66: Encountering a ghost on the road

Just as Lin Chuping was racking his brain, pondering how to break the deadlock, two luxurious carriages were rushing towards Chang Sheng Village, fifty miles away.

There were escorts both in front of and behind the carriages, each riding a tall horse, looking majestic and imposing.

It was the third month of late spring, a time when grass should be growing and orioles flying, yet Shen Jianxing was huddled in the carriage, wrapped in a heavy fox fur, leaning against the soft cushions inside the carriage, his pale face devoid of any color.

With each slight bump of the carriage, he couldn't help but cough twice, his slender fingers instinctively gripping the lapel of his robe.

"Young Master, have some hot soup."

The maid, Xiaotao, lifted the curtain and handed in a steaming ginseng soup, her eyes full of worry.

Shen Jianxing forced a smile, his fingers trembling slightly as he took the teacup.

"How much longer until Chang Sheng Village?"

One sip of ginseng soup went down, the warm liquid sliding into his throat, yet it couldn't dispel the bone-deep chill.

"Replying to Young Master, after we pass the mountain ahead, it will be another thirty miles."

Outside the carriage, the captain of the escort team, Zhao Tieying, answered in a deep voice.

This man, in his early thirties, was dressed in a short, tight-fitting outfit, with a broad-backed saber at his waist; he was the leader of the escort team specially assigned by the Shen Family Master to protect the Third Young Master.

After another series of jolts, Shen Jianxing suddenly began to cough violently.

"Young Master, can you still hold on? The Young Master instructed you to take the last Nine Revolutions Soul Return Pill if you couldn't endure it any longer."

Xiaotao's heart also tightened upon hearing her Young Master's coughs.

Those who could accompany Shen Jianxing this time were all his trusted confidantes, and they naturally knew his condition very well.

Chang Sheng Village, Lord Chuping, was the last straw their Young Master could grasp.

If this didn't work either, then their Young Master would truly be without hope.

The mountain road was rugged and difficult to travel, the carriage wheels grinding overgravel with a grating sound that set one's teeth on edge.

Shen Jianxing didn't answer Xiaotao; he leaned back on the soft cushions with closed eyes, fully concentrating on controlling his trembling body.

The warmth of the ginseng soup had long dissipated, replaced by a chill seeping from the depths of his bones, like countless tiny ice needles moving through his blood vessels.

Shen Jianxing had to rely on distracting himself to barely hold on.

This time, his elder brother, excitedly returning from Chang Sheng Village, not only brought back two precious "Nine Revolutions Soul Return Pills" but also hastily packed him up and sent him over.

Although Shen Jianxing didn't know what his elder brother was up to, he followed his wishes.

His elder brother would never harm him.

The piercing pain continued, Shen Jianxing's teeth clenching with a 'clack' sound.

His mind was filled with his elder brother's joyful face when he returned from Chang Sheng Village.

"Hold on, Shen Jianxing, hold on!"

"My elder brother wouldn't lie to himself; perhaps there really is hope!"

* * *

Just as the sharp pain slightly subsided, the convoy suddenly stopped.

"Young Master, there's something up ahead."

Zhao Tieying's voice came from outside the carriage, "This place is very eerie; the horses refuse to move forward."

Shen Jianxing forced his eyes open and lifted a corner of the carriage curtain.

In the twilight, the two horses pulling the carriage were indeed restlessly pawing their hooves, their nostrils snorting heavy white mist.

The escort team's horses were also restlessly agitated.

The mountain road ahead was shrouded in a thin mist, and the outline of a distant village was faintly visible.

"Go around."

Shen Jianxing's voice was weak but firm.

"We must reach Chang Sheng Village today."

Zhao Tieying tightened his grip on the saber hilt, his Adam's apple bobbing: "Yes, Young Master."

Before he finished speaking, a gust of cold wind suddenly swept through, making the carriage curtains flap wildly.

The mist, which had been like thin gauze, suddenly became thick as porridge, engulfing the entire convoy in an instant.

The horses neighed and reared up on their hind legs, several guards hastily stepping forward to grab the reins.

"Form ranks! Protect the Young Master!"

Zhao Tieying shouted sternly, his broad-backed saber already drawn from its sheath.

Xiaotao also drew the soft whip from her waist, standing ready for battle.

A trace of solemnity appeared on Shen Jianxing's pale face. He lifted the carriage curtain, only to see dark figures moving faintly in the thick fog, their shapes twisted and unstable.

The guards stood in a circle, their backs to the carriage, their blades reflecting cold light in the mist.

"Ghostly beings..."

Among demons, monsters, and ghosts, the latter two are the most difficult to deal with, simply because both are formless entities.

No matter how high your martial arts skill, you cannot fully exert it.

Only certainMagic (Talismanic Incantations) are effective against them, but suchTechnique (Talismanic Incantations) in the Great Yan Dynasty, those that can be used effectively, are no more than five in number.

Shen Jianxing had practiced them before, but now, let alone performing the Talismanic Incantation, even turning over was difficult.

"If there's no other choice, I can only fight!"

Shen Jianxing whispered, his right hand quietly reaching into his embrace, touching a cold jade box.

* * *

Suddenly, a scream pierced the silence.

The outermost guard, Zhang Shun, was dragged into the fog as if something had seized his ankle, his entire body disappearing.

Everyone only managed to glimpse his terrified, distorted face before he vanished into the milky white Chaos.

"Zhang Shun!"

Zhao Tieying merely shouted, but showed no intention of chasing after him, instead ordering sternly.

"Everyone, close ranks! Do not leave the carriage by more than three steps!"

Another scream, this time from the guard on the left.

A horrifying chewing sound came from the fog, as if something was feasting.

Shen Jianxing took a deep breath and took out the Nine Revolutions Soul Return Pill from the jade box.

The Medicinal Pill glowed faintly in the mist, and he swallowed it without hesitation.

In an instant, a scorching power exploded from his Dantian, coursing through his entire body.

Color returned to Shen Jianxing's pale face; he violently tore off his fox fur and pulled out an ancient long sword from a hidden compartment in the carriage.

The sword was entirely black, with only a line of silver-white at the edge, glimmering with a chilling cold light in the fog.

"The Shen Family's ancestral zhan xie sword..."

Zhao Tieying's eyes widened.

He had only heard his Master mention this sword; it was said to be a treasure specifically used to suppress evil spirits.

"Young Master, your body, you cannot force the circulation of Qi."

Xiaotao, at his side, tried to stop him, but it was already too late.

Shen Jianxing didn't explain; he flicked his wrist, and the sword's edge traced a silver arc.

"Righteous Qi of Heaven and Earth, evil spirits disperse!"

Wherever the sword light passed, the mist churned like boiling water.

A non-human shriek came from the fog, followed by a second, a third... countless black shadows materialized in the fog; they had humanoid outlines but disproportionately long, slender limbs, and faces composed only of three black holes.

"They're chang gui!"

Zhao Tieying gasped.

"No..."

Shen Jianxing's sword edge shifted, drawing a Talismanic Incantation, "These areRevenant (lost souls) enslaved by a more powerful entity."

The chang gui seemed enraged; they twisted their bodies and lunged towards the carriage.

A guard swung his saber, but the blade passed directly through the ghostly being's body, as if cutting through air.

The next second, the ghost's sharp claws had pierced his chest.

"Ordinary weapons cannot harm them!"

Shen Jianxing shouted, "Everyone, fall back!"

He stepped forward, the zhan xie sword tracing a complex trajectory in the air.

Wherever the silver light reached, the chang gui shrieked and turned into black smoke.

But the number of ghostly beings was simply too great; although Shen Jianxing's swordsmanship was exquisite, fine beads of sweat were already seeping from his forehead—the power of the Nine Revolutions Soul Return Pill was rapidly depleting.

"Young Master, be careful!"

Xiaotao suddenly screamed.

An unusually large chang gui emerged from beneath the carriage, its sharp claws aiming directly for Shen Jianxing's back.

Zhao Tieying didn't have time to think; he lunged forward, his broad-backed saber slashing horizontally.

To his surprise, the blade this time actually struck the ghostly being solidly.

The chang gui let out a mournful howl, and foul-smelling black blood gushed from its wound—the Talismanic Incantation Shen Jianxing had drawn on the blade beforehand had taken effect!

"Tieying, three steps to the Qian position, five steps to the Zhen position!"

Shen Jianxing commanded while fighting the ghostly beings, "Xiaotao, get the cinnabar pouch from under the carriage!"

Xiaotao trembling, fumbled out a red cloth bag from under the seat and, following Shen Jianxing's earlier instructions, scattered the cinnabar powder inside around them.

The powder immediately ignited upon contact with the mist, forming a ring of fire that protected everyone in the center.

The chang gui were temporarily blocked, but they were clearly unwilling to give up.