Chapter 3

(Three years ago...)

Jin Ling joined some of the Gusu Lan Sect disciples on a night hunt. He had grown fond of spending time with them. And his Uncle, Wei Wuxian, was a better teacher than the other, Jiang Cheng. Wei Ying gave him the chance to make mistakes and did not hold him back from throwing a tantrum once in a while.

The group were on the hunt for the Bat demon and were excited to learn new things from the Yiling Patriarch. Wen Ning had gone ahead of them to survey the place. After an hour's search, Wen Ning came back to Wei Ying. The Ghost General shook his head and said, "No sign of it yet."

Wei Ying sighed. He did not feel like using resentful energy to draw out the demon. That would be making things too easy for the juniors. It was also getting late and the young ones where a bit idle after walking for quite a while.

Lan Jingyi would occasionally jump, squirm and scream when he felt or heard any strange noise. This infuriated Jing Ling as he also got startled from Jingyi's actions. Wei Ying noticed and rolled his eyes from time to time. To him such matters should not be played with. The last thing a cultivator needed (especially on a night hunt) was fear. Fear could ruin everything.

Jin Ling, " Will you stop being an oversized baby! It was just the hooting of an owl."

Lan Jingyi, "Its none of your business whether I scream at an owl or not!"

Lan Sizhui, "Its alright Jingyi, there's not need to be afraid. We're all here with you."

The boy's words made Wei Ying smile but Jingyi did not take comfort in it.

Lan Jingyi, "Who said I was afraid! I was just... just preparing myself."

Jin Ling, "For what? Running?"

Jingyi quickly retorted, "Shut up!"

Ouyang Zizhen, the son of the Baling Ouyang Sect's leader was also with them. Looking at the two arguing, he said, "Alright, knock it off. With your constant noise making, the demon king must be hiding and targeting us from a distance!"

Wei Ying kept observing from behind while the boys rumbled on. 'Huh?...Now they're totally distracted.' he said in his mind. He suddenly had an idea. Lets make this more fun then. Wei Ying bit his finger and drew out a little blood to draw a talisman. A grey mist appeared when he released it and it crept its way to where the juniors stood.

A 'Ling felt a slender finger tap on his shoulder but the lad did not think so much of it as he was busy arguing with Jingyi. He screamed and jumped towards Jingyi when he finally looked back. The confused and frightened Jingyi also caught him.

The rest of them turned around to see what it was and nearly booted at the ghastly sight. Not far from them stood a female corpse. Her hair seemed to have been dipped in some black goo and a part of it covered her face. Aside the half rotten appearance, the disciples could not help but notice how completely naked this corpse was. On her pale blue chest was a pair of firm looking breasts and the boys would squint away from the sight.

Zizhen, "Wh...What is this? Is this the demon?"

Lan Jingyi, who was hugged by the surprised Jing Ling like a koala bear clinging to a tree, could not hold himself back. He wished that this hunt would be over soon.

"Who's scared now?!" Jingyi boldly said to Jing Ling.

As if Jin Ling's soul had returned to him, he straightened his back to look at Jingyi with furrowed eyebrows.

Jin Ling, "I'm not scared! Its just reflex."

Lan Jingyi, "Hmp! Reflex my ass... Whatever, get down so we can ru I mean, defend ourselves."

Jin Ling obeyed almost reluctantly. "You're the last person I'd even ask for help", he muted under his breath as he straightened his garment.

Wei Ying approached only when they all drew out their swards; his hands casually behind his back. "Since you all preferred being distracted and frightened, thought I'd help you warm up." He said with a mischievous grin. He turned and exchanged a look with Wen Ning, nodding his head once. Wen Ning also nodded and then set off again.

Jin Ling, "You! What are you up to?" He looked at his Uncle with suspicion.

Wei Ying, "Oh! Don't look at me, it was her idea." He pointed at the ghost. The boys looked at him in disbelieve.

Wei Ying, "She wont go easy on you and I'm clearly not needed in this affair, so... good luck."

Wei Ying walked pass them to sit under a tree and feast on snacks he bought from a nearby town. He whistled for a minute and winked at the juniors who still did not realize what was really going on.

The corpse suddenly became alert and attacked them with full force.

Wen Ning went deeper into the forest and passed a small river when he heard a screeching sound. Changing route, he headed towards the noise. As he drew closer, he could see the bat demon struggling with another figure. This person was fighting fiercely and did not give the creature a breathing space.

As Wen Ning drew closer and closer, he could see the person vividly. With what appeared to be two swards in both hands, the bat demon seemed to be no match. This person was certainly not an ordinary cultivator. Another striking fact was that he wore a mask painted black and white. Is this person really a cultivator? Why cover his face? he pondered.

On the other hand, the boys were kept busy by what they thought was a fierce corpse. They realised she was actually a ghost. They were not organized in the beginning as they fought back. Their weakness was they feeling embarrassed about fighting a naked woman and also not working together as a team from the onset. They would avert or close their eyes when the ghost instantly drew closer to them in combat and soon, they gave up doing their own thing and worked together.

Wei Ying could not hold back his laughter as the juniors struggled not to look at a naked woman. 'Did I over do it?' he wondered. Wei Ying even dozed off at some point, and Jin Ling wondered if this man was really his Uncle. Sleeping while they were being attacked?

What he did not know was that when Wei Ying whistled earlier, he relayed a simple order to the ghost. "Help them train but don't injure them...Protect them from any other creature that shows up." This was to safeguard them in case the demon they were hunting suddenly appeared.

Now, after an hour and a half had passed, Wei Ying finally decided to wake up. He stretched as he got up and patted himself clean.

Wei Ying, "Would you look at that...You could not even wear MeiRong out. How then do you prepare to fight the demon?"

Drawing closer to them, the ghost stopped attacking and went to Wei Ying. As he stroke the ghost's messy hair, the scary figure suddenly transformed into a young maiden with beautiful eyes. She had on a pink dress and part of her hair was held neatly with a pin.

Zizhen's mouth dropped at the sight.

Jin Ling's eyes widened, "What kind of sorcery is this?"

The boy's words made Wei Ying chuckle.

Seeing MeiRong dressed decently, the boys could not help but blush at their unhealthy thoughts. This enchanting maiden had been naked and full of malice a while ago and they could not hold back their shameless thoughts of what she looked like now beneath those clothes

Meanwhile, Wen Ning was still hiding as he watched the battle rage on. Both sides were not giving up but the demon was showing some signs of fatigue. Suddenly, the masked cultivator turned his head towards Wen Ning's direction. Wen Ning had been discovered. The sudden distraction caused the stranger to lose guard and he was hit in the chest against the mountain behind him. He crashed into it with his back and then fell to the ground.

"Oh no...", Wen Ning whispered as he run to the stranger's rescue.