Chapter 396: line with translation of chapter title

As several women screamed in terror, the sound of a blade slicing into flesh rang out in the hall.

A flash of cold light, and the paper figure Guan Erge's Green Dragon Blade, in a soundless instant, harvested an innocent's head.

The owner of that head was not Chen Zheng; just as the blade was about to slash Chen Zheng's neck, the black-clad bodyguard beside Chen Zheng violently pulled him back and then took the blow himself.

Blood gushed like a spring from the black-clad bodyguard's severed neck, spraying everyone present. This bloody scene terrified the few women there, their faces draining of color; Silijing, whose composure was weaker, turned deathly pale and vomited.

The crisis did not subside with the falling head; instead, it grew even more fierce.

When the paper figure severed a head, its speed did not wane; it seized the Green Dragon Blade and surged toward Chen Zheng.

One by one, black-clad bodyguards and fearless warriors stood before Chen Zheng as living shields, only to be mercilessly harvested of their lives by this paper figure.

"Careful," the fifth bodyguard fell; at that moment, Chen Zheng had nowhere left to retreat.

I grabbed him and pulled him over, then turned, presenting my back to the paper figure lunging through the air.

This paper figure is so fierce, I wouldn't be foolish enough to court death. When I felt a chilling stab at my back approaching, I immediately used the Golden Cicada Shell Shedding technique.

I left a neatly folded suit hanging in midair, then immediately retreated with Chen Zheng.

With a puff, the paper figure burst from the suit's center; immediately the blade danced, and the suit instantly turned into a sky-full of paper scraps.

Seeing Guan Erge, face full of killing intent, lunging at me, my scalp went numb as I pondered a counter—but his speed was too great, his assault too fierce, giving me no time to think.

"Clang"

The paper figure swiftly came before me, just as Death stepped forward with a foot and smiled at me. Suddenly a piercing cold light flashed in the air—clang! —like a silver arc across the sky, cleaving the paper figure at the waist.

Nightshade Wraith… Fan Wuchang finally drew his blade.

At this moment, Fan Wuchang showed none of his former laziness, like a ten-thousand-year-old pine that wind and rain cannot shake, exuding a piercing chill from head to toe. His figure melted completely into the night, giving a hazy visual impression—as if he existed… yet could not be seen clearly.

With a few more swishes, Fan Wuchang, who had just severed the paper figure, struck again at unbelievable speed; in a flash of blade light, the paper figure turned into sky-scattering paper scraps, dancing in the air.

The crisis, at this moment, was finally declared over.

Fan Wuchang stood solemnly before me and Chen Zheng, guarding us, while the surrounding bodyguards quickly formed a large circle around us, intently watching all directions, vigilantly guarding against any assassin that might reappear in the silent hall.

"Get out…" To everyone's surprise, Chen Zheng, standing in the protective circle, suddenly roared and shoved away everyone protecting him.

Everyone stared wide-eyed, unsure what Chen Zheng was doing.

"Ah Min, are you okay?" Chen Zheng rushed anxiously to Dong Yumin's side, feeling her up and down to see if she was injured.

At this moment, Dong Yumin's face grew even paler, leaning into Chen Zheng's embrace as she softly sobbed.

"Zheng, I was truly terrified just now—I thought I was about to lose you."

"It's fine, I've been here all along, I've been here all along!" Chen Zheng patted Dong Yumin's back, soothing her gently.

"Chen Zheng, you should come back with us! The police station is the safest place." At the moment of the earlier assault, all the black-clad bodyguards immediately fell back to rally around Chen Zheng, naturally overlooking those plainclothes officers.

Chen Mo, that wench, had regained her former imposing demeanor, even picking up a gun and pointing it at Chen Zheng's forehead, declaring that Chen Zheng must return with her to the police station.

Pangzi, with a mournful face on the side, urged Chen Mo: "I say, Grandma, don't stir up trouble now."

Chen Mo stared coldly, giving Pangzi a vicious glance: "None of your business, get out of my way."

The paper figure had just been defeated, yet the hall instantly fell into a standoff: police pointed guns at Chen Zheng, while the black-clad bodyguards aimed theirs at the plainclothes officers; nobody would lower their weapon first, and the stalemate persisted.

Unlike their focus, I now devote all my energy to the previously shattered paper figure.

"Paper figure troop control technique." Gazing at the paper scraps on the ground, I pondered.

Speaking of drawing talismans to command troops, my Yinshan Sect is truly unique within the Daoist Sect. Yet the paper figure just now bears no resemblance to my Yinshan Sect's 'all plants and trees become soldiers' method, nor is it a medium for letting ghosts possess; rather… it is truly just a paper figure.

My mind raced, carefully recalling information about this kind of technique. Suddenly, I remembered a nearly extinct folk lineage.

Paper Figure School…

All lineages in the world stem from the Daoist, Wu, and Buddhist traditions, but their branches are so numerous they can hardly be counted. Besides the famous Daoist sects like Maoshan, Tianshi Dao, and Quanzhen, there are countless folk lineages unknown to ordinary people.

The Paper Figure School is one of these obscure lineages, blending Daoist and Wu arts but leaning more toward the Wu tradition. Besides ordinary talisman magic, it excels at controlling paper figures—paper figures holding bowls, beheading, paper cranes transmitting sound… virtually any art involving paper falls under its purview.

However… I've heard that the paper figures made by the Paper Figure School cannot be killed by blades, nor shattered by guns.

Oh no… my heart clenched, and I shouted toward Chen Mo, who was nearest the paper scraps: "Chen Mo, get out of the way!"

Chen Mo turned his head, looking at me in astonishment: "What did you say?"

No sooner said than done, the paper figure on the ground reassembled in a breath; after the paper scraps swirled in the air, it became once more a three-inch-tall Guan Erge. Brandishing a killing-intent-filled Green Dragon Blade, it leapt into the air and lunged at Chen Mo, the blade flashing as it prepared to cleave his skull.

With a thud, Pangzi's potential exploded again, like a gust of wind, he lunged at Chen Mo, grabbing him and rolling like a lazy donkey, barely dodging the paper figure Guan Erge's fierce slash.

Although Guan Erge didn't hit Chen Mo, its momentum did not wane; it continued forward, lunging downward.

The few plainclothes officers behind Chen Mo were out of luck, their lives mercilessly reaped by Guan Erge's fierce blade.

At this moment, Guan Erge resembled the Iron Wall Astro Boy from comics, wielding a great cleaver and bursting from the enemy's chest; each charge mercilessly reaped an innocent victim's life, sending up a spray of blood.

Fan Wuchang stepped before Chen Zheng, drawing a military ridge spear to strike again. Though the paper figure was eerie everywhere, Fan Wuchang showed no fear, gripping his military ridge blade and standing firm, coldly eyeing the incoming paper figure.

Whenever the paper figure came before Fan Wuchang, he would raise the blood‑stained military ridge that had harvested countless lives and tear the paper figure apart by five horses.

"Useless, this is the Paper Figure School's paper figure troop control technique—only fire can burn it to death." As the paper figure spun in the air, killing intent surging toward Fan Wuchang, he too raised his blade, coldly fixing his gaze on the paper figure.

I hurriedly reminded him, according to rumor, paper figure troop control has another little‑known marvel: the same method can be used on a paper figure only once. After a second use, the paper figure becomes completely immune to your attacks. Unless you employ thunder and fire techniques, it cannot be utterly destroyed.

After hearing my words, Fan Wuchang froze for a moment, then reached into his pocket to pull out a lighter.

But at that moment, the paper figure shot to Fan Wuchang's face with lightning speed.

Seeing Fan Wuchang fall into peril, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret—splitting one's focus against the enemy is a major taboo in the art of war.

And the culprit behind Fan Wuchang's distraction was none other than me…

Fan Wuchang had once saved my and Pangzi's lives; how could I stand by and watch him die? Thus, as that hint of regret surfaced, I immediately rushed toward Fan Wuchang.

My mind went blank; I didn't even think about how to counter the killing‑intent paper figure. Only one thought kept turning in my head: to save Fan Wuchang, even if it meant sacrificing my own life, to pull him from beneath the paper figure's blade.

"One extreme, two transformations, three true fires—I beseech the ancestral fire crow in the pouch to unleash true fire, yin and yang in orderly succession, true fire issuing from the fingertips…" At the critical instant, Pangzi chanted the true fire incantation, formed the sword finger with his hand, and instantly stepped in front of Fan Wuchang.

At the tip of the sword finger a faint crimson flame flickered; meeting the oncoming blade's rush, he thrust forward—puff! —the blade and Pangzi's sword finger collided in midair.

All that could be seen was Pangzi letting out a muffled groan; after the clash he staggered back several steps, while the murderous Guan Erge had turned to black ash, drifting to the ground.

The paper figure was finally destroyed by Pangzi's fingertip flame, but his two fingers had been sliced by the paper figure's blade tip, blood steadily dripping from them.

"Weiqiang, are you alright!" Silijing quickly walked toward Pangzi, picked up Pangzi's hand and asked anxiously.

Originally still solemn, the vigorous Pangzi instantly became like a dying patient with severe injuries, clutching his chest, weakly collapsing onto Silijing's chest, pitifully saying: "Sister Silijing, I think I can't make it; from now on you must live well on your own, in heaven I will surely become an angel's wing to protect you well."

Silijing: "..."

Everyone: "..."

After a long while, a sigh echoed in the hall, Fan Wuchang let out a leisurely sigh: "Although now is a critical moment of life and death, I must say... dead fatty, you're really despicable."

Even the bodyguards unanimously nodded in agreement, feeling that Fan Wuchang's words made perfect sense.

Yao Yirong then turned her face toward me, with a strange expression, saying: "I think you just misspoke, Weiqiang brother not only persists hard on the path of two... he also sits in a fighter jet charging all the way along the lowly path."

"Pfft..." Dong Yumin, lying in Chen Zheng's embrace, burst into laughter at Yao Yirong's words, unable to hold back.

Seeing his wife laugh, Chen Zheng's worried face finally showed a hint of a smile.

With the danger past, I finally let out a big sigh of relief.

I crouched down, carefully examining the paper ash on the ground; a faint trace in the ashes caught my attention.

These were a few strands of hair, half black and half white. Even though the paper effigy had turned to ash, these strands suffered no damage, quietly hidden in the ashes.

This is... I picked up those few strands of hair, examining them closely; a glimmer of understanding seemed to appear in my mind, but no matter how hard I tried, my thoughts felt stuck, and I could never piece together the context of this spell.

Just as I was pondering, a black, odd-looking object seemed to fly in from the window corner. Astonished, I turned to look; this black, odd-looking object was strange... somewhat like a small jackfruit, and also somewhat like... a hand grenade in movies.

Hand grenade... Damn, I finally realized what this thing was; this black, odd-looking object is obviously the prop hand grenade commonly used in police-criminal films.

"Be careful... get down!" Fan Wuchang's expression changed as he shouted in alarm to everyone.

Following that shout, the room suddenly erupted with a deafening thunderclap...