Yin Shou Shu

Chapter 428 Farewell
On the misty Yin-Yang Road, the little cotton flower was running at the forefront.

Ran Qing followed closely behind.

Liu Fang, the dazed and confused corpse-driving Taoist priest, followed Ran Qing step by step.

Mo Li carried Ran Xiaoya and followed at the back.

The corpse of the woman in the red wedding dress floated eerily to one side.

By this time, they were completely shrouded in thick fog, and they could not see anything more than a meter away.

The ground beneath our feet was shrouded in thick fog; every step felt like walking through clouds, with no ground in sight.

The breath of the mortal realm drew ever closer ahead in the thick fog.

The aura of the underworld gradually receded from everyone's side.

Leaving the underworld is much easier than coming here.

The little cotton ball ran wildly, easily avoiding all the evil spirits and haunted houses along the way.

Occasionally, an evil master would lurk in the darkness, but he would only lurk and would not provoke the wanderers on the Yin-Yang path.

Beside Ran Qing, Liu Fang, the corpse-driving Taoist priest, was already unsteady on her feet, foaming at the mouth, and her face was ashen and purplish-blue, clearly showing the symptoms of being poisoned by corpses.

The secret medicine he frantically sprinted and ingested in his final moments was likely extracted from a zombie. While it granted the corpse-driving Taoist a temporary burst of immense power, the aftereffects were equally severe.

This is also the most prominent characteristic of people who follow unorthodox paths.

Unorthodox sorcerers possess many hidden, wicked, and outrageous powerful evil spells, which are often extremely potent, but also have equally severe side effects.

The corpse-driving Taoist priest, foaming at the mouth and in a daze, chased after Ran Qing, muttering, "...Don't leave me..."

"...Get out...feed me raw blood..."

"Don't leave me..."

"Get out...feed me raw blood..."

He kept repeating those two sentences over and over like a broken record, afraid that Ran Qing and the others would abandon him.

At this point, he had clearly lost himself.

He needs the help of his companions to get rid of the corpse poison.

Ran Qing and Mo Li naturally wouldn't abandon him, but they didn't have time to deal with him for the time being.

They ran silently along the fog-shrouded Yin-Yang Path, both Ran Qing and Mo Li falling into a profound silence.

After escaping the Ancient Luo Ghost Kingdom and escaping safely, Ran Qing didn't say anything more.

The moment I was completely out of danger and relaxed, the intense grief that had been suppressed over the years surged into my heart without any resistance.

Ran Qing's eyes were slightly red. As he ran, his mind seemed to go blank. He completely forgot what he was doing and just ran forward instinctively.

Zongshu's passing means the loss of his best friend...

At this moment, Ran Qing felt so sad that her chest tightened, her eyes reddened, and she wanted to cry out loud.

Having grown accustomed to being strong and stubborn, he found himself unable to cry out loud, even when he wanted to.

Even tears couldn't be squeezed out of their eyes.

All the sadness and pain were blocked in his chest, making it hard for him to breathe, and his chest felt as heavy as if a huge boulder was pressing on it.

Mo Li followed behind without saying a word.

But her eyes were also red, and tears fell silently behind the girl.

The oppressive and sorrowful atmosphere affected the little cotton flower that was leading the way.

The usually cheerful little cotton flower was now running forward silently, not daring to look back or make a sound.

On this depressing and sorrowful road between Yin and Yang, only the monotonous, mechanical voice of the corpse-driving Taoist Liu Fang could be heard intermittently.

"...Don't...leave me..."

"……go out……"

"...feed me raw blood..."

After an unknown amount of time, the road cleared by the thick fog crossed the Wuzhai Pass and completely left the ghost realm of the Wujiang River.

Ahead lies a dark pine forest outside the Wuzhai Pass, where one or two evil spirits can be vaguely seen drifting towards the pass.

Those were ancient evil spirits that had returned from the human world.

However, Ran Qing and his companions, having fully entered the Yin-Yang Path, passed by the evil spirits safely and without any worries, with neither side noticing the other.

The thick fog stretched across the dark Wujiang Ghost Realm, extending all the way to the edge of darkness ahead, seemingly pointing straight to the sky.

Ran Qing and the others running through the thick fog seemed to be walking on a strange, milky-white bridge, running above the dark underworld.

The scent of the human world grew ever closer, until the sound of the bells became so clear that even Mo Li could hear it.

The little cotton ball that was leading the way suddenly stopped and started spinning around in place like it was having a blast.

Ran Qing, who was right behind her, took a step forward and her feet landed on the solid cement ground.

The thick fog receded, and I could smell the hot, stuffy incense smoke from inside the ancestral altar.

He has returned to the altar of the spirit medium and to the cement building on Park Road.

Ran Qing sniffed softly, walked to the door, and pushed it open.

Outside the door, the morning sun pierced the sky, turning it a deep blue, like a flawless sapphire.

The sunshine, unseen for many days, gently bathed this small mountain town in the southwestern mountains.

At the foot of the rocky hill where the cement house is located, the traffic on Park Road is clattering, and the calls of minibus ticket sellers soliciting passengers can be heard in the morning light.

"...Tea plantations in Changba! Tea plantations in Changba!"

The noisy sounds, full of the warmth of everyday life, left Ran Qing feeling dazed and as if she were in another world.

The Moonlit City in view was no longer dangerous or ghostly, nor was it shrouded in a thick fog.

The eerie fog that enveloped the entire city when we set off last night, and the terrifying ghostly figures that roamed within it, have all vanished without a trace.

Not far from the cement house, the ditch where the flying zombie had been hiding was now empty. A dirty raccoon was chasing a mouse out of the ditch. The two climbed up the outer wall of the house one after the other and disappeared on the roof.

The city, which had been shrouded in crisis and danger for many days, has now completely returned to peace and become the familiar place to Ran Qing.

The warm golden morning light shone on Ran Qing's face. Having spent many days crawling in darkness and gloom, he instinctively raised his hand to shield his eyes, feeling a little uncomfortable.

Mo Li's voice echoed softly from behind.

With a complex mix of sadness, relief, and melancholy, the girl whispered, "...It's over."

The danger in Moonlit City was completely averted by them.

The rebellious ancient kingdom of Guro was also suppressed by them.

The evil spirits that had flooded into the human world because of the loss of the Ghost King's body are now returning to the Ghost Kingdom as the Ghost King's remains are returned to their rightful place. The Red Gate will no longer be open in the Zangke region.

This ancient ghost kingdom, trapped in the dark underworld, is on the verge of extinction due to the departure of its ghost king.

But the Ghost King's remains are still in the Ghost King's coffin, and this process of annihilation will be extremely long.

Finally, like a frog being slowly boiled in water, when the Ghost Kingdom is completely destroyed, all the ancient evil spirits that lingered within it will be taken away with it.

This is Mo Li's revenge.

It is a revenge against the evil kingdom that harmed her and sacrificed her four thousand years ago.

"I will stay in Zangke for a long time until I witness the complete demise of the Ancient Luo Ghost Kingdom."

Mo Li stood by the door, holding the unconscious little girl Ran Xiaoya, and said softly, "You can continue your studies, don't worry about your sister."

"While you're in class, I'll take care of your younger sister."

With the death of Ran Jianfei and the evil spirit that Ran Jianfei resurrected, the daughter born of the evil spirit became an orphan without parents.

Now that Ran Qing had rescued her and brought her back to the mortal realm, he naturally wouldn't stand idly by. Mo Li spoke softly, taking on the responsibility of caring for his younger sister.

Meanwhile, Little Cotton sat blankly on the ground, raising one hind leg like a dog and scratching its chin with its hind paw.

Clearly, Little Cotton's personality has disappeared again, and now only the dog's instincts remain.

The corpse-driving Taoist priest, his face ashen and purplish-black, collapsed to the ground, groaning weakly.

"……don't want……"

“Abandon me…”

Ran Qing took a deep breath and sighed, "Let's save Master Liu first. He finally escaped, don't let him be poisoned to death."

Ran Qing reached out and took the little girl from Mo Li. The sleeping little girl's body was soft and warm. She gently moved her head in Ran Qing's arms and changed to a more comfortable sleeping position.

She had been in the underworld for too long, and the aura of death emanating from her was too strong.

Now that he has returned to the human world, he is completely unable to hold on and has fallen into a deep sleep.

Ran Qing needs to remove the life force from her half-sister to prevent her from developing any lasting health problems.

Mo Li walked to the door, got on his motorcycle, and drove out of the old residential area halfway up the mountain amidst the roar of the engine, heading to the nearest vegetable market to buy fresh blood to detoxify the corpse-driving Taoist.

Ran Qing carried her unconscious younger sister into the house, carefully placed her on her bed, and covered her with a blanket.

In the dim light, Ran Qing's retina reflected the little girl's delicate, pale face.

This is the only living member of the Ran family besides Ran Qing.

Fortunately, Ran Qing no longer needs to worry about making a living or money.

The savings he has now are enough for him to live on, and he no longer needs to live a frugal and impoverished life like before.

Not to mention that as a practitioner of spirit walking, his spiritual power at this time was considered excellent among all the previous masters of spirit walking.

With his genuine skills, he might not live a wealthy life, but he certainly wouldn't starve.

As Ran Qing passed by the main room, filled with the dull smell of cooking smoke, Teacher Li's voice drifted from a jar in the corner.

"...Did you succeed?"

The ghost of Teacher Li spoke with a hint of sadness in its voice.

He still retains the personality he had when he was alive, and quietly stays here waiting for Ran Qing to return.

These past few days, Ran Qing has been busy writing talismans and has had no time to help Teacher Li set up an altar, perform rituals, or help him rest in peace.

After death, they become vengeful ghosts, experiencing the pain of their tragic death almost every moment.

The pain of death torments them constantly, so the vengeful ghosts are forever fierce and cruel, unable to find peace.

Even if one can retain their sanity from when they were alive, such a death is still a hellish torment for a vengeful ghost.

Or rather, it is precisely because she maintained her rational personality that Teacher Li's situation is even more tragic.

But the kind-hearted Teacher Li did not urge Ran Qing impatiently.

Even though it was constantly tormented by death, it quietly waited for Ran Qing to finish everything.

Seeing Ran Qing and the others return safely, Teacher Li breathed a sigh of relief.

But he also noticed that there were few people, and even though he didn't know Zong Shu, Teacher Li still felt sad for that young child.

Ran Qing moved a chair and sat down, sighing as she told Teacher Li what had happened in the Ghost Realm of Wujiang.

"...Hongye and her family have been completely wiped out."

"In the final moments, it wasn't me who did it, but rather Hongye who willingly went to her death."

"She actually feels guilty and remorseful towards you. She hates herself for not being able to stop her mother and for letting her mother kill you..."

Ran Qingyou slowly and carefully told Teacher Li about what happened in the underworld.

Teacher Li, who was Li Hongye's adoptive father, was also a victim in this revenge tragedy.

Even Li Hongye herself admitted that her adoptive father treated her very well.

Her resentment and revenge against the ghost breeders stemmed more from her hatred of those ghost breeders for destroying her once happy home.

Even if this family is a blended family.

But at least she wasn't an ungrateful wretch like her mother. Li Hongye always remembered her adoptive father's kindness...

In the main room, after listening to Ran Qing's story, Teacher Li, who was in the jar, remained silent for a long time.

Finally, this kind and gentle teacher said bitterly, "...Perhaps it's also my fault."

“If I had been tougher over the years and hadn’t been so indulgent towards her mother, her mother wouldn’t have gone to this point.”

“I knew about their feud, and I knew that her mother was determined to get revenge, but I never expected things to get out of control like this.”

“I was present several times when her mother coerced and beat her.”

“But my attempts to stop and help were always so powerless. Every time her mother said that she was not my daughter, I would slink away. I did not fulfill my responsibilities as a father. I always had too many concerns.”

"Perhaps Hongye also resents me... resents me for being weak and unwilling to stand up for her."

Teacher Li sighed sadly.

He was shocked to hear that his adopted daughter did not resent him, but even wanted to avenge him, which was why she did so many things.

The middle-aged teacher, who was murdered by his adopted daughter and wife, has clearly found peace of mind.

"Thank you, Ran Qing."

"Thank you for telling me this."

"Thank you for stopping Hongye and preventing her from making the same mistake again and again."

Inside the jar, Teacher Li's ghost let out a faint sigh.

"It's all over now, I can finally leave in peace..."

Even when the middle-aged teacher became a vengeful ghost, his mind was not corrupted by hatred.

He felt no hatred towards the wife and adopted daughter who had caused his death.

Ran Qing said, "I'll help you set up the altar and perform the ritual later when I'm rested."

Despite the final assistance of the Ghost Eye Sheep God and the strenuous help of the evil lords, they managed to break free from the ghost realm of Wujiang.

But Ran Qing also exhausted all her physical strength and Yin energy.

At this moment, he was extremely weak and powerless.

Logically, he should have collapsed long ago; repeatedly using blood talismans has greatly depleted his body and yin energy. The Ghost Eye can heal injuries, but it cannot replenish yin energy.

But the kitchen knife that the peddler lent him on credit gave him an invisible boost, allowing him to continue performing evil magic even though his internal yin energy had long been depleted.

Therefore, Ran Qing was able to continuously use the Blood Talisman and fight tirelessly, eventually breaking through the Ghost Kingdom and returning to the human world.

But as the crisis receded, Ran Qing could clearly feel that the effectiveness of the kitchen knife she had borrowed from the peddler was gradually fading.

An increasingly intense feeling of fatigue and weakness began to emerge within Ran Qing.

After talking with Teacher Li, Ran Qing only had time to walk into the inner room, find a chair and sit down before everything went black and she completely fainted.

In his hazy, half-asleep state, Ran Qing seemed to hear many jarring and noisy sounds, and it also seemed as if many strange people were walking past him.

Some are evil lords, some are ghosts, and some are living people.

Ran Qing couldn't make out the figures and faces of those people; she could only see them gradually disappearing into the distance.

Finally, he seemed to have a dream in which he returned to the playground of the Third Middle School in the city and saw Zong Shu standing on the playground with a smile, waving goodbye to him.

Ran Qing felt a warm feeling in her heart.

Only silent tears slid down in the darkness...

(End of this chapter)