Chapter 288: Chapter 252: Going Home

Zhang Junyao was filled with regret; she shouldn’t have secretly run away from home just to prove she was better than her brother, only to end up being kidnapped by bandits and taken to the mountains.

Fortunately, the bandits hadn’t realized she was a girl; claiming she was the young master of the Zhang Family from Tao Yuan City made their eyes light up. They locked her and her servant away, then sent someone to demand ransom from her family.

Up until today, she had only been held for three days.

Initially, Zhang Junyao thought she was lucky because the bandit lair had changed hands, and a mysterious woman agreed to let her go.

Even though it was late, Zhang Junyao didn’t want to linger in the bandit’s lair and immediately fled with her servant.

But her luck ran out just as they were about to escape the mountain, when they encountered Fog Ghosts.

She had heard tales back home that there were Fog Ghosts in the mountain, which could constantly change shapes. They particularly liked to disguise themselves as mature humans, revealing their terrifying forms when people least expected it, and consuming them at the peak of their fear.

Her servant had been silently replaced and when she realized, the servant split open and lunged at her.

Fortunately, hidden on her was a Longevity Buddha Talisman made of Ten Victory Stone, a protective amulet her grandfather had brought back from Tibet for her first birthday.

The Buddha pendant repelled the fog ghost, allowing her to escape, but over the years it had shielded her from many evil spirit attacks and was already covered in cracks. This time it shattered completely, leaving her defenseless.

In the end, she fell into the hands of the Fog Ghosts.

Zhang Junyao lay on the ground in terror, watching as numerous Fog Ghosts clawed their way towards her.

At the critical moment, a dark figure suddenly appeared behind Zhang Junyao, bringing a chill even more terrifying than the Fog Ghosts. Zhang Junyao froze, closing her eyes in despair.

But the anticipated death did not come. The wind whistling through the canyon suddenly ceased, leaving an unnerving silence.

Zhang Junyao opened her eyes to find the Fog Ghosts before her had vanished. In the darkness, strange red threads moved through the mist and dispersed the Fog Ghosts in their path.

However, the dense mist remained.

Zhang Junyao turned around in surprise, seeing the heroic-looking girl in a blue skirt from the bandit camp.

A Yin Walker?

Zhang Junyao’s pupils trembled as she stared at Sang Que. Being saved at the brink of life and death stirred emotions within her that she could not describe.

Sang Que paid no attention to Zhang Junyao. Her Ghost Realm had already covered this canyon, yet she still couldn’t eradicate the Fog Ghosts.

Numerous ghostly figures emerged from the mist, dispersed only to reappear anew, merely draining her strength without seeming to harm the Fog Ghosts.

The Yin Child ran back and forth among the shadows, unable to capture the Fog Ghost’s true form.

“Come back!”

Sang Que summoned the Yin Child back, using the Ghost Eye’s ability to scan the surroundings. There was only mist, nothing unusual.

Suddenly, she thought of something. Sang Que hastily looked down at Zhang Junyao, sitting on the ground. Instantly, Sang Que felt a force gripping her, her body gradually turning to mist, dissipating, merging with the surrounding mist.

When was this girl replaced by a Fog Ghost? She hadn’t realized it at all.

Sang Que tried to close her eyes but couldn’t. She now understood a major drawback of the Ghost Eye; once you see through a ghost’s true form, its power begins to corrode you.

In this regard, the Qian Trigram Eye Opening of the Yansheng coin was much better. You could only see for three seconds before your eyes began to sting, forcibly breaking the gaze to protect oneself.

But she wasn’t without options.

Sang Que pushed the Yin Child out of her body again. The Ghost Eye was an ability of the Yin Child, and with it outside her, the connection would forcibly break.

Once the Yin Child emerged, Sang Que used the Opera House to completely trap the Fog Ghost’s true form inside.

She reached out, gripping the throat of the girl before her, heart pounding as she forcibly absorbed the Fog Ghost’s power.

The long-dormant Yansheng coin emerged from her palm with a burning sensation, first outlining the perimeter before consuming a massive amount of power to be completed.

The Fog Ghost gradually vanished, leaving only a Geng Trigram on the Yansheng coin.

One wasn’t safe enough; she needed at least two trigrams to return home.

Sang Que scanned the area, weighing her options, and eventually swallowed the Hungry Evil, Granny Yin, and Blood Robe Evil from the Opera House.

The Hungry Evil only made people sick, Granny Yin only attacked children, and the Blood Robe Evil only targeted lone individuals. She had already reached the Ghost Level, leaving these three three-layered evils in the Opera House wasn’t cost-effective.

The Skinning Master would be kept in memory of Yan Daozi, and the five mischievous children, being rare curse types, would also remain for now. She would capture and raise more promising ghosts later.

Swallowing the three-layered evil, her palm now had half a trigram more, still not enough for two.

The Yansheng coin must have leveled up with her, requiring more energy consumption. Its other trigram abilities must have also strengthened, maybe even gained new changes.

Sang Que, eager to return home, had no time to ponder. There was someone with a high fever in the camp who needed medicine from her.

She quickly withdrew the Opera House and Ghost Realm; the mist in the canyon had dispersed. Zhang Junyao, hugging her knees at a distance, screamed when she saw Sang Que appear out of thin air.

“Are you a human or a ghost? Don’t come near!”

Earlier, Zhang Junyao had clearly seen Sang Que save her, allowing her to sigh with relief and feel a sense of survival post-disaster. But the Sang Que before her turned into a Fog Ghost, showing a terrifying, ferocious face, ready to devour her.

“The Fog Ghost has been eliminated by me.”

Still trembling with shock, Zhang Junyao looked around and realized the mist was indeed gone. She then re-evaluated Sang Que, half-doubtfully asking, “Are you…are you a Yin Walker?”

Sang Que did not answer, reaching out to help Zhang Junyao up.

Still shaky, Zhang Junyao gratefully said, “Thank you for saving me. When I get home, I will definitely send someone to give you a generous gift, definitely!”

“Let me take you back to the camp to rest. You can leave first thing tomorrow morning.”

With her hand on Zhang Junyao’s shoulder, Zhang Junyao felt as if a ghost was obstructing her sight, seeing only darkness and then light. They moved from the mountain canyon to a forest, darkness and light flickering until they arrived at another place.

Repeating this a few times, they returned to the bandit camp.

Sang Que led Zhang Junyao back to the cave, where she could stay with the other girls, then left again, only returning after more than an hour.

The two trigrams were now complete.

Sang Que checked on Wanyun, who was burning with fever that refused to subside.

Wahe bit her lip, eyes red, silently continuing to wipe her sister Wanyun’s body.

Not delaying further, Sang Que immediately went to the conference room outside, had the Ghost Slave Ruan Shichun guard it, and used the side door of the conference room to open the way home.

Emerging from the box in the study, she saw her mother asleep on the computer desk; though more haggard, she was safe, bringing a large sigh of relief to Sang Que.

The Great General sleeping at her mother’s feet perked up at the noise, about to bark when Sang Que signaled him to be quiet. The Great General stepped back two paces without making a sound.

Leaving the door open, Sang Que instantly teleported to the living room, finding fever reducers and anti-inflammatories along with her watch from her bedside, returning to the bandit camp.

She still didn’t close the door, looking at the time on the watch, bringing the medicine to treat Wanyun’s fever.

All she could do was that. Whether or not Wanyun pulled through was up to her.

Afterwards, Sang Que returned home, observing the light behind the door through the tunnel in the box, calculating how long the current Yansheng coin could keep the tunnel open before closing automatically; previously, it was three minutes.

Time passed, and after several darkness and light flickers, they returned to the bandit lair.

The fog in the canyon had dissipated, and Zhang Junyao huddled with her knees drawn up in the distance. Seeing Sang Que appear out of nowhere, she screamed.

“Are you a human or a ghost? Don’t come over here!”

Just now, Zhang Junyao had clearly seen Sang Que save her, which finally allowed her to exhale a breath she had been holding in, feeling a sense of relief after the ordeal. However, the Sang Que before her eyes transformed into a Fog Ghost, revealing a hideous, terrifying face, ready to devour her.

“You saved me. Once I get home, I’ll definitely send someone with a gift to thank you properly,” Zhang Junyao said gratefully.

Sang Que didn’t answer, just extended her hand to pull Zhang Junyao.

Not wanting to delay, Sang Que immediately went to the meeting hall outside, instructing the Ghost Slave Ruan Shichun to stand guard, using the small door at the side of the hall as an intermediary to open a portal, maintaining her connection with the Yansheng coin as long as possible. It used to sustain the connection for three minutes, which wasn’t long.

The door remained open, and Sang Que instantly teleported to the living room. The Great General sleeping by her mother’s feet heard the noise, about to bark when Sang Que signaled quietly, prompting him to step back two paces, staying silent.

Leaving the door open, Sang Que directly teleported to the living room, collecting medication from the bedside. The study door open, she returned home through the box’s passage, watching the light coming from behind the door across the tunnel. She calculated how long the current Yansheng coin could maintain this passage before it automatically closed; before it could hold for three minutes.

Sang Que, in a breath, stepped closer, grabbing the girl’s throat. Her heart pounding, she forced herself to absorb the Fog Ghost’s strength.

The long-dormant Yansheng coin finally re-emerged from her palm with a burning feeling, its outer outline appearing first. It required a substantial amount of strength to be completed.

The Fog Ghost gradually disappeared, leaving only a Geng Trigram in the Yansheng coin.

With one trigram, it wasn’t sure; she needed at least two trigrams before she could go home.

Sang Que surveyed the surroundings, weighed her options, and ultimately decided to consume the Hungry Evil, Granny Yin, and the Blood Robe Evil within the Opera House.

The Hungry Evil only caused illness, Granny Yin only attacked children, and the Blood Robe Evil only preyed on solitary individuals. Since she’d leveled up to the Ghost Level, keeping these three-layered evils in the Opera House wasn’t worthwhile.

The Skinning Master was kept as a tribute to Yan Daozi for now, and she left the five cursed children for their rarity, intending to trap promising ghosts for cultivation later.

After swallowing the three-layered evil, her palm held another half of a trigram, still not reaching enough for two.

The Yansheng coin surely upgraded alongside her, increasing its energy consumption, which likely also strengthened its other trigram capabilities and possibly introduced new changes.

Anxious to return home, with someone in the camp running a high fever needing her to fetch medicine, she quickly withdrew the Opera House and Ghost Realm. The mist in the canyon had cleared, and Zhang Junyao clutched her knees, shrinking in the distance, screaming at the sight of Sang Que’s sudden appearance.

“Are you a human or a ghost? Don’t come near me!”

Earlier, Zhang Junyao had clearly seen Sang Que saving her, only which allowed her to feel a sigh of relief and a sense of survival post-calamity, but seeing the same figure transform into a menacing Fog Ghost ready to consume her altered everything.

“I have saved you, don’t fret,” Sang Que remarked casually, grabbing Zhang Junyao up onto her feet.

Zhang Junyao, trembling with relief expressed gratitude, “Thank you for saving me. As soon as I return home, I swear I’ll ensure a hefty reward for you, I swear.”

Still not wasting time, Sang Que had to return to resolve the matter of the sick person in the bandit village who required medication. Leaving the passage open, Sang Que retrieved the medicine and exited through the tunnel, occasionally peering into the light coming through the door to assess how long the upgraded Yansheng coin could maintain the connection before closing by itself; it used to last about three minutes.

After repeated flashes of darkness and light, they returned to the bandit lair.

Sang Que led Zhang Junyao back to the cave, allowing her to rest with other girls before leaving again to attend to urgent matters.

When she departed, Zhang Junyao hugged herself and noticed something significant. The red threads from earlier wove through the misty corridor.

Calculating, Sang Que found that thirty-two minutes remained until the door would close on its own.

Finally returning home, Sang Que, after a glance at her mother’s beaming eyes filled with joy and tears, cried out.

“Little Que! You’re finally back!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep