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墨書 Inktalez
As the transparent barrier enveloped the Tomb Mound, the sound of nails scratching against the coffin lid gradually faded away, slowly returning to silence.
Yet, I couldn't shake off a nagging feeling in my heart. Was that it? It felt as though I had exerted all my energy only to hit a wall of cotton. There was absolutely no sense of accomplishment!
I turned to observe the battle on the other side. Fo Zhang, relying on his nimble form, continuously shifted positions, waiting for the right moment to strike with his claws, leaving numerous wounds on Gui Ying. Although Gui Ying was slightly larger than Fo Zhang, he seemed somewhat intimidated by him, emitting a series of high-pitched cries that sounded like desperate pleas for help.
Gui Ying's chubby hands bore long nails, inflicting some damage on Fo Zhang. However, despite being injured, Fo Zhang yelped excitedly, occasionally licking his lips as if Gui Ying was his favorite banana.
Fo Zhang let out a loud cry and leaped toward Gui Ying's head. Sensing danger, Gui Ying decided not to linger and turned to flee into the Tomb Mound. However, upon encountering the formation, he was abruptly bounced back.
Seeing my opportunity, I intended to join forces with Fo Zhang to capture Gui Ying. To my surprise, Gui Ying, realizing he couldn't return to the Tomb Mound, emitted a cry reminiscent of a baby’s wail—yet it was painfully shrill.
Suddenly, from within the previously silent Tomb Mound came a violent explosion. Wet soil flew everywhere as a large red coffin lid flipped through the air several times before crashing down nearby.
Fortunately, the formation had absorbed some of the impact; otherwise, even being hit by flying dirt would have felt like being shot. My mortal body could hardly withstand such turmoil.
I executed the Great Shift Technique and retreated a few meters, focusing on the aftermath of the explosion at the Tomb Mound. A pale-faced woman stood upright inside, dressed in a white shroud. Her eyes glowed with an eerie green light as they fixed intently on me, radiating an icy aura.
As she stood up, a foul stench of decaying flesh wafted through the air. It seemed I had drawn the short straw; I was standing downwind and the smell intensified. Covering my mouth, I quickly changed positions and began to retch.
Gui Ying appeared to have found solace and flitted into the embrace of the female corpse. If I didn’t know they were both dead, it would have looked like a tender scene between mother and child.
I nearly emptied my stomach before wiping my mouth and retrieving my practice staff from where I kept it.
The staff was about as long as my eyebrows. According to my master, it was made from Bodhi Wood. It gleamed with a deep black hue; although wooden in appearance, it possessed an unknown hardness akin to iron. I named it Ruyi, inspired by Sun Wukong's Ruyi Jingu Bang from Journey to the West. While my Ruyi Stick couldn't compare to that legendary Golden Staff in terms of magic, it was invaluable to me.
The female corpse seemed to have sensed living presence; she let out a long howl and began charging toward me following the scent. To my astonishment, the formation I had set up earlier seemed utterly ineffective; a thick aura of malevolence surrounded her. As she passed by, the glutinous rice and red thread on the ground turned black.
I could only raise my staff to block the female corpse and instructed Fo Zhang to deal with the other one. My nine years of training were not in vain; while I might be lacking in Buddhism, my martial arts skills had earned even my master’s admiration.
With the staff in hand, I lifted Ruyi single-handedly, pointing its tip at the rushing female corpse. I executed a sweeping motion, but she showed no fear, maintaining her forward momentum.
Little did she know that my Ruyi Stick was made from Bodhi Wood. Even the Buddha attained enlightenment beneath the Bodhi tree; how much more effective would it be against a female corpse?
As the long staff swept across her abdomen, it sparked with a trail of fire, revealing that her body had hardened to such an extent. With all my strength behind that strike, I managed to halt her advance just a short distance away.
The corpse, of course, felt no pain and charged at me again. I swung the long staff vigorously, managing to keep her at bay. Her dark and hardened nails clawed and struck, leading to a fierce struggle between us.
However, I was still only human. Before long, my hands began to feel numb from the impact. I executed a swift maneuver, stepping back a few paces while shaking out my hands before regripping Ruyi, eyeing the female corpse with caution.
Meanwhile, Gui Ying seemed to have sustained injuries and emitted strange whimpering sounds that resembled cries for help. Noticing the female corpse's anxious attempt to reach Gui Ying, I quickly blocked her path.
A direct confrontation was futile. I retrieved the Kasa left by my master from my Qiankun Bag and flung it out with force while chanting: "Da Wei Long, Shakyamuni Ksitigarbha, Bodhisattva Prajna, bind!"
The Kasa glimmered with a faint golden light, wrapping around the female corpse like a flying carpet, as if mummifying her.
Unable to withstand the heavy Buddhist aura of the artifact, white smoke began to rise from her body accompanied by hissing sounds. Seeing her trapped, I swiftly used my lightness skill to approach and pressed the Shari against her forehead.
Then I brought my hands together in prayer and closed my eyes to recite the Six Character Mantra. In the dark night, as each "卍" flowed from my lips, the female corpse's struggles intensified. Eventually, she transformed into a true lifeless body, lying motionless on the ground as the Kasa loosened its grip around her.
On another front, Gui Ying seemed to weaken further without the support of the female corpse's power. Fo Zhang shouted loudly, and I caught a glimpse of a massive Ape figure appearing in the night sky.
With a piercing cry that shattered the silence of the night, Gui Ying fell from mid-air like a rag doll.
Struggling to rise, I placed the bodies of Mother and Child back into their coffin and painstakingly filled in their grave. Perhaps due to exhausting too much energy earlier, I felt utterly drained after completing these tasks. Breathing heavily and fighting off sleepiness, I brought my hands together in prayer and began reciting the Amitabha Sutra.
I had been pondering for quite some time, yet I still did not see any traces of the Buddha's light after the souls had been guided to the afterlife.
A sense of doubt lingered in my heart. Combining this with what Lao Wei had said earlier, I could be certain that either his daughter-in-law and grandson's souls were trapped by some powerful force, or they had long since scattered, disappearing from this world.
Sun Erpang, however, showed some humanity. Seeing that I had not returned all night, he brought people to the Ancestral Graveyard at dawn to look for me. At that moment, I was exhausted and fast asleep on a grave.
When I finally woke up again, the sun was already high in the sky. Rubbing my eyes, I realized it was Lao Wei standing by my side.
"Master, thank you. I dreamed last night that my daughter-in-law took my grandson to be reborn," Lao Wei said in a low voice, filled with sincerity.
I thought about it but decided not to tell him the truth. At least if his daughter-in-law and grandson could be reborn, it would fulfill his wish and relieve him of a burden.
After asking Sun Er Gou, I learned that Qianjin Village was a mountain village in the north, still one or two thousand kilometers away from my home. After resting for a while, I set off with Fo Zhang.
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