Volume 2: Secret Burial in the Cliff Valley - Chapter 136: Suspicion

Third Uncle continued, "That Xing Mo probably entered this place along with us. Logically speaking, among all of us, you lack a wisp of primordial fire, making your physique the favorite of filthy entities. Although you have seal-gate plasters stuck to your shoulders, they can only block minor ghosts; the cultivation of this entity is not shallow, so the plasters should be easily pierced. However, the Five Emperors ancient coins you are wearing are a different story—that thing cannot bypass them, which is why it targeted Xing Mo instead. In a moment, I will remove the plasters from you and draw a talisman to open the portals of your body. When you walk over there, since that entity is currently inside Xing Mo's body—sharing one vessel with two souls—it is not entirely at ease. Therefore, it will definitely come after you. The moment it exits Xing Mo's body, I will find a way to subdue it."

I rolled my eyes and asked him, "Are you certain?"

Third Uncle curled his lips, "Of course. Who is your Third Uncle? I am Li Dongbin..."

I waved a hand, "Cut the crap. I'll trust you one more time. If you screw me over again, you'll see what you get."

Third Uncle chuckled, "I won't, I won't."

I took off the string of Five Emperors coins from my neck and handed them to Third Uncle. He unbuttoned my shirt, tore off the seal-gate plasters, fished out a handful of yellow paper talismans from his pocket, flipped through them to find one, and fiercely slapped it onto my shoulder.

The pain made me bare my teeth. After Third Uncle pressed the talisman against my shoulder for a moment, he tore it off, leaving a dark red talismanic mark upon my skin.

In the short span of this conversation, Liang Yue had been forced to retreat step by step. It wasn't that her martial prowess was lacking, but rather that she found it difficult to strike at Xing Mo's physical body. Several times when the short blade in her hand was about to pierce Xing Mo, Ma Su would shout out, telling her to hold back.

Seeing that Liang Yue was in a dangerous situation as well, Third Uncle shouted, "Go on, move over there."

I clenched my teeth and stepped forward quickly.

Without the Five Emperors coins, I felt as if I had lost a protective barrier, my heart pounding wildly.

"Don't just stand there like an idiot. Attack Xing Mo with the sword and relieve Liang Yue," Third Uncle urged from behind me.

Clutching the peach-wood sword in my hand, I seized the opportunity while Xing Mo was attacking Liang Yue and thrust the sword straight toward him.

Xing Mo spun around, dodging my strike, and fixed his eyes squarely on me—a gaze that made my hair stand on end.

Holding the peach-wood sword, I didn't dare to thrust it forward again.

Xing Mo advanced toward me step by step. I held the sword with both hands, retreating tremblingly while muttering, "Th-Third Uncle, what do we do next?"

After forcing me back two steps, Xing Mo suddenly let out a roar. The sound made my ears ring, echoing through the empty cavern.

At the same time, I saw a faint, clear vapor drifting upward from the top of Xing Mo's head.

"Th-Third Uncle, it's coming out..." I called out in a low voice, but there was no response from behind me.

Feeling deeply insecure, I stole a glance backward.

To my horror, I saw Third Uncle lying flat on his back, motionless.

What the hell? What is going on here?

My mind buzzed with a dull roar, leaving me in a state of utter panic. Could I have been duped by Third Uncle yet again?

Meanwhile, the clear vapor rising from the top of Xing Mo's head grew more and more abundant, condensing into a dense mass.

This mass of vapor coalesced in midair and quickly split into two portions—one large, one small.

The larger portion surged directly toward the dead man wearing the long robe, while the smaller portion charged straight at Third Uncle, who lay on the ground.

While those two wisps of vapor had been clearly visible at first, they quickly seemed to dissipate into thin air.

I knew that the rising vapor must have been a soul. In this subterranean realm, the yin energy was extremely dense; souls could gather yin energy to take on form, making them visible to the naked eye. I just had no idea whose soul this belonged to.

Yet, according to Third Uncle's strategy, shouldn't that soul have possessed my body? Why didn't it play by the book and suddenly change its course?

As the soul departed its body, Xing Mo also slowly collapsed to the ground.

Noticing the changes on our side, Ma Su and Liang Yue rushed over as well.

We rushed to check on Third Uncle first. His eyes were tightly closed, his eyelids twitching rapidly, and his face was as pale as paper, devoid of a single trace of blood.

Fortunately, after I called out to him twice, Third Uncle gradually came to. With our assistance, he sat up cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began to regulate his breathing through meditation.

Seeing that Third Uncle was fine, Ma Su wanted to check on Xing Mo, only to see Xing Mo slowly crawling up from the ground by himself, looking around in bewilderment.

Too preoccupied to ask Third Uncle what had happened, I watched as Xing Mo appeared to have returned to normal.

Ma Su walked over and asked directly, "Xing Mo, do you still recognize me?"

"Professor... Professor Ma, how could I not recognize you?" Xing Mo did not seem particularly surprised by Ma Su's appearance.

When the three of us entered the mountain, we had once discussed this Xing Mo. I found it very baffling that their team had lit a fire upon entering the mountain yet failed to attract any mountain ghouls. Later, upon inquiry, I learned that Xing Mo was responsible for the mountain map and navigating the route, which led Liang Yue to suspect that something was wrong with him.

At the time, however, Ma Su insisted that it couldn't be Xing Mo. Because of this, the two of them had almost come to blows.

Never did we expect that today, inside this subterranean cave, Xing Mo would miraculously appear.

This clearly could not be a coincidence; Xing Mo had come here with a specific purpose. And as Ma Su's assistant, Ma Su had been completely unaware of this operation.

Therefore, looking at Xing Mo, Ma Su must have had a mountain of words to say, yet with his mouth hanging open, he couldn't utter a single syllable.

Xing Mo's appearance also indirectly proved that the suspicions held by Liang Yue and me were well-founded.

By this time, Xing Mo's face was fraught with anxiety as he took two steps forward. Ma Su hastily retreated, watching him with strict vigilance.

With a helpless expression, Xing Mo said, "Professor Ma, you must believe me. I mean you no harm. There is danger here right now, and we must leave this place immediately..."

"Speak! Why did you come here?" Ma Su demanded with a stern expression.

Xing Mo replied, "Professor, it's a long story and hard to explain in a few words. Once we leave this place, I will tell you everything. But right now, you must come with me immediately."

I stepped forward and said, "Xing Mo, this place can only be found by people with a Yin fate. Is your Eight Characters of birth of a Yin fate?"

Xing Mo shook his head, "What Yin fate? I don't know what you're talking about."

Liang Yue pointed at Xing Mo and said, "You're playing dumb. I knew you were the one pulling strings behind the scenes. You used your possession of the map to lead Old Ma and the others into this South Willow Village. And this time, you lured us here as well. Tell us, who on earth are you?"

Fixing his gaze on Xing Mo, Ma Su also questioned, "Xing Mo, if I remember correctly, that research project on the subterranean flood dragon was undertaken by you, wasn't it? On the night of duty, you were the one who handed over the watch to Zhou Zheng. When Zhou Zheng acted abnormally that day, was it related to you as well? And on the night we camped in that desolate village, did you knock me unconscious because you were afraid I would discover something..."