Chapter 29: Chapter 29: Possessed by an Evil Spirit
The bad news brought by the young man disrupted the tranquility of Huai Valley Village’s night.
Liu Shan excused himself to Wu Chang, ignoring that he was already half-drunk, and staggered with others towards the other end of the village.
Wu Chang naturally wouldn’t miss such a sudden event, and followed along with the crowd.
On the way, he pulled aside the villager using a talisman to verify and ward off mountain ghosts, inquiring about the situation.
The man he pulled was named Liu Jinfu, and he briefly explained to Wu Chang.
Ever since the disturbance by evil spirits began, on the eve of the New Year’s exorcism ritual, the children and women of the village were arranged to live on the mountain top at the village’s edge.
The summit was full of yang energy, making it difficult for the evil spirits to approach. They would bring the children and women back to the village only after the exorcism ended and the evils were suppressed.
This year, the evil spirits were especially severe. Even hiding on the mountain top, there were still attacks over the past two days.
The recently mentioned Liu Ning, was the granddaughter of the village chief Liu Shan. Having just turned sixteen, she was blossoming into a beautiful and graceful young woman, the object of affection from all the village youths.
Liu Ning was naturally intelligent, favored by Liu Shan, and a treasure of the village. If anyone’s being attacked by evil spirits was most unacceptable, besides Liu Shan, it was Liu Ning.
For the youth of the village, the order might even be reversed.
As the group left the valley and made their way up the mountain path, a small black shadow soon caught up with them shortly after leaving the village.
It was a teenager, with features looking fourteen or fifteen but, due to malnutrition, had the physical development level of an eleven or twelve-year-old.
He wore ragged single clothes, with straw stuffed inside to ward off the cold, and on his feet were drafty straw sandals. As he ran, he clapped and shouted:
"Fire, fire dragon, the fire dragon has climbed the mountain again! The Immortal has come!"
"Run! Run!"
"It’s lively!"
"Hee hee hee..."
Liu Shan and the others were focused on Liu Ning, heading up the mountain without looking back, but Liu Jinfu couldn’t stand the teenager’s noise and threw a stone at him, coldly scolding:
"Shut up!"
The teenager was hit on the forehead by the stone, stumbled, and sat down on the ground with a thud. Tears of pain streamed down his face, yet he still wore a foolish grin, repeatedly murmuring, "Fire, fire, fire..."
Wu Chang glanced at the young boy, puzzled, "Who is he?"
Liu Jinfu spat, "This unlucky thing is a fool. The village chief is kindhearted and intended to take him in as a village guard, to fend off disasters. But he’s so stubborn, he survived eating grass roots and drinking dew when lost in the woods, and instead brings chaos to the village."
"Making a fuss at such a time, he’s sure an accomplice to the evil spirits. If anything happens to Liu Ning, I’ll cut his tongue out."
When the two arrived at the residence atop the mountain, the atmosphere was incredibly tense. There was no need to ask; it was clear that something had happened.
In the crowd’s silence, a bearded, strong man dressed like a hunter was in a standoff with Liu Shan.
"Uncle Shan, can’t you face reality? Everyone’s at their limit! To avoid another Liu Ning, we must start the New Year’s exorcism early!"
"If you can’t make this decision, then give me the position of village chief, and I’ll make it!"
Liu Shan’s lips trembled with anger as he pointed at the man and shouted:
"You scoundrel, how dare you say that! You’ve been hoping for something to happen to Liu Ning to force me into agreeing to an early exorcism!"
Strong man: "I did not..."
Seeing the conflict escalate, Wu Chang cleared his throat, interrupting their argument.
"Are you here to save someone or to quarrel? Where’s the person, let me take a look."
Liu Shan dropped the finger pointing at the strong man, gave a cold snort, turned to squeeze out a forced smile, and said to Wu Chang:
"Hero, please follow me to the inner room."
Upon entering the room, Wu Chang saw Liu Ning, the person everyone talked about.
His first impression of Liu Ning wasn’t as wonderful as Liu Jinfu had depicted.
It wasn’t about her appearance, but because her death wasn’t peaceful.
The girl was attacked by evil spirits in her sleep, the disheveled bed showing signs of struggle. Her face was pale, full of fear, struggling from the bed all the way to the floor.
Amid the struggle, she had frantically torn at her own hair, turning her long black locks into a bloody patch. Her slender neck was covered in ten dark bruises—she must have strangled herself based on the posture and marks.
When possessed by evil spirits, residual evil power remains in the body, quickly attracting new ones upon contact. The deceased must be left under sunlight for an entire day before burial. Therefore, Liu Ning remained in her final struggle’s posture lying on the ground.
Liu Shan, unwilling to look at his granddaughter on the ground, turned his head aside. Even this once toughest man in the village found it hard to maintain the composure expected of a village chief amidst great sorrow and anger.
Just as Wu Chang was about to offer his condolences, a sudden flash of inspiration struck him, and he stepped forward to examine Liu Ning’s corpse.
This action immediately stirred an uproar among the villagers behind him.
"Hero, no! Liu Ning still carries evil energy, you can’t touch her carelessly!" The voice was Liu Shan’s.
"Stop, what are you planning to do to Liu Ning’s body!" This was the strong man who had argued with Liu Shan earlier.
"Get away, when this outsider goes mad, stay clear!" This was from the onlooking villagers.
Wu Chang ignored the noise behind him, quickly assessing Liu Ning’s condition before slowly turning back, saying, "She’s only temporarily scared; she can be saved."
"Really?" Liu Shan’s eyes lit up with hope.
Wu Chang nodded.
If he could save Liu Ning, he could establish his earlier persona and gain the villagers’ support in Huai Valley.
When the time for the exorcism arrived, the whole village would be his stage.
He pretentiously chanted a mantra, then shouted "Flag, appear!" and the Soul Cleansing Banner appeared in his hand from his personal space.
This show of retrieving treasures out of thin air truly astonished the villagers, instantly silencing them and directing all eyes on Wu Chang.
Holding the Command Flag, Wu Chang moved around Liu Ning with a special gait, muttering incantations.
Under normal circumstances, as the holder of the Soul Cleansing Banner, Wu Chang could power the flag with his own energy without much preparation.
However, to maximize attribute utilization, he hadn’t allocated his attributes to energy, thus needing to use the method Chi Yuan taught him, combining special steps with a mantra to drive the flag.
The cumbersome steps, however, made the villagers believe he genuinely possessed skills, their eyes growing even more reverent.
The Command Flag waved thrice, accompanied by a faint white light, and Wu Chang’s world turned black and white.
The living appeared white, the dead black.
Liu Ning, lying on the ground, appeared gray, caught between life and death.
Parts of her body had turned black, while a thin white line extended from her body, floating out the window.
This white thread was Liu Ning’s soul.
Her soul had left her body due to the possession by evil spirits, but she could be saved if her soul was returned in time.
Holding the Soul Cleansing Banner, Wu Chang stood still, his thoughts directed to extend his vision along the white line from Liu Ning’s body.
His gaze passed through the window, through the summit’s safe zone, descending along the mountain to its base.
It wasn’t until reaching near the exit of the valley that he saw Liu Ning’s white soul.
Liu Ning’s soul looked bewildered, following a dark red speck of light.
The dark red speck was familiar to Wu Chang, it was filled with resentment and had the blood-colored will.
He first waved the Soul Cleansing Banner to sever the connection between Liu Ning’s soul and the dark red speck, guiding her soul back to her body.
His sight then locked onto the deep red speck, eyes filled with curiosity.
Never before had he seen resentment not attached to anything and able to move by itself.
Let me see, just what are you.