FCRCG Chapter 40

The gradually approaching evil energy was intense, but the number of resentful spirits seemed to be few.

Lian Yi pulled aside a corner of the curtain. Outside, only two dim streetlights illuminated the street, and several dark shadows flitted in the corners.

The resentful spirits’ target was the motel, temporarily blocked by a few talismans pasted at the intersection.

Nan Deng walked closer and quietly looked out the window. “Have we been discovered?”

Could it be the fog-shrouded specter that Lian Yi and Lin Jiu mentioned last time? This ghost was very unusual, adept at hiding and tracking.

They had just arrived for half a day when they coincidentally encountered an attack on the motel by resentful spirits.

Lian Yi said, “Let’s wait a bit longer.”

The number of resentful spirits appeared to be few, and there would be patrolling celestial masters responsible for handling them. He did not intend to take action at this time.

The Bagua ring slowly floated beside Nan Deng, treating him as a protected target, with a halo enveloping him as it moved.

The rose branches extended from the cabinet, sticking to the window. The buds lifted and tapped lightly as if wanting to go out.

Lian Yi pondered for a moment and used a spiritual technique to remotely turn off the lights in the room. The room instantly plunged into darkness.

He then opened the window, and two slender branches immediately slipped out through the gap.

Under the cover of darkness, the rose branches moved along the wall and ground, quickly reaching the intersection where the resentful spirits were gathered.

Several resentful spirits were attacking the talismans, trying to tear them apart and then infiltrate the motel.

Nan Deng was a bit nervous, straining to see the situation at the intersection. He is worried that the rose might get hurt.

In the dim light, the green branches moved nimbly and swiftly, tightly wrapping around one of the resentful spirits.

A pink and white flower bud swelled and grew larger, opening to swallow a resentful spirit whole.

The rest of the resentful spirits were thrown into disarray but soon shrieked and lunged forward again.

However, the branches were thin and soft, slithering like snakes. The now smaller flower bud was tiny, and the resentful spirits couldn’t even touch the petals of the rose.

Generally speaking, plant-based earth spirits have limited mobility and relatively weaker power. But the rose was different.

It appeared fierce and savage, its sharp teeth tearing a resentful spirit in half. Prey ensnared by its branches found it extremely difficult to break free.

Finally, the weakest resentful spirit, realizing the situation was dire, turned to flee.

Only then did the celestial masters arrive, their footsteps approaching. Sensing the strangers, the rose stopped its pursuit, retracting its branches the way they had come.

The rose returned inside, its branches loosely wrapping around Nan Deng’s hand, seemingly in a good mood.

In the moonlight streaming through the window, Nan Deng carefully inspected it, discovering two leaves had been scratched.

He stroked it gently, praising, “Cao Mei, you’re amazing.”

The leaves touched by Nan Deng quickly returned to normal. The rose affectionately nuzzled Nan Deng’s palm before returning to its pot to digest on its own.

Lian Yi continued to look outside, his cold gaze fixed on the intersection.

A few people had arrived there, dressed as celestial masters.

They searched the area, appearing somewhat puzzled.

“Didn’t the compass move just now?” one of them said. “How did these resentful spirits disappear so quickly?”

They had only captured one on their way here. This was the coordinate indicated by the compass, with lingering traces of evil energy.

Could the resentful spirits have known they were coming and fled in advance?

The team leader made a decision. “Let’s check over there. If we can’t find anything, we’ll call it off.”

Unless they saw it with their own eyes, they wouldn’t be able to detect the presence of an earth spirit and wouldn’t even consider other possibilities.

After the team hurried away, wisps of fog slowly seeped into the deeper corners of the side alley.

Far away on the other side, Gu Xu opened his eyes.

His breath was unsteady, and he said, “There’s a new earth spirit by Lian Yi’s side.”

“An earth spirit?”

A communicator on the table emitted Xie Yun’s voice. “I see… So that’s why he went there.”

The area where Lian Yi was lacked an earth spirit. Either he was sending an extra earth spirit there, or the mountain god was still with him, causing a new earth spirit to be born in a very short time.

The former is more likely. It’s uncertain whether he wanted to send it himself or if it was a requirement from the chaos god or the mountain god.

Xie Yun asked again, “What else? Who else is with him? Is it a person or a ghost?”

“I don’t know,” Gu Xu replied. “All the resentful spirits sent there are gone.”

He had to admit, Xie Yun’s cultivation methods had many advantages. Following the coordinates given by Weng Ping Ran, Xie Yun tracked Lian Yi and quickly found the motel where he was staying.

Few people had visited that area recently, so it wasn’t hard to find out where Lian Yi was.

However, Gu Xu had been drained of his soul by Xie Yun, making it difficult to recover quickly and significantly weakening his strength.

Upon seeing the new earth spirit, Gu Xu did not approach further and chose to lie low for the time being, planning to look for a new opportunity later.

Hearing this, Xie Yun coldly remarked, “Useless.”

“I don’t care who is with him,” he continued.

Gu Xu, unwilling to back down, retorted, “If you want to know, why don’t you follow him yourself?”

Xie Yun was not angered by this and responded coolly, “You rest well. We’ll be in touch another day.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the communication was cut off.

Gu Xu’s face darkened. He reached for the communicator on the table and opened the directory of all celestial masters in the inner court, scrolling down continuously.

Finally, he selected an appropriate target and sent a message.

On the other end was an apprentice celestial master responsible for daytime patrols, who was awakened by the notification.

When he saw that the message was from Elder Gu Xu, instructing him to go outside to receive something important, he was puzzled. How had Elder Gu Xu suddenly arrived here without any prior notice?

Not daring to delay, he quickly dressed and went downstairs.

Opening the door, he looked around but saw no one waiting for him.

Was it sent by mistake? The apprentice took out the communicator to confirm.

Suddenly, he felt a chill on the back of his neck, and the compass in his pocket sounded twice.

A cloud of fog rapidly approached, enveloping him completely.

The apprentice couldn’t make a sound; his soul was completely drained.

When his cold body hit the ground and the mist dissipated, Gu Xu’s translucent form became visible.

He closed his eyes to feel the increase in his power, then picked up the fallen communicator and deleted the message he had sent earlier.

—

The next day, Nan Deng woke up early.

He relaxed upon seeing Lian Yi beside him and burrowed into his arms.

No more resentful spirits appeared after last night. The rose went into dormancy, and Nan Deng also went to sleep.

Lian Yi seemed to have stayed up very late. Nan Deng didn’t know when he had finally gone to bed.

As soon as he moved, Lian Yi woke up and held him tightly.

“Sleep a little more,” Lian Yi whispered, his dry, warm lips brushing Nan Deng’s ear. “We’ll go out and check tonight.”

The rose had performed well last night and could soon be placed in an appropriate spot.

They would need to observe for a few more days to ensure everything was fine.

Nan Deng murmured in agreement, then quietly added, “I’m a bit hungry…”

Lian Yi opened his eyes and gently stroked his cheek. He got up with Nan Ding to wash and had the motel’s staff bring some food.

—

By midday, Weng Ping Ran received some extremely important news.

“Someone sick has been cured?” Weng Ping Ran clenched the communicator in his hand, his voice unable to hide his excitement. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, but…” The celestial master on the other end hesitated slightly. “The hospital didn’t change their treatment methods. Those people suddenly recovered without any warning.”

This meant that the cause of the cure couldn’t be determined.

“Well, it’s the only progress we have so far,” Weng Ping Ran paced back and forth. “Get someone to investigate thoroughly… No, I’ll come personally!”

With fewer travel restrictions for celestial masters, he could set off immediately and arrive by midnight.

Lin Jiu, who was quietly looking at a map nearby, quickly spoke up upon hearing Weng Ping Ran’s words, “Teacher, I’ll go too!”

He was just as excited as Weng Ping Ran, though for different reasons. The place where the patients were cured was along Lian Yi and Nan Deng’s route, and he believed this was no coincidence.

Lin Jiu wanted to go with Weng Ping Ran and hadn’t yet had the chance to ask Lian Yi about it. Moreover, the place was close to where Lian Yi was. So if anything happened, they could get there quickly.

Weng Ping Ran thought for a moment and agreed.

Once the decision was made, he immediately handed over his current tasks to others and started arranging the next steps.

While reviewing the celestial master list and their movements, Weng Ping Ran noticed that some people had been reassigned by Xie Yun.

Frowning, he contacted his subordinates to inquire, “What has Elder Xie Yun been doing lately?”

“We’re not entirely sure. He mentioned assisting in clearing resentful spirits from the plague zones,” his subordinate replied. “He’s been pulling anyone available.”

From the map, it appeared that these people were converging in one direction, which was indeed along the path of the plague spread, and included three chief celestial masters.

Xie Yun had not been involved in affairs for a long time, and he hadn’t discussed these actions with Weng Ping Ran.

However, as an elder, he did have the authority to make such decisions.

Perhaps it was because Gu Xu was injured and recuperating, lacking the energy to participate, that Xie Yun was assisting on his behalf.

Eager to set off, Weng Ping Ran decided not to delve further into the matter.

—

Night fell once again. Nan Deng, holding the flower pot, followed Lian Yi outside the inn.

They didn’t disturb anyone, and the street was very quiet.

The rabbit head perched on Nan Deng’s head, occasionally looking around.

Nan Deng wore a mask. Going out at this hour would inevitably attract attention.

Fortunately, earth spirits are sensitive to human auras. If they sensed celestial masters nearby, the rose’s branches would turn in the opposite direction, helping them avoid detection.

At the same time, it was searching for an ideal spot to plant itself.

They walked along the roadside, encountering several resentful spirits along the way, which the rose easily dealt with.

When they arrived at a secluded, abandoned factory, the surrounding evil aura intensified noticeably.

The rose’s branches pointed towards the factory, and its buds were eager to move.

Nan Deng stopped, hesitating, “You want to go there?”

Before they could proceed further, the resentful spirits inside had already detected the approaching unfamiliar presence.

Two third-level resentful spirits appeared first, cautiously observing them.

They could sense a faint danger emanating from Lian Yi.

Lian Yi wasn’t wearing a celestial master’s uniform, making it difficult for the spirits to gauge his identity. So they hesitated.

The rose, however, acted decisively, rapidly extending its branches to attack the two spirits.

The spirits roared, “It’s an earth spirit… kill it!”

Meanwhile, in a nearby street corner, a mist gradually coalesced into Gu Xu’s form.

He stared intently at Lian Yi and Nan Deng, who was standing beside him.

So, Xie Yun was right—there was indeed someone with him.

Gu Xu didn’t recognize Nan Deng and didn’t notice the rabbit head on top of him.

He assumed that the earth spirit stayed close to Lian Yi because it was plant-based and not easily movable.

Lian Yi was too powerful to confront directly, but targeting the person with him might work.

Anyone constantly by Lian Yi’s side must have a special relationship with him.

Gu Xu’s expression turned cold as he summoned several resentful spirits to his command.

The spirits obeyed and headed towards Lian Yi.

The hidden spirits in the factory were also stirred; with no residents around, celestial masters rarely patrolled this area recently.

Soon, a large number of resentful spirits approached.

The rose’s branches attacked furiously. But only two branches could extend freely, unable to cover all directions.

Several spirits took the opportunity to get close to Lian Yi, trying to test his strength. But the Bagua ring pierced their chests.

Nan Deng, feeling frightened, clung tightly to the flower pot.

At that moment, a wisp of mist rose from the ground beneath him, forming a hand that attempted to grab him from behind.

The rabbit head twitched its nose, sniffing the air, and its eyes turned red.

Having watched the rose devour several rounds of spirits, it was eager to fill its own belly.

Mindful of Nan Deng’s presence, the rabbit head quietly leaped down, its body transforming mid-air, swelling to half a meter wide, and its gaping mouth took a fierce bite.

Just as Gu Xu was about to make his move, his soul was sucked in by a powerful force.

After devouring Gu Xu’s soul, the rabbit head reverted to its original form and rolled on the ground a couple of times.

This move was learned from the rose; its ability to freely expand and contract was incredibly convenient.

When Gu Xu’s soul was devoured, his distant true body let out a scream and fainted on the spot.

Nan Deng sensed something and turned around.

Behind him, the area was empty, with the rabbit head inexplicably lying on the ground. Confused, he asked, “Just now…”

The rabbit head thought it had hidden well. But it forgot that during its transformation, it couldn’t conceal its evil energy.

Lian Yi retracted the Bagua ring and looked at the rabbit head with an expressionless face.

The surrounding resentful spirits smelled the overwhelming evil energy that had suddenly erupted, momentarily halting their attacks in confusion.

“What is that smell…?”

“A ghost king… it’s a ghost king!”

Not only in the immediate vicinity but also from farther away, more resentful spirits caught the scent of the aura.

“The ghost king has appeared…”

“It’s over there. I can sense it.”

“Follow the ghost king! Follow the ghost king!”

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