Chapter 80 The Wish

The wind in the ghost domain grew more urgent, but lacked its original chilling yin qi.

Wan Qiniang's violent and resentful energy dissipated cleanly with her tears.

Wearing embroidered red clothes and gold-trimmed shoes, her face was plain, still appearing as an eighteen or nineteen-year-old girl. Her black hair hung down to her waist, and her eyes were slightly red and swollen. Only her legs downwards had a transparent quality, making people feel a little frightened.

"This is..."

Zhou Yi didn't know what to say.

This had exceeded her experience and understanding.

Wan Qiniang wiped her tears with her sleeve, carefully held the letter, bowed to Wei Yuan, and said softly, "Thank you, gongzi."

Wei Yuan shook his head and said:

"Wan guniang, are you awake?"

"Thanks to gongzi."

"Is that so..."

Wei Yuan was silent for a moment, then put away the Eight-Sided Han Sword in his hand, and said:

"Then, does guniang have any wishes?"

"Wishes?"

The girl, who looked the same as she did over a hundred years ago, was slightly startled. She originally wanted to say that she had no wishes, but holding those unsent letters and thinking of the words on them, she blurted out, "I want to see this era, may I?"

Xuan Yi's expression changed, and he stood up in front of her, urgently saying:

"No, we can't be sure she's harmless..."

The hilt of the Eight-Sided Han Sword struck Xuan Yi's sword lightly but firmly.

The sword in Xuan Yi's hand was knocked away.

It spun three times and landed upside down on the ground.

The momentum of the hilt did not diminish, and it struck Xuan Yi's abdomen.

Xuan Yi grunted, swallowed the words he was about to say, staggered back a step, and had to make way.

"I owe you one today, and I will repay you in the future."

Wei Yuan sheathed the Eight-Sided Han Sword and put it back in the qin case. He bent down, picked up the black umbrella he had just thrown away, shook off the dirt on it, then opened the black cloth umbrella. He turned back to look at the courtesan girl in red, holding a talisman in his right palm, allowing the power of exorcism to fill the space under the umbrella. He stretched out his left hand and said softly:

"Then, I will accompany guniang to walk through Jiangnan City one more time."

"Please."

…………………

Zhou Yi helped Xuan Yi up, who was clutching his abdomen.

Wei Yuan hadn't used any strength at all.

The reason why Xuan Yi retreated, and even fell to the ground, was because he himself was already exhausted.

His face was pale, and he gritted his teeth and said, "He doesn't know how unstable a vengeful ghost is..."

"If that female ghost rampages outside, I'm afraid more than a few hundred people will be harmed."

Zhou Yi said, "He should have some way to prevent the vengeful ghost from going berserk."

"Let's try to eliminate this ghost domain first, otherwise it will always be a scourge. By the way, check Fu Pengyi and Wan Qiniang's names..."

"Okay."

………………

Jiangnan Road in cloudy weather.

It hadn't really started raining yet, but the blue flagstone pavement already had a faint sense of moisture.

Wei Yuan held up the umbrella, carried the qin case on his back, and the red-clad figure walked alongside him under the umbrella.

"I didn't expect this place to be the same as it was back then."

Wan Qiniang, in her red dress, looked at the moss-covered corners of the ancient buildings on both sides and said softly.

"I still remember running past here many times when I was a child. Every morning, people from nearby villages would come here to sell vegetables, green vegetables, cabbage, very fresh. In winter, there were also frosted persimmons. Old Chen's soy sauce was here, and there was a small noodle restaurant over there, with three tables and one person, two liang of noodles, a small spoonful of soy sauce, very authentic."

"When I was young, I also thought that when Pengyi and I were old, we would only be able to walk slowly on this street hand in hand, watching others buy vegetables and watching the children run around. Now that I think about it, I really shouldn't have thought so much."

Wan Qiniang shook her head gently.

They walked forward to an old house that had long been closed.

You could tell that it used to be a shop, but it hadn't been open for many years.

"This is Jixiangfang, I used to like buying rouge here the most."

"I originally thought that no matter how the world changed, there would always be daughters, and daughters would always need to paint their eyebrows and rouge their lips, so this shop would never close. I didn't expect that the daughters of today no longer use rouge. Pengyi said that worldly changes are something people can't imagine, perhaps this is the truth."

Seeing the busy urban area in the distance, Wan Qiniang stopped and stood in the misty Jiangnan, no longer moving forward.

"I originally wanted to see the new Jiangnan for Pengyi, but all I see are the old landscapes, making gongzi laugh."

She smiled and wiped the corners of her eyes.

"Since rouge is no longer used, then the songs are no longer sung, no longer listened to, right?"

Wei Yuan said, "They are."

He held the umbrella and looked at the prosperous new urban area, answering:

"Opera is still here, and the singing style of opera is also liked by more young people. On this ancient land, there are many new things, but those old things have not been forgotten, and are still growing, inclusive and accommodating. Shenzhou has never lacked such a magnanimous spirit."

"We will never forget those who should be remembered."

"Wan guniang, look into the distance, the place with a stele is the Martyrs' Memorial Park. The names of those from Jiangnan Road who sacrificed their lives for the country are all written on it."

"How about it, is there still time, would you like to take a look?"

………………

A moment later, in the Jiangnan Road Martyrs' Memorial Park, Wei Yuan stood quietly holding the umbrella.

The stone stele was covered with densely packed names.

Wan Qiniang in red counted them one by one, and finally saw that familiar name. She finally seemed to cry and laugh, and bent down to touch the stone stele, but her fingertips could not touch that person's warmth, nor could the stone stele be touched. Her fingers passed through the stele.

It was about to rain, the sky was gloomy, but there were still some people in the park.

Among them were some children.

Wei Yuan held the umbrella, bowed to the monument and Wan Qiniang, and said:

"I have been afraid of ghosts since I was a child, and many people are afraid. We have always been afraid to go to cemeteries, let alone at night, but the Martyrs' Cemetery is different, because even children know that the heroes will protect them. We, the later generations, should all thank them, and thank you."

"Thank you."

Wan Qiniang turned around, her eyes were red, she rubbed the corners of her eyes, and said softly.

"Gongzi, you're laughing at me."

"It's okay."

"Wan guniang, is there anywhere else you want to go?"

"No."

And so, the two silently walked back to Chunxiao House.

Wan Qiniang pushed open the gate of the garden and saw Zhou Yi and the other two inside with complicated expressions. The original ghost domain had begun to slowly collapse, like an old oil painting being peeled back, revealing its dilapidated true face: collapsed pavilions, messy spring grass, and faded red wooden doors, all of which had been washed away by the years.

The Crouching Tiger waist牌 trembled slightly.

This time, it didn't need to be printed on paper; words appeared in Wei Yuan's mind.

The vengeful ghost has disappeared.

The Sili Xiaowei has gained seven merits.

Conversion activates the Sili Xiaowei's basic divine power [Zhu Ling] (Soul Infusion).

Conversion activates the Sili Xiaowei's scroll "Strange Forces and Disorderly Gods, God of Five."

The Crouching Tiger waist牌 slowly quieted down.

Wan Qiniang carefully placed the letter aside, stood up and looked at Wei Yuan, who had just traveled through Jiangnan with her, and said:

"Gongzi still has something to say to me, right?"

Then Zhou Yi and Xuan Yi saw Wei Yuan, who had just spared no effort to take Wan Qiniang out, silently put away the black umbrella, then took down the qin case, took out the sword from it, closed his eyes, and slowly clenched the hilt with his five fingers. Inside the scabbard, steel trembled and hummed.

Wan Qiniang said, "Is it because I attacked gongzi before?"

Wei Yuan said:

"You killed someone, right?"

"Innocent people."

Wei Yuan raised his head slightly, and the tragic howls he heard when he passed by the Fuchun residential area flashed in his mind.

His five fingers clenched, and the sword hummed loudly as it was drawn.

Rumble.

Thunder rumbled in the sky, and it began to rain.

His right hand sprinkled talisman water on the blade, and his fingers stroked the blade.

Blood flowed down, but left golden marks on the blade.

[Zhu Ling] (Soul Infusion): Infuse spirit into a weapon, capable of harming demons and monsters.

Wei Yuan slowly lowered his stance, holding the hilt with both hands.

The blade pointed at the wandering soul that he had just helped with all his strength to fulfill her wish.

Wei Yuan closed his eyes heavily. Qiniang's experiences, the despair of the past, the wickedness of people's hearts, the reason for transforming into a vengeful ghost, and the tragic wails of the mother who had lost everything when he passed by the Fuchun residential area, all surged up together. Perhaps this is the reality of life. Whether it is a Crouching Tiger Commandant or a knight-errant, sometimes they can't change anything.

We can only choose.

A low tiger roar came from within the Crouching Tiger waist牌.

Wei Yuan suppressed the frustration and complexity in his heart, opened his eyes, and said in a low voice:

"He who kills shall pay with his life."

"Da Han Sili Xiaowei, Wei Yuan..."

The sword tip was raised, pointing at Wan Qiniang.

"Sending Wan guniang on her final journey."