After the ghost-hunting master descended the mountain, his fame spread throughout the capital.

On the other side, Princess Chun was terrified by the sudden appearance of a hideous ghostly figure outside the palace, her face turning pale and her voice trembling sharply:

"What...what are these things?! Ghosts...there are ghosts!"

Although most of the people in the hall were far away and could not see the specific ghostly form, the biting cold wind and the faint, mournful wailing in their ears were enough to make fear spread like a plague.

Screams, the clatter of tables and chairs, and the shattering of cups and plates filled the air, turning the once orderly birthday banquet into chaos in the blink of an eye.

Emperor Cangqi was clearly experiencing such a bizarre and terrifying scene for the first time.

Even as an emperor with a resolute will, he was momentarily stunned and looked surprised as he felt the pervasive, chilling malice.

"Protect the Emperor!"

A sharp, cold shout suddenly rang out, drowning out some of the noise.

The crown prince suddenly stood up, his movements so swift they created a gust of wind.

He shouted a warning as he strode forward, blocking Emperor Cangqi's path without hesitation, and ordered urgently, "Go to the Jingxin Terrace immediately and summon the Imperial Preceptor."

Emperor Cangqi was startled back to his senses by the shout, and his imperial majesty quickly returned. He forced himself to remain calm and said in a deep voice:

"Silence! These are nothing but some sinister spirits, what kind of behavior is this! When the Imperial Advisor arrives, he can suppress them!"

However, no sooner had he finished speaking than another unexpected event occurred.

The guards who were called upon rushed toward the palace gate, but it was as if they had run into an invisible wall.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

With a few muffled thuds, several guards were thrown back by an inexplicable force, staggering to the ground with expressions of horror.

"The palace gates... we can't get out through the palace gates!"

"We're trapped!" came a terrified cry from the doorway.

At this moment, Emperor Cangqi's expression finally changed completely, and his usually composed imperial demeanor cracked inch by inch.

His knuckles turned white as he gripped the armrest of the dragon throne.

Xie Jinchen had somehow appeared beside the Crown Prince, his voice penetrating the clamor of the hall, clear as a cold spring striking stone:

"Palace Guards, on my command! Form a tighter formation and protect the Emperor!"

"Civil officials and their female relatives, quickly retreat to the southeast and northwest corners, and do not scatter!"

He turned his head and nodded slightly to the Crown Prince, his eyes calm. "I entrust the safety of this place to Your Highness."

Before he finished speaking, he turned around and was about to venture alone towards the palace gate where the ghostly aura was strongest.

"Chen'er!" Upon seeing this, Emperor Cangqi suddenly stood up, his bright yellow sleeves sweeping over the wine cups on the table.

This urgent call stripped away all imperial majesty, leaving only genuine worry: "Do not act rashly!"

Although Xie Jinchen was born into a military family and possessed a strong aura of malevolence, who could guarantee absolute safety when facing such a bizarre ghost?

Xie Jinchen paused slightly, turned around and bowed, the prayer beads on his wrist shimmering with a warm glow in the candlelight.

"Your Majesty, rest assured, this string of Buddhist prayer beads on my wrist was a gift from a master. Ordinary evil spirits will find it difficult to approach within three feet."

He looked up at the churning black mist outside the palace. "Right now, all access is blocked, and we're cut off from the outside world. Someone has to go and try to see if we can break through. I am the most suitable person to go."

Emperor Cangqi looked at Xie Jinchen, his eyes swirling with emotion.

He finally managed to squeeze out a few words through gritted teeth: "...Be extremely careful."

During this brief exchange, the situation became even more critical.

The ghosts drawn by the bloodthirsty aura had already swarmed into the hall.

They instinctively avoided the emperor, empress, and some military generals where the dragon's aura was strongest, and instead pounced on the eunuchs and palace maids whose auras were weaker.

A young eunuch was entangled by several gray shadows. His eyes rolled back, and he trembled and collapsed, his life force visibly fading away.

A cold glint flashed in Jiang Dusheng's eyes.

She knew that the moment she had been waiting for was now.

With a flick of her wrist, three yellow talismans shot out and precisely affixed to three major acupoints on the eunuch's forehead, chest, and dantian.

The talisman ignites upon contact with the body, and golden light patterns instantly lock in the dissipating life force.

Then, she quickly stuffed two pre-prepared amulets into Princess Yongning's hands, speaking rapidly:

"Princess, keep the talisman close to your body; it will protect you for the time being. Whatever you see, do not be alarmed or scream."

Although Princess Yongning was extremely surprised and suspicious, due to her inexplicable trust in Jiang Dusheng and her own self-control, she immediately nodded emphatically.

He grabbed the somewhat terrified Princess Zhaohua and forcefully shoved the talisman into her trembling hand.

Amidst the panicked crowd in the hall, Jiang Dusheng stepped against the flow of people and headed straight for the entrance of the hall, to the area where the ghostly figures were most concentrated.

The moment Jiang Dusheng stepped out, countless astonished and puzzled eyes turned to her.

"Is she insane?!"

"Come back quickly! It's all over there..."

Amidst the gasps of surprise, Jiang Zhiyuan suddenly stood up to give chase, but Jiang Mao held his shoulder firmly down.

Those eyes were fixed on Jiang Dusheng's retreating figure, the voice low yet carrying an indifferent calm:

"Let's see! Your sister... might actually have a solution."

He also wanted to see just how capable his daughter really was.

Song Suya was so shocked she almost fainted. Just as she was about to get up, Jiang Wanqing hugged her tightly. "Mother, don't go! Don't go! I'm scared... There are ghosts over there!"

In the center of the hall, the air currents were chaotic.

Jiang Dusheng stopped three steps away from Xie Jinchen. Her light purple dress fluttered slightly in the chaotic airflow, and the cinnabar on her forehead was as red as blood under the flickering lamplight.

Xie Jinchen turned his head and glanced at him, speaking in a voice only the two of them could hear: "It seems there's no need to bother borrowing power anymore."

His deep voice held a rare hint of amusement. "Such an opportunity is rare and hard to come by."

Jiang Dusheng smiled slightly. "I'm a kind-hearted person, and I'm lucky."

She glanced at him quickly out of the corner of her eye, her words fast and clear: "Don't stray too far from me."

These words sounded like a word of advice, but they contained a deeper meaning that only she understood.

The closer Xie Jinchen got, the more abundant and vibrant the spiritual energy flowing around her became.

Even the air, which had been tainted by ghostly energy, seemed to become a little fresher, and a faint warmth slowly seeped into the spiritual veins from the back.

Xie Jinchen didn't say anything more, and quietly took a few steps back, subtly bringing Jiang Dusheng's side and rear into his protective range.

But that gesture clearly said: You do your thing, I'll take care of the rest.

Faced with the ferocious ghostly figure lunging at him with bared fangs and claws, Jiang Dusheng remained calm and took out a bone flute from his sleeve.

Jiang Dusheng held the bone flute to his lips.

"Ugh!"

The next moment, a clear and cold flute melody suddenly rang out.

The sound was not loud or harsh, but rather seemed like a clear spring falling from the heavens, or like a soul-suppressing bell ringing from the depths of the underworld.

As the flute music stopped, Jiang Dusheng's cold, rebuking voice echoed throughout the hall:

"May heaven and earth be cleansed, and may evil spirits be banished!"

With a flick of her bone flute, her voice changed from clear and melodious to deep and chilling, and a faint golden halo, visible to the naked eye, suddenly rippled outwards from her center.

"Imperial Edict: Submit!"

The final imperial edict fell—

"Buzz!"

Wherever the pale golden halo passed, the ghostly figures that lunged at the living were as if branded with a hot iron, emitting extremely shrill screams.

The black aura emanating from the ghostly figure hissed and quickly dissipated.

The weaker wandering souls turned into wisps of green smoke and vanished instantly, while the slightly stronger vengeful ghosts were also shaken, their souls becoming unstable and retreating in terror.

Jiang Dusheng's attack was effective, and he did not stop.

She could sense a powerful aura emanating from deeper within the hall, as if disturbed by the commotion here.