Chapter 72

Chapter 72: Liánhuán Hall Part 3

【Exorcist License Exam Countdown 10:01:36】

【0104001 Míng Yuè】

【Captured Yin Qi Nodes: 5】

【Score: 55】

【Exam Ranking: 7008】

【Win-Loss Ratio 1:0 100%】

The time was almost five o'clock, and the sun still hung in the southern sky, not leaning toward the west.

It had been two hours since she parted ways with Zhāng Qíqí.

Míng Yuè, with a steel fork and long sword, had single-handedly broken through three halls, sustaining injuries along the way.

Originally, her finger had just suffered some skin peeling, but now, her left leg was injured and limping. A blood mark ran from the back of her neck to her chest, looking quite horrific.

Among the three halls, two had yielded results, raising her score to 50 points.

The fourth hall had a name, unlike the previous few that lacked signs— "wild chicken" halls.

Yīn Lǜ Sī (Department of Yin Law).

It was the office of the chief judge of the underworld’s four judges, Cui Pàn (Cui Juè).

Míng Yuè knelt on one knee, bandaging her left leg wound, wiping the blood from her neck, and looked up at the sign of the Yīn Lǜ Sī, feeling parched.

The Yīn Lǜ Sī's entrance was grand and vast, dark and cold, but not sinister.

The surroundings were quiet, with no roadside trees or paved stones, just an empty hall standing here, facing a vast stretch of yellow earth. Occasionally, a crow would land with a harsh caw, pecking at the blood-soaked gauze Míng Yuè had discarded.

It took a bite, let out a shriek, and then continued eating.

The ground was littered with messy footprints, one layered over the other, full of ominous meaning.

Míng Yuè: "......"

Míng Yuè crouched in front of the pile of footprints, unwilling to engage.After fighting all afternoon, Míng Yuè was so hungry that she saw stars. At this moment, she couldn't tell whether these footprints were made by Yin Qi or by living people.

Whatever.

If it's a fight, then bring it on. If not... I'll just take the side door, find a nearby public restroom, and "rob" someone for food.

Míng Yuè rubbed her stomach, thinking sadly.

After finishing her thoughts, she made a few “huffing” sounds, drove the crows away, collected her gauze, and took a few steps into the Yīn Lǜ Sī. The door of Yīn Lǜ Sī was wide open, quite bright. Just as Míng Yuè was about to step over the threshold, she paused and first threw the blood-soaked gauze inside.

The gauze bundle flew into the doorway with a swish, but nothing unusual happened.

Míng Yuè moved inside the hall, thinking it was strange.

The previous two halls had seemed plain, but they ended up being full of Yin Qi swamp pools that exploded when exposed to Yang Qi.

But the Yīn Lǜ Sī had nothing happening.

However, as soon as she entered the hall, she saw an elderly man wiping sweat with a towel, splashing water in the yard, and tidying up the grass in front of a car.

Elderly man: "......"

Míng Yuè: "......"

In a flash, Míng Yuè raised the manure fork and held it in front of her face, eyeing the elderly man warily.

The elderly man burst out laughing.

"Student, no need to panic."

"I'm just the gatekeeper."

"Don't worry, don't worry. I see you're all injured. You can rest a bit."

"Over there is the 'kā kā' (Chongqing slang for corner), go and cool off for a bit."

After saying this, without paying any attention to the dumbfounded Míng Yuè, the elderly man went back to watering the plants and tidying up the flowers in Yīn Lǜ Sī.

Míng Yuè: "......"

Hugging the fork, trembling.jpgIf Míng Yuè had read the exam instructions by Chén Xiūfā before going to bed last night, she would have understood that the organizers were not completely indifferent. They had set up multiple public rest areas within the Ghost City Scenic Area for candidates to take a brief rest.

Yīn Lǜ Sī was one of those.

...Of course, there's no such thing as a purely beneficial arrangement without drawbacks. These public rest areas also provided excellent spots for late-night, high-stakes points battles.

Míng Yuè stepped down the stairs and, shouting a "Thank you, uncle" to the elderly man who was walking far off, he waved his hand, signaling it was no problem. The golden sunlight illuminated his sweat-soaked shirt, with a red embroidered talisman spell attached to his back, emitting a faint glow.

It was the drawing method of the Xuán Yùn spell.

Míng Yuè squinted, no wonder he dared to run around a ghost-infested scenic area.

The slanted western sun stretched the elderly man's shadow long, a dark gray stripe, perfectly reflected on the brick pavement.

There was a shadow.

"......"

Míng Yuè threw the blood-soaked gauze bundle towards the edge of the shadow, waiting for a moment.

Nothing unusual happened.

Míng Yuè let out a sigh of relief.

Looks like he's truly a living person.

Following the directions given by the gatekeeper, Míng Yuè arrived at a black corridor. From a distance, there seemed to be no surrounding walls, and she could faintly see a cluster of traditional-style thatched cottages further to the left, with a few tendrils of smoke rising, signaling that dinner time was near.

Míng Yuè walked down the corridor and sat down on the path with a thud.

She gazed sadly at the distant smoke, took out her water bottle, and imagined the jasmine tea as chicken soup, preparing to drink a few sips to stave off her hunger.

Before she could even relax, a familiar voice called out—

"Míng Yuè, junior?"

"Phhh!"

"Cough, cough, cough—!"

Míng Yuè was caught off guard by the jasmine tea she had just sipped, causing her to cough loudly.

She looked up in surprise at the two heads that popped out from around the corner of the corridor."Lü Xīngrú, senior!"

Ten minutes later—

Míng Yuè briefly explained everything she had seen and heard along the way. Lü Xīngrú nodded and also briefly shared his situation, pointing to a gentle-looking young man beside him, introducing him to Míng Yuè:

"Míng Yuè, this is Chéng Ēn, a fourth-year student from Cháng'ān Normal University."

"Chéng Ēn, this is Míng Yuè, my direct junior in the first year."

Míng Yuè protested, "Senior, I'm about to be in the second year."

Lü Xīngrú chuckled, "Alright, Chéng Ēn, this is Míng Yuè, my direct junior, about to be in the second year."

Chéng Ēn, from Cháng'ān Normal University, smiled gently and complimented Míng Yuè, "Your junior may not be very old, but she's quite capable. Lü Xīngrú mentioned you along the way."

Míng Yuè raised an eyebrow in surprise. She hadn't expected Lü Xīngrú, the research demon, to praise someone behind their back. But then Lü Xīngrú coldly pierced the truth, "That's not true. He asked me about the external interns from Fēng Líng this year."

"I only know you, so I mentioned you."

Míng Yuè: "......"

The smile that hadn't quite formed on Míng Yuè's face froze abruptly. She pouted and sat to the side.

Lü Xīngrú clearly allied himself with Chéng Ēn. The two of them discussed the next course of action without avoiding Míng Yuè, which gave her some insight into information from other areas.

The Ghost City, Fēngdū, was divided into four large zones. Even though the underworld, one of the organizers, had used its powers to alter most of the terrain with earthquakes, some "fixed points" hadn't been changed. Therefore, the distribution of the four major zones still stood.

The East and West Zones were dense with plants, the South Zone was filled with statues surrounded by rivers, and the North Zone was cold and mountainous.

The current Yīn Lǜ Sī was located at the border between the North and East Zones.

Míng Yuè listened closely, secretly tracing the directions on her hand: North, South, Left West, Right East. Lü Xīngrú, noticing her actions, asked, "Míng Yuè, which zone's entrance did you come in from?"

Míng Yuè responded, "The North Zone, No. 33."

The North Zone was the most difficult. Many people failed to make it out of the North Zone during the exams. Lü Xīngrú raised an eyebrow, "Did you walk through it alone?"

Míng Yuè shook her head, "Not exactly. I ran into a robber, then met someone from Dì Dà, and in the end, I was alone."

Lü Xīngrú was slightly surprised."How many points now?"

"Who from Dì Dà?"

Míng Yuè didn't hold back, fully trusting her senior. She quickly shuffled over, "Senior, I'll show you."

She then opened the communication code page, and the name of Zhāng Qílíng appeared, standing alone.

Zhāng Qílíng?

A nobody, doesn't matter.

Lü Xīngrú paused. "55 points?"

Míng Yuè nodded enthusiastically, "I didn't perform well in the last hall. A walking corpse got away. Otherwise, it could have been higher."

The most deadly form of showing off is the invisible kind.

Lü Xīngrú: "......"

Chéng Ēn, who was standing by, burst into laughter. "Hahaha, Míng Yuè, your Senior Lü only got 50 points."

"You really stepped on him good."

Lü Xīngrú shot a look at Chéng Ēn with no amusement.

Míng Yuè: "......"

Míng Yuè unconsciously tightened up, remembering how deeply Lü Xīngrú had interrogated her earlier. She always felt that the senior's gaze was like a knife. One look, and he could see everything, even the color of your underwear.

"Don't worry, I won't cause trouble for my fellow students," Lü Xīngrú said, adjusting his assessment of Míng Yuè in his mind.

"Keep pushing, Míng Yuè. There are 19,000 candidates this year. If you make it into the top 5,000, you'll have a good chance to pass the exam smoothly."

Míng Yuè: "5,000? Senior, is 5,000 really just a hopeful range?" 5,000 out of 19,000, that's already around 26%.

Lü Xīngrú gathered his materials without further explanation. Chéng Ēn, with his good-natured temperament, patted the little junior's head: "Next time, remember to read the exam instructions carefully, junior.""If everything were just about counting ghost slaying points, then 5,000 is pretty stable. Of course, if you want to push for the top, feel free."

"The key is that towards the later stages of the exam, there will be brawls, and once your points get snatched, it won't just be the five or ten points anymore, it'll be dozens or even hundreds."

"At that point, the rankings will lose their regularity. The gap between two people will be huge and hard to measure."

"So—" Chéng Ēn pointed to Míng Yuè's display screen, "On one hand, you should push forward and gather more points. On the other hand, be careful not to get hurt and save your strength."

Míng Yuè, covered in injuries: "......"

A chill ran down her back.

Lü Xīngrú and Chéng Ēn continued their discussion. Míng Yuè, holding the cream bun her senior had given her, chewed it eagerly while listening closely to their plans.

What Chen Xiū had said before the exam had turned out to be true.

The senior students from Chángshī and Fēnglíng had already allied, and as they discussed, their talks often referred to the upcoming brawl plans. It wasn't comprehensive, but there were some point-by-point strategies. Míng Yuè also overheard names like Yán Jùn and Guō Tiānyáng.

Míng Yuè chewed loudly, growing hungrier with every bite.

The tall twin-eyed dragon trees beside the corridor swayed with the wind, casting shade. As it was the season for the twin-eyed dragon fruit, Míng Yuè looked longingly at the golden-yellow fruits, feeling a thieving desire but lacking the courage.

You can't eat these things recklessly.

Lü Xīngrú slid his communicator screen, and a long list of shared communication codes caught Míng Yuè's eye.

She saw Yán Jùn's name and asked, "Senior, have you met Yán Jùn?"

Lü Xīngrú didn't look up, sorting through the backup personnel for his team. "Yes, we entered from the South District together."

Míng Yuè responded with an "Oh" and then asked, "Will the organizers provide meals tonight?"

Lü Xīngrú: "......"

This girl really does think fast. I thought she'd be asking for the communication code instead.

"Yes."

"At 7 o'clock, the ghost slayers will come around the public rest areas and feed us."Míng Yuè had a sudden flash of inspiration and then asked:

"Then, where are the public rest areas generally located?"

Lü Xīngrú furrowed his brows in annoyance: "What were you doing last night? You didn't know anything and still dared to enter Fēngdū city?"

"Did you treat the documents from Chen Xiūfā as a joke?"

Míng Yuè lowered her head, not saying a word, feeling reprimanded.

"It's not... the network went down in the middle of the night, and I didn’t finish downloading the files the chairman gave." She explained softly.

Lü Xīngrú gave her a glare, and Chéng Ēn, standing by, tried to smooth things over: "Alright, Junior was just careless."

"The public rest areas are usually at the junctions of two districts."

"Did you see the adobe houses next to Yīn Lǜ Sī? If you go that way, after a short distance, there’ll be a rest area."

As the sun gradually shifted west, Míng Yuè stared at the twin-eyed dragon fruits. In the cool corridor, a bold idea popped into her mind.

No, no, no, that's too dangerous, she thought to herself.

Maybe she should test it first.

"With this setup, aren't you afraid of a brawl breaking out during mealtime?"

Míng Yuè was curious, feeling a little anxious.

Chéng Ēn laughed: "The ghost slayers won't allow something like that to happen. During mealtime at the public rest areas, internal fighting is strictly prohibited."

"When the organizers place the food, they’ll patrol the area."

"Anyone who violates this rule will lose their exam qualifications."

Míng Yuè sighed, "What a pity, such a good opportunity to take someone down."

"Then, Senior Chéng, where are the restrooms generally located?"

Chéng Ēn: "......"

Chéng Ēn, with a subtle expression, had the same thought as Lü Xīngrú earlier.

This little girl... her mind jumps around quickly."A scenic spot usually needs at least one public restroom, which is fairly spacious," Chéng Ēn answered conservatively, so there’s no need to worry about not finding a restroom after eating.

Míng Yuè showed a strange smile, how should she put it, a bit lewd but still somewhat cute.

"That's good."

"Just now, I heard you two discussing the brawl arrangements for tonight, and I think... I have some suggestions."

Chéng Ēn shook his head with a laugh, not expecting any good ideas from a lower-year student. Instead, Lü Xīngrú looked up.

"Go ahead."

Míng Yuè pulled out the photo she took from her phone, which was the map she saw before entering:

"Everyone says that the high-frequency brawls will start after 9 PM."

"But what if we bring it forward? Bring it forward to dinner time, what do you think?"

Chéng Ēn laughed louder, while Lü Xīngrú didn’t smile.

"At dinner time, internal fighting is strictly prohibited. You should have heard that just now."

Míng Yuè raised her finger: "It’s during dinner time, the public rest areas are strictly no fighting."

"Senior, this is what I heard."

Lü Xīngrú remained unfazed: "It’s useless."

"Once you’re out of the rest area, you’ve had your fill, and you're ready for battle. It’s better to wait a few hours and fight after using up some energy."

Míng Yuè blinked: "What if I have a way to make their condition worse?"

Lü Xīngrú glanced at her.

Míng Yuè wasn’t heartless enough to go that far, so she added a question: "Senior, may I ask, how do groups generally compete for points... what kind of methods do they use?"

Lü Xīngrú’s answer was brief and to the point: "Dirty, chaotic, and awful."

"All the schools are throwing everything into it to make a name for themselves, who cares about how clean the methods are?"

Míng Yuè questioned: "Does the organizer not care?"

Lü Xīngrú: "As long as no one dies, they won’t care. Getting injured in a ghost hunt, what's the difference?"

Míng Yuè clapped her hands: "Then that’s good.""My method is simple—find a public rest area nearby and lead everyone inside to the restroom. Once they’re there, everyone has to drop their pants. The defensive power should be much lower, right?"

Lü Xīngrú: "......"

Lü Xīngrú had a strange expression, and Chéng Ēn burst out laughing.

"Haha, everyone drops their pants? Senior, you really are something! Hahaha!"

Lü Xīngrú: "How do you plan on doing that?"

"People have three urgent needs, but not everyone has the same urgent need at the same time."

Míng Yuè grinned mischievously: "I don’t plan on doing anything."

"I just want to make sure everyone gets a little extra meal tonight."

Lü Xīngrú: "For example?"

Míng Yuè pointed at the yellow fruit swaying in the wind above their heads: "Seniors, do any of you know what this is?"

"Yes, this green leaf, yellow fruit."

Lü Xīngrú and Chéng Ēn shook their heads.

Míng Yuè seriously explained: "It’s commonly known as the Twin-Eyed Dragon, and its scientific name is Castor bean."

"This is a golden opportunity from the organizers. If we don’t take it now, when else will we?"

Lü Xīngrú, Chéng Ēn: "......"

The two boys had a flash of realization at the same time. Lü Xīngrú froze, and Chéng Ēn slapped Míng Yuè’s shoulder, laughing hysterically: "Senior, you really are a genius!"

Míng Yuè was about to modestly brush it off when she suddenly felt her left eye blur. The Yin energy rapidly dissipated, and she quickly covered her eyelids, breaking out in cold sweat.

Such strong Yang energy...

Míng Yuè thought to herself.

Lü Xīngrú, knowing that Míng Yuè had a special Yin-Yang vision, saw her change in expression and asked, "What’s wrong?"

Before she could answer, a strong tremor shook the ground beneath them. Along with a strange howling sound, the corridor shook, the palace cracked open, and the earth split into crevices. Large amounts of Yin and Yang energy surged out from the cracks in the ground!

Lü Xīngrú sprang to his feet: "It’s an earthquake!"The two boys grabbed Míng Yuè and ran towards the corridor exit.