Gou Zai, a corpse sewn into a spirit in a mortuary during the Republic of China era, became a spirit

The fire had reached the tent canvas overhead, flames soaring into the sky, heat waves rolling in, and a pungent smell of burning and coke permeating the air.

Inside the tent, however, a somber and desolate scene prevailed.

Xie An threw the dagger with all his might, and it shot out with a piercing screech, striking the center of the heavy voyeuristic mirror with pinpoint accuracy.

"Snap—Splash!"

The mirror shattered instantly, spiderweb-like cracks spreading across the entire pane of glass. Countless shards scattered like ice crystals, reflecting the leaping flames, as if a dazzling yet dangerous flower had burst open.

Almost at the same instant, Xie An felt as if his left abdomen had been struck hard by a red-hot iron pestle. The huge impact made him groan and stagger. Warm liquid immediately soaked through his lining.

He was hit by a bullet... that was Xie An's first instinct.

Although Xie An had prepared for this when he decided to throw the dagger at the mirror, he still managed to roll to the side to protect his head, hoping to dodge the bullet.

I don't want to... reality is cruel!

In a life-or-death struggle, there is absolutely no room for the slightest bit of luck.

This wasn't Xie An's first time killing someone, but he had never encountered such a dangerous situation before. He felt an instinctive fear, and for a moment... his mind almost went blank.

But he knew very well that even the slightest moment of hesitation at this moment could lead to death.

An overwhelming will to survive suppressed all the panic in his heart.

Although the bullet hit his abdomen, causing immense pain, it did not damage his internal organs. Instead, it was stopped by the strong skin and tendons, with the bullet lodged in one of the tendons.

Their mobility was not impaired.

And there's good news too:

The mirror shattered, the shadow vanished.

Despite the excruciating pain, Xie An used the momentum from throwing the dagger and the impact on his body to roll backward, completely disappearing into the increasingly dense shadows at the edge of the burning tent.

The shadow ability once again enveloped his entire body as the mirror failed, but the excruciating pain from the fresh wounds and the constant seepage of blood created a sharp crack in this perfect concealment.

Inside the tent, the flames burned even more fiercely.

Shen Molan closed her eyes the moment the mirror shattered to avoid being injured by the shards. When she opened her eyes again, all she could see was the burning canvas, the thick smoke, the corpses of her men, and the glittering fragments of the mirror scattered all over the ground.

The blurry outline disappeared.

This gave Shen Molan an indescribable sense of dread, and she frowned deeply.

This thing is so clever and efficient... it's willing to get hit by bullets just to shatter the mirror.

Without the reflection of the mirror, Shen Molan felt the danger level skyrocket.

But she didn't panic. She immediately fired several shots in the direction of the figure's outline, but missed. She quickly unfastened the gleaming bayonet from the front of her Hanyang rifle on her back with her right hand, gripped it in a reverse grip with the tip pointing outwards; her left hand still held the Colt pistol, vigilantly watching her surroundings.

She slightly hunched over, moving her feet with minimal steps, adjusting her center of gravity, her eyes scanning the surroundings and her ears listening to everything around her, more like a vigilant mother leopard in a thicket of thorns.

Xie An gasped for breath in the shadows, quickly pressing on the wound in his abdomen. The wet, sticky sensation made him frown.

He knew he needed to act quickly. Seizing a tiny opening as Shen Molan adjusted her position with her back to him, he darted out from the shadows behind her like a shadow, the last dagger in his hand silently aimed at the back of her neck!

However, just as the blade was about to touch his skin, Shen Molan seemed to have eyes in the back of her head, and swung a bayonet horizontally in a backhand motion. Xie An was so startled that he quickly retreated to avoid it.

There was no way around it; weapons are all about length. The bayonet was much longer than his dagger. Before his dagger could even reach the opponent, he would be wounded by the bayonet first.

But the problem is... how did she know I was behind her?

The mirror is all shattered...

Xie An's mind raced, and he suddenly realized:

It's not sight, it's smell!

Xie An smelled the increasingly strong stench of blood on himself during this lunge, and instantly understood.

This woman is not only an excellent marksman, but also has impressive hand skills, and an exceptionally keen sense of smell.

"Bang!"

Shen Molan had already turned around while rolling around, and with her left hand, she fired two shots at the general direction where her sense of smell had locked onto the strongest smell of blood!

Fortunately, Xie An changed direction immediately and was not hit.

"Found you, little mouse."

Shen Molan stood still, panting, her nostrils flaring slightly, and a cold, resolute smile curved her lips.

"You're badly injured, aren't you? The smell of blood... it's a true guiding light. You can't get close to me!"

Flames were shooting into the sky everywhere, but no one was in sight.

Shen Molan continued, "I am the deputy head of the Special Affairs Section under Commander Liu of the Tianjin Military Governor's Office. I have come to the mountains today on business. I have no intention of offending Laojun Mountain. Please grant me this favor."

She saw the man's outline through the voyeuristic mirror and concluded that he was some kind of filthy creature from Laojun Mountain. After all, a normal person wouldn't use such bizarre methods.

Although Shen Molan appeared calm and composed at this moment, she was actually panicking inside.

The bullets will eventually run out... and this guy lurks in the unseen darkness, like a vicious wolf.

Xie An did not reply, but he was also inwardly alarmed. This woman's battlefield instincts and adaptability far exceeded his expectations. Without hesitation, he retreated into the deeper shadows and rushed out of the already burning tent.

The cold night wind invigorated him. He quickly hid behind a boulder, ripped off his left sleeve with a tearing sound, revealing his muscular forearm. He bit one end of the strip of cloth, and tied the other end tightly above the wound on his abdomen, making a tight knot. The excruciating pain instantly covered his forehead in cold sweat.

Immediately afterwards, he grabbed the burning tent fragments from the ground and vigorously rubbed the charred, smoking parts onto his clothes and skin near the wound. The strong, pungent smell of burning immediately masked most of the fresh blood.

"Give you a favor... You're being incredibly naive! If I don't kill you today, you wretch, how can I, Xie An, maintain my standing in this world?!"

Having applied enough charcoal ash, Xie An once again concealed himself and walked towards the camp.

……

Inside the tent, Shen Molan frowned. The distinct, sweet, metallic scent of blood in the air... suddenly vanished!

No matter how hard she tried to smell it, she couldn't detect it.

"Hmm? After I mentioned the commander's name... it really left? It won't make things difficult for me anymore?" Shen Molan felt uneasy, but she dared not be careless at all.

Holding a gun in his left hand and a knife in his right, he formed a circle around his body to protect himself from anything.

Hiding in the darkness, Xie An watched for a while and noticed that Shen Molan's protective posture was quite sophisticated. Trying to reach over her hands to slit her throat... wouldn't be easy.

Just as Shen Molan maintained her protective posture and walked step by step towards the outside of the tent—

The blade flashed, so fast that only a cold shadow remained.

Shen Molan felt a lightness in her left shoulder, followed by an unimaginable coldness and emptiness, and then a tsunami of excruciating pain!

Her left arm, holding the pistol, was severed at the shoulder, flying out with a spray of hot blood, and landing with a thud in the burning ashes.

"ah--!"

A piercing scream pierced his throat.

But in the instant her arm was severed, driven by her beast-like fighting instincts, she gripped the bayonet in her intact right hand and thrust it backward with deadly force! At the same time, she twisted her body, attempting to entangle the nearby enemy with her legs.

That reaction... was too fast and too ruthless!

Xie An indeed couldn't completely dodge the counterattack. The bayonet sliced ​​across his ribs, drawing a trail of blood. Shen Molan's legs were also tightly wrapped around his waist.

Shen Molan's eyes were bloodshot. The pain and rage made her strength surge. Because the distance was too close, it was difficult to reverse the force of the bayonet. She abandoned the bayonet with her right hand and frantically dug at Xie An's eyes and throat with her five fingers like hooks. Her knee also slammed into the wound in his abdomen!

Based on Shen Molan's reactions in these desperate situations, Xie An already knew she was an extremely dangerous woman. Without further hesitation, his Hunyuan Stance Technique revealed its foundation—his feet were rooted to the ground, his waist and hips were like cast iron, and no matter how Shen Molan struggled and entangled, his core would not retreat!

His left hand, like an iron clamp, pried open Shen Molan's sharp claws that were reaching for his throat, and his right fist, which had been poised to strike, moved at that moment.

The first move of Bajiquan: Supporting Hammer!

The arrows shot swiftly from the bow.

The fist rose from the waist, the back and waist snapping like a bowstring snapping open, the shoulder, elbow, and fist twisting together in an explosive force. The fist, like a heavy hammer, was short and explosive, aimed straight at Shen Molan's stomach, just below her heart!

This is the brute force of "opening the gates," which doesn't concern itself with fancy techniques but aims to shatter the opponent's mid-range strength and shake their internal organs in one blow.

"Bang!"

The sound was dull, like the beating of a drum.

Shen Molan's frantic scratching and knee strikes suddenly froze, her eyes bulged, and she spat out a mouthful of acidic water mixed with blood and foam. The tangled leg muscles loosened considerably in an instant, but she still clung tightly to Xie An.

The second move of Bajiquan: Subduing the Dragon!

Five Sacred Mountains Facing the Sky!

With his hammer-wielding strength still intact, Xie An took advantage of the moment when his opponent leaned back and his center of gravity rose after being struck, and transformed his right fist into a palm. The edge of his palm was like an axe blade, and he fiercely slashed upwards along a tricky diagonal line, directly striking the junction of Shen Molan's jaw and throat that was exposed due to her leaning back!

This is called "lever breaking the frame," which is specifically designed to strike an enemy who has lost their balance and whose defenses are wide open.

"Snap!"

Shen Molan's jaw was twisted and deformed by the palm strike, and her subsequent screams were abruptly stopped, turning into a hissing sound. An incredulous horror flashed in her eyes.

Bajiquan Third Form: Subduing the Tiger!

Six Harmonies Spreading Brocade!

Xie An exhaled and made a sound, his body pressing forward like a bear, his shoulders sinking and his hips sitting down. He combined his entire weight and the remaining explosive force into one, using his right shoulder as the tip, and slammed solidly into the center of Shen Molan's unprotected chest!

"Thump—Pfft!"

Like a heavy sandbag being struck by a giant log, Shen Molan's sternum caved in with a terrifying arc, and a corresponding bulge appeared on her back. She was thrown off the ground by the force, and her legs, which had been wrapped around Xie An's waist, finally loosened limply.

She flew like a tattered sack of cotton wool over the burning tent frame, crashing heavily into the scalding ashes a few meters away, sending sparks flying.

Shen Molan lay face down, blood still gushing from her severed arm, which was stained with ashes.

She strained to turn her head, her blood-stained face contorted, a hoarse sound emanating from her broken throat, her unfocused gaze fixed intently ahead. Finally, she saw the equally wounded shadow slowly materialize into a person.

It was none other than Xie An, the young master of Qinghe Charity Estate.

"It's you! It's actually you!" Shen Molan sobbed in disbelief.

Huhu.

Xie An gasped for breath, pressing his hand to the wound on his chest inflicted by a bayonet. The successive injuries caused him excruciating pain, and his limbs felt numb and weak; he was no longer able to maintain the shadow. The shadow receded from his body like ripples on water, revealing his pale face.

He picked up the dagger that had fallen to the ground and approached Shen Molan step by step, his eyes flashing with ferocity and savagery: "Commander Shen, it's been a long time."

Shen Molan stared intently at Xie An, her eyes filled with madness, resentment, and a hint of surprise at finally realizing the origin of his martial arts skills.

Her lips moved slightly. "Xie An, my uncle is Shen Wanglu, the richest man in Yongning County, and my cousin is Shen Qianjun, the head of the Special Affairs Section of the Governor's Office. How dare you..."

Xie An knelt down in front of Shen Molan and spat bloody saliva onto her face with a "tui" sound. "Just because you are of noble status, you think you can use the people from my mortuary to feed that Chen Daquan? You regard me as an ant, but do you know that an ant can shake a tree?"

Shen Molan panicked. "Xie An, you can't kill me! My cousin... Shen Qianjun has brought men. If I die... you won't survive!"

"Don't get agitated. Soon... I'll send your cousin down to reunite with you." Xie An took out a dagger and gently traced it across Shen Molan's forehead, his tone exceptionally gentle. "You used the lives of seven people from my mortuary as fertilizer that day; today I will take... your life!"

puff.

The dagger plunged deep into her forehead.

The knife tip emerged from the back of his head, and blood dripped down from it.