Chapter 223: Danger of the Ghost Official
Chapter 223: Danger of the Ghost Official
“Hehe, always trying to shift those black pots onto others. Didn’t see this coming, did you?”
“This time, they got pushed too far and came back for revenge…”
“Young Master Bai, have you figured out how to appease the wrath of that Ghost Official?”
The main hall of the Lingwu Sect was thick with oppressive gloom.
By now, the entire Lingwu Sect was gripped by a menacing atmosphere. The Mountain Protection Array was fully activated. Disciples were divided into several squads, each holding Magic Treasures, patrolling day and night. Over a dozen Stewards were stationed at key locations throughout the sect. The Elders, True Disciples, and guests including Young Master Bai Huaiyu of the Bai family and Second Young Master Fang were all gathered in the main hall.
Frankly, everyone was terrified out of their wits. The Ghost Official committing that recent bloodbath proved he was near the Lingwu Sect. He was that lunatic capable of slaughtering fifteen Golden Core Refiners from the seven clans in one go! Who knew if he’d attack the Lingwu Sect?
Especially after hearing Fang Cun’s analysis, the Lingwu Sect was genuinely afraid this last Young Master Bai might fall victim next…
The Five Great Sects, the Qingjiang Prefecture authorities, the Seven Clans, anyone who needed to know had been informed. Huge reinforcements were surely coming soon. Before they arrived, the Lingwu Sect could only try to protect Young Master Bai’s life.
“What nonsense are you spouting?”
Young Master Bai himself, terrified that the Seven Clans’ Qi Refiners had already perished near the sect and he might be next, was already trembling with fear. The fact that Second Young Master Fang was still making sarcastic remarks made his heart pound with both fury and terror. He ground his teeth and hissed, “And are you innocent?”
Fang Cun chuckled. “What does it have to do with me?”
Bai Huaiyu snapped, “You know full well…”
Fang Cun shook his head, smiling. “What exactly do I know? Please, enlighten me.”
Bai Huaiyu gritted his teeth so hard they seemed likely to crack. He nearly lunged to bite him.
“Young Masters, stop arguing…”
Liang Xiangzi, the Sect Leader of Lingwu Sect, sitting nearby, couldn’t help but frown deeply. “That Ghost Official… sigh… truly so savage. Daring to commit such slaughter right on our doorstep! A murderer of such brazen ferocity lurking just outside our gates… I truly don’t know how…”
It was clear that despite being a respected Sect Leader, he too was visibly unsettled.
Fang Cun suddenly smiled. “Actually, catching him would be quite simple!”
Everyone in the hall simultaneously turned to look at him, their eyes lighting up with hope.
Fang Cun continued, “Just have Young Master Bai take a little stroll outside. Might just lure him out…”
Everyone: “…”
Bai Huaiyu’s eyes practically spat fire. “Why don’t you go take a stroll?!”
Fang Cun was still smiling. “I’m quite comfortable here. You’ve sent so many scriptures, I haven’t even finished studying them all yet.” He picked up one of the scripture scrolls. “Unless you want them back?” he added sweetly.
Smoke practically billowed from Bai Huaiyu’s ears. Looking at Fang Cun’s smug face, he truly did want the scriptures back. Those scriptures, along with previous lavish gifts, were given by the seven clans to curry favor. Now, it was blatantly obvious he hadn’t helped the clans at all; in fact, he’d ruined their big plan. So why should he still get to peruse their precious scriptures?
Alas, being among the elite Qingjiang Seven Clans meant adhering to certain principles.
What was given could not be asked back. That was simply beneath their dignity.
Instead, they would choose revenge. They’d make him understand the cost of mocking the Seven Clans.
But herein lay the problem: the Seven Clans weren’t really brave enough to seriously retaliate against this Second Young Master Fang…
Headache!
Watching the two young masters continue bickering at a time like this gave the Lingwu Sect Leader another profound headache.
The Ghost Official of Qingjiang striking twice before had left everyone bewildered, unable to grasp the pattern. But now, the real Ghost Official revealing himself was like a mirror exposing demons. The fox tails were well and truly shown. Despite Young Master Bai’s bluster, his inner fear was plain. As for the nature of the first Ghost Official incident… that was glaringly obvious.
And as for the second Ghost Official incident… was it truly linked to Second Young Master Fang?
If it was, why did he act so utterly unruffled, as if unafraid of the Ghost Official coming for revenge?
Liang Xiangzi pondered and suddenly realized—wait a minute…
Who said this Second Young Master Fang wasn’t afraid of the Ghost Official seeking revenge?
He merely acted unafraid. In reality, he was glued to his seat in the Lingwu Sect’s main hall, not daring to step outside one step…
Son of a…
The Lingwu Sect Leader suddenly grasped the entire situation.
So both the Seven Clans and this Second Young Master Fang were the ones who had kicked the hornet’s nest!
Harboring two such formidable ancestors inside, while a murderous specter drifted outside… the Lingwu Sect Leader’s heart truly felt… heavy.
“Elders Bai of the Three, dispatched by the Qingjiang Seven Clans, request an audience with the Sect Leader of Lingwu Sect and Young Master Bai Huaiyu!”
Sitting dormant in the hall, enduring the excruciating passage of time—breath by breath, moment by moment—they finally endured for about a day. Suddenly, a loud shout echoed from outside the mountain gates, followed swiftly by a frantic report from a Lingwu Sect disciple. Sect Leader Liang finally let out a long sigh of relief.
The Seven Clans people had finally arrived.
Relying solely on his sect to protect this Young Master Bai courted huge trouble should anything go wrong. Thankfully, those who could share the burden were here.
Hearing that delegates from the Seven Clans had arrived, Young Master Bai Huaiyu also surged with relief and hurriedly stood up.
They hastily welcomed the group inside. About thirty individuals filed in. At a glance, their numbers were substantial, bringing a measure of comfort. But carefully observing them revealed only five were at the Golden Core Realm. The rest varied, mostly Foundation Establishment, and even a few at the Breath Refining Realm…
The people from the Seven Clans had indeed mobilized quickly enough. Their business network spanned Qingjiang Prefecture. Upon receiving the urgent messages from Lingwu Sect and Bai Huaiyu, they immediately recognized the gravity of the situation. Crucial figures couldn’t arrive instantly, but they swiftly convened the branch clans and trade house managers near the Lingwu Sect, ordering them to hasten over and protect the endangered Young Master Bai.
However, Golden Core Refiners weren’t common cabbage.
Fifteen had just been slaughtered by the Ghost Official. Reserves were already stretched thin.
These five Golden Core cultivators represented all the Divine Realm Refiners the Seven Clans could muster at such short notice.
Well… though not many, they were better than nothing.
“Sect Leader of Shoushan Sect, accompanied by two Elders, requests entry to meet with Elder Fang Cun!”
The visitors from the Seven Clans had barely settled in when shouts announced the arrival of the Shoushan Sect contingent.
This startled not only the Lingwu Sect members but also Fang Cun himself: How had they gotten here so quickly?
They were hurriedly admitted. Leading the group were Young Sect Master Xu and the two Elders, Green Pine and Cold Stone, followed by four or five others in Shoushan Sect disciple robes—totaling only about seven or eight people. Questioning them, Fang Cun discovered all three looked utterly bewildered:
“Huh? The Ghost Official came here to kill people?”
“Huh? The Seven Clans have already lost over a dozen Refiners?”
“Huh? And he might still kill more?”
“…”
Instantly, both the Lingwu Sect crowd and Second Young Master Fang were dumbfounded.
The Qi Refiners accompanying Young Master Bai on the other side merely sneered contemptuously.
Upon inquiry, it was revealed: Young Sect Master Xu and the Elders hadn’t received Lingwu Sect’s urgent message at all. The message had indeed been sent to Shoushan Sect. But the impoverished Shoushan Sect lacked anyone competent at headquarters; the message hadn’t reached its intended recipients. The reason they arrived unexpectedly fast was pure coincidence.
As soon as trouble erupted in Qingjiang, they had immediately set off for Lingwu Sect—completely unaware of the Ghost Official’s third act of murder.
“Heh. Three Golden Cores? Six disciples? The Shoushan Sect… really lives up to its reputation as a great Qingjiang Sect!”
Having been taunted relentlessly by Fang Cun earlier, Young Master Bai now felt the tide had turned. Heartened, he sneered and retreated to a side chamber with cold satisfaction.
The Lingwu Sect side also found this somewhat ludicrous.
The Ghost Official wandered freely outside, unspeakably savage. What use were this pitiful number from Shoushan Sect?
If the Ghost Official truly targeted Second Young Master Fang, were these three supposed to handle him?
Then again, to be fair, Young Master Bai’s dozen protectors likely weren’t capable either.
After all, the Ghost Official had managed to eradicate fifteen Golden Cores without a sound!
“First, return to the guest hall to rest.”
Yet Fang Cun also seemed a touch more reassured. He bid farewell to the Lingwu Sect Leader, smiling, and returned to the guest quarters he previously occupied.
“Sect Leader and Elders, please enjoy some tea here first. We’ll discuss matters shortly.”
Back in his guest quarters, Fang Cun first arranged for Young Sect Master Xu and the two Elders to have tea in the outer room. Accompanied by the other Shoushan Sect disciples, he entered the inner chamber. Seeing no outsiders present, several of these “disciples” swiftly removed the straw hats from their heads and pulled out silver needles concealing their Qi. Their original appearances were revealed: Lin Jiyi, Lady Hongtao, and the eccentric Gu-Master Guai Li.
“You handled matters in Qingjiang well!” Fang Cun glanced at them approvingly. “How many did we bring this time?”
“Forty-two!” Lin Jiyi replied promptly, stepping forward and handing over a scroll. “The roster is all here.”
Fang Cun took it, unfurling it lightly. His eyes scanned the list, and he couldn’t suppress a laugh. “This many? How did you manage it?”
“With the three tools provided by you, Young Master, such things became surprisingly straightforward,” Lin Jiyi bowed slightly as he reported. “Subduing the first target took us five days. We observed him, learned his weaknesses, laid careful plans… We finally managed it through a female disciple he was privately involved with, slipping the Life-Death Sigil into him. Getting his sworn brother using him then took only three days. The next day after that, these two worked together to capture another. Soon after, at a banquet they held, the three of them cooperated and managed to bring over a dozen more under our control all at once…”
Fang Cun listened, a slight frown creasing his brow.
Lin Jiyi hastily added, “With so many subdued, inevitably some rebelled. Rest assured, Young Master, we’ve purged the troublemakers.”
Fang Cun looked at Lin Jiyi with a touch of surprise, then deliberately deepened his frown again, an impish impulse taking him.
Lin Jiyi immediately spoke again, more urgently, “Not only have we purged the dissidents, we’ve also secured their most critical vulnerabilities. Even if any possess exceptional skill to break the Life-Death Sigil, or would choose death over serving us…”
“Those are precisely the ones… who are now profoundly, irrevocably loyal!”