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

Jiang Dusheng slowly stood up, snorted coldly, "It all started when you were too eager for me to go to Qingwu City."

"It seems I underestimated you." Chen Yu nodded thoughtfully, his tone leisurely, as if commenting on an interesting object. "Your mind is indeed meticulous."

He abruptly changed the subject, and the surrounding air instantly turned chillingly cold; his voice also became deep and cold:

"But... so what if you know? You'd better just come with me obediently. Otherwise..."

"What else?" Jiang Dusheng's eyes were cold, and the bone flute had already slid into his palm.

Chen Yu stopped talking and let out a sharp whistle.

In an instant, a sound of something cutting through the air rang out.

Dozens of masked men in black, wielding sharp blades, suddenly sprang up from the earthen slopes on both sides of the road and even from the sparse trees not far away. They were agile and their movements were filled with a fierce killing intent.

Their target was not Jiang Dusheng, but Xie Jinchen, who had been standing quietly by watching.

At the same time, Chen Yu's body erupted with yin energy, and his originally delicate ghostly figure instantly twisted, his face became ferocious, and his fingernails turned into black claws, carrying a bloody wind, and went straight for Jiang Dusheng's throat.

The ferocity and ghostly power he exuded far surpassed that of ordinary ghosts, clearly indicating that he was an evil creature carefully cultivated by humans.

"Master, be careful!"

Wang Dazhuang screamed in fright, and the paper figure, quite cowardly, darted behind the nearest big tree and hid, only peeking out half its head to watch nervously.

He knew his own limitations; going up there would only cause trouble.

Almost simultaneously, the air around Xie Jinchen rippled slightly as several guards met the dozens of men in black who were rushing towards them.

Xie Jinchen himself did not draw his sword, but with a flick of his sleeve, several thin, willow-leaf-like hidden weapons were already between his fingers.

With a slight tremor of his wrist, he launched a hidden weapon at the throat and joints of the first few men in black.

Xie Jinchen's guards instantly formed a sharp triangular formation, advancing and retreating with precision, steadily blocking the first and most ferocious attack from the men in black.

The dull thud of clashing swords suddenly exploded out.

Although Xie Jinchen's side had fewer people, each of them was an elite, and their moves were concise and ruthless. For a time, they fought to a standstill with the dozens of fierce assassins.

The intention of this group of men in black was all too clear: to hold Xie Jinchen back so that Chen Yu could kidnap Jiang Dusheng.

Meanwhile, Chen Yu let out a sinister laugh, his yin energy locking onto Jiang Dusheng.

Jiang Dusheng's eyes narrowed. Instead of retreating, he lightly touched the ground with his toes and took the initiative to meet Chen Yu who was rushing towards him.

"My master merely wishes to invite you over for a chat, why the tension?" Chen Yu's voice was shrill, her ghostly claws leaving afterimages, vicious and ruthless, targeting Jiang Dusheng's acupoints and joints.

Jiang Dusheng moved swiftly, dodging lightly between the gaps in the ghost claws. The bone flute in his hand interrupted Chen Yu's gathering of yin energy, causing his attacks to be repeatedly thwarted.

Upon hearing this, she retorted sarcastically, "Just because he wants to see me, does that mean I have to go? What a big mouth he has."

Before she could finish speaking, a sharp glint flashed in her eyes, "Spirit Binding! Soul Suppression!"

She gave a clear shout, and the golden light from the Buddhist prayer beads on her wrist, which she had been holding loosely in her left hand, suddenly intensified, transforming into several solid golden rays that coiled towards Chen Yu's ghostly figure.

At the same time, she spun the bone flute in her right hand rapidly in her palm, aiming straight for Chen Yu's soul.

Chen Yu's limbs were instantly bound, his soul trembled violently, and the condensed Yin energy dissipated.

Jiang Dusheng joined his fingers together, gathering the last of his spiritual power at his fingertips, and drew a talisman in the air:

"ban!"

The talisman shone with a turquoise and gold light, like a tangible net, covering Chen Yu, who was temporarily imprisoned by the chains of Buddha's light.

Chen Yu screamed in terror and struggled desperately, but the golden chains and the Soul-Binding Talisman suppressed him, and he was also exhausted from the rapid attack, so he was unable to break free for a while.

Jiang Dusheng lunged forward, his left hand forming a hook with its five fingers, and with a flick of his wrist, he seized Chen Yu's soul.

Almost at the same time that Jiang Dusheng subdued Chen Yuhun, the outcome of the battle on the other side was also decided.

Xie Jinchen's longsword pierced the chest of the last black-clad assassin, who groaned and fell to the ground, lifeless.

All that remained on the ground were corpses in black and a heavy stench of blood.

Xie Jinchen flicked the blood off his sword and immediately turned his gaze to Jiang Dusheng.

Seeing that she was unharmed and had subdued Chen Yu, the chilling aura between his brows eased slightly.

Jiang Dusheng channeled his spiritual power into his fingertips, piercing into Chen Yu's soul and forcing him to look up and meet his gaze.

"Tell me, is your master the Duke of Xie?"

Upon hearing the words "Duke Xie," Chen Yu's previously unfocused eyes, which had been clouded by pain, suddenly widened.

Then, a ruthless and frenzied glint flashed in his eyes, "You won't get anything out of me!"

Before he finished speaking, his remaining soul suddenly contracted violently inward, and a sinister energy filled with destructive power gathered wildly.

"Get out of the way! He's going to self-destruct his soul!" Jiang Dusheng's pupils shrank as he shouted.

With her right hand pointing outwards, she flicked out a purple talisman that glowed with golden light, which landed on Chen Yu's soul body, which was about to explode.

The moment the talisman touched the soul, it shone brightly with golden light, locking tightly the violent and evil energy on Chen Yu's body and forcibly interrupting the process of the self-destructing soul.

"No!"

Chen Yu only had time to let out a resentful scream before his soul shattered inch by inch under the erosion of the golden light, turning into scattered ashes and being completely annihilated.

It couldn't even complete its self-destruction before its soul was scattered and it left no trace.

The surroundings were deathly silent, with only the faint smell of burning and blood still lingering in the air.

Only then did Wang Dazhuang dare to step out from behind the big tree, patting his chest, his voice trembling:

"Wow, Master, that scared me to death! How could that ghost just explode like that? It was so ruthless..."

Jiang Dusheng ignored Wang Dazhuang's rambling and turned his gaze to Xie Jinchen, who was standing quietly to the side with his sword sheathed.

His crimson brocade robe was stained with a few drops of blood, but his expression remained calm, as if the battle just now was nothing out of the ordinary.

"You guessed it too... that he was sent by your father?" Jiang Dusheng asked directly.

Xie Jinchen nodded slightly, his gaze deep and thoughtful. "I guessed it from the moment Chen Yu mentioned that his hometown was Qingwu City."

According to his secret investigations over the years, his mother's remains were in the vicinity of Qingwu City.

"It seems your father is quite wary of me." Jiang Dusheng's fingertips traced the bone flute, lost in thought. "Do you know where he is now?"

"He requested leave due to illness and did not attend the Empress's birthday banquet."

"I once sent my secret guards to spy on the Duke's mansion at night, but the person recuperating there was not him at all."

Xie Jinchen looked at the place where Chen Yu disappeared. "Judging from the ghost that deliberately led you to Qingwu City today, it is highly likely that he himself is in Qingwu City."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Dusheng was about to say something when Xie Jinchen suddenly turned his head and fixed his gaze on her face.

"Jiang Dusheng".

This was the first time he had called her that so solemnly.

Jiang Dusheng's heart skipped a beat. Meeting his unfathomable eyes, she asked, "What's wrong?"

Xie Jinchen's gaze seemed to pass over her, yet also seemed to fall upon her. His voice was so calm it was devoid of any emotion. "I'll let you off the ship now. You can go. I'll have my guards escort you back."

He paused, then added, "Don't worry, I will still come to see you on the fifteenth of every month."

Upon hearing this, even Wang Dazhuang was stunned, his face showing bewilderment.

Why do we suddenly have to go our separate ways?