Chapter 90

Chapter 90

Chapter 90: Arrow on the String

As he got closer, Bai Zhengliu could clearly see more details on the Tianshan Old Ghost.

He held his breath—

Not out of nervousness, but because there were so many half-devoured corpses around. Although the area was in Tianshan and the frost and cold could somewhat reduce the smell, the Old Ghost had accumulated human and beast bodies over the years—still a considerable number. Even with the “reduced” odor, it was strong enough to make a swordsman shudder.

He vaguely thought, To be an “Old Ghost,” one must endure what ordinary people cannot… As the thought passed, the young man gripped his long sword more tightly.

The twenty-eight generals’ blade once again faintly radiated light, but this time, there were no other sparkles responding to the glow on the twenty-eight generals.

From Bai Zhengliu’s perspective, the area beneath the Old Ghost was so corrupt that even compared to Qian Gui’s hairpin, or the stone wall where they had encountered “Wang Laoer,” those places seemed pure and transparent in comparison, almost clean and bright.

He wasn’t even sure if this counted as part of the “spiritual ore.” If it did, the concentration of yin energy must be so extreme that it completely altered the ore’s color and appearance.

In any case, it was an unnerving amount.

Bai Zhengliu pressed the tip of his tongue against his upper palate, keeping himself composed.

After surveying the area beneath the Old Ghost, he finally looked up at the main target of this operation.

By now, the Old Ghost was only a few meters away. Bai Zhengliu could clearly distinguish the composition of the “black shadow” in front of him: which parts were the Old Ghost’s tangled, blood-stained hair that made it impossible to tell blood from hair, and which parts were human bones the Old Ghost had collected and piled beside him over the years.

In comparison, the Old Ghost himself looked thin and small. His back was completely hunched, and his clothes—better described as “tattered rags”—hung loosely on his frame. His bones were barely covered by a thin layer of flesh; if the light were brighter, Bai Zhengliu felt he could even count the ribs.

The sounds of Mei Yinghan fighting the bone chains still reached them. Compared to Bai Zhengliu, who was right by the Old Ghost with little resistance, the Old Ghost now focused even more on the direction where Mei Yinghan was.

At the same time, he continued gnawing on the lotus picker’s fingers in front of him. Holding Zhao Da’s hand, he smoothly sucked it in, and with the surrounding stench of blood, half of Zhao Da’s ring finger skin was inside the Old Ghost’s mouth.

The Old Ghost chuckled, muttering: “Ah, jianghu people are good! My favorite is jianghu people. These lotus pickers’ flesh is firm, but still lacks flavor.” Half nostalgic, half regretful, he continued: “But if I really think about it, children are the best to eat. Unfortunately, over all these years, I’ve only encountered one.

“He was only seven or eight. Forget the flesh, even the bones were tender. I bit him, and he cried ‘waa waa.’ I soothed him, didn’t intend to eat him, just played with him. That child opened his eyes, staring at me with two black, round, shiny eyes. Haha, even the eyes were beautiful. I cherished him, and shoved my fingers into his eye sockets, pulling out the eyeballs right then.”

“—You twenty-something jianghu people,” the Old Ghost suddenly turned his gaze, tilting his head toward Bai Zhengliu, who was now right beside him with his long sword raised, “surely you can’t imagine that taste? Bite down, and your mouth is full of fresh, tender flesh. So many years, and I’ve never tasted it again!”

He spoke while grinning at Bai Zhengliu. Seeing this, Bai Zhengliu had only one thought: No! He knows!

But being at this point, the arrow was on the string—he had to strike!

Bai Zhengliu didn’t exchange words with him, expressionless, and aimed for the Old Ghost’s neck, bringing down the long sword.

The blade cut smoothly and decisively.Bai Zhengliu didn’t even need to exert much force; the Old Ghost’s head fell to the ground.

Bai Zhengliu had mentally prepared for a tough battle, even thinking, This impulsive action with Brother Mei might mean we never have another chance to act impulsively again. Yet, when asked whether he regretted it, his answer was still no.

And yet, the current situation went surprisingly smoothly.

Bai Zhengliu was stunned for a moment before hearing Mei Yinghan shout from nearby: “Brother Bai!”

Bai Zhengliu turned to look at him and saw that the bone chain that had entangled Mei Yinghan had also finally settled. The swordsman was moving toward him, still at a considerable distance, too far to discern his expression. He only sensed that the swordsman, too, seemed puzzled and uneasy about the scene.

Bai Zhengliu steadied himself.

No matter what, he told himself: the Old Ghost is dead, and that is a good thing.

As for why the Old Ghost hadn’t resisted—was it overconfidence or some hidden scheme?—the swordsman chose not to dwell on it for now. Instead, he half-squatted to check on the lotus picker in front of him.

He and Mei Yinghan had arrived a step too late. By the time Bai Zhengliu reached the Old Ghost and Zhao Da, one of Zhao Da’s legs was completely gone. The upper body still had solid flesh, while the lower body was just pale bone.

Also, there was the hand that the Old Ghost had been meticulously sucking when Bai Zhengliu approached. After years of eating people, that old bastard had a certain method. He started with the pinky, chewing and sucking finger by finger as if that relieved some itch on his teeth.

Bai Zhengliu briefly examined the situation and sighed.

Zhao Da was still breathing. Weakly, yes, but with proper care and timely removal from this place, he could survive.

The difficult part was afterward.

The family’s livelihood depended entirely on the lotus picker. Now that he was in this condition, what would happen to his family? If the villagers came up the mountain to find him, that was already a great favor. If this favor wasn’t returned promptly—or if future needs arose—it could turn into resentment.

But living was still a good thing.

Bai Zhengliu lifted Zhao Da’s still-intact arm, prepared to do whatever it took to get him out of this cursed place first.

As for this area, based on prior experience, now that the Old Ghost was dead, the maze-like defenses he set up should dissipate. Bai Zhengliu and Brother Mei only needed to remember the landmarks to come back later, carefully examining the contamination of the spiritual stones and ores. Besides, the Old Ghost’s death had been too clean and decisive, which was suspicious in itself. They could investigate that as well later.

Bai Zhengliu had many plans.

But the moment he straightened Zhao Da’s body, all his plans froze.

Something was wrong!

The master of this place was clearly dead, yet why was Bai Zhengliu’s body not warming up? On the contrary, he felt colder and colder. Earlier, approaching the area had only caused frost on his eyebrows, but now, his entire body was trembling.This trembling was completely beyond Bai Zhengliu’s control, more like an instinct.

Cold! So cold!

Even though he had activated the power in his dantian to circulate through his body, compared to the surrounding extreme cold, that little warmth was like a drop in the ocean.

Yet compared to Zhao Da beside him, Bai Zhengliu’s condition could even be called “not so bad.” Looking at Zhao Da now, he finally understood what it meant to be frozen all over.

Even the blood dripping from the torn flesh on Zhao Da’s fingers had turned to ice; it couldn’t fall, only solidifying where the finger base should be. Like icicles hanging from northern eaves in winter, at a glance, it almost looked like Zhao Da’s missing fingers were back.

“Brother Bai…”

From the darkness, Mei Yinghan’s voice faintly reached him.

Bai Zhengliu slowly lifted his head.

From this distance, he could finally see Mei Yinghan’s expression! The swordsman’s face was full of anxiety and tension as he shouted, “Behind you!”

Behind me?

Bai Zhengliu raised the Twenty-Eight Generals with the hand not supporting Zhao Da.

The blade shimmered with faint light, which, in the darkness, reflected almost like a mirror.

Through this “mirror,” Bai Zhengliu saw his own slightly disheveled yet still surviving self. He saw Zhao Da, realizing how frighteningly pale his lips were. Any further delay could cost the lotus picker his last breath.

And he also saw what was behind the two of them.

The Tianshan Old Ghost, whose head had originally been severed, had somehow stood back up. It trailed Bai Zhengliu and Zhao Da like a sinister shadow, mouth open, spewing icy wind and frost particles that landed on both the swordsman and the lotus picker!

This was the source of the chilling cold surrounding them.

Bai Zhengliu felt a chill in his heart. He still gripped his long knife tightly, but no matter how he thought, he couldn’t understand how the Old Ghost could follow them like this after he had chopped off its head… His thoughts were interrupted as his foot kicked something.

Bai Zhengliu looked down.

He saw a head.

The head of the Tianshan Old Ghost.

The head still retained the Old Ghost’s expression in life, with ten or even a hundred times more malice than an ordinary wandering soul. Its face and the rest of the body were just a thin layer of flesh hanging over bone. One could believe it to be a hundred years old—or older. Now, meeting Bai Zhengliu’s gaze, it grinned sinisterly, showing blackened teeth, smiling directly at him.

“Old Changyangzi sealed me here for many years, yet finally gave me the chance to escape from this body of flesh…”Bai Zhengliu listened, and suddenly realized that the voice was not coming from the head on the ground, but from the Old Ghost behind him.

The frost and cold drew even closer, his hair covered inch by inch in frost and snow. Behind him, the Tianshan Old Ghost spread its hands to the sides, letting out a wildly frenzied, exhilarating laughter.

“Ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha—

“Old Changyangzi, do you know that today I am still here!”

As the words fell, the bone chains on the ground began to tremble and fly up, landing into the hands of the Old Ghost’s spirit!

Amid the “crash” of the chains, Bai Zhengliu acted without hesitation, throwing Zhao Da’s body to the side. He bent down himself, dodging the first wave of attacks from the bone chains!