Chapter 4
Chapter Four
As Zhou Xiuqi walked downstairs, he suddenly remembered something and stopped, saying, "You go out first." Meng Yingying, unsuspecting, went out onto the street.
Suddenly, the sound of gongs and drums rang out on the street, and the wailing of a crowd rose behind Meng Yingying. Meng Yingying stood there waiting for Zhou Xiuqi, when she saw a group of people dressed in white walking towards her from afar.
"A funeral?" she muttered to herself.
Several people carried a coffin, dressed in white canvas clothes, with paper money flying everywhere.
A sharp suona horn pierced the sky, and her face suddenly felt wet. As she looked up, a light drizzle began to fall.
People dressed in mourning clothes surrounded the coffin, their faces filled with sorrow, yet no tears were seen. Suddenly, someone nearby said, "To hold this in broad daylight, what bad luck!"
"Hey, listen, there's a sound coming from the coffin!"
As they spoke, the scratching sounds from inside the coffin fluctuated in volume. At this point, a normal person would have run away, but Meng Yingying stared at the coffin.
Meng Yingying watched intently, when the sound suddenly grew louder, as if something was about to break through, and those who were following behind all flinched.
Bang--
Bang--
Suddenly, the desolate coffin burst open, and the pallbearers were thrown back, rolled more than a dozen times, and landed on the ground, where they collapsed unconscious.
The coffin exuded a chilling aura, and the onlookers all took a dozen steps back and hid. The shop doors were all closed, leaving only Meng Yingying standing in place.
With a crisp clang, a head suddenly appeared, with black hair flowing down his shoulders, bringing with it a gust of cold wind. He was extremely tall, with his hand supporting his forehead. A red jade pendant swayed by his ear, and a cloud of blood mist swirled around him. As the red mist rose, everyone around him instantly fainted.
Her eyelashes fluttered lightly, her brows twisted uncomfortably, her features were strikingly beautiful, her sword-like eyebrows sharp, carrying a hint of youthful spirit, but her pale complexion made her appear effeminate, like a woman, not like a living person.
Meng Yingying was startled. In broad daylight, ghosts dared to come out. This was the first time she had faced a ghost head-on, and she had underestimated how afraid she was of ghosts.
My legs felt weak and I couldn't move them no matter what I tried.
The boy suddenly looked up at her, and Meng Yingying was startled. He walked towards her, and the chaotic sound of bells rang out on the desolate street.
"Meng Yuan, get out of the way." A familiar voice rang out from behind. Meng Yingying didn't react for a moment, but then she saw the boy fly away quickly, leaving no trace.
Zhou Xiuqi flew over hastily, but couldn't keep up with the speed at which he flew away. After stopping, Zhou Xiuqi's face was a little pale, and his expression was slightly serious: "Are you alright?"
Meng Yingying finally came to her senses and patted her chest: "He suddenly came back to life from the coffin just now, which startled me."
Zhou Xiuqi sheathed his sword: "It's not the person originally in the coffin, but a ghost fetus."
Meng Yingying took a few deep breaths, and a thought flashed through her mind...
Zhou Xiuqi looked around and glanced at the four sides: "Save the people first, and feed them this pill."
Before Meng Yingying could voice her questions, she helped the people up and fed them the pills. She searched through Meng Yuan's memories but found no recollection of the ghost fetus. She guessed to herself that perhaps the ghost fetus was a key plot point.
After settling everything in order, Zhou Xiuqi took Meng Yingying back to the inn. As dusk fell, a cool breeze dispelled Meng Yingying's earlier fear.
Meng Yingying couldn't understand, so she looked at Zhou Xiuqi's profile and asked, "Senior brother, why would a ghost fetus suddenly appear in broad daylight?"
Zhou Xiuqi frowned slightly and said, "The ghost fetus is not an ordinary ghost. It is a karmic debt born between heaven and earth, transcending the ghosts we know in the world. There is no record of it in ancient books. More than ten years ago, it was my master who divined its existence."
"No one has ever known what he's going to do," Zhou Xiuqi said calmly, his gaze fixed on the road ahead.
Back at the inn, Ling Daozi lay back on the bed drinking. Zhou Xiuqi sat down and, as usual, recounted the day's events.
"Master, a demon child has been born."
Ling Daozi's hand, which was pouring wine, wobbled, and the wine gourd almost fell to the ground. He hurriedly caught it, exclaiming, "A ghost fetus?" His expression shifted rapidly, and finally he sighed.
Ling Daozi said, "I thought he had long since died, as he was too young to survive. I never expected him to survive."
Hearing his master's words, Meng Yingying knew he understood something, so he pressed on, "Master, can you tell me about ghost fetuses?"
Ling Daozi glanced at her and said, "It happened many years ago. The Prince of Jin's mansion could not hide the identity of the ghost child, so they had to sever ties with him. At that time, the ghost child was only eight years old. As soon as he stepped out of the house, a large number of Taoists gathered outside. He probably did not want to fight with them at first and ran to the pit of dead men. I was not in Lin'an at that time. I only know that in the end, the ghost child disappeared."
“Now that he has appeared like this, it will surely be a bloodbath.” He shook his head and sighed. Ling Daozi suddenly became serious: “If you face him, remember, there is only one path you can take.”
"What road?"
“Dead end.” Ling Daozi’s words fell heavily, like a heavy blow.
Zhou Xiuqi frowned slightly, lost in thought. Meng Yingying, however, felt a tightness in her heart at his words. Could the ghost fetus be the final boss with such strength?
Ling Daozi changed the subject, glanced at the sky outside, and said, "It's getting late. You should go to sleep for a while and come out to collect the souls later."
Zhou Xiuqi nodded and walked up the stairs. Meng Yingying followed behind him, asking somewhat unwillingly, "Senior brother, can we kill the ghost fetus?"
Zhou Xiuqi glanced at her and said, "Perhaps." He then walked into the house and closed the door behind him. Meng Yingying returned to her room dejectedly, lay on the bed, and tossed and turned. This task was very difficult. The author had already set everything up and was pushing the plot forward step by step. If she didn't follow the plot, the book would soon collapse.
Looking at the ceiling, Meng Yingying thought to herself, "If only I could take a nap and then go back to reality." With that thought, she drifted off to sleep.
A Yuan — A Yuan
Ah Yuan—
Ah Yuan? Who is this? She walked through the void, slowly moving forward. Deep within, an old man sat, looking at her, tears welling in his eyes: "Ah Yuan, come quickly."
Meng Yingying froze, in disbelief. This wasn't her grandmother. She rushed forward recklessly, but felt her body rapidly falling downwards, and suddenly shuddered.
She opened her eyes and looked at the ceiling, just as she was drifting off to sleep. A cold wind blew in from the window, making her shiver. She got out of bed to close the window.
Suddenly, a jumble of bells rang out in front of her. Meng Yingying looked up and met a pair of eyes.
On the narrow windowsill, the boy squatted, his thick, curly hair flying in the wind. The moonlight cast a hazy shadow on his figure, highlighting the contrast between light and darkness. A slight smile played on his lips: "Found it."
Meng Yingying sensed danger and was about to run away without looking back, but when she turned around, she found him standing in front of her.
Meng Yingying opened her eyes, her palms slightly warm.
"What...what are you doing?" she asked.
The ghost child tilted his head and grinned. Meng Yingying felt a tightening around her neck as he grabbed her by the neck.
"I'm here to kill you," he said casually. Meng Yingying was pressed against his chest, where there was no heartbeat, only the vibration of his chest from laughing.
The moment she saw him, she had a bad feeling. Who would have thought that this person would kill her right away? Meng Yingying had experienced life and death before, so she pushed her feet upward with all her might.
But he grabbed her, a hint of amusement in his eyes. He loosened his grip slightly and said, "Continue."
Meng Yingying's eyes bulged slightly, her veins popping out; she really wanted to curse.
She inserted all five fingers into his flesh, but he seemed not to feel any pain, and looked at her with a smile.
Meng Yingying's brain was already feeling oxygen-deprived; if this continued, she would really die.
In her dying moments, she mustered all her strength to bend down and pull out the dagger hidden in her boot, then plunged it in with all her might.
With her neck loosened, Meng Yingying crawled out of his grasp and quickly hid to the side, panting heavily.
He chuckled as he pulled the dagger from his body, tossed it to the ground, and said with a hint of boredom, "Is this all the skill you Taoists have?"
Meng Yingying poked her head out and saw the bloody hole in his abdomen. She angrily said, "You came up here to kill someone for no reason. Then tell me your name."
Shang Mang chuckled, walked up to her, and lifted her chin: "Listen carefully, Taoist."
At that moment, a sudden sound rang in Meng Yingying's mind, and the system notification sounded.
[Special mission... Success... Success... Triggered...]
[Strategy Guide...The Vicious...Male Supporting Character...]
[Shang Mang.]
"Shang Mang." One voice followed the other, and a cold wind stirred the sweat that had just broken out on Meng Yingying's body. She shivered as she looked at the person in front of her.
Shang Mang's eyes were unreadable, and he paused slightly.
Meng Yingying's mind raced. This person might suddenly lash out again in the next second; she needed to come up with a plan.
"Wait a minute!"
Shang Mang looked at her and said, "Taoist, the last person who knew my name is already dead. You will die soon too, so telling you won't break the rules."
Meng Yingying suddenly reached out and grabbed both of his hands, saying rapidly, "I... can tell stories!"
His hands were as cold as jade, slender and smooth, but somewhat stiff, lacking the feel of a living person.
"You can tell stories, but that's none of my business."
“It’s none of your business, but it’s related to me. Shouldn’t you have done your research before you kill someone?” Meng Yingying tilted her head back, revealing the red marks on her fair neck. Shang Mang glanced at them and smiled. “Fine, I originally wanted to let you die a quick death. If the story isn’t interesting, I’ll cut off your limbs, bleed you out, and then let you die.”
Meng Yingying swallowed hard, and upon hearing this, she immediately felt pain in all four limbs.
"Once upon a time, there was a girl who was born with the fate of dying. Her mother could not accept that she was born with such a disease, so she left her. Countless people told her to be careful in everything she did, because she might die one day. The girl did not believe it. She felt that she was no different from ordinary people, so she wanted to defy fate. Therefore, she worked harder than ordinary people. While others rested from a young age, she insisted on staying up very late. One night, she fell ill, and this time she was more serious than ever before."
"Lying in her hospital bed every day, listening to the ticking of the clock, it felt like a countdown to her life. Her father thought her treatment was too expensive, so he scolded her for being a money-loser. For the first time, the girl had the thought of giving up. She ran out of the ward and walked to the riverbank, but then she heard someone calling her name from behind."
"It was her maternal grandmother. After hearing that she was sick, she traveled for more than ten hours to find her. She limped over to her side, hugged her, and said, 'It's okay, it's okay, I'll take you to get treatment.'"
Meng Yingying suddenly stopped, and Shang Mang said, "Why don't you continue?"
Meng Yingying asked, "Do you think the girl survived in the end?"
"He's dead," he said.
Meng Yingying shook her head: "She survived."
Shang Mang smiled, his eyes narrowed, a deep smile on his face: "Your story is very interesting."
"But I don't really like the ending. What if I were the one who died?"
Meng Yingying said, "To die is to admit what those people said. Since that's the case, why not live on with all your might?"
Shang Mang opened his eyes slightly and looked at her, then laughed out loud, his chest heaving and his voice trembling.
"Tomorrow, I will come back to kill you." He dissipated into a cloud of blood mist, leaving no trace, only that eerie voice still echoed in my ears.
After the last of the blood mist dissipated and there was no trace of him left in the room, Meng Yingying closed the window, her breathing gradually calming down. Touching the red marks on her neck, she felt extremely frightened.
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