An Excellent Ghost Servant

Ignoring the repetitive flattery of the Female Hanging Ghost, Zheng Que sat high at the head of the room just as he had last time. He gave no response, his eyes fixed solely on Qing Li, observing her aura and changes.

Qing Li prostrated herself below the hall, her body surging with whistling Yin Energy. As her clothes snapped in the wind and her black hair danced wildly, the Yin Energy surrounding her became thick as substance, layering and coiling like surging waves that continued to rise.

However, this situation did not last long; the Yin Energy on Qing Li soon stopped growing.

Watching this scene, Zheng Que frowned slightly. Qing Li's cultivation was at the fourth level of Tongue-Pulling Hell. Even after absorbing the Yin Energy of these four Water Ghosts, the density of her Yin Energy remained at the fourth level of Tongue-Pulling Hell.

The Yin Energy gained from four second-level Tongue-Pulling Hell ghosts was far less than what Old Lady Zhao had provided last time!

First and second-level Tongue-Pulling Hell ghosts are easy to kill, but they provide too little Yin Energy for Qing Li.

Ghosts above the fourth level of Tongue-Pulling Hell should provide more Yin Energy for Qing Li, but with my current cultivation, encountering them would be extremely dangerous.

The best targets are third-level Tongue-Pulling Hell ghosts...

Zheng Que analyzed the situation rapidly in his mind. Seeing the black aura between his brows diminishing, he took advantage of the moment Qing Li was kneeling on the ground to use Ghost Controlling Technique, swiftly drawing her back into his palm.

A moment later, as the last wisp of black aura was absorbed by the Life and Death Book, Zheng Que returned to reality. The room was pitch black, and outside the back window covered in mulberry paper, the night was silent. It was already late at night.

Zheng Que opened his palm and released Qing Li.

After appearing, Qing Li looked around and, realizing she was no longer in the Underworld, immediately became full of herself. She cast an arrogant glance at Zheng Que and commanded imperiously, "Human brat, this lady is going out!"

Hearing this, Zheng Que looked at her in confusion and asked, "What are you going out for?"

Qing Li sneered. Going out now was naturally to slaughter ghosts so that the great lord in the Underworld would reward her with more cultivation!

This human brat's cultivation was too low, and when he used that newly learned technique, he refused to give her control of his body. Having him around was purely a hindrance!

Hmm...

She would just consider him a dog she was raising that only knew how to bark but couldn't do any work.

Thinking of this, Qing Li immediately said, "This lady is going out to do something important. You just stay in this room and don't cause any trouble for me!"

Something important?

What could possibly be important in this Changfu Town?

Zheng Que couldn't help but feel puzzled, but soon, he realized the truth.

It was because he had just increased Qing Li's cultivation!

Both times Qing Li entered the Underworld, her consciousness had been very clear. Given the current situation, she must have figured out the pattern: as long as ghosts were slaughtered, one could obtain the corresponding Yin Energy...

Therefore, she was going out now because she felt he was killing ghosts too slowly and intended to do it herself!

Thinking of this, Zheng Que nodded slightly. Qing Li was a Resentful Soul; her strength was greater at night than during the day, and her intelligence was much higher than that of ordinary ghosts. She knew to run away if she couldn't win, so there seemed to be no need for him to follow her out...

With that, he instructed, "Do not leave the small town, and do not harm the ordinary people living here."

Qing Li let out a cold snort, offering no reply.

Creak!

The next moment, the gate swung open on its own. A gust of Yin Energy, wrapped in the distinct chill of the night, whistled into the room. Qing Li drifted out through the doorway, and the gate immediately closed shut behind her.

Once Qing Li had left, Zheng Que immediately resumed his cultivation.

After some time, as the depth of the Yin Energy entering his body increased, he once again entered the Underworld.

Everything here remained unchanged, with the Life and Death Book still lying open before him.

Zheng Que looked at the records in the Life and Death Book; at this moment, it contained a total of forty-two names.

His gaze swept over these forty-two names, and he began to contemplate his arrangements for the coming days...

Once day broke, he could pay another visit to Cui Fugui's home to check on the situation with the father and daughter.

Then, either tomorrow or the day after, he needed to find time to meet with the town mayor...

Now that Master had left the small town, he wanted to buy that vacant, dilapidated temple outright.

Master possessed profound cultivation and had stayed in that temple for such a long time that ordinary ghosts dared not even approach it.

It should currently be the safest place in the entire town.

Therefore, he would undergo his tribulation in that dilapidated temple!

Just as he was thinking this, Zheng Que suddenly noticed a new name appearing on the Life and Death Book.

"...Zhang Dahua. Place of origin: Taiping County, Tu Prefecture, Great Li Dynasty... Lifespan: thirteen years, eleven months, and three days; died of illness at the second quarter of the noon hour."

Zheng Que was slightly startled, but he immediately understood: this was because Qing Li had killed a ghost in the outside world!

Not long after this name appeared, a second new name quickly emerged.

"...Ding Ya. Place of origin: Taiping County, Tu Prefecture, Great Li Dynasty... Lifespan: nineteen years, eight months, and nineteen days; died of starvation at the hour of the rooster."

Looking at the two consecutive new entries, Zheng Que couldn't help but feel surprised. The efficiency of Qing Li acting on her own seemed to be much higher than his!

After thinking about it seriously, he quickly realized where the problem lay... He had previously been thinking about hunting down ghosts himself to help Qing Li improve her cultivation, but that line of thinking was fundamentally wrong.

As the master, why would he need to do it himself?

He should let the Ghost Servant find the ghosts herself, kill them, help the Life and Death Book record the names, and improve her own cultivation—all while protecting him!

This was something every Ghost Servant should do of their own accord!

As for himself, the master, he just needed to sit on this throne of the Underworld lord and put on a show.

As these thoughts flashed through his mind, Zheng Que suddenly saw a new name emerge on the Life and Death Book: "...Qiu Shu... Lifespan: fourteen years and three months..."

Zheng Que nodded in satisfaction, then leaned back, reclining in the rickety armchair while keeping his gaze fixed on the Life and Death Book.

Sure enough, it didn't take long before a fourth new name appeared on the Life and Death Book...

As the black energy between his brows was completely absorbed by the Life and Death Book, Zheng Que returned to reality and continued his cultivation.

The night passed quickly.

Early the next morning, as the dawn light filtered through the paper windows into the room, Zheng Que finished his cultivation and slowly opened his eyes.

Last night, a total of six new names had been added to the Life and Death Book.

The first few names had appeared quite quickly, but the interval between the last two had been very long. He wondered if the ghosts later on were harder to find, or if Qing Li had encountered a formidable enemy.

Just as he was thinking about this, the door swung open with a bang. A gust of Yin Energy swirled in, and the figure of Qing Li appeared in the room.

At this moment, the Female Hanging Ghost was flickering with unstable Yin Energy. The dense black smoke around her had faded significantly, and her physical form had become somewhat transparent; clearly, she had expended a great deal of energy, and her soul body had even suffered some damage. Yet, Qing Li's expression was incredibly spirited, and she didn't care about her injuries at all.

Familiar with the routine, she hung herself from the crossbeam, glanced at Zheng Que, and immediately said, "This lady needs to rest now. You human brat, guard me well!"

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