A Grand Spectacle

Ji Yuan was now hesitating whether he should make contact with the Yin Cha in the courtyard across the way. In his old way of thinking, this was, after all, a member of the immortal and buddha divine system, wasn't it?

But in reality, at that moment, the Yin Cha was also looking at Ji Yuan.

Earlier, he had been focused on the gravity of the situation, but now that he came back to his senses, he felt that the new resident of Ju'an Pavilion seemed a bit off as well.

After all, in the dead of night, in a residence like this, for a person to just stand at the main room's doorway staring at the courtyard—surely he couldn't claim to be cooling off in this early spring weather?

'He must be a person with keen intuition.'

The Yin Cha had encountered such people before, and even if not, living in Ju'an Pavilion, with the Yin energy thickening to terrifying levels after the third watch, a normal person would have trouble sleeping and suffer frequent nightmares.

After much hesitation, Ji Yuan finally decided to avoid getting involved for now. If he wanted to pay respects to the City God, he could always go offer incense during the day.

So Ji Yuan tried to move as naturally as possible to the eaves in front of the house, looked up at the night sky, and let out a half-truthful, soft sigh.

"Such a clear starry sky... I haven't seen it in a long time..."

There wasn't much he could make out clearly. He hadn't noticed it last time on Niu Kui Mountain, but now he realized the stars were also among those things.

No clouds obscuring them, no haze pollution—the sky was dotted with countless stars, the Milky Way brilliant. It was truly beautiful!

Now that a Yin Cha was here, and with the lingering courage from that finger-pointing earlier, Ji Yuan simply sat down on a small broken chair by the house, gazing at the sky and the courtyard, occasionally sighing, like an ordinary insomniac.

Of course, most of Ji Yuan's attention was still on the movements in the courtyard. During this quiet sitting, he also tried to visualize the chess piece, but perhaps because his body was too drained, his limbs felt weak and his mind ached. Still, that sensation remained, which was the confidence Ji Yuan had to keep sitting here.

No joke—he had just pointed that thing back with a single finger. He heard the Yin Cha say it was heavily injured, and now there was a Yin Cha around too. Why shouldn't he act tough?

After about a quarter of an hour, Ji Yuan began to sense something different.

A faint, strange smell was gradually growing stronger. To describe it, it was a bit like the sandalwood incense Ji Yuan's grandpa used to like lighting in his study.

Then Ji Yuan suddenly realized—it was the sandalwood scent of a temple.

His heartbeat involuntarily quickened again. It seemed a major figure was about to arrive. Could it be the Ning'an County City God in person?

As the sandalwood scent drew nearer, Ji Yuan sat up straighter. Unlike other ghosts, he could hear a series of extremely unusual footsteps in his ears, as if carrying some kind of rhythm, and there was more than one person.

Woo... Woo...

A faint Yin Wind carrying the scent of sandalwood seemed to sweep through the courtyard. One by one, figures crossed the courtyard gate of Ju'an Pavilion and entered. Besides more Yin Cha-like figures, there were four who clearly looked like officials of no small importance. Some wore armor, others official robes, and they came in different colors.

"Gulp..."

Ji Yuan couldn't help but swallow quietly. This was quite a lineup.

"We pay respects to Lord Wu Pan, Lord of Rewarding Goodness, Lord of Punishing Evil, and Lord of Investigation!"

The Yin Cha in the courtyard respectfully bowed to the four towering figures with the most imposing presence.

These four were clearly not the Ning'an County City God, but they were definitely beings who enjoyed the people's incense offerings. At the very least, they had clay statues in the City God Temple, far beyond ordinary Yin Cha—otherwise, they wouldn't carry that sandalwood scent.

Ji Yuan had no idea what official units existed under the City God, but he could infer a bit from the Yin Cha's titles.

The newcomers paid little attention to Ji Yuan, who sat dazed in the courtyard. Their focus was entirely on the water well.

"Indeed, the Li Sha energy here has sharply decreased. I wonder what happened?"

"As Lord City God said, this fierce ghost howled relentlessly tonight. Though the cause is unknown, it seems it has already suffered significant injury!"

The figure called Judge Wu turned his head to look at Ji Yuan by the house, causing the latter's heart to tense slightly.

"Is this the mortal who just moved into Ju'an Pavilion? Any anomalies?"

The Yin Cha who had been stationed there immediately replied.

"Reporting to Lord Judge Wu, this person is merely a mortal unable to sleep due to the invasion of Li Sha energy. No anomalies."

"Hmm!"

While the four City God Subordinates, with their superior bearing and attire, exchanged brief words, Yin Cha patrolled both inside and outside the courtyard, presumably investigating something.

Not long after, several Yin Cha came to report.

"Reporting to the Lords of the Offices, there are no anomalies near Tianniu Quarter!"

The City God Subordinates exchanged glances and pondered.

"Could it be that some Master passed by and lent a hand to our Ning'an County?"

"Let's not overthink it. First, we subdue this fiend, then investigate further!"

"Time Waits for No One. Delay may bring change!"

"Exactly!"

Judge Wu swept his sleeve, and a pitch-black Judge's Brush appeared in his hand. His gaze swept across the courtyard and beyond.

"All office runners, prepare the Soul Locking Array. Soul Hook Emissaries, heed my command—ready the Soul Binding Lock!"

"Understood!"

"Understood!"

The four City God Subordinates moved to the four corners of the courtyard. One stood with sleeves hanging, one produced an iron brush, one held a book in hand, and one wielded a steel whip.

'Here it comes, here it comes! They're making a move!! But does the thing in the well need such a big fuss? And isn't anyone going to tell this civilian to get out of the way?'

Ji Yuan was half nervous and half expectant, unsure what would happen.

It wasn't until several Yin Cha holding black command flags dissolved into mist and vanished that Ji Yuan noticed a thin layer of ink-like darkness had enveloped the courtyard before him—this must be the Soul Locking Array. And the spot where he stood, under the eaves of the main house, just happened to be outside its perimeter, not trapped within.

Inside the Soul Locking Array, Judge Wu saw that everything was ready and snorted coldly toward the direction of the water well.

"Still able to stay calm, or perhaps afraid that showing yourself will cost you dearly? Tonight is your death date! Soul Hook Emissaries, make your move!"

At Judge Wu's command, the nine black-robed Yin Cha holding long staves around the well suddenly reached toward their waists in unison. A faint light glowed at their belt positions, transforming into pitch-black chains.

"Strike!"

The nine Soul Hook Emissaries roared together, and the Soul Binding Lock shot toward the well like lightning, sinking into the ground at its edge.

Woo... woo... wooo...

In an instant, a Yin Wind rose from all directions. The branches of the old jujube tree in the courtyard swayed, and even outside the array, Ji Yuan felt a chill creeping around him. Beneath his clothes, goosebumps erupted on his skin like tiny little beans!

"Ahhh—ugh—"

"Hmph, all it can do is howl and shriek. Everyone, assist the Soul Hook Emissaries—pull it up!"

As he spoke, the four City God Subordinates struck without hesitation. Their left hands, unarmed, reached forward in unison, and streams of Yin energy bred within the courtyard, swirling around the Soul Hook Emissaries.

In that moment, the Soul Binding Lock blazed with intense light!

"Rise!"

"Ahhh—"

A dense mass of hair darted out of the water well, writhing wildly across the courtyard. Countless strands immediately lashed toward the nine Soul Hook Emissaries, who leaped outward in an instant, dragging the Soul Binding Lock a great distance along with them.

"Chop!"

The Yin Cha, already poised and waiting, drew their blades and hacked at the hair chasing the Soul Hook Emissaries.

"Heh—ugh—"

A hoarse, piercing ghostly shriek grew louder and louder. A filthy clump of hair, bound by the Soul Binding Lock, was yanked from the well, twisting and contorting in midair.

Ji Yuan's pupils contracted violently, and his teeth chattered slightly. This thing—was this the same creature from before?

The ghost creature trapped by the Soul Binding Lock seemed to have its limbs and flesh churning endlessly. Bloodshot eyeballs and pallid faces shifted and morphed within it, as malice and Yin energy poured out without cease.

The overwhelming fear, striking both his vision and his soul's instinct, was suffocating—nothing like the fakes in any horror movie could compare.

"Wretch! Tonight, you will have your Soul Scattered and Spirit Dispersed!"

Judge Wu roared, thrusting his Judge's Brush forward. The other three City God Subordinates also attacked at the same time.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Inside the courtyard of Ju'an Pavilion, it was as though the Yin energy had exploded...