Chapter 23: Water Ghost Reappears

This rainstorm continued into the night without any sign of stopping.

Meng Xue urged us to stay one night at her aunt's house, and we would all leave together tomorrow.

I thought about it and agreed—dark, slippery roads in a downpour meant even an umbrella wouldn't get us home. So we stayed at Aunt Mei's house. But when I learned Aunt Mei's place had only two rooms left, my mood instantly soured.

Two rooms—Meng Xue took one, leaving no doubt that the other was for me and Pangzi to share.

I had already experienced Pangzi's sleeping prowess more than once. The first time we shared a bed, his snoring kept me awake all night.

The second time, he kicked me three feet off the bed.

The third time, he caught a cold, his nose congested; at midnight he forcefully exhaled, blowing snot and feces all over my face.

If nothing unexpected happened, tonight would be our fourth time sharing a bed—to prevent a repeat, I deliberately went to sleep an hour earlier, still inside 【the bed】. Even if his snoring grew louder, it wouldn't wake me; even if you kicked hard, I'd still be inside the bed.

Wishes are always beautiful, yet reality is often stark… human plans fall short of heavenly schemes, divine powers cannot defy fate, and wisdom always loses to Pangzi.

In the dead of night… I kept feeling someone rubbing my face, and it was a bit wet. I opened my eyes, feeling an urge to jump out of bed, grab a knife, and hack Pangzi to death.

This guy wrapped his arms and legs around me, rubbing his face hard against mine, drooling all over my face; even asleep he wore a lecherous grin, muttering nonstop: "Jingjing Sister, Jingjing Sister, Little Jingjing, where are you?"

I wanted to cry but had no tears… damn Pangzi, how much you must want to molest Silijing, not even letting her sleep.

Left with no choice, I forced his arms and legs off me, grabbed the blanket and pillow, and went to sleep on the floor.

Although the floor was icy cold, it was still far better than being clung to and drooled on by the damn Pangzi.

Perhaps because I'd gone through a series of events today, choked on water, and was mentally exhausted, I soon drifted sweetly into sleep.

Outside the window, the rain kept falling, though it had lessened considerably, still gusts of cold wind blew.

In a corner no one could notice, a woman's shadow appeared in the water stains on the floor. Then she slowly rose to her feet, seemingly condensed from the water marks. She stood outside the window, silently staring at the two sleeping people.

"Hai Sheng, Hai Sheng, Chen Hai Sheng…" In my hazy state I heard someone calling my name. The voice sounded so familiar, like a sister's.

"Sister, is that you?" I called out in a daze and rose from the floor.

I traced the sound to its source and found it coming from outside the window. On the glass was a woman's shadow; because of the rain and the glass, I couldn't make out her appearance.

My consciousness began to fade, and a voice sounded in my heart: she is my sister, indeed, she is my Jiajie Sister—I had finally found her.

I flung open the window, crawled out, and clung tightly to that shadow. My consciousness was already blurring; I only knew she was my sister and I had to follow her.

Suddenly a jingling sound rang out—it was exactly that sound that jolted me awake with a start.

The sound came from the string of little bells tied to my ankle—perhaps someone would think it's an ornament only girls wear. But the bells on my heel are the same as the Daoist Sect's Soul-Chasing Bell magic implement; they warn whenever an evil master tries to seize a soul or monsters attack. This was refined for me by QingSongShu; Pangzi's is a small Eight Trigrams Mirror on his neck, while mine is this string of little bells.

The bells chimed only briefly before cracking, but that brief moment was enough to jolt me awake.

What lay before me was certainly not my sister, but a woman in red clothes standing not far away in the rain, beckoning and calling my name.

How fortunate… if it weren't for the string of bells tied to my ankle, I would likely have fallen under this female ghost's spell and had my soul bewitched.

The bell's sound is very faint, especially when rain is falling on the net; it gets drowned out by the rain, basically inaudible.

After waking, I didn't get angry but continued pretending to be possessed by the ghost, like an unconscious puppet, stepping step by step following the red-clad female ghost's direction. I was also curious about where she intended to lead me and when I had provoked her.

I kept following her, out of Aunt Mei's house, and then I finally understood why this female ghost sought me out—she led me to the riverside, the very river where three people had nearly drowned today.

Barring any mishap, this female ghost is the resentful spirit of this river, the female ghost who pulled a substitute this morning.

"Hai Sheng, come over, come over here." She had already walked to the riverbank and was waving at me.

I furtively drew a thunder flower character with my left index finger on my right palm while keeping my hands behind my back. A flower character differs from a talisman; it's for emergency use by Daoists. If you encounter an evil ghost rushing at you when off guard, you use the flower character to protect yourself. After all, the enemy isn't a fool; he won't just watch you finish drawing a talisman and then attack you.

What I am drawing now is a thunder character with three outward circles—the flower character of the Thatch Mountain Five Thunder Palm. The Yin Mountain Sect originally combined the techniques of the Thatch Mountain Sect, the Universal Hermitage Sect, and others. Thus, within Yin Mountain, aside from its peculiar Yin‑controlling methods, there are also other sects' techniques, and the Five Thunder Palm is one of them.

I slowly approached the red‑clad female ghost; when I was nearly beside her, the corner of my mouth curled into a cold smile, readying myself to greet her with a proper Five Thunder Palm.

"Monster, behold the magic treasure!" Suddenly a loud shout came from behind me, followed immediately by the red‑clad female ghost's piercing scream as she flung herself onto the riverbank.

No need to look; it must be Pangzi—he's the only one carrying a ghost‑fixing Eight Trigrams Mirror.

"Pangzi, aren't you dead asleep? How did you get out?" I turned around, astonished, and stared at Pangzi.

Pangzi pursed his lips and said, "You really think I'm a pig? If a ghost showed up and I didn't even know, I might as well quit being a Daoist and go home to sell sweet potatoes."

"So… you've been following us since early on?"

"Mm…" Pangzi nodded.

"Then why didn't you show up sooner?"

"Hehe, I originally planned to show up at about the same time to rescue you, so you'd be overwhelmed with gratitude and admiration, bowing down to me completely, and thereafter you'd fetch flowers and wash my feet without complaint. But I saw you quietly drawing a flower character with your hands behind your back and knew you weren't bewitched. So I appeared early to fulfill my duty as a Splendid Light Sect Daoist to subdue demons and eliminate evil," Pangzi declared righteously.

I… was truly speechless. What does "showing up at about the same time" mean—was it when the water ghost was dragging me under? Now that I know I'm clear‑headed and you rush out to steal the spotlight, acting so high‑and‑mighty, I doubt there's anyone as tasteless in the world as the Pangzi family.

"Cough cough, we'll talk thanks later… for now let's capture this female ghost first." Pangzi, unable to bear my contemptuous glance, hastily changed the subject.

Suddenly, with a crack‑crack, Pangzi's Eight Trigrams Mirror in his hand shattered into fragments. The female ghost that the mirror had restrained instantly broke free and tried to flee back into the water.

"Fuck"

"Holy shit, this disposable junk just isn't durable"

The two of us cursed in unison and charged forward. Pangzi's Eight Trigrams Mirror and the little bells on my ankle are alike—both were consecrated and infused with magical power. They're knockoffs, nowhere near genuine magical implements, usable at most once.

Seeing the water ghost about to escape, I hastily gripped the Five Thunder Palm and lunged forward. But Pangzi was faster than I; before I could even reach the female ghost…

…an article of clothing swooped down from above my head, enveloping the red‑clad female ghost who was trying to flee.

…still a step too late, and that damn Pangzi snatched her away.

Pangzi used a Cover Ghost Spell; originally the spell was cast with a Daoist's robe, but any Daoist with a modicum of skill can cast it without a robe—even a piece of clothing becomes a weapon for capturing ghosts.

However, though the spell was imbued into that garment, clothing ultimately can't match a Daoist robe, so it cannot fully subdue this red‑clad water ghost—it can only buy a moment's time.

But don't forget that I, gripping the Five Thunder flower character, am also here; that brief interval is more than enough for me.

Although I resented losing the initiative to Pangzi, I still rushed forward the instant the clothing enveloped the water ghost, and before she could break free I slammed a Five Thunder Palm into her.

The female ghost emitted a piercing, bone‑chilling wail, tightly bound by Pangzi's clothing, losing all ability to escape.

Pangzi clapped his hands, stepped to stand shoulder‑to‑shoulder before the female ghost, and judging by feel, this was a ghost with some cultivation—unluckily, she had set her sights on me.