Ambush

Chapter 5: Ambush

Pan Yun gripped the scissors in her hand and moved slowly, appearing a few steps ahead and to the side of Wang Yong. He couldn't see her, though. In his eyes, Pan Yun was currently standing by a plum tree, and indeed, she was standing by a plum tree.

Wang Yong frowned, gripping the hilt of his saber and searching left and right. He saw no suspicious figures in the woods. Had he come to the wrong place?

A faint sense of unease stirred within him. Wang Yong's breathing quickened, and he turned to leave, when a whistling sound cut through the air.

Wang Yong drew his saber with a sharp movement, slashing towards the source of the sound. However, he merely cut off a branch before the blade plunged into the tree trunk. At the same time, he felt a sharp pain in the back of his right knee, his leg buckled, and he fell to one knee with a thud.

He reacted swiftly, knowing he had been ambushed. He immediately gripped the saber hilt with both hands, intending to pull it out. But in that very instant, his neck stung, and with a thwack, blood spurted out. A figure suddenly appeared before him, the blood spraying onto her, then falling back down, splashing hot blood all over him.

Wang Yong's eyes widened. His hands instinctively loosened their grip on the saber hilt as he reached for the object embedded in his neck. He stared incredulously at the little girl standing before him, unable to comprehend how she had suddenly appeared there. He hadn't seen her at all.

Pan Yun tightly gripped the scissors, pushing them deeper with force. She glared fiercely into his eyes, "I know you. Your name is Wang Yong. You are Wang Shan's brother and Wang Zhen's nephew. You framed my father together. Those who died unjustly because of you are waiting for you by your side!"

Wang Yong opened his mouth, wanting to deny it, to say he was not involved, that he merely shared the same surname and had joined their clan. But he couldn't speak. As he opened his mouth, large gouts of blood poured out. The strength in his body gradually faded. He looked at Pan Yun with panic and despair, realizing for the first time that he, too, could die.

The light in Wang Yong's eyes slowly faded. His body grew soft and collapsed to the ground.

Pan Yun, still holding the scissors, half-knelt on the ground. After confirming he was dead, she yanked the scissors out with a sudden movement. Blood sprayed everywhere – on her clothes, her face, even her hair.

With a cold expression, she wiped the scissors with his clothes. Finding they wouldn't come clean, she gave up decisively and looked down at the person on the ground.

The Spirit Realm, having existed for thousands of years and possessing considerable knowledge, was startled by her decisive ruthlessness. It whispered, "[I indeed didn't misjudge you. With such heartlessness and cruelty, you will surely achieve great things in the future.]"

"[If you're going to praise me, praise me properly,]" Pan Yun said. "[I've not only caught ghosts now, but I've also killed a person. Believe it or not, I'll try killing a spirit next time?]"

The Spirit Realm immediately fell silent.

As soon as she spoke, Pan Yun calmed down, her rationality returning. She began to consider the aftermath.

She scanned the surroundings and decisively began to strip Wang Yong. She used the scissors to cut open his outer clothes, wrapped her hands, and then began to peel off his clothes, quickly leaving him in only his undergarments. She packed all the clothes away, then retreated more than ten steps, surveying the area. "[Can I pack the body away?]"

The Spirit Realm: "[Don't even think about it. Carry him yourself, drag him yourself. There's no way I'm putting him in my Spirit Realm space.]"

It had three jade tablets, one of which was specifically a space for storing physical objects. Most of it was sealed, with only a small portion currently unsealed and very clean.

Pan Yun didn't really want to, as her belongings were stored in there anyway, so she was just asking.

Seeing the Spirit Realm's unwillingness, she didn't press the matter. Instead, she started looking for usable tools.

But she was a pampered young lady from a noble family. Even her weapon was just a pair of scissors. What tools could she possibly find to deal with a corpse?

Everything she had put into her space today were clothes, shoes, socks, basins, and bed curtains from her room – everyday items. Let alone a shovel, she couldn't even find anything sharp.

She felt her empty Dantian and said to the Spirit Realm, "[Give me some more spiritual energy. I'll bury the body.]"

The Spirit Realm cursed, but it complied.

This was the Imperial Guards. If this wasn't handled properly, and they were found out, they would all be finished. It didn't believe Pan Yun could defeat a group of Imperial Guards right now; she needed a formation just to deal with one person.

Pan Yun felt strength return to her hands. "[Give me a spell to dig a hole.]"

The Spirit Realm: "[Huh? You don't know?]"

Pan Yun: "[In my previous life, there were robots for digging holes, and at worst, excavators. Why would I, a researcher, know a digging spell?]"

The Spirit Realm: "[From now on, half of the spiritual energy you cultivate each day will be mine.]"

Pan Yun: "[You're haggling with me now?]"

The Spirit Realm: "[Knowledge has value. You know how much knowledge you've imprinted on me. Won't you need it in the future? Half your spiritual energy is just tuition. When my seal is lifted later, you'll be able to see ancient cultivation techniques. At that time, you can access any cultivation knowledge you need at any time.]"

Pan Yun lowered her gaze, pondered for a moment, then said, "[Oh.]"

The Spirit Realm breathed a sigh of relief. It knew that once exposed, it could no longer receive spiritual energy from her for free. And what it had the most of now were the cultivation techniques and various knowledge recorded within it.

As soon as the Spirit Realm agreed, a set of incantations, hand seals, and a spiritual energy circulation diagram appeared in Pan Yun's mind.

Pan Yun found it familiar; it was the standard format of their national school textbooks.

To facilitate self-study, the textbooks were always very detailed, including the incantations, hand seals, spiritual energy circulation diagrams for spells, and even the best stances for casting them during combat.

Pan Yun was already a top student. She glanced over it once and memorized it. She lowered her gaze, formed the hand seals, and recited the incantation. An invisible energy caused the ground in front of her to stir. The soil softened and parted, and soon a large pit appeared.

Pan Yun breathed a sigh of relief, pushed Wang Yong's corpse into the pit, and then formed the reverse hand seals. The soft soil immediately poured back, moving in the opposite direction, quickly filling the pit.

The Spirit Realm saw this and couldn't help but ask, "[You know the spell to fill a hole?]"

"[No, I deduced it from the digging spell,]" Pan Yun said coldly. "[Is that difficult?]"

The Spirit Realm: "..."

A slight curve formed on Pan Yun's lips. She picked out a relatively clean piece of clothing from Wang Yong's pile of clothes, wrapped up all the dirty ones, and said, "[Put this away. There are too many marks on this clothing. We can't let them know the killer was a short person.]"

Her age could be easily guessed.

Although the possibility was slim, she still didn't want anyone to connect this incident to the Pan Family, or to Pan Yun. Not even the slightest possibility.

This time, the Spirit Realm collected the bundle without complaint.

Pan Yun didn't leave immediately. She had just killed someone. She was young and physically weak, and had used up most of her spiritual energy. At this moment, she seemed unable to hold on, so she leaned against the plum tree and sat cross-legged on the ground, beginning to cultivate.

The Spirit Realm didn't rush her. This place was remote and rarely visited. Outside, Wang Yong had already summoned officials and constables everywhere. It was safer to stay in the plum grove.

Pan Yun circulated her spiritual energy through two small heavenly cycles. Although the circulation was slow, the spiritual energy generated genuinely entered her Dantian. As the spiritual energy flowed, the soreness and weakness in her limbs began to dissipate, and her strength returned.

Pan Yun felt a little relieved but didn't stop. She lowered her gaze, concealing the coldness in her eyes, and mobilized all the spiritual energy in her lower Dantian, continuing to circulate it through her meridians. As it flowed, it reached the Mud Pill Palace.

Her consciousness followed the spiritual energy, suddenly descending into the Mud Pill Palace. The Spirit Realm, upon seeing her consciousness sink in, became wary. The next moment, it saw her spiritual energy transform into a talisman and smash down.

The Spirit Realm roared, "[You crazy fool, are you trying to die? Sealing me in your own Mud Pill Palace! Aow--]"