Chapter 59: Forced Disenchantment

Thump-thump-thump—

On the high platform in the center of the hall, the drumbeats grew increasingly dense.

The strange fragrance emitted by the Mad Corpse Flowers drifted through the crowd; gamblers around became increasingly agitated, many even showing bulging veins and bloodshot eyes.

As time passed, the heckling turned into roaring screams, yet strangely no one in the entire hall found it odd; instead, they howled along like a troop of monkeys:

"Ooh-ooh-ooh—"

Even though Xie Jinhuan had held his breath for a long time, he still inhaled some of the poisonous smoke, feeling his blood and qi boil.

But his body felt no discomfort; instead, he experienced extreme pleasure and excitement, with a strong urge to let out a long roar and release himself in one satisfying burst!

And clearly, he was not the only one feeling this!

Once the crowd in the hall reached a certain level of excitement, a man in the back, eyes burning with heat, stared at the demon above, his hand frantically moving inside his trousers.

Others stuffed silver into their chests, laughing in near madness:

"Leopard! It's leopard again!..."

The chaos spread like a fuse from the center of the hall outward, covering the entire hall in an instant, then spreading upstairs.

Thump-thump—

Splash...

These various mindless, bizarre acts not only failed to sober anyone up; instead, with the first act done, the crowd grew even more insane, with some even standing on the second-floor railing and shaking their little bulls...

Xie Jinhuan sensed his thoughts being affected; he took out the 'blue little pill' given by Lin Wanyi, shoved it into his mouth, and felt coolness shoot straight to the crown of his head, clearing his mind significantly.

After waiting for an unknown duration, the demon hanging above suddenly erupted with red mist.

The mist gradually spread upward as the demon swayed, slowly forming a red cloud.

Then, dozens of plump, juice-laden naked women emerged from the mist, emitting seductive smiles:

"Hahaha~..."

Ding-ding-ding...

Countless gold, silver, and copper coins fell from the red mist, raining down on the heads of the frenzied crowd.

The chaotic crowd reached the peak of madness at this moment; some trampled others while trying to touch the women, while others rolled and crawled on the ground to pick up the gold and silver.

Their smiles were even somewhat grotesque; the steam rising from their bodies actually carried faint traces of blood qi, gathering upward.

Xie Jinhuan, seeing the illusions that confused the mind, was clearly affected as well; he immediately suppressed his spirit, refusing to look at any anomalies to avoid sinking into them.

And at this very moment, a warning came from beside his ear:

"Prepare to charge!"

As the words fell, the red mist swirling above the hall rippled.

Vmmmm~~

Then, dozens of beauties of unparalleled charm, all naked, simultaneously transformed into Butler Hou!

They were heavily made up and blew kisses toward the crowd:

"Muah-muah-muah~"

The falling gold and silver turned into giant spiders and toads!

Damn it!!!

The crowd, already completely mad and on the verge of eternal bliss, instantly froze mid-action!

The chaotic hall became so quiet that a pin drop could be heard!

The man whose hand was frantically moving inside his trousers clearly sobered up.

This terrifying scene not only shocked the crowd in extreme pleasure but also made Xie Jinhuan shiver; he almost struck Butler Hou in the face with his guan, and then the illusions before his eyes vanished into thin air.

"Ah—ghosts..."

"Run—!"

"Help me..."

In the next instant, chaos and screams erupted again in the hall.

But this time, it was no longer excitement or pleasure; it was terror that penetrated the bones!

The crowd, sobering from their confusion, seeing the indescribable scene in the hall, almost rolled and crawled as they rushed toward the main door.

Tai Shu Dan, kneeling on the crossbeam of the dome and casting the spell to confuse minds, discovered someone interfering with illusions and the hall losing control; he quickly ordered:

"Seal the doors!"

As he spoke, he raised his left hand, where a bronze bell appeared; he shook it rapidly:

Ding-ling-ling...

The urgent bell sound seized souls and stole spirits; the crowd, having barely taken a few steps, stood frozen in place.

Xie Jinhuan, blending into the dense crowd near the door, heard the bell sound as if struck by the Tight-Fillet Spell; immediately, his spirit trembled, and his steps became difficult!

Without the slightest hesitation, the Tian Gang Guan suddenly unsheathed; he gathered his qi and let out a thunderous shout:

"I curse your mother, Lei Ting!"

Boom—

Amidst the roar of Lei Ting, the Tian Gang Guan transformed into a spinning blade!

The churning red mist was wrapped by the qi force, instantly cleaving a rift through the hall, striking directly at the source of the bell sound on the dome!

Tai Shu Dan's face changed abruptly, but the bronze bell in his left hand did not stop; instead, he raised his right hand and lightly plucked with five fingers:

Whoosh-whoosh—

Almost at the same moment, two puppets cloaked in hoods crashed out from the railing, blocking the spinning blade in mid-air!

The lead puppet held a single-edged blade to block; but the instant of contact, its upper body was directly shattered by this mountain-splitting, sea-dividing strike!

Boom—

The cloak exploded, flesh and blood flying!

The puppet behind followed closely; although it blocked the terrifying Tian Gang Jian, the entire figure was knocked backward, smashing through the ship's cabin dome.

Boom—

Tai Shu Dan saw his hard-accumulated fortune instantly shattered and injured; his eyes, filled with shock, mixed with rage:

"It is Xie Jinhuan. Kill!"

He Can, even while swinging in midair, needed no order; he and the others flew from both sides, attacking the figure emerging from the crowd.

But Xie Jinhuan started with the 'Surrendered Hand Jian', having no intention of a direct clash; as he struck, he already leaped outward.

Splash—

The massive gate was smashed open.

The dozen or so bandits recruited earlier had already held weapons and blocked the deck; the moment the figure in white robes leaped out, sword lights and blade glints struck simultaneously.

Swish swish swish—

Xie Jinhuan had just flipped and stood firm when he discovered over a dozen people outside, truly startling him.

But a single glance revealed they were merely minor fighters; killing them would take at most ten seconds. Xie Jinhuan did not hesitate; his right hand drew his sword and delivered a horizontal slash!

Boom—

Violent qi erupted, instantly shaving off a layer of the wooden deck!

Thousands of wooden splinters shot forward like a locust swarm; the leading swordsman was instantly riddled with holes, letting out a piercing shriek:

"Ah—"

Xie Jinhuan, charging the formation like a lone rider, after the Wild Dragon sweeping its tail, unleashed a Black Dragon striking the pillar!

Hiss~

Boom—

On the deck spanning several zhang, a white dragon breaking the waves suddenly appeared; the scattering wooden splinters were immediately swirled into a vortex void.

The figure in white robes, surrounded, also in a blink charged to the end of the deck!

But ultimately, the enemy outnumbered them; He Can pursuing from behind, having burst through the gate, already unfolded a brand-new ghost umbrella. The dark river surface instantly filled with ghostly qi reaching the sky!

Xie Jinhuan's vision turned into a pitch-black polar night, unable to see any scenery; but before the wailing ghosts could appear, the Zheng Lun Sword in his hand already bloomed with cyan-white Lei Guang, sweeping away all ghostly qi around.

Crackling—

But as vision returned, a figure had already flown through the air, landing atop the dragon head at the ship's bow; the red mist dragon it brought instantly engulfed the bow.

Hoo~

Xie Jinhuan's figure halted abruptly; after a brief glance, seeing the elite monsters inside had not pursued, he did not choose to immediately turn and flee. Instead, he held his sword standing at the bow, surveying the surroundings.

At this moment, the giant treasure ship had sailed with the wind for seven or eight li, rounded a river bend, and stopped in the middle of the river, two li wide.

Faint lights could be seen in all directions, but the Peony Pool was no longer in sight; the entire river surface was nearly deathly silent.

"Young Master Xie's skills are truly extraordinary. I am Du Qingyi; a pleasure to meet you."

The colorful-clad demon man, having witnessed Xie Jinhuan's explosive power, did not approach immediately. He removed the mask on his face, revealing a pale-as-paper, sinister countenance, even with thick makeup; his eyes stared at the prey like a snake or scorpion:

"However, I truly cannot understand. We and Young Master Xie have no grievances; you are not an official. Why pursue us so relentlessly?"

The voice was indistinguishable as male or female, sounding like a eunuch with a crow's voice.

Xie Jinhuan ignored this genderless demon man, turning to look at the ghost witch holding the umbrella behind:

"Three years ago, my father encountered a demon beast. The commotion that beast displayed was eerily similar to your escape method last time. Was it you who acted then?"

He Can, holding the black umbrella and leaning against the gate, was still quite far away because the Zheng Lun Sword had 'sealed his magic':

"Those who know my movement technique are either disciples of the Mingshen Sect or demon beasts they raise. As for who specifically acted, I can help Brother Xie inquire. However, the premise is that you must survive today."

Xie Jinhuan angled his sword tip toward the deck, scanning the crowd calmly:

"Inquiry is unnecessary. I will slaughter the Mingshen Sect to the last. As for you, since you met me today, you should have no chance to see tomorrow's sun."

"Such arrogance."

Du Qingyi licked his tongue:

"Your skin is quite nice. If refined into a puppet, to sleep with you night after night..."

Whoosh—

Before the words finished, a piercing sword cry rang out at the bow!

Three feet of sword light broke through the sky full of red mist, even slicing through the scarred deck!

Du Qingyi reacted incredibly fast, instantly leaping aside to evade!

After one sword strike, Xie Jinhuan's body moved like a swimming dragon, launching a surprise attack to the side.

Two bandits attempted to intercept, but in a single glance, the cyan blade already pierced their throats.

Plop plop~

After the dull sound of metal entering flesh, before the two fighters could fall, the figure in white robes had already passed through the weapons, landing steadily on the deck railing.

Tap tap tap...

Several bandits wanted to pursue, but seeing Xie Jinhuan had not left, they urgently stopped!

Du Qingyi, following behind the bandits, seeing this, shouted angrily:

"What are you staring at? Attack!"

Many martial artists hesitated, not moving forward!

Xie Jinhuan was thoroughly disgusted by this dead demon man and very much wanted to kill him on the spot, but the elite monsters inside were indeed difficult to deal with. For this reason, he first held his sword toward the ship's cabin:

"Old geezer, if you don't come out, I will kill them all to the last."

Tai Shu Dan was reassembling the out-of-control crowd; at this moment, he truly could not spare himself. He had already seen Xie Jinhuan's strength. To prevent excessive losses among his subordinates, his right sleeve directly whipped to the side:

"You brat, you don't know the sky's height or the earth's thickness!"

Boom—

As the words fell, the windows on the upper deck shattered.

A black mist dragon, thick as two men could embrace, crashed into the air above the deck, wrapped in chilling ghostly energy, bearing down upon Xie Jinhuan—two puppets also burst through the windows!

Zzzzzz—

The Zhenglun Sword erupted with pale-blue Lei Guang, instantly dispersing the ghostly mists.

Seeing that the old Wang Ba could strike back, Xie Jinhuan did not linger; he leaned back and tumbled over the deck railing.

Huh~

Tap-tap-tap…

Du Qingyi and over a dozen warriors rushed to the deck's edge, but saw only a white-robed figure stepping lightly upon the water, leaving a white wake behind as he sped toward the Peony Pond!

"What do we do? Chase him?"

"We can't catch him—he's gone to summon help, but those monsters are hunting the great demon downstream; he won't find reinforcements."

Du Qingyi's gaze turned slightly venomous as he watched Xie Jinhuan's retreating figure, and he snorted:

"So bold, thinks he'll make us never see tomorrow's sun..."

"Don't underestimate him—this kid's terrifying. Killing you and me would be like playing. If he finds no reinforcements, he might sneak back and steal a few lives."

He Can turned back to look at the deckhouse: "We were interrupted just now. Let these men re-enter their rhythm—it'll take at least half a bell. You seal the smoke. I'll go ask my master for puppets, just in case."

Du Qingyi said no more, leaping onto the roof of the deckhouse; with a sweep of his wide sleeves, crimson toxic mist surged down from the building, gradually engulfing the vessel and spreading across the surrounding river…

(End of Chapter)