txolops Chapter 32 Watching a Play on a Rainy Night, Bad Luck Strikes
Chapter 32 Watching a Play on a Rainy Night, Bad Luck Strikes
The rain curtain, like a giant gray net, enveloped the entire Changning County, blurring the upturned eaves in the distance and drowning out the noise in the streets and alleys.
Gu Yan closed the doors and windows tightly and hung up the heavy old brass lock.
For ordinary people in Changning County, such a rainy night is the perfect time to crawl into bed and sleep.
But for Gu Yan, this was the best time to watch a movie.
He returned to the secret room and lit a dim oil lamp.
On a table covered with a black cloth, there is a basin of clear water.
Gu Yan reached out and gently touched the water's surface, causing spiritual energy to ripple outwards, and then the scene gradually became clear.
The scene shown in the picture is an abandoned mortuary in the west of Changning County.
From a high vantage point, it was the view transmitted back by a "swift" paper puppet that Gu Yan had long ago placed under the eaves of the mortuary.
"Since we're going to put on a play, the stage must be built in the place with the heaviest yin energy."
Gu Yan picked up the teacup, gently blew on the steam, and looked at it with a playful expression.
The information he revealed in the paper crane was about the Yin Vein of Earthly Fiends, and this Yizhuang in the west of the city was one of the three nodes where Yin energy converged in Changning County.
The Demon Suppression Division acted swiftly, much faster than Gu Yan had anticipated.
In the scene, dozens of officers from the Demon Suppression Division, dressed in straw raincoats and wielding crossbows, have surrounded the mortuary.
The rain was mixed with a chilling atmosphere.
boom!
With a loud bang, the gates of the mortuary were violently broken open.
Immediately afterwards, a red light shot into the sky.
That wasn't firelight, but rather a crimson glow from some kind of formation being activated.
"Who dares to jeopardize the important affairs of my Holy Church!"
A furious shout pierced the rain.
Several dark figures rushed out of the mortuary. These people were all wearing heavy armor, but what was exposed under the armor were not human hands, but beast claws covered with black fur.
"The White Spirit Cult is a heretical sect that spreads falsehoods and misleads the public; they must be killed without mercy!"
The one leading the group was Song Hong.
In the rainy night, she was like a blooming red lotus, her long sword carrying a scorching aura, and with one strike, she cleaved a cultist in two, armor and all.
Gu Yan looked at this scene through the water mirror and nodded slightly.
Although Song Hong is a woman, her martial arts skills and swordsmanship are indeed quite impressive.
The power of blood and qi contained in that strike was enough to scorch low-level ghosts.
However, the battle did not turn out to be one-sided.
Just as the Demon Suppression Division was about to storm into the heart of the mortuary, a terrifying pressure suddenly descended.
The torrential rain seemed to pause for a moment in mid-air before transforming into countless ice spikes that indiscriminately shot towards the members of the Demon Suppression Division.
"Puff puff puff".
Screams erupted from all sides.
The old man in the gray robe who had visited the paper-making shop before, leaning on his cane, came flying through the air.
He did not land, but hovered three feet above the ground, surrounded by a faint gray light shield that kept the rain out.
Foundation Establishment cultivators soar through the air.
"A bunch of ants dare to disturb the core of my formation."
The old man's face was so gloomy it seemed to drip water.
He was originally presiding over the formation underground in the mortuary, and was about to open a crack in the Yin meridian when a group of government soldiers suddenly appeared.
What angered him even more was that the soldiers seemed to know his location beforehand and headed straight for the center of the formation.
"It must have been that damned swordsman who leaked the information!"
The old man was convinced that there was a master in Changning County who was specifically targeting their Blood River Sect.
He raised his withered hand, and a ball of gray lightning condensed in his palm.
"Go to hell, all of you."
Gu Yan's brows twitched as he looked in the water mirror.
For a Foundation Establishment cultivator to defeat a mortal martial artist is like a dimensional reduction attack.
If this attack succeeds, Song Hong and her gang will likely be completely wiped out.
"Lord Song, you'd better step up your game, or my scheme to kill someone with a borrowed knife will fall apart."
Just as the old man was about to unleash the lightning ball in his hand.
A sudden change occurred.
Something hanging from the old man's waist suddenly burst into flames without warning.
It was a paper figure, the very "Chunhua" he had bought from Gu Yan's shop to use for his tracking magic.
The burning paper figure caused no harm, but it released an extremely foul black smoke that instantly entered the old man's nostrils.
This is the "bad luck charm" that Gu Yan carefully drew.
Although it cannot harm the enemy, it can disrupt the flow of energy at crucial moments, causing the caster to go berserk.
"Cough cough cough!"
The old man was choked by the sudden black smoke, causing his breathing to stagnate. The lightning ball that had been gathered in his palm went out of control and exploded in half before he could even throw it.
Boom!
The old man was backfired by his own magic; his protective shield shattered instantly, and he fell from mid-air like a kite with a broken string, plunging headfirst into the mud at the entrance of the mortuary.
"A great opportunity!"
Although Song Hong below didn't know what had happened, her fighting instincts as a martial artist allowed her to seize this fleeting opportunity.
"Form ranks! Demon-Slaying Crossbows, fire!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Three massive crossbow bolts, each as thick as a child's arm and covered in demon-slaying runes, shot in a triangular formation toward the old man who had not yet gotten up, accompanied by a mournful whistling sound.
"How dare you, you brat!"
A furious roar came from the mud.
The old man was, after all, a Foundation Establishment cultivator with profound knowledge and skills.
Even though he lost the initiative, he still managed to conjure a bone shield in an instant, blocking two of the crossbow bolts.
But the third crossbow bolt grazed his shoulder, spraying blood everywhere.
"ah!!!"
The old man was furious.
He, a dignified Foundation Establishment cultivator, was actually injured by a group of mortals? And all because he choked on a puff of smoke?
That paper figure... there's something wrong with that paper figure!
That seemingly honest and cowardly paper shop owner...
The old man's mind flashed with Gu Yan's fawning face, and a chill ran through him, accompanied by a surge of anger that shot straight to the top of his head.
He was played!
He was played like a monkey by an ordinary person!
When Gu Yan saw this scene in the water mirror, he couldn't help but clap and cheer, but then he shook his head.
"It's a pity, the Demon Suppression Division's firepower is still insufficient; they couldn't kill him."
As expected, the injured old man went completely mad. No longer caring about the consumption of his magic power, he directly summoned a small blood-red banner, instantly turning the area around the mortuary into a ghost realm.
The Demon Suppression Division's offensive was thwarted, and they could only struggle to hold on.
Gu Yan no longer paid attention to the outcome of the battle.
Just now, at the moment the old man fell, the surge of magical power caused a trace of the earth's ley line energy beneath the mortuary to leak out.
The sheepskin map in Gu Yan's hand suddenly glowed with a bloody light again.
This time, the information displayed on the map has changed.
The red dot that was originally marked on the mortuary turned out to be just a blurry image.
As the formation of the mortuary was destroyed, the real red dot slowly appeared on the other side of the map.
That location was only three streets away from Gu Yan's paper-making shop.
There was a City God Temple that was very popular with worshippers.
"What a clever feint!"
Gu Yan stared at the map, his eyes deep and unfathomable.
This Foundation Establishment elder was fighting desperately at the mortuary, even risking injury, just to draw the firepower of the Demon Suppression Division and cover the real actions being taken at the City God Temple.
"The true entrance to the Yin meridian is beneath the statue."
Gu Yan turned off the water mirror and stood up.
The rain outside was pouring down harder and harder, and the thunder was deafening, which completely drowned out all other sounds.
Currently, the main force of the Demon Suppression Division is tied up at the mortuary, and the Foundation Establishment elder is also injured and unable to spare any attention.
At this moment, the most deserted and also the most dangerous place in the entire Changning County was the City God Temple.
This was a perfect moment for him to strike it rich.
"Asura Guard".
From the shadows, a tall puppet clad in heavy blue scale armor silently emerged.
Gu Yan took a bamboo hat off the wall and put it on, then stuffed a thick stack of newly made talisman soldiers into his arms.
"Let's go offer incense to the City God."