, he still had to maintain appearances for the occasion.
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
A river forms from many small streams.
Sometimes, one's reputation is built up through these very details.
A certain Taoist Yi Chengzi who did not want to reveal his name spoke with great righteousness:
"Without learning, one cannot understand righteousness."
"Good and evil cannot coexist."
"I, Yi Chengzi of Hidden Dragon Temple, have lived an open and honorable life."
"My heart and my actions are as clear as a bright mirror."
"Everything I do, I do for justice."
"Why would we, of this generation, hesitate to fight!"
Hearing Yi Chen's words, the onlookers couldn't help but feel their spirits stirred.
What an upright and just Taoist he was.
A younger escort couldn't help but call out softly:
"Taoist, if you go and don't return, what then?"
"Then I shall not return!" Yi Chen, with his back to the crowd, said heroically.
He said no more, turned around, drew his sword, and struck at the eerie old crone, silently giving that young escort a thumbs-up in his heart.
He didn't know about this escort's professional abilities, but this fellow definitely had full points in seizing the moment; he admired the young man.
If this battle were to be sung of later, the young man's last-minute support would merit recognition.
"Taoist, you don't know when you're well off."
"Since you are so eager to die, then stay here forever."
"Why should one's bones be buried in their homeland, when there isn't a place in the world without green hills," Yi Chen quickly added another line.
The eerie old woman was now furious; she would bet that this Taoist was not battling her for justice.
She could see the same greed burning in his eyes that burned in hers.
This man truly had no shame.
"Let me show you how formidable Granny is!"
"The Forest Descends! Union with the Spirit Trees! Ritual of the Dark Roots!"
The old woman threw her head back in a long howl, and countless roots broke through the ground, whipping through the air like steel lashes, coiling like standing cobras, ready to strike at any moment.
However, that was not the end.
The surrounding woods began to stir, and as Granny's voice fell, one tree after another seemed to come to life, their roots splitting the soil, striding toward the direction of Mu Sen Station.
The ground shook and the mountains trembled; it was a terrifying spectacle.
The four white-clad female ghosts who were previously carrying the palanquin for the old crone turned into a dark light upon hearing this and instantly disappeared into the four tallest trees.
After the Union with the Spirit Trees, the might of the four largest tree people surged yet again.
But this was not the end of the strange changes.
The onlookers raised their heads to the sky, only to see countless white petals falling like a dreamy, illusory shower.
"It's flowers, locust flowers, so many locust flowers," exclaimed a young escort in the crowd.
"Everyone be careful, make sure these petals don't touch you," Taoist Bai He too changed his expression and warned the crowd loudly.