Chapter 325: Chapter 289: The Painting

Back at the Deceit Dynasty, Sang Que removed a mole and put it away carefully, to avoid people here not recognizing her.

After leaving the Little Stone Forest, Sang Que immediately spotted the walls of the Qingfeng Temple.

The enclosed area was vast, capable of hosting a large courtyard with three sections. The front yard planned for a main hall and two side halls, the middle yard could have a few side rooms for visitors burning incense to stay temporarily, and the backyard would serve as Yao Zhen’s and other disciples’ living quarters.

In the future, Yao Zhen would definitely recruit people; such a large Taoist temple couldn’t be managed by her alone.

The trees around the temple were left intact. The original path leading into the mountain was completely obscured by the temple and could only be found by exiting from its back gate.

Sang Que approached with a box. There was still some time before dusk, and unexpectedly, no one was working inside the temple.

Entering Bright Moon Mountain from Chaotian Pass, there was not a single person on the road, dark clouds loomed over the west, and the sky was gloomy, indicating something unusual had happened.

Sang Que retrieved a shotgun and some firecrackers to carry with her. She had made quite a few bullets for the shotgun recently, with plenty of materials to spare.

The shotgun was wrapped in cloth and placed in the arrow quiver on her back. Sang Que hid two boxes halfway up Double Screen Mountain, and instantly teleported straight to the western side of Bright Moon Mountain.

The roadside paths crisscrossed, with piles of earth and stones along the excavated channels. Numerous farming tools were abandoned by the roadside, yet still not a soul was in sight.

Sang Que heightened her vigilance, until she finally reached the tributary of the Xuan River at the far west of Bright Moon Mountain, where mountain villagers were gathered around a temporary dike.

Dark clouds gathered overhead, and everyone stood there straight, with their backs to Sang Que, motionless. The surroundings were silent, apart from the rustling of leaves and the flow of river water.

Sang Que approached cautiously, and it was only then that people seemed to come to life, returning to normal. In the midst of the crowd, Yao Zhen turned and saw Sang Que, rushing to greet her immediately.

“You finally came back.”

Sang Que stood still, eyes slightly narrowed. As Yao Zhen approached, Sang Que suddenly unsheathed a newly customized Ten Victory Stone Dagger from the modern era, slashing across Yao Zhen’s neck.

Yao Zhen’s eyes widened in shock. Sparks and ashes flew from the gash on his neck, and a significant amount of black ink spilled out, instantly dissolving into a pool of ink.

Other villagers also revealed hideous expressions. In Sang Que’s Ghost Eye, all these people were dark ghostly figures, not living humans.

Just as she was about to retreat, a gust of yin wind suddenly assaulted her from behind. Sang Que turned to see a scroll crashing towards her.

The potent oppressive force nearly left Sang Que incapable of resisting, forcing her to swing the Ten Victory Stone Dagger with all her might.

Like a mirage, the scroll crashed through Sang Que, causing her to stagger backward, and then vanished without a trace behind her.

As she steadied herself, Sang Que realized that day suddenly turned into night. She was still by the riverbank, yet everything seemed unchanged, or perhaps entirely altered.

Sang Que used her Ghost Eye to inspect, and before her was all-encompassing darkness, seemingly flowing ink concealing countless grotesque and immense horrors, impossible to gaze upon or explore, crowded everywhere.

Her mind trembled, an irrepressible chill surged to her head, and her Ghost Eye was suppressed by an unseen force, unable to see clearly again.

This was no longer the real Bright Moon Mountain, but a ghost realm far stronger than her.

The scroll was clearly connected to the Zhuangyuan Ghost, along with the missing villagers in the mountain, including Yao Zhen and Luo Danian. They must be within the scroll.

As anticipated, all powers related to ghosts within her were suppressed, cutting off connections with the heart, Yin Child, and the Deceitful Bride.

This indicated that the scroll’s power was stronger than hers. If the scroll was a derivative of the Zhuangyuan Ghost, it might have the strength of a fifth layer.

In this world run rampant with Evil Spirits, encountering such bad luck was not unusual, as the Zhuangyuan Ghost had once roamed nearby.

Sang Que only worried if she had returned too late.

Sang Que checked her belongings; everything was still there. Based on past experiences, when suppressed, she couldn’t actively use the ghost’s powers, but passive abilities like recovery and healing were still present.

“First, find Yao Zhen to understand the situation. Then, use the embroidered shoes to walk out.”

In the real Bright Moon Mountain, a scroll hung in mid-air, surrounded by villagers standing as still as before, and an ’identical’ Sang Que.

*

At the same moment, in the mountain forest.

Qiao Ling carried a bamboo basket for collecting herbs, holding a small hoe, following closely behind Xia Chan.

“Slow down, let me dig up some herbs.”

Xia Chan’s stomach growled hungrily. Buns and flatbreads couldn’t satisfy her need for flesh and blood ingredients, and she anxiously searched the forest for traces of wild animals.

Even a wild rabbit would do.

But strangely enough, although they had ventured deep into the forest, besides some birds easily startled into flight, there were no wild animals at all.

Xia Chan was so hungry she was about to cry, even considering whether her sister would be angry if she really ate the Black Donkey.

Meow~

Xuan Yu, perched on Xia Chan’s shoulder, meowed softly in comfort, raising its nose to sniff carefully, helping Xia Chan locate the scent of other creatures.

Xia Chan often saw Qiao Ling feeding Xuan Yu with pills, claiming Xuan Yu was an exceptional cat.

Recently, Xuan Yu’s fur had grown increasingly glossy and black, and those emerald green eyes glowing in the night were mesmerizing.

Its reflexes in other aspects had also drastically improved, noticeable even to Xia Chan.

The last time they went hunting in the forest, Xuan Yu slashed open the throat of a wild boar with just one swipe—quick, precise, and ruthless!

Meow!

Suddenly, Xuan Yu raised a paw, pointed in one direction, and transformed into a streak of black lightning, leaping from Xia Chan’s shoulder.

Xia Chan’s eyes lit up, “Wait, Little Chan!”

“Hey! You two!”

Qiao Ling, hands on her hips, stopped midway up the mountain, panting and unable to keep up with the two energetic young ones.

Helplessly, Qiao Ling fished a small medicine bottle from her sleeve, swallowed a pill, and instantly, her fatigue vanished, allowing her to scale the previously insurmountable steep slope in a few strides, pursuing Xia Chan.

A few steps into her chase, Qiao Ling twitched her nose, detecting a bloody scent—not fresh, but carrying the rotten stench of evil ghosts.

She quickened her pace, passing through a few clumps of bushes, spotting Xia Chan covering her mouth beneath a tree, while Xuan Yu stood poised, back arched.

The forest seemed excavated entirely, leaving a hollow pit, with nothing within. At the pit’s edge lay a wild boar carcass, intestines strewn about, and parts of the intestines and blood bore black spots, creeping across the entire corpse.

“Look over there!”

Xia Chan pointed to the center of the pit, prompting Qiao Ling to squint over, seeing the air twist eerily, with thin fog seeping out, as leaves swept by the wind disappeared the moment they touched the distortion.

Qiao Ling’s face turned somber, “Something from the Hidden Realm emerged, leaving this distortion.”

The distortion was gradually disappearing. The Hidden Realm was a dead zone inhabited only by ghosts, where even weak evil spirits and ghosts couldn’t survive.

Qiao Ling plucked a small sachet from her waist, releasing some powder resembling incense ash, scattering it around the forest’s excavated perimeter.

Soon, within the powder emerged a completely pitch-black shadow, holding a scroll, ink constantly dripping from its body, slowly heading deeper into the forest.

As the powder dispersed, the shadow vanished as well.

Turning to Xia Chan, Qiao Ling’s expression was grave, “That must be the Zhuangyuan Ghost that escaped from Wangshan City. I need to track it to confirm its location before bringing others to contain it. Do you want to join me?”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep