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Chapter 116 Chen Qian is a Righteous Man

Under the corridors of the Zhao residence, lanterns swayed precariously.

"Mr. Chen, tonight's situation is extremely dangerous. Since Wen Ce and Li Wuyai dared to set this up, they must have something to rely on. I wonder—"

Will your master, the venerable Wang, make a move tonight?

Upon reaching the central courtyard, Zhao Yuanshan suddenly paused slightly.

He gripped the heavy nine-ringed broadsword in his hand, his tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible hope: "If an old immortal were to be here, even if it were just to secretly help us, our chances of winning this time would be much greater."

Upon hearing this, Chen Qian did not stop walking, but merely turned his head slightly.

His expression was calm and composed, as if he had expected this question.

He certainly couldn't say that Wang Shouyi wasn't here at all, or that he might even be sleeping in some remote mountain valley.

But he couldn't afford to show weakness; at this critical juncture, confidence was more valuable than gold.

"Rest assured, Lord Zhao."

Chen Qian's voice was calm, yet carried an air of profound mystery: "My master's actions have always been as unpredictable as a gazelle's horns hanging in the air, leaving no trace. He is simply doing what he is supposed to do."

"As for the clowns jumping around in this city—"

Chen Qian glanced at Zhao Yuanshan, a confident smile curving his lips: "My master told me before he left how to break this deadlock. As long as we act according to the plan, we will be acting on behalf of Heaven, and good fortune will naturally follow."

"good!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yuanshan's eyes gleamed, and his last trace of concern was cast aside.

Since Master Wang is secretly making arrangements, we have a better chance of winning this round!

He took a deep breath, his blood surging, and was about to give the order to set off.

"Report!"

A heart-wrenching scream, accompanied by the sound of a heavy object smashing through the door, abruptly shattered the silence of the night.

"Master—run!—the monster—it's in!"

A blood-soaked spy stumbled into the courtyard, but before he could take more than a few steps, he collapsed to the ground with a thud. A single, damp, black hair was lodged in his back, piercing his heart and lungs.

The scout stared wide-eyed, then breathed his last.

"Who is it?"

Zhao Yuanshan flew into a rage, and his nine-ringed broadsword trembled violently, emitting a buzzing sound.

Two eerie figures slowly walked towards the front gate, as if they were in an empty place.

On the left is a man whose long robe has been torn to shreds, with countless wet black hairs emerging from his seven orifices and pores, like a black raincoat draped over his body!

The man on the right is a burly man with a blank expression. He is holding a swaddled baby in his arms, but what is showing inside the swaddle is the face of a giant baby with blue fangs and a mouth full of black blood!

"A ghost? A ghost baby?"

Chen Qian's pupils contracted sharply, and his heart skipped a beat.

All the evil spirits that were seen underground in Niushou Village have actually come out!

Moreover, they went straight to the Zhao residence, so they seem to be in complete cahoots!

"This is outrageous!"

Zhao Yuanshan had never seen such a scene before, but his dignity as a master of the Double Lamp Realm made him advance instead of retreat, his blood and qi erupting like a furnace.

"No matter what kind of demon or monster you are, if you dare to trespass into my Zhao residence, you will pay the price!"

He roared and charged forward with his knife, ready to fight to the death.

"Don't act rashly! Run!"

Chen Qian grabbed Zhao Yuanshan's arm tightly, his voice urgent and stern: "We can't fight them head-on! Those are evil spirits from Niushou Village! Lei Zhen was close to the Double Lamp Realm after taking the secret medicine, but he couldn't even withstand a single move from them before they possessed him! Lord Zhao, don't be impulsive!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yuanshan shuddered, and his initial enthusiasm instantly cooled.

He glanced at the black hair flying everywhere and the greedy eyes of the ghost infant, but reason ultimately prevailed.

"Let's go! To the secret passage in the backyard!"

Zhao Yuanshan made a decisive move, leading Chen Qian and the remaining elite Zhao family members to turn around and run away.

"Hehe—can you escape?!"

The ghost baby's shrill laughter came from behind.

The group rushed into the secret passage and ran wildly, trying to shake off their pursuers.

However, things are getting increasingly wrong.

Once they emerged from the secret passage, no matter how they changed their routes or utilized the complex terrain, the creatures behind them always kept close behind.

"Get out of here!"

Zhao Yuanshan roared repeatedly, his nine-ringed broadsword flashing like a ball of silver light.

His strength at the Dual-Lamp Realm was on full display at this moment. Ordinary walking corpses and paper figures couldn't even get close to him, and he chopped them up like vegetables.

However, there were too many enemies.

Moreover, their target was very clear: not Zhao Yuanshan, but Chen Qian, who was hiding in the crowd!

A corpse puppet that pounced down from the wall, even if it meant having half its shoulder chopped off by Zhao Yuanshan, stretched out its claws to grab Chen Qian's clothes.

A black hair, emerging from a crack in the ground, ignored everyone around it and headed straight for Chen Qian's ankle.

"Damn it—"

Chen Qian cut off the black hair with a single stroke, his face ashen.

It is the mark on his body that is guiding these evil spirits!

Although he knew this from the beginning, he hoped that having more people would give him a chance to escape, but he couldn't stop the reality of the situation!

He's the moving target!

If they keep running like this, not only will they fail to shake off their pursuers, but they will also drag Zhao Yuanshan's fresh troops to their deaths on the way.

"Whoosh—whoosh—"

The group fought their way out and took refuge in an abandoned mill for a while.

Panting heavily, Zhao Yuanshan, his body bruised and battered, looked at the shadowy pursuers outside and gritted his teeth, saying, "This is really weird! These things seem to have noses like dogs; we can't shake them off!"

Chen Qian leaned against the millstone, looking at the dozen or so Zhao family elites who remained beside him, a resolute glint in his eyes.

We can't walk together anymore.

"Lord Zhao."

Chen Qian suddenly spoke, his voice chillingly calm: "This won't do. We're too big a target; we'll be gradually devoured."

"We must divide our forces!"

"Splitting the troops?" Zhao Yuanshan was taken aback. "Splitting the troops now would only lead to being defeated one by one?"

"No."

Chen Qian shook his head, not explaining the mark, but quickly said, "I'll go distract their main force. You take the rest and join them, sir."

"Remember, if you see any of those red cloth shrines on the road, smash them all! They're nodes in the formation; destroying them might have some effect!"

"And what about you?" Zhao Yuanshan frowned.

"I have my own way of escaping."

As Chen Qian spoke, he took out the jet-black compass from his pocket.

He took a deep look at the compass, then solemnly placed it into Zhao Yuanshan's hands.

"Lord Zhao, this item is a keepsake from my master, and it has the power to bring good fortune and ward off evil."

"Once you've reunited with your men, don't wander off. Just follow the direction of this compass needle!"

"Where the pointer points is the gate of life!"

As Zhao Yuanshan held the compass, feeling its warm, smooth texture, a strange tremor ran through him.

Looking at Chen Qian's young yet resolute face, he felt as if he were seeing a warrior about to die.

"Mr. Chen—take care!"

Zhao Yuanshan stopped being coy and clasped his hands in a deep fist salute: "If I survive tonight, I, Zhao, will definitely have a good drink with you!"

"Walk!"

Chen Qian shouted and shoved open the back door of the mill, deliberately exposing himself to the pursuers' line of sight. He then turned and ran wildly in another direction.

"Over there! Chase them!"

Sure enough, the evil spirits that had been besieging the mill abandoned Zhao Yuanshan and the others instantly, like sharks smelling blood, and chased after Chen Qian like madmen.

Zhao Yuanshan watched Chen Qian's departing figure, his eyes slightly red.

"Righteous man!"

He gritted his teeth and growled, "Brothers, let's go! Smash the shrine! Fight our way out!"