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墨書 Inktalez
Hearing her mention the name Onizuka, I furrowed my brows tightly, recalling how I had nearly lost my life the last time I encountered it. "Last time, I almost died in Onizuka; I wonder if I'll make it out alive this time," I muttered to myself. Sheng Dan glanced at me and said, "Every time we seal an Onizuka, the Vengeful Spirit trapped inside will escape to other unsealed Onizukas, waiting for release. In other words, each encounter with an Onizuka becomes increasingly perilous. But if we ignore it, once all Onizukas are freed, the consequences would be unimaginable..."
"Does that mean I need to use my blood again to eliminate this Onizuka?" I asked, frowning. Sheng Dan looked at me in surprise. "Blood? What blood?" Seeing her confusion, I recounted my experience from the first time I broke an Onizuka.
After listening, she replied calmly, "Since you've already broken one before, you should know that there is a method corresponding to each Onizuka." I nodded, and she continued, "This Jiuzuka corresponds to the Nine Stars in Qimen Dunjia: Penglai Star, Rui Xing, Chongxing, Auxiliary Star, Bird Star, Heart Star, Zhu Xing, Ren Xing, and Ying Xing. They are divided into four auspicious stars, four ominous stars, and one neutral star. The one you broke with your blood was likely the neutral star—Ying Xing."
"What do you mean by that?" Seeing my confusion about this matter, Sheng Dan shook her head helplessly. "To put it simply, although this Onizuka is designed according to the Nine Stars in Qimen Dunjia, its methods are entirely different; thus, the solutions also vary. Take Ying Xing for example; being neutral means it is neither auspicious nor ominous. Using the blood of the holder of the Nine Lives Star Map and sprinkling it on the grave can break it."
She sighed deeply and continued, "Ying is likely the easiest to break among these Jiuzukas. The remaining four ominous ones are not so simple, and the last four auspicious ones defy common logic... That's about all I know."
"If what you're saying is true, then isn't this Onizuka either auspicious or ominous? What should we do?" She reached into a pocket tied around her waist and replied, "It's not just auspicious or ominous; this grave is definitely ominous!"
As Sheng Dan spoke her last word, her voice suddenly rose in pitch. Immediately after, she pulled out an ancient copper coin from her waist pocket and placed it in her mouth. Her brows furrowed tightly as she expelled a mist of blood from her mouth toward the window.
At that moment when blood sprayed from her mouth, horrifying Evil Spirits appeared outside the window. I was startled by this sudden scene and stumbled back repeatedly while Sheng Dan remained calm at the window.
"What are you doing?!" I asked in panic. Behind me, Hu Fang and Li Zhisheng were also retreating in fear at this sight. Sheng Dan nonchalantly took out the blood-stained copper coin from her mouth. "It's almost time; standing here for so long should have attracted quite a few minions. We need to clear them out before we can leave."
"Why did they manifest just because you spat blood?!" I asked in confusion. She shook the bloody coin in her hand and explained, "Because of this—this is a Zhen Shi Coin. After death, people fear becoming Vengeful Spirits; burying ancient coins in their hearts can suppress their souls. The blood drawn from cutting oneself with this can temporarily immobilize those Vengeful Spirits and allow them to manifest; however, it's useless for ordinary people."
With that said, she took off her outer coat. To my astonishment, I saw that she had a short sword strapped to her back. The sword was entirely black with a hilt embedded with a lifelike White Dragon made of some unknown gemstone. In the flickering candlelight, it appeared exceptionally eerie.
Looking at that sword, I couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, "What a fine sword!" Sheng Dan held it with one hand and drew it out gracefully in a perfect arc through the air. "This was passed down from my ancestors; I've never used it before. This time I felt that I would need it, so I brought it along. But all I know is that it's called Jiang Ling..."
As she gazed at the sword, a look of sorrow crossed her face. "Shen Xu! Li Zhisheng... It seems he might not make it!" Suddenly came Hu Fang's anxious voice from behind us. Turning around at his words, I saw Li Zhisheng lying on the ground with his eyes closed; his chest's rise and fall was becoming weaker.
I hurriedly turned to Sheng Dan and said urgently, "How much longer! He can't hold on much longer!" Seeing this situation made her hesitate no more; she glanced at her watch and said: "Although we're still a bit short on time, it's almost there. I'll go out first to clear a path for you; you all hurry up and follow me." With that said, she lifted Jiang Ling again and gently closed her eyes. But just seconds later, she suddenly opened them wide; now her eyes had no pupils at all—the whites had turned completely blood-red.
I no longer cared whether she was human or ghost, hastily carrying Li Zhisheng on my back and asking Hu Fang, "How are you? Can you still walk?" Hu Fang nodded, "I'm fine. I can still manage. Let's go..."
At that moment, seeing Sheng Dan had already burst through the door, we dared not delay and hurried after her. As soon as we stepped outside, we heard the wails of the Evil Spirits. Sheng Dan wielded her blade with agility; her movements were a stark contrast to just moments ago.
Fortunately, most of the Evil Spirits were temporarily immobilized by Sheng Dan's blood spell. Otherwise, carrying a large man on my back while having an older woman beside me would have made it impossible to escape from such a horde of ghosts.
She swung her sword in front of her, and soon a path opened through the encircling Evil Spirits. The heads of those she decapitated turned to dust almost instantly, vanishing from my sight.
Noticing that Sheng Dan seemed to be caught up in the frenzy of battle, I worried she might lead us astray and asked, "Where are you taking us?!" She heard me but didn’t respond; instead, she turned and tossed her sword into the air before rushing towards me. Just as she reached me, she caught Jiang Ling as it fell.
I saw a glint of Killing Intent in her eyes, causing my heart to skip a beat and my body to freeze. Without hesitation, Sheng Dan raised her sword and slashed towards my face. The black blade flashed before my eyes, bringing with it a gust of cold wind.
It dawned on me that an invisible ghost was trying to attack us. She lowered her stance and scanned the surroundings cautiously. "In this village, there’s a chair that can save your friend. It’s not far from here. Right now, aside from those immobilized spirits, there isn’t much threat. But if we wait too long, it could get worse. We need to hurry!"
Sheng Dan spoke with an authoritative tone while pointing towards the largest house ahead. Without a second thought, I dashed towards that building with Hu Fang closely behind me. Hearing her heavy breaths made me worry for her.
As I reached the front of the house, illuminated by the moonlight, I spotted an old-fashioned armchair directly facing the main door. "This must be it!" I muttered as I placed Li Zhisheng onto the chair and observed for any changes.
Minutes passed, but Li Zhisheng's appearance and the mark on his hand showed no signs of change. At that moment, Hu Fang arrived, panting heavily. "How is it? Is it working?!" Ignoring her question, I shouted towards Sheng Dan who was still battling the Evil Spirits in the distance, "Why isn’t it working?!"
While swinging Jiang Ling and gasping for breath, she managed to shout back one word: "Wait!" I noticed that after just over ten minutes, Sheng Dan was starting to show signs of fatigue; her movements were no longer as swift as before. But with Li Zhisheng in such dire straits, I had no patience left to wait as I saw his breathing becoming weaker.
Just then, I was astonished to see that the mark on Li Zhisheng's hand was changing; it was gradually peeling away while his appearance slowly began to recover. Just as I felt a surge of hope, a series of vengeful wails emanated from him, causing both Hu Fang and me to instinctively step back.
Although the cries of the Evil Spirits were hauntingly sorrowful, seeing Li Zhisheng's breathing stabilize brought me some relief. "Looks like she wasn’t lying." As I muttered to myself, Sheng Dan stumbled over with her arm clutched tightly against her side.
I saw that her white shirt was already stained with a large patch of blood. Just as I was about to reach out to help her, she raised her hand to stop me. "How is your friend?" she asked. I frowned, looking at the panting Sheng Dan. "He's improving, but it might take some time. You..."
I was about to ask her how she was doing when Sheng Dan interrupted me. "This sword in my hand, although it may possess strange powers, I’ve realized it is draining my blood." She lifted the sword for me to see, and I was shocked to find that the previously white blade had turned a vivid crimson, while the originally black body of the sword was gradually becoming dark red.
She lowered her hand that held the sword and continued, "I don't know how much longer I can hold on. Although I saw your Void Spirit hasn't awakened yet, I can still sense that your Void Spirit's power is extremely strong. If I die, please make sure to seal this Onizuka."
While we were talking, Li Zhisheng had completely broken the curse. He stood up and patted my shoulder. "I really don't know what to say, thank you..." I interrupted him, "Don't thank me yet. Do you feel anything unusual?" He looked around and it seemed he really had been freed.
Then I let Hu Fang sit down again and patiently waited for her to break the curse. Just then, the ground suddenly began to shake rhythmically. "Is there an earthquake?" I muttered to myself. However, Sheng Dan's expression was extremely serious; she stared intently outside the house. "This isn't an earthquake; it's the guardian of the Cursed Mound—Yao!"
"Yao? What is that?" I asked nervously. Sheng Dan smiled wryly. "You're quite the curious one, aren't you? Yao refers to national ghosts, which are spirits transformed from the heroes of this country. These types of spirits are very difficult to deal with; you can only seal Onizuka by killing them. But in my current state, I'm afraid I'm powerless against it, so I'll have to rely on you."
With her blood-stained hand resting on my shoulder, she said, "Me? If you can't handle it, how can I go and get myself killed?" Upon hearing this, her expression turned serious as she continued, "You can't handle it now, but your Void Spirit possesses extremely powerful strength!"
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