Love & Redemption
Chapter 48 - 8 Wangxian Exorcises Ghosts (Part One)

Chapter 48: Chapter 8 Wangxian Exorcises Ghosts (Part One)

The fourth update. Four updates completed today.

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It turned out that behind Wangxian Town there was a mountain, covered with a type of grass called Zhu Yu, which was delicious and sweet. Normally, it could be used in cooking, and after having a meal, one could go without food for three days. Because of this, the people of Wangxian Town rarely grew their own food, living entirely off the abundant Zhu Yu Grass that carpeted the mountain.

However, three months ago, someone went up the mountain to pick Zhu Yu and found that a large swath of the Zhu Yu Grass on the south side of the back mountain had been completely uprooted, some even pulled out with the roots in what seemed like an act of malice, left uneaten to wilt away.

The situation gradually worsened, with the entire back mountain’s Zhu Yu Grass withering. The blight then spread to the front mountain, and soon there was only a small patch left with Zhu Yu Grass. This grass was the sole food source for the townspeople, and if it died out, they would have nothing to eat or drink.

Having nothing to eat or drink was a minor concern compared to the more bizarre phenomena that started occurring after the Zhu Yu Grass began dying. Ghostly wails would haunt the mountain at night, loud and powerful enough to last the entire night until daylight.

The adult men might have been fine, but the timid children and women were often scared to the point of being unable to sleep all night, which over time led to sickness. By now, more than half of the town’s people had fallen ill. To make matters worse, some brave young people would venture to the back mountain in groups during the night to see what was actually happening, but those who went never returned, adding a layer of terror to the ghostly disturbances.

Xuanji and her two companions were not frightened when they heard this. Each of them young and full of vigor, eagerly offering to exorcise the ghosts in Wangxian Town. They hurried Boss Zhao and the others to set out. The group didn’t even stop for tea after their meal and headed straight for the ferry dock to the east, bound for Wangxian Town.

Upon reaching the dock, the three chartered a black-awning fishing boat to slowly ferry them across the river.

The fishing boat’s cabin was cramped, and with Boss Zhao and his two companions also squeezed in, Linglong became displeased. She disliked the old men’s foul smell and stuffiness, so she dragged Zhong Minyan to the stern to whisper.

Boss Zhao himself felt awkward and apologetically smiled at Xuanji, saying, "We should have rented a larger boat, so as not to make the young ladies suffer in such cramped quarters with us old timers."

Xuanji smiled and replied indifferently, "Uncle Zhao, don’t worry about it. When traveling, one rarely finds everything convenient. Could you tell me, has anyone in the town actually seen what the ghost looks like?"

Boss Zhao thought for a moment, hesitant, and said, "No adult has seen it, but my little grandson, who is only four years old, claimed a few days ago that he saw a crying ghost with three heads and wings. But... he’s just a child, so we didn’t take his words seriously."

Xuanji pondered for a while when Linglong, having pulled Zhong Minyan back from the stern, overheard what Boss Zhao said and her face turned pale. She quietly tugged at Xuanji’s clothes and whispered in her ear, "Xuanji... Could it really be a ghost with three heads and wings? How... terrifying!"

Zhong Minyan had overheard her whispers and laughed, "Scared now? Who was the one showing off courage just now by accepting the task first? If you’re scared, you can find a place to hide when we get to the town, and Xuanji and I will handle the exorcism."

Linglong retorted anxiously, "Nonsense! I’m not scared! I... I will go too!"

Boss Zhao chuckled apologetically, "The young lady is a cultivator, naturally fearless. We just hope you will successfully exorcise the ghosts and restore peace to Wangxian."

Zhong Minyan said, "I heard the old man earlier mention the ghost with three heads and wings. It’s likely not a ghost but possibly a demon bird. Years ago at Lutai Mountain, we encountered a Gu Diao with cries like a ghost’s wail. If it’s a demon, we should be able to capture it easily."

Linglong immediately took out the Demon Name List from her belongings to search through it, saying, "I remember there is a record of a demon bird with three heads, but I can’t recall its name."

Xuanji leaned in to look with her and suddenly spotted something, pointing at it immediately, "Is it this one?"

They all looked where she was pointing and saw the Qu Ru Bird depicted with three heads on a bird’s body.

Linglong quickly showed the image to Boss Zhao and asked, "Uncle, have a look, does it resemble this?"

Boss Zhao squinted at the picture for a long time before finally shaking his head with a sigh, "I’m ashamed to say we’ve never seen the culprit... only my little grandson can have a look."

Linglong, ever impatient, hurried out of the cabin to check the sky, then asked, "When will we arrive at Wangxian Town? We’ve been on this boat all morning."

Boss Zhao smiled and replied, "It’s still some time away. After crossing the river this afternoon, there’s still a trek of more than ten miles. Even with a quick pace, we won’t arrive until tomorrow morning!"

Upon hearing they wouldn’t arrive until the next day, Linglong became so agitated that she paced back and forth on the bow of the boat. Finally, she stamped her foot and called out, "Xiao Liuzi! Xuanji! Let’s fly over! This slow crawling by boat and on foot will take forever to get there!"

Zhong Minyan and Xuanji exchanged glances. They knew Linglong well, and for her to have endured up to this point was probably already at her limit.

Zhong Minyan rose to his feet and bowed to Boss Zhao, expressing his apologies, "Sorry, old man, we must be going ahead. We will wait for everyone in Wangxian Town."

Boss Zhao was puzzled, "The boat is still on the water... young man! How can you go ahead...?"

Linglong said with a smile, "We have our ways. Farewell!"

As soon as the words were spoken, the three of them disappeared from the bow of the boat all at once. Those who rushed to the bow only saw three streaks of white light shoot across the sky, vanishing in the blink of an eye. These rural folk had never seen cultivators perform Sword Flight, so they mistook it for Divine beings revealing themselves and hurriedly knelt at the bow to kowtow ceaselessly.

The Xuanji trio, who reached Wangxian Town in the blink of an eye by Sword Flight, naturally did not see anyone worshipping them.

As soon as Linglong touched the ground, she hurried to ask about the situation. To her surprise, in the broad daylight, the streets of the sprawling Wangxian Town were completely empty as if it were a ghost town.

"It can’t be... Ghosts don’t haunt in the day, why is there no one...?"

Wandering the streets for a while, Linglong suddenly saw a tavern ahead with an old flag hanging and half the door open; the three of them quickly ran over.

Unable to contain her impatience, as soon as she entered, Linglong started shouting, "Innkeeper! Innkeeper!"

After calling for a long time, no one in the inside responded. Looking closely, they saw the hall was in disarray with tables and chairs strewn about and dust everywhere. It seemed the patrons had left in a hurry, even leaving their cups and bowls on the tables.

Xuanji picked a stool that wasn’t broken, wiped off the dust with her handkerchief, and sat down to speak softly, "Perhaps the inn had no business due to hauntings, and they simply abandoned the place and left."

As she spoke, she yawned. At this hour, she would usually be napping, but now that she was away from home and unable to sleep, it was rather troublesome.

Linglong also sat beside her, rubbing her stomach and sighing with a pained expression, "I... I’m hungry. There’s not a soul in this cursed place... it’s so annoying..."

Zhong Minyan gave a wry smile, "My ladies, it’s not the same as being at home when you’re out and about. Can we not act spoiled, okay?"

He took out some dry food and a water flask from his luggage and handed it to Linglong, "Here, have something to eat for now. After we catch the demon, we can go to a bigger town and have a good meal."

Linglong smiled sweetly as she obediently took the dry food, giving a large portion to Xuanji as she said, "Have more, little sister. You must be hungry too, right?"

Xuanji picked up a piece of the dry flatbread, hesitating about which end would be softer to bite, when suddenly, there was the sound of footsteps from upstairs, as if someone was moving around. The three of them immediately dropped their food, their movements swift as lightning, and ran upstairs. They saw a figure flash by in the corridor and quickly duck into a room, slamming the door shut and causing dust to billow.

Linglong could not bear it. She darted forward and kicked the door open, shouting sternly, "Who’s there! Whether you’re human or ghost, come out this instant!"

No sooner had the words left her mouth than crying from inside could be heard, and someone said in a trembling voice, "Mercy, Lady! Have mercy!"

As the three of them looked into the room, they saw a dozen or so people of different ages hiding. Some were even under the beds, with only their heads showing, looking at them with faces filled with terror.

Zhong Minyan quickly stepped in to calm Linglong and bowed, "Apologies for disturbing you all. We are disciples from the Shaoyang Sect, and we have come to exorcise the ghost that has been haunting your town."

Upon hearing this, the people finally came out, trembling.

It turned out they were all tavern staff. The town’s haunting left them with no business, but they were reluctant to return to their hometowns and chose to stay. They all hoped the ghost would be expelled soon so they could get back to business.

With the misunderstanding cleared up, those people, knowing that Xuanji and her companions were here to catch the ghost, eagerly served tea and made food, while also cleaning out rooms for them to stay in.

Only when she finally had a mouthful of hot food did Linglong sigh with satisfaction and said with a smile, "Actually, coming out for an adventure... can be pretty fun after all!"

Zhong Minyan just smiled bitterly; she seemed to have forgotten who was the one complaining the loudest earlier.