Hell Emperor.

Chapter 346 Hua Xiaomei - Encounter
Under the leadership of Ren Changhong, the two walked through the City Lord's Mansion and soon arrived at the warehouse in the mansion.

When the news of the city lord's death spread, the servants outside the storehouse were in chaos, scrambling to grab whatever valuables they could take away. There were no soldiers to maintain order because the soldiers were also involved, fighting for the gold and silver jewelry, and even drawing swords against each other.

Passing the scramblers and coming to the depths of the warehouse, Hua Xiaomei asked doubtfully, "Are you sure the herbs we are looking for are stored here?"

Ren Changhong snorted: "Of course, or are you doubting Shura's perception?"

After saying that, Ren Changhong looked up and his eyes quickly locked onto the target, which was an ancient wooden box stored deep in the warehouse. The wooden box was carved from the finest nanmu wood and could warm the Chinese medicinal materials so that the efficacy would not fade with time.

"Is that it..."

Following her gaze, Hua Xiaomei also saw the wooden box where the medicinal herbs were stored. Before she could finish her words, she saw someone get there first. A soldier rushed over and without saying a word, stuffed the wooden box containing the medicinal herbs and other valuables around it into the sack at hand.

"court death!"

Ren Changhong's face turned cold, and the sixth-grade magical weapon, the Frost Sword, was immediately unsheathed. The sharp sword light was ready to be released, causing the temperature around him to drop sharply.

The soldier who was looting property suddenly trembled all over. The palpitation came from instinct, as if he was stared at by a beast that eats people without leaving any bones. But no matter how he looked, there was clearly no one around except him, as if everything was his illusion.

The soldier swallowed subconsciously. The noise coming from the back made him put aside all distractions and quickly speed up the search in his hands. If he didn't grab things quickly, others would take away all the things.

In a place where he couldn't see, Hua Xiaomei was also frightened by Ren Changhong's actions. The murderous intent in Shura was really real. In the eyes of Shura, who preys on the weak, killing people and stealing treasures was the most normal thing. If Hua Xiaomei hadn't stopped him, the soldier would have been beheaded.

"Why are you stopping me? Don't you want to find medicinal herbs?" Ren Changhong slowed down, looking a little strange.

"Of course I want to get the herbs and cure Sister He's collapse as soon as possible. However, if I kill someone just to get the herbs, even if Sister He is cured, she won't be happy when she finds out what happened..."

Hua Xiaomei sighed, and seeing that Ren Changhong was about to take action again, she quickly said, "Wait, leave it to me."

After saying that, Hua Xiaomei quickly stepped forward and waved her sleeves lightly, sweeping the soldier's face. The soldier didn't know what was happening yet, and suddenly felt his eyes go dark, completely losing his vision and falling into thick darkness. He was so scared that he shouted and waved his weapon around.

After an unknown amount of time, the soldier's eyes gradually regained their brightness. He looked around, but saw that there was no one around him. Except for the sacks scattered under his feet, there was no one at all, as if he had seen a ghost.

The strange situation frightened him so much that he lost his mind and dared not continue searching. He grabbed the sack, turned around and ran away. He looked so miserable that he wished he had two more legs.

However, what he didn't know was that the wooden box that was originally stored in the sack and used to hold the medicinal herbs had now disappeared.

Hua Xiaomei shook the heavy wooden box in her hand and said with a smile: "See? If we use another method, we can achieve the same effect, and we don't have to harm other people's lives."

Ren Changhong did not comment on this, and said, "The technique you just used is quite interesting... If I am not mistaken, you used the legendary ghost-covering eye technique?"

"What do you mean by ghost covering the eyes?" Hua Xiaomei was a little confused, not understanding what Ren Changhong meant. "I am using cloud covering the eyes, which is a top-grade human-level skill, not some ghost covering the eyes."

"Really..." Ren Changhong frowned. No matter how she looked at it, Hua Xiaomei had just used the Ghost Blindness Technique. "Can you tell me how you learned the Cloud Blindness Technique?"

"This is the reward for a previous mission. Not only me, but also some companions participated in the mission..."

When talking about the mission, Hua Xiaomei's eyes also showed some reminiscence, and she told Ren Changhong the whole story: "... Speaking of which, if it weren't for Brother Jie and Sister He, I'm afraid I would have died there."

"A mere second-level ghost cultivator can bring you back from the brink of death? Really..."

After listening to Hua Xiaomei's story, Ren Changhong's mouth twitched. She almost forgot what her situation was like when she was at the second level. She only remembered that she broke through the third level not long after practicing, and entered the fourth level within a few years. She was speechless that Hua Xiaomei and her group were forced so badly by the second-level ghost cultivators.

Hua Xiaomei shrugged: "Didn't we win? Winning is enough, why bother about the twists and turns in the process?"

Shaking his head, Ren Changhong returned his attention to the previous technique and spoke slowly: "The ghost-covering eyes is the unique skill of the elephant Shura, one of the four great Shuras in the Demon Palace. With just a thought, he can block the vision of others, making the enemy unable to see and fall into darkness and fear. The cloud-covering eyes you used is somewhat similar to the ghost-covering eyes..."

"Elephant Shura? Is it the elephant's elephant?" Hua Xiaomei was curious.

"Yes." Ren Changhong nodded.

Hua Xiaomei was amused when she heard this: "Why is he called this name? Could it be that he is an elephant who has turned into a spirit?"

Ren Changhong's face was full of helplessness. "The elephant in Elephant Shura refers to the elephant in image. According to the documents in the Demon Palace, Elephant Shura is best at inspiring fear in people's hearts. This ghost covering the eyes is just one of his methods. Anyone who is trapped in the darkness will project their fears onto Elephant Shura in panic. In the darkness where they can't see, they think that Elephant Shura is so huge. When they open their eyes, they will see how big Elephant Shura is, but it is not the elephant you mentioned."

Hua Xiaomei blinked, trying to digest these words: "There is actually such a Shura?"

Ren Changhong pondered for a moment, shook his head and said, "It seems that you don't know more about the Ghost Blind Eye. Since the Cloud Blind Eye was given to you by the maid Fuling, I will ask Fuling after we have collected all the materials and met up with them."

Speaking of materials, Hua Xiaomei suddenly remembered something, and her eyes lit up: "Oh, by the way, I wonder what materials are in this wooden box? Could it be the Bodhi leaves?"

Ren Changhong said speechlessly: "Do you think Bodhi leaves are that easy to find? If they were that easy to find, they wouldn't be extinct. What's in this box is the thousand-year-old Polygonum multiflorum, which is the easiest to find among the several medicinal herbs."

Hua Xiaomei opened the wooden box, and just as Ren Changhong said, lying quietly in the box was a Polygonum multiflorum with extraordinary color and hidden spiritual power.

After putting the wooden box away, Hua Xiaomei said with emotion: "I didn't expect that the medicinal materials we need are really in the warehouse. What Sister Xia Wei said is indeed right. Sister He is blessed with good luck and will be fine... However, the remaining two materials are much more difficult to collect than this Polygonum multiflorum. Where can we find them..."

At the end, Hua Xiaomei sighed, and she was deeply worried. She didn't know where to find the remaining materials. Ren Changhong said nothing, and turned to look in the direction they came from: "Now that we have found a material, it is a good sign. Let's go find Xiaowei and share this good news with her. I wonder if she has dealt with those beast-shaped ghosts..."

In the distance, a blazing purple light flickered from time to time. The two looked at each other and decided to go back to Xia Wei first.

When they arrived in front of the building, they saw nothing but a mess all around, but no sign of Xia Wei. The only things on the ground were the debris, telling of what had happened here.

"Where is Sister Xia Wei? Why isn't she here?" Hua Xiaomei's perception was a little weak. She looked left and right, but there was no sign of Xia Wei. She couldn't help but feel a little anxious.

Ren Changhong was calm and composed. He knew what happened after a quick glance: "Don't worry. Xiaowei is just searching for the beast-shaped person in the mansion. We can just follow her."

The two were about to leave when suddenly, Ren Changhong paused. His eyes suddenly became sharp and locked onto a certain direction in the distance, with a cold aura emanating from him.

Hua Xiaomei was startled by her reaction. She followed her gaze and saw a slightly different look in her eyes. Her expression became strange: "Is that... a ghost messenger?"

But suddenly, a ghost appeared inside the building. The ghost walked quickly and put his hand on the forehead of the dead from time to time to lead out the soul of the dead.

"Really... How can I seduce a large number of souls at the same time? How can I learn it if you only show me once? It's too slow to seduce souls one by one."

Hua Xiaomei couldn't help but feel confused when she heard the ghost's complaints. "Wait... doesn't the Golden Wheel Temple have ghost catchers? Could she be from the Witch God Temple? Have we come to the area under the jurisdiction of the Witch God Temple?"

Ren Changhong rolled his eyes: "How should I know? Do you think I know everything?"

After a pause, Ren Changhong continued, "But... I am very sure that this place is not under the jurisdiction of the Wushen Temple. The Wushen Temple is only responsible for matters outside the East China Sea, not on land. Logically speaking, it is impossible for people from the Wushen Temple to appear here."

The conversation between the two startled the ghost in front. The ghost was startled by them and saw that they were staring at him. He exclaimed: "You... can you see me?"

It was not until the ghost raised her head that Hua Xiaomei could see her face clearly. She was not very old, with bright red beads on her hair and a string of golden bells tied around her fair wrists. Her pretty face seemed to be frightened, and it took her a while to catch her breath.

Hua Xiaomei laughed and said jokingly, "Look at what you said. We are all ghosts, so we can naturally see you."

Seeing that Hua Xiaomei had no ill intentions, the girl ghost relaxed a little and looked back and forth between the two with curious eyes.

At this time, Hua Xiaomei was a little surprised and couldn't help but say: "By the way... where did you come from? Why are you seducing souls here? Are you a ghost cultivator in the wilderness, trying to seducing souls to cultivate?"

"What ghost cultivator? I am a legitimate ghost messenger, okay!" The ghost girl snorted, sneering at Hua Xiaomei's statement, "What about you, who are you?"

"Are you really a ghost messenger?" Hua Xiaomei opened her eyes wide, her face full of curiosity.

At this moment, the ghost girl seemed to have discovered something. She shuddered all over and looked down at the corpses at her feet. Bad thoughts came to her mind, and she trembled and said, "Could it be... that you killed all the people here? Are you the evil ghosts who have done so much evil?"

Hua Xiaomei coughed dryly and was about to explain, but Ren Changhong took the initiative to ask: "Since you are a ghost messenger, do you recognize this Shura Order?"

As he spoke, Ren Changhong showed her a token. On the ancient token, the word "Hong" was engraved with a sharp knife skill.

"Shura Order... Could it be that you are from the Demon Palace?" Seeing the Shura Order, the ghost girl seemed to remember something and suddenly became uneasy. "What are you doing in the territory of the Golden Wheel Palace?"

Hua Xiaomei scratched her head and said, "I also want to ask, when did the Golden Wheel Palace recruit ghost messengers? Don't they use the Golden Wheel here? There shouldn't be any need for ghost messengers at all."

Ren Changhong's eyes were cold and stern, and he spoke slowly: "I advise you not to use any tricks. You have no chance to escape with the Earth-Shrinking Stone. I can guarantee that before the Earth-Shrinking Stone hits the ground, you will be killed."

Sensing the murderous intent in Ren Changhong's words, the ghost girl trembled. Even her small movement of reaching out to the Earth-Shrinking Stone did not escape the eyes of the two men. She had no choice but to say, "What do you want to know? If you hurt me, the Lord of the Golden Wheel Palace will not let you go."

Upon hearing the title of the Master of the Golden Wheel Palace, Hua Xiaomei and Ren Changhong looked at each other and their faces couldn't help but grim. She was indeed a member of the Golden Wheel Palace.

"Tell us everything you know." Ren Changhong said coldly.

The ghost girl didn't dare to hide it, so she said, "I am the ghost messenger Shan Yao, the ghost messenger the hall master trusts the most. I was originally carrying out the task of catching beast-shaped ghosts with other companions. When I passed by this place, I noticed that the yin energy was gathering here, and I planned to collect the souls of the dead. I didn't expect to run into you evil ghosts..."

Hua Xiaomei had no doubts. From Shan Yao's previous actions to seduce the soul, she knew that Shan Yao was not lying. As a fellow ghost messenger, she did not want to embarrass Shan Yao, so she said:

"Don't be afraid. We are not evil spirits and we won't hurt you. We just have a few questions for you to answer..."

Yam rolled his eyes and said, "I have answered all the questions. Can I go now?"

Before Hua Xiaomei could speak, she listened to Changhong saying, "Unfortunately, my companions had some conflicts with the Golden Wheel Palace. The master of the Golden Wheel Palace sent out ghost fairies to hunt us down. I'm afraid you can't leave."

Shan Yao was panicked. Hua Xiaomei had just said that she would not hurt her, but now it seemed that she had been lying to her.

Suddenly, Shan Yao seemed to have thought of something and quickly said, "Wait... this seems to be a misunderstanding. Don't you know that the Golden Wheel Palace Master has been replaced? The Golden Wheel Palace Master you are talking about and the Golden Wheel Palace Master I am talking about are not the same person at all!"

"Changed?" Ren Changhong curled his lips in disbelief. How could the Lord of Yama Palace change people so easily? Even if he did, how could it be such a coincidence that it happened so recently? Shan Yao must have made up a poor excuse to survive!

After saying that, Ren Changhong slowly raised his sword, and a cold light flashed from the Frost Sword. Shan Yao was so frightened that her teeth chattered and her face turned pale.

(End of this chapter)