NOVEL NEXT Chapter 219
The Ancient Yin River Dao never sees the light of day, and the winds that blow here are not the usual easterly, southerly, westerly, or northerly winds, but eerie yin winds.
Ordinary people, with mortal flesh and bones, should they accidentally wander into the Yin River, need not encounter any flesh-eating ghosts; merely staying for a moment will cause their bones and blood to stiffen, leaving them without a chance to survive.
This desolate place, therefore, has become a breeding ground for ghosts and demons.
Xu Qing likes this place very much; every time he comes here, it feels like returning home. Moreover, the ghosts and monsters are easy to talk to, and the neighbors are very tolerant and friendly.
"The Yin River wind and sand wear down bones. Now that the bandit leader has been executed, I request the lord to return to the mortal world soon to avoid being harmed here."
"He is the demon; I, the impoverished priest, am the holder of the Official Seal!"
"General, tricky priests are adept liars. Such monks and priests do not take the imperial examination nor have any titles; General, do not trust them lightly."
Xu Qing looked at the long-bearded General in front of him, feeling inexplicably ambiguous.
He didn't execute Li Heyi before the Eight Banner Marshal arrived, wanting to see if this Ghost General's wisdom was indeed as it was in life.
It's not the first time the Eight Banner Marshal and Xu Qing have encountered each other. During Hu Baosong's funeral, his paperman funeral team met the Marshal leading a cavalry unit, chasing the remnants of the Yin-Eroding King.
At that time, Xu Qing sent the Marshal away with just one sentence.
Since then, Xu Qing always felt that this Eight Banner Marshal seemed not very smart.
Later, when Xu Qing absolved the Spirit Incense, he saw a former imperial ghost official, Yu Qian, used easily by the Spirit Incense's goading, offending the current ruler, even the turtle statue where he lived got smashed to pieces.
Xu Qing understood then that these ghosts who linger in the world after death, unwilling to dissipate, have little consciousness left. Even if there is some, it's mostly shackled by the obsessions of their past lives. In other words, should these ghosts regain their wisdom as before, it signals the day their obsessions dissipate and they return to the underworld.
Indeed, upon hearing Xu Qing's words, the long-bearded General on his steed immediately protested, "Thieving priest! As an ordained person, how do you have titles by your side? You stole the Official Seal, which is an unforgivable crime, yet you dare to shift the blame!"
"The lord may hand this villain over to our division. We will devour his flesh and blood, and purify the universe."
"That can't be." Xu Qing said sternly, "The nation has national laws, the family has family rules. This person is guilty, and we, the officials of the mortal world, will punish him. You, being Shadow Soldiers, should guard your division well, do not meddle in mortal affairs, or you will incur disaster upon yourselves."
The Eight Banner Marshal seemed to listen genuinely, feeling ashamed. "The Yin River is desolate, besides capturing some small ghosts to eat, our generals indeed lack meat and wine, which may cause you to laugh at us."
Xu Qing looked at the hundred cavalry soldiers, seeing that each warrior had a sharp weapon at their waist, mounted on strong, plump horses, with weapons and armors neatly equipped, showcasing an invincible might even standing still.
However, when Xu Qing activated the Qi Observation Skill again, he saw nothing but a group of white skeletons riding undead skeletal steeds; the yin wind blew over, and the swirling dust would even pass through the empty gaps in the horses' bones, sweeping toward the distance.
If not for the grim ghost fire jumping in the skeletons' eyes and chest, these soldiers would be nothing but the dried bones from old graves, the lost souls of a past battlefield!
"These words make it seem like our dynasty doesn't appreciate human feelings or remember the merits of predecessors." Xu Qing sighed, knocked Li Heyi unconscious with a palm, then took out some Spirit Incense and a jar of fine water, saying, "Since I laid eyes on you, I can't let the soldiers' hearts grow cold, though the sacrifice officials couldn't come to offer respect."
Xu Qing cannot bear to see wandering souls; how is that different from solitary ghosts?
"Thank you, my lord, for providing provisions. May I ask your honorable name?"
"Well…" Xu Qing pondered for a moment, suddenly smiled, saying, "My surname is Xu, single name Xuan, a new scholar of Jinmen Prefecture."
Semi-new, but still new.
"New scholar…" The Eight Banner Marshal's hollow eyes wavered with ghost fire, "The Yin River knows not the years; does the lord know the current reign and if the Emperor is still around?"
Xu Qing lit the Spirit Incense and stuck it into the riverbed, responding, "The world now is not under Emperor Tianzhi's rule, but his eleventh generation descendant, Emperor Jingxing's reign."
"The Marshal has been in this Yin River for several centuries!"
"Several centuries…" the Eight Banner Marshal murmured to himself, suddenly remembering something, he abruptly turned, saying, "Ashi, bring a paper lamp!"
A young soldier took down a ghostly green paper lamp from his horse and presented it forward.
The Eight Banner Marshal received the paper lamp, shaking it lightly, extinguishing the ghost fire within the lantern.
"This guiding spirit lamp is gifted to the lord. Should you return to the Yin River someday with a request, simply light this lantern, and I will lead the soldiers to assist."
That's quite polite!
"The General is indeed sincere!" Xu Qing took the paper lamp, feeling conflicted.
He's really making him feel embarrassed.
Even in front of him, the undead army remains disciplined and strictly obedient.
As Eight Banner Marshal and Xu Qing converse, no one rushes to snatch the incense candles and wine on the ground. When the Marshal returns to his senses and orders the soldiers to dine, they, along with the horses, greedily consume the Spirit Incense like starving ghosts who haven't eaten for hundreds of years.
Xu Qing watched as those soldiers drank large amounts of wine, the liquid flowing along their chest and ribs before absorbing into the dry riverbed, feeling quite odd.
Can one truly taste the wine this way?
Exactly the time for a stick of incense, when the few bundles of Spirit Incense burn out on the ground, the Eight Banner Marshal mounts a tall horse, and the soldiers that were competing for food earlier arrange themselves neatly, resembling a rigorously disciplined army formation.