Chapter 54: Paper-Cutting Soul Capture, Soul-Dropping Straw Man

Dust filled the sky.

Compared to his high spirits upon setting out, Yan Weichuan, commander of the Tabai Camp, now wore a deeply grim expression. Finally, he could not help but curse, "That wretched pedant Li has ruined me!"

"Pedant" was a military slur for civil officials. For Yan Weichuan to use it on Li Yiran showed the depths of his bitter fury.

After all, he had wagered his future by mobilizing the Tabai Camp without orders. Any fool could guess that the old thief Wu Xintai would report him the moment this was over. To make matters worse, he was completely in the wrong. With Li Yiran and Xu Bingzheng dead, the big shots at the National Academy certainly wouldn't step in to protect him.

How was he supposed to survive this?

At this thought, Yan Weichuan's anger bred a desperate malice. He even considered abandoning everything and just running off to join a rebel king.

But then he sighed helplessly.

Join a rebel king?

Changle Commandery was located in Shuzhong, long praised as the Land of Abundance. Shielded by treacherous terrain, it was an isolated paradise, easy to defend and virtually impossible to attack.

Where would he even find a rebel king in a place like this?

He could not defect even if he wanted to!

'Do I have no choice but to resign myself to fate?'

Yan Weichuan's face was grim as he racked his brain for a solution. Seeing his mood, the deputy general trailing cautiously behind him did not dare breathe a word.

Even though events had proven the deputy's initial concerns right, there was no way Yan Weichuan would tolerate his authority being questioned now. The deputy knew perfectly well that if he dared say something like "I warned you, Commander," he would likely find himself "committing suicide" very soon.

'Forget it, better a dead fellow Daoist than a poor Daoist.'

Shaking his head, the deputy discarded any urge to help and even felt a spark of anticipation. 'Once the commander is stripped of his post, I might just get a promotion out of this.'

Right at that moment.

"Neigh!"

Suddenly, the marching cavalry jerked to a halt. Every warhorse reared up on its hind legs, ignoring its rider's commands, and let out a long, terrified whinny.

"What's going on!?"

Snapping to attention, Yan Weichuan channeled his Internal Force into his steed, forcing it forward. His eyes narrowed as he looked toward the source of the horses' terror.

The wind howled eerily, mournful as a wolf's cry.

Yellow sand swirled in the gale, staining the sky like a thick splash of dark ink. And there, right in the center of that darkness, a figure had silently appeared.

The figure's gender was impossible to discern. They held a horsetail whisk and wore Daoist robes painted with densely packed red talismans. Every inch of skin—hands, neck, all of it—was completely concealed. A bronze ghost mask covered their face, and the eyes peering through it were not human pupils, but two clusters of emerald-green fire.

Yan Weichuan froze instantly.

"..."

Not just him—every soldier of the Tabai Camp was frozen in place, as if all five hundred men had instantly turned to stone.

Between heaven and earth, the only sound left was the howling sand.

Who was this!?

Yan Weichuan's mind almost ground to a halt. It took him a long while to recover his senses. Weighing the figure's entirely inhuman appearance, he asked cautiously, "Which extraordinary person are you? Why do you block my path?"

The figure did not answer, seemingly lost in thought. A moment later, they spoke. "You belong to Cheng Bochun. If so, why are you leaving?"

Cheng Bochun?

Yan Weichuan blinked in surprise before realizing the figure meant the "Master Cheng" that Xu Bingzheng and Li Yiran spoke of—the foremost great scholar of the National Academy.

Bolstered by this connection, he gathered himself and spoke in a low voice. "Both of the disciples Master Cheng sent to Longxing County have died in the city. My forces are isolated and weak, so I can only withdraw for now. I plan to send word to Master Cheng and await his new disciples before deciding on a next step..."

At this, the fiery eyes behind the bronze ghost mask flickered.

"Dead?"

The voice carried an eerie, distorted quality, unlike anything human. "Two boys brought here just to watch the furnace and light the fire, and they managed to get themselves killed. Utterly useless."

"No matter. They were just Mortals anyway."

Hearing this, Yan Weichuan gathered his courage and whispered, "Dare I ask this extraordinary person, which lineage do you hail from? Are you a master of Fangxian Dao?"

The figure paused, then gave a soft chuckle.

"You may call me Perfected Wandering Spirit."

"Enough. Now that I am here, you do not need to leave. Turn around immediately and head back to Longxing County. I need you to continue watching the furnace."

"This... I beg the Perfected One's forgiveness."

Yan Weichuan looked deeply troubled. "I have already committed a grave taboo by moving troops without orders. If I deploy them again on my own authority, I fear for my life."

Perfected Wandering Spirit's voice turned cold. "What do you want?"

"I ask the Perfected One to vouch for me and write a letter to Master Cheng. As long as Master Cheng sends a reply ordering me to move the troops, I will lead them to Longxing County immediately!"

Yan Weichuan was going all in. No matter what, he needed to find someone to take the blame for this. Even if it meant doubling his wager and tying himself completely to this stranger's ship, it was worth the risk. Behind him, the deputy general opened his mouth to speak, but after observing Yan Weichuan's expression for a moment, he wisely snapped it shut.

Meanwhile, Perfected Wandering Spirit frowned.

"Wait for Cheng Bochun's reply?"

"Too slow!"

"Wouldn't that delay the opening of the furnace? No, you must go at once. I can sense that the preparations are nearly complete."

Yan Weichuan shook his head. "Then I am powerless to help."

He was not stupid. This concerned his very life; without a concrete guarantee, he absolutely would not follow orders based on a few words from this extraordinary person.

"...Troublesome."

Perfected Wandering Spirit grew intensely impatient. The fiery eyes beneath the ghost mask flared hotter and fiercer. Finally, the figure reached into their sleeve and pulled out two talismans.

"Whatever. They are just two Mortals."

"They never cultivated, possessing mere souls without a primordial spirit... summoning them should not be too hard," Perfected Wandering Spirit muttered, folding the paper talismans.

Within moments, the talismans were folded into two paper figures.

Then, pointing a finger, the paper figures abruptly burst into emerald flames. Within the raging fire, they twisted and morphed, manifesting flesh and blood—

"Boom!"

With a final explosive crack, green sparks scattered in all directions. Standing blankly on the spot were two bodies with pallid, blue-tinted skin, looking almost exactly like fresh corpses.

Yan Weichuan took one look and cried out in shock. Behind him, gasps and shouts erupted from the soldiers of the Tabai Camp, plunging the ranks into chaos. The two people formed from the paper figures were none other than Xu Bingzheng and Li Yiran! Their faces were vividly lifelike, as though they had merely fallen asleep.

'This is the strange magic of an extraordinary person?'

'Unbelievable!'

Yan Weichuan's eyes went wide. But what made him truly stare in disbelief was when, a second later, the two corpses opened their eyes, revealing pitch-black pupils.

"Am I...?"

A cold, stiff voice scraped out of the paper Xu Bingzheng's mouth, tinged with disorientation. It took a moment for his unfocused pupils to slowly sharpen.

Beside him, perhaps due to his higher cultivation and stronger Divine Intent, the paper Li Yiran snapped out of his initial daze much faster. His voice was hauntingly hollow. "I see. I died. But how...? Who in Longxing County could kill me? Why can't I remember?"

"Because you are only residual souls."

Perfected Wandering Spirit said flatly, "Mortal souls scatter easily. Your three spiritual souls have already entered reincarnation; only your seven physical souls remain. It is perfectly normal to have forgotten a few things."

"Enough. Tell him."

Perfected Wandering Spirit pointed at Yan Weichuan. "Have him bring everyone here back immediately to prepare for the furnace's opening. I only care about the result."

"...I understand."

After a beat of silence, the paper Li Yiran nodded and looked at Yan Weichuan. "Commander Yan, do as the Perfected One says. I will bear witness for you."

Yan Weichuan swallowed hard.

This entire scene was just too uncanny. Paper figure resurrection? Was the thing in front of him really Li Yiran? What if this extraordinary person was just putting on a puppet show?

But his doubts were quickly laid to rest.

The paper Li Yiran reached into his robes and pulled out an official seal. Yan Weichuan saw it clearly—it was the authentic seal of the Capital Li Family. It could be trusted.

Heaven only knew how a paper figure could pull an official seal out of its pocket, but the engravings were completely accurate.

"Done."

After writing out a formal letter of authorization and stamping it with the seal, the paper Li Yiran handed it to Yan Weichuan and continued, "Tell me, how did I die?"

"To answer Your Excellency."

Yan Weichuan said immediately, "I do not know the exact details. I only know that a Gold-Bearing Brocade Guard brought a Military Tally and mobilized the Xuanjia Camp to lay siege to the County Yamen..."

Yan Weichuan held nothing back, and Li Yiran listened intently, falling into deep thought.

"The Xuanjia Camp alone could not have killed me. Since I summoned you, it means I must have had full confidence in controlling the situation at the time."

"But an accident happened."

"And that accident must have been this so-called Gold-Bearing Brocade Guard. He killed me, and he killed Xu Bingzheng. Both of us hold ranks in the Armament Manual."

"If that Gold-Bearing Brocade Guard killed us, the Armament Manual would definitely reflect it."

"Check the Armament Manual. Are there any new names?"

At those words, Yan Weichuan immediately called for his men. The Armament Manual was published by the imperial court and circulated throughout the realm; almost every faction, large or small, kept a copy of its branch rankings.

Soon, a soldier returned with the answer.

"Armament Manual, ranked thirty-seventh: Dragon Fist Wang Ping?"

Looking at the newly added ranking, Li Yiran's brow furrowed tightly. "First place on the Human Ranking? Appearing out of nowhere... Unless I miss my guess, this is the man."

Although he had been killed by a single punch from Wang Ping, Li Yiran was by no means incompetent. In just a short time and with only a few words, he managed to deduce Wang Ping's existence despite his amnesia. Turning to Perfected Wandering Spirit, he spoke with utter seriousness. "Perfected One, I believe this person cannot be allowed to live."

"He is a wild card."

"With him holding the Military Tally and backed by the Xuanjia Camp, even if the Tabai Camp returns, opening the furnace will likely still face complications."

"Furthermore, this man's strength is formidable."

"The rankings of the Armament Manual are never wrong. First on the Human Ranking... unless the Perfected One acts personally, he is likely the strongest combatant in Longxing County."

"If we do not eliminate him, our great endeavor will fail!"

Listening from the side, Yan Weichuan could not help but swallow hard. A Titled Martial Master ranked first on the Human Ranking, and they were talking about killing him just like that? Were extraordinary persons really that terrifying?

In the next second, Perfected Wandering Spirit spoke.

"Then eliminate him."

The voice was entirely calm and completely undisturbed, as if the target was not a world-renowned Titled Martial Master, but a lamb waiting on the chopping block.

Following that, the extraordinary person reached into their sleeves once more. After rummaging for a moment, they withdrew a straw man woven from dry grass. They then took out a talisman and wrote the characters for "Wang Ping" upon it. Using the portrait in the Armament Manual as a reference, they accurately sketched his face onto the paper.

Immediately after, they formed a hand seal and tapped it lightly.

"Bang!"

Instantly, an emerald flame erupted, melding with the talisman paper before washing over the straw man like water, causing its shape to gradually change.

"Gasp!"

Yan Weichuan inhaled sharply. As the flaming talisman fused with the straw man, a vividly lifelike face manifested on its grassy head.

It was Wang Ping's face!

"It is done."

Perfected Wandering Spirit casually tossed the straw man into the paper Li Yiran's hands, then withdrew seven miniature iron nails wrapped in red talismans from their sleeves.

"Perform three kneelings and nine kowtows to this Soul-Dropping Straw Man every two hours. Then, drive a Po-Suppressing Nail into its seven apertures. In fourteen hours, the man will die suddenly."

"Many thanks to the Perfected One!"

The paper Li Yiran hurriedly bowed, a vicious gleam flashing deep in his eyes.

Even though he had lost his memory, since he had deduced that Wang Ping was his murderer, a genuine hatred for the man surged from the bottom of his heart.

'Stinking grunt, did you think killing me would end it?'

'I bet you never imagined I could resurrect by an extraordinary person's hand. I was never the main character in this great play at Longxing County; the extraordinary persons are the true key.'

From the very beginning, the fate of this county had been sealed.

Because this was the decision of the extraordinary persons.

And in the Great Shun Dynasty, the emperor was merely a ruler in name. True to his title, he was only the Son of Heaven. The extraordinary persons were the true Heaven!

...

"The Lin Family Mansion."

In a sparsely populated alley in Longxing County, Wang Ping frowned as he studied a large, antique-looking estate sitting at the very end of the lane.

Just as Liu Ye had said, the mansion's main doors were sealed with two strips of paper, right and left, covered in incomprehensible chicken-scratch runes. But unlike Liu Ye—who merely felt a sense of dread when he saw the talisman-like seals—Wang Ping, having forged his Divine Intent, could sense much deeper shifts.

'Something came in.'

An indescribable, formless, and intangible presence was currently invading his body, and the medium seemed to be those two rune-covered seals.

"...Bizarre."

Wang Ping's frown deepened. He instantly recalled the intelligence he had gathered while chatting with Madam Su in the past: "Extraordinary persons possess mysterious arts distinct from martial arts."

Divine Intent was useless against them.

Just like right now—Wang Ping could tell something was wrong, and he had ways to avoid it, but he could not actually see it. He could only sense it through intuition.

A pure martial artist would be completely flying blind right now.

'Martial artists really are too crude. Cultivating the immortal dao is much more reliable.'

At this thought, Wang Ping immediately shifted his approach. His cultivator's spiritual sense blasted outward, surging and howling from him toward the Lin Family Mansion.

"Boom!"

In an instant, under the impact of his spiritual sense, Wang Ping finally saw the true face of the Lin Family Mansion. Its quaint, antique exterior was wiped away out of thin air.

His spiritual sense peeled back the outer shell, revealing an overgrown, dilapidated courtyard below. The walls were mottled, and moss carpeted the steps, looking as if the estate had been abandoned for decades. Hung on either side of the main doors were two white paper lanterns, each bearing the character for 'Funeral'.

The candles inside the lanterns flickered, casting a sickly, pale white glow.

His spiritual sense could only reveal this much. Wang Ping scowled and engaged his Divine Intent instead, trying to intuitively gauge just how dangerous the mansion in front of him really was.

Yet, contrary to his expectations, his danger-evading Divine Intent gave him a startling response—

"No danger?"