Chapter 1 There is No Feast Under Heaven That Doesn't End

The moonlight was cold and desolate, the temple dilapidated and ruined, the ground covered in blood and mud.

It wasn't exactly the right setting for singing "Farewell."

Chai Cuiqiao held her own skeleton and said softly, "Is Gongzi (young master) leaving?"

"Yeah," Li Ang nodded.

"After today's farewell, I don't know when I'll hear news of Gongzi again."

"...Mountains and rivers meet, as long as you live long enough, there will always be a chance to meet again." Li Ang sighed, "What are your plans for the future?"

"..." Chai Cuiqiao's eyes dimmed. Her birth mother had already passed away, and her birth father only regarded her as a tool for family transactions. As for her nominal husband, he had already begun preparations to marry a new bride.

In all the world, where could a wandering ghost find a place to settle down?

"Now that my great revenge is avenged, I have no more wishes." Chai Cuiqiao forced a smile. "A vengeful ghost like me, born of resentment and anger, easily dissipates after their revenge is complete and they have no more wishes. The only way out is to find a nest with abundant Yin energy and hide."

"Don't you want to be reincarnated?" Li Ang said softly, "The monk Huibing can be considered a capable high monk. While there's still time, ask him to recite a Rebirth Mantra."

Chai Cuiqiao smiled bitterly, "The underworld hasn't been heard from for a very, very long time. Those ghost messengers who follow the Book of Life and Death to find wandering ghosts and help them reincarnate have disappeared without a trace.

Reincarnation has stagnated, the Six Paths have stopped. After ordinary people die, their souls either turn into wandering ghosts or fly to the far north, never to be seen again.

Even a holy monk with true, heaven-penetrating magic power cannot deliver the dead to the underworld."

"No news from the underworld? The Six Paths of Reincarnation completely stopped?"

Li Ang vaguely smelled a big news story, but now was not a good opportunity to discuss it. After hesitating for a moment, he asked, "Can you find a nest with sufficient Yin energy yourself?"

"It's difficult." Chai Cuiqiao shook her head. "Ancient battlefields, ancient tombs, these places where Yin energy gathers, are already occupied by old ghosts who have been there for years. How can they allow others to sleep soundly beside their beds..."

The only way to sleep soundly was to marry them, to become a wife to those ugly old ghosts. But for Miss Chai, marrying an old geezer was worse than death.

"...I do have a way to save you from dissipating."

"Eh?"

Chai Cuiqiao widened her eyes, "What way?"

"This." Li Ang took out one of the task rewards just issued by the system. It was a palm-sized, exquisite white cloth flag, with a bamboo pole as a frame. On the left side of the white flag was written "Golden Boy Leads the Way, Ride the Dragon East," and on the right side was written "Jade Maiden Sends to Penglai, Ride the Crane in Leisure." In the middle was written "Western Paradise Soul-Guiding Banner."

Name: Soul-Guiding Banner

Type: Weapon

Quality: Rare

Attack Power: Low

Effect 1: Absorbs and stores Yin energy, current Yin energy storage 0/1000

Effect 2: Absorbs and stores spirits. The Yin energy stored in the Soul-Guiding Banner can provide healing and cultivation for spirits. The level of the spirit cannot be higher than the player's level, and the spirit itself is not bound by the player. Current spirit limit 0/3

Note: Demons and monsters, come quickly

"This is..."

"Consider it my Dharma artifact," Li Ang explained, "Actually, the environment of the place I'm going to isn't much better than here, and following me isn't necessarily safer than staying here..."

That was the truth. The Earth in the real world was undergoing a death game, and players, like ordinary people without extraordinary traits, faced life-and-death tests at all times.

The only good thing was that the Soul-Guiding Banner could allow spirits to avoid the threat of dissipation and have a stable place to live.

Anyway, everyone had gone through hard battles together. Miss Chai's luck in this life was really bad. Helping her if he could was the right thing to do. As for luring her to become a long-term external attachment equipment, that was secondary.

Chai Cuiqiao looked at the Soul-Guiding Banner, thought for a moment, and asked, "Does the place Gongzi is going to have Leaf Game?"

Leaf Game was the ancient poker game called Ma Diao, which originated in the Tang Dynasty and was popular in the Ming Dynasty. From the royal palace nobles to the scholars, everyone would seize the opportunity to play a few rounds in their spare time.

So Miss Chai was a card table veteran. Who would have thought?

"Yes," Li Ang nodded, "Have you heard of Happy Landlord?"

"Is there cricket fighting?"

"Yes, have you heard of Pokemon Go?"

"Are there poems, songs, and winding stream banquets?"

"This we don't have, but we have concerts all the time."

"Then, are there storybooks?" Chai Cuiqiao pinched her skirt, and said shyly, "Preferably the kind about infatuated men and resentful women."

"Huh?" Li Ang thought about modern texts, and nodded, "Dominant presidents, cold-blooded military officers, loyal male servants, sunny idols, campus princes, older teachers, younger students, harems, reverse harems. All kinds are available."

"w{?Д?}w"

Chai Cuiqiao's eyes lit up, nodding like she was hulling garlic, but still maintaining the demeanor of a proper lady, "Then I will leave it to Gongzi to arrange."

Li Ang shook the Soul-Guiding Banner, and took Chai Cuiqiao into it. He turned his head and saw Xing Hechou and the others were discussing how to properly handle Hongniang.

This woman was pregnant after being married to Wang Guan. She had originally planned to lurk by Wang Guan's side to help the Ministry of Justice official Wang Kuang collect relevant evidence of cannibalism.

Now that Wang Guan was dead, Hongniang, who had only been slightly frightened, naturally had to be sent back to Nanjing City.

Help people to the end, send the Buddha to the West.

After Li Ang discussed it with his teammates, he took two gold bars from Liu Wudai, and followed the fox family to the edge of the dense forest with Hongniang.

Li Ang used one gold bar as a reward, and used illusions and coercion to coax the foxes to escort Hongniang back to Nanjing City, and ensure Hongniang's personal safety during the Wang Guan cannibalism incident.

The other gold bar was for Hongniang to keep close to her body.

He believed that with the protection of many foxes in secret, and the help of Wang Kuang, the Ministry of Justice official, the unfortunate women in Wang Guan's mansion would be properly settled.

When everything was properly handled, the teleportation time had reached its end, and everyone teleported away.

————

Three days later, night, Guhan Temple (Solitary Cold Temple).

A small, thin figure wearing a Taoist robe, limping, slowly walked out of the dense forest, and went straight into the Guhan Temple courtyard.

The courtyard was filled with buzzing sounds. Flies and insects, attracted by the bloody smell, were lying on the dark red surface of the soil, greedily licking the blood and mud all over the ground.

The limping Taoist priest glanced around, waved his robe, and expelled a gust of wind, gathering the dense mass of flies and mosquitoes into a ball, and detonating it with a bang.

Insect corpses and dust filled the air. The Taoist slowly squatted down, gently stroking the blood on the ground, and murmured to himself, "Wang Guan, my disciple, are you there?"

Buzz—

The blood and minced meat buried deep underground, as if stimulated by something, frantically涌出the surface, forming thin, long fleshy whiskers, like seaweed, swaying in the wind.

"Hehe, it's good that you're here."

The Taoist stretched out his palm and gently stroked the fleshy whiskers, "After you died, that Ministry of Justice official became emboldened. The dignitaries in the city were unwilling to stand up and speak for us, and even the Jiajing Emperor no longer fully trusts me, forcing me to leave the capital.

Ah, well, anyway, I, Chi Duzi (Red Belly), have received your apprenticeship ceremony, and can be regarded as your teacher. How can the people of our Kuiyang Sect die inexplicably?"

The fleshy whiskers all over the ground danced even more frantically.

The Taoist smiled, "Hmm? What, you want me to save you? You should think carefully. If I save you now, your three souls and seven spirits will never be freed, and there will be no chance to regret it."

The fleshy whiskers paused when they heard the words, and then, like crazy,

Violently swaying and dancing.

"Hahahaha, since you, my disciple, would rather give up reincarnation and seek revenge, then how can I, as your master, not help you?"

The Taoist laughed, and slapped his palm on the ground. He saw fleshy whiskers all over the ground climbing out of the soil, connecting with each other, and attaching to the skeleton of the mountain demon's legs that had been abandoned in the corner of the courtyard three days ago.

Legs, torso, arms, head... A small mountain demon appeared in place, but its limbs and face were all made up of pink, constantly wriggling fleshy whiskers.

Ugly, disgusting, terrifying.

"Ugh..."

The flesh and blood mountain demon seemed to be suffering great pain, and cried while holding its head, while the limping Taoist had a smile on his face. Only when the other party calmed down did he leisurely say, "Had enough fun? We still have serious business to do. Let's go, to Songjiang Prefecture."

The flesh and blood mountain demon knelt down silently, carried the Taoist on its back, and walked towards the east.

Songjiang Prefecture, is the ancient name of Yin City.