Chapter 316: with translation of chapter title

I unconsciously touched the jade pendant I always wore around my neck, feeling a bit lost.

The Golden Copper Coins you gave me were reclaimed in the Changshi 1 battle.

That Golden Copper Coins helped me a lot at a critical moment; in my eyes, it is part of Liu Junyan, extremely precious.

I felt a bit wistful.

Feng Wu was imprisoned in the Nirvana fire; now I have no handy weapon.

The Cangwu Dark Seal is still not fully under my control, and its effectiveness in the yang realm is not as good as in the yin realm.

Fortunately, I have also studied some ancient witchcraft, which can be useful at critical moments.

Should I perhaps choose another weapon to have by my side?

For now, I really haven't thought of any suitable weapon.

Fortunately, the main battlefield this time is Wufu Town; our people have all withdrawn back, and I have many helpers.

Thinking this way, I am no longer so panicked.

"That copper coin is the core; now I want to use it to recondense the Copper Coin Person."

Hearing him say that, my mood instantly improved: "So it hasn't disappeared, great!"

Liu Junyan hesitated, then took out a bone whistle from his bosom and handed it to me, saying: "This is what I snatched from his hand when I finally broke the Great Lama's seal; it is the Great Lama's life-bound magical artifact, nourished by resentful spirits, belonging to the evil artifacts. Using it can gather the resentful energy within a hundred li to press down from above, but its backlash force is also extremely great. After Jin Wuya returns, I can ask him to help modify it, reducing the backlash force to the lowest possible within our capability."

The bone whistle is only the size of a thumb, feels cold to the touch, has a hole for hanging, and can be carried on one's person.

I accepted the bone whistle, then suddenly thought of something: "Right, Āyàn, can you tell me about the Sword Tomb?"

The Sword Tomb concerns Liu Junyan's life-bound magical artifact, but of the seven Golden Scales we have retrieved only four; the remaining three are unknown where they have drifted or who holds them, possibly too late to recover.

The Linghai Dragon Clan's turmoil will surely affect the Forbidden Ground; I am somewhat worried that the Sword Tomb might encounter problems.

"The Sword Tomb was set up by me." Liu Junyan said, "A hundred years ago, when my tribulation was imminent, the Forbidden Ground became turbulent, and the resentful killing energy quickly gathered in the Dragon Transformation Cauldron, causing my mother and eldest uncle to barely withstand it..."

It turns out Liu Junyan established the Sword Tomb to suppress the turmoil in the Forbidden Ground.

I asked: "What are those swords in the Sword Tomb?"

"They are all manifestations (fēnshēn) of my life-bound magical artifact." Liu Junyan said.

I understood.

So a hundred years ago, Liu Junyan himself gave up the chance to ascend.

I continued analyzing: "The seven Golden Scales were scattered and lost after the establishment of the Sword Tomb; could it be that the remaining Golden Scales, either partially or entirely, are still in the Linghai Forbidden Ground?"

No, if they were still in the Linghai Forbidden Ground, Liu Mu would certainly not fail to think of ways to help Liu Junyan retrieve them.

Either they have all been lost, or they are held by some person within the Linghai Forbidden Ground.

This person is powerful and hidden, capable of shaking the entire Linghai... I suddenly shivered.

Liu Junyan startled, instinctively tightened his hold on me, asking: "Xiao Jiu, what's wrong?"

"Āyàn, I suddenly remembered something." I clutched his front lapel, staring into his eyes, and said: "When you sent me to Cangwu Mountain, near the abyss outside Cangwu Mountain, a huge White Dragon kept chasing me, enormous, its body almost spanning half of Linghai..."

After returning from Cangwu Mountain, I was almost nonstop, leaving me no time to recall the earlier details.

Moreover, at that time I subconsciously thought that White Dragon was the Linghai Dragon King.

After all, he was too huge, and his intimidating power was too strong.

But Liu Junyan said, his eldest uncle is a black dragon, his second and third uncles are azure dragons.

I pressed: "Āyàn, think carefully, who among the White Dragons of the Linghai Dragon Clan is that huge?"

Liu Junyan shook his head: "The White Dragons of the Linghai Dragon Clan are few to begin with, and they often suffer sacrifices; in my impression, none could grow as large as you described..."

His expression instantly turned grave: "Xiao Jiu, I need to go back to verify; you go to sleep first."

As he spoke, he was about to get out of bed, but I grabbed his hand.

I inexplicably felt a bit uneasy, and suddenly recalled the Copper Coin Person in the west room, gradually covered with white scale armor, the one who had failed a Body Seizure on the Copper Coin Person—could it be that white giant dragon?

I dare not think further; thinking more would make my head explode.

Liu Junyan patted my hand, comforting: "Xiao Jiu, it's fine; I'll go and come back soon."

I finally let go of Liu Junyan, urging: "Be sure to stay safe."

"Okay."

Liu Junyan threw on a coat and left.

It was past midnight, yet I felt no sleepiness, sitting alone behind the counter of Nan Shu Fang, dazed.

I don't know how long passed, nor what time it was; outside, a light rain began to patter.

Suddenly, the sound of pattering footsteps came from Xijiekou, wet and soggy.

I didn't pay attention; it should be Dou Jinsuo's parents coming out again.

But soon I realized something was off.

Tonight's footsteps were more chaotic and dense than when Dou Jinsuo's parents appeared before, not just two people!

Moreover, along with the footsteps came the sound of iron chains dragging on the ground, growing closer, actually heading straight for the Dang Pu.

I immediately sat upright, intently watching the small street-facing door of Nan Shu Fang.

Soon, a woman wearing a red veil on her head and a red bridal gown appeared outside the door.

She walked on tiptoe, with iron chains wrapped around her ankles; each step left a pool of blood beneath her feet.

The threshold of Nan Shu Fang is low; she walked straight in, and under my gaze, she thrust her hand, long with sharp black nails, beneath the red veil and gave a hard pull.

I only heard a grating, teeth-grating sound coming from beneath the red veil.

That sound was like a dull blade scraping against bone.

Soon, black blood flowed down her arm; her hand slowly withdrew from beneath the red veil, and there, she gripped a Coffin Nail covered in black, aged bloodstains.

She placed the Coffin Nail on the counter, and a gloomy, terrifying female voice immediately sounded: "Redemption."

"Redemption?"

I opened my mouth to ask her what she wanted to redeem, when at the doorway a second woman, veiled in red and dressed in a red wedding dress, appeared.

The same procedure was repeated, and another Coffin Nail appeared on the counter.

Immediately after came the third, the fourth… the eighth!

In front of my counter stood exactly eight women, each wearing a red veil and a red wedding dress, tiptoeing to redeem their pawn… female corpses!

They were the previous eight female managers of Wufu Town Pawnshop, and I had seen them before.

At that time they were in the Zhu Pan River, riding seated on one red coffin after another.

Dou Zhile had also reminded me that these eight female managers, who had been carried out of the Dang Pu at the beginning, would sooner or later come back to find me.

Sure enough, his words came true.

I only felt my scalp go numb, for I knew what they wanted to redeem.

They wanted to redeem the Pawn Ticket from when they first pawned themselves into the Dang Pu… that was their body contract!

But they, like me, had originally been pawned into the Dang Pu as dead pawns.

Dead pawn items—there is simply no reason they could ever be redeemed again…