After the aquatic spirits’ procession had departed, the City God of Queliu City, who had been standing to one side, took the initiative to bow farewell to Xin Wuya. “City Lord Xin, I shall take my leave now.” Only after the City God spoke did Xin Wuya remember the presence of the other ghostly deity beside him. He returned the salute and asked with a hint of confusion. “Lord City God, were you not also waiting here for Mister Ji? He has already left.” The City God accepted the bow and smiled. “Indeed, I originally wished to confirm something with Mister Ji, but now that everything has been settled, there’s no need. Ghosts and gods should not leave their own jurisdiction for too long. City Lord Xin, we shall part ways here.” The City God’s purpose in waiting there was not only to understand the supernatural powers of this mysterious immortal cultivator, but also to gain some understanding of the Endless Ghost City. Besides Xin Wuya, the underworld deities were probably the ones most concerned about the Endless Ghost City. Now that a far better outcome than anticipated had been achieved, there was naturally no need for him to do anything further. With these words, the City God, who had come alone, turned and departed with a carefree demeanor, transforming into a streak of light and flying away. Now there truly were no more outsiders left. Xin Wuya glanced at the two ghost generals and several ghost soldiers he had brought with him. These trusted subordinates of his had just been terrified as well. When that lightning talisman had approached, all the ghost soldiers, aside from the ghost generals, only just barely managed to prevent themselves from turning and fleeing. They at lest fared much better than those aquatic spirits and monsters. The moment Xin Wuya asked, one of the ghost generals beside him replied. “I remember some of them. As for the rest, even if I don’t recall them clearly, I can make a guess.” Being able to attend the banquet meant they held some status in the Endless Ghost City. As they lived in the same city, most knew each other well. It wasn’t hard to determine who would be most eager to eat human flesh, and who would leap out at such an opportunity. “It’s good that you remember. When I return later. . . better to kill a thousand innocents than let a single one escape!” Xin Wuya narrowed his eyes, gazing back in the direction of the Endless Ghost City,1 and quietly gave his subordinates a summary of Ji Yuan’s intentions. Mr. Ji’s original words were to “dispose of them if they served no crucial purpose,” while in Xin Wuya’s interpretation, it became “slaughter them all.” As Xin Wuya spoke, the ghost generals and ghost soldiers beside him either frowned or nodded. Once he had roughly outlined his goal, he suddenly smiled. “All these ancient old ghosts dispersing their Yin energy—what a fortuitous opportunity. I can use this chance to further enhance the Yin energy of my Endless Ghost City. Besides, the golden light of the Lightning Talisman just now was probably seen by all the ghosts in the city. We even have an excuse to act.” Once Xin Wuya returned to the Endless Ghost City, he could see that many of the ghosts still had expressions terror and lingering fear on their faces. Many had never witnessed lightning above their heads ever since they began to reside in the Endless Ghost City, but the entire sky had transformed into a golden thundercloud just now, giving them a terrifying sense of impending doomsday. Fortunately, that terrifying aura vanished as swiftly as it had come. Because of this incident, word quickly spread from the Netherworld Ghost Palace that a powerful master, a friend of the City Lord, congratulated him on refining his Ghostly Yin Body, and aided the Endless Ghost City refine its on Yin energy. Soon, the ghostly Yin energy of the Endless Ghost City would reach new heights. Upon Xin Wuya’s return, the Endless Ghost City closed all of its gates and activates its barrier techniques, effectively creating a trap with no escape. Xin Wuya harbored no fear of failure, nor was he particularly concerned about his movements being exposed. Ultimately, the Endless Ghost City remained under his sole authority. An hour into the hour of Mao,2 in a pavilion deep within the Netherworld Ghost Palace… City Lord Xin Wuya sat upon a meditation cushion, focusing his mind in quiet cultivation. After returning to the city, he had dispatched many of his trusted subordinates, led by several highly skilled ghost generals and a contingent of ghost soldiers and guards to execute those vicious and malevolent ghosts. At this moment, Xin Wuya could clearly sense the rising Yin energy in the city, likely due to the purging of so many evil spirits. At this moment, a ghost general approached the pavilion entrance, bowed with cupped hands, and reported to the inside. “Reporting to the City Lord, we have slain over two hundred evil spirits, including those we merely suspected to be a part. The Dark Minister has also been apprehended; he begs for an audience with the City Lord.” Xin Wuya opened his eyes and looked at the ghost general outside. “What does he have to say?” “He says he is utterly loyal to the City Lord, and that he captured those mortals only to offer them as tribute to the City Lord. If one were to truly investigate, he claims he actually saved those four mortals, otherwise they would have long been devoured by the ghosts in the Tengyuan Restaurant.” A faint smile crossed Xin Wuya’s pale face. The ghost general thought for a moment before confirming. “Alright. Trap his soul in refined ghostly soul-binding chains, then execute him.” The ghost general replied hesitantly, before looking at the City Lord and asking: “My Lord, City Lord, you will not meet with him? This subordinate truly believes he is loyal to you.” “He wishes to see me simply to beg for his life, but he will die whether he sees me or not. By the way, what is Tengyuan Restaurant?” The ghost general thought for a moment before replying. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩✶𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚✶𝕟𝕖𝕥 “I believe it is a rather well-known restaurant in the city.” “Very well, eliminate all ghosts connected to that restaurant as well, and relate my answer to Xiang Zhong. You may leave.” The ghost general bowed again, then took a few steps back, before turning and leaving. Inside a dark prison cell in the Netherworld Ghost Palace, the Dark Minister watched with anticipation as the outer door was opened, and then as the ghost general walked into his cell, followed by ghost soldiers. He couldn’t help but grasp the dark black-iron prison bars, excitedly demanding the outcome of his request. “General Wu! General Wu, have you met the City Lord? Has the City Lord agreed to see me? There must be a misunderstanding; I, Xiang Zhong, will personally explain to the City Lord and plead for forgiveness…” “Xiang Zhong, the City Lord has agreed to see you! Open the door for him. “ A ghost soldier took out a key that emanated malevolent qi and unlocked the prison door. “Excellent, excellent!” The Dark Minister emerged from the cell with a look of relief, his face brimming with gratitude. He bowed deeply to the usually expressionless ghost general, cupping his hands in thanks. “Thank you for the report, General, thank you. . .” The instant the Dark Minister finished his bow, he looked up. The sound of a blade being drawn from its sheath echoed, accompanied by the gleam of a blade. With merely a fleeting afterimage, the Dark Minister’s words of thanks came to an abrupt halt. The ghost’s body had been decapitated. It subsequently transformed into a thick mist that dissipated outside the prison cell. Gao Tianming’s convoy had long since left the Endless Ghost City. After dawn, some of the aquatic spirits and monsters in the convoy began to reveal parts of their true forms. Numerous fish scales appeared on the faces of some servants, while others developed keratinous growths or even long whiskers. These spirits and monsters were not powerful beings themselves, let along fully-transformed monsters. They were merely using various illusion techniques. The sun’s power, however, was known to suppress many Yin arts, evil techniques, and illusions. Many evil creatures could only manifest and deceive people at night. The previous day, when the carriage procession could be seen during the day, it had been hidden within the bounds of the Endless Ghost City, shrouded in a place of Yin energy. Now, outside, illuminated by sunlight, many of these spirits fully revealed their true forms. The four rescued individuals naturally awoke upon feeling the sunlight streaming into the carriage. Upon spotting the true appearance of the servants around them, they no longer dared to stay in the carriage, insisting instead on walking alongside Yan Fei. A peculiar mist continuously followed the procession. Though it wasn’t noticeable while walking, it actually allowed them to travel much faster than they would have on foot. Gao Tianming described it as a kind of “Wave-Gliding Technique.” Around midday, the procession arrived at a river. This was where the Tianshui Lake contingent would enter the water, swimming until they reached the Tianshui Lake. The carriage and the spirits were already eagerly entering the water, while Gao Tianming and his wife remained standing on the bank. “Mister Ji, if you have the time, please visit my Tianshui Lake Underwater Palace. While I cannot provide divine brews like the Dragon Ambergris, I do have some fine wines!” Gao Tianming and his wife stood solemnly by the water’s edge, bowing with cupped hands to Ji Yuan in farewell. “Indeed, Mister Ji. Whenever you visit, I, Xia Qiu, will personally cook a table full of my specialty dishes for you.” Ji Yuan briefly pondered what sort of process cooking underwater would entail, while he also bowed with cupped hands in farewell back. “If I have time, I will certainly visit.” Xia Qiu immediately beamed in delight upon hearing Ji Yuan’s words, happily responding: “I will take your words seriously, sir, you mustn’t break your promise!” “Ah, my dear wife, what are you saying? Mister Ji is a profound Taoist master, how could he possibly go back on his word!” The couple, echoed each other, their faces blooming with smiles. Not wanting to overshadow this good news, they also bowed and said goodbye to Niu Batian, Yan Fei, and the others. “Brother Niu, Brother Yan, and the four of you, may we meet again if fate allows. I and my wife shall now enter the water. We part ways here!” “Goodbye, Brother Gao! “ “Until we meet again!” Niu Batian and Yan Fei bowed and spoke in return, while the other four merely exchanged polite farewells, not daring utter a word, knowing full well that their hosts had no interest in them. After bidding farewell to everyone, Gao Tianming and his wife stepped into the water. There was no grand parting of the river, nor were there any whirlpools; they simply let the water rise over them, from their feet to their heads, before only a few faint ripples were left on the surface. Numb from the repeated shocks, the group of four breathed a sigh of relief. Ke Yundong even spoke with a hint of emotion. “I never imagined I would witness such a wondrous sight in my lifetime…” Zhou Xing gazed at Ji Yuan in awe, then turned to Niu Batian and Yan Fei, stepping closer to quietly whisper to them. “Great Hero Yan, Great Hero Niu, are all the monsters and ghosts gone now?” Before Yan Fei could speak, Niu Batian had already let out a chuckle and responded. “Yes, yes, yes! All the monsters are gone now, and there’s definitely no ghosts left. We can rest easy! Honestly, it’s quite stressful to be traveling with a procession of monsters.” “Indeed! We must thank the immortal and the two great heroes for saving us. Otherwise, trapped deep within the ghost city, we surely would have met our demise.” Ke Yundong, standing nearby, echoed this sentiment and gratitude. “Ah, once is enough. Saying thank you ten times will just annoy people. A master like Mister Ji doesn’t care for such things. Come, come, let’s hurry to Luping City.” The Wei Family of Zhong Lake, established around Luping City, owned a vast manor estate. Though not highly renowned in the martial world of the country of Zuyue currently, they were still a well-known name around Luping City. The three Ke siblings and Zhou Xing were all from Luping City. Learning that they could travel alongside the immortal elder who saved their lives, as well as the two great heroes, the four were overjoyed. Old Niu, walking briskly ahead with an arm around Ke Yundong and Zhou Xing’s shoulders, quietly whispered questions to the two of them. “I have a question for you two. Luping City is pretty big, right? Are there any famous places… hehehe… like that Red Beauty Brothel there?” Seeing Old Niu, who looked like a simple farmer, ask such an obscene question with such a guileless expression, both Ke Yundong and Zhou Xing were somewhat bewildered.