Chapter 328

After leaving the room, I closed my eyes and walked up the stairs step by step according to feeling. Every ten steps, I would chant the incantation of one lunar mansion.

The twenty-eight lunar mansions have twenty-eight incantation words: "Horn, Neck, Room, Heart, Tail, Winnowing Basket, Winnowing Basket, Dipper, Ox, Girl, Emptiness, Danger, Encampment, Wall; Legs, Bond, Stomach, Hairy Head, Net, Turtle Beak, Three Stars, Well, Ghost, Willow, Star, Wings, Wing, Chariot."

These twenty-eight incantations are usually used in conjunction with the Purple Emperor's taboo. The Purple Emperor's taboo is the talisman head commonly seen in drawing talismans (rain gradual ear). The three characters together have twenty-eight strokes, each stroke representing the power of one of those lunar mansions. The usage of this talisman head and these twenty-eight incantations in the orthodox Daoist Sect is countless. They can be used to expel evil, suppress wickedness, subdue demons, and kill. Even without drawing a talisman, simply posting a Purple Emperor's taboo on the door makes all evil spirits flee a thousand li upon seeing it. Ordinary people who regularly chant these twenty-eight incantations can also protect themselves and ward off evil.

Although I didn't know how Murong Jiaja knew the Purple Emperor's taboo, nor whether this method works, I subconsciously chose to believe her. For no other reason, just because the feeling in my heart told me she was trustworthy.

In total 280 steps, one incantation every ten steps. When I finished chanting the last "Chariot" character, my whole body shuddered, and I felt as if I had emerged from a cramped little room, blown by the wind, refreshed and clear-headed.

At that moment, I actually heard a girl softly crying, the sound seeming right before my eyes, and the voice was also very familiar to me.

It was Mengxue, and also Yao Yirong.

I shuddered, opened my eyes. Before me loomed a heavy door; without the slightest hesitation, I kicked it open with force.

"Mengxue..."

In a corner of the hall, I saw Mengxue, Yao Yirong, and several girls who had fainted nearby. The girls were still there, but the boys had already disappeared.

"Brother Hai Sheng..." Mengxue, upon seeing me, lunged at me like seeing a relative.

I patted her shoulder to comfort her: "Stop crying, quickly tell Brother Hai Sheng where the others went."

"In the room, that girl dragged them all into that room." Yao Yirong, crouching on the ground, timidly pointed to the western room. Though this little girl was frightened pale, she mustered courage and pointed to the room to tell me.

Perhaps because she had previously suffered too great a fright, Mengxue, upon seeing me, soon fell into a faint.

I laid her down, then took the talisman and prepared to rush toward the room Yao Yirong pointed to.

"Wait, give me the talisman; I want to go too."

I turned my head, only to see Yao Yirong gritting her teeth, standing behind me, reaching out a hand to me.

"Aren't you afraid?" I glanced up and down at her, noticing her feet were still trembling.

"Who said I'm scared? Give me a talisman, and I dare to go catch ghosts with you just the same." She puffed her cheeks, stubbornly.

I initially wanted to refuse outright, but then I thought: now I have no magical power, relying solely on talismans I don't know if they'll work; Yao Yirong's martial arts seem decent, with a talisman she might still be able to help me.

"Hold it; when you see a ghost, just issue the command like this."

I taught Yao Yirong the finger signs for issuing the talisman command; seeing she had no problem, I turned and kicked the door of that room.

With a bang, the door didn't open; instead, I was bounced back.

Damn it, what is this shoddy door made of? It's hard to this extent. I rubbed my sore bare foot, thinking without distraction.

"Really useless?" Yao Yirong looked at my cowardly appearance, sneered contemptuously, then immediately assumed a horse stance, gave a huh, and kicked the wooden door hard.

In an instant, the door and its latch broke apart, flying inward splendidly.

"... This girl, indeed a violent maniac, mortals should not approach."

The door was kicked open; I instantly jumped up from the ground and rushed in.

"Ah..." Upon entering the room, Yao Yirong screamed and covered her eyes.

Even I, who am said to not blink even if Mount Tai collapses before my eyes, froze upon entering the room.

Inside the room, a vivid, lively spring palace picture was being performed, and it was the moving kind: a woman with blue-green long hair, naked and faceless, sat on a man's waist, writhing up and down. As they writhed, the room filled with waves of lewd moans.

I recognized the man; he seemed to be from the same school. As for the woman, needless to say, she is the ghost in the painting.

Yao Yirong and I, upon seeing this scene, both froze—one because she shyly covered her eyes, the other because having never seen such a thing, my mind couldn't process it for a moment.

But I forgot—now is not the time for me to be distracted; before me was a man-eating female ghost who doesn't spit out bones. We were stunned, but she wasn't. Within less than a minute of rushing into the room, she immediately regained her senses. She suddenly turned, flung aside the "boyfriend" on the bed, and reached out to grab me and Yao Yirong.

"Careful..." In the second the blue-haired female ghost lunged at me, I finally came to. As I spoke to warn Yao Yirong, the ghost's hand appeared before my eyes; I could almost feel the sting of its greenish nails scraping the air.

Instantly, I, with erupting potential, leaned back to dodge the ghost's sharp claws, then did a lazy donkey roll and jumped to a corner.

But Yao Yirong did not dodge the ghost's attack; the moment she rose, the ghost seized her neck and lifted her into the air.

Damn it, just now who said they'd help me catch ghosts? Now the more they help, the more they hinder. I cursed inwardly, then rushed forward with the talisman without hesitation.

One spirit, two ghosts, three grudges, four wickedness... This female ghost doesn't even know how long she's lived; she's definitely become a wicked entity. Although I don't know if the talisman can fully subdue her, I hope it will at least make her feel pain and release Yao Yirong.

"Urgent as law and order!" I shouted the command loudly and slapped the talisman onto the female ghost. This strike left me utterly stunned—the talisman hitting the ghost elicited no reaction at all.

Even a wicked entity that has lived over a hundred years couldn't possibly be completely immune to talismans, right? I thought, lowered my head to look at the talisman in my hand; upon seeing it, I wanted to die just to show Pangzi.

The deity in charge of the talisman head turned out to be Puan Buddha; looking again at the content on the talisman surface, I was utterly moved to tears without being able to cry. Damn it, I came to catch ghosts, and you gave me a child's illness-warding talisman—what does that mean, to cure the ghost? Or to cure her son?

I always thought I had underestimated Pangzi's unreliability, but I didn't expect his unreliability to be so low as to be beyond my estimation.

In my heart I greeted Pangzi a thousand times, while the female ghost seized the moment to grab my neck and lift me up as well.

Those sharp nails almost dug into my flesh, making me feel pain and unable to breathe.

She lifted me, her mouth preparing to kiss my lips; even with my toes I could imagine she intended to suck me dry into a husk.

Although I don't deny she looks beautiful, that's merely an illusion she conjured; who knows what her true form is—maybe a mass of ants and insects crawling all over.

At the critical moment, I made a decision that was wise yet one I would regret for a lifetime.

Just as the female ghost was about to kiss me, I twisted my neck hard to the left, grabbed Yao Yirong's head with one hand, and pressed it toward mine; our lips thus completely stuck together.

With a buzz, my head also felt a bit dazed, but instantly I cleared up; seeing Yao Yirong's face flushed red, tears about to spill, I could only manage a bitter smile with the remaining part of my face.

You think I wanted to do this? It's all to stay alive—if I didn't kiss you, today our little lives would be forfeit here.

But just as I managed that bitter expression, Yao Yirong forcefully bit down on my lower lip with her teeth, the pain nearly making me tear up.

"This crazy woman, what exactly are you doing? I really didn't mean to do that!"

The female ghost seemed to be locked in a struggle with us, tightly pulling on our necks, trying hard to pry us apart. Thus I could only endure being bitten by Yao Yirong, unable to let go, and had to clutch her neck tightly to prevent the ghost from separating us.

I could only feel pain and pleasure at once; as a man, taking advantage should be a happy thing. But when you take advantage of a woman you would never want to touch in a lifetime, and you're forced to do so in a crisis, that pleasure is entirely built on pain.

Perhaps Yao Yirong also sensed the ghost trying to pull us apart; although she didn't know why, she instinctively clung to me with both hands.

Just as her hand wrapped around my waist, I suddenly remembered the banner still at my waist. Although I had no magical power, that banner was a ritual implement I had offered for many years; the Yin Mountain Banner strikes ghosts—lightly, the soul vanishes three zhang; heavily, the soul and spirit scatter.

With one hand I held her neck tight to keep us together, the other hand quietly moved to my waist. At this point, the ghost's grip on our necks grew stronger; Yao Yirong and I could barely hold on for less than half a minute before the ghost brute-forced us apart.

In an instant, I also drew the banner from my waist, without looking, and swept it hard toward the ghost's direction.

The blue-haired female ghost shrieked and was flung backward; Yao Yirong and I also crashed to the ground with a thud.

I still hadn't caught my breath when I opened my eyes and saw a huge pink fist.

With a bang, the fist struck my nose bridge, the pain making my tears flow.

"Bastard, what did you just do? You actually kissed me."

Yao Yirong, this girl, as soon as she got out of danger, she punched my nose. After punching, she then remembered there was still a ghost in front of her, and she screamed in fright, grabbing my pant leg.

I can only suffer in silence, swallowing the bitterness. You say what is this? You hit me, then come crying to me… Do you hate me or miss me?