Chapter 297: Three Teleportations

The four monsters failed to attack.

The scene suddenly froze; their bodies remained in attacking postures, utterly motionless, as if performing absurd performance art.

They remained like this, stagnant.

Until the moonlight vanished, they too dissolved like dreams and bubbles, as if they had never existed.

……

Pitch black.

Oppressive.

A strange odor hung in the air.

Wu Xian lay back in the coffin again, his heart pounding; he had been on the verge of extreme tension, but thankfully, the plan had ultimately succeeded.

Him and Du E.

They dared to go out and look at the moonlight precisely because of the mechanism that teleported them back into the coffin whenever they averted their gaze.

Thus, even if danger arose, they could escape it swiftly.

To avoid the evil spirits' gaze and prevent being teleported away, they had prepared a tattered blanket to shield the evil spirits' sight at critical moments.

Yet judging from the appearance of those four strange evil spirits.

They might not even have eyes…

After calming his nerves.

Wu Xian spread his arms and groped around blindly.

In this environment, Wu Xian could rely only on his sense of smell, touch, and hearing; thus, though he had been here more than once, he still first surveyed the surroundings—perhaps something new had appeared?

But this inspection.

Made Wu Xian's face instantly change color.

The coffin had become much more spacious; last time, its height hadn't allowed him to stand upright, but now it was tall enough for him to sit straight!

Was the coffin growing larger? Plop! A pale hand grabbed Wu Xian's ankle. He sat up and looked down—his heart sank.

The pale ghost had appeared again.

But this time, its body was the same size as Wu Xian's!

"I've shrunk!"

Last time, Wu Xian hadn't used any deity-invoking items and still easily overpowered the pale ghost because of the huge size difference between them.

But now their sizes were equal; in pure hand-to-hand combat, Wu Xian gained no advantage, and since the opponent was a ghost—more ferocious—he might be completely outmatched.

So Wu Xian unhesitatingly pulled out three playing cards.

Whether from excessive nervousness or not, two of the cards fell into the coffin; only one remained in Wu Xian's hand, transformed into a bloodstained boomerang.

The pale ghost was grinning wickedly.

Suddenly, the boomerang slammed into its mouth, knocking out two of its large teeth.

Because the coffin's interior was cramped.

Wu Xian couldn't swing, so he could only jab with the boomerang; the pale ghost was completely stunned—last time, when it was small, getting beaten was understandable, but now that it was larger, why was it still getting beaten?

But between bare hands and armed combat, there lies a vast chasm.

Two individuals with identical physical attributes will always favor the armed one; thus, the pale ghost was still brutally beaten, soon left with a bruised, swollen face and two "Wrath" marks already etched onto its body.

Wu Xian was about to use the blade edge of the boomerang to deliver a fatal strike when he noticed the pale ghost's body beginning to grow translucent—if he struck now, the ghost would vanish into thin air.

So Wu Xian stopped.

The pale ghost's body solidified again.

It cowered in a corner of the coffin, too afraid to launch another attack, yet its expression was grotesque, tendons bulging on its temples as if it were about to die of rage.

Wu Xian narrowed his eyes.

"So this teleportation works like this."

The Lotus Juanren, when teleported into the coffin, must be teleported at least three times. Each time, the pale ghost appears—but whether it leaves or not is not up to the ghost itself.

The first time, the pale ghost is extremely small; it vanishes upon receiving sufficient attack.

The second time, its size matches a normal human's; it vanishes before receiving a potentially fatal blow.

The third time, the pale ghost's size becomes enormous; this time, it likely won't vanish until life or death is decided.

If the ghost is killed, everything naturally ends.

But what if the person is killed by the ghost…

Would this ghost, identical in appearance to the person, replace him and join the Lotus Juanren's ranks? Also, Wu Xian noticed.

The pale ghost's attack style just now bore traces of his own—likely, it had learned some of Wu Xian's abilities from last night's fight; the more it learned, the larger its body grew.

If this is true…

Tomorrow, the giant pale ghost might be wielding the boomerang.

"So… I can't let it vanish like this."

Bam! Wu Xian punched the pale ghost in the face; the attacked ghost roared in fury and retaliated, but due to its injuries, it was mercilessly subdued by Wu Xian.

"So it's true—if it vanishes before receiving fatal damage, then as long as it doesn't receive a fatal blow, it won't vanish."

A cruel smile spread across Wu Xian's face as his fingers cracked with each movement.

Thud! Thud! Amid the pale ghost's screams, Wu Xian continued beating it for a long time; the more he beat it, the angrier the ghost became—by the end, it was like a rabid dog, and Wu Xian struggled even to suppress it.

So Wu Xian hastily grabbed the boomerang and delivered a fatal strike—only then did the enraged ghost vanish inside the coffin.

Wu Xian gasped for breath.

Any form of attack accumulates the state of Thunder Wrath and Lightning Fury; he knew he couldn't kill the pale ghost this time, so his earlier beating was meant to accumulate more "Wrath" marks on the ghost's body.

This way, tomorrow, it would be much easier for him.

After resting for a while.

Wu Xian observed the cracks in the coffin, confirmed there was no moonlight, then struggled to push it open and crawl out; now that his body had shrunk, opening the coffin by himself had become even harder than before.

He scanned his surroundings.

Some coffins and jars had already been opened; because he and Du E had delayed, they were the slowest to emerge from their coffins.

"I wonder if anyone will die inside a coffin tonight."

"I hope everyone's abilities are sufficient."

Wu Xian shook his head and walked to the thatched hut, knocking on the door; Du E's voice came from inside.

"Wait, how can we be sure you're real?"

Wu Xian was speechless: "After yesterday's experience, you should be able to tell—there's no moonlight now, so I'm definitely real."

"The malevolent spirits would say exactly that."

Du E snorted coldly.

"I ask you, have you ever considered selling your goods through another channel?"

Wu Xian's eyebrow twitched, but since he'd pulled a stunt on her yesterday, her retaliation today was only natural, so he answered without hesitation.

"Of course I've considered it—I just found out your cut is so exorbitant; next time I'll find a partner with a lower cut."

Du E turned to the others inside the hut: "This man is fake!"

The others inside were speechless—this situation is so dangerous, and yet you two are playing games? Wu Xian, ever the merchant: "Change the cut to one percent, how about it?"

"Still fake."

"Two percent?"

"Deal!"

Creak…

The door opened, and Wu Xian finally returned to the thatched hut.

(End of Chapter)