With virtue

Before leaving, Zhao Yunshu glanced back at the two women, then said nothing, reached out to hold the door shut, his gaze sharpening as he prepared himself.

Is this considered putting oneself in danger?

In the past, he would never have opened the door in the middle of the night to meet these unknown ghosts; everything had to be done cautiously.

However, since the old Taoist priest died, with no one to keep an eye on him, he seems to have become a bit reckless. After all, his master can't possibly jump out of his grave to beat him.

Many times, no one but him dared to go. Hiding here until dawn was certainly safe, but he couldn't waste time like that. If the dream of Liu Family Village had nothing to do with the Prefect of Nanke, he would eat the sword.

Right now, we're completely in the dark, but we might be able to get enough information from the monster at the door. If we kill the monster, we can get the details from the yellow book.

If they delay for even one more day, that old bastard will suffer under that scoundrel Prefect of Nanke for another day.

The door was pulled open, and Zhao Yunshu moved incredibly fast, opening the door, going out, and closing it in the blink of an eye.

Bai Qian could clearly see that the moment Zhao Yunshu opened the door, something outside seemed to be trying to crash into the room!

Although they knew something had come in, they couldn't see exactly what it looked like. It seemed to be just a gust of black wind. But as soon as they entered, the door gods hanging at the door glared at them, and the black wind was immediately swept away as if it had bumped into the headmaster, and it also closed the door in the process.

Their door was closed.

The young Taoist priest was also locked outside! She suddenly stood up and clenched her fists.

Outside, a cold wind blew in, making Zhao Yunshu's skin crawl. He twitched and closed the door.

He had just felt a gust of black wind crashing towards him, but it disappeared in the blink of an eye, leaving only a faint feeling of the black wind brushing against his body.

The night was deep, the darkness around them had not faded at all, and the courtyard was empty, as if they had already fled.

Standing in the darkness, the young Taoist priest turned and looked around.

Zhao Yunshu found that there was nothing at the door, but he did not let his guard down. Since he did not see anything when he turned around, then... he slowly turned around.

As he turned around, he felt something following him as he spun around.

Logically, he should pretend nothing was wrong.

However, he gently waved his hand, and a stream of water condensed in his hand. Under his control, the water gradually transformed into a water mirror.

He started looking in the mirror.

Behind him, right next to his ear, was a face, a deathly pale face with no whites in the eyes, and eyes that were red, like blood.

Behind that face were even more faces. They crowded behind Zhao Yunshu, like a swarm of insects crawling there, right next to his ear.

All the faces were on a dark shadow, which stood silently behind Zhao Yunshu.

Zhao Yunshu sighed.

Then, he uttered a single word: "Fuck."

----------

Inside the room, Bai Qian could see the shadows outside through the thin paper window.

The shadows kept wriggling, mixed with the sound of people breathing.

But the sound of metal clashing could still be heard from time to time, making one's heart skip a beat.

For some reason, the moonlight suddenly became very bright tonight, shining into the room through the cracks in the door and the paper windows.

However, the moonlight was occasionally blocked by something outside, making it flicker.

Only upon closer inspection can one see through the window paper and the crack in the door that two dark figures are entangled outside. One of the figures appears to be human, with a lithe and agile body, leaping, darting, retreating, pouncing, rising, and falling, constantly fighting against the other figure.

Deqi, first release. Please search and follow Deqi. And another dark figure... at first glance seems to be human, but always displays an inhuman posture, and then reverts to a human shadow.

She could only see what was happening outside through shadows. The flickering shadows passed through the cracks in the door and the paper windows, swaying, overlapping, and twisting on the ground. Sometimes the shadows appeared completely, and sometimes they became broken and distorted. The projections kept changing, and the sounds of fighting occasionally came in, muffled and somewhat distorted.

The fighting outside stirred up a lot of air currents, which caused the torches inside to flicker and sway, seemingly about to fall, plunging the room into complete darkness.

Given the strength of the wind outside, it wouldn't be strange if the torches were blown out through the crack in the door. Rather, it's more surprising to Bai Qian that they haven't been extinguished yet.

But the torch was no ordinary object; it was actually Zhao Yunshu's fire magic. So even though it was flickering, as long as Zhao Yunshu outside was still focused on controlling it, it would not go out.

Bai Qian and Yao Mei simply didn't know that.

The firelight flickered, and the moonlight was sometimes obscured. The shadows would sometimes expand to cover the entire room. The light and shadow shifted with the fighting outside the door, and neither light nor darkness could last long.

Even the moonlight that seeped through the cracks in the door was often blocked by the shadows fluttering outside. The entire room would suddenly fall into complete darkness from time to time because of the shadows, but in an instant, it would be dispelled by the light of swords and fire. The shadows would fade away, the faint light would reappear, and the bright moon in the sky would reflect the shadows outside onto the floor of the room.

The short, sharp sound of a sword blade, the muffled thud of a heavy object hitting the ground, the rustling sound of something scraping against wood and earth, and even the scraping of something against the outside door panel all made one's heart tighten.

The firelight inside flickered and grew dimmer, while the moonlight filtering through the cracks in the door and through the window paper created a crisscrossing, menacing effect.

She gritted her teeth, trying not to cry out. But just then, the youngest sister, who had been sleeping, suddenly looked up and mumbled, "Mom... Dad..."

Upon hearing this, Bai Qian felt a chill and quickly looked down to check on Yao Mei. She found that Yao Mei was still asleep, seemingly talking in her sleep. However, she vaguely raised her head and looked through the crack in the door into the courtyard.

------------

Zhao Yunshu stood in the middle of the courtyard, a blazing flame suddenly appearing around him, illuminating the surroundings and becoming the source of the shadows within.

He flipped his left hand, and a Six Jia Talisman was already between his fingers.

The cinnabar runes on the talisman glowed red in the darkness, the red light of the talisman contrasting with the blood-red eyes of the shadowy figures before them, making the names of the Six Jia very clear.

Instead of sticking it to himself, he slapped the iron sword with his other hand.

"Jiazi protects my body, Jiaxu preserves my form."

"Jiashen (1644) is my destiny, Jiawu (1655) is my soul."

"Jia Chen pacifies my spirit, Jia Yin nurtures my truth."

"Six Jia vanquish evil, so be it!"

The iron sword itself had been used frequently in recent battles, so it inevitably had some scratches and bloodstains. It hadn't been sharpened or oiled recently, so there were some rust marks on its surface. However, now that the Six Armor Talisman had been affixed to the hilt, the iron sword was brand new, emitting a buzzing sound, and its blade shone with golden light.

The golden light was not dazzling, like the first rays of the rising sun, which coated the entire iron sword with a light gold.

However, the rising sun at dawn is like a sword; even before it is drawn, it exudes righteousness!

The power of the Six Armor Gods is imbued into the sword.

He specializes in vanquishing evil spirits, wielding his sword with lightning speed!

The young Taoist priest, long sword in hand, whispered towards the black, filthy shadows covered in human faces, "Come!"

His voice seemed to carry a hint of the power of the Six Armor, and the shadows that had rushed in front of him were slightly stunned by his shout.

However, it only paused for a moment before rushing forward at double speed!

Zhao Yun swung his iron sword, and golden light pierced the night, layer upon layer, dazzling and shimmering, the sword light as pure as snow, like the eyes of a celestial being opening!

The shadowy figure was still halfway there when it was struck by the sword light, its entire body splitting open like a watermelon!

Zhao Yunshu didn't think he had won in one fell swoop. Instead, he kept moving, his sword following his body. The golden light transformed into sword light, and the sword light transformed into hundreds of beams, attacking the dark figure.

Those dark figures were completely unafraid of swords and blades, but this was no ordinary sword light; it was a golden light emanating from the Six Armors, so intense that it was like a hot blade piercing snow, leaving nothing behind. Their figures rose and fell in a flash, their sword light darting and twisting, displaying unparalleled divine might!

However, after a few breaths, the young Taoist priest felt more and more uneasy as he fought.

Those dark shadows were overwhelming and would not disappear even after being cut down. They could indeed be hit, and many were cut in half.

However, those broken fragments do not dissipate, nor do they emit mournful cries like those of a demon after being injured.

They remained indifferent, their expressions unchanged. Some reunited, while others separated and continued to pounce, each one like a reflection in water.

When you strike them, it's like a sword cutting through water; the water partes, and when you pull the sword away, the water closes up again.

Zhao Yunshu could touch them, but he couldn't hurt them.

He struck many times, but the tactile sensation transmitted back by the sword was strange, neither real nor illusory, and it was no different from striking thin air.

What exactly are these?

His mind raced as he began to think.

The Six Jia Talisman exudes righteous energy and is specifically designed to subdue evil spirits. If these shadows are truly evil spirits or ghosts, even if they are centuries-old ghosts, they should be severely injured after being cut into pieces by the golden light, right?

But they seemed completely unharmed... Thinking of this, he withdrew his sword, ceasing his pursuit, and focused solely on protecting himself.

He raised his sword, amplifying the divine power within the Six Jia Talisman. Golden light burst forth, radiating an extremely bright glow like a light bulb!

"Radiant divine light! Nothing can hide from it!" Zhao Yunshu shouted pretentiously. Although it was useless, it could still scare people.

The bright golden light dispelled the obstruction around the dark figures, briefly revealing many human-shaped silhouettes.

Tall, short, fat, thin, all kinds of body types.

There were men and women, old and young, many of them, their faces floating above the shadows, expressionless and silent.

What kind of evil thing is this?

The young Taoist priest's heart sank.

These shadows are not hostile, but the Six Jia Talisman can make them visible and allow them to temporarily hide... but it cannot harm them.

Could it be because these shadows are innocent?

The yellow book was filled with blurry darkness, and no words appeared. Could these shadows not be demons or ghosts at all, but... something else?

If these dark figures aren't evil spirits, then what is truly causing this trouble? Just as he was thinking this, suddenly, a wet sound, like a mop being swept across the floor, rang out again.

The sound rang out in the distance, as if it were following a crack in the wall, slowly, slowly, drifting away towards the side room.

He turned sharply and shouted at Bai Qian, "Don't touch the window! Close it!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a sticky, rubbing sound came from outside the west wing window, as if something soft and mushy was crawling across the window.

Without further hesitation, Zhao Yunshu drew his sword, rushed past the shadowy figure, and headed towards the side room.

An absurd idea popped into his head.

Perhaps... the frightening shadow wasn't there to harm anyone, and might not even have any malicious intent.

But given the current situation, he couldn't gamble, so he simply stopped and took a few breaths to gather his strength.

That real fire had already ignited in his chest and abdomen.

This true fire was not something he cultivated step by step, but rather a spark that was ignited that night in the mountains when he was consumed by rage, using his mind as fuel and his liver and gallbladder as a furnace.

This spark is incredibly precious. He has been cultivating his inner realm and his mastery of water and fire techniques has gradually improved. However, in the end, his realm is not yet reached. If he wants to continuously generate true fire, he can only rely on this one spark.

If the spark were extinguished, the true fire he used would be like a tree without roots or water without a source, impossible to reignite. Therefore, in previous battles, he would not spit out the spark, but instead use it as a catalyst to ignite the remaining fire within his body, waiting until the true fire had gained sufficient momentum before exhaling it.

When he dealt with Nali Wu before, he didn't breathe fire directly, but relied on his swordsmanship to suppress it. He only used his true fire when he was riding on the other side, and that was the reason.

At this moment, he was doing the same, brewing the true fire, preparing to wait for the real monster to emerge.

They rushed all the way to the back of the side room, to where the window was.

In the darkness, something wet and slippery moved forward step by step.

Zhao Yunshu took a deep breath and used it to light the fire; smoke was already rising from his throat.

then……

But then Bai Qian suddenly burst out with his younger sister!

She gripped her rapier, hoisted her younger sister onto her back, and her forehead veins throbbed slightly, covered in a thin layer of sweat. Clearly, she had sensed the commotion and was ready to fight!

As soon as she came out, she saw Zhao Yunshu. She breathed a sigh of relief and immediately pointed to the window. Zhao Yunshu looked up and saw that the window had been torn open, and the tear was wet and sticky.

"What happened?" Zhao Yunshu immediately asked Bai Qian.

Before they knew it, the dark figures had vanished. Bai Qian, still shaken, replied, "Before you came in, there was something outside the window. I could see the window paper gradually denting inwards; something was trying to get in."

"Then the little sister suddenly cried out, and then the noise stopped."

Zhao Yunshu turned to look at Yaomei, who was being carried on Bai Qian's back. The child looked a little dazed, her eyes half-open and half-closed. She was just huddled in Bai Qian's arms, her hands still tightly gripping her clothes, her voice hoarse: "Master Dao, just now, outside the window... Mom and Dad were there."

Bai Qian said in a deep voice, "We can't let her continue sleeping."

Zhao Yunshu nodded, walked over to the little girl, squatted down, and examined her carefully.