Chapter 154: Female Ghost Ding Xiang! Third Watch Calling for Monthly Tickets

  "What did he say?" asked Xiao Yun.

  The old man with bare arms smiled and said, "It serves you right!"

  Xiao Yun didn't quite understand what the old man meant, and was about to ask when Zhou Mingxuan jumped in and asked, "Didn't the Meng family's son go to Long City for the exam? What happened? Didn't he pass?"

  "He got in, and I heard he even became an official in Long City, living a carefree life!" The old man with the bare upper body said, but his words were tinged with sarcasm.

  "Oh?"

  Zhou Mingxuan and Xiao Yun both looked puzzled. Since they had all passed the exam and become officials, how could the Meng family still be in decline? It didn't make sense!

  "That kid is a wolf in sheep's clothing, eight years ago, Meng Guofu took his family to Longcheng to find Meng Guangren, thinking that one person would become rich and the whole family would prosper, but who would have thought that he would run away with his tail between his legs and be chased back. I heard that kid married into some aristocratic family and looks down on us country folks!" said the landlady.

  "Uh..."

  It's really a case of retribution, Xiao Yun sighed in her heart. The real-life Chen Shimei and Qin Xianglian!

  "Is there really such a person in this world!"

  Zhou Mingxuan looked somewhat indignant, as the young master of Pingyang, he had never seen such things before, and at this moment, his heart felt even more stifled.

  "The young master, that..." The old man with the bare arms pointed to the silver ingots on the table, smiling somewhat awkwardly, his meaning understood without being spoken.

  Zhou Mingxuan directly threw the silver ingot over, and the old man was naturally delighted. However, Zhou Mingxuan's mood became somewhat heavy because of this story.

  "Two young masters, are you going to cross the mountain? If so, I advise you to hurry up and pass while the sun is still high, lest you encounter danger at night!" The landlady reminded Xiao Yun and the other person, looking at their dusty and tired appearance, it was clear that they were going up the mountain. What she said was dangerous, naturally referring to those non-existent ghostly things.

  Xiao Yun nodded slightly, and Zhou Mingxuan thought for a moment before saying, "Brother Xiao, why don't we wait until tonight and go take a look at that forest?"

  "Alright!"

  Xiao Yun thought for a moment and agreed with Zhou Mingxuan's suggestion. If Ding Xiang's spirit really lingered, wandering in the mountains and forests, it was indeed pitiful. If possible, he might be able to help her soul ascend and avoid harming people.

  Zhou Mingxuan was delighted and asked the old man with a bare upper body, "Old man, where is that forest you mentioned?"

  "What's going on? You guys want to go? I advise you not to go, that place is gloomy and not a good place to go." The old man with the bare upper body changed his expression.

  Zhou Mingxuan took out another silver ingot and placed it on the table. "Just say it!"

  ……

  ——

  A clear night sky, starlight sprinkled on the mountains and forests, faintly visible, a gentle mountain breeze blowing, making the trees and branches on the mountain sway, compared to the scorching heat of daytime, now it's refreshingly cool.

  At this time, a forest deep in the mountains, the fragrance of flowers filled the air, and the cloves on the ground were vigorously emitting their fragrance.

  "Master Qiu, this time you must help me eliminate the problem once and for all."

  Flickering firelight between the trees, a hunchbacked old man in his seventies or eighties, holding a torch, led a middle-aged bald man with a big beard and wearing a cassock, walking into the woods, his voice trembling with fear and tears, as if he was afraid of something.

  "Don't worry, with me here, she definitely won't be able to harm anyone again!" The big-bearded man spoke in a cold tone, "Forty years ago, it was my master's miscalculation, a moment of kindness, that let her off the hook. Who would have thought she'd come out and harm people again? This time, we must eliminate her for good!"

  "Thank you, Master!"

  The old man bowed repeatedly, he was Meng Guofu. The man in front of him was Qiu Ming Dashi, whom he had invited from Lingtang Temple. He knew how powerful this kind of person was, catching a ghostly creature would be no problem for her at all.

  As they spoke, the two arrived at the edge of the forest, where a gloomy and eerie aura emanated from within. Chi Ming's face was filled with caution, "Is it here?"

  "It's right here!" Meng Guofu nodded repeatedly.

  "It's really heavy with yin energy, it seems there are indeed ghostly objects lurking around." Qiu Ming narrowed his eyes, as a cultivator in the middle period of the joyful realm, he had been refining Buddhist teachings for many years and could naturally distinguish whether there were any yin souls.

  "Ah?" Meng Guofu's face twitched and a hint of fear flashed across it.

  "Go, get in!" Chu Ming said directly.

  "Go in?" Meng Guofu looked at the forest in front of him, his hands and feet trembling slightly.

  "How can you get rid of the ghost if you don't go in? Don't worry, I'm here, she won't hurt you!" Qiu Ming said with great confidence, and then he lifted his legs and walked into the forest.

  It's more frightening for one person to be outside, so Meng Guofu gritted his teeth and hurriedly caught up, still following behind Qiu Ming, which made him feel a bit safer.

  In the woods, quiet and serene, occasionally a few eerie bird calls make people shiver. In the center of the woods is a not-so-tall tree stump, about two meters high, with one person hugging it, probably quite old. The bark has been charred, with scorch marks on top, without any signs of life.

  Not far from the tree stump, there is a grave mound with fresh flowers blooming on it. It has become overgrown with weeds and it's unknown how long it has been since anyone came to tend to it.

  "Strange things happen, strange things happen!"

  Meng Guofu's guts were small, and he closely followed Qiu Ming's back, humming in a low voice while making a bow to the tomb.

  "What a heavy yin energy! This ghostly thing, it's not simple at all!" A hint of surprise appeared on Qiu Ming's face, the yin energy in this forest had exceeded his previous imagination. Even he, who was well-versed in Buddhist scriptures, felt a chill run down his spine. It seemed as if there were a pair of eyes lurking in the shadows, staring at him with an ominous gaze.

  "You demon, why haven't you shown up yet?"

  With a heroic flourish, he drove away the chill and shouted loudly at the tree stump. At the same time, a wooden fish appeared in his hand.

  Silence! There is no sound at all.

  "Take this axe and chop down that tree stump!" Chu Ming took out an axe and handed it to Meng Guofu beside him.

  "Me?" Meng Guofu was somewhat intimidated.

  "Hurry up!"

  Qiu Ming urged a sound, and immediately sat down with his legs crossed, cautiously looking at the wooden stake. He could be sure that the true body of the female ghost was in that stake.

  Meng Guofu grasped the axe and crept over, standing beside the wooden stake. The chill of the place made his whole body shiver.

  "Cut it down!"

  Qiu Ming let out a loud roar, and the axe in his hand was imbued with the power of Buddhist music. As long as he chopped down, he would definitely be able to force out the evil spirit hiding inside the wood.

  Meng Guofu gritted his teeth and raised the axe high up.

  "Ah!"

  A gust of cold wind blew by, and Meng Guofu felt as if he had been doused with a basin of cold water. He suddenly shivered and the axe in his hand fell to the ground with a clang.

  "Hum, what a waste!"

  Qiu Ming scolded and was about to get up, but saw a dark light from the tree stump, transformed into a human-like shadow, vaguely floating in mid-air.

  "Wow, you dare to come again? Are you looking for death?"

  A chilly voice floated out of thin air and struck people's eardrums, inexplicably sending shivers down their spines.

  "Ah? Ting, ting, tangerine..."

  When he saw the purple-robed woman floating in mid-air, Meng Guofu's mouth was agape. At over 70 years old, this might be his first time seeing a ghost with his own eyes. Looking at Ding Xiang's venomous gaze and icy face, Meng Guofu felt his breathing become somewhat difficult. Before he could catch his breath, he fainted and fell backwards.

  "He's finally willing to come out!"

  Qiu Ming let out a cold snort, his toes tapped lightly on the ground, and he shot forward, the wooden fish mallet in his hand stabbing directly at the female ghost hovering in mid-air.

  A shadowy figure flashed, the ghost easily dodged his attack. With a slight lift of his right hand, countless lilac petals floated up from the forest, condensing into a thick and sturdy giant rope that wrapped around Qiu Ming.

  Qiu Ming somersaulted in mid-air, landed on the ground, and the wooden fish mallet struck the wooden fish with a loud crash, sending out a wave that shook the surrounding trees, causing them to break. The flower petals that had reached his front were scattered, re-forming into individual petals that floated down.

  "He's actually approaching the realm of a ghost master!" Chi Ming's pupils contracted, and he sneered, "Unfortunately, it's just a loose cultivator, with only a hint of power, but unable to fully exert it. Today is destined for me to eliminate demons and protect the Tao."

  The ghost glared at Qiu Ming and shouted, "Monk, I have no grudge against you, why are you helping this old man to harm me?"

  "Hmph, exorcising evil and protecting the righteous is the duty of a Buddhist disciple. Now that I've encountered you, I won't let you harm people again!" Qiu Ming said fearlessly.

  "Let's see who dies first!"

  The female ghost's face was filled with a dense, fierce and cruel expression. She let out a sharp shriek, and the dark energy converged, condensing into countless sharp thorns that shot straight at Qiu Mingxi.