The King of Curses

Chapter 205: The Evil Land
An Zhizhen leads the group of curse masters who symbolize the official and uphold order, while Yi Qingyan becomes the spiritual leader in the minds of people who have completely different ideas from them.

This seemed to be what the elder sister had planned from the beginning. When she met Yi Qingyan and realized that the girl had a dangerous power as great as her own, this idea began to take shape.

Therefore, when Cen Dongsheng later explored various ways to lead King Pingdeng to a different path from his previous life, she was very welcoming and generous in her support.

But therein lies the problem.

Even if two groups that are naturally opposed in their ideas are good friends at first, they will inevitably go their separate ways due to differences in their ideologies.

What's more, the two sisters had conflicts. They were mortal enemies in their previous life, and they had fought each other mercilessly in this life as well.

"It seems that future disagreements and conflicts are inevitable..."

Cen Dongsheng sighed unconsciously.

An Zhizhen in front of him held her chin with her hand, smiling.

"Do you think I'll lose?"

"Wait, I didn't say you two would definitely fight."

"Haha, so cute. Even the way she escapes from reality is..."

The woman couldn't help but reach out and touch his head.

"Dongsheng, you should know that sister Qingyan and I are not the same kind of people. It's only because I met a man that we live under the same roof now."

"..."

Cen Dongsheng just remained silent.

"If we don't intend to change our ideas, then the conflicts between us will surely grow bigger and bigger as time goes by until the moment when the balance collapses."

"..."

He knew Sister Zhizhen was right.

Their past struggles seemed to be over, but some fundamental things remained unchanged.

Even with Cen Dongsheng as a suppressor valve, the two sisters' ideas are always incompatible. The difference in opinions is like an ever-expanding crack that cannot be glued together with interpersonal relationships and emotions.

Next time, and next time...

I'm afraid it won't just be a fight between two people, but will involve cities, forces and a large number of curse masters, and it will be an earth-shattering war.

This day may not come too soon, but if it really comes, it is bound to be out of control.

"Have you figured it out?"

"……I see."

Cen Dongsheng said that he actually knew it very well.

However, after risking his life to stop the Shura Field that day, the man still has lingering fears and subconsciously does not want to face the answer.

"Then what are you going to do?"

"What to do?"

"Of course I'm asking you which side you plan to stand on when the time comes. Although there's no rush to give an answer right now, I think you still have to think about it carefully."

She pressed on step by step, leaving no room for breathing.

"From your perspective, Dongsheng, I think it's better for you to stand on my side, your sister?"

The woman spoke in a teasing tone, words that were cruelly true.

"If I am the winner in the end, I will definitely not be willing to kill the child. I will just brainwash her and hand her over to you, so that she can continue to be your good sister. But if Qingyan wins, I am not sure whether I can save my life."

An Zhizhen did not play the emotional card, but was completely rational in considering maximizing benefits, so it sounds very reasonable.

but……

Cen Dongsheng had already made up his mind about this issue.
"...I won't take sides," he said. "I will do everything in my power to stop you."

An Zhizhen kept smiling and nodded slightly, obviously having expected this answer as well.

"That requires you to have enough strength. So - before that day comes, become stronger, Dongsheng."

"I'm working hard. But I'm worried lately that my own strength might not be enough..."

"You don't need power, teammates are enough."

An Zhizhen picked up the book again and sighed.

"I only know a tiny part of their story, but... I'm really envious. Now that they've caught your eye, they'll surely grow up to be very powerful people."

"Of course."

"The way people are judged" - this is probably the only thing that Cen Dongsheng feels he can surpass the other person. Even if we only talk about foresight of the situation, his elder sister may not lose to him, a reborn person.

But, yeah…

He gradually became more confident in his approach.

With them around, Cen Dongsheng no longer needs to worry about finding helpers.

Even if he does not deliberately build up his power, if he can train his two teammates into qualified special-class curse masters, even if it is only a team of three people, they will have "power" that is not inferior to any large organization.

Cen Dongsheng regards them as part of his own strength, which may be selfish, but it is precisely because of this that he will do his best and take responsibility.

*
That night, An Zhizhen handed over his subordinates' investigation information to Cen Dongsheng, who then called Jiang Yunmei.

"How have you been doing during this time?"

"I recently asked for a few days off from school and stayed at home to rest. Thank you for your concern."

"Oh, you stayed at home and played games for two days, right?" Cen Dongsheng teased.

“Yes, that’s right…”

It seemed that she was still ashamed of her status as a stay-at-home girl, and there was a hint of annoyance in her tone of reply.

Cen Dongsheng couldn't help but find it funny. Although he felt that Jiang Yunmei didn't need to care about other people's eyes at all, it was a matter of personal wish and he would not force her.

He quickly got straight to the point and started talking about business.

"The Jiang family is currently under the surveillance of the Chao Working Committee. But most of them know very little about the 'ancestors'. The only person left who knows is the head of the family, Jiang Zhifeng. I don't know what kind of power he used to escape from under the eyes of the Chao Working Committee."

"Third uncle..."

Jiang Yunmei was silent for a moment and then replied.

"Since it is related to the so-called 'ancestors', the place he went to is very likely the Jiang family's ancestral home, which is located in a remote countryside. The Jiang family generally moved to the city to live, and few people go back. But I heard that the family tree, ancestral tombs and the like are still there..."

"Yes, this is also the final conclusion reached by the Super Working Committee after investigation."

Well, that's where they're going next.

As expected, all the dark secrets of this family will be revealed and ended there.

“Do you feel nervous?”

"is a bit."

Jiang Yunmei sighed softly. "I feel more relieved. My relationship with my family has always been on and off, but we are blood relatives after all... If this incident is completely resolved, everyone can take a new step forward."

"It's good that you have this determination."

Cen Dongsheng said.

"Also, this will be our team's first official operation, so let's prepare well."

"Squad action? That means..."

"Well, this time, Yutang will join us too."

"That's great. I'm looking forward to it."

Jiang Yunmei seemed very happy.

……

After hanging up the phone, Cen Dongsheng stood up, paced around the room twice, and his eyes fell on the investigation report placed on the desk.

"Jiang family's ancestral home..."

He muttered to himself.

If there really is a sorcerer, or even a powerful ghost, living in the same area for years, that place will definitely become a "dwelling of dragons and tigers".

To be precise, there is a high probability that there is an already formed supernatural space there.

"Yutang has more combat experience, but for both her and Yunmei, the environment in the haunted house is still unfamiliar to them..."

But for the future adventures of Cen Dongsheng's team, they must understand the common sense of "this side".

Many of the curses and forbidden items that men want are hidden deep in a haunted house in the future.

"As a target for a first operation, the difficulty seems high. But..."

Cen Dongsheng supported his chin with his hand.

"Let's ask their opinions first."

……

The next day, Cen Dongsheng made an appointment to meet with his other teammate Song Yutang, who had just returned from Experimental Base No. 555 the previous night.

The two of them had their meeting at the same old place.

"Yutang, what are the results of the special training?"

The first person to arrive this time was Cen Dongsheng, who ordered a table full of desserts for his apprentice.

"It's tiring, but very rewarding... I have now mastered 'super reaction' and feel I can use it more stably in actual combat."

Song Yutang didn't bother to be polite with his master. He stuffed the cake into his mouth and swallowed it down with black tea. At the same time, the girl looked at him with a slightly strange look.

"Although I didn't expect that the main content of the training would actually require me to dodge the machine gun position's firepower network... Could this be the plan designated by you, Master?"

Cen Dongsheng laughed.

The person in charge of Yu Tang's training program was the woman named Elena. She did ask for his opinion, and he just made a few "small" suggestions based on his experience as a reborn person.

"Also, I've heard about the Jiang family. I know that Senior Jiang is yours now."

"It's mine..." Cen Dongsheng stopped talking, "Your statement seems strange..."

"Not surprisingly."

Song Yutang smiled faintly and shook her head slightly.

"You are the captain, and you are the guide for her and me in the Curse Master. Of course, we are your people."

...I always feel that there is some thorn in the words of my little disciple. Is it an illusion?

"Anyway, we are going to challenge the haunted house next. It is a space constructed by supernatural forces. Our team will encounter it often in the future, so we have to get used to it in advance."

"……Um."

When it came to the point, the girl's expression became serious.

"Is there anything I need to pay attention to?"

"I will compile the basic knowledge into a book, and you two can study it by yourselves. I will share some specific experiences and techniques with you. Apart from these, each haunted house has its own rules, so you have to wait until you enter to know the full picture of the haunted house."

Cen Dongsheng said.

"In addition, the most powerful haunted house is the one with a 'house owner'."

"Owner?"

"That's right. A ghost that reaches the A-level will often become the core of a haunted house, possessing the power to control an entire spiritual space. This is called the 'owner'."

"……I see."

Song Yutang pondered for a moment. She had done her homework in advance, so she asked a question that puzzled her:
"Why is the mysterious space where ghosts live called a 'haunted house'?"

"Because in the beginning, these kinds of supernatural spaces were mostly presented as various types of houses. Although the internal area might be very large, the scope of interference with reality was quite limited. At a large scale, it would be a hospital, a school, an apartment building, and the like."

“…Is it possible to have a haunted house with a larger area?”

"If the spiritual space expands further, and the interior is formed by the fusion of several haunted houses, forming an area that is large enough to engulf an entire village or town in reality, the curse masters call it a 'murderous place', which is a higher level spiritual space than a 'haunted house'."

Cen Dongsheng replied in a deep voice.

"And the core ghosts born from such places are most likely not ordinary Class A house owners, but more dangerous monsters."

They are called evil spirits, and their strength is comparable to that of the magical sorcerers among the curse masters.

There are two differences between evil spirits and ordinary ghosts:

First, as the superior of the owner, the evil spirits also have the power to manipulate a certain spiritual space, but they themselves do not rely on space. Even if they act in the real world, in broad daylight, their strength will not be greatly weakened.

Secondly, the evil spirits use the death energy called "Sha Qi", which can be considered as a higher level of "Yin Qi".

The most important reason why "cursing masters are the natural enemies of ghosts and monsters" is that most technological weapons in reality can hardly cause effective damage to ghosts and monsters - their bodies are essentially composed of energy, and this energy is just restrained by the "true qi" of the cursing masters.

But when it comes to the evil stage, the energy used by the ghosts will appear to restrain the curse master.

When the evil ghosts first appeared in the world, they caused a lot of casualties. People originally regarded them as ordinary first-class ghosts, but they didn't expect that the evil ghosts could run out of the haunted house at any time and anywhere, and they didn't expect that the most common methods of dealing with ghosts, such as using true qi to protect oneself or using true qi to burn Yin qi, would be used by the evil ghosts in turn.

Evil Qi can corrode true Qi, so when ordinary spell-forbidden masters encounter evil spirits, the best way is to escape.

Unless they are magicians who can use "magic power". Until this stage, the restraint relationship between the spell-forbidden master and the ghosts will be reversed again.

Of course, a special curse-master could also crush the evil spirits with the power of pure violence, but that was another matter.

After listening to Cen Dongsheng's introduction to the "dangerous place" and "evil spirit", Song Yutang frowned slightly.

"The reason why Master explained it in such detail is because..."

"Yes." Cen Dongsheng nodded, "I don't deny this possibility. If the ancestor of the Jiang family is a curse master, it's not a big deal, but if he is a ghost, he may have already touched the realm of evil."

Even in the so-called "seriously injured hibernation" period, he can still be on par with ghosts at the level of first-class spell masters and human masters; if he were in his prime, his strength would most likely exceed that of other enemies Cen Dongsheng had encountered in the past... This is a logical guess.

(End of this chapter)