Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 105 Who isn't a summoner at some point?

The night is getting darker.

Pei Chuyun erased her disguise, quietly left the neighboring courtyard, and sneaked into the abbot's hall in her original form to spy.

When Lu Xingzhou asked her which "sightseeing spot" she wanted to visit, Pei Chuyun immediately said Hongfa Temple, and there was a reason for that. She knew some inside information about Hongfa Temple and subconsciously steered people in that direction.

Hongfa Temple is certainly not a place where great monks reside, but rather a stronghold of the demonic cultivator "Infant Ghost".

The infant ghost had practiced the art of sexual cultivation and had engaged in some alchemical exchanges with the Hehuan Sect of the Maidens. The person was sent to Hongfa Temple, hence the number of people associated with it.

Pei Chuyun wasn't entirely sure if the infant ghost was still around after all these years, but after listening to Lu Xingzhou and Jing Ge talk about the case, she had a better idea. It must have been the infant ghost who did it; she could guess from the similar names.

However, Pei Chuyun wasn't sure which of the temple's spirits the infant ghost belonged to—was it the abbot? Or was it just an infant ghost using the place for work? So she still needed to investigate.

When they lured Lu Xingzhou this way, their first thought was to unite with the demonic cultivators to deal with him. Their Joyful Union Sect had a history with the Infant Ghost, and Lu Xingzhou wanted to fight the Infant Ghost, making them natural allies. By bringing him along to beat Lu Xingzhou, at least the Infant Ghost could withstand Jing Ge.

But now I have some doubts about this idea.

She only wanted to subdue Lu Xingzhou and turn him into her dog... but if the infant ghost Jing Ge were to enter the fray, the outcome would inevitably be a fight to the death.

Did she really need to go this far in her revenge? Pei Chuyun was somewhat hesitant.

She was secretly annoyed by Lu Xingzhou's idiocy. Why did he have to pretend to be so refined, staying in a temple and looking at the moonlight? If he had just stayed in that inn or the cemetery, there wouldn't have been so much trouble.

wrong!

Pei Chuyun's heart suddenly skipped a beat.

Lu Xingzhou told Jing Ge that keeping an eye on him would expose the demonic cultivator, and then he volunteered to stay here. When he provoked Huo Lu, he also explicitly stated that he wanted to eliminate demons and uphold justice...

What if Lu Xingzhou knew perfectly well that the demonic cultivator was here? Was he doing this on purpose?
How did he know the demonic cultivator was here? Could it be because Miss A'yi said she wanted to come to Hongfa Temple?

Pei Chuyun felt a chill in her heart, but they had already arrived at the Abbot's Hall.

The abbot's hall was brightly lit, and there were faint sounds of people. Pei Chuyun quietly peeked out from behind the window and, sure enough, Huo Lu was sitting there drinking tea with the abbot.

The old monk, who had appeared kind and gentle during the day, now spoke with a sinister tone: "...What benefit would I receive for helping the Fourth Young Master kill someone?"

Huo Lu said calmly, "Could it be that the abbot didn't hear him openly claim that he came to eliminate demons and uphold justice?"

The old monk laughed: "He doesn't even know who this so-called demonic cultivator is, so what right does he have to eliminate demons and protect the righteous path? He certainly wouldn't suspect me for no reason. It's just empty talk, so why should I bother?"

Huo Lu said, "The women around him are all incredibly beautiful, yet the abbot isn't interested in any of them?"

Pei Chuyun: "?"

The old monk shook his head: "This old monk has given up the practice of sexual cultivation."

Pei Chuyun nodded slightly. Indeed, the Infant Ghost had not cooperated with the Joyful Union Sect in recent years, apparently having abandoned this path.

The practice of "cultivating one's inner strength" is probably the most popular among demonic paths. Even some people in the righteous path cultivate their own "furnaces" (gathering vessels for spiritual energy) as a matter of course. However, Pei Chuyun was somewhat surprised that someone who had tasted the benefits gave it up.

Huo Lu pondered for a moment: "Abbot, I'm not exaggerating, but my seventh brother's sudden reappearance in the world has been rather strange. My sixth brother led a group to Xia Prefecture, where they were all wiped out without explanation, but let's not even go there. Just look at the cases of the Xia Prefecture city lord's demon and the Dongjiang County demon; he's involved in both. His talk of eliminating demons and protecting the righteous path might not be entirely unfounded. Abbot, you should pay a little more attention to this."

The old monk seemed to be deep in thought and did not answer.

Huo Lu continued, "To put it bluntly, Prefect Shi suffered this disaster for the abbot's sake, and the abbot owes us a huge favor. It's really unreasonable for him to make excuses for killing a mere sixth-rank cultivator."

"He suffered for no reason?" The old monk sneered. "He himself also practiced the Evil Infant Technique. He was afraid that the Jing family would find out by following the clues, so he suppressed the investigation and caused the Jing family to be furious. It was not my fault."

Huo Luqi said, "The abbot's behavior makes me feel... that you seem to be wary of Lu Xingzhou, making such a small fuss over nothing."

"No need for provocation," the old monk said calmly. "I only need some promises from Magistrate Huo in exchange. If you want to get something for nothing, then I'll help you eliminate this major threat to your family. Do I look like a fool?"

Huo Lu said calmly, "It's just a need for some babies... It's a small matter."

The old monk chuckled: "Speaking of which, this person is like someone who barged into hell when there was no gate to it, and now he wants to stay in my temple... He'll die and no one will even know."

"Abbot, please don't be anxious. I still need to go to the brothel to spend some money and make it seem like I'm not there." Huo Lu stood up and sighed, "It's still a family scandal after all, and it'll make us a laughing stock."

The old monk chuckled and accompanied Huo Lu out the door.

After thinking about it, Pei Chuyun decided not to seek any further cooperation, as it was no longer necessary.

Theoretically, with Jing Ge lying in ambush, the Infant Ghost alone would likely suffer a heavy loss if it tried to ambush Lu Xingzhou. However, the problem is that this is Hongfa Temple's territory, and who knows how many of the Infant Ghost's disciples are demonic cultivators? Is Lu Xingzhou's preparation sufficient?

But this situation seems to have been orchestrated by Lu Xingzhou himself; he's been waiting for this moment... He should have been on guard; he won't be so easily surrounded.

She should lie in wait and observe the battle unfold... Ideally, both sides would be severely injured, and then she could launch a surprise attack from behind and capture Lu Xingzhou—that would be perfect.

The teleportation artifact's cooldown just ended tonight! It might even save Lu Xingzhou's life! Pei Chuyun turned around in a flash and squatted back in her courtyard.

Then he realized that during the time he was away, it seemed that Anuo had disappeared... So Lu Xingzhou sat alone in the courtyard, sipping wine and admiring the moon.

Are you really trying to kill yourself?
Pei Chuyun could even sense the approaching wind in the distance; the guest courtyard was already surrounded...

"Whoosh!" A dark shadow silently approached Lu Xingzhou from behind, moving with lightning speed.

Pei Chuyun could see clearly that it was a black infant body with a terrifyingly ferocious expression on its face, its hands outstretched, reaching for Lu Xingzhou's neck.

Lu Xingzhou suddenly held the white banner in his hand, and countless vengeful spirits roared out, entangled with the black infant.

The baby suddenly let out a piercing cry that echoed throughout the mountains.

However, the vengeful spirits were mixed with black flames, which burned away the baby's hands.

But the cry shook Lu Xingzhou's soul violently, and the vengeful spirits were also shaken away. Lu Xingzhou quickly pulled back and turned his wheelchair to deliver a punch.

The red and blue energies spiraled and exploded in his hand. With a "boom," it was as if a powerful bomb had been injected, and the black baby was blasted to pieces.

A furious voice boomed from the sky: "Lu Xingzhou! You ruined my magic weapon, die!"

A dark shadow rapidly approached, and a terrifying black mist enveloped the courtyard.

"Clang!" A dazzling blade of light flew across the sky, illuminating the night and dispelling the mist.

Jing Ge descended from the sky, slashing heavily into the black mist with his sword, thus stopping the attack.

The man never expected that after following Lu Xingzhou and watching him flirt with girls all day, a demonic cultivator would actually show up at night!

However, at this moment, the demonic cultivator could not discern the old abbot's appearance at all. Within the black mist was a withered body, entirely black, with an infant's head emerging from the dantian, which looked extremely terrifying.

Jing Ge flew into a rage: "Infant Ghost! It really was you!"

The infant ghost cackled eerily: "Commander Jing, why do you have to haunt me? You're all alone, and you're likely to be trapped here."

“Who said it was just him alone?” Lu Xingzhou rubbed his hands together, and a third-grade Five Thunder Talisman quickly ignited: “A talisman from the Incense Burning Pavilion, its grade is not bad.”

"Boom!" The Five Thunder Orthodox Method, which is specifically designed to subdue Yin Corpses, illuminated the sky.

The infant ghost quickly dodged, but Jing Ge's blade light followed closely, blocking all escape routes.

The infant ghost could only summon a black cloak to withstand the five lightning strikes: "Huo Lu said you were a bit strange, and it's true... It's one thing to be able to casually pull out a third-grade talisman, but you actually have the power to control it, that's really rare."

Yes, talismans cannot be used by those of higher ranks. If Ye Tinglan were to draw a talisman and give it to a beginner, the beginner would only suffer a backlash and die if they tried to use it.

Lu Xingzhou's leap from sixth-rank imperial envoy to third-rank talisman was so outrageous that even Jing Ge couldn't quite understand it.

They initially thought Lu Xingzhou's level was too low to intervene in a battle between third-rank cultivators, but both sides were surprised. Jing Ge immediately switched to close combat to protect his own spellcasters.

The infant ghost sneered: "You think you can entangle me like this? Why do you think I practiced the Evil Infant Technique?"

As he spoke, several more illusory infant figures suddenly appeared on his left and right sides, grinning maliciously as they detached from his body, bypassing Jing Ge and rushing towards Lu Xingzhou.

Jing Ge was about to turn around to help Lu Xingzhou when he saw Lu Xingzhou sigh: "It's just a summoner... My soul banner is a bit weak, but I have other things..."

Three talismans flew out and transformed into three fourth-grade talisman spirits with a "bang," engaging in a fierce battle with the infant phantom.

The soul banners are raised again, and vengeful spirits howl.

This time, the army of vengeful spirits, led by a leader, had a different effect... The few infant phantoms were only at the fourth rank, and they were frantically entangled, torn apart, and devoured by the talisman spirits and vengeful spirits, their screams extremely shrill.

Jing Ge twitched his lips and silently continued to chop people.

He always felt like he was participating in a battle between demons and villains, a scene so bizarre that you couldn't even tell which side was the bad guys.

The two sides attacked and defended for only a short while, and the encirclement was rapidly approaching.

Surrounded by his own people, the infant ghost, however, had lost his earlier arrogance and his expression became somewhat solemn: "Since you guessed that I was here, you should know that this is my territory. You still dare to stand here fighting in the encirclement... what is your intention?"

"Abbot, something terrible has happened!" A monk shouted in a panic from afar, "The prefectural guards have stormed into the temple and, led by a child, are heading straight for the ossuary!"

The infant ghost turned pale with fright.

Why would the prefect suddenly interfere?
Even Jing Ge sighed, "I'm truly convinced of Brother Lu's judgment now."

Pei Chuyun, who was lying in wait, was dumbfounded... What did Lu Xingzhou do while she went to eavesdrop on Huo Lu and the infant ghost's conversation?
(End of this chapter)