Chapter 62 The Stubborn Woman's Lament (12) You old scoundrel, why are you always so cunning...?
On the huge arena, Nie Fengxi and Xue Canzi stood at opposite ends, far apart.
"Why haven't those two made a move yet?" someone couldn't help but ask.
"Do they intend to kill each other with their eyes?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the onlookers burst into laughter.
Song Qiling raised an eyebrow slightly and saw that her uncle's empty right sleeve moved without wind, and several silver threads emerged from it. In an instant, the puppet threads disappeared into the air.
At the same time, a knee-high wooden puppet fell from the sky and stood firmly on the ground. It was dressed in a peach-pink wide-sleeved maid's dress, with its hair styled in two buns, its face covered with paper, its lips painted with nail polish, and its narrow eyes empty, with occasional flashes of red light within them.
"Wow, what an exquisite and delicate puppet!" exclaimed the onlookers.
Then, the maid puppet deftly lifted her skirt and spun around in place, leaving everyone even more bewildered.
What kind of move is this?
Seeing this, Blood Silkworm, on the other side of the arena, curled the corner of his mouth slightly and let out a cold laugh. He took out a short flute from his waist, brought it close to his lips, and slowly played it.
A short, rhythmic flute note rang out, and within a few breaths, a gray wave of energy rose from his body and rushed toward the maid's puppet face.
"What is that?"
"It's going too fast, I can't see it clearly."
"The Gu Master naturally uses Gu worms to attack the opponent; even a fool would know that they are insects."
The discussion behind him grew louder and louder, and Gu Lianzhou couldn't help but feel a little worried for his master.
He could see clearly that the things flying everywhere, like dust, were none other than countless tiny gray moths.
Seeing that the gray moths had surrounded the maid puppet and that the latter still made no move to fight back, he couldn't help but ask worriedly, "What's wrong with Master?"
“It’s the Illusionary Heart Moth.” Song Qiling leaned back in her mahogany armchair and explained, “This kind of Gu worm is not known for its attacks, but for its hallucinogenic scales on its wings, which give the person holding the Gu time to attack. Uncle Nie has not been able to react yet, so he has probably been affected.”
As expected, seeing that Nie Fengxi did not make a move, Xue Canzi relaxed, took a few steps forward, and threw out a few copper balls, which accurately hit the feet of the maid puppet.
The copper ball cracked upon impact, and several black beetles crawled out, climbing up the hem of the maid puppet's robe.
"This is to sever the connection between my master and the puppet," Song Qiling said, glancing at the face of the pink-clad puppet and letting out a soft "Eh."
Her attention had been focused on Uncle Nie, and she hadn't paid much attention to the wooden puppet. Now that she saw it, she felt even more puzzled.
Look at the face of this maid puppet, and the peony flower decoration on its forehead; it bears a striking resemblance to the head of Pingkang Ward.
Song Qiling's brow twitched suddenly. She suddenly remembered that Luo Qingyu had mentioned on the boat that Uncle Nie had asked her for help. At the time, they hadn't pressed for details and had just glossed over it. Now that she thought about it, could it be...?
Song Qiling's gaze returned to the wooden puppet on the stage covered in Gu worms, and her lips twitched slightly.
No way...
In a daze, the maid puppet rolled its "eyes" and finally moved. It crossed its arms, spread its fingers, and several transparent threads instantly wove into a net, strangling the black beetles on its body to the ground. Then it turned its wooden head to look at the "culprit."
Through the gray mist-like Illusionary Heart Moth, Blood Silkworm's expression faltered slightly.
He couldn't understand how this maid puppet could move on its own after losing the puppeteer's control.
He felt a sharp pain all over his body. The pain of the Gu worm's body being shattered backfired on him. His blood rushed to his head, his throat tasted sweet, and a trace of blood spilled from the corner of his lips.
"How cunning! The Gu worms are poisonous all over their bodies. If a living person gets in contact with them, they will surely die. But the puppets are not made of flesh and blood, so they are specifically designed to counter Gu masters."
"But I didn't see the puppeteer making any movements. How did he control the puppet?"
"...Now that you mention it, it is indeed strange."
The audience below the stage was discussing animatedly, while the person and the puppet on stage were locked in a fierce battle.
Blood Silkworm never imagined that one day his opponent would not be a living being, but a wooden puppet. And this maid puppet was particularly wicked; not only were her attacks ruthless, each strike aimed at his vital points, but also…
He leaped to Nie Fengxi's side and reached out to grab his shoulder. Before his fingertips even touched him, he felt his feet sink. Looking down, he saw that the puppet had somehow grabbed his ankle and was dragging him down.
How is that possible?
He had just tested it, and Nie Fengxi was indeed hit by the scales of the Illusionary Heart Moth, which was why he couldn't react to the outside world. Even if an ambush was set up in advance, the puppet would not be like this, as if it had its own consciousness.
Below the arena, Gu and Song looked at each other. Song Qiling shook his head, signaling his junior brother not to say anything, and turned to look at the stage.
After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Blood Silkworm of Death Valley was exhausted and knelt on one knee, raising his hands in surrender.
The maid puppet's strangulation attacks were deadly, and she was extremely vigilant against Nie Fengxi, leaving him no chance to break through.
"Dong—" The gongs and drums sounded, and the outcome was already decided.
"So Master can enter the top three and obtain the Five-Turn Pill?" Gu Lianzhou asked uncertainly, looking at the scene on the stage.
Song Qiling nodded, saying with a hint of helplessness, "I just didn't expect it to turn out this way."
It's true that Uncle Nie has mastered puppetry, but his performance today was full of flaws. If the master investigates this seriously, it could cause trouble.
Just as the two were feeling uneasy, someone in the audience chuckled and said, "He cheated."
Song Qiling was taken aback. Following the sound, she saw Chu Yue slowly stand up and look at the platform, saying slowly and deliberately, "I am not talented, but I can see things that ordinary people cannot see. And this maid puppet happens to contain a wisp of demonic energy."
As soon as he finished speaking, the entire room erupted in uproar.
Song Qiling gritted her teeth, about to lash out, when she suddenly felt a warmth on the back of her hand. It was her junior brother pressing her down. "Senior brother, don't be impulsive."
Just when they were about to get their hands on the life-saving pill, Chu Yue suddenly interfered at this critical juncture. It would be a lie to say that he didn't have a personal grudge.
Her gaze swept back and forth between the two of them, and then she heard Chu Yue say, "Junior Brother Nie, it's been many years. How have you been?"
He raised his right hand, his five fingers slightly spread, and an invisible wave of energy swept towards Nie Fengxi. In a short while, the person on the stage was completely awake.
Nie Fengxi turned slightly and met Chu Yue below the stage, saying in a gentle voice, "Long time no see, Senior Brother Chu."
Although he was unable to move due to the scales of the Illusionary Heart Moth, his five senses remained intact, so he was fully aware of everything that was happening around him.
Now that Chu Yue had exposed his trick, he was not angry, but said with some helplessness, "The rules of the competition do not exclude artifact spirits, senior brother, this does not count as cheating."
He bent down and pulled the maid puppet into his arms with one hand, blowing away the dust from its body. His eyes held a tenderness that Song Qiling had never seen before. "Yu Niang and I have been getting along for a long time, which has caused it to develop intelligence. What's so strange about that?"
"Is that so?" Chu Yue stared at the puppet in his arms, a strange light flashing in his eyes that made one's heart skip a beat. "Yu Niang... is she the wronged woman, Miss Luo?"
"What kind of crazy commotion is this?" Murong Xiao had been watching the battle for a long time, and his mind was in a mess. He had no choice but to stand up and take charge of the situation.
He cleared his throat and announced loudly, "All participants in the competition, regardless of their background or methods, whoever wins and enters the top three will receive a prize."
After saying that, he turned around and bowed to Chu Yue, "Sect Master, I hope you will give me some face and let this person go for now. The competition must continue, don't you think?"
Chu Yue was not one to invite trouble, so he returned the bow and was about to sit down when he seemed to sense something. His dark eyes swept across his body, and he raised his hand to block the puppet thread that was about to sever his neck.
"Oh dear, he's bleeding!" someone exclaimed, pointing at Chu Yue's finger.
Song Qiling's brow twitched, and an ominous feeling flashed through her mind.
A cold laugh rang out. Chu Yue clenched his fists, gripped the transparent puppet string, and looked up at the platform. "Miss Luo, are you angry?"
Blood spread along the puppet strings, heading straight for the maid puppet on the high platform.
Nie Fengxi lowered his eyes, looked at the puppet in his arms, and gently comforted her, "Qingyu, calm down."
But then the puppet, which had been motionless, twisted its joints and made a "crack" sound. Its pair of scarlet eyes rolled around once and then stared straight at Chu Yue.
"You old scoundrel, why are you always haunting me!" The woman's furious voice echoed through the sky.
The air went still for a moment.
Song Qiling raised her hand to her forehead, and through the gaps between her fingers, she saw the two people standing on and off the stage, looking tense and ready to fight. She couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed.
If Luo Qingyu had kept quiet, the Murong family head could have turned a blind eye and let the matter drop. But unexpectedly, she was so impatient that she actually harbored murderous intent towards Chu Yue!
"Are they old acquaintances?"
"Of course it is! Didn't you hear what that puppet was saying? It was terrifying. So there really are spirits in the world."
"It's unheard of for a spirit to attack people on its own initiative."
"Wow... This scene is even more exciting than the official competition! Come on, give me two ounces of melon seeds!"
The crowd's discussions rose and fell, almost drowning out the arena. Seeing that the situation was getting out of control, Murong Xiao's expression turned somewhat ugly. He waved his hand, signaling his servants to go up on stage and take the person away.
Unexpectedly, before the servant could even get close, he was pushed ten feet away by a strong gust of wind.
In an instant, the sky and earth changed color, and sand and stones flew everywhere.
Seeing that something was wrong, Gu and Song immediately got up and moved closer to the center of the shockwave. Through their blurred vision, Chu Yue raised his right hand with his knuckles slightly bent.
Song Qiling slowly opened her eyes wide.
Chu Yue actually formed a demon-locking seal.
"When the sky is clear and the earth is pure, evil spirits will reveal themselves." The deep incantation, accompanied by a shrill female voice, was gradually drowned out by the clamor of the wind.
With a whoosh, the shockwave abruptly subsided, and when they opened their eyes again, the vermilion arena was completely empty.
Uncle-Master Nie and Luo Qingyu, along with Chu Yue, all disappeared without a trace.
"Where is he?!" the onlookers exclaimed in surprise.
Seeing this, Song Qiling disregarded everything else, took out a bronze mirror from the hidden pouch at her waist, bit her fingertip, and quickly drew a demon-finding talisman on the mirror surface. Then she pulled her junior brother into the illusion together.
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