Holding a lantern, guiding souls across, Lady Hou comes from the underworld.

After saying this, Yan Zhengchu was covered in cold sweat, and his hands were trembling.

However, the Taoist Master Tianji has yet to respond.

Ren Fengjue was also nervous, his mind racing, trying to figure out how to ask the question, when he heard a sigh.

"You must be the child my junior brother tried to save back then?"

Tianji Daoist did not reply to Yan Zhengchu, but instead fixed his gaze on him, and then asked, "You will soon be twenty-one, two years younger than Zhengchu. You are the only son of Marquis Renxuan, and also my junior brother's nephew, right?"

Upon hearing this, Ren Fengjue exchanged a glance with him and quickly replied respectfully, "Yes."

The Taoist Master Tianji nodded, then suddenly beckoned to him: "Come closer, extend your hand."

Although he didn't know what it meant, Ren Fengjue did as he was told.

Then, the Taoist Master Tianji lifted his sleeve, revealing the middle and ring fingers of his right hand, and gently placed them on his wrist.

He closed his eyes for a moment, as if taking a pulse.

Upon seeing this, Yan Zhengchu stared intently at his master's expression and suddenly nodded to Ren Fengjue.

After a short while, the Taoist priest released his grip and said, "Your father should have already told you that you were born lacking one of your souls."

"With your seven souls incomplete, your destiny is unusual, and you are prone to attracting evil spirits. That's why those things happened to you in your childhood."

Yan Zhengchu couldn't help but interject, "Master, but he is clearly a pure yang body now."

Master Tianji nodded: "Yes."

"That's because Junior Brother Ren Yao used forbidden techniques to save him, turning himself into a living dead, which is how he gained this pure yang body that is immune to all evil."

Ren Fengjue knew long ago that his uncle had become like this to save him.

These words still made him feel cold all over, and he didn't know what to feel.

Yan Zhengchu then seized the opportunity to ask, "What kind of forbidden technique is it? Does Master have a way to break it?"

The Taoist Master Tianji seemed reluctant and hesitated for a moment before saying, "This forbidden technique is actually 'life for life.' Once it is used, only one of the two can survive."

Yan Zhengchu felt a chill in his heart, yet stubbornly refused to believe it.

He shook his head: "But my uncle's body clearly shows signs of being alive. If he's dead, why has his soul disappeared?"

"Master, I believe you must have a way. There must be other reasons, right?"

The Taoist Master Tianji fell silent again.

He closed his eyes slightly, pondered for a moment, and seemed to have compromised: "Actually, it's not that there's no way for you to see your martial uncle's spirit."

These words made Yan Zhengchu and Ren Fengjue's eyes light up, filled with both nervousness and anticipation.

The Taoist Master Tianji slowly stood up and sighed softly.

He paced back and forth in front of the two of them a few times before turning around and saying, "The dead cannot be brought back to life. Even if you meet again, you will be separated by life and death, and it will all be in vain. You cannot change anything."

Ren Fengjue understood this in his heart, but even if this method didn't work, he was unwilling to miss any opportunity.

Yan Zhengchu exchanged a glance with him, which could be considered as a mutual understanding.

Ren Fengjue said, "Master, if my uncle were to die, his body should be laid to rest and his soul should be reincarnated, not left in this ambiguous and unclear state."

Yan Zhengchu added, "Master, I'm willing to try as long as there's even the slightest hope."

Faced with their resolute gazes, the Taoist Master Tianji sighed again and finally nodded.

"In that case, you may come with me."

-

The courtyard where Xia Ximo was located had a total of three rooms.

Apart from the room she was staying in, the other two rooms were all locked.

Wuyou led her to the door of one of the rooms and said, "The ghost's aura is coming from here..."

Peering through the crack in the door, one could see that the interior was piled high with miscellaneous items.

Indeed, as Yan Zhengchu said, it was a place to store old things.

As Wuyou spoke, she floated directly through the gap and used her soul power to unlock the door.

After the door was opened, a faint wisp of yin energy could be seen lingering in the room, but no trace of the ghost was immediately found.

The old items inside the room must have been stored there for a long time. Because it was not exposed to sunlight, the air was filled with not only pungent dust but also a strong musty smell.

Xia Ximo frowned immediately after entering the room, brushed off the dust with his hand, and began to search around.

But the wisp of yin energy was too faint. They, one person and one soul, searched the room for a long time but had no clue.

Because the smell was too strong, Xia Ximo couldn't help but push open a window.

Just then, a sliver of moonlight shone through the window.

Wuyou immediately noticed that a bronze mirror with a rhombus pattern was lying quietly on the ground in the corner.

It was startled: "Mogu, the yin energy seems to be emanating from that mirror..."

Xia Ximo stepped forward for a closer look and indeed saw a trace of yin energy covering the mirror surface, giving it an eerie feel.

Wuyou asked again in confusion, "Didn't that young Taoist priest say that there have never been any female guests on this mountain? But this mirror is clearly a woman's possession."

The reasons behind this cannot be fully understood at the moment, but one thing is certain—

"There's definitely something wrong with this mountain!"

Xia Ximo remained silent, bent down and picked up the mirror, and the wisp of yin energy seemed to be startled and began to crawl into the mirror.

Then, a hazy figure slowly appeared on the dim mirror.

It appears to be a woman.

Wuyou circled the mirror, pondered it carefully for a moment, and then said, "If I'm not mistaken, it should be that the soul has been sealed inside the mirror."

"Um."

Wuyou immediately protested, "The Taoist priest on this mountain must have done something wrong! Otherwise, why would he seal that woman's soul inside the mirror!"

Xia Ximo didn't reply. It analyzed the situation silently for a while longer, then asked, "Mogu, who do you think is the most suspicious? Could it be the fat Taoist priest who cooks?"

"Apart from Yan Zhengchu, he's the only one who's a bit older."

"It couldn't be that Taoist priest surnamed Yan, could it? But he looks..."

Xia Ximo glanced at it and finally spoke up: "What's there to guess? Just go in and see for yourself, and you'll know."

"…ah?"

Before Wuyou could react, Xia Ximo had already drawn out her soul, which instantly disappeared into the mirror.

That's really... not dragging things out at all.

"You haven't fully recovered yet, and you're doing it again!"

Wuyou had no choice but to follow and crawl inside.

The cluttered room returned to its tranquil state.

However, not long after, footsteps were heard outside the door.

Then, a figure appeared at the door, paused for a moment, and then stepped into the room.

He slowly walked to Xia Ximo's side, then suddenly took out a yellow talisman from his sleeve and struck it directly on her forehead.

Then, he snatched the diamond-shaped mirror from her hand and stuck a black talisman on its surface.

After doing all that, a smug, wicked smile appeared on his lips. He then quietly turned and left the room, locking the door behind him.