Yin Shou Shu

Chapter 329 The Ghost I Want to See
Ran Qing was stunned when she saw the face in the coffin.

The white paper covered with characters written in cinnabar remained frozen in his hand.

Ran Jianfei was lying in the coffin...

Ran Qing hadn't expected it to turn out this way.

—So that's why the woman in red lured him here?
Ran Jianfei was indeed murdered and buried underground.

Someone wants to use Ran Jianfei to raise evil spirits and refine him into a ferocious and malevolent ghost.
Chaotic thoughts and complex emotions surged forth in an instant.

Ran Qing's brain almost shut down.

But at the same time, he sensed some kind of danger.

He, who was squatting beside the coffin, suddenly raised his head and stood up.

A cold gaze swept across the open space, and the eerie staff with the human head was raised, emitting a faint green light in the darkness, like a torch of will-o'-the-wisps.

As the staff of human heads swept across, pairs of gleaming eyes darted and lingered in the darkness under the dim green light.

—The evil mountain monsters that followed them had somehow gotten close.

They were only a few meters away!
The eerie green light emanating from the staff even swept over the ugly, hairy foot of one of the evil spirits.

Changeling...

Ran Qing stared at the evil spirits lurking in the darkness and said coldly, "Chuan Zeng Danji, come out! I know you're here!"

Ran Qing's cold voice was accompanied by a hoarse echo.

A chaotic mix of emotions, including violence and anger, surged within his chest.

In an instant, the excited roars of the evil lords seemed to become incredibly noisy in his ears.

His shadow trembled and twisted violently in the candlelight, as terrifying as a vengeful ghost.

Ran Qing's companions all looked at him with surprise and unease, and subconsciously took a few steps back.

From the depths of the darkness came a low, hoarse old man's voice.

There was a hint of curiosity in his voice.

"...How did you know it was mine?"

Upon hearing this voice, both Mo Li and Long Zongshu's expressions changed.

That is indeed the voice of Kawamasu Tōkichi.

That mysterious and eerie old man had previously convened a Dharma assembly and gathered the unorthodox practitioners of Zangke, attempting to unite everyone's strength to fight against the Ghost Gate.

The old man at that time had a kind face and seemed like a compassionate and kind person.

But now...

Ran Qing, standing in the open space, said coldly, "I guessed. With this coffin and these mountain monsters and evil spirits, you were the first person I thought of."

"Ran Jianfei has been searching everywhere, but hasn't found any clues."

“But he attended your Dharma assembly, and only two days later, he came to this ghost town with a clear goal, and was then murdered in the ghost town.”

"And the fox on Old Wang Mountain is terrified of you."

"That fear has exceeded its original cautious nature."

"You must be quite intimidating to these mountain monsters and evil spirits, right?"

"When these things inexplicably followed us, I guessed it might be you..."

Ran Qing's cold voice echoed in the darkness.

An old man's voice, deep in the darkness, chuckled softly, kind and gentle, seemingly that of a compassionate and friendly old man.

"Very clever... No wonder he is Mo Baifeng's successor."

"You are much smarter than your father."

"Of course, it's also possible that he has more things on his mind than you, so he couldn't resist my temptations and came even though he knew there might be danger."

The old man sighed with emotion.

On the dark, open ground, there seemed to be even more eyes lurking in the darkness.

Pairs of eerie, glowing eyes writhed in the shadows, and the air was gradually filled with a pungent, fishy stench.

Ran Qing and the others have been surrounded.

The old man's gentle, friendly chuckle continued. "Young Master Ran, since you're a smart man, let's speak frankly."

"I have no ill intentions towards you. You're probably here to catch ghosts, right?"

“I heard that you and your son have long since severed ties and have no connection with each other.”

"In that case, put down the evil-raising talisman paper in your hand, leave this open space, and go inside to catch your ghost."

"I'll pretend I didn't see you. These friends I invited will make way for you and won't attack you. We can all live in peace... How about that?"

"You came here to catch ghosts, but you were led here by that female corpse. You have actually deviated from your original purpose."

"What do you think?"

The old man's voice was gentle and friendly, and his patient and persuasive tone was incredibly kind, making one instinctively want to believe him.

Ran Qing coldly looked at the surrounding darkness, her tone and expression returning to calm.

However, in the candlelight, the shadow beneath his feet appeared even more grotesque and trembling, as if countless hideous ghost faces were crowding together in the shadow, trying to emerge.

Ran Qing said coldly, "As long as I leave and don't disturb your completion of the Nourishing Evil Technique, you won't attack me... You're really generous."

"But actually, even if you wanted to harm me now, it would be very difficult for you, wouldn't it?"

"The bunch of ghosts you invited have been following us all the way, but they've never been willing to get close."

"When we entered through the big iron gate, they even hid at a distance and wouldn't come over. Later, you must have used some means to force them in?"

"I've already opened the coffin lid and seen the face inside before you spoke... If you really wanted to stop me, wouldn't it have been easier to speak before I opened the coffin?"

Ran Qing said coldly, "If you're not just bluffing, come out here now and talk to me face to face, and I'll leave immediately."

“That old fox on Laowang Mountain is timid and cowardly, but it said you were dead, so it shouldn’t be lying. No one suspected you at the time, and you had no reason to pass on a false message that you were dead to us.”

"So, in the old fox's eyes, you really are past your prime, but you didn't want to die and used some other evil magic to survive?"

"But you, who survived by evil magic, should be very weak now, which is why you couldn't stop me in advance?"

Ran Qing stared coldly into the darkness, looking in the direction from which the sound came.

His calm words analyzed the current situation.

In the darkness, the old man's voice suddenly stopped.

A good ten seconds or so passed before the old man's voice rang out again.

It carried a hint of dryness and helplessness.

"...Indeed intelligent, even overly intelligent."

“Young Master Ran, you guessed right, I am indeed very weak and unable to stop you.”

"I was indeed bluffing."

"But you've got one thing wrong. It's not that I have no way out, it's just that I don't want to fight you to the death."

"You Han people have an idiom called 'mutual destruction'... I just don't want everyone to lose together."

The old man sighed, "But it seems you're unwilling to abandon your father."

"In that case, I wish you good luck."

After the old man finished speaking, he fell silent.

Surprisingly, the eyes surrounding the open space did not immediately rush up to attack after the old man's voice stopped.

Instead of rushing up to attack, they fled in panic.

The three people beside the coffin were stunned by the sight.

But then they realized something.

A chilling, biting wind suddenly blew in from afar, accompanied by a rustling sound.

Ran Qing, with his keen senses as a spirit medium, instantly felt a terrifying fear he had never experienced before.

It's as if something extremely terrifying is approaching from the depths of darkness.

That is……

"The old man has attracted the ghosts here!" Long Zongshu's expression changed drastically, and he understood the situation as well.

(End of this chapter)