Chapter 68

Chapter 68: Sword Slaying Demons I

【Examination Countdown for the Demon Slayer License: 13:13:13】

【0104001 Míng Yuè】

【Captured Yin Energy Nodes: 2】

【Points: 15】

【Exam Ranking: 13,432】

【Win/Loss Ratio: 1:0 100%】

Míng Yuè crawled up to the riverbank, wringing the water out of her clothes, the smell of water plants making her nauseous.

She suddenly remembered the waterproof issue with her electronic devices and quickly pulled out her communicator to check.

The black display screen was intact, the waterproof function working perfectly, with the number 15 blinking steadily.

Míng Yuè: “...”

How did I get 15 points?

The Yin energy mist in the river, burned and torn apart: “...”

Wuwuwu, my fate is so miserable.

Míng Yuè, with her carefree personality, decided not to overthink it.

She glanced around, took out a band-aid, and was about to wrap it around her finger. She looked at the fingertip, which was torn with a chunk of skin and bleeding, thinking how wasteful it was for the blood to go to waste. So, she took out a few blank talismans, wiped one across the wound, making the most out of the "blood" with her resources.

Very good, whoever dares to block me later, I'll use this talisman stained with Yang energy blood to finish them.

Míng Yuè thought to herself, then proceeded to apply the Yunnan Baiyao band-aid to her finger.

The arched bridge in front of her had an elegant shape, ancient and graceful, standing alone amid the earthquake debris, beautiful on its own, exuding a refined aura.

Míng Yuè carefully examined the stone bridge.

The stone steps leading up to the bridge were just ten steps away, with fine moss creeping up the bridge base.

The gray mist was thick, blocking her line of sight at the end of the bridge's curve. She couldn’t see where it led, but she could barely make out the angular outline of some buildings in the distance.Míng Yuè: “...”

On the left was the river she had just crossed, and on the right was an unknown forest, filled with dragonfruit-like fruits. In the middle, there was a stone bridge. Míng Yuè took out a revealing talisman from her backpack, lit it, and began to spin around while waving the talisman.

The operation of the revealing talisman was simple—just ignite it and swipe it across the area you wish to check for Yin and Yang energy.

Míng Yuè's spinning ritual was done to check the Yin and Yang energy in a full 360-degree radius.

After testing, the gray-black marks on the talisman formed a circle.

Faint on the sides, intense in the middle.

Alright, there’s a ghost on the bridge.

Míng Yuè decided to cross the bridge.

The gray bricks and stones appeared unremarkable.

The closer she got, the clearer her vision became. For the first time, her left eye’s clarity reached nearly the same level as her right eye’s.

Only three steps left.

The silence around her was eerie. The gray mist covered the sky, blocking the sun, and there was no sign of the blazing sunlight. Míng Yuè stopped, took out her phone, and searched through photos she had taken before entering the area.

Sure enough.

According to the map information provided at the entrance, this should be a public restroom near the artificial "City of the Wrongly Dead."

However, now, a strange stone bridge had appeared, and the building behind it didn’t resemble a public restroom at all.

“...”

Míng Yuè closed her phone and moved forward.

Back in the Black Mountain, she had already suspected that the geography of the ghost city area had changed.

Now, after carefully checking the area map, she realized that everything was wrong.

The recent earthquake was truly mysterious, with countless hidden mechanisms.

The epicenter was at the Imperial Temple in the ghost city, and it had a very narrow range of impact, just enough to destroy a small part of the ghost city tourist area. If she told the Earthquake Bureau about it, they’d probably laugh themselves to death.Before entering, the senior students had discussed whether the earthquake was caused by human or natural factors. Now, looking back, they were all too superficial.

What should have been considered is what the earthquake had brought up from underground to the surface.

Just after passing through the cave and the Black Mountain Pass, Míng Yuè had been eavesdropping on a quarrel between Liú Ānrán and a water ghost.

Among the exchange, the water ghost said, “Who knows what the underworld is doing? A perfectly fine earthquake and it brought me up to the surface.” This sentence fell straight into Míng Yuè’s heart, echoing endlessly.

So, the green snake was from underground.

No wonder the water ghost she encountered today was fiercer than any she had met before.

Calming her thoughts, Míng Yuè looked at the stone bridge again, now seeing it with the mindset of someone admiring a foreign landscape.

As she approached the bridge’s foundation, the surrounding grass became quieter, so quiet that the pressure in her ears became uncomfortable and her heartbeat quickened.

When Yin energy reaches a certain concentration, it can alter the physical environment and distort the five senses.

Míng Yuè knew this well.

She stared at the yellow spot hidden in the grass at the base of the bridge.

It was a piece of talisman paper torn in half by a sharp object, with clear patterns of a basic fire talisman, and... a large patch of fresh blood stains.

It was new blood, still slowly flowing under her gaze.

There was someone on the bridge!

There had been a violent struggle! The blood had even splattered onto the talisman!

The presence of fresh blood meant that the incident had happened recently!

Why was there no sound?

“...” Míng Yuè took out a Golden Light Divine Spell talisman, pressed it against her forehead, and holding her trident, she charged into the gray mist on the bridge.

The gray mist on the bridge swirled.

Zhāng Qíqí leaned her back against a stone lion column of the bridge, her back trembling, yet she dared not move.

She didn’t dare to move.Zhāng Qíqí's shoulder cloth had already been corroded by Yin energy, emitting a foul stench, revealing skin covered with dark purple bruises. Upon closer inspection, these bruises were all handprints, each one blackened.

The gray mist in front of her surged, fiercely entering both her eyes, stinging so much that it made her want to cry.

There was a ghost on this bridge.

It was in the mist.

From time to time, it passed in front of her, igniting the visibility talisman, turning the talisman paper into a charred black piece.

But she couldn’t see it.

Zhāng Qíqí had tried every method, but couldn’t use words to lure out the specific form of the ghost—except when it attacked her.

Without being able to see the shape, it was hard to subdue.

She should have left the bridge, given up on this scoring point, but found that once she was on the bridge, she couldn’t get off.

This ghost liked to tap on shoulders.

It hid behind people, blending into the Yin energy wind. When the person stayed still, there was no movement; once they moved, the surrounding air was disturbed, and the ghost would slide in like it had no legs, slipping into the person’s hoodie, letting them carry it on their back, back to back, feeling icy cold and prickling with a numbing sensation. It would then call their name, once, twice, three times, making their soul tremble and their body freeze in terror.

Previously, Zhāng Qíqí had been tapped on the shoulder seven or eight times in a row, and the soul lantern on her left shoulder was almost extinguished. She was so scared that she didn’t dare to move rashly.

If she made another mistake and the soul lantern went out, she wouldn’t need to finish the exam; she would just press the life-saving talisman and leave the exam site.

The Yin energy on her shoulder had coagulated into a Yin burn, piercing her shoulder bone like a sharp spike, making her want to immediately cup the spot to expel the Yin energy.

Zhāng Qíqí was in so much pain that she nearly cried out.

The aftereffects of having her soul called were beginning to show.

Now, Zhāng Qíqí’s three souls were unstable. The sound of the ghost calling her name, turning corners, echoed in her ears, lingering for three days, giving her nightmares every night.

At this moment, the gray mist on the bridge settled, calming down.

Zhāng Qíqí looked at her watch.

She had been trapped for half an hour. She had to leave, no matter what. If she couldn’t kill the ghost, she couldn’t stay here.

Her fingers were badly cut and bloodied, but Zhāng Qíqí still bit her palm fiercely, blood spraying out as she trembled, rubbing it onto the talisman paper. She then drew a calming talisman.Chén Qìqí's calming talisman suppressed the Yin energy.

As long as it could slow down the Yin wind, she would have a chance to outrun this nimble ghost.

As long as she outran it!

Once she avoided the shoulder taps and soul calling, she’d have room for negotiation!

But—

Chén Qìqí shook her head, not thinking about the previous failed attempts. She slammed the talisman firmly onto the blade of her hand knife, preparing herself: "With one thought, eternal as the heavens." Encountering a ghost, slice the ghost!

She took one step forward, and just as her back left the stone lion, the gray mist on the bridge immediately began to sway, hazy as though a thousand gray mosquito nets were falling from the air, causing her vision to blur and her senses to become chaotic.

Chén Qìqí: "…"

Chén Qìqí bit her tongue, silently chanting a calming spell, trying to steady her mind and soul.

Sure enough, a strong wind surged from behind her, and her shoulder was lightly tapped!

"Ha!"

Chén Qìqí spun around abruptly and slashed her knife forward!

It collided with the face of Míng Yuè, who was covered in “ghost symbols”!

Chén Qìqí: "…"

Míng Yuè: "…"

People can scare each other to death.

Both of them screamed at the same time!

Chén Qìqí: "Ahhhhh! A ghost! I'll kill you! I'll kill you!!!"

Míng Yuè: "Ahhhhhh! Friendly forces, stop! I'm alive! Aaaahhh!!!"

After that, Míng Yuè blocked the blade with her fork, pushing Chén Qìqí into the stone lion. Her shoulder was scraped hard, leaving a smear of blood on the gray stone.

Míng Yuè: "…"Míng Yuè jumped in fright and quickly squatted down. "Are you okay?!"

Zhāng Qíqí's lips were trembling, staring at the "Fierce Golden Light Divine Spell" flickering above Míng Yuè's forehead, she stammered:

"Ghost... there's a ghost..."

"Behind you! Be careful behind you!"

"Careful—!"

Míng Yuè: "..."

Míng Yuè's back hairs stood up after hearing the voice, it felt like a field of prickly grass!

Before she could turn around to check, she suddenly felt a chill on the back of her head. A cold hand rested on her shoulder, the bone-chilling cold quickly seeping from the point of contact, swiftly drilling into her heart.

Míng Yuè: "..."

Míng Yuè maintained a difficult posture, half-squatting, half-standing, with her hand still stretched in mid-air, wanting to help Zhāng Qíqí, but her stiff back still held the deceptive shoulder-tapping ghost behind her.

The ghost was heavy, its feet not touching the ground, and it was completely draped over Míng Yuè's back like a long, chilling mass.

The cold instantly permeated her, like swimming in the Dead Sea in the middle of winter.

"Miss, are you crossing the bridge?"

A gentle male voice asked from behind.

Míng Yuè stiffened her neck, cold sweat dripping from the back of her head. She activated her aura and answered calmly:

"Yes, are you crossing the bridge too, big brother?"

"Fate."

"Have you heard that ghost story?"

"The shoulder-tapping ghost, with red earlobes."

"Oh right, that one," Míng Yuè quickly thought of something, babbling nonsense, her brain unable to keep up with her mouth. She didn’t even know what she was saying.

Zhāng Qíqí, sitting on the ground, was blocked from seeing by Míng Yuè’s half-raised body. She was terrified, unable to see the ghost’s face, only catching a glimpse of a gray shadow without feet floating behind Míng Yuè.After hearing Míng Yuè’s “supernatural” ghost story—

Zhāng Qíqí: "..."

Zhāng Qíqí: "O口O—!"

"I’ve never heard of it."

"What’s your name?"

The male voice replied from behind.

Míng Yuè forced her eyeballs to the side, without turning her head, and tried to look back. She then discovered... the ghost was rubbing its earlobe, and it soon turned red.

Míng Yuè: "..."

Quite childlike, actually.

Seizing the opportunity, she raised her trident and shouted loudly. With a quick flick of her wrist, she tried to strike the shoulder-tapping ghost from head to toe. But her movements were too forceful, and a gust of wind followed, with a loud boom! The trident deeply embedded itself into the archway stone of the bridge.

No ghost in sight.

Míng Yuè: "..."

Míng Yuè was frustrated and muttered, "Why is it so fast?!"

Zhāng Qíqí, seeing the lively little girl in front of her, swallowed nervously. "Classmate, turn around and listen to me."

Five minutes later—

Míng Yuè clenched her fist: "I understand now."

"Thank you, classmate."

"Understand what?"

Zhāng Qíqí said nervously: "I’m not deceiving you, I also want to cross the bridge, but charging in like you did just now will only lead to being shoulder-tapped again and again—"

She pointed to her completely blackened shoulder: "Do you see it?"

"My soul lamp on the left shoulder is about to be extinguished."

"We're all reserve ghost slayers. When the soul lamp is extinguished, you should understand what that means.""And also, he’ll call your name to summon your soul, do you understand?!"

Calling someone's soul and having their soul lamp extinguished happens together. For someone with weak mental fortitude, after two or three rounds of that, they'll end up as a living corpse.

"Then just don't tell him your name."

Míng Yuè nodded. Zhāng Qíqí, panicking, said: "Do you understand what I'm saying?! I didn’t tell him my name either!"

"He can read the words on the communicator!"

Míng Yuè responded with an "Oh," "A cultured ghost, huh?"

"Quite rare."

Saying this, she removed the golden light charm from her head and stuck it onto Zhāng Qíqí's head.

Zhāng Qíqí: "…What are you doing?"

Míng Yuè: "Sister, you're a kind person, speaking from the heart with me. Then I won’t deceive you."

"I'll take you across the bridge."

Zhāng Qíqí was about to explode: "Are you crazy?!"

"You can’t even get out, and you want to take me with you?!"

Míng Yuè was speaking in circles: "I feel like this ghost is a bit difficult, it should give me a nice score."

Zhāng Qíqí: "That ghost moves with the wind. How do you think you can not disturb the air while it’s moving?! It's impossible!"

Míng Yuè nodded again: "If I get ten more points, I should be able to break into the top twelve thousand."

Zhāng Qíqí was speechless: "You—!"

Míng Yuè smiled: "Sister, don't worry."

"I have a brilliant plan."

Saying that, she took out a blank charm, slapped it on her shoulder, then left Zhāng Qíqí behind and started wandering around the bridge.

Zhāng Qíqí: "…"That was a blank charm, what could it do?

No, wait, the paper seemed... to have a hint of red.

Before she could think more, the grey mist on the bridge began to stir, and Míng Yuè’s figure was swallowed by it. A cold sensation flooded her fingertips, causing her teeth to chatter.

"......"

Zhāng Qíqí nervously stared at Míng Yuè.

She feared that this kind-hearted girl would be harmed by the bridge ghost.

Sure enough, it didn’t take three minutes.

That familiar chill in the air came again.

"......"

Míng Yuè deliberately slowed her steps, waiting for the male ghost to come and tap her shoulder.

Zhāng Qíqí saw the grey shadow with the red ear lobes reach out its arm, slowly, slowly descending. She was about to scream, ready for it! — Then she saw a flash of golden light on Míng Yuè's shoulder, as if the yang energy exploded. The male ghost let out a scream, as though bitten by a dog, and was flung away, his claws open as his arm began to burn fiercely.

Zhāng Qíqí: "......"

Dumbfounded!

Míng Yuè laughed loudly, covering the display screen of her communicator so the words couldn't be seen. She turned around to look at the shoulder-tapping ghost.

However—

Even though he had been set ablaze by the yang energy, he was still able to move with the wind, hiding behind Míng Yuè and refusing to come out. He even asked questions as if he were an obediently programmed, intelligent template:

"Such a fierce skill, miss!"

"May I ask your name?"

Míng Yuè looked back left and right, but other than seeing a red ear lobe, she saw nothing else. She spat and muttered—

"The fire’s already on you, and you're still not giving up?"

"So you want to call my soul, huh? You think calling my soul is your trump card and that you can come back with a counterattack?"Alright, you wait.

Míng Yuè stood still, clearing her throat in the grey mist, her aura expanding as she spoke loudly and seriously:

"I’ll give you a chance. Meeting like this is fate."

"Listen carefully."

"My name is Míng. Lí Yíng Shāng. Ān Jié Lì Nà. Yīng Xuě Yǔ Hán Lìng. Xuè Lì Chī. Mèi. J.Q. Ān Tǎ Lì Yà. Hǎi Sè Wēi. Qiáng Wēi Měi. Yǔ Líng. Xié Ér. Fán Duō Mǔ Hǎi Wēi Ēn. Xià Yǐng. Mò Jīn Měi. Hé Yǔ Tóng. Yuè."

"Nice to meet you."

Míng Yíng, with an extremely fluent and rapid tongue, rattled off a long list of her ultimate Mary Sue-esque name without a single stumble, not even a change in her expression.

Shoulder-tapping ghost: "......"

Zhāng Qíqí: "What...!!"

Dumbfounded!!!

Míng Yuè didn't even turn back. "Nice, right?"

"My name is impressive, isn't it?"

"Isn't calling the soul supposed to be repeated three times?"

"The fire is almost out, hurry up."

"In ten seconds, if you can repeat my name three times, I’ll extinguish your yang energy fire. What do you think?"

Shoulder-tapping ghost: "......"

The ghost stuttered, "Míng, Míng Lí Yíng Shāng. Ān Jié..."

A moment later—

With a loud scream, the yang energy fire was extinguished, and the shoulder-tapping ghost met its honorable end.

Míng Yuè turned around confidently, looking at the ashes on the ground, and the still-shaken Zhāng Qíqí, who was leaning against the stone, her soul still unsettled.

At this moment, the communicator chimed, and the list changed again.[Points: 25]

[Exam Ranking: 11008]

As expected, it was 10 points, Míng Yuè nodded.

Zhāng Qíqí slowly regained her composure and looked at Míng Yuè as if she were looking at a ghost:

"You, you, you..."

"You really are something."

At the same time, the chaos on the arched bridge was accurately recorded by the surveillance camera hanging from the large tree under the bridge and transmitted to the live broadcast chain of the Hundred Schools Joint Exam—

Sent right under the eyes of Spirit Academy students watching the live stream.

Everyone: "......."

Everyone: "!!!!!!!!"

I have to say,

This move, the "reverse soul-calling," was truly something amazing.