Chapter 628 - 390: Demon Sword: Comet Eclipse (Part 2)

Chapter 628: Chapter 390: Demon Sword: Comet Eclipse (Part 2)

"Interesting." Han Ning looked intrigued.

’A Demon Sword... It must be packed with Energy.’

He picked up his rice bowl and urged, "Come on, let’s eat."

’The sooner we eat, the sooner we can get to business.’

"Ma’am, why aren’t you eating?" Han Ning asked after shoveling down a few mouthfuls of rice, pausing with his chopsticks in hand.

"I’ve already eaten. You two go ahead."

The old woman sat on a small stool by the earthen stove, huddling close to the fire for warmth.

Seeing her like this, Han Ning was reminded of his own grandmother. She also disliked eating at the table with others, preferring to eat the leftovers alone after everyone else had finished.

The two men invited her several more times, but when the old woman adamantly refused to join them, they finally gave up.

Exhausted and famished after a long day on the road with nothing to eat or drink, Han Ning was genuinely hungry. He paid no mind to the simple fare, picked up his bowl, and dug into the pig’s feet, pickled vegetables, and red ginger with gusto.

"Ma’am, could you tell us what exactly has been going on with Sister Zou’s family at the village entrance?"

Li Changxi asked, setting down his bowl and chopsticks.

"Ah, you must mean the Zhou Family," the old woman sighed. "The ones with that impressive, newly built courtyard."

The old woman heaved a long sigh and began to speak, her voice slow.

"She’s a pitiful woman, truly. Her husband started out as a local herb farmer. Over the years, he made some money trading in mountain goods, built a few spacious houses here in the village, and they had a bright, adorable little girl. But the good times didn’t last... Her husband has been missing for several days now."

"They’ve searched all the towns and villages around Ludao, and for dozens of miles around our own village, but there’s been no sign of him."

"That is strange. You’d think that even if he were dead, they would have found a body. Do you think he secretly ran off somewhere else?"

"Perhaps."

"However, the villagers are all saying he was eaten by a wild beast in the mountains while he was... relieving himself. For the first few days after he vanished, she would run into the mountains every day, only to return at night covered in scratches and empty-handed. But these past two days, she’s had a sudden change of heart for some reason. She’s been cooped up at home, and no one has seen her step outside. As for why she wouldn’t let you stay... she must have her reasons, something she can’t talk about."

The two men fell silent, and the room grew quiet.

Suddenly.

"AHHH!"

A terrified scream echoed through the quiet mountain village.

"There’s trouble."

Han Ning whipped his head around, looking in the direction of the sound.

Peering through the window, he saw the sky was now dark. Outside the courtyard, a few villagers holding flashlights were trudging through the mud toward the source of the scream.

They followed the villagers, arriving at the courtyard of the Zhou Family.

A crowd had already gathered outside. The courtyard gate stood wide open, and muffled sobs could be heard coming from the main house within.

"Zou Rong, are you in there?"

A few of the sturdier village men shouted toward the house, but there was no response.

"That’s the stench of blood."

Everyone’s nostrils flared as they caught the metallic scent.

The commotion drew the attention of the trio with the sword scabbards who had left not long before, and they returned to the gate.

Han Ning paid them no mind, instead extending his Spiritual Power to sweep through the area beyond the door.

His eyes narrowed. "Something’s wrong inside! Quick! Break down the door!"

Just then, a scuffling sound came from inside the room.

The stout men exchanged a glance, then turned and rammed their shoulders into the door. THUD! THUD! THUD! The door seemed to be barred from the inside with a heavy wooden beam and refused to budge.

"I’ll do it."

The people crowded around the entrance quickly parted.

Li Changxi lifted his foot. With a loud BANG, the wooden door splintered into pieces. The first few people to rush into the house cried out in horror.

A man with a ghastly, bruised-blue face and wide, vacant eyes was holding a woman’s severed head, greedily sucking out its contents. Blood pooled across the floor.

"That’s Zhou Mu!"

Everyone present was horrified. A few people who knew him recognized the creature and cried out in terror.

A little girl was slumped on the floor, staring dumbfounded at the scene before her.

"Stop!"

Li Changxi’s voice boomed like thunder, his entire body trembling with rage.

In the next instant, his entire demeanor shifted. His body seemed to swell, and a formidable aura emanated from him.

He pulled three sheets of talisman paper from his robes and tossed them toward the corners of the room.

The talisman paper drifted into the corners, interconnected, and formed a fine-meshed net that slowly tightened, enveloping the creature.

His hands formed an unknown seal as he slapped the side of his waist.

A palm-sized Peach Wood Sword shot out from beneath his robes, flying into his hand as if it had a mind of its own.

"Go!"

Li Changxi formed the Sun Hand Seal with his right hand and swiped it over the Peach Wood Sword. The blade instantly began to vibrate, emitting an orange-gold light before shooting toward the creature.

"CHATTER-CHATTER."

The creature had tried to flee the moment he threw the talisman paper, but the net had trapped it.

Seeing the glowing Peach Wood Sword fly at it, the creature thrashed about desperately, but to no avail. The Wooden Sword pierced straight through its body, eliciting a bloodcurdling shriek.

The wound sizzled as if doused with boiling water, and wisps of black smoke rose from it.

Zou Rong’s head fell to the floor and rolled to a stop in front of the little girl.

"Mom!"

The little girl picked up her mother’s head and began to wail.

"That damn Zhou Mu! He even ate his own wife!"

"No, he’s not human anymore. He’s just a Body enslaved by a monster."

Li Changxi’s voice was cold. He caught the returning Wooden Sword and strode over to "Zhou Mu."

Zhou Mu was writhing on the ground, letting out a continuous, guttural growl.

Li Changxi pulled another talisman from his robes and pressed it to Zhou Mu’s forehead, muttering an incantation.

After a moment, Zhou Mu stopped writhing and lay stiffly on the floor, silent.

Li Changxi then reached out, cupping Zhou Mu’s face in his hand. His fingertips began to glow with a faint crimson light as he pulled gently upward.

He drew a blurry Soul Body out from Zhou Mu’s body.

"Two of his three spiritual souls and five of his seven mortal souls have been taken. All that’s left is his Earthly Soul and the Soul of Decay."

Li Changxi murmured to himself. He then formed a new hand seal, and a low hum vibrated in his throat, as if he were communicating with Zhou Mu’s Soul.

The blurry Soul Body stared blankly at the little girl.

The Soul Body finally reacted. It mechanically turned its head to look at Li Changxi, its mouth opening and closing slightly.

After the man and the soul had exchanged only a few words, Zhou Mu’s Soul Body suddenly became extremely unstable, as if it had been agitated.

Li Changxi’s expression changed. His speech quickened, sounding like the buzzing of a swarm of bees.

An unseen Power was pulling against him. Zhou Mu’s Soul Body shuddered violently a few times before it could no longer withstand the struggle between the two Powers. It dissolved into a streak of Flowing Light and shot off into the distance.

"How did it go?" Han Ning watched with great interest. ’This Divination Child’s spirit channeling technique is quite something,’ he thought.

Li Changxi looked crestfallen. "It’s not good," he said in a low voice. "The other party controls the majority of his Soul, giving them an innate advantage. I couldn’t win against them."

"It seems the problem originated in those ruins after all. Zhou Mu most likely died because of us... sigh."

Though his temperament could be erratic, he was, at his core, a man with a conscience.

"We should head into the mountains sooner rather than later," Han Ning sighed. "Otherwise, more people might get hurt."

"Alright. But first, allow me to perform the last rites for this poor woman."

Li Changxi’s face was mournful, and his voice took on a slightly archaic tone as he spoke. He took the tear-streaked little girl into his arms, comforting her softly and urging her to let go of the head.

The girl clutched her mother’s head, refusing to let go.

With the gentle coaxing of the villagers, the little girl finally loosened her grip. Li Changxi set down Zou Rong’s head and began to chant the sutras of deliverance.

As he uttered the final word, a faint Soul Body materialized from the woman’s remains. It gazed lovingly at the little girl and at her husband’s broken body, then gave Li Changxi a deep bow before vanishing from the world.

"Such a tragedy for them all. Sigh."

"I must trouble you all. The matter here is concluded. Please, bury them."

Li Changxi gave the villagers a deep, formal bow.

"We can’t do that. It would expose us."

Han Ning shook his head, and his Spiritual Power swept over them like a hurricane.

All the villagers present instantly fell into a stupor. A few of them began to mechanically carry the couple’s bodies and dig a grave in the courtyard.

The little girl stared blankly as her parents were laid in the earth, tears streaming endlessly from her eyes.