Chapter 139 Save Me

I abruptly looked around to the left and right, but I saw neither any person nor the shadow of a ghost.

Unlike the previous time when the house was pitch black, the current house was not only draped with red silk ribbons, but it was also brightly lit.

Moreover, all the small pieces of furniture had been unceremoniously placed at the base of the wall near the doorway.

The interior of the room was decorated in an exceptionally festive manner.

Aside from the red silk ribbons stretching across the roof beams, on the walls on both sides, bright red double-happiness characters were posted on the innermost wall.

My body completely froze.

Looking at that bright red double-happiness character, I suddenly strode forward.

Soon, I arrived right in front of the happiness character.

My complexion turned pale, and a strong sense of emptiness welled up in my heart.

Zhang Chang, Li Yue, and Wang Erjun had already come up beside me.

I clenched my fists tightly and remained silent.

After a long while, the pent-up breath in my chest suddenly released by half.

The corpse on the wall was gone.

Chanshu... had already been saved.

All my redundant speculations were dispelled by this very fact.

That man had awakened. He had come out and rescued Chanshu.

Turning my head to look at the surrounding arrangements, a bitter smile twitched at the corner of my mouth.

This was a festive wedding hall; after saving Chanshu, had that man completed his marriage with her right here?

Reality forced a choice upon me. Yet, within my heart, there remained an indescribable agony and torment.

"Are you... alright?" Li Yue asked me softly.

Wang Erjun patted me on the shoulder and said, "Xie Yuan, stop spacing out. What kind of tricks is that old ghost hag's soul trying to pull? Setting up a wedding hall like this—is she trying to find someone for a ghost marriage?"

As he spoke, Wang Erjun reached out his hand, intending to tear down that double-happiness character directly.

At that moment, Granny Li suddenly raised her head and uttered, "Do not touch it."

Wang Erjun's hand instantly halted. He looked at Granny Li unnaturally and said, "Granny, I'm just giving her a preemptive show of force. We don't need to fear the ghost hag."

Granny Li, however, shook her head and said word by word, "That happiness character was not made by the ghost hag. It belongs to another ghost. Do not touch it, and none of us should provoke them."

When she said this, Granny Li clearly glanced at me.

I said in a low voice, "Erjun, do not move anything in this house. Let's go find the ghost hag."

My heart still felt somewhat oppressed and heavy, but there was also a sense of release—at least, I was spared from having to make a choice.

Or rather, the choice was never mine to make in the first place.

It was just that, regarding that man, I held no fondness for him.

It wasn't because he had wanted to occupy my body while still in the womb for a rebirth through a borrowed shell.

Rather, it was because he had clearly left a contingency plan for himself; the soul that entered my mother's womb and tried to take over my body was not his complete soul.

This matter was something he had told no one.

Uncle Wang Jiu didn't know, and even Chanshu didn't know.

Yet these two people—Uncle Wang Jiu went willingly to his death for him.

Chanshu was no different.

He had kept them in the dark, and to me, this behavior was repulsive.

Zhang Chang's expression was thoughtful.

Granny Li walked toward the room where my mother's three corpse-gods had sealed the ghost hag, and our group followed closely behind her.

Just as we reached the doorway of the ghost hag's room, Granny Li stopped. Then, in an icy tone, she said, "No matter how you struggle today, you cannot block it anymore. Today, we will settle this once and for all!"

At the doorway of the ghost hag's room, bursts of Yin energy and black fog immediately surged forth.

Instantly, a hunchbacked old hag with most of her hair fallen out and a gloomy expression appeared at the doorway.

Her expression was fierce and distorted. Staring fixedly at Granny Li, she said in a hoarse voice, "What kind of thing do you think you are! Had I not overlooked you, you would have been dead beyond all death ages ago!"

My pupils shrank. The appearance of the ghost hag's second soul was too sudden, practically nose-to-nose with Granny Li, which instantly sent a deep shock through my heart.

I abruptly raised my hand, preparing to use the Quaking Talisman.

Wang Erjun, however, was already cursing and saying, "You old hag, you've been dead for so many years, what are you still putting on airs for! Do you know whose territory this is? Wangjiaya is not a place where you can run amok!"

As his words fell, Wang Erjun suddenly whipped out a string of Body-Fixing Talismans and directly slapped them toward the top of the ghost hag's split soul's head!

The ghost hag's split soul suddenly stared gloomily at Wang Erjun. The corners of her mouth curled up.

Her body vanished in an instant.

Wang Erjun slapped at empty air.

What made my expression change slightly was that the things inside this doorway had also changed.

It looked completely hazy, and the ghost hag's corpse that had originally been in the corner was no longer visible.

Zhang Chang narrowed his eyes and said, "An illusion technique, and a very sophisticated one. Once we go inside, we won't be able to break it. This ghost is much harder to deal with than we imagined."

Granny Li tapped her cane against the ground and said in a low voice, "There is no illusion technique that cannot be broken. Today, her soul must scatter into nothingness!"

Yet, from Granny Li's words, I distinctly caught a trace of resolute determination.

No matter what method she was using, for herself, it certainly would not lead to a good outcome.

I stopped Granny Li, took a deep breath, and said, "Granny, don't be impulsive. We are here."

Granny Li's eyelids twitched slightly.

I deepened my tone and said, "Granny, I will definitely fulfill the promise I made to you. After rescuing my mother, I will surely find Uncle Wang Jiu's corpse and bring him back to life."

Granny Li's body trembled slightly once more. Then she raised her head; gratitude was in her gaze, but determination was far more prevalent.

"Child, Granny thanks you. You must live on."

Having said that, Granny Li actually walked forward, stepping directly into the ghost hag's house.

The next moment, Granny Li vanished from sight...

At least to my naked eye, the interior of the house remained in that misty state, where nothing could be seen clearly.

At that moment, Zhang Chang suddenly drew the dagger he held and viciously stabbed it into the ground in front of the door.

The slight metallic sound made my scalp tingle.

"Granny!"

Wang Erjun was also clearly startled and shouted at the top of his lungs.

Li Yue's face was full of worry as she said, "We must go in immediately, or she will be in danger. With an illusion technique of this magnitude, she is as good as blind inside."

I took a deep breath, but my gaze shifted to Zhang Chang.

Zhang Chang's action must have had a purpose.

Zhang Chang, however, curled the corner of his mouth into a smile and said coldly, "That ghost doesn't have the guts. She wasn't actually inside this room just now; she had run out. When that old woman went in, the ghost wanted to go in too, but wanting to come and go freely right under my nose is quite impossible."

"Ghost blood..." Li Yue's tone held a hint of astonishment.

I lowered my head and looked at the spot where Zhang Chang's dagger was planted. Sure enough, a trace of greenish-red blood was slowly seeping out onto the ground.

"She can no longer enter this house. As long as my dagger is planted here, she needn't even think about getting in."

"Deal with her, and the illusion technique inside will vanish. I can roughly guess what that old woman intends to do; she must have collected many items belonging to this ghost. By using blood to summon the soul, she can locate the ghost's position within the illusion, and then use some toxic curses, paying the price of her own remaining lifespan, to drag this ghost down to the netherworld together with her."

"Now that she is outside, that old woman won't be able to find anything and naturally won't be able to do any of that."

"Once we deal with her, we can go and rescue your mother's three corpse-gods without any obstruction."

Zhang Chang's words trailed off.

A trace of excitement appeared on Wang Erjun's face as he said, "Leave this matter to Fat Master. My title as Celestial Master Wang is well-earned, not for show."

Zhang Chang smiled and said, "Little fatty, I quite like you. How about you become my apprentice?"

Wang Erjun's expression stiffened briefly. He shook his head and said, "Elder Zhang, you'd better forget it. My master treats me very well."

After saying that, Wang Erjun lowered his head, produced several sticks of incense, and lit them on his own.

Clearly, what he had learned from Li Cangshui was far from being just simple talisman-drawing techniques.

Zhang Chang let out a slight sigh and said, "I still admire Li Cangshui's knack for taking on apprentices."

I looked around to the left and right, quietly sensing my surroundings.

I also had a way of finding ghosts.

That was my instinctive awareness and perception of souls.

However, just as I closed my eyes, a voice rang in my ears.

"...Save me..."

I abruptly opened my eyes, because this voice belonged to no one else—it was actually coming from Chanshu!

Yet, wasn't she already rescued?