This humble Taoist priest, Qianhe, begins his quest for immortality by slaying demons and monsters.

Chapter 183 When the Ghost Messenger Arrives, Zhong Bai's Domineering Nature

In a remote mountain area less than a hundred miles from Renjia Town, Zhong Bai looked at the information that appeared on the summons for fellow disciples in his hand and smiled in surprise.

"Unexpectedly, Qiu Shengwencai still managed to release those Yin spirits. But logically speaking, with the Foundation Establishment Ghost Messenger suppressing them, how could they have had a chance?"

Shaking his head, Zhong Bai realized he had found the starting point for his investigation. The ghost messengers in Renjia Town were not clean, and they were extorting money from Maoshan disciples. Zhong Bai could not sit idly by and had to make sure they suffered the consequences!
Day two.

In Renjia Town, the group of Maoshan disciples finally arrived after rushing around for a long time.

"Senior Brother Lin, we've been waiting for you!"

One by one, the Maoshan disciples arrived at the main hall of the mortuary. Some of them were a bit older than Lin Fengjiao, but unfortunately, their talents were not as strong as Lin Fengjiao's. They were still only at the eighth or ninth level of Qi Refining. They had no chance to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage in their lifetime. They were just here to make a good connection.

Looking at the dozens of fellow disciples who had arrived, Lin Fengjiao's heart remained unsettled for a long time. Indeed, her fellow disciples were the most reliable.

"Senior Brother Lin, tell me, how should we resolve this matter?"

Si Mu sat on a chair and looked at Lin Fengjiao in the center. He slowly spoke, saying that if they did not use some effective methods and just relied on searching around, they would probably not be able to catch all the tens of thousands of Yin spirits even after several days.

Upon hearing this, all the Maoshan disciples looked at Lin Fengjiao, waiting for her to speak.

"Fellow junior brothers and senior brothers, I am truly sorry to have called you all here today. Tens of thousands of Yin spirits have escaped, and my strength as Lin Fengjiao alone is limited."

However, now that all of you fellow disciples have arrived, we can set up the Primordial Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams Formation to trap his yin spirit.

What do you fellow disciples think?

"Alright! We'll all listen to Senior Brother Lin!"

The plot is largely the same as the original, both involving the use of the Innate Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams Formation. However, the difference this time is that Shi Jian is not present, and Shi Shaojian is not likely to be there...

Just as everyone was discussing, a sword light descended from the sky, and suddenly, all the Maoshan disciples in the arena widened their eyes.

Almost the instant they saw the newcomer, everyone bowed and paid their respects.

"We pay our respects to the Sect Master!"

The newcomer was none other than Zhong Bai. His robes fluttered in the breeze, and a faint smile appeared on his lips. He then waved his hand and said, "No need to be so polite. I have come here for some matters concerning the Underworld, which happen to be related to the ghostly calamity in Renjia Town."

"There's no need for the Innate Yin-Yang Eight Trigrams Formation. A few ghost messengers dare to deceive my Maoshan disciples? Do they really think Maoshan is made of clay?"

After Zhong Bai finished speaking, he looked up at Lin Fengjiao in the center.

"Senior Brother Lin, may I meet those few lowly ghost messengers tonight?"

As soon as Zhong Bai finished speaking, Lin Fengjiao immediately stood up and respectfully said, "As the Sect Leader commands, Lin Fengjiao would naturally not dare to disobey!"

There is a difference in their status now. Although Zhong Bai calls him Senior Brother Lin, Lin Fengjiao is not so foolish as to take it seriously and think that he has the right to advise Zhong Bai.

"Indeed, you should all rest now. Tonight, you will join me in judging the ghost messengers!"

"We will obey the sect leader's decree!"

They were originally discussing how to capture those evil spirits, but now... Zhong Bai's arrival has instantly reversed the situation.

In the courtyard.

In front of the stone table.

Zhong Bai and Lin Fengjiao sat facing each other.

"Master, please have some tea!"

Lin Fengjiao poured tea for Zhong Bai from the teapot in front of her, and then poured herself a cup as well.

"Senior Brother Lin, I think you understand that Qiu Sheng and Wen Cai couldn't possibly control a few ghost messengers with just two immobilization talismans."

Zhong Bai didn't dwell on Lin Fengjiao's current respect for him. After all, their status had changed, and Zhong Bai couldn't continue to have Lin Fengjiao call him Junior Brother Qianhe. The authority of the Maoshan Sect Leader required it.

Seeing that Zhong Bai brought up the matter, Lin Fengjiao sighed helplessly.

"Master, to be honest, what can we do even if this matter is discovered?"
"Those ghost messengers were probably just trying to extort money from me. It wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision; it was premeditated. Besides, they were all at the Ghost General level. How could I possibly appeal?"

Lin Fengjiao's words revealed her helplessness. It was the truth. Without Zhong Bai's arrival, most of the Maoshan elders probably wouldn't have the confidence to say they could get justice for Lin Fengjiao.

Unless they risk everything to report this to the patriarch of the underworld, the Maoshan elders in the mortal realm have no way to deal with these ghost generals.

Zhong Bai nodded.

How much were they extorted from?

Hearing Zhong Bai's question, Lin Fengjiao raised her fingers and showed four fingers.

"To be honest, junior brother, it's forty million!"

"Forty million... These ghost messengers are really asking for the moon. In one fell swoop, Brother Lin, you've lost five years' worth of good karma. Why don't those five ghost messengers just ask for fifty million? That way, it'll be easier to divide!"

"Um... it was originally fifty million, but I bargained it down to forty million..."

Zhong Bai rolled his eyes. It really was true.

"Senior Brother Lin hasn't burned them yet, has he?"

Lin Fengjiao shook her head and said, "Not yet. Originally, I planned to burn 20 million tonight, and another 20 million after the matter is resolved." "That's fine then. If they want the good karma of my Maoshan disciples, they'll have to see if they have the life to take it!"

Zhong Bai snorted coldly, and Lin Fengjiao couldn't help but feel a jolt of fear. Even though Zhong Bai wasn't targeting her, she still subconsciously felt a sense of dread.

After Zhong Bai finished speaking, he looked to both sides. Qiu Sheng and Wen Cai, one on each side, had their heads down and dared not look at Zhong Bai.

"Qiusheng, a man of great talent..."

"exist!"

The two looked up in unison and responded, their bodies trembling slightly.

"Although you two suffered an undeserved misfortune, it did cause your master to be threatened by the ghost messengers. As punishment, you two are to copy the Tao Te Ching one hundred times. Do you have any objections?"

"No, thank you for the punishment, Sect Leader!"

Zhong Bai had Qiu Sheng and Wen Cai copy the Tao Te Ching to test their character. Their first reaction upon seeing the female ghost was merely to glance at her. How could that be acceptable? They should strike before the opponent makes a move!

Zhong Bai felt that this needed improvement.

Before we knew it, night had fallen.

In the main hall of the mortuary, Zhong Bai sat high on the throne, flanked by a group of Maoshan disciples.

Standing at the front on the left was Lin Fengjiao. At this moment, Zhong Bai looked at him and said, "Senior Brother Lin, summon those ghost messengers!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Fengjiao nodded.

"Follow the law!"

Lin Fengjiao crushed a talisman in her hand, which was the method she used to contact the ghost messengers. Sure enough, as soon as the talisman burned, five ghostly auras emerged from the hall, and five ghost messengers appeared, holding soul-reaping clubs and soul-hooking chains.

"Lin Fengjiao, are you planning to burn some money for us?"

Without even carefully observing the existing situation, one of the ghost messengers went straight to questioning them.

However, he soon realized something was wrong. His colleague beside him seemed abnormal, his body was trembling, and even his already pale face had become even paler.

Just as he was about to look around to see what terrifying things were there, he heard a shout from the void!
"Hmph! It was you five brats who extorted my Maoshan disciples!"

Zhong Bai's rebuke carried a certain power, making the five ghost messengers feel as if they had been struck by a heavy hammer, and they were so nervous that they almost collapsed to the ground.

"You...you are?"

"I am Zhong Bai, the leader of Maoshan Sect and the Inspector of the Mortal Realm. Tell me, who is behind you little devils? What is the truth of this matter? If you conceal even the slightest thing, I will annihilate you all right now!"

As he spoke, streaks of crimson lightning spread outwards from beneath Zhong Bai's feet, like a giant net, causing everyone present to tense up.

When they heard that the leader of Maoshan Sect was the Inspector of the Mortal Realm, their sky seemed to have fallen.

Before arriving in the mortal realm, their superiors had instructed them that they could provoke anyone on this trip, except for a True Lord like the leader of Maoshan Sect, whom they absolutely could not cross. Unfortunately, this time they really did run into a brick wall.

“True…True Lord, no, Inspector, we didn’t mean to extort the Maoshan disciples. It’s just that Lin Fengjiao’s disciple caused tens of thousands of ghosts to escape, so we can only offer silver notes as a token of our goodwill to extend the stay…”

Zhong Bai was so angry he almost laughed.

"How dare you say the responsibility for this lies with me, a disciple of Maoshan... You can't reason with a damned devil!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Zhong Bai unleashed a bolt of lightning at the ghost messenger who had just been arguing. In an instant, the ghost messenger was engulfed by the scarlet lightning, and in a short while, it turned into white smoke and dissipated into the void.

The remaining four ghost messengers were almost scared to death. They never expected that the mortal inspector in front of them would be so ruthless and decisive, daring to kill the ghost messengers of the underworld without a word.

They understood that only by telling the truth might they have a chance of survival.

"We all say it, we all say it!"

Please spare my life, Your Excellency Inspector!

The thing is, we five ghosts were insatiable, so we set our sights on Lin Fengjiao's disciple, deliberately causing him to commit a serious mistake in order to extort money from him..."

Zhong Bai listened, and the Maoshan disciples around him also heard it clearly. Their eyes turned to the remaining four ghost messengers, and they were filled with rage.

"Is that all?"

Zhong Bai shook his head. These were not the words he wanted to hear, and they weren't worth Zhong Bai making the trip himself.

"I'm giving you one last chance. Tell me the true identity and purpose of your superiors, or I'll have to search your souls!"

Upon hearing Zhong Bai's nonchalant words, the four ghost messengers turned deathly pale. Knowing that continuing to conceal the truth would lead to certain death, they immediately knelt on the ground.

"Please spare us, Your Excellency Inspector! We'll talk, we'll talk!"

Besides extorting your disciples, we also intend to secretly release several ghost generals during our trip to the mortal realm. These ghost generals are all subordinates of the younger brother of Ghost King Shangguan.

Zhong Bai listened, and seeing that what the other person was saying was finally something he was interested in, a faint smile appeared on his lips.

"go on!"

"Yes, yes, Your Excellency Inspector, our superior is a messenger from the underworld under the jurisdiction of King Chujiang of the Underworld and the Lord of Mount Tai..."

(End of this chapter)