Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Chanting the Transcendence Spell over and over, by the sixth repetition, some of the older spirits began to turn transparent. By the time the eighth chant concluded, all the spirits in the center of the massive Soul Summoning Array had been successfully guided to peace.
Everyone started drinking water to soothe their throats. This method of chanting spells was efficient and effective, but it was hard on the voice. I took a few sips to moisten my throat and then prepared to call forth the next batch of spirits, which could not exceed sixty-four.
The second batch was sent away without any issues, and the third followed suit, with no unexpected occurrences in between.
A sense of confusion crept into our minds; logically, there should still be a Vengeful Spirit present, yet it had yet to appear. After three rounds of collective guiding, our voices were starting to become hoarse. Upon careful calculation, it seemed that there weren't many spirits left inside.
“Wait a moment.” Just as I was about to recite the Soul Guiding spell again, Meng Biao stood up and spoke.
I released my Hand Seals and looked at him in confusion.
He stepped forward a few paces and said, “There shouldn’t be many spirits left inside. For the remaining ones, let’s each rely on our own abilities and see how we perform.”
“Haha, relying on our own abilities? Aren't you afraid the gap will just keep widening?” Master Xiao also left his position, speaking proudly.
Zhang Chuanzheng stood up as well but remained silent since he was at the bottom of the rankings; even if it came down to individual skill, he had no advantage.
I turned to Mao Ruiliang and said, “Mao Shixiong, it's your call.”
Seeing me ask him, Mao Ruiliang stood up and replied, “Alright then. Meng Biao, take a look at how many spirits are left inside. If there are more than fifty, we’ll continue with collective guiding.”
Meng Biao nodded and carefully pulled out a purple talisman from his bag before walking cautiously toward the cave entrance.
“Don’t go in too deep again, Meng Biao,” Master Xiao reminded cheerfully.
Mao Ruiliang chuckled lightly and added, “The spirits inside are rapidly decreasing; they won’t confuse Meng Biao’s mind anymore. Don’t worry.”
Everyone watched Meng Biao at the cave entrance, but the moonlight was blocked by a mountain at that spot, making it hard to see clearly. We could only vaguely see Meng Biao making some gestures before hearing his voice: “No more than fifty spirits; everyone come over.”
Upon hearing this confirmation, we gathered toward the cave entrance. When we reached it, Zhou Hong weakly asked, “Should I go in? Otherwise, I can just stay outside and keep watch; if everyone goes in, who will look after things out here?”
Mao Ruiliang shook his head and said, "No need. I can't let you stay out here alone; I'm worried about you. You should come in with us. As for the things outside, I doubt anyone will take them. It's the middle of the night; who besides ghosts would be wandering around here?"
Everyone nodded in agreement. Zhou Hong had already gone missing once, and there was a Vengeful Spirit lurking around. It was uncertain whether it was inside the cave or outside, but if it was outside, Zhou Hong would definitely be in trouble.
Seeing that everyone was concerned for him, Zhou Hong didn't insist any longer and nodded in agreement to enter the cave together.
Just as they were about to go in, Zhang Chuanzheng suddenly said, "Wait a minute. This time we should rely on our own abilities and not cooperate. Sister Wang's Yuanxin is too overpowered, like she's using cheats. Besides, I don't think this kind of cooperation really reflects our individual strengths."
I understood Zhang Chuanzheng's mindset very well. Since he was at the bottom among the others, he naturally felt dissatisfied. In his mind, if the three of us separated, we would definitely be slower than him, giving him a chance to maintain fourth place. If we continued to work together, he would surely end up last. It was understandable that he had such thoughts.
"I have no objections," I immediately replied. If I were in his position, I would feel unbalanced too. The reason I suggested cooperating with Wang Xiaolu before was that she had Yuanxin, which could restrict the wandering of Yin spirits. Now that we were going into the cave, the Yin spirits inside wouldn't escape, so there was no need for cooperation anymore.
Master Xiao scoffed and said, "If we separate, then so be it. You really think you're something special? I can assure you that even if we don't cooperate, you'll still end up at the bottom."
"Haha, just talk," Zhang Chuanzheng retorted as he began to prepare to open his eyes.
The others chuckled lightly, seemingly agreeing that this was a good idea; they probably felt the same way but were too embarrassed to say it out loud.
I turned to look at Wang Xiaolu; she pouted slightly and seemed a bit displeased.
After everyone opened their eyes, they grabbed their talismans and items and squeezed into the Human Cave.
Once inside again, there was significantly less Yin Qi; most of the Yin spirits had already been exorcised. The few remaining couldn't pose much of a threat either. Moreover, all eight of us were wearing protective talismans, which further deterred any lingering spirits from approaching.
Since we had already opened our eyes, we could directly see where the Yin spirits were located inside. However, there was no moonlight within; we could only rely on our flashlights for illumination.
"Everyone take off the focusing lens from your flashlights and spread them out on high points of the rocks," Mao Ruiliang instructed as he began unscrewing the focusing lens from his flashlight. Once removed, it could function like a bulb that diffuses light. By spreading out eight flashlights this way, we could illuminate the entire cave's outline just as well as outside under moonlight—though there were many bones here, so we needed to tread carefully.
"Be careful while walking; don't trip over the bones or get pierced by ribs," I reminded them.
Once everyone had secured their flashlights, Meng Biao called out to start, and we each began to take action. The enclosed space amplified the sounds, creating echoes that distorted the incantations and interfered with each other's spells. Thus, we could only approach the spirits quietly and softly chant the spells to collect their souls.
I glanced around and noticed that there were only a little over ten spirits left inside. Each of us had more than five objects bound to us, so this competition was purely about the speed of soul collection.
Among the ten or so spirits, seven of us started collecting from the nearest one. Wang Xiaolu was closest to me, and there were two spirits nearby. Since she was a girl and not suited for running around, I decided to do her a favor and headed toward the two spirits in the far corner.
The spirits here were weak, much like New Soul. I wondered what method the Red Sun Sect used to control so many spirits' Yin Qi so effectively. If they weren't using any Feng Shui methods, it would be impossible to suppress that many spirits with just two guardians. However, this Feng Shui method made things easier for us. If we were dealing with their normal growth rate, we wouldn't dare enter even if there were only twenty.
The two spirits in the corner were huddled closely together, and I was the only one who approached them. After binding them into two objects, I was about to look for other targets when I suddenly spotted a shadow behind a large rock at the edge of the corner.
Another spirit was hiding here; I felt puzzled. Did it still have some consciousness left? I began to think about the vengeful spirit that had knocked Meng Biao unconscious—could this be that very spirit?
To be safe, I quickly grabbed a handful of Cinnabar Ash and held it in my hand while pulling out two Exorcism Talismans.
I slowly walked toward the spirit. It swayed slightly as if eagerly anticipating my arrival. As I got closer, it surprisingly raised its hand and beckoned me.
What the hell? This was indeed a conscious vengeful spirit. I tightened my grip, ready to strike before it lunged at me.
But it showed no intention of attacking. What was going on?
When I was only a meter or two away from it, a voice reached my ears: "Finally, someone has come to rescue us! Which sect are you from? Why are you using Cinnabar Ash?"
I looked at the spirit in confusion. Asking which sect I belonged to—could it be that it was also from Taoism?
Before I could ponder further, the voice spoke again: "Someone is coming! Quickly bind me; don’t purify me yet. I have something to tell you."
I took out an object for binding; before I even began chanting the Soul Binding Spell, the spirit dove into it.
It could actively enter the object!
My curiosity about this spirit deepened, but now wasn't the time to dwell on that because at that moment when the spirit entered the object, I heard Zhang Chuanzheng's voice: "Liu Shidi, do you have any left over there?"
I shook my head and said, "No more." Then I placed a talisman on the object to mark it. Since it had something to tell me, I decided not to send it away just yet.
Turning around, I walked to the central gathering point. All the spirits inside the cave had been collected. To ensure I hadn't missed any, I took out my compass and scanned the area once more. After confirming that there were no remaining spirits, we finally left this purgatory-like Human Cave.
This time, there were a total of seventeen spirits. Excluding the one I had hidden away, there were sixteen left. Meng Biao collected four, Mao Ruiliang gathered three, while Master Xiao, Liu Zhiqiang, and Zhang Chuanzheng each took two. Wang Xiaolu only managed to collect one; her speed in gathering souls was indeed quite slow.
Outside the cave, Meng Biao appeared very pleased as everyone found their own spots to perform the rites for the departed. Judging by the speed of their rituals, Meng Biao was only slightly faster than Wang Xiaolu, but that didn't affect his overall score.
At this point, everyone's time for opening their eyes had passed. I found a large rock to hide behind and began to send off souls. After sending away those two ordinary spirits, I prepared to call out the spirit that had spoken to me earlier to ask what was going on.
Tearing off the talisman from above, the spirit voluntarily appeared before me. Upon closer inspection, I realized that this spirit was an elderly man with a head full of white hair. He seemed to possess an air of immortality.
"Are you also a practitioner of Taoism?" I asked politely. The reason for my courtesy was that he showed no hostility towards me at all...
Good night, gentlemen.
Comment 0 Comment Count