Chapter 32 – Entering the Village

When Mu Yunzhe and Li Xiao saw their expressions, their hearts sank slightly…

The Baiyun Temple was the most famous Taoist temple in the capital.

It was said that the Taoist priests there were extremely powerful.

This time, his grandfather had invited several of them over. Now, all four were lying here seriously injured, which showed just how dangerous the village was.

“This is a cursed village, overflowing with resentment. The seal that originally suppressed the vengeful spirits has been broken. Now…” The old Taoist priest shook his head.

“So, you absolutely must not go in…”

“What about my parents? Are they inside?” Mu Yunzhe asked anxiously.

“They are… Sigh, but I’m afraid their chances are slim…”

“You mustn’t go in. It would just be throwing your lives away.”

…

…

After saying that, the old Taoist passed out.

They had clearly been holding on with great effort.

Yan Hao and the others looked at each other, finally realizing just how high the danger level of this Mengjiang Village really was.

“There’s no time to waste. We’re going in now. Their vital signs are already very weak. Try to get out before nightfall. This place becomes even more dangerous after dark.” Yan Qiao made a decisive call.

What that Taoist priest said just now — she hadn’t listened to it at all.

“But they said…” Mu Yunzhe hesitated.

His main concern was that Li Xiao was going in as well. If anything happened to him, he couldn’t bear the consequences.

“They couldn’t do it, but that doesn’t mean I can’t. Let’s go. Don’t waste time.”

Yan Qiao’s voice remained calm, as if the Taoist’s warning about the village’s extreme danger had no effect on her whatsoever.

“Alright, if we follow Ah Qiao, we’ll be fine! I’m not scared at all!” Yan Hao regained his confidence. He had an inexplicable trust in his sister.

Besides, their parents had specifically told him to protect her on this trip.

“Ah Qiao is right. Let’s move quickly.” Li Xiao urged as well.

In the end, the three of them entered the village.

It happened to be noon, and the sun helped dissipate the fog a little.

But the state of the village didn’t seem to change.

As soon as they entered, Yan Hao felt a bone-chilling cold.

Li Xiao felt even worse. A strange sense of familiarity surged within him.

It was a feeling he often had before he met Yan Qiao.

His shoulders felt heavy, like something was clinging to him. A deep cold radiated from inside his body.

Only when he clutched the protective charm Yan Qiao gave him did he feel slightly better.

Earlier, Yan Qiao had reminded them to stick close to her.

This village was indeed very strange.

They walked about 500 meters and still hadn’t seen a single house.

Along the way, they passed clusters of bright red Higanbana flowers, emitting a rotting stench.

Yan Hao covered his nose and mouth. He had never smelled anything so foul in his life.

Finally, they saw some houses.

But they were all dilapidated thatched huts or mud-brick structures. Clearly very old, and uninhabited for many years.

Perhaps they weren’t even from this era.

As Yan Hao walked, he suddenly kicked something.

Looking down, he exclaimed, “Ah!”

A sharp cry broke the silence.

Immediately after, he covered his mouth.

He couldn’t be blamed for shouting — he had kicked a white skull.

Looking more closely, there were many more bones nearby.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to. It just startled me…” Yan Hao apologized.

Yan Qiao didn’t blame him. The fact that he had the courage to come in and wanted to protect her was already good enough.

“Be careful. Try not to touch them,” Yan Qiao reminded him.

“Okay.”

As they continued walking, Yan Hao suddenly saw many seductive female figures before his eyes, all winking at him.

It was as if they were trying to seduce him to go with them.

Yan Hao felt his head spin, like a strange force was pulling him. His actions seemed out of his control.

His gaze became dazed.

“Snap out of it!” Yan Qiao smacked his shoulder hard.

Yan Hao suddenly came to his senses.

“Ah Qiao, what happened to me? Just now I saw lots of women in front of me, trying to seduce me to follow them…” He immediately told his sister everything, realizing he must have been possessed.

“You were almost soul-hooked.”

“Keep this coin in your inner pocket,” Yan Qiao said coldly.

“Okay, I’m sorry Ah Qiao. I almost dragged you down.” Yan Hao felt guilty, realizing he was more of a burden than a help, and had only made her worry.

“No need for apologies. You’re just an ordinary person. Stay close to me,” Yan Qiao replied indifferently. She didn’t want to waste words.

Yan Hao nodded.

He felt that Ah Qiao seemed angry.

Was she mad at him?

Yan Hao wasn’t wrong. Yan Qiao was indeed angry — but not at him. She was furious that the vengeful spirits dared try to hook souls right in front of her.

Looking at Li Xiao, he had almost fallen for it too, but his reaction was quicker. Just before completely losing his mind, he instinctively grabbed Yan Qiao’s hand and regained clarity.

Soon, they reached the village’s ancestral hall. It was completely dilapidated and had likely stood for countless years.

Maybe the restaurant owner was right — this place could be two or three hundred years old.

Originally a place to worship ancestors, the hall had clearly been vandalized.

The resentment and yin energy here were the heaviest.

The old Taoist had said the seal was broken — it was probably here.

“Well, well! Three fresh pieces of meat! And one big, juicy slab!” Suddenly, a shrill voice rang out. It was painfully sharp, enough to cause a headache.

Earlier, Yan Qiao had opened Yan Hao’s yin-yang eyes, so now he could see spirits too.

The speaker was a hideous woman with a twisted body and disheveled hair. Her face was covered in scars, her features unrecognizable. She wore a cheongsam from a bygone era.

If someone saw her at night, they’d be scared to death.

She had to be a ghost, right?

Yan Hao gulped and clutched the copper coin Yan Qiao had given him.

Li Xiao could now see them too. Since being consumed by yin energy and turned into a body of extreme yin, he occasionally saw ghosts — though not always.

He was far calmer than Yan Hao.

The ghost woman had just mentioned “a big slab of meat” — could she mean him?

Yan Qiao had previously told him that with his current constitution, he was a ghost’s favorite.

On the ghost woman, Yan Qiao saw a fragment of Shen Zhiyin’s soul.

“If you don’t want your soul destroyed, give me back my sister-in-law’s soul fragment.” Yan Qiao’s voice turned cold, her eyes sharp.

“Oh? This little girl dares to demand something from me?”

“Besides my sister-in-law’s soul, there’s also a married couple.”

“Little girl, you better understand — you’re on my turf now.”

The ghost let out a screeching laugh.

“You’re pretty. Why don’t you give me your body instead?” she added.

More female ghosts emerged to echo her.

“Shameless,” Yan Qiao said coldly.

She pulled out her copper coin talisman and flung it at the ghost.

It hit the strongest female ghost, who let out a pained, ear-piercing scream as if she’d been burned.

Her expression twisted further in rage.

“Little brat! You’re courting death!” she shrieked, lunging at Yan Qiao.