pdf-ebookys Chapter 61 Fun Things on the Water
Chapter 61 Fun Things on the Water
Considering that Wang Qihou had been tormented for a long time, a dream that was difficult to distinguish between reality and illusion was not enough to dispel his concerns. Even if what happened was true, after being tormented for a long time, even the most foolish person would start to become suspicious.
Therefore, Ren Yunzong left behind a letter and an extra calming talisman before he left, waiting for the person involved to find it themselves.
Meanwhile, the warriors were about to capture the temple ghost to hand over their report, but Ren Yunzong stopped. The fire was only half-burned, not enough to kill it, but the burning pain continued. The two walked towards the City God Temple, and the ghost howled all the way.
Finally, Ren Yunzong couldn't bear it any longer and added another talisman to seal the mouth of this lonely, howling wolf.
With peace and quiet restored, the two were finally able to communicate again. Since Ren Yunzong had helped catch the ghost, he naturally had to keep his promise and tell him everything about the previous incident involving Ling Ziling.
However, before that, there was something that piqued his curiosity. After Ling Ziling had just settled things for the fox spirit, the fox spirit expressed her gratitude, but Ling Ziling refused, saying that she was about to leave.
When asked why she left in such a hurry, Ling Ziling replied, "If I don't leave now, Azhen will catch up with me, and I don't want to go back yet."
As an observer, the warrior naturally didn't know who "A-Zhen" was, but today Ren Yunzong said that he came to take Ling Ziling back to his sect, which matched the "A-Zhen" that Ling Ziling mentioned.
"Immortal Master and Daoist Ling Ziling are from the same sect, could you be his senior brother?"
His reliable and otherworldly demeanor, combined with his lively and spirited nature, made it obvious to others that he was an elder coming out to catch a playful one.
"No, Lingling is my martial aunt."
Upon hearing this, the samurai paused in his forward movement, his mind flashing back to the scene in the courtroom where Huang Jiulang was trying to defend himself, and Ling Ziling used his whisk to manually mute someone, as well as the image of him later using a thunder talisman to scare away the little ghosts watching the commotion.
Looking at Ren Yunzong beside him, who seemed completely calm and collected, the warrior hoped he had misheard. But now, the wailing of that guy was gone from their background, and Ren Yunzong's answer was very clear. He wasn't a living person, and his hearing was excellent, so there was no way he could have misheard.
In other words, the seemingly venerable and reliable adult male in front of them is the niece of the young girl who caused a ruckus in the City God Temple and the surrounding area, despite her reliable martial arts skills.
"You've had it tough too."
The samurai sighed, "This immortal must have had a hard time finding his uncle who had run away to play around."
After careful questioning, Ren Yunzong learned that if Ling Ziling had not left, the distance between them might only be one or two small villages. Both sides were Taoist practitioners who could perform divination and belonged to the same Taoist spirit. Their ability to predict each other's direction was not a problem. However, the closer they were, the easier it would be for them to be influenced by the other side. One was running and the other was chasing, and neither side would sit idly by and wait for death.
Therefore, when they get close enough, they can't simply cut off the connection. With the other side intentionally interfering, they can't calculate the result at all, so it's better to ask around.
Seeing that the temple ghost had been captured and realizing that Ren Yunzong was no ordinary person, the new City God immediately summoned San Niang and her younger brother Wu Lang, who had received help from Ling Ziling.
Originally, there was also Eleven Lang, who had known Ling Ziling even longer. However, recently this one found a drinking buddy in the city. Although the other person was a mortal, he was not afraid of Eleven Lang at all. The two of them often got drunk together and couldn't be called over at all.
In Goro's words, this drunkard was so engrossed in his drink that he forgot all about home and couldn't say anything when called over.
When he learned that Ren Yunzong had come to inquire about Ling Ziling's whereabouts, this man, who had been taken care of by Ling Ziling, had teamed up with her to help his sister and cousin outwit each other, and had once been a partner who had gone through thick and thin with her, betrayed Ling Ziling without hesitation.
"Lingling said she wanted to take a boat, so she went by water."
Hu Wulang, starting from zero frames, witnesses the revolutionary friendship between his buddies.
Wu Lang had heard some things about Ren Yunzong from Ling Ziling, such as how he had always taken good care of her, and how, as her junior disciple, he eventually became a couple with her senior uncle.
Oh right, we should also add the one who was rumored to be a manifestation of Han Xiangzi. At first, Goro was very confused about this. How could a human be confused with a deity? Even though Ling Ziling dressed very differently from ordinary people, people still thought she was human at first glance.
Upon meeting Master Ren Yunzong, Wulang understood and began to wonder about Ling Ziling, whose whereabouts were currently unknown.
Lingling, with such a difference in temperament, are you sure you two learned from the same school?
Achoo! Why do I feel like someone is talking about me?
Ling Ziling sneezed while standing on the deck. There was a breeze on the river, but it wasn't cold enough for her to feel cold. The sudden sneeze left her somewhat puzzled.
After resolving Huang Jiulang's matter, Ling Ziling suddenly had the idea to try traveling by water. Last time in the East Sea, she took the route of immortals and didn't ride a proper ship, so she decided to experience it this time.
At first, Ling Ziling didn't think of asking the City God to solve the problem. Xi Fangping's incident had given the City God an unreliable image in her mind. However, Huang Jiulang's thought process was too unique and his logic was too self-consistent. What he and He Zixiao were planning was simply human trafficking. Ling Ziling felt that they had to be taught a lesson.
It's just that the racial composition involved in this matter is very complicated, and the mortal government can't handle it. He Zixiao's body, which was reborn, had offended a high-ranking official in the past. The official doesn't believe in such mystical things as rebirth, and even if the case is protected, he won't care. He will only try to trip up He Zixiao. Huang Jiulang can't stand the slightest harm.
Finally, Ling Ziling got annoyed and wanted to continue exploring, but she didn't have time if she delayed any longer. So she decided to pack up both the person and the monster and take them to the nearby City God Temple. This way, she could find out the reason why He Zixiao was able to possess another body.
Huang Jiulang was just an ordinary fox demon after all. When he encountered the City God, he acted just like an ordinary person encountering an official. In the end, he finally cleared things up, and Ling Ziling withdrew after achieving his goal and moved to another location.
The town wasn't originally located by a major river, so Ling Ziling had to walk a bit further to fulfill her wish of taking a boat ride. Then she discovered that the "White Lotus Sect" had really grown quite large in the south. Whether it was folk proselytizing or the sorcerers' displays of power as others talked about, Ling Ziling had heard of at least six sects that could be categorized as the White Lotus Sect.
Each sect has its own god, ranging from the more traditional Maitreya Buddha to the Jade Emperor, to self-created deities like the Holy Mother, and even historical sages who have been falsely accused of impersonation—there's something for everyone.
This even gave Ling Ziling a sense of confidence. She felt that by mixing the names of a few people from the Bitter Realm into the propaganda, she might be able to contribute to the White Lotus Cult family.
For example, those things like Boundless Wave and Boundless Tulo are a perfect fit here. It's a great stage for pyramid schemes; if there's work to be done, come and join us.
"Bai Lian had such a good intention, and these guys messed it all up... Is there something going on?"
Ling Ziling, relying on her ability to draw talismans and tell fortunes, successfully tricked a merchant into boarding their cargo ship. However, since there were few women traveling alone, she stood out from the crowd and no one came to approach her. She could only stare at the water by herself.
She saw a dark shadow drift by underwater. The shadow was large and didn't look like a fish. Moreover, due to the refraction of the water, the thing swimming underwater appeared somewhat distorted.
Upon discovering something in the water, Ling Ziling immediately became interested. She held onto the edge of the boat while following the dark shadow moving in the water.
Before boarding the ship, she had heard that there were water ghosts and giant turtles causing trouble in this river. Because of these things, passing merchant ships would hire some sorcerers to accompany them in order to protect their goods, regardless of whether there were monsters or not, just to have some peace of mind.
Ling Ziling seized this opportunity to connect with the people on the merchant ship. However, due to her appearance, she initially encountered some setbacks, and some even thought she was there to cause trouble. But compared to the bunch of swindlers, she was indeed capable and eventually achieved her goal.
"Turtle? Doesn't seem like it. Human? Or ghost?"
The dark shadow in the water intentionally swam along the hull of the boat, and Ling followed it, running along the edge of the boat. Her eyes were fixed on the water, and she completely forgot to watch where she was going and that she wasn't the only one on the boat.
As they ran, Lingzi Ling inevitably bumped into someone else.
"boom!"
"what!"
"hiss!"
Because the two people who collided were about the same height, they bumped heads and took a blow to each other's heads, causing the most damage. Ling Ziling was the one who ran forward and was the main person responsible for this "car accident," but she was born with a strong physique and only swayed a few times in the end.
The opposite side was in trouble. The dark shadow under the water swam faster and faster, and Ling Ziling also ran faster and faster. The person who was originally standing here was also distracted. Ling Ziling's collision stunned her, and she fell backward.
The moment they collided, Ling Ziling realized that the person opposite her was also a young girl. Seeing that the other person was about to fall, she quickly reached out and pulled her back. The two looked to be about the same age, but Ling Ziling practiced martial arts and cultivated Taoism, so her body was very strong. The girl opposite her did not have such a foundation, and she was afraid that she would hurt the other person badly.
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, are you alright, young lady...?"
Ling Ziling first used her feet to stabilize her lower body, then reached out and grabbed the other person's arm to pull them back from the brink of collapse. The person opposite her was a young girl of about fifteen or sixteen years old, wearing a light-colored dress, with gentle and graceful features.
But these are just appearances. When the spirit pulls the person back to see her face clearly, it senses the abnormal water vapor that follows. This is not an ordinary girl, but an aquatic monster.
However, she didn't seem to be here to harm anyone, otherwise she wouldn't have been standing here distracted and then bumped into by Ling Ziling, who was chasing the dark shadow in the water.
Since it's a demon, its body shouldn't be as fragile as a mortal's. Thankfully, Ling Ziling breathed a sigh of relief.
"what happened?"
The two girls were standing facing the window of a room in the cabin. Hearing the noise, the people in the room came out to check and saw two girls with different styles, but both extremely beautiful, holding hands. The one in pink was anxiously asking the other if she was injured.
"Master Ling Ziling, what happened?"
The person who came out to check was the son of the merchant in charge of the ship, named Mu Chan Gong.
Ling Ziling was hired by his father, so Mu Changong naturally recognized her, but he had never seen the other girl before.
Upon hearing Mu Chan Gong call Ling Zi Ling a Taoist priest, the girl being pulled along showed a moment of shock; she hadn't expected to encounter a Taoist priest so soon after coming out.
"I-I'm fine."
The girl broke free from Ling Ziling's grasp and ran away in a panic. No one knew where she went; in any case, she quickly disappeared from sight on the boat.
"Who is that girl?"
"I saw a dark figure in the water just now, and I was in a hurry to chase it without looking where I was going, so I accidentally bumped into that girl."
"...A monster?"
Mu Changong was still worried about the missing girl. He had abandoned his studies to follow his father into business. He had been reciting poetry in his room when he felt someone lingering near his window. He didn't pay much attention at first, but when he heard a scream, he came out.
Upon hearing that there was something in the water, Mu Changong's thoughts about the girl vanished instantly. What was a beautiful woman compared to his life? He had also heard about the monsters causing trouble in this area, and they had only invited Ling Ziling in case it was true.
"That thing was underwater, so I couldn't see it clearly, but it was definitely not a fish; it looked more like a water ghost."
Ling Ziling rubbed her head, which she had just bumped. Because of this incident, she lost track of the dark figure in the water. Thinking back carefully to the shape she had seen, it seemed to have limbs similar to a human's.
"...water, water ghost..."
Upon hearing that it might be a water ghost, Mu Chan Gong became even more agitated.
"It's not certain yet, but don't worry, Young Master Mu, I'll keep an eye on it."
As for monsters, this river is so vast that there is no shortage of aquatic monsters, such as the girl who ran away just now. Most of them live peaceful and law-abiding lives, and Lingziling would not deliberately mention them.
But why would a water monster come aboard the boat and stand outside the window of Mu Chan Palace? Well, Ling Ziling felt very familiar with it, so much so that when she looked out the window of Mu Chan Palace the next day, she indeed saw the girl from yesterday again.
To add to this, Mu Changong himself loved reading and would have followed the crowd to take the imperial examinations. However, his father, a merchant, thought that everyone wanted to be the top scholar, and that this kind of thinking was too outdated. So he made his son abandon his studies and go into business with the family.
Anyway, Mu Changong simply liked reading and wasn't very enthusiastic about taking the imperial examinations. He could come across some rare books while traveling around as a merchant, so he gladly accepted the offer.
So, Mu Chan Gong can be considered a scholar by all accounts. Thus, the current lineup consists of a scholar who studies and a beautiful girl who is a demon in disguise. Judging from the way she stands guard outside the window, one can imagine what will happen next.
Since going solo, Ling Ziling has encountered either vicious wolves or wild dogs, or morally questionable people like Huang Jiulang. Suddenly, she met someone with such a standard and a very common character, and she felt a sense of relief.
Unfortunately, her relief was short-lived, as she saw another dark shadow appear on the water. This time, Ling Ziling saw it clearly; it was indeed a water ghost, staring intently at the girl on the boat who was listening to Mu Chan Gong recite poetry.
Ling Ziling didn't know what the water ghost was up to, but judging from its appearance, she knew it wasn't anything good. Ling Ziling quickly stepped forward to interrupt its thoughts on the poem.
Upon seeing that it was Ling Ziling, the girl tried to run away again, but Ling Ziling quickly grabbed her. Yesterday, she hadn't used enough force; if she had really grabbed her, the other girl wouldn't have been able to break free at all.
"Don't worry, young lady, I'm not trying to exorcise a demon, it's just that..."
Ling Ziling held her tightly and turned her head towards the water.
"You seem to be possessed by something unclean."
A water ghost stalking a monster—that's really interesting.