Chapter 2695: Psycho City Lord's Love-Hate Rules 18

Manor outside the city.

Liu Shuoyue led them into the secret chamber; Liu Zhou's mortal body was laid flat on the grass mat, and Liu Shuoyue stuffed a Protecting Yuan Pill into his mouth to cling to his last breath.

The four took positions at the four cardinal directions, surrounding Liu Zhou's mortal body in the center.

The doors and windows of the secret chamber were tightly shut, the light dim; only the Soul-soothing Incense lit at the four corners sent out wispy blue smoke.

The four simultaneously formed hand seals; their Spiritual Power circulated, turning into four beams of different colors that flowed from their fingertips and converged on the center of Liu Zhou's forehead.

They intended to jointly perform the Soul Summoning to Aperture Technique, forcibly opening a passage linking Yin and Yang, to draw Liu Zhou's soul, lingering in Ghost City, back.

Meanwhile, Ghost City.

In the cold, damp stone cell that saw no daylight, Liu Zhou huddled in a corner, his soul trembling incessantly.

The cell door slid open, and a scarlet figure appeared at the threshold.

Yin Chaosheng strode in; his extraordinarily beautiful face looked even more pallid and eerie in the gloom, his scarlet pupils fixed on Liu Zhou.

"Who taught you to hide like this? To find you, I have gone to considerable trouble."

"It's Jin Chen," Yin Chaosheng said coldly.

As he spoke that name, his tone sank slightly: "Where is he?"

Liu Zhou shuddered violently, recalling Jin Chen's parting warning before his disappearance.

"No matter who asks, you must never reveal my whereabouts; say you don't know. Whether you can return to the Yang Realm depends entirely on whether you can grit your teeth."

The will to live outweighed his fear of the Ghost King before him; Liu Zhou stifled the scream nearly bursting from his throat, lowered his head, and, voice trembling, insisted: "No… I don't know… Lord Jin Chen merely gave me shelter, and then… he never appeared again…"

Liu Zhou added, "Lord Jin Chen also said… he had been struck by your Ghost Seal, City Lord, and after saving me, he would likely… have his soul and spirit scatter…"

"Shut up!" Yin Chaosheng's face darkened instantly.

Yin Chaosheng's form blurred and appeared before Liu Zhou; he seized Liu Zhou's throat from afar and lifted him off the ground.

Liu Zhou's soul let out painful gurgling sounds, his legs kicking feebly in midair.

"He won't lose his soul and spirit," Yin Chaosheng stared at him, enunciating each word, his voice laced with icy killing intent: "If you dare speak nonsense again, I will let you taste what true soul and spirit scattering feels like right now."

Liu Zhou shook his head desperately, but could not emit a complete sound.

Yin Chaosheng looked at him coldly, a surge of anger rising inexplicably in his heart.

This human, ordinary in appearance, with a faint soul, was clearly nothing more than the lowliest ant.

Yin Chaosheng smirked, the hint of color all the more cruel at this moment: "He's been good to you, even though he can barely protect himself, facing death, he still thinks of shielding your pitiful mortal life."

Liu Zhou didn't fully grasp the complex emotions in his words; he only felt the pressure on his throat ease slightly, collapsed to the ground and coughed violently, not daring to look at Yin Chaosheng, burying his face deep in the crook of his arm to lessen his presence.

Just then, Liu Zhou shuddered all over, feeling a faint warmth from head to toe, as if something were pulling him somewhere.

... It's the Yang Realm!

... Someone is summoning his soul—it's Lord Jin Chen!

His heart pounded wildly within his soul; Liu Zhou clenched his teeth tightly, not daring to let the Fierce Ghost before him notice the slightest sign.

Yin Chaosheng gazed at the wretched, trembling soul at his feet, his mind in turmoil.

Thinking that this was ultimately the person that mad dog Jin Chen had struggled to protect, his killing intent rose and fell, yet inexplicably he did not want to take his life immediately, retaining a sliver of hope he himself did not dare hope for.

Yin Chaosheng flicked his sleeve irritably, the trailing red robe carving a cold arc as he turned to leave.

Reaching the cell door, Liu Zhou was so excited his fingers twitched faintly inside his sleeves, his heart shouting wildly.

Hurry up! Hurry up!

Even faster!

But as he was about to leave the cell, Yin Chaosheng's steps halted.

He turned sideways, brows slightly furrowed, and once again fixed his gaze on the terrified soul within the cell.

Liu Zhou's body instantly tensed, his heart leapt to his throat, cold sweat pouring down.

Yin Chaosheng's tone rose slightly as he gave a soft hum; the eerie light in his bewitching pupils swirled.

After a few moments of silence, his form flickered like a ghostly apparition, appearing again beside Liu Zhou as he leaned over, sending chills down the spine.

"Someone in the Yang Realm… is summoning your soul?"

The taut string in Liu Zhou's mind snapped with a crack!

He had been discovered!

Liu Zhou struggled violently, his voice shrill: "Let me go! I want to leave this place! I want to live! Let me return!!!"

A chill of yin dampness gleamed in Yin Chaosheng's black eyeballs as he let out a sneer.

"A common nobody—who in the Yang Realm would go to such trouble for you, performing this heaven-defying soul-summoning art?"

The next moment, Yin Chaosheng's long, pallid fingers flashed with a bluish-black light as he thrust them into Liu Zhou's skull.

Bone-chilling yin energy surged in, and Liu Zhou let out a wail so shrill it was inhuman, his soul twisting violently.

Yin Chaosheng closed his eyes to sense for a moment, then slowly withdrew his fingers, fresh blood dripping.

He looked at Liu Zhou, limp on the ground, killing intent flashing in his eyes, turning into a cold chuckle: "You may leave, if you wish."

Yin Chaosheng leaned close to Liu Zhou's ear, the yin chill like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.

"If it's him… if it truly is him, then let him come to Ghost City himself and take you from my hands."

Yang Realm, manor outside the city.

As Jin Chen performed the Soul Summoning Technique, he was violently repelled by a force saturated with yin-cold malicious energy.

The Pulling Light Array enveloping Liu Zhou's mortal body shattered, dissipating into nothing.

On the grass mat, Liu Zhou's mortal body turned bluish-purple and stiff at a visible speed, dark veins faintly surfacing beneath the skin as his vitality ebbed swiftly.

"What's going on?!"

Chu Jiu Shan clutched his aching chest, astonished: "We might as well give up, Senior Brother—even you can't draw his soul back?"

Jin Chen raised a hand to wipe the blood from his lips, brow slightly furrowed: "…Yin Chaosheng must have noticed."

Liu Shuoyue's face went pale; she forcibly restrained the surging qi and blood, and cried out urgently: "No! Once the soul has been detached from the body for over seven days, it becomes estranged from the flesh and can hardly return."

"At that point, Liu Zhou's soul will be completely assimilated by the Ghost City's yin qi, becoming a true lone savage ghost, never able to be reborn."

"Zang Huaian took a deep breath, suppressed the feeling of defeat in his heart, and said in a low voice: 'For now, the only plan is to wait for the National Preceptor's arrangements, then re-enter the Ghost City to try to save people; it's only these few days, hopefully… still in time.'"

"Three days later, the Imperial Palace of the Capital."

"Five days have passed in the living world since leaving the Ghost City."

"During these five days, Jin Chen and his three companions kept to themselves, regulated their breath to heal injuries, and dispelled the yin qi."

"That day, the National Preceptor again summoned everyone to the Imperial Palace Square, but this time the selected ones were not limited to just Jin Chen and his three companions."

"Perhaps sensing that Jin Chen was difficult to control and his power unfathomable, the National Preceptor arranged another four to enter the Ghost City together."

"Among these four, the leader was none other than Fu Lingjing, who had a grudge against Jin Chen and whose strength had greatly increased thanks to a fortunate encounter."

"Also there were Zhao Tian and Zhao Di, a pair skilled in the Combined Attack Technique, and the tall, dark-skinned Black Wing, renowned for his Mao Shan Talisman Method."

"The eight stood together, the atmosphere subtle."

"Although they would enter together, the reward the National Preceptor had previously promised for successfully destroying the Ghost City was still only for four people; thus, as soon as the team was formed, a faint spirit of competition arose."

"Jin Chen and his companions were well aware of this thought, but they did not take it to heart."

"The National Preceptor said solemnly: 'Going to the Ghost City this time is even more dangerous than before; your primary task remains investigation, and we are still seeking a way to completely slay that Fierce Ghost City Lord, once and for all eliminating future troubles. Remember, preserving your lives comes first.'"

"Jin Chen suddenly spoke: 'Honored National Preceptor, I have a matter I do not understand.'"

"The National Preceptor turned his gaze to him and said: 'Speak.'"

"Jin Chen's voice was cold: 'The Ghost City's peril concerns the safety of the capital and even the whole world; National Preceptor, your Dao arts are profound—why do you not go yourself to investigate, instead repeatedly sending us juniors into danger?'"