He Almost Wanted to Die

If Tang Changsheng had forged his Spirit Terrace and reached the stage where he could behold the divine without fear, he would not have needed all this trouble. He could have saved the girl with a wave of his hand... Unfortunately, he had only just illuminated his Heavenly Heart. He had no such ability.

As Tang Changsheng prepared his things, Ruan Wenhua and the other two men looked at one another, sweat beading on their foreheads!

As Tang Changsheng had noticed earlier, this girl was no ordinary person. How could a few grown men dare to strip off her clothes without permission...

They could all imagine the consequences...

"Your young lady hasn't been possessed by some damned devil..."

Tang Changsheng stopped halfway through. Seeing relief appear on the faces of Ruan Wenhua and the two bodyguards, he could not resist crushing it. "She's been struck by witchcraft!"

"Witchcraft?" The two bodyguards looked baffled.

"Witchcraft?" Ruan Wenhua looked astonished—and frightened. "Those harmful spells passed down in the ancient imperial palaces?"

"If I'm not mistaken," Tang Changsheng said flatly, "yes."

Ruan Wenhua gave an awkward laugh, unsure how to answer. Was he supposed to say Tang Changsheng could not possibly be mistaken... or that he surely was?

Either answer would be bad news for the poor girl lying unconscious before them!

Witchcraft Curse had always lurked in the history books like a shadow, a terrifying legend that haunted them like a ghost.

No one knew how many political upheavals it had sparked, or how many pampered, powerful people in imperial palaces and sprawling mansions had died unnatural deaths because of it!

Ruan Wenhua had only read about it in official histories and unofficial accounts. He had never imagined he would witness it himself one day.

Even in ancient times, Witchcraft Curse had been shrouded in mystery—a sinister art harshly forbidden and suppressed by the authorities of dynasty after dynasty!

"Take off her clothes. Quickly!" Tang Changsheng ordered again.

"Uh, I'll step outside!" Without another word, Ruan Wenhua headed for the door.

What a joke. He wanted no part of this. Was a young lady from a great Aristocratic Clan someone he could casually look at?

With Ruan Wenhua gone, the two bodyguards pulled long faces and reluctantly began removing the girl's clothes...

The weather was hot, and the girl was dressed lightly. Yet after fumbling for ages, the two men still had not managed to pull off her T-shirt. Instead, they had worked themselves into a sweat.

They looked a hundred times more nervous than virgins undressing a woman for the first time!

Tang Changsheng had finished preparing his things. When he saw them, he nearly laughed in exasperation.

"Move, move. I don't need you anymore. Why are you so nervous about taking off her outer clothes?" Tang Changsheng said.

"Huh? Just her outer clothes?" the two bodyguards asked.

"What, did you want to strip her naked?" Tang Changsheng asked flatly.

The two men almost wanted to die. Not daring to say another foolish word, they hurriedly removed the girl's outer clothes.

Tang Changsheng took out a jade pendant and was about to hold it between the girl's nose and mouth.

Then he gave a soft "Huh?" and paused. Who would have thought this girl was born with such alluring bones? She's an exceptional vessel!

The General's Temple did not specialize in cultivation through sexual union, but the Daoist arts passed down within it were many and varied.

Later, as numerous cultivation sects vanished, all manner of texts had found their way into the world. Tang Changsheng's collection therefore included secret manuals of Daoist arts from other sects, among them the Cultivation-Boosting Method!

Tang Changsheng had only flipped through it, but he remembered some of what he had read. Now he saw that the girl's skin was like jade, glowing softly, while her brow seemed alive with a subtle allure.

Though her eyes were tightly shut, Tang Changsheng could already imagine how striking their dark pupils and clear whites would be when she opened them,

how bright and lively those eyes would look. She was unquestionably an exceptional vessel for the Dual Cultivation Method described in the texts... truly one in a thousand, a rarity beyond compare.

Even Tang Changsheng's heart gave a leap, but he quickly reined in his thoughts.

The girl's status was clearly far from ordinary. She was not someone he could touch at will.

He steadied himself, dipped his brush in Cinnabar Ink, and drew Talismans over her heart, navel, and other vital points.

The moment the Talismans were drawn, thin blue veins rose beneath the girl's smooth, creamy skin, just as they had on her face.

The freshly drawn cinnabar Talismans even began to hiss.

Tang Changsheng's expression darkened. His skills were lacking, and his power was insufficient. The Talismans he had drawn could not seal those vital points.

The bright red cinnabar he had just applied quickly grew dull and faded, then slowly began to disappear. After a moment's thought, Tang Changsheng gritted his teeth, pricked his finger, and squeezed a few drops of blood into the ink.

Tang Changsheng had cultivated since childhood, after all, and his vitality was exceptionally strong. When he drew the Talismans again with his blood mixed in, shadows still appeared, but they could not shake the Talismans for the time being.

Next, Tang Changsheng took out a Talisman. He was glad he had prepared it as a precaution when he had planned to refine Yin Soldiers. He had not needed it then.

Now it had found its use!

Without even looking, Tang Changsheng slapped the Talisman onto the crown of the girl's head.

The girl's whole body jerked as though struck by lightning. Several streams of gray-black vapor and a long, slender shadow like a silkworm flew out of her nose and mouth.

At that moment, Tang Changsheng held the jade tablet before the girl's nose and mouth.

The strange, insect-like shadow burrowed into the Life-Origin Tablet.

The whole sight was deeply unnerving. Worst of all, a faint but unbearably foul, fishy stench rose from the dark vapors and shadows.

The two bodyguards standing nearby were caught completely unprepared and breathed in a little of it.

Both men were hardened elites who had endured brutal training, their resolve as tough as steel.

Yet their stomachs churned so violently that they nearly vomited up last night's dinner.

Tang Changsheng was the one performing the rite, so he had prepared himself. He held his breath and avoided the stench.

But when he picked up the jade tablet, he fared little better. A cold as intense as if he had grasped thousand-year-old profound ice surged through his fingers, threatening to freeze the blood throughout his body.

Humans had three souls and seven spirits. Most people knew only that the soul and spirits dispersed after death.

What they did not know was that, for ordinary people, most of their souls and spirits had already dispersed before they died.

Only those who died violently or with deep resentment might still harbor an obsession and bitterness that refused to fade, making them liable to become Grudge Ghosts or Vicious Ghosts.