With virtue

Zhao Yunshu's brow twitched slightly when he saw the last line of text.

Unafraid of flames.

This bastard probably wants to use this characteristic to his advantage!

Unfortunately, the Taoist priest still had some tricks up his sleeve, and you saw through his disguise!

He closed the yellow book and glanced once more at the several tombs whose frames had been burned down.

The black smoke gradually thinned, and the fire subsided. Only a few embers crackled among the ruins, and a burnt smell filled the air, making it unclear whether it was from burning wood or something else.

No more ghostly howls came from the house; even the mournful screams from before had completely ceased.

He listened carefully, confirming several times before standing up, tucking the yellow book into his pocket, taking out two talismans from his sleeve and holding them between his fingers, then sticking one to his body before cautiously walking towards the ruins.

Of course, he was cautious inside, but in reality, he walked over casually, swaying back and forth, saying, "Even if you're as cunning as a devil, you still have to drink my foot-washing water, don't you? This is infuriating, even more so than the fires of Yiling!"

It looks as if a huge fire has been set off.

He swaggered forward, but before he could finish speaking, he suddenly stopped and, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, darted backward!

Right where he had just stood, the pile of embers that had been extinguished suddenly exploded!

Flames shot into the sky, transforming into a wall of fire over ten feet high. Within the wall of fire, a charred figure stood up—it was none other than Zhang Cuihua, the Nine Beauties!

Her robes were burned to shreds, revealing her charred ghostly body underneath. Half of her face was burned and the flesh was peeling off, but the other half still showed traces of her beauty in life, only that beauty was now twisted beyond recognition by resentment and ferocity.

She was enveloped in raging flames, seemingly becoming one with the fire. Her scorched hair danced wildly in the flames, and her ten fingers, like hooks, swept down towards Zhao Yunshu with scorching hot winds.

Although Zhao Yunshu was startled, he remained calm. Before entering the village, he had already affixed a Yellow God protective talisman to his body. At this moment, the talisman was slightly warm inside his Taoist robe, and a layer of light golden light suddenly lit up, protecting him completely.

Nine Beauties' claws struck the light barrier. A sharp, piercing sizzle rang out, sparks flew, and the light barrier trembled violently a few times, but ultimately did not shatter.

That was close! Luckily, the Taoist priest was prepared!

This female ghost has a stronger backup plan than he thought! If she manages to grab him this time, he'll probably die on the spot!

Taking advantage of the momentum from the block, Zhao Yunshu lightly touched the ground with her feet, and floated back several feet, landing next to a stone mill in the courtyard that had not yet collapsed.

"I knew you, female ghost, would be alright! But to have your soul not scattered even after being cremated, and to have the ability to control fire, is truly remarkable."

When Jiuyan missed her attack, she became even more enraged. She let out a shrill scream, and flames surged around her, transforming into several fire snakes that coiled around Zhao Yun from all directions.

Zhao Yunshu also possessed fire magic, so with a wave of his hand, the fire snake retreated once again, unable to advance even an inch!

Nine Beauties had no choice but to lunge forward with their claws again, only to be blocked by the iron sword. The little Taoist priest took the opportunity to run away again, but he was incredibly slippery.

"But since you live in harmony with fire, you will likely suffer the torment of being burned by flames day and night," Zhao Yunshu said.

He spoke sarcastically, but kept moving his feet to the side, unwilling to get any closer, merely circling around.

Jiuyan continued her pursuit, but was blocked by the talisman and the little Taoist's swordsmanship. She exchanged a few shallow blows with the iron sword, but was unable to break through!

The young Taoist priest already had a plan in mind. It was broad daylight, and even though Jiuyan was an evil spirit with flames protecting her, she couldn't survive long in the sunlight. So he would stall her, making it impossible for her to leave or kill her, and wear her down!

After several unsuccessful attacks, Jiu Yan frowned, gritted her teeth, took out a small bowl, and suddenly blew a breath of fire into it.

The fiery aura shifted with the wind, and suddenly a fiery skull emerged from the small bowl and attacked.

Seeing this, the young Taoist priest retreated sharply once more!

He recognizes this thing!

The bowl was dark yellow in color, with a dark red copper rim around its mouth. The inside and outside of the bowl were decorated with a pattern of skulls and flames intertwined with fine gold and silver lines. This was a kapala bowl from the Tibetan Buddhism of the Western Regions, made from a skull, and was a protective ritual implement in Tibetan Buddhism.

Legend has it that it is made from the bones and leather of "sinners" or "outcasts," and once refined, it can command the vengeful spirits imprisoned within as protectors, making it extremely powerful.

This thing was definitely not something Jiu Yan could have made herself; it was most likely given to her by that demonic monk Yuan Meng!

As the fiery skeleton lunged forward, Zhao Yunshu leaped down from the wall, twirling his iron sword and using the momentum of his fall to strike the skeleton's skull.

With a crisp "clang," sparks flew everywhere. Only a shallow white mark remained on the skull, but the sword vibrated and hummed. The force of the shock traveled up the sword to his arm, making his hand feel numb.

He used the momentum to flip in the air and landed on a pile of charred rubble in the courtyard, his iron sword lying in front of him, the tip of the sword still trembling slightly.

The Flame Skull missed its target, its fist slamming into the ground and creating a charred crater, sending sparks flying.

Although Zhao Yunshu avoided the direct hit, he was burned by the sparks that flew up, and the protective amulet's light circled around him again, shielding him from the aftershocks.

"This is troublesome." Zhao Yunshu spat, took two steps back, leaned against the courtyard wall, sweat dripping from his forehead and rolling down his temples, but his mind was racing.

These fiery skulls are difficult to harm with swords and blades; it's better to use talismans.

Zhao Yunshu flipped his left hand, revealing a talisman between his fingers, and muttered, "Southern red worms, you come to devour my teeth, go!"

He threw out the talisman, which passed through the gaps in the fire snake!

The skeleton was opening its mouth, revealing two rows of charred, withered teeth, and the talisman was stuck precisely to the skeleton's jaw.

The skeleton suddenly trembled, its two bone claws clutching its jaw, its teeth chattering uncontrollably. Then, writhing in pain, it slammed its head against the millstone in the courtyard, bounced back, and crashed into the courtyard wall. The flames on its body flickered in pain.

It made a grinding sound with its teeth, but because it was all bones and no flesh, it couldn't scream. It could only keep opening its mouth wide, making it look even more frightening than when it first appeared.

This talisman is best at restraining things like zombies.

It works quite well against skeletons right now!

Meanwhile, while the Flame Skeleton was holding Zhao Yunshu back, Jiu Yan had already slipped into another house to avoid the sunlight.

Using the guardian skeleton to buy time, she only needed to avoid the sunlight for a couple of breaths to gather her strength, then break the Taoist's protective talisman in one go and burn him to ashes!