Chapter 19: Lantern Ghost

Master Qiao swiftly released several talismans with his other hand.

One bore dozens of different forms of the character “fire”; it burst into flame, and Master Qiao controlled the flames, splitting them into three fire snakes that coiled around the cage—his command over fire rivaled that of a Ninth-Rank Alchemist.

But as the flames burned, the bamboo cage turned crimson and scorching hot; the arm swallowed by the cage hissed and smoked as it was burned.

Master Qiao screamed and waved his hand to disperse the flames, then activated a second talisman.

This talisman bore his name and birth details:

Qiao Ziaang, Gengyin Year, Yichou Month, Bingyin Day, Mao Hour.

These talismans were Master Qiao’s last-resort survival techniques.

This one’s power: substitution of fate.

When the talisman burned, all calamities befalling Master Qiao would be transferred to it.

If trapped in prison, it would transform into a substitute body and instantly swap him out.

But before the talisman could become a substitute, the bamboo cage suddenly expanded, growing enormous and swallowing Master Qiao and the talisman whole!

Master Qiao broke into cold sweat and cried out: “How could this be?!”

How could this brat possess such a master-craftsman’s treasure?

My Ba Zi substitution talisman should handle disasters up to Eighth-Rank level—yet it cannot escape the confinement of this tiny cage!

The bamboo cage began contracting rapidly; Master Qiao threw out his final talisman.

It unfurled into a painting.

The painting depicted a lantern ghost.

Its lantern face was pale human skin; its lantern frame was human ribs.

Green ghostfire burned within, and on its surface, a massive character “Mourning” was written in blood, still dripping.

As the scroll unfurled, the lantern ghost leapt down, igniting ghostfire that silently spread across a hundred zhang in every direction.

The lantern ghost hung suspended one zhang above ground, radiating an aura that tugged at souls.

Xu Yuan glanced at the lantern ghost—his eyes glazed, his movements slowed.

Suddenly, a pitch-black ghostly claw erupted from behind him, silently stabbing toward his spine!

The moment the claw pierced flesh, surrounding tissue was instantly drained; skin turned black-gray.

Overwhelmed by agony, Xu Yuan snapped awake and lunged forward with all his strength.

Hiss!

The claw dragged downward, leaving five deep gashes on Xu Yuan’s back!

The flesh around the wounds turned black-gray and dead, radiating faint ghostly energy.

Xu Yuan rolled on the ground, twisted, and spat out “Abdominal Fire”; the claw was scorched, recoiled in pain, and vanished into thin air.

But the moment Xu Yuan stopped, a sharp danger surged—he sidestepped instantly—the claw reappeared, slicing silently through the air.

Had he not dodged that final time, the claw would have seized his throat.

This lantern ghost was bought by Master Qiao through Old Locust, from Guanghuo Street—living people could only pay for goods there with blood offerings.

This was irrefutable proof of his collusion with the uncanny.

Xu Yuan dared not pause; he dodged repeatedly, then spread “Abdominal Fire” to cover his entire body.

But Ninth-Rank Alchemists’ Abdominal Fire was limited—shielding his whole body would not last long.

Xu Yuan stared at Master Qiao; the bamboo cage kept shrinking, and Master Qiao still struggled desperately. Xu Yuan estimated—his outlook darkened: Master Qiao would outlast him.

Xu Yuan spat out a pill!

Puff! It struck the lantern ghost, punching a hole through its human-skin face.

Xu Yuan prepared to press the advantage—suddenly, nine more lanterns rose from the ghostfire.

They floated up to one zhang high, spinning rapidly, their flames flickering and merging into a single blur, making it impossible for Xu Yuan to distinguish the real lantern ghost.

Xu Yuan gritted his teeth and sprinted outward—he must escape the ghostfire’s range as soon as possible.

The lantern ghosts made no move to stop him; as long as they remained within the ghostfire, their illusions could not be destroyed.

Xu Yuan burst out of the ghostfire’s range, his guard lowering slightly; his Abdominal Fire weakened. Instantly, a ghostly claw appeared behind his neck and lunged!

Xu Yuan whirled, turned to face the claw, and spat: Puff!

The pill pierced the claw without resistance—the claw had no physical form.

The ten lantern ghosts swayed above the ghostfire like dancers, mocking the living man’s folly.

The pill, having passed through the claw, kept flying—until it suddenly exploded, becoming a giant spider that spat a massive web, engulfing all ten lantern ghosts.

The web tightened, passing straight through the illusions—inside it remained only the true lantern ghost!

The lantern ghost panicked, but it was too late; the spider tightened its web. Xu Yuan dodged the claw, sprinted toward the lantern ghost, retracted all his Abdominal Fire, condensed it into a fire pill, and spat it out—Puff!—striking the lantern ghost.

Boom!

Flames erupted violently; the claw chasing Xu Yuan vanished, and the lantern ghost shrieked in the fire, gradually burning to ash.

Xu Yuan examined the wounds on his back.

Still dead tissue, swirling with ghostly energy.

Xu Yuan spat out another medicinal pill.

It was refined last night from villagers’ herbs.

This one was an antidote pill—he rolled it over the wound, but the ghostly energy showed no reduction.

Xu Yuan shook his head: ghostly energy acted like poison, but antidote pills could not dispel it.

He released a healing pill—but as it neared the wound, it showed signs of corruption by ghostly energy; he retracted it.

Try Abdominal Fire again—earlier, when he briefly spread it thinly over his body, the ghostly energy reacted little.

Now, Xu Yuan condensed it into a fire pill and rolled it over the wound.

The ghostly energy indeed feared Abdominal Fire—but when stimulated by the fire pill, it burrowed deeper into his body like a venomous insect!

Xu Yuan quickly withdrew; this was dire—he could only contain it for now, and find a solution after leaving Ghost Witch Mountain.

Beside him, the bamboo cage had shrunk, pinning Master Qiao tightly inside.

Xu Yuan walked over—the cage still contracted; several bamboo slats had pierced Master Qiao’s neck, drilling deeper into flesh, blood dripping down them.

Master Qiao could no longer move; his eyes bulged, fixed on Xu Yuan with his last strength, gasping: “The people of Riverwork Alley… are truly… strange…”

Master Qiao died, filled with endless regret.

In the county town, an ancient legend warned: never provoke the people of Riverwork Alley.

Rumors swirled about Riverwork Alley and its inhabitants.

But Master Qiao had lived in the city for decades and never witnessed anything strange there—he always dismissed the tales as nonsense.

Now he had paid for it with his life.

(End of Chapter)