Chapter 104: The Virgin's Blood

It wasn’t until Guangcai asked her what was wrong that she seemed to come back to herself. Yet, she still didn’t speak; instead, she suddenly looked around nervously, as if glancing left and right.

“Impossible, impossible... Just now, besides me, it seemed like there was someone else...”

When Guangcai rushed over, followed by two of Caihua’s father’s men, Caihua’s terror seemed to subside slightly, but she still appeared almost hysterical.

The unknown is truly the most terrifying—this much was undeniably true.

“Isn’t it just your own shadow?” Guangcai, seeing only Caihua’s silhouette, seemed to smile.

“No!” Caihua firmly contradicted him. “Besides my own shadow, I definitely saw another shadow, but there was no real person!”

Hearing this, combined with their desolate and wild surroundings, Guangcai felt a chill run down his spine. If it weren’t for the others present, he might have broken into a cold sweat.

“Don’t be like this, Caihua,” Guangcai forced himself to calm down and comforted her. “It’s all in your mind. Maybe you’re just too tired today. Come on, let’s go back to the campfire.”

As he reached out to grasp her shoulder, he suddenly noticed Caihua’s eyes fixed steadily on a particular spot.

Unable to resist, Guangcai followed her gaze—and immediately, cold sweat the size of beans began to drip down his face. He saw it too: a ghostly figure without a solid body.

And it wasn’t just Guangcai; two of Caihua’s guards saw it as well.

The two guards were startled but immediately launched an attack toward the apparition.

Yet the ghost shadow didn’t vanish. Instead, it spoke: “Is it time to see if my skills have recovered somewhat?”

“Boom! Boom!”

Two heavy thuds rang out as the two guards were each struck by a tremendous force, flying backward and crashing to the ground.

Guangcai was frozen in place. His legs felt as if filled with lead—he couldn’t move an inch. He had never believed in ghosts, but today he had seen one with his own eyes. Such an experience would shake anyone to their core.

Caihua had been frightened too. Though normally spirited and fierce, as a woman facing something utterly beyond reason, her vulnerability showed.

Yet, upon seeing Guangcai’s reaction, a sudden surge of courage seemed to spring from somewhere within her.

Without hesitation, Caihua charged at the ghostly figure that stubbornly refused to disappear, hoping to buy Guangcai time to escape back to the campfire.

“A mere girl—”

The ghost muttered something as Caihua recklessly attacked. Suddenly, a beam of light fell directly upon the ghost’s entire form.

This light came from a group rushing out from the campfire side—Yang Lao, Liu Yingde, Zheng Lan, and others, with Zhang Pu following closely behind.

The light was reflected from a bronze mirror, a magical artifact reminiscent of those used in the immortal cultivation world, held by Yang Lao and catching the glow of the campfire.

Instantly, the ghost, whose nature tended toward darkness and shadows, appeared to burn painfully as if scorched by fire.

It nearly got kicked by Caihua in that moment.

“What kind of beings are these, and what sort of ghostly tricks do they wield?” the ghost muttered, abandoning its earlier playful attempt to frighten Guangcai and Caihua. Now it realized it must face these soon-arriving foes seriously if it did not want to retreat.

But it hesitated to flee immediately, sensing its own strength was returning.

It intended to test its powers again and, if necessary, retreat afterward. It thought to itself disdainfully: “These foolish mortals won’t be able to harm me. That bronze mirror is nothing but scrap metal. Watch me fly over and smash it!”

Breaking free of Caihua’s attack, the ghost soared away from her, heading straight toward Yang Lao, Liu Yingde, and the others rushing toward it.

Under the moonlight, the ghost was no longer concealed; everyone present could clearly see it.

For a moment, Yang Lao and Liu Yingde were caught off guard by the ghost’s reckless charge—whoever comes is no friend. Without absolute confidence, the ghost wouldn’t be so brash, they thought.

The two men were momentarily flustered and disorganized.

Zheng Lan, however, braver even than Caihua and bolstered by their numerical advantage, immediately stepped forward, determined to engage the ghost as Caihua had, hoping to bring it down.

Yet Zheng Lan gained no advantage against the ghost. Even if the ghost hadn’t been fully alert, its power seemed largely restored. Its strength was far beyond that of Zheng Lan and her companions, mere mortals.

But as Zheng Lan attacked, her subordinates also rushed in to jointly assault the ghost. This distracted it, giving Yang Lao and Liu Yingde a brief moment to catch their breath and prepare their own sorcery.

Zheng Lan and her group were no match for the ghost and were quickly thrown about, though the ghost held back, wanting only to test its recovered strength rather than unleash a massacre.

Just as the ghost freed a hand, ready to confront Yang Lao and Liu Yingde—whom it considered somewhat uncanny humans—a sudden sound—

“Whoosh!”

A talisman inscribed on a dark yellow paper shot from Liu Yingde’s hand toward the ghost.

“Petty tricks! Not even one percent of a talisman’s true power,” the ghost sneered coldly.

In an instant, it floated up, suddenly hovering over Liu Yingde.

“Bang! Bang!”

Liu Yingde, caught off guard, was struck by some force and thrown to the ground, tumbling.

At that moment, Yang Lao moved swiftly—a seemingly invisible net of threads descended like a celestial snare, trapping the ghost midair.

The ghost was momentarily suspended in place.

“Divine—” Zhang Pu, arriving behind, couldn’t help but mutter in admiration.

Seeing the ghost ensnared in the heavenly net, a triumphant smile appeared on Yang Lao’s face.

Yet he was well aware of the ghost’s formidable nature—something he had never before encountered—and he dared not be complacent. Zheng Lan stood nearby, and eager to swiftly eliminate this terrifying spirit, he forgot her gender in his urgency and shouted at her, “Quick, prepare some virgin’s blood...”