Chapter 117 - 110 The Bride’s Obsession

Chapter 117: Chapter 110 The Bride’s ObsessionA vivid scene unfolded slowly in Zhou Xuan’s mind... ...A grand temple, with a black and gold plaque hanging from the red wooden gate, inscribed with the words, "City God Temple." Flanking pillars displayed a pair of couplets, "Virtue brings a guiltless heart," and "Evil steps in my door, courage shivers." In front of the temple gate lay a spacious plaza, where an Alien Ghost named "Liao Jin," no bigger than a child, was stripped of its upper garment, and forcibly knelt before the temple gate by eight individuals dressed in black robes and golden masks. Liao Jin had two spinal bones, and its powers likely resided within them. The eight masked men held in their hands a series of black lines. The lines pierced through Liao Jin’s spine, immobilizing its powers and rendering it motionless. "Extract the tendon!" A crimson wooden order was tossed from inside the temple, prompting the eight men to simultaneously tug at the black lines. The lines lashed across Liao Jin’s back, not only leaving marks of black flames but also violently ripping the two spinal bones from its body... ...Only after the spinal bones were fully extracted did Zhou Xuan realize that the two bones were as clear as crystal, their texture extraordinarily supple, marked with naturally formed Daoist Talisman, bound by lines like jade snakes writhing. What was deemed "tendon extraction" in the City God Temple referred precisely to these two bones! At this moment, the memory rolled into darkness, and in the next instant, the scene shifted to a prison cell, where the two jade bones soaked in viscous liquid, and Liao Jin’s lifeless body lay on a hardwood bed. A Witch in a black cloak entered barefoot, pointing a finger towards the sky, causing a Bone Needle to fly from his collar. The Bone Needle was about as thick as a middle finger and the length of a palm, yet its tip was honed to a sharp point. More like an arrowhead than a needle, it carried a faint sense of menace. The Bone Needle moved according to the Witch’s gestures, flying wherever he pointed, until it hovered above the jade bones. "In~to~the~soul~." The Witch’s voice stretched as he chanted. The Bone Needle shimmered with inscriptions, stripping Liao Jin’s soul from the bones. The soul, once extracted, appeared semi-transparent but turned black upon contact with the Bone Needle, which absorbed it entirely. The White Bone Needle gradually darkened. When Liao Jin was completely absorbed, the Witch gripped the Bone Needle, crafting an Iron Lock Tattoo on Liao Jin’s skin. With each puncture, Liao Jin’s cries resonated through the room, as if enduring inhuman torment, ceasing only when the final stitch was drawn, completing the Iron Lock Tattoo... ...And the memory scene ended there. Zhou Xuan opened his eyes and said to Yuan Buyu, "The tattoo doesn’t keep Evil Ghosts in a living body. They nurture them within human skin, even imprisoning Alien Ghosts in such skin." "They can nurture Alien Ghosts?" Yuan Buyu was surprised. "The skin of this box, it’s not human skin, it’s Alien Ghost skin, and the tattoos are crafted with an Alien Ghost’s soul." The skin and soul of the Alien Ghost Liao Jin were fashioned into a box to imprison Alien Ghosts, which was quite the dark humor. "Sister, did I break this box?" Zhou Xuan realized that the tattoo on the box had disappeared. "The box doesn’t matter. Did you notice how the tattoo accumulated incense?" Zhou Lingyi asked with concern. "No, but the needle used by the Witch for tattooing seemed unusual. It was a Bone Needle, connected to the Witch, possibly nurtured over time. As for how it’s nurtured, I couldn’t discern the method," Zhou Xuan replied. "I see, this tattoo technique, it resembles our Fifth Brother’s methods, combining a magic skill with the use of weapons." Zhou Lingyi deduced from Zhou Xuan’s words. She explained to Zhou Xuan, "You’ve likely seen some of Fifth Brother’s methods. He practices Wuzuo and understands many skills involving corpses." Zhou Xuan nodded, recalling when he saw Lv Mingkun’s "Corpse Language Skill" in the Jing Deng villa. Just with a finger, he pinpointed the positions of fifteen bodies within the walls. His perception and rituals allowed the corpses to speak of their final experiences. "But when Lv Senior Brother faces the enemy, his Bamboo Leaf Blade is his weapon of choice, the same knife he uses to dissect corpses. He nurtured that blade day and night, till it was inscribed with Alien Ghost symbols, enabling the Bamboo Leaf Blade to have many profound techniques for killing. It was both a dissection tool and a weapon, thus using tools as weapons. Based on what you mentioned earlier, the Tattoo Hall already employs many supernatural methods in tattoos, and the Bone Needle used for tattooing becomes your weapon to defeat enemies." The more Zhou Xuan listened, the more advanced the tattoo methods seemed, able to imprison Evil Ghosts, enhanced by the Bone Needle, making it a highly formidable Tangkou. "Tomorrow is the day for Divination. I’ll visit the Blood Well and see if I can uncover how the tattoo accumulates incense," Zhou Xuan said, bidding farewell to his sister and master. He was about to leave when Yuan Buyu stopped him, "Don’t rush off. Your right hand could delve into human skin to grab the tattoo. Try grabbing the human skin tattoo you drew." Zhou Xuan became interested. Since both his sister and Yuan Buyu claimed the pattern on the bride’s head was not a drawing but a tattoo, he might as well try. He spread out the human skin and reached with his right hand, but this time he couldn’t manage it no matter how he tried. "Recall the state you were in when you grabbed the Iron Lock Tattoo," Yuan Buyu suggested warmly. To grab the Iron Lock Tattoo, he had been angered to the extreme after suffering two lashes. He needed to rouse a great fury within himself. Zhou Xuan closed his eyes, meditating on things that made him angry. There weren’t many, just the kidnapper wanting to send three master fighters after him or the Nuomian bullying his sister. He recalled past events in detail, finally nurturing a true anger. When he opened his eyes, they were blood-red with rage. He reached into the human skin, and this time, saw with his own eyes his right hand plunge inside, transforming into a right-hand pattern, swimming towards the bride tattoo within the skin. Just as his hand was about to touch the design, a gentle force enveloped his right hand, not only soft but strangely soothing. It was like the comfort of having a soothing warm towel over your eyes after a day of reading and eye strain. As the soothing sensation settled, it diffused his anger, depriving his right hand of its supernatural power, and it emerged from the skin. "I can’t grab it. This design softens and dispels my right hand’s strength," Zhou Xuan explained his experience. Yuan Buyu picked up the human skin drawing again, holding it up to the sunlight as if seeing it for the first time. "How is it possible? The blood energy in this tattoo is obviously not strong, yet you could seize the Alien Ghost tattoo but not this ordinary one?" "It’s not quite ordinary. Recently in my Secret Realm, a Lantern Bride mysteriously appeared. This tattoo is of his creation," Zhou Xuan admitted. "When did the bride appear?" Zhou Lingyi raised an eyebrow. "Last midnight," Zhou Xuan answered. "It probably isn’t a coincidence..." Zhou Lingyi asked Yuan Buyu, "Elder Yuan, did you sense anything last night?" "No, I was asleep," Yuan Buyu replied candidly. Zhou Lingyi probed further, "Brother, before the Lantern Bride appeared in your Secret Realm, did you sense anything?" "No." "But the Ancestor Tree did," Zhou Lingyi said. "Last night, it showed signs of waking. I got dressed and checked, but saw nothing." Both Yuan Buyu and Zhou Xuan were stunned. Her words suggested that the Lantern Bride sneaked into the Secret Realm from outside, unnoticed by anyone. "Moreover, while on the Night Patrol, even the Divine Lantern failed to reveal this bride you spoke of," Zhou Lingyi added. Upon hearing this, Yuan Buyu was no longer surprised, saying, "I understand, the Lantern Bride is likely a bundle of obsession." People become ghosts after death; if a ghost harbors an obsession, it becomes an Evil Ghost. However, obsession can exist independently. Yuan Buyu explained, "An obsession, at its core, is a person’s thought, unseen and intangible, difficult to perceive, yet it can profoundly affect a person." "Elder Yuan, can you explain how obsession affects people?" Zhou Xuan was eager for knowledge, absorbing any mysterious and eerie concepts he hadn’t heard of before. "For example, if an obsession arises from sadness, anyone deeply interacting with it would feel inexplicably sad, an influence. Do not underestimate it. If the obsession is strong, ensuing sadness could drive the person to suicidal thoughts." Yuan Buyu recalled his four former apprentices and realized that rather than mourning their deaths, he was victimized by his own sorrowful obsession, which grew persistently, leaving him spiritually drained, extinguishing any incense. "Do you think the Lantern Bride in my body might harm me?" Zhou Xuan asked. "In the Secret Realm, as long as you do not harbor suicidal thoughts, nothing can harm you. But her constant presence there might affect you in reality, that remains uncertain." Zhou Xuan agreed with Yuan Buyu’s reasoning. The Paperman Boatman previously tried luring him into death, which also hinted that in the Secret Realm, no harm could befall him without his volition. Yuan Buyu laid back down, adding, "The impact of obsession begins gently, then intensifies. But there’s an easy way to escape." "What’s the way?" Zhou Xuan inquired. "Quickly ignite the Third Incense." "..." Zhou Xuan. "Xuan, you must remain cautious. An obsession strong enough to awaken the Ancestor Tree can be tremendous. Do not let your guard down." ... All afternoon, Zhou Xuan worked on writing newspaper articles. The Tangkou was confirmed, but the tattoo inquiry had to wait for tomorrow. The Blood Well allowed Divination only once a week, making tomorrow the earliest opportunity. He seized this downtime to complete the article, aiming to earn a chance for a private connection with Jing Deng sooner. "Have you ever heard such a story? A gold mine was discovered in Snow Plain Prefecture, and the news spread wildly. Miners from neighboring states flocked there, eager to work the mines. Three years passed, yet the miners earned little. Frequent fights over resources left many injured and disabled, while a man selling water to the miners amassed great wealth. This is the survival philosophy of the water seller Zhang Hua..." Zhou Xuan slightly modified the famous motivational story, "The Water Seller," incorporating "Zhang Hua" as a character, and repeatedly referenced terms like "mine," "well," and "mining lamp" as code words, implying he knew "Zhang Yihua and Jing Deng are the same person." These intertwined codes were unlikely to be connected by the average person, but someone like Jing Deng, whose mind was perpetually tense and adept in hidden messages, would naturally comprehend. The directed codes pointed squarely at Jing Deng, avoiding attention from other Blood Well Spirit Communicators.