"Herbs?" The principal laughed maniacally, tearing open his shirt to reveal a body covered in stitching. "I am the best creation of Madam Lin!"
Seven bulges, each the size of a copper coin, appeared beneath his skin, marking the locations of the Seven Star Life-Continuing Formation.
Suddenly, the bronze mirror on the offering table shattered, its fragments reflecting countless shadows. Chen Mo caught a glimpse of a horrifying truth amidst the interplay of light and shadow.
The principal shared the same body with Yang Bansian; seven Bone Needles glowed in turn along his spine, causing their appearances to alternate with each flicker.
"The time has come." Yang Bansian's voice suddenly squeezed out from the principal's throat as he tore open his chest, revealing a rotting heart. "It's time for a new vessel..."
The surface of that heart was covered in star-like patterns, with seven red threads connecting to the aorta, leading down to the underground library.
The sound of a coffin lid sliding echoed from below.
Chen Mo burst through a hidden door and rushed down the stone steps, arriving at a terrifying scene in the secret chamber—Lin Qiuyu's corpse was soaking in a Bronze Cauldron filled with Medicinal Wine, while Seven Strings of Copper Bells hung above her, arranged like the Big Dipper.
Even more horrifying was the outline of a human face emerging from her swollen abdomen, resembling the principal's youthful visage.
"The Yang Fetus nurtured by the Pure Yin Daughter is the best vessel."
Suddenly, the principal's nails elongated grotesquely, piercing into his own chest to excavate his bloodied heart. "In just another moment, my soul will..."
Before he could finish, a bloody little hand shot out from the corpse's abdomen and pulled the still-beating heart into the womb.
The secret chamber shook violently as Lin Qiuyu's corpse opened its hollow eyes.
The copper bells soaked in Medicinal Wine exploded simultaneously, and the seven red threads snapped in response.
The principal screamed and fell to his knees as seven Bone Needles burst from his spine, embedding themselves into the wall to form a constellation pattern.
Seizing the opportunity, Chen Mo threw the Seven Star Life Renewal Record into the Medicinal Wine, igniting a roaring flame.
Amidst the firelight appeared thirty ethereal figures of Lin Clan Women; their wrist bells merged into Zhenhunqu, tearing apart the souls of the principal and Yang Bansian into fragments.
Lin Qiuyu's corpse suddenly sat up; the Yang Fetus within her cried out, and that sound perfectly matched a recording of an infant's wail from fifty years ago.
When the firefighters extinguished the blaze, Chen Mo found a half-charred Jade Ring among the ruins of the library.
As he observed it against the rising sun, hidden inscriptions appeared on its inner side: "Twin Life Continuation must face Heavenbane."
In the distance, sounds of suona echoed as a funeral procession carried seven Thin Coffins toward the Lin family ancestral grave; an elder at the forefront wore a gourd of Medicinal Wine from Tong Ren Tang at his waist.
The moon during Zhongyuan Festival soaked in pools of blood while cypress trees at Lin family graves swayed in the wind like spirit-calling banners.
Chen Mo held onto Bagua Mirror and retreated to stand before Seven Star Monument; its surface reflected Lin Qiuyu’s floating corpse—beneath her wedding dress extended seven Hong Chou, tied to the principal’s limbs and head.
"The Hour of the Rat! Three quarters!" Yang Bansian's lingering soul seeped out from the crevice in the ground, transforming into a human form that lunged towards the Bronze Cauldron. "Quickly destroy it..." Before the words could finish, it was ensnared by the Black Snake that sprang from within the cauldron, tightening around its throat.
The principal's decayed body crawled out from the bottom of the cauldron, with seven Five Emperor Coins nailed to its spine. Each coin had a red thread threaded through its hole, the other end tied to Lin Qiuyu's ring finger.
Chen Mo swung the Peach Wood Sword, severing the nearest red thread. As the coin fell to the ground, it emitted a baby's cry. Suddenly, the principal's chest exploded open, and ribs transformed into seven bone knives that lunged at him.
As Chen Mo rolled to evade, the Jade Ring in his arms suddenly heated up, melting the bone knives into ashes. "Do you think you've won?" The principal's vocal cords sounded like a deflating bellows, his belly torn open to reveal a writhing human face sore. "The resentment of thirty Lin Clan Women is all here!"
The wound suddenly split wider, spitting out thirty bloodied copper bells that arranged themselves into the Reverse Seven Star Formation in midair. Lin Qiuyu's corpse suddenly opened its eyes, green flames igniting in its pupils.
The Double Lotus on the wedding dress oozed Heimatsu, merging on the ground into a Bagua Diagram. Seizing the opportunity, Chen Mo threw the Bagua Mirror towards the blood moon; the moonlight reflected from its surface shone directly on the principal's crown—where a half Peach Wood Nail was embedded.
Boom!
A muffled sound resonated from beneath the ground as ninety-nine Paper Men burst forth. The rouge on their cheeks turned into blood tears upon contact with the moonlight, and skeletal claws extended from beneath their embroidered wedding garments made of Gold Thread.
When the first Paper Man touched the Reverse Seven Star Formation, all copper bells suddenly exploded in unison, and the shockwave sent Chen Mo tumbling onto the gravestone.
Comment 0 Comment Count