Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 418 Night Park in Ghost State
Qingwan sat in the spirit boat, surrounded by butterflies fluttering around her.

The butterflies are colorful and shimmer with dazzling light, making them quite beautiful.

These are all small items that Qingwan just bought from the shop; they are not real butterflies.

The butterfly, made from low-grade refining materials, is engraved with a very simple array. It is said that it can fly for days and nights without stopping with just a wisp of spiritual energy.

Qingwan also bought a few small puppets for research, but she felt they were not as effective as the bean soldiers she summoned herself.

She was a little puzzled that these trinkets weren't cheap, but then she realized that not everyone could conjure soldiers from beans, and she quickly understood.

Lu Zheng was also fiddling with some exquisitely crafted artifacts on the side. They were all excellent refining products, quite practical but not widely available.

The spirit boat headed west at a speed as fast as a shooting star.

A continent appeared on the horizon, seemingly already nearing the edge of Yunmeng Marsh.

Lu Zheng observed the surrounding environment and determined the location.

When they reached land, the spirit boat slowed down and entered a river channel along the current.

After traveling another hundred miles by water, Lu Zheng and Qing Wan both sensed a change.

Qingwan couldn't help but look around, "Have we arrived in the State of Chu again?"

Compared to her first time entering the Chu region, Qingwan clearly felt a bit suppressed this time.

The pressure emanating from the divine path of the Chu Kingdom's national destiny carried an invisible repulsion, rejecting the righteous energy emanating from her.

Lu Zheng nodded slightly and said softly, "Yes, further ahead should be Ghost Prefecture."

“Ghost State!” Qing Wan’s eyes flashed upon hearing this.

In the previous dynasty, in order to manage the many ghosts and spirits, prefectures and counties were set up in a certain place, and ghost cities were built to control millions of ghosts and spirits.

This area was then named Ghost State.

The State of Chu continued the old system of the previous dynasty and did not change the establishment of Guizhou.

It is said that this state is still under special jurisdiction. The area of ​​Ghost State is not large, and it is inhabited by many ghosts and few living people. The gods and officials here are mostly posthumously appointed.

Unlike the priests in other parts of Chu, some of whom were still alive when they were conferred the title, they were not priests.

After all, if a living person stayed in such a place, not only would their lifespan be shortened, but they would also find it difficult to survive.

Lu Zheng's eyes flashed, and he looked ahead. He could clearly see a region in front of him where yin energy was rising into the sky.

The sheer density and purity of the yin energy in that place made it an ideal burial site.

Lu Zheng heard that some people do indeed bury themselves in Ghost State, attempting to transform into ghosts and live a second life.

However, the Chu government had explicitly prohibited such things.

Moreover, the conditions for a person to become a ghost after death are very complex and not so simple.

Even if some people become ghosts after death, it is difficult for them to retain their spiritual memories from their previous life.

In essence, this cannot be considered living a second life.

Even so, there are still cultivators who attempt to prolong their lives in this way.

Therefore, some cultivators, feeling that they have reached the end of their lifespan, will secretly come to Ghost Continent to find a feng shui treasure land, set up an array to bury themselves, and then try to transform into ghost cultivators.

Such incidents were repeatedly prohibited but not stopped by the Chu government, which simply could not control them.

And because of such people, another type of professional monk was born.

Those were tomb builders who came to Guizhou specifically to search for burial sites, dig up graves, and steal treasures.

These stories were descriptions that Lu Zheng had seen in books, which he found quite interesting, so he wanted to come here to see them and broaden his horizons.

The spirit boat traveled against the current and soon arrived at the territory of Ghost State.

However, in the border area, Lu Zheng and Qing Wan both found that the air was filled with yin energy and there were gusts of cold wind, which made them feel a bit cold.

However, both of them possessed a strong sense of righteousness, so this bit of yin wind was nothing to them.

At this time, it was dark.

As the sun sets, the light that shines through seems cold and icy.

Qingwan looked around curiously and noticed that the plants and trees here were somewhat different.

She couldn't help but dig up some plants, intending to plant them in her little garden.

Seeing this, Lu Zheng also specially set aside a suitable place to simulate a similar environment.

Anyway, the little space is spacious enough now, so there's no problem filling it with more ordinary plants.

"Huh, below the water..."

Qingwan let out a soft exclamation and noticed shadows moving underwater ahead.

Lu Zheng glanced at it and said, "It's a water spirit."

The most ordinary ghosts and spirits have no intelligence and no one knows where they come from. They wander in the water like ordinary fish.

Lu Zheng only released a little bit of his righteous energy, and the evil spirits in the water probably couldn't withstand it.

However, Lu Zheng did not do that. He wasn't some evil demon or ghost, so there was no need for him to do so.

Such ghosts and spirits are countless in Ghost State, probably just like ordinary animals.

As the spirit boat sailed by at a leisurely pace, the wandering spirits in the water scattered like startled fish, disappearing in the blink of an eye. Ahead, a monster resembling a pig but with a long nose lay prone by the water's edge.

The monster placed its nose in the water, where it exhaled bubbles with a special scent.

Some of the spirits in the water were attracted by the aura and slowly swam toward the monster.

The monster's eyes flashed with an unusual light, and with a sudden inhale, several yin spirits were sucked into its body.

Immediately, the monster's eyes showed satisfaction, and it grunted a few times, letting out a joyful cry.

Suddenly, the monster saw the approaching ship and its eyes widened in surprise. Then it ran away on all fours.

It recognized this bipedal beast as a formidable being that it couldn't afford to provoke.

Qingwan blinked, saw the fleeing demonic beast, and asked curiously, "That's..."

“A tapir, a kind of soul-eating tapir,” Lu Zheng said leisurely. “It feeds specifically on yin energy and also devours yin spirits and ghosts. It is rarely seen in other places.”

Such peculiar monsters are commonly found in places like Ghost Continent.

He had just observed that the bubbles exhaled by the Soul-Eating Tapir contained a trace of pure Yin energy, which was why it could attract Yin spirits in the water.

Qingwan clicked her tongue in amazement and said, "A demon beast that eats ghosts, but it's a demon beast with flesh and blood. Can it grow this big just by eating ghosts?"

Lu Zheng thought for a moment and said, "Being able to eat ghosts doesn't mean you only eat ghosts. There are also so many plants and medicinal herbs that contain yin energy growing here."

Ancient texts do not provide detailed descriptions of this kind of monster, but it is unlikely that it can grow stronger simply by absorbing some yin spirits.

He's a living person who needs to eat regularly, not just absorb spiritual energy from heaven and earth, let alone such a low-level demon beast.

The two continued along the waterway, and the further they went in, the more the yin energy permeated the air, turning into mist.

You can even see some wandering ghosts in the mountains and fields.

This is only the outer area of ​​Ghost State, and there are already so many ghosts and spirits wandering around here. I wonder how many ghosts and spirits are in Ghost State City, which is located in the center.

Some of the ghosts even developed a little intelligence, their eyes staring straight at Lu Zheng and Qing Wan with obvious emotional fluctuations—greed.

Ordinary ghosts and spirits will subconsciously avoid people because they are not yet intelligent and have an instinctive fear of the unknown.

Once a spirit has grown to a certain level and gained intelligence, it will absorb the essence of living things to balance the yin energy within itself, thereby enhancing itself.

Human essence is a great tonic for these spirits with some spiritual power.

Of course, if a person's yang energy is too strong, and the yin ghost is not strong enough, it will be difficult to resist the strong yang energy and will not try to absorb the yang energy of such a person.

Therefore, when walking at night, a person with strong energy may not be afraid of ghosts, while a person with weak energy is more likely to encounter ghosts.

Seeing some ghosts staring at her, Qingwan glared back, but did not reveal her own aura. She just found the scene quite interesting and wanted to see if these ghosts would really rush over and suck the yang energy from their bodies.

Their yang energy carries a righteous and noble aura, which even a powerful ghost of a higher realm cannot easily refine, as it is highly poisonous to ghosts.

These ghosts, their eyes gleaming with greed, lingered around the spirit boat, each one looking eager to try their luck.

Suddenly, a thick, eerie wind blew up, and a thick fog swept over us.

Seeing this, a ghost, driven by greed and suppressing its limited intelligence, suddenly moved with the wind, baring its fangs and claws as it pounced on Lu Zheng.

The ghost quickly touched Lu Zheng's body and instantly melted away like snowflakes falling into a pot of oil.

Lu Zheng blinked; he hadn't made a single movement, not even releasing his aura.

The ghost only touched his body once, and he couldn't bear it.

Several other ghosts pounced on the two, but they all turned into wisps of green smoke in an instant, and had no time to retreat.

Seeing this, the other ghosts, with their limited intelligence, told them that the yang energy from these two people was not so easy to absorb, so they all moved away.

Seeing the ghosts leave, Qingwan immediately took action and grabbed several of them.

"What's your name?"

"How much is this?"

"Can't you understand what I'm saying? Nod your head!"

……

Qingwan was there questioning the ghosts one by one, studying them with curiosity.

After asking for a while, none of the ghosts showed any human-like reaction, and Qingwan suddenly felt bored.

“These ghosts aren’t smart!” Qingwan couldn’t help but say.

Lu Zheng couldn't help but say, "They're just ordinary ghosts. Their limit should be this. They're like some kind of intelligent wild beasts, they have brains but not many, and they can't communicate normally with people."

In such a place with extremely strong yin energy, even a low-level ghost with this little intelligence probably won't be able to become any more powerful.

You can't expect to communicate with these ghosts or provide them with any information.

Qingwan asked curiously, "Speaking of all these ghosts, where did they come from?"

Lu Zhengdao: "These extremely yin places, whether attracted by yin energy from other places or born locally, can give birth to yin creatures under certain environmental conditions. The yin spirits and ghosts we see are not necessarily transformed from whoever died."

"So you ask them those questions, and they may not be able to answer them."

Qingwan suddenly realized, "I see..."

She reads quite a lot of books, but not as many or as varied as Lu Zheng, and sometimes she has to ask Lu Zheng for advice.

(End of this chapter)