Chapter 37: Diverting the Calamity Eastward

In a villa at Huaijiang Bay on the city outskirts.

A painted desk stood on a riverside terrace, empty of people; in the room behind where one sat in meditation, a white-haired elder in a scholar's robe paced back and forth, his face iron-green as he cursed:

"I sent you to destroy the corpse and erase the traces, yet what have you, this omen of calamity, done outside?

"This afternoon the government office was still hunting the great demon of Mount Zihui, and you went out once; not only is Lu Ming dead outside, but three hundred Wu Zu have all returned to the city, and named people from Wang Fu, Mount Zihui, and Danyang Academy are all brandishing weapons and patrolling the streets.

"Now if I step out to take a leak, I'll bump into two Rank 3 powerhouses; I've done evil all my life, yet never seen such a grand array..."

The main forces of the Jianghu are mostly Rank 6 and above, but Danyang is not Jingcheng; the density of experts above Rank 3 is low, so saying one could bump into two while taking a leak is clearly an exaggeration.

But right now, these experts are indeed all wandering inside and outside the city, each searching for the demon bandit who nurtures mad corpse-flowers!

He Can sat on a rush mat, his chest wrapped in bandages, his eyes equally bewildered:

"I don't know; I reached Jiguan Ridge and was blocked by that Xie Jinhuan, whose strike was so brutal that I barely escaped with my life.

"Master, I feel Xie Jinhuan has a major problem; he wields a dharma treasure capable of suppressing evil yet mixes with the Wu Sect, and like a ghost, somehow found Jiguan Ridge.

"Could he be from the Gu Du Pai ancestral court, sent specifically to clean out you, this traitor?

"He got there first today; by the time I arrived, he had already opened the corpse pit..."

The elder, named Tai Shu Dan, was He Can's master, but at this moment only wished to purge the sect; hearing this, he stamped his foot and glared:

"I left Chilong Cave thirty years ago; if anyone were to purge the sect, it should be the Corpse Witches, yet why would the Gu Du Pai come to trouble me now?

"Moreover, according to that senior brother in the city, the blood traces in the corpse pit reach a level that pierces the heavens.

"To forge such traces, one must first possess corresponding attainment; Xie Jinhuan is a proper martial man; even if he wished to harm me, how could he forge such traces?"

Hearing this, He Can felt it was true.

From today's clash, neither Xie Jinhuan nor that shaman possessed the supernatural cultivation to forge such traces.

And that he could escape alive showed there were no experts nearby; after all, silencing him outright carried far less risk than hiding and not appearing.

"If it wasn't Xie Jinhuan who struck in the dark..."

He Can thought carefully, then asked:

"Could it be that great demon of Mount Zihui accidentally found the corpse pit, using the yin and evil corpse qi within to restore its vitality; Xie Jinhuan found the place via the poison flower, then mistakenly took Master as the source of Mount Zihui's demon qi and came straight for Master?"

Tai Shu Dan felt this account was very likely and sat down before him:

"The source of the blood-evil qi hasn't been clarified even by those above. If this is true, we cannot jump out to clarify to the government office; even if we speak, without proof, the government office will not believe us."

He Can frowned, feeling this trouble was rather large.

His master hailed from the Gu Du Pai of the Wu Sect, later defected to the Corpse Witches, and now, having betrayed his master and destroyed his ancestors, had entered the Mingshen Sect, secretly refining 'Hua Yao Dan' in Danyang.

As a three-family slave, his master knew a bit of everything; placed in the Jianghu, he counted as a deep-rooted villain of the evil path.

But the imperial court's lineup this time was truly outrageous; the heroes of Danzhou had all emerged, with national teams like the Imperial Astronomical Bureau waiting to enter the fray; if the court mistakenly took them as the source of Mount Zihui's demon qi, he did not know how to survive such a situation.

"So what now? If Wang Fu investigates like this, we won't be able to do anything; I fear we'll be dug out within two days."

Tai Shu Dan rubbed his fingers, thinking seriously for a long time:

"The government office now believes the 'Mount Zihui demon qi' is linked to the Dongcang Fang and Sanhe Lou incidents, but does not yet know our identities.

"Since we have already diverted the floodwaters eastward, we can only continue framing others, making the Li Family take this matter first, striving to delay until after the Mid-Autumn Festival."

Hearing this, He Can felt it made sense!

The imperial court mistakenly took them as the great demon of Mount Zihui, yet did not know who they were.

Yesterday they already framed the Li Family; now adding more 'Mount Zihui great demon' evidence to the Li Family, wouldn't the Great Qian iron fist naturally hammer down upon the Li Family?

Anyway, the Li Family would admit nothing; behind them stood a heavenly background as support; if the Li Family clashed with Wang Fu, they would naturally gain time.

"What a fine 'let fellow Daoists die, not this poor Daoist'! I'll dig a pit for the Li Family right now and quickly draw the government office's gaze over there."

"This matter requires help from that senior brother. Remember not to expose yourself again; the Mid-Autumn Festival is only two days away; if you botch this task, there will be no place in the world for us master and disciple to dwell."

"Understood..."

—

As night deepened, horse hooves continued unabated near the Qingquan Lane government office, and officials could occasionally be seen coming and going from outside.

Xie Jinhuan, carrying the sleeping Meiqiu on his shoulder, walked along the street; seeing the doubled number of officials and Wu Zu on the street, he felt much more at ease.

These officers had originally been scouring the mountains outside; although the Demon Suppression Tomb was hidden deep among the mountains and hard to find, inch-by-inch screening would eventually locate it, and they might even discover clues about him.

Now all gazes were pulled back, with the work focus placed on hunting the demon bandit; naturally, his probability of exposure dropped to the minimum.

Though this was only a temporary measure; once Wang Fu discovered the demon bandit lacked such capability, they would still come to hammer him, but at least some time to find a way to break the situation had been gained.

Pondering thus, Xie Jinhuan returned to the residence in Qingquan Lane; the noisy zither music in the landlady's house continued:

"Swallow's whispers murmur, oriole's song turns gently~..."

"That Young Master who slaughtered all four directions at the Peony Pool today is so handsome; does anyone know his identity?"

"He and Physician Lin entered and exited in pairs; how could you compete? Physician Lin is not only as beautiful as a flower, but his attainment in the art of the bedchamber pierces the heavens..."

These little flirtatious mares...

Xie Jinhuan muttered a complaint inwardly, first placing Meiqiu on the bed to sleep, then fetching water into the bath tub and pouring in the medicinal powder given by Lin Wanyi.

As he stirred it with his hand, a rich medicinal fragrance spread, and the water turned milky white, looking more like a milk bath.

Xie Jinhuan removed his robes and leaned against the bath tub, taking out a small bottle and pouring out red pills from within.

The Dragon Blood Pill looked more like a hawthorn ball, carried a faint scent, melted instantly upon entering the mouth, and had no special texture.

Xie Jinhuan soaked in the bath tub, carefully sensing changes in his body; soon he discovered a warm current arising in his lungs and liver, surging toward his four limbs and hundred bones; muscle soreness and fatigue were visibly and rapidly dispelled, and he could not help exclaiming:

"A pill worth nearly ten thousand taels of silver is indeed extraordinary."

This remark was spoken to the ghost bride, yet Xie Jinhuan truly did not expect what method the ghost would use to appear.

As soon as the words fell, Xie Jinhuan discovered something was amiss before his eyes.

Looking up, he saw a woman had appeared across the oval bathtub.

The woman's figure was plump and supple, her jet-black hair cascading down her back, her snow-white, fragrant shoulders as pale as sheep's fat; beneath her radiant, lovely face lay Bai Xi's slender neck and impressive bosom—but alas, the creamy white water swallowed her up, revealing only faint outlines…

Fuck…

Xie Jinhuan suddenly caught sight of this stimulating scene, his eyes widening slightly as he scanned her up and down:

"What are you doing?"

Ye Hongshang leaned against the far end of the tub, shrugging slightly:

"I said I'd give you candy today. Don't you like a bath together?"

Xie Jinhuan liked it fine—but at least send me a True Person!

To see but not touch—isn't that pure torture?

Xie Jinhuan tried kicking his foot toward the other side, but as expected, it passed right through; he sighed:

"If you're going to offer sweets, give me something real. I'm soaking in medicinal bath to nourish my body—my qi and blood are unsettled, my Dao heart unstable. What if I ruin myself?"

"Buddhists often say, 'Emptiness is form, form is emptiness.' If you can't control your mind before a mere illusion, how will you ever reach the mountain's peak?"

As Ye Hongshang spoke, she swept her hand through the water, splashing it down her neck.

Splash splash~

Though it was only an illusion, the physics engine was terrifyingly real—so long as you didn't touch, it looked exactly like a True Person.

Xie Jinhuan faced a ghost, and even if he wanted to lose control, he couldn't—his gaze was genuinely pained. He reached for the wine flask beside the tub, thinking to drink a little to calm himself.

But the ghost bride's service was top-notch: she promised candy, and now she offered him "a full package—drink with you, bathe with you, sleep with you." With a flick of her wrist, she produced a wine cup:

"Drinking plain wine is boring. How about you and I play rock-paper-scissors? If I lose, I stand up. If you lose, you drink a cup yourself?"

Xie Jinhuan thought this had potential—even an illusion could satisfy his eyes—but he set ground rules first:

"No cheating. If you stand up, no clothes. No turning into a spider body. No turning into some male-female hybrid with smaller tits than mine but bigger ones when pulled out."

Ye Hongshang raised an eyebrow slightly, holding the cup:

"Naturally. If I win three rounds in a row, I'll let you touch—guaranteed you can feel it."

"Really?"

Xie Jinhuan's interest sparked. He poured himself a cup and set it on the small table beside the tub:

"How do we play?"

Ye Hongshang gestured toward the back wall:

"Those girls play fifteen-twenty. You know it?"

How could Xie Jinhuan not know? He sat up straight, hands behind his back, watching intently.

Ye Hongshang sat up too, but the illusion shifted effortlessly—her Bai Xi skin remained submerged, only drawing closer, her hands hidden beneath the water:

"Begin. Fifteen, fifteen…"

"Ten (twenty-five)!"

"?!"

Xie Jinhuan heard the ghost's chaotic shout and couldn't help a faint smirk.

But instantly he noticed—four arms before him, four white palms extended…

Exactly twenty-five fingers in total!

??

Xie Jinhuan's smile froze. He thought he'd drunk himself drunk without drinking—rubbed his eyes—but still, four arms remained.

"La la la~"

Ye Hongshang beamed, waving all four hands:

"I won. Drink up."

"Wait, you can't be serious?"

Xie Jinhuan realized he'd been dimensionally crushed by a demon—and instantly grew annoyed:

"You're an illusion—you can change anything. If you want, you could turn into a thousand-armed Guanyin. How am I supposed to play?"

"I said clearly: only numbers below twenty, and only zero or multiples of five. No negatives. No decimals…"

He laid out the rules clearly, but Ye Hongshang looked utterly unconcerned, placing her hands behind her again:

"Fine~ I'll follow your rules. Fifteen, fifteen… fifteen!"

"Twenty!"

Xie Jinhuan strained with all his mortal strength against a transcendent demon—but the outcome was obvious.

Ye Hongshang was his own illusion; from the moment she surfaced, he'd already fallen under her illusion spell, perpetually under her enchantment.

You can't win rock-paper-scissors against an illusionist within an illusion—unless they let you win.

Though he'd exhausted himself and still hadn't made the ghost bride rise, at least she knew how to tease—and the wine was truly exquisite. Until he passed out, Xie Jinhuan drank happily…

(End of Chapter)