Dragon Coffin

Evil spirits

"The snowflakes on his ears twitched slightly as Yue Qing's words sank in. 'Guishan... this youth knows about Guishan. He seems remarkable,' muttered Xue Fen inwardly, cursing Su Bai for meddling. Yet, Yue Qing intrigued her. Despite his youthful appearance—around eighteen—he exuded unusual maturity. Beneath his pallor, his eyes were resolute and spirited. What caught her attention most was a golden tattoo on the back of his hand, a mark she felt she had seen before.

'This is my new friend,' Su Bai said, patting Yue Qing, who frowned. He disliked physical contact, an innate aversion. Su Bai, oblivious, continued enthusiastically, 'Isn't she beautiful? Her name is Xue Fen.'

'Even the most beautiful woman holds no meaning for me,' Yue Qing thought, recognizing faces but forgetting names. He nodded slightly. 'Hello.'

'You mentioned Guishan earlier? Are there really paths in this world where ghosts roam?' Xue Fen asked.

Yue Qing stared intensely at her, his eyes flickering. She wanted to test if the youth truly had a background, but Yue Qing suddenly pulled Su Bai behind him. 'You're not human!' he exclaimed.

Impressive indeed! Xue Fen was a bit peeved; her natural aura of malevolence had affected her cultivation, and she hadn't expected this youth to see through her true form. She hadn't intended to conceal her identity from Su Bai either, so she smiled lightly. With her captivating looks, her eyes no different from others', she asked, 'So what do you think I am?'

Yue Qing was puzzled. Had it been his imagination earlier?

'I have other matters to attend to. You two can chat,' Xue Fen said calmly.

Although he had exposed Guishan, Yue Qing felt uneasy. He decided to stay and observe who was behind the suspicious formations. Su Bai, intensely curious about Guishan and other esoteric topics, followed along. Xue Fen made no attempt to stop him. Once they left, Tang Sancheng emerged. 'The student surpasses the teacher indeed. He's already discovered the Cross-Guishan so quickly.'

'His appearance here seems coincidental. Is it truly fate?' Xue Fen mused.

'Perhaps it's destiny,' Tang Sancheng replied.

'Hey, youth, are ghosts really real?' Su Bai, feeling disoriented from recent events, felt like he was being led by an unseen hand.

'You'll find out tonight,' Yue Qing suddenly turned, flicking a liquid from his right hand into Su Bai's eyes. 'What's this?' Su Bai asked.

Yue Qing, not amused by Su Bai's frivolity, replied, 'Bull's tears. You wanted to know about ghosts, didn't you?'

Su Bai had heard of it; apparently, it allowed one to see unclean things. A chill crept from his feet to his head. 'Don't scare me...' he chuckled nervously.

'Not all bull's tears work; they must be from a yellow bull,' Yue Qing explained. 'I got these not easily. Consider it a discount.'

'Why didn't you just drop them?' Su Bai wanted to wipe them away but hesitated, blinking rapidly to hasten their effect.

'Because I already have the Heavenly Eye,' Yue Qing's words once again left Su Bai rolling his eyes."

"Late into the night, Su Bai and Yue Qing sat deep within the alley. Already secluded, the place grew eerie at night, especially since the streetlight above the antique shop was out. Occasionally, passersby cast long, menacing shadows that seemed poised to lunge forward. Su Bai, unsettled, asked, 'Is that...?'

Yue Qing shook his head. Suddenly, a glow appeared between his eyebrows. His expression turned grave as he muttered under his breath, then, as if propelled, he lunged toward the wall, seemingly about to collide with it. Su Bai exclaimed, 'Young man, you're going to crash!'

Incredibly, Su Bai's eye nerves twitched. Yue Qing wasn't pressing against the wall; rather, beneath him lay a dark, charred figure, its body deformed and partially severed, with wounds oozing viscous substances that melded into the ground. Su Bai retched, 'Ugh...'

Ignoring Su Bai's distress, Yue Qing suppressed the malevolent spirit, spitting a droplet of his vital essence onto its forehead. With a flick of his index finger, the figure emitted a mournful sound. 'Wuu... urgh... wuu...'

'Sweet heavens, there's a ghost!' Su Bai shouted.

Yue Qing turned to see Su Bai rolling his eyes, already passed out cold on the ground. Standing nearly six feet tall, he blocked the path. Yue Qing addressed the spirit, 'Guishan is destroyed. Why have you come here?'

Before the spirit could respond, a beam of white light descended, and with a 'bang,' the spirit vanished into nothingness.

Yue Qing was astonished. He hurried toward where the light had come from, catching only a fleeting silhouette that disappeared from sight within seconds. He breathed out, 'Impressive! Could he be the one who set up the Guishan?'

Turning back, Yue Qing saw Su Bai unconscious and sighed with mild annoyance. He approached to check on Su Bai, noticing a Phoenix Eye Bodhi necklace around his neck. Curiously, he reached to touch it, but Su Bai groaned, his throat hoarse and eyes vacant. Yue Qing stood up, 'He's fine.'

'Fine? Where?' Su Bai's voice quivered, 'I saw a ghost, I saw...'

'I warned you earlier.' Yue Qing's face remained impassive, 'You're six feet tall and scared of ghosts?'

'I can handle fights, not ghosts,' Su Bai sobbed, 'Today, you've shattered my worldview. My materialistic education is ruined.'

Yue Qing remained silent. 'Right now, you should worry about why these ghosts are targeting the antique shop. The end of the Cross-Guishan is here, and that figure just now was likely eliminating witnesses. There's something significant in that antique shop that draws their attention.'

'A teahouse?' Su Bai pondered, 'Behind that antique shop, there used to be a teahouse. Isn't that strange? How many people visit a teahouse here? Could there be something wrong with the antique shop? And they mentioned a room with a dragon-shaped lock that was off-limits. What's strangest is they want me to be the manager!'

'Let's go inside and see,' Yue Qing suggested. 'I want to see what's inside that attracts these malevolent spirits.'

'Um...' Su Bai hesitated, mindful of his job security. Ignoring him, Yue Qing began scaling the antique shop's wall. Su Bai called out, 'Young man, at least lend me a hand! My legs feel like jelly!'"