Chapter 1756: Condition
“Why are we back again?” Wei Suo cried, practically losing his mind out of fear. His stomach bulged. He hadn’t even vomited up all of the water he had drunk before, and yet they had returned to the place where the nightmare began. When he saw the fruits and pastries on the table and thought about how happily he had been eating them before, his stomach began to turn.
Qiu Honglei and Jing Teng also recalled the earlier scene. They couldn't help but stay a bit further away from the food on the table.
Zu An felt thankful. In order to guard against unpredictable situations, he’d had Jing Teng connect them all with her vines to prevent them from separating again.
“Just what is going on?” Qiu Honglei asked, looking worriedly at Zu An.
Jing Teng’s expression also changed a bit; she seemed to be thinking about something.
“If I’m not mistaken, we weren’t able to find the key to all this. That’s why we’ve returned again,” Zu An said.
“Then, if we can’t solve this, won’t that mean we’ll be trapped in this loop forever?” Wei Suo cried out in alarm.
“If we really have no solution, we can just wait until the sky brightens again. These ghosts will withdraw,” Qiu Honglei said, quickly realizing an important point.
“It’s useless,” Jing Teng said, shaking her head. “The ghost here is stronger than I imagined. We’ve probably already fallen victim to her schemes. Time flows differently here compared to outside. Perhaps by the time the sun comes out, we’ll have already been defeated.” She paused for a moment before continuing, “Besides, I suspect that even if the sun comes out, it might not reach this place.”
The others followed her gaze. Only now did they notice that they couldn't see the sky above. There were decorated lanterns and colored banners everywhere, and furthermore, they were covered by some strange fog, which was why they hadn’t noticed before.
“Do you think we might be underground or in some cave?” Zu An asked.
Jing Teng nodded and voiced her confirmation.
“Maybe we should let Little Ying out and have her converse with the ghosts,” Qiu Honglei suggested. Since they were all ghosts, perhaps they would have some shared language.
Jing Teng shook her head and said, “The world of ghosts only cares about the law of the jungle. Little Ying’s cultivation is too low. If she comes out, she’ll be nothing more than food for those malicious spirits.”
When she heard that that wouldn’t work, Qiu Honglei suddenly said, “In that case, we should just find that bride. All we have to do is beat her into submission.” She came from the Devil Sect, after all. After her initial alarm, she quickly recovered her usual way of doing things.
Zu An smiled and said, “That was exactly my intention.”
Wei Suo pointed at the guests around them and asked, “Shouldn’t we start with them?”
Zu An shook his head and answered, “They’re just made from paper. Getting rid of them is meaningless.”
Just then, high-pitched singing resounded from the stage. Zu An’s group exchanged a look and secretly moved a bit farther away from the stage. The surrounding people were still staring at the stage, and seemed not to notice them at all. Their expressions were especially strange.
As they moved, Zu An simply used the previous method to open up a path using his Primordial Origin Sutra. Soon, they had a clear route.
Jing Teng was inwardly filled with admiration. Even though this method was crude, it was indeed effective. However, she suddenly remembered something and looked away from him.
…
When he saw that they were about to reach the bride’s room, Zu An said seriously, “There is one issue. Right when I saw her and was about to attack her, that was when I was afflicted by her illusion…” He gave them a rough summary of what had happened before.
Wei Suo immediately became discouraged. He exclaimed, “Why were you able to become that evil tyrant while I could only become that poor groom? This isn’t fair!”
Meanwhile, Qiu Honglei perked up her ears and asked, “You were with that ghost earlier?”
“It wasn’t actually the ghost. It…” Zu An began to explain when Jing Teng interrupted him with a light cough.
“Judging from what you’re saying, there’s a good chance that there’s a special formation inside that can drag you into an illusion. Don’t rush straight in. I’ll try to bring her out first,” Jing Teng said.
“Alright,” Zu An replied with a nod. They began to discuss their strategy and how they would act so that the ghost wouldn’t be able to react in time. After all, the ghost’s methods were too strange. If they allowed her to do what she wanted, she would be quite difficult to deal with.
Soon after, the group arrived just outside the bride’s room. The door was still half-open. A woman dressed in wedding clothes and wearing a veil had her back to the entrance. She was combing her hair calmly in front of her table. However, when she removed her head to comb it better, even though Zu An had already warned all of them, the others still couldn't help but gasp.
The ghost put her head back on, bending over as if to listen to something.
Just then, Jing Teng made her move. Dozens of vines shot out and instantly wrapped around the ghost. She pulled fiercely, and the ghost screamed. Endless hair scattered in all directions, wrapping around the pillars of the room. Thus, she and Jing Teng ended up at a standstill.
As her hair extended during the fight, her veil also fell off, revealing her real appearance! Her complexion was gray and ashen, and her eyes were almost all white with mung bean-sized black specks for pupils. Her lips were shiny and black. Because she was struggling, her expression was sinister and terrifying. She revealed her teeth, which were particularly sharp. Her saliva dropped onto the ground like black ink.
Wei Suo couldn't help but swallow. Why was this different from the female ghost he had imagined?
That ‘A Chinese Ghost Story’ is a scam! Just who the hell came up with such a ridiculous setting?
As such, he completely gave up on all thoughts of experiencing romance with a female ghost.
…
The ghost suddenly reached out and groped around the dressing table. Her hand glowed green and resembled a dried branch; her fingernails were pitch-black. They looked as if they could leave several bloody wounds if they scratched someone’s body. She quickly found a pair of shears on the table and moved to cut the vines around her.
Jing Teng’s expression changed. Those scissors looked special; she felt a sense of danger before they even made contact.
Suddenly, Zu An’s palm released a suction force from a distance. A black hole formed at the center of his palm, drawing the ghost in with incomparable power. The ghost screamed miserably. She could no longer control her body and was sucked straight toward Zu An’s hand.
Qiu Honglei immediately used the Empress Lantern to keep her there. Wei Suo also used some special method, and two earthen hands grabbed the ghost’s legs, locking her in place.
Zu An immediately used the Primordial Origin Sutra, chanting, “Dust to dust, dirt to dirt. What shouldn’t remain in this world should depart…”
The ghost’s expression was sinister as she let out a scream of pain, and she turned into dust, disappearing.
“It’s finally over,” Wei Suo said, sighing in relief. Just now, the ghost’s appearance had almost made him piss his pants.
Qiu Honglei and Jing Teng both said at the same time, “Something isn’t right…”
Suddenly, their view blurred. They saw that they were sitting in front of the stage again.
“Didn’t we get rid of the bride? Why is this happening?” Qiu Honglei asked, her expression changing slightly.
Jing Teng said seriously, “I already told you that in order to eliminate some special ghosts, we have to either resolve their lingering will or destroy their vessel.”
Zu An thought of something. In his world, the Primordial Origin Sutra’s purifying ability could make evil spirits return to where they should go, but this world was a bit special. Once purified, they would simply return to their vessel and be revived.
“Just what is her vessel?” Wei Suo muttered.
“Those scissors!” Jing Teng said, remembering that the scissors had felt special to her.
“The red veil!” Qiu Honglei guessed. In her opinion, the most important thing to a bride would be her veil.
“I think it’s that comb. She’s always combing her hair whenever I see her,” Zu An said with a chuckle. “But it doesn’t matter, because we’ll just give them all a try.”
When they saw his smile, the others suddenly felt as if the sinister atmosphere had become a bit less scary.
…
Then, the group was about to move again when they felt a sinister wind. Many of the lanterns nearby were blown out, and their surroundings went pitch-black. On the stage, the surrounding ‘guests’ also disappeared. The once-lively place became so quiet one could hear a pin drop. There was a sinister chill all around them, and it wasn’t the same sort of cold an ice element cultivator could release. Rather, it made their scalps turn numb and their souls tremble.
A woman dressed in red wedding clothes and a veil slowly walked closer. It was clearly completely dark, and yet the red of her outfit was still just that striking. They didn’t see her move her feet, and yet she was able to move quickly in the blink of an eye, as if she were continuously teleporting. As the ghost approached mysteriously, a sinister deathly aura spread out, filling every corner of the place.
Wei Suo’s entire body started shaking, because he realized that he couldn't move at all. The two women’s expressions changed as well. The ghost seemed to have still been holding back quite a bit before. Previously, perhaps she had underestimated her opponent, so she was taken out in an instant before she could use all of her strength.
Now, however, she definitely wouldn’t make the same mistake. She stopped in a spot that wasn’t too close to them, but not too far away either. Ghosts appeared all around them. They could vaguely make out the guards led by Zhang Yong slowly surrounding them.
However, Zu An remained completely calm. Since the ghost had come on her own, that would save him quite a bit of time.
To his surprise, however, the ghost suddenly raised her hand and pointed at Jing Teng. Her voice was as harsh as fingernails scraping a chalkboard as she said, “Leave that woman here and I can let you all go.”
Zu An and the others were shocked. They all turned to look at Jing Teng. They hadn’t expected the ghost to make such a proposal.
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