I finally understood the meaning behind Zi Ming's words. It seemed he wanted me isolated and alone, making it easier to finish me off. I let out a cold laugh and walked alone through the village shrouded in spectral energy.
It was already night, and I felt completely drained. I needed to find a place to rest. I randomly chose a hut, pasted a few Ghost-Warding Talismans I carried on the door, and entered.
Pushing the door open, a cloud of dust greeted me. I waved it away, disgusted, and found a spot that seemed relatively clean. Checking my phone, I set an alarm and slept.
This time, I slept soundly.
My alarm woke me at 5 AM. I calculated the numbers; including me, only four should be left alive. Though I didn't know who the other three were, I felt I needed to check.
They were all potential pawns for what was to come.
I patted myself down, suddenly remembering Bai Ji was still with Dong Qingzi. I needed to find Dong Qingzi's body. I let out a soft laugh and headed towards yesterday's hut.
My backpack was still there, containing many important items.
The peacefulness along the way felt strange. This was the site of the Battle of Changping; spectral soldiers should appear occasionally. Yet, after being here so long, I hadn't encountered any, which was puzzling. Another oddity was finding no trace of Mu Rongxing.
I reached the hut. When my flashlight beam swept over the dilapidated door, my focus sharpened instantly. A bloody handprint was on the door, along with several talismans. The script was unmistakably Zhao Feiyu's work. Oh? Had they died too?
The talismans were soaked in blood, rendered useless. I tore them off casually and pushed the door open.
The wooden door creaked. I swept my flashlight around. The place was littered with corpses. Their deaths were gruesome, and most importantly, their hearts were missing.
It seemed the ghosts Mu Rongxing raised had no hobbies besides heart extraction.
As I surveyed the scene, I suddenly felt something tighten around my neck. Instinctively, I drove my elbow backward. I heard a grunt and looked down to see a white, rope-like object coiled around my neck. Huh? It looked like a horsetail whisk...
I reached back, grabbed the person's arms, and executed a shoulder throw. As he hit the ground, my flashlight illuminated his face.
"Zhao Feiyu?" Recognizing him surprised me.
Hearing my voice, a note of urgency entered his tone. "Xiao Lin? You're okay? Thank goodness, you're alright, you're alright..."
I pulled Zhao Feiyu up, simultaneously removing the whisk from my neck. I shone the light on him. He was covered in dust, with various wounds on his body.
"What happened?" I asked, frowning, my voice serious.
"Kong Yi and Qingzi... he took them. He attacked me. I couldn't win." Zhao Feiyu looked at me with a bitter smile, trying to appear nonchalant.
"Him? Who?" I frowned.
"Mu Rongxing."
The three words from Zhao Feiyu's mouth instantly ignited my fighting spirit. So Mu Rongxing had come for me before I could find him. Good. Very good!
"Tell me everything." Despite my question, I couldn't fully hide the eagerness in my voice. This time, it was Zhao Feiyu who fell silent.
After a long pause, Zhao Feiyu decided to explain.
Shortly after I left, Zhao Feiyu and the others confirmed Xiao Gao was beyond saving and calmed down. They gathered all the survivors in this one hut, planning to continue to the next Ghost Tower camp the next day.
But not long after they fell asleep, many started having nightmares. They dreamed they were soldiers in the Battle of Changping, killing enemies on the battlefield, only to be buried alive. This kind of illusion was common. Zhao Feiyu and Kong Yi quickly realized something was wrong, but the others weren't so lucky.
Zhao Feiyu and Kong Yi tried to wake the others, but not all succeeded. Some who woke up ran madly out the door. Zhao Feiyu habitually placed protective talismans at the entrance, but those talismans became useless upon contact with human blood.
Soon, those who had run out came back, even more crazed, their hands covered in blood, and they destroyed Zhao Feiyu's talismans.
Not long after, Mu Rongxing arrived. Words were exchanged, and a fight broke out. The outcome was clear: Zhao Feiyu and the others were no match for Mu Rongxing. He took the only other survivors, Kong Yi and Dong Qingzi, telling Zhao Feiyu to find me if he wanted to save them.
Just as Zhao Feiyu was distraught, I returned to the hut. Thinking I was another of Mu Rongxing's lackies, he attacked without a word.
After hearing this, I simply nodded, a surge of excitement in my voice. "Did they say where to meet?"
Zhao Feiyu nodded, smiling bitterly. "The Ghost Tower camp set up to capture the spectral soldiers has been destroyed by Mu Rongxing. But he still wants to meet us there, says he wants to... negotiate."
Hearing this, I immediately stood, brushed the dust off my clothes, and without another word, headed for the door. Zhao Feiyu, equally worried about Kong Yi and Dong Qingzi, quickly followed.
In just an hour, we reached the Ghost Tower camp. The camp was deserted, but a fire still smoldered, tents were pitched, and supplies were scattered about.
Entering the camp, I found it peculiar. Even if Mu Rongxing had killed everyone, could he have taken all the Ghost Tower personnel away in an instant? And looking at the setup, it showed no signs of a struggle. Were they taken willingly?
Just then, I spotted Bai Ji in the distance. She stood outside a tent, as if waiting for someone. Seeing me, she floated over swiftly.
"You're finally here. Master... has been waiting for you." Her change in addressing Mu Rongxing worried me.
Mu Rongxing's five masks housed powerful hosts. I had好不容易 gained Bai Ji, and now Mu Rongxing took her back so easily? I was furious.
Bai Ji led the way. Zhao Feiyu and I followed in silence. I saw his grip on the whisk tighten. I knew what he was thinking, but right now, we all needed to stay calm.
Entering the tent, I finally saw the man I wanted to see.
I had often imagined what expression I would wear when I saw Mu Rongxing again. Perhaps no expression was best. But seeing his hair had turned white, I felt a flicker of... pity.
A second later, I jolted back to reality. Why would I pity the man who dug out my heart? Why? Zhao Feiyu's eyes also held conflict, but when he saw Kong Yi and Dong Qingzi unconscious nearby, fighting spirit erupted from him.
I looked at Mu Rongxing, my face blank. "Finally found you."
Mu Rongxing had been sitting in a chair, reading a book. Hearing my voice, he looked up, a slight smile on his lips. "It seems the Ghost Tower has treated you well, at least saving you instead of letting you die."
His words detonated like a bomb inside me. On instinct, I drew the Meteor Iron sword and, without a second thought, hurled it, embedding it in the table before Mu Rongxing with a thud.
The four hosts behind Mu Rongxing moved to surround me without needing orders. Zi Ming was among them. Zhao Feiyu flourished his whisk dramatically, ready for a fight. Bai Ji swiftly positioned herself in front of me. I knew she still stood with me. That was enough.
"I didn't bring you here to fight." Mu Rongxing's voice held a note of sternness. At his words, the four hosts obediently returned to his side. I gestured for Bai Ji to stand down.
"The Ghost Tower sent people here recklessly, without even fully understanding this place's secrets. Jiang He is the opposite. Jiang He thoroughly investigates a site before sending another team. Now do you see the difference? Jiang He values life." Mu Rongxing closed his ancient book leisurely.
"What are you trying to say?" I asked impatiently, my tone dismissive.
"This is a Ghost Tower camp, yet there's no one here. Why?" Mu Rongxing smiled faintly, turning the question back on me.
I looked at Zhao Feiyu, who also shook his head, confused. Seeing our reactions, Mu Rongxing chuckled and pointed outside. "Because the vengeful spirits here are no ordinary spirits! Four hundred thousand people buried alive! As an Onmyōji, can't you fathom the scale of that resentment? With such powerful hatred festering for two thousand years, do you think the spectral soldiers' development would be slow? Wouldn't they develop intelligence?"
His words struck a chord. He was right. Two thousand years was more than enough for spectral soldiers to grow and gain sentience.
Then, Mu Rongxing looked at me with a cold smile. "I brought over a hundred people. I'm the only one left. Why do you think that is? It's like the world outside this tent. Do you know why everyone has disappeared?"
"No," I said with a scornful laugh.
"Because of the human heart. Because of the human heart."
He repeated the phrase, confusing me. What did he mean? Were the human hearts so delicious that all the ghosts became obsessed?
"Speak plainly. I'm not in the mood for riddles," I said impatiently.
"Every two hours, two spectral soldiers appear. They demand a tribute. If you give it to them, it's easy. If not... this is the result." As he spoke, Mu Rongxing gestured around the tent.
那一刻我明白了.难道鬼塔失踪的人员都被这些幽灵士兵带走了?
"小林,你现在看到了吧."慕容星意味深长地看着我说道. "我还剩下四颗心,够两个小时了.我打算离开,但下面还有更大的秘密,我想看看,你需要做出选择.这三颗心中,"他指着赵飞宇,昏迷不醒的孔易和董青子,"你必须选择两颗作为贡品.剩下的一颗,你可以作为你的傀儡,让他代替你死去."
我忍不住嘲讽地笑了. "这么说,你是为了我好?你为了我,把那些人都杀了?如果你真的在乎的话,就不会让紫铭布置那个百鬼阵来引诱我们进来.我就是你最后的棋子不是吗?慕容星,你还想看这个'秘密'吗?好吧!今天我就跟你一起去!不过到时候,我们看看谁是谁的棋子."
慕容星显然没有想到这个反应.他突然拍着手,放声大笑起来. "好!如果你当时有这样的勇气,我就不会夺走你的七窍玲珑心了!"
"因为你夺走了我的心,我才有了现在的勇气,我应该感谢你吗?"我冷冷反驳. "现在,驱散忘香,唤醒孔乙和清子,否则我们的合作就到此为止."
慕容星点头.紫铭走到孔乙和董清子身边,用了某种方法,很快将他们叫醒.他们很弱,只能看着我们.
"你背清子,我背孔乙."我简短地吩咐了赵飞宇.然后我转向慕容星. "你说的这个地方远吗?"
慕容星笑了笑,喝了一口茶,指着帐篷的地板,声音欢快. "你在西安那条龙脉守护了这么久,难道你不想知道那里埋着什么吗?这鬼塔大营的正下方,就是埋葬四十万赵军的深坑.如果不是我们周围有防护阵法,你早就被阴气腐蚀了."