The End

There was no time to use [Yin Gathering Technique]!

Without the slightest hesitation, Zheng Que stopped forming the hand seals and swiftly sliced open his palm, smearing spirit blood across both hands.

The Yang Energy contained in a cultivator's blood glimmered like sparks in the darkness, immediately stirring the Yin Energy into turmoil.

The next moment, a sinister wind struck his face, its chill piercing to the bone. Old Lady Zhao shot toward him like lightning. Her mouth gaped wide, the corners splitting rapidly until it opened to an impossible extent, revealing a mouthful of sharp teeth. Like some monstrous beast, she lunged and bit down viciously at Zheng Que's head.

Zheng Que immediately raised his hand and punched her in the face.

Thud!

A muffled impact rang out. Zheng Que felt as though his fist had struck a piece of tempered steel, and pain shot through his knuckles.

At the same time, the heavy blow finally halted Old Lady Zhao's charge. But she was incredibly swift; her long, snake-like arm swept through the air in a circle, then snatched at Zheng Que from a vicious angle.

Just then, the hemp rope around Old Lady Zhao's neck suddenly tightened, biting deep into her flesh as it tried to hoist her up again.

But Old Lady Zhao's strength was astonishing. No matter how the rope's pull intensified, she remained firmly planted on the ground, showing no sign of rising.

While Qing Li and Old Lady Zhao were locked in a stalemate, Zheng Que quickly sidestepped Old Lady Zhao's arm and drove another punch at her temple.

Thump!

Amid the muffled impact, Zheng Que felt as if his punching hand were about to break. Yet Old Lady Zhao merely tilted her head a little to one side from the blow, then steadied herself, showing no sign of any real injury.

Seeing that his punch hadn't even broken through her defenses, Zheng Que's expression darkened. This thing was beyond what he could handle right now. He had to find a chance to retreat!

By now, Old Lady Zhao's expression had twisted hideously. Her eyeballs bulged, the muscles in her face twitched unnaturally, and black blood slowly trickled from all seven orifices. Yin Energy surged around her like a blazing torch, black smoke churning wildly and growing ever thicker.

The entire Zhao family courtyard plunged into an ice cellar. Layers of frost piled up on the ground, and the temperature kept falling. On his exposed skin, Zheng Que could feel the sinister wind scraping like a blade, its chill stabbing straight into his heart.

"Die! Die!!"

"You're all going to die!"

Old Lady Zhao roared in a frenzy. Her sharp teeth glinted as she opened her mouth, and both arms stretched out again. They crossed strangely in midair, then snapped shut from either side like a pair of scissors, viciously closing around Zheng Que.

"Mother! No! Stop!"

Just then, Zhao the Second's urgent voice suddenly rang out from behind Old Lady Zhao.

Hearing her son's voice, Old Lady Zhao's movements abruptly froze. She turned to look at him, seemingly noticing the terror deep in his eyes, and immediately tried to reassure him. "Second, don't worry!"

"In a few days... cough, cough, cough... your mother will find you another wife."

At her words, Zhao the Second, who had been too frightened to move, turned utterly horrified!

He hadn't said a word!

Something else was imitating his voice!

Whoosh!

The next moment, Old Lady Zhao was yanked high into the air.

She immediately tried to struggle, but the rope around her neck suddenly pulled with terrifying force.

Crack, crack, crack...

Old Lady Zhao only managed to twitch her hands and feet a little before the rope wrenched her neck apart. Her cervical vertebrae gave a crisp series of snaps.

In the silent courtyard, the sound of cracking bones rang out again and again. The hemp rope suspending her showed no sign of loosening; it continued to tighten.

The rope had almost completely embedded itself in Old Lady Zhao's neck, which had taken on the bizarre shape of an hourglass. The narrowest part kept constricting, as if it would wrench her head clean off.

Perhaps sensing that her life was in mortal danger, Old Lady Zhao no longer had the leisure to attack Zheng Que. Her outstretched arms immediately doubled back, seized the rope around her neck, and began tearing at it with all her might.

The violent struggle between rope and flesh sounded like a blunt saw rasping against wood—low and hoarse, yet bone-chilling.

Seeing an opening, Zheng Que took a deep breath and immediately slashed his wrist. The instant blood welled up, he swung his arm and flung his spirit blood at Old Lady Zhao.

The spirit blood within Zheng Que was especially rich in Yang Energy. The moment it appeared, wisps of scorching heat rose from it. As soon as it splashed across Old Lady Zhao, a sizzling sound like burning flesh rang out.

"Ahhh!!!"

Old Lady Zhao let out a piercing scream. Yin Energy convulsed violently around her, and the black smoke filling the courtyard surged into towering waves, as if it had suffered a fierce blow.

The instant the Yin Energy around Old Lady Zhao weakened, the force of the rope around her neck surged.

Pfft!

The next moment, Old Lady Zhao's entire neck was wrenched apart. Black blood gushed out like a fountain, splattering across the ground. Her head rolled away, her white hair and ashen face smeared with black blood. Her blood-red eyes remained wide open, bulging as they stared fixedly upward.

Her headless body crashed to the ground right after. It no longer had the weight it had before; the husk now lay limp, utterly devoid of life.

The Yin Energy shrouding the entire Zhao household had lost its foundation and began dissipating rapidly.

Daylight seeped in little by little. Faint remnants of sunset stretched in the distance, like rouge lightly brushed across the sky. The brightness had faded; night was drawing near.

The frost on the ground melted quickly, and the temperature gradually rose. Everything in the courtyard returned to normal. The leaves, which had been falling like a downpour, abruptly stopped. Glancing to the side, Zheng Que saw that the two trees had somehow lost every last leaf, leaving only bare branches swaying silently in the wind.

They had won!

Zheng Que slumped to the ground and gasped for breath, sweat streaming down his forehead and quickly soaking his clothes.

This fight had nearly drained every last bit of Spirit Power from his body!

Fortunately, Qing Li, his Ghost Servant, had been unexpectedly dependable.

Also, the method his opponent had used just now seemed to be the "Call-Sound Ghost" technique...

Just then, Qing Li's figure slowly appeared beside Zheng Que. The Yin Energy around her had grown much thinner, making her white robes stand out clearly. None of the black smoke was now shrouding her form and churning wildly as before.

It was clear that the Ghost Servant had also expended a great deal in that fight.

As he pondered this, Zheng Que glanced at the sky. Knowing night was approaching and that he couldn't stay here any longer, he immediately got to his feet and walked toward Zhao the Second.

Zhao the Second knelt on the ground, dazed and lost, staring blankly at Old Lady Zhao's corpse nearby. His expression was vacant; he sat motionless, as if only his body remained.

Zheng Que walked up beside him and looked at him. After thinking for a moment, he realized he truly had no idea how to comfort anyone. So he patted Zhao the Second on the shoulder and spoke bluntly. "Brother Zhao, your wife wasn't a ghost. She was a corpse that had been dead for a long time."

"The real ghost was your mother."

"My condolences."

But Zheng Que's words only made things worse. Zhao the Second immediately broke down, clutching his head and wailing hysterically. "Mother! Mother..."