Chapter 34: with translation of chapter title

I kept asking why, but Tang Tang remained evasive.

"Ah well, just listen to me and you'll be fine; don't ask about anything else for now."

Her having such alertness is actually a good thing, so I didn't ask further.

Over the next two days, I had originally wanted to take Tang Tang around town, but she flatly refused to go out and stayed in Dang Pu researching those old antiques.

On the morning of the 4th, Bái Jīngmò came again.

This time he came to talk to me about cooperation: "Grandma calculated that the most favorable time for our operation this time is 9:15 p. m. on the 7th, Xiao Jiu—make preparations in advance; if you have any questions, ask me anytime."

I nodded and took note.

After Bái Jīngmò left, Tang Tang stroked her chin and stared at his back for a long while, seeming preoccupied.

After a while, she still hadn't snapped out of it, so I went over and patted her shoulder: "Senior sister, welcome back!"

Tang Tang jumped, then reached out to pinch me: "Junior sister, do you know scaring people can scare them to death!"

I laughed and teased her: "I'm just afraid your soul might be snatched away by some wild man."

"Pah pah pah." Tang Tang declared firmly, "My heart is made of granite—blades can't pierce it, and men only affect how fast I draw my sword."

I laughed even louder.

After we fooled around for a bit, Tang Tang suddenly grew serious: "The seven-day National Day holiday is already more than half over, junior sister—I'm heading back tomorrow."

I really wanted to keep her in Wufu Town for a few more days; getting along with her was truly comfortable and happy.

But we have to act on the evening of the 7th, so it wouldn't be convenient for Tang Tang to stay here.

All I could do was carefully select some special products from Wufu Town, pack them up, and give them to her.

That night, I heard her making a phone call in the next room, her voice kept extremely low; although I couldn't make out the words, I could tell she seemed to be asking the other party to help her with something.

At noon on the 5th, Tang Tang left Wufu Town.

After that, I began preparing for the operation on the evening of the 7th.

In the blink of an eye it was evening on the 7th; I tucked the Língchí dāo and Fu Wan's letter away, then performed a hand seal to summon Feng Wu forth, and then dismissed her again.

Everything went smoothly.

At 8:30, Bái Jīngmò came to stand guard at the Dang Pu's door.

Under his watch, I carefully used a long bamboo pole to lower the hexagonal palace lamp and held it steady in my hand.

The speck of firefly light inside the hexagonal palace lamp seemed to sense something, flickering on and off continuously.

At nine, I lifted the lamp and, under Bái Jīngmò's escort, headed toward the Zhu Pan River.

Tonight seemed a bit cooler than usual; cool air mixed with the river's moisture blew straight at us.

Beneath the pitch-black river surface, a dark current seemed to be surging.

I walked very slowly, leaving a footprint with each step.

By the time I reached the banks of the Zhu Pan River, the auspicious moment had arrived.

By the river, the Bai Family had already been waiting for a long time, and even set up an Altar right by the water.

At that moment, someone was performing the Yu step on the Altar, as if conducting a ritual.

Bái Jīngmò led me up onto the Altar, where he lit three sticks of yellow incense on the offering table.

As the ritual performer's Yu steps grew larger and the incantations in his mouth became more urgent, the hexagonal palace lamp in my hand emitted threads of cold air, and the firefly light danced wildly.

Whoosh... whoosh...

On the river surface, eight red coffins gradually appeared accompanied by the sound of water, though I didn't see the eight girls who had previously been riding those coffins.

Moreover, tonight the iron chains on the red coffins naturally drooped into the water, hanging straight beneath the surface, as if they were pulling something in different directions.

Or perhaps they were forming some kind of Formation Array to welcome whatever was about to emerge from underwater.

Time flowed by second by second.

As a column of water shot up from the river and pierced the sky, Zhao Zixun suddenly appeared on the water's surface, riding a warhorse.

This time, behind Zhao Zixun followed a dozen or so warhorses; their riders wore armor, held weapons, and had their faces hidden under helmets, only revealing pairs of eyes glowing with red light.

Like fire.

Like blood.

With their appearance, the eight red coffins shuddered violently, their iron chains clanking together.

At that moment, an eerie voice suddenly sang: "The auspicious time has arrived—respectfully escorting the bride!"

My heart jumped.

The Bai Family was indeed not sincerely cooperating.

I had just reached for the Língchí dāo when my wrist was seized.

Before I could react, Bái Jīngmò had already yanked me off the Altar and darted to the side.

I was completely bewildered, instinctively thinking Bái Jīngmò's move was an act of defiance against the Bai Family.

The next instant, a red coffin entirely wrapped in iron chains shot over from the east at high speed, blasted through the Altar and rushed into the river.

I recognized that red coffin—it was the one from the town mayor's upstairs loft.

If Bái Jīngmò was trying to save me, what would the Bai Family use as a sacrifice?

Could they possibly be trying to fool us with an empty coffin?

At the moment the red coffin appeared, the town mayor, his son, and Dou Jinsuo showed up at the riverside, with even more Bai Family members present.

They all stared fixedly at the river surface, holding their breath in anticipation of that crucial moment.

At that very moment, a familiar voice came from inside the red coffin: "Auntie, save me!"

It was Tang Tang!

I could hardly believe my ears—Tang Tang had already left Wufu Town on the 5th, hadn't she?

The ride-share was something I had arranged for her.

I glanced at Bái Jīngmò, my questioning eyes fixed on him.

Bái Jīngmò's eyes flickered; he was obviously guilty.

I wanted to pounce and tear Bái Jīngmò apart, but it was too late; the red coffin had already touched the water and was drilling into the Pearl Coil River with unstoppable momentum.

Tang Tang kept shouting, "Auntie, auntie, save me!"

My heart felt like it was being twisted by a knife; Tang Tang must have been frightened out of her wits by the red coffin. Her aunt usually treats her especially well, so she kept calling for her aunt at this moment.

But I couldn't worry about that anymore, because I saw that the iron chain on the red coffin had somehow been gripped in Zhao Zixun's hand.

Zhao Zixun raised his hand, and one end of the red coffin had already sunk into the water.

I bit my finger to draw blood, quickly sketching the lightning-summoning symbol that Liu Junyan taught me on my palm, intending to strike Zhao Zixun first!

But before I could finish drawing the blood symbol, a uniform chanting suddenly rose from all around, like a net descending over us.

Not far from the riverbank stood a tall woman.

Her figure was shrouded in darkness, her features indistinct, yet I could sense a bloodthirsty aura emanating from her whole body.

Bang! Clang!

As the spell net kept pressing down, there was a clatter, and the iron chain in Zhao Zixun's hand... snapped!

The half-submerged red coffin finally came to a stop.

Coffin nails fell one by one to the ground.

With a thud, the coffin lid was flung open, and Tang Tang, wearing a red wedding dress, jumped out from inside.

The Bai family members still wanted to intervene, but suddenly dozens of black-clad figures appeared out of thin air, forcing the Bai family to retreat.

Tang Tang flipped off Bái Jīngmò with her right middle finger and even made a grotesque face.

I could feel Bái Jīngmò's body tense up.

But Tang Tang had already run toward that woman in the darkness, shouting as she ran, "Auntie, you've finally come! Wah-wah, I knew you loved me the most!"

The woman grabbed Tang Tang's ear in one fist, making her cry out in pain, then shoved her into the car.

Just as the car door was shut, Tang Tang covered her aching ear and poked her head out the window, shouting to me, "Junior sister, I'll go ahead first; we'll keep in touch by phone..."