Chapter 5: Ambush

Pan Yun reversed her grip on the scissors and moved slowly forward, stepping several paces to appear diagonally ahead of Wang Yong—but he couldn't see her; in his eyes, the spot where Pan Yun stood was a plum tree, and indeed it was a plum tree, she stood right beside it…

Wang Yong frowned tightly, hand on his sword hilt, scanning left and right, seeing no suspicious figure in the forest—had he mistaken the location?

A faint unease stirred in his heart, his breathing grew rapid, he turned to leave—when a sharp whistle pierced the air…

Wang Yong yanked his sword out in a flash, slashing toward the sound—only to slice through a branch and plunge deep into the tree trunk; at the same instant, pain flared in the back of his right knee, his leg buckled, and he crashed to one knee with a thud.

He reacted swiftly, realizing he'd been ambushed; he gripped the sword hilt with both hands, ready to yank it free—but in that instant, his neck burned with pain, a wet *pfft* echoed, a streak of crimson sprayed out; a figure suddenly appeared before him, blood splattering across her body, then dripping back down, scalding blood drenching him entirely.

Wang Yong's eyes bulged, his hands instinctively released the sword hilt to clutch at the object buried in his neck; he stared in disbelief at the little girl standing before him, unable to comprehend how she'd appeared out of nowhere—he hadn't seen her at all.

Pan Yun gripped the scissors tightly, driving them deeper, her eyes locked on his with ferocity: "I know you. Your name is Wang Yong, brother to Wang Shan, nephew to Wang Zhen. You and your kind framed my father. The dead you wronged are waiting for you right beside you."

Wang Yong opened his mouth to say he wasn't one of them, that he merely shared the surname and was only loosely affiliated—but no words came out; instead, he vomited great gouts of blood, his strength draining slowly; he stared at Pan Yun in terror and despair, realizing for the first time—he could die…

The light in Wang Yong's eyes slowly faded, his body softened, then collapsed to the ground…

Pan Yun pulled the scissors free with a jerk, her body half-kneeling; as soon as she confirmed he was dead, blood spurted everywhere—on her clothes, her face, even her hair.

She stared coldly, wiped the scissors against his clothing, found it wouldn't clean, and simply gave up; she looked down at the body on the ground.

The Spirit Realm, who had existed for millennia and seen much, was startled by her cold resolve: 【I knew I wasn't wrong about you—you're this ruthless, you'll surely rise.】

【If you're going to praise me, do it properly,】 Pan Yun said: 【I've not only caught ghosts—I've killed a man. Do you think I won't kill a spirit next time?】

The Spirit Realm fell silent at once.

Once she spoke, Pan Yun calmed, her reason returned; she began planning the aftermath.

She scanned the area, then briskly stripped Wang Yong's clothes; she cut open his outer robe with the scissors, wrapped his hands in the fabric, then peeled off his garments until only his inner shirt and underpants remained; she bundled all the clothes, then stepped back more than ten paces, studying the surroundings: 【Can I pack up the corpse?】

Spirit Realm: 【Don't even think it. Carry it yourself, drag it yourself—I won't put him in my Spirit Realm space.】

It had three jade fragments, one of which was a dedicated storage space for physical objects—most sealed, only a tiny portion unsealed, and spotlessly clean.

Pan Yun didn't want to either—after all, it held her belongings—she'd only asked.

Seeing the Spirit Realm refused, she dropped the subject and began searching for usable tools.

But she was a lady of the inner chambers—she could only find scissors as a weapon—what tools could she possibly have for disposing of a corpse?

Everything she'd stored today was from her room: clothes, socks, wooden basins, curtains—daily necessities; not even a hoe, let alone a sharp object.

She felt the empty Upper Dantian and spoke to the Spirit Realm: 【Give me more Qi—I'll bury the body.】

The Spirit Realm cursed under its breath, but complied.

This was a Embroidered Uniform Guard officer—if not handled properly, and they were discovered, they'd all be finished; it didn't believe Pan Yun could fight a group of Embroidered Uniform Guard now—even dealing with one required a formation.

Pan Yun felt strength return to her hands: 【Give me a spell to dig a hole.】

Spirit Realm: 【Huh? You don't know?】

Pan Yun: 【In my past life, we had robots to dig holes, or at least excavators—what would a researcher like me need a digging spell for?】 Spirit Realm: 【Then you'll give me half your daily cultivated Qi from now on.】

Pan Yun: 【You're haggling with me now?】

Spirit Realm: 【Knowledge has value. You know how much you've recorded on me—will you never need it? Half your Qi is just tuition. When my seals are fully lifted, you'll gain access to ancient cultivation methods; all the knowledge you need will be instantly available.】

Pan Yun lowered her gaze, thought for a moment, then: 【Mm.】

The Spirit Realm exhaled in relief—it knew once exposed, it could no longer get Qi from her for free; and what it had most of was precisely the cultivation methods and knowledge recorded within it.

As soon as the Spirit Realm agreed, a mantra, hand seals, and Qi circulation diagram appeared in Pan Yun's mind.

She recognized it instantly—it matched the standard sequence in her national school textbooks.

To aid self-study, the textbooks were always detailed: mantras, hand seals, Qi circulation diagrams—even the optimal body posture for casting the spell in combat.

Pan Yun had always been a top student; she memorized it at a glance, lowered her gaze, formed the seals, murmured the incantation—and an invisible force made the earth before her writhe; soil softened, shifted apart, and quickly formed a deep pit.

Pan Yun exhaled in relief, shoved Wang Yong's corpse into the pit, then reversed the seals; the loose soil immediately tumbled back, flowing in reverse, swiftly filling the hole.

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The Spirit Realm, watching, asked: 【You knew the fill-the-hole spell?】

【No,】 Pan Yun said coldly: 【I deduced it from the digging spell. Is that hard?】

Spirit Realm: …

Pan Yun's lips curled slightly; she picked one relatively clean garment from Wang Yong's pile, bundled the rest of the soiled clothes, and said: 【Store this. Too many traces on these clothes—can't let them know the killer's a short brat.】

Her age would be easy to guess.

Though unlikely, she wouldn't allow even the slightest chance of this being linked to the Pan family—or to Pan Yun herself.

This time, the Spirit Realm stored the bundle without complaint.

But Pan Yun didn't leave immediately; she'd just killed a man, she was young, frail, and her Qi was nearly spent—she seemed on the verge of collapse, so she sat cross-legged against the plum tree and began to cultivate.

The Spirit Realm didn't rush her; the place was remote, rarely visited, and outside, Wang Yong's summoned government office runners patrolled everywhere—it was safer to stay in the plum grove.

Pan Yun completed two minor heavenly circulations; though slow, the Qi generated was real, sinking steadily into her Upper Dantian; as Qi flowed through her meridians, the aches and weakness in her limbs began to fade, strength returning.

Pan Yun felt slightly reassured, yet didn't stop; she lowered her gaze, masking the coldness in her eyes, drawing all Qi from her Lower Elixir Field, guiding it through her meridians—until it reached the Upper Palace of Clarity.

Her consciousness followed the Qi, plunging violently into the Upper Palace of Clarity; the Spirit Realm's guard rose—then in the next instant, her Qi coalesced into a talisman and slammed down…

Spirit Realm screamed: 【You insane fool! Are you trying to kill yourself? Sealing me inside your own Upper Palace of Clarity? Aaah—】

(End of Chapter)