Swing the sword at the future female devil

Chapter 292 I can’t tell the difference, I really can’t tell the difference!

"Could it be that the fog outside is the nightmare energy you mentioned, Celestial Master?"

Master Zhang pondered for a moment, then sighed softly, "I didn't tell you before because I was afraid you would overthink it. Now that things have come to this, there's no harm in telling you."

He slowly raised the bronze thunder seal in his hand and brought it close to the oil lamp. The light made Zhang Xuanlin's slightly thin face appear and disappear. It could be seen that tar-like viscous liquid was seeping out from the cracks on the thunder seal and dripping into the darkness.

"Nightmare energy is not mist." Zhang Tianshi suddenly extinguished the oil lamp, and the sound of copper coins whistling through the air came from the darkness. Three Hongwu Tongbao coins wrapped in talisman paper were driven into the blue bricks, and spiderweb-like blood threads immediately appeared on the ground. The black mud seemed to come alive, climbing and intertwining along the cracks in the bricks, gradually solidifying into a blurry human face.

Duan Huaige felt a chill run down his spine after watching for a while, and quickly took a few steps back. The bronze thunder seal in Zhang Tianshi's hand flickered with lightning, erasing the blurry faces and turning them into a wisp of green smoke that dissipated.

"It is alive. The spells in the Lu Ban Book are mostly related to ghosts and gods. The spells of ghosts are nightmares, which are dreams. So generally speaking, places with a high density of puppets will generate a continuous stream of nightmare energy."

"Of course, it is also possible that some powerful puppets, in the process of developing their own intelligence, will also generate a continuous stream of nightmare energy."

Upon hearing this, Duan Huaige fell into deep thought. Perhaps the people of Luban Dao would understand this situation better, but at the moment, no talents in this field had emerged around him, so he could only rely on himself to grit his teeth and follow the plot.

It's a pity, I wonder where Miss Frostfall is now? If she were here, perhaps she could find out something.

"So, there are many puppets hidden in Qingyang Town?"

"Perhaps... This place is shrouded in dark clouds, with months of torrential rain, an environment most conducive to the growth of evil spirits," Zhang Tianshi said in a deep voice. "If it were truly the work of a demon, I'm afraid there wouldn't be many living people left in this town..."

What a cruel plot twist! Duan Huaige thought to himself, "Qingyang Town was wiped out in one fell swoop... Now that we've determined the enemy's direction, shouldn't we fast forward to preparing to suppress them?"
"Master Zhang, what do you plan to do?"

"No rush," Zhang Tianshi said with a slight smile. "The rain will stop tomorrow, and it won't be too late for us to go to town and check on the situation."

Duan Huaige was startled. Zhang Xuanlin's current behavior clearly indicated that he already had a plan, but simply didn't want to tell him yet.

Could it be because I was possessed by nightmare energy yesterday that Zhang Tianshi suspects I'm not the real me? But with his cultivation level, he could easily strike me down with a single Five Thunderbolts technique; there's no need for this charade.

Duan Huaige glanced at Zhang Tianshi's robe without showing any emotion. It wasn't wet from the rain. When he came in, he hadn't even opened an oil-paper umbrella, which meant that he hadn't left the City God Temple; at most, he was at the entrance.

So he was just watching over me?
Damn it, I knew my luck couldn't be this good. On the surface, he seems to be the first person to have contact with Zhang Tianshi, but in reality, due to the setting, he is now being suspected by Zhang Xuanlin. If he doesn't answer correctly in the next second, he might be sent back to Longhu Mountain by a bolt of lightning.

With no other option, Duan Huaige could only obediently sit down by the fire, preparing to sleep for the night before heading to town the next day.

The howling wind and rain outside were deafening, and Duan Huaige was filled with a myriad of thoughts. Although the current Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain had given him a lot of advice before he arrived, whether this matter could be accomplished depended on what Duan Huaige himself did.

I wonder if Taiqing has come in yet, and where she is hiding now?

In a daze, Duan Huaige seemed to feel a wave of drowsiness wash over him, and as he drifted off to sleep, he suddenly heard someone calling his name: "Duan Huaige... Duan Huaige, wake up..."

He slowly opened his eyes and saw Qin Shuangjiang's stunningly beautiful yet aloof face. She was dressed in black, holding a long sword, and exuded a cool and elegant aura, much like a female knight-errant.

"Frost's Descent... It's you? What are you doing in this temple?"

Qin Shuangjiang looked at him strangely and said, "What temple? Haven't we been in this room the whole time?"

Duan Huaige froze on the spot, his expression suddenly changed drastically. He stood up and looked around, but there was no sign of Zhang Tianshi from the City God Temple. All that remained was a small town room from the Ming Dynasty. He was still dressed as a scholar. Looking down, he saw that the Five Thunder Demon Suppressing Seal on his wrist was still shimmering with a faint light.

"What's wrong with you?" Qin Shuangjiang noticed that Duan Huaige was acting strangely and asked.

Duan Huaige: Which one is the real one? I really can't tell!
"It's nothing..." Duan Huaige suppressed the turmoil in his heart and did not immediately voice his doubts. Instead, he asked, "What's the situation now?"

"After we stepped into the Demon-Subduing Karma Array, we were randomly teleported to Qingyang Town. I am a wandering knight, you are a scholar, and there are others who are butchers, night watchmen, and opera troupe leaders." Qin Shuangjiang slowly said, "Zhang Zhiyao from the Celestial Master's Mansion is the night watchman's daughter."

"When I found you, you were selling calligraphy at a roadside stall, but you collapsed there," Qin Shuangjiang said quietly. "The neighbors said you went to a brothel to listen to music and exhausted yourself, which caused you to feel weak and dizzy."

"."

"Looks like the identity I've been assigned isn't exactly that of a good person," Duan Huaige said righteously. "For someone as upright as me to pretend to be a slut is quite a challenge."

"Isn't this a perfect match for your major?" Qin Shuangjiang asked abruptly.

Duan Huaige didn't respond, but instead changed the subject, saying, "So, what's everyone doing now? Fawning over the Celestial Master? Has anyone tried to sneak away?"

Qin Shuangjiang's tone turned serious: "That's the crux of the problem. During the time you were unconscious, all the prodigies who entered the formation to participate in the subjugation of demons used their respective identities to inquire about the Celestial Master's whereabouts in different areas. The results were all the same."

"Three days ago, an old Taoist priest died in the dilapidated City God Temple in the north of the city. His head was separated from his body, and his body was covered with bronze-colored slime. He was still clutching a piece of iron in his hand. His death was extremely gruesome."

A storm raged within Duan Huaige's heart, and it took him a long time to force himself to calm down and analyze the situation before him:
If it's true that he's currently with Qin Shuangjiang, then what level of bizarre event could possibly lead to the demise of a Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain? Is there some unknown secret behind this?

He glanced at the view outside the window. Although the sky was still dark and gloomy, there was no dark gray fog like he had seen at the City God Temple.

If it is true that he met Zhang Tianshi in the dilapidated temple before, then it means that everything before his eyes is actually a false illusion. Zhang Tianshi's death is just a deception used by the illusion to deceive his perception.

Duan Huaige had a sudden inspiration and came up with a good way to test it.

(End of this chapter)