Impermanence Subdues Demons

To be honest, I was a bit shaken by this encounter. White Impermanence, or Second Master Bai, is one of the top ten envoys of the underworld, and his spiritual power is extraordinary. I never imagined that my first attempt at the summoning technique would call forth such a high-level being. No wonder Qing Yi said that someone like me, with a weak yang constitution, could easily attract powerful beings from the underworld, as I'm as tempting to them as a delicious treat is to the dirty things that crave it.

At this moment, I didn't know whether to be excited or sad. The exciting part was that with Second Master Bai taking over, dealing with the smiling corpse would be no problem. The sad part was... could my frail body withstand the antics of Second Master Bai?

I was about to ask Second Master Bai to be a little more careful when he didn't give me a chance and hopped over to me. I could see his long tongue swinging back and forth as it hung down to his chest. Then everything went dark, and my consciousness returned to Helian Gui's main burial chamber. Just like the last time when the mysterious woman possessed me, I was aware and could perceive sensory information, but I couldn't control my body!

Gaga gaga gaga...

The smiling corpse was still laughing maniacally. At its feet, Zhang Jinya and Rosa had already fallen, covered in blood. It seemed they had not been able to overcome the smiling corpse and had been beaten down. The smiling corpse was walking towards me, with Hei Zi fiercely biting at its ankle, trying to stop it from reaching me. Unfortunately, even though Hei Zi was a Tibetan mastiff, how could it stand a chance against a ghostly being like the smiling corpse? It was almost being dragged on the ground.

Seeing this scene, a surge of sorrow and anger rose in my heart. In the blink of an eye, my companions had fallen, and Hei Zi was risking its life to protect its master. Without experiencing this personally, it's impossible to describe my feelings at this moment.

"Don't worry, kid."

Perhaps sensing my emotions, White Impermanence, who was occupying my body, let out a strange laugh: "This thing is not old enough to be of concern. Watch as Second Master takes care of it for you!"

After speaking, a rope resembling a Mongolian horse lasso appeared in my hand out of thin air. Although I couldn't control my body, I could feel the cold touch of the rope. Perhaps it was something from the underworld?

I silently speculated in my mind.

At that moment, Second Master Bai took advantage of Hei Zi's distraction and controlled my body to move. He simply threw the lasso out, and it looped around the smiling corpse's neck. Strangely enough, I didn't feel Second Master Bai exert any force, but the lasso tightened on its own, more accurately than a Mongolian herdsman catching a horse.

What surprised me even more was that the once ferocious smiling corpse, which had terrified me for days, began to convulse and emit white smoke as soon as the rope tightened around its neck. It fell to the ground, twitching, and its previously plump skin rapidly shriveled...

Damn!

Seeing this scene, I was shocked. Just like that, the smiling corpse was taken care of? The might of an underworld envoy is truly formidable. Could the technique he just used be the legendary "Impermanence Soul Lock" often spoken of in folklore?

According to folk tales, White Impermanence and Black Impermanence in the underworld are responsible for capturing souls and assisting in rewarding the good and punishing the evil. Like Ox-Head and Horse-Face, they are among the most famous of the underworld envoys. When a person dies, the two masters of White and Black Impermanence will surely visit at nightfall and whisk away the soul...

I never expected that Second Master Bai's rope could deal not only with souls but also with the smiling corpse!

At this time, the smiling corpse's cries became more and more miserable, and it almost turned into a dried corpse, twitching a few times before becoming still.

"Dust to dust, earth to earth, the realms of yin and yang have their own order. Coveting the world of the living and violating the rules, you should be erased!"

White Impermanence then spoke with an air of authority, shook his hand, and with a flick of the rope, flung the smiling corpse away. Unfortunately, the corpse hit the soul-suppressing pagoda next to Helian Gui's coffin, causing a loud "hum" as it struck. Immediately, countless ghostly wails emanated from the pagoda, causing a painful ringing in the ears, and twisted human faces began to emerge on the surface of the pagoda.

My heart sank. The pagoda contained the souls of tens of thousands of victims from the mass grave outside, which were not to be disturbed. Otherwise, releasing those souls would leave us with nowhere to die, as they were all wronged in life and had been suppressed by the pagoda for over a thousand years, their resentment likely off the charts.

Who would have thought that at this moment, Second Master Bai would burst into wild laughter!

"So that's why there's such a strong scent of souls here. It turns out there are so many hiding in the world of the living. It's a good opportunity to clean them all up!"

Second Master Bai, controlling my body, stood with hands on hips, laughing crazily. But as he laughed, he suddenly stopped: "Huh? Time's up? Uh... kid, Second Master can't help you anymore. If you need me again, look for Second Master!"

As soon as he finished speaking, I felt control return to my body, but I was so weak that I collapsed to the ground. Turning my head, I saw the incense used for summoning spirits had burned out, and a multitude of "grass mud horses" galloped through my mind—just at this critical moment, the incense had finished burning!

Words could not describe how screwed I felt at that moment. Second Master Bai, you really screwed me over. You released tens of thousands of souls and then just slipped away?

And you expect me to seek you out next time?

Of course, whether I would have another chance to use the summoning technique was another matter. The faces emerging from the pagoda were becoming clearer, and it wouldn't be long before they broke free. I had just finished summoning and had no strength left in my body. I couldn't even stand, let alone run.

Just when I was about to lose all hope, a series of heavy footsteps approached, and a chubby face appeared in front of me—it was Fatty!

Fatty's face was beaming with joy, like a Maitreya Buddha: "Little Tian, how's that? Isn't Fatty considerate? Those bastards all ran off, but I still remembered you!"

After speaking, Fatty hoisted me onto his shoulder and took off running. Only then did I notice that the tomb door sealed by the smiling corpse had been pried open, and Zhang Jinya, Rosa, Zhou Jing, and Hei Zi had all vanished!!!

Crack!

Just as Fatty and I had just run out of the burial chamber, a crisp sound came from the soul-suppressing pagoda. A visible crack spread from the top to the bottom of the pagoda, and several souls had already crawled halfway out of the crack. Some were headless, some covered in blood, none with a normal appearance. The ghostly visages of those who had died violently were truly terrifying.

"My goodness, they're coming out already?"

Fatty screamed and continued running with me on his shoulder. It wasn't long before sharp ghostly wails followed us, one after another, and it was unclear how many vengeful spirits had chased after us!

Fatty must have seen a lot in his life because he didn't panic in this situation. As he ran, he asked me, "Little Tian, if I'm not mistaken, you just used the summoning technique taught to you by Qing Yi, right? Which great immortal did you summon that took care of that ghostly thing in an instant?"

I replied with a wry smile that it was White Impermanence.

"Oh my, Little Tian, you really summoned Second Master Bai?"

As he ran, Fatty said, "You're lucky, kid. Second Master Bai is the least fierce among the top ten underworld envoys. People say that encountering Second Master Bai is a good omen, and before long, you're sure to strike it rich!"

I was speechless. I told Fatty to stop joking. With my luck, I was just hoping not to end up dead here, let alone strike it rich.

"Really!"

Fatty said to me mysteriously, "I haven't told anyone this, but I actually found two treasures on Helian Gui's body. One is his imperial seal from when he was a crown prince, and the other is a jade bead I dug out from his... backside. They're absolutely priceless, worth much more than the imperial seal of that short-lived dynasty. At least eight or nine million, easy. I'll give it to you, Little Tian. You've been through so much trouble coming to the Qinling Mountains, and as they say, those who survive great disasters are destined for good fortune. Take that thing and make some money, buy a nice car, get a house, and then won't you have girls flocking to you? In our line of work, we don't know if we'll have a tomorrow. When fortune comes, you have to enjoy it, you know? Don't end up regretting it when you kick the bucket!"

From his... backside...

I felt queasy, almost vomiting the crispy bat bones I had eaten the night before all over Fatty's head. It was disgustingly revolting, but thinking about the eight or nine million, I suddenly didn't feel like throwing up anymore.

As we talked, Fatty had carried me a long way through the corridor, catching up with Zhang Jinya and the others. We were now a ragtag group of survivors, and our pace was slow. Not to mention me, who was completely immobile, even Zhang Jinya and Rosa were limping along. It wasn't long before we felt a cold wind behind us, and the wails of ghosts echoed in our ears!

"Damn it, they've caught up. We can't escape!"

Zhang Jinya gasped for breath and said, "Guys, I'm afraid we're really done for this time. What do you say? Shall we fight back?"

"Let's fight!"

Rosa gritted her teeth and looked at Princess Kinskaya, who hadn't been much help but hadn't caused any trouble either: "We can't help you anymore. You should leave now while you can, so you don't get caught up in this!"

Kinskaya hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded, ready to leave. Just then, a rather cold but pleasant female voice suddenly echoed in the corridor—"Keep running straight ahead into the side chamber. Under the floor tile in the southwest corner, there's a hollow space. Pry it open, and you'll find a tunnel. Keep running through the tunnel, and you will be safe."

Hearing this voice, I couldn't help but shiver with excitement—this voice was all too familiar to me. It was the mysterious woman who had helped me outside the ancient temple!

"Quick, do as this woman says. Keep running straight ahead!"

I was so excited that I started shouting. Heaven have mercy, I was trembling with excitement at this moment—could I finally meet her? The mysterious lady who had occupied my thoughts?