Infinite Puzzle City

Chapter 622 Plum Blossom Taoist Makes Another Move (Two Chapters Combined)

In the distance, a hazy red cloud rolled in, inaudible and invisible to ordinary people, but Jin Chanzi and Qieyu could see it clearly and even sense the pure pain within it.

The evil spirit's punishment came suddenly, but it was not unexpected.

This place should have been Xingxie's biggest entertainment venue, like a free high-end canteen.

Now, Xiao Ran not only smashed up the cafeteria, but also threw a rice bowl at his face.

The thought that Xiao Ran cut off was no less than a slap in the face for Xing Xie.

"Hey!"

Seeing this, Qieyu couldn't help but smile, and decided to stand aside and observe the situation.

Before long, the entire sky turned dark red.

A fierce wind howled, its sound mingling with chilling screams.

"hiss!"

As soon as Zhao Hongzhong and the others were hit by the cool breeze, they felt uncomfortable all over, as if someone was chiseling inside their bones.

The stronger the wind, the more intense the pain.

"Keep your mind calm, and external demons will disappear on their own."

Fortunately, at this moment, Jin Chanzi gently waved the whisk in his hand, his lips moved slightly, and a ray of golden light rippled out from the whisk. The golden light shone on Zhao Hongzhong and the others, and they immediately felt a warm sensation all over their bodies, and all the pain vanished in an instant.

Jin Chanzi looked up at the red clouds above his head, frowned, and shouted, "You are just a minor god who patrols the realm. How dare you so blatantly interfere in the mortal world? Get out of here at once, or I will summon the gods of the five directions today to make your soul disappear!"

Jin Chanzi's voice was like a booming bell, but at this moment, the red clouds in the sky were still rolling, and the clouds were constantly changing, revealing all kinds of people.

Those are birth, old age, sickness, death, separation from loved ones, resentment, unfulfilled desires, and attachment—these are the eight major sources of suffering in life.

This source of life's eight great sufferings, at this moment, is like a red river pouring down from the heavens, rolling down towards the hospital.

"You bastard, do you really think your Daoist master is easy to bully?"

Upon seeing this, Jin Chanzi's face darkened, and he made a hand seal, taking out a bell from his sleeve.

"Dingle bell! Dingle bell!"

Zhao Hongzhong and the others suddenly felt a warm sensation emanating from the inkwell on their wrists, followed by their bodies becoming increasingly hot.

"Four Duty Officers, Six Ding and Six Jia, Eight-Faced Vajra, heed my command, return to your positions at once."

Jin Chanzi silently chanted an incantation, then threw out several yellow talismans. As the talismans turned into sparks in mid-air and landed on the ink lines, Zhao Hongzhong and the others felt a jolt throughout their bodies. They felt a force in their chests like a surging river that was unstoppable. In a daze, they felt as if a golden-armored deity, holding swords and spears, stood proudly on their shoulders.

The crimson cloud that had fallen suddenly seemed to swirl around the entire hospital, unable to descend for a long time.

"Who is this guy? His Taoist skill in troop deployment is truly astounding!"

Qieyu stared at the golden toad on the rooftop, surprised but also filled with greed: "Perfect, if I could steal this ability, I wouldn't need to rely on evil spirits for my spiritual travels anymore."

Thinking of this, Qieyu's eyes darted around, and seeing that the red cloud was slow to fall, a plan suddenly came to mind.

He turned his head and saw the Changchun Society members who had escaped from the hospital. A gloomy look appeared on his face: "These useless trash are no use to us. We might as well go with the flow and give Lord Xingxie a little more help."

As he spoke, Qieyu took out a sword shaped like a ruler from his spatial storage.

The long sword has no blade, and one side is inscribed with the six ancient seal characters for fortune, prosperity, longevity, wealth, luck, and career.

With a gentle wave of the jade pendant, a beam of intense light shot out from above, directly illuminating the heads of the group.

The group was focused on the red cloud, completely unaware of Qieyu's actions behind them. They waited for Qieyu's sword to lightly slice through the clouds, and their eyes gradually dimmed. Some of them unconsciously shrugged, feeling as if something had been cut off from their bodies.

The sword in the Jade-Stealing Hand gleamed with a cold light, and six ancient seal characters on the blade lit up in succession. The members of the Changchun Society, who had been struck on the back of the neck, made strange gurgling sounds from their throats, and thin lines of blood, as fine as spider silk, seeped from their seven orifices. These blood threads coiled into strange runes in mid-air, which turned out to be "destiny umbilical cords" invisible to the naked eye of mortals.

"Fate steals destiny, karma turns calamity into fortune."

With a light flick of the tip of the Jade-Stealing Sword, the umbilical cords of fate on these people suddenly straightened and surged into the depths of the red clouds.

"Ok!"

At this moment, Jin Chanzi also noticed the jade-stealing action. His expression changed, and he realized something was wrong. He immediately roared angrily, "They are your own people, and you've harmed them like this. You old bastard, you really have no conscience."

"conscience??"

In mid-air, Qieyu touched his chest as if searching for something. After a moment, he seemed to suddenly realize something: "Oh, I remember now. I sold that thing when I was young. I sold it for a good price and made a fortune. It's a pity that it's gone now, otherwise I would have sold it for an even better price."

"Pah, you beast."

Upon hearing this, Jin Chanzi couldn't help but snort coldly, his expression growing increasingly solemn.

At that moment, a sinister laugh, like that of a night owl, came from within the crimson clouds, and a stream of turbid liquid suddenly split off from the Eight Bitter Red Smoke. A dark red filth floated in that stream, flowing back into the crown chakras of these Changchun Society members.

"Ahhhh——!"

An elderly man with a long face suddenly clutched his head and screamed in agony.

A cinnabar curse mark appeared on the back of his neck, and his skin and flesh withered away at a visible speed, replaced by bluish-black blood vessels protruding under the skin, moving like earthworms between the muscles.

"Kakaka..."

Then the man's body gradually hunched over, and one after another, hideous bone spurs pierced through his back, quickly extending upwards until they became something like a tombstone standing on the man's body.

He wasn't the only one to undergo a strange transformation; the others whose bodies were infused with red smoke also experienced the same thing, though each person's transformation was different. Some people's bodies involuntarily assumed the posture of an iron horse crossing a bridge, and then their chests split open, with each rib spreading upwards and forming the mouth of a cauldron, looking just like an incense burner.

Each person's changes and postures are completely different, yet they ultimately form an altar.

Thick red smoke billowed within the altar, exuding an aura of despair.

Jin Chanzi's face immediately turned ugly.

Six Eyes and the Old Demon Qinghai looked at each other, feeling a very bad feeling.

"The Bone Altar, this guy seems to have really gone mad, we can't hold him off."

The old demon Qinghai looked serious.

The gods do not have physical bodies; when they ascend to heaven, their physical bodies are left behind.

Strictly speaking, they are just a massive spiritual entity, but unlike ordinary wandering ghosts, they possess divinity, hence the name "god".

Right now, whether it's the Azure Skeleton Demon or the Six Eyes, they are merely a wisp of thought of the main body.

But now that the other side has set up an altar, it is clear that they are going to get serious and descend to earth with a portion of their divine power. Even if only a small part of it can descend, it will still be an incomparable true god.

They are far superior to them.

"Not necessarily."

Compared to the old demon Qinghai, Liu Mu was not so nervous. He simply said, "Now, this matter is beyond our control. Just stay put. There's going to be a good show to watch later."

"A good show??"

The old demon Qinghai glanced sideways at Liu Mu, not understanding what he meant by "good show".

But Liu Mu smiled without saying a word, showing no intention of explaining, though his small eyes were full of anticipation.

"No, I can't let you out!"

Jin Chanzi snorted coldly and kept throwing out yellow talismans. With the talisman light flashing, the golden-armored gods on Zhao Hongzhong and the others' shoulders swung their weapons at the altar, intending to destroy it first.

However, when these golden-armored deities' weapons touched the altar, a red lightning bolt suddenly erupted from the altar, shattering the weapons into pieces.

Zhao Hongzhong and the others swayed as well, feeling their legs go weak and as if they were about to kneel down.

"Don't move, hold on!"

Although he didn't know what was going on, Zhao Hongzhong suddenly became alert, bit his tongue hard, and used the stinging pain to force himself to stay standing.

But the others didn't have Zhao Hongzhong's strong willpower. They swayed, some knelt down, and some fell to the ground.

As soon as these people moved, the ink lines on their wrists snapped, and the golden-armored deities standing on their shoulders immediately lost their footing and scattered.

Jin Chanzi trembled, and his face immediately turned ugly.

At the same time, a thick, blood-like viscous liquid gushed out from the center of the altar, and the air was filled with a suffocating stench and fear.

"what!!"

The members of the Changchun Society who were sacrificed for stealing the jade let out desperate cries. Even now, their bodies were deformed, but they were still alive and could clearly feel the pain all over their bodies.

"Boom! Boom!"

The ground began to tremble, as if a giant beast was awakening beneath the earth's crust. Each tremor struck the heart, filling people with despair.

With a deep, distorted rumble, a huge crack appeared on the surface of the altar, from which a massive figure slowly rose.

It was just a blurry shadow. No one could make out its outline. But strangely, even though they couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman, they could feel the abyss-like eyes in its gaze.

Wisps of red smoke emanated from the silhouette, each breath containing endless wails and despair, as if millions of souls were struggling in eternal agony. The sound waves were invisible yet sharp, striking the depths of everyone present, causing Zhao Hongzhong and the others to feel unprecedented fear and despair from the depths of their souls.

"Lord Xingxie!"

Qieyu slowly approached, clasped his hands in a fist, and respectfully bowed to the figure shrouded in red smoke before him: "The Changchun Society has been grateful for your care over the years, sir. I would also like to trouble you to spare the lives of these people later. Qieyu will repay you tenfold."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Hongzhong and the others felt a chill run down their spines.

They barely escaped the clutches of the Ghost Doctor and his gang, and they dared not imagine what kind of torture awaited them if they fell into the hands of the Changchun Society again.

For a moment, he looked at Jin Chanzi with an anxious expression.

"Young Taoist, think of something quickly!" Jin Chanzi walked to the balcony, looking down at the blurry outline. He frowned, unsure of what to do, thinking, "Could it be that I have to use that card now? The timing is wrong. If I use that card, I won't be able to live like this anymore..."

Just as Jin Chanzi was hesitating.

But then Six Eyes and the Old Demon Qinghai jumped out of the window and stood in front of the red shadow.

The old demon Qinghai said with a smile, "Xingxie, let's talk this out. What are you doing, making such a fuss? It's been a thousand or eight hundred years since we last met. Come visit me on my turf another day, and I'll prepare a hundred thousand evil spirits for you to have your fun."

Liu Mu stood aside and nodded: "If you're tired of playing around, come find me. If you want pain, that's easy. I'll give you 100,000 evil spirits. Do whatever you want with them."

Upon hearing these words, Qieyu, who was standing behind them, immediately narrowed his eyes and scrutinized Qinghai Laomo and Liumu with a mixture of surprise and uncertainty.

Especially upon seeing the body of the Power King that the Azure Skeleton Demon had possessed, his expression suddenly changed drastically: "Who are you? Where is the Power King? Where is Pumpkin??"

Qieyu originally thought the two had encountered some thorny problem and were being held up.

But now it seems that the situation is far beyond what the thief of jade imagined.

"Children shouldn't interrupt adults." Liu Mu glared at Qieyu, while Qinghai Laomo grinned and sneered, "This kid's body is not bad. I'll borrow it for a bit. As for that little girl, I poked a hole in her head."

"You are looking for death!!"

Upon hearing this, Qieyu's white hair stood on end, and the anger in his heart could no longer be suppressed.

Li Wang is a confidant of the major shareholder, while Pumpkin has an even more impressive background. Although her master is not a member of the Changchun Association, he is a highly relied-upon guest of the Changchun Association.

Both of them were key members of the Changchun Society, and yet they died here without any explanation. Now, Qieyu felt as if a piece of his heart had been ripped out with a knife.

But both Liu Mu and Qing Hai Lao Mo ignored him, their gazes fixed on the figure in the red smoke.

To their surprise, the shadow in the red smoke merely swayed its body and leaped past them in the next second.

The two men's expressions darkened, and the next second they were engulfed by thick red smoke.

The red smoke caused no harm, but it froze the two people, rendering them unable to move.

"Xing Xie, you're fucking asking for death."

Upon seeing this, the old demon Qinghai immediately cursed, "What you're doing is breaking the rules. Don't regret it when you're on the execution platform!"

Liu Mu said with a forced smile, "Old Xing, good advice is useless against a damned devil. If you do this, you'll regret it later. Don't blame your brother for not warning you."

Xing Xie paid no heed to the curses and threats from the two men. He raised his head and looked at Jin Chanzi and the others on the rooftop.

With just a glance, Zhao Hongzhong and his men felt dizzy and vomited blood, fainting on the spot.

Jin Chanzi's face turned ashen. After hesitating for a moment, he reached into his sleeve.

But upon touching it, Jin Chanzi was taken aback by something. He took it out from his sleeve—it was the painting that Xiao Ran had given him.

Jin Chanzi had no idea where this thing came from. He only knew that when Xiao Ran handed him the painting, she was very certain that if he couldn't delay any longer, he should open the painting.

Thinking of this, Jin Chanzi did not hesitate. No matter what the painting was, he would delay as long as possible. If he could delay until Xiao Ran succeeded, that would be the best outcome. If they couldn't defeat him then, they could simply leave.

He still had two Great Teleportation Talismans on hand, which would allow them to escape unscathed at any time.

Just as the scroll was about to be unfurled, the light in front of Jin Chanzi suddenly turned dark red.

Looking up, he saw Xing Xie's figure already in front of him, his five withered fingers reaching straight for Jin Chanzi.

Before the palm even got close, golden light burst from the Taoist robe on Jin Chanzi's body, and the Bagua diagram on it spun rapidly, transforming into a Tai Chi shield in front of Jin Chanzi.

However, this Tai Chi shield couldn't even last a second against Xing Xie before it was crushed in one swift motion.

"boom!"

The Tai Chi Shield shattered instantly, generating a shockwave that sent the Golden Toad flying.

The scroll in his hand loosened, and it flew into the air, slowly unfurling.

"what is that??"

As the scroll unfurled, it appeared to float in mid-air. When everyone looked up, they saw that the painting depicted only a plum blossom tree and a black cat beside it. The cat had one green and one red eye and wore a bronze bell around its neck. It was quite adorable and endearing.

"Hey!"

"why are you laughing??"

The old demon Qinghai twitched his ears and turned around to look. He saw Liu Mu laughing and was immediately confused, wondering what the kid was laughing about.

"The reinforcements have arrived. Just wait and see what happens."

Six Eyes raised his head and spoke to the old demon Qinghai.

He didn't try to hide his voice, and Qieyu could hear it too. However, Qieyu scoffed and said, "What kind of bullshit helper is he? Even if the King of Heaven himself came today, it wouldn't make a difference."

"The Heavenly King?"

Liu Mu glanced sideways at Qieyu and shook his head, saying, "If the Heavenly King himself came, you might still have a chance to live. Unfortunately, it wasn't the Heavenly King himself who came."

"what?"

Qieyu didn't understand what Liumu meant, but soon, Qieyu sniffed and smelled a fragrance of plum blossoms.

Looking up, one can see plum blossoms falling one by one from the painting, their fragrance filling the air.

Xing Xie also raised his head in confusion, looking at the painting in front of him, a hint of trouble appearing in his eyes.

But soon, Xing Xie's body trembled, as if he had thought of something. He turned around without looking back, leaped up, and rushed straight towards the altar.

"He's going to run away??"

This time, not only was Jin Chanzi confused, but even the Jade Thief was confused.

No? You are an evil god, a legitimate deity, not comparable to the evil spirits he borrowed. You are a divine being, an invincible being. Why are you running away?

Qieyu didn't know why Xingxie was running away, but the moment he saw Xingxie turn and run, before Qieyu, a shrewd old thief, could even figure out the reason, he had already jumped up and run away.

Can……

too slow.

In the painting, a man's back appeared out of nowhere, and he raised his hand, picked up a plum blossom, and threw it out of the painting.

In an instant, countless plum blossoms emerged from the painting, transforming into a magnificent sea of ​​flowers that blotted out the sky and swayed before everyone's eyes.

The next moment, when the sea of ​​flowers dispersed, what lay before us was an endless plum blossom forest.

The group found themselves surrounded by plum blossoms, with nothing else in the sky or on the ground, not even a hospital in sight.

"Illusion?"

Qieyu's heart tightened, and he immediately took out a cursed item from his spatial storage: a pair of peculiar glasses.

Grade C cursed item, [Iridescent Glasses - Eightfold Senses]

He put the glasses on and activated their special ability to see clearly.

Privilege 1: Eyes of Penetration

Once activated, it can see through all illusions, is immune to illusion attacks, and can find the flaws in illusions.

However, after confidently looking around, the man's expression suddenly turned strange.

This cursed artifact, which was once invincible, is now as useless as trash. It can't even tell whether the plum blossom trees are real or fake. If they are fake, it can't see any flaws.

But if it's real, and it's just a painting, how could it possess such terrifying power?

Liu Mu, standing to the side, looked at Qieyu with the eyes of someone looking at an idiot and sneered, "What are you? If you could see through his methods so easily, then he wouldn't be the Plum Blossom Taoist."

When Liu Mu uttered the words "Plum Blossom Taoist," Qie Yu suddenly felt the evil spirit behind him begin to tremble wildly, making it impossible for his primordial spirit to suppress it for a moment.

That was the fear from the depths of the evil spirit's heart; it seemed that just those four words were enough to cause the evil spirit's heart to collapse.

"Oh, it's him. No wonder you were so confident. You should have said so sooner." The old demon Qinghai looked surprised and complained to Liumu.

But Liu Mu adopted a "I'm not going to tell" attitude, crossing his arms and saying, "I'm not going to tell you, I'll make you anxious, hahahaha."

"Plum Blossom Taoist!! Who is he?" Qieyu was dumbfounded. He vaguely felt that he had kicked a hornet's nest this time, but after racking his brains, he still couldn't find any information about Plum Blossom Taoist.

At this moment, Xing Xie in mid-air was already running around wildly like a headless fly. Realizing that he could not escape, he became even more frantic and pulled out two large swords, slashing at the back of the figure in the portrait.

Unexpectedly, the figure didn't even turn around. Instead, he raised his palm, and the next moment, a blinding red light burst forth from his palm. With a gentle squeeze, the blade in Xing Xie's hand instantly transformed into countless plum blossoms that scattered in the air.

Immediately afterwards, the entire plum blossom grove seemed to come alive.

Beneath each plum blossom tree, painful wails could be heard, the heads of the evil spirits slain by the Plum Blossom Taoist in those years appearing on each plum blossom tree.

Logically, these painful howls should have made Xing Xie stronger, but at this moment, Xing Xie only felt cold all over.

Jin Chanzi got up from the ground, a burning pain in his chest, clearly indicating that he had suffered internal injuries.

But at this moment, Jin Chanzi was not flustered at all. He looked at the figure in the painting in front of him and couldn't help but recite a poem.

"Frosty blades drink blood at dusk over a thousand mountains, plum blossoms cast shadows across branches in spring across ten thousand valleys."

The severed head turned into roots, congealed with blood and tears; the cold fragrance seeped into the bones, buried in a desolate grave.

"With a single blade of armor, I swept away all the turmoil and calamities; alone, I guard the empty forest, offering libations to the wine cup..."

(End of this chapter)