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墨書 Inktalez
Many Taoists in movies hold a compass, and when they encounter a ghost, the needle spins wildly. This is not purely fictional; there is some truth to it. In the entire underground space, there are Yin Spirits everywhere, so it is normal for the compass to malfunction here. If it remains still in a certain place, that would be an abnormal phenomenon. Unexpectedly, Ma Rulong would use reverse thinking to utilize the compass needle to locate the Eight Gates.
However, even though we found one direction, determining whether this is indeed the door still left us puzzled. Ma Rulong said that the Qimen formation can confuse others in space. The wall we see now may not necessarily represent the true situation of this direction. Therefore, even if we found tools to dig a big hole here, it would be of no use.
The only method is to rely on Yin Spirits for probing. Since Yin Spirits are not hindered by physical objects, they can pass through this soil and figure out what lies within. But this is not a simple task; the Maoshan Formation has always been associated with exorcising evil spirits, especially the Three Deadly Gates. A living person entering would suffer greatly, let alone a ghost.
So if we choose the wrong place, the probing Yin Spirits might never return.
We lacked the ability to command Yin Spirits, so we had to consult the Old Ghost. However, after explaining our findings and thoughts to Old Ghost, it directly rejected the proposal, saying: "The forbidden area is bound together by the Golden Curse. No soul can pass through. Otherwise, they will surely be lost."
We were quite surprised, but upon reflection, it made sense. If Yin Spirits could penetrate the soil, wouldn't they have escaped long ago?
Ma Rulong was furious and shouted, "This won't work, that won't work! Just kill us! I can't do anything anymore!"
I felt my eyelids twitch; this fat guy really dared to say anything. No one was thinking of killing him yet he was actively asking for death—was he out of his mind? At that moment, Zheng Xuejie spoke up: "Ordinary souls definitely cannot withstand the power of the forbidden area, but if it's a higher-level one, it might be worth a try."
When she said this, I instinctively thought of Jiao She Ling, and Ma Rulong looked surprised as he asked, "Are you willing to try?"
I rubbed my nose and then heard Zheng Xuejie say: "Do you think I'm foolish? If I get consumed by too much power from the forbidden area, will you still be so honest? The little snake in the compass might still be useful; let it go."
"What! No way! I disagree!" Ma Rulong immediately hid the compass behind him as if he was ready to risk his life for it. Unfortunately, Jiao She Ling was still wandering outside; hiding the compass wouldn't help since that aura of Yin Qi remained.
Zheng Xuejie looked at him coldly and said: "Either you obediently go or I will kill you all and forcefully use it to try; choose for yourself."
"You..." Ma Rulong gritted his teeth in anger but what could he do? He couldn't fight back or dare to curse; he had no choice but to accept his fate.
However, he was very stubborn about this matter and refused to let Jiao She Ling investigate the authenticity of the location. Zheng Xuejie's expression grew increasingly grim. Soon after, she suddenly reached out and grabbed Ma Rulong's clothes fiercely, saying: "Little fatty, don't think that just because you have the old man's compass I won't dare to kill you! Since he gave you the compass, he must already be dead; I have nothing to fear! You better behave and listen; don't force me!"
Ma Rulong held his head high and stiffened his neck, refusing to back down. I was sweating profusely, thinking that this fat man had such spirit; my life was in jeopardy...
But there was nothing I could do to force Ma Rulong to make a decision. After so many years with Jiao She Ling, he must have deep feelings for it. Even if we raise a dog, over time we develop strong emotions, let alone something else. However, if he was unwilling, then we would have to die; what could we do about that...
Sometimes, I really wished I could be like Second Uncle, able to make decisions decisively without distraction. Those who are too soft-hearted are not suited for adventure because, in dangerous situations, we often have to make many choices. These choices are extremely difficult, and being soft-hearted can lead to irreparable outcomes. The current situation is one such example.
If we couldn't bear to push Ma Rulong, then we would die; it's a simple cause-and-effect relationship.
At that moment, Zheng Xuejie no longer asked Ma Rulong for his opinion. She lifted her head and looked at the thick Yin Qi in the air, saying, "If you don't go, I'll kill him."
Jiao She Ling should be able to understand human speech; it swayed back and forth, circling around Ma Rulong. A low whistling sound filled the air as if it were trying to convey something. Ma Rulong held the compass and shouted, "You can't go! Don't forget, I am your master! I said you can't go!"
I never expected that he would be unafraid of death for a Yin Ling. Ma Rulong's actions completely changed my previous impression of him. This fat man not only loved money but also valued old feelings; he was definitely a person of character!
Just as Ma Rulong was shouting, Jiao She Ling suddenly left his body and darted toward the direction we had just discussed. Even I could feel its movement; let alone Ma Rulong. He paused for a moment and then jumped up in anger, cursing, "You bastard! Eating my food and drinking my drinks, and now you won't listen! I am your master; you must obey me! Come back!"
His shouting had no effect at all. Jiao She Ling accurately plunged into that direction and quickly burrowed deep into the ground. I immediately lost my connection with it. Ma Rulong stood there dazed for a moment before suddenly charging at Zheng Xuejie like a madman. He flailed his arms as if he wanted to kill someone. Zheng Xuejie snorted and reached out her hand, easily spinning him around a few times before he fell to the ground.
Ma Rulong lay on the ground, unafraid and unresisting; he just sat there and then kicked his legs while crying out, "Master has left; now you're leaving too! What am I supposed to do? Who else can accompany me? You heartless bastards! You just leave without giving anyone time to prepare! Bastards! No credit!"
While he was cursing loudly, I suddenly sensed Jiao She Ling's Yin Qi again. It emerged from the mud wall and quickly returned to Ma Rulong's side. Zheng Xuejie mockingly said, "I never thought that old man would pass this on to you; truly blind of him."
Perhaps sensing Jiao She Ling's return, Ma Rulong immediately jumped up from the ground and pointed his finger at Zheng Xuejie with wide eyes: "I warn you not to speak ill of my master; otherwise, even if it costs me my life, I'll make you pay the price!"
Zheng Xuejie sneered and didn't take Ma Rulong's threat seriously at all. This fat man's only reliance was Jiao She Ling, but compared to Old Ghost, it was indeed not on the same level. Even if he fought desperately, it would be hard for him to gain any advantage.
However, speaking of which, Jiao She Ling had gone in and out of the soil; its Yin Qi seemed to have decreased somewhat. It appeared that Old Ghost hadn't lied to us; even in the most ordinary mud walls here existed powers that could inflict fatal damage on Yin Lings. Fortunately, Jiao She Ling was strong enough that it only lost a small portion of its Yin Qi before returning safely. If it had truly been scattered inside there while Ma Rulong was in his current mental state, he might have done something crazy.
Zheng Xuejie wore a cold expression and reminded us: "While my patience hasn't been exhausted by your pointless antics yet, hurry up and find the entrance!"
Ma Rulong stared with wide eyes, seemingly ready to say something unpleasant. Whether human or ghost, one should not be pushed too hard, or trouble is bound to arise. My life was at stake, so I quickly covered his mouth and pulled him aside. Ma Rulong struggled desperately, pulling my arm away halfway and said, "What are you doing? Are you crazy?"
I replied, "You're the one who's crazy! Can't you just find the door honestly? Why do you have to court disaster to be happy?"
Ma Rulong angrily said, "This is a matter of trading a spirit's life for a chance; how can I not care?"
I said, "It's already safe and back now, isn't it? There's not much danger! Besides, it's not wrong what it said. If you don't agree now, it'll kill us and force Jiao She Ling to test the portal. Tell me, do you want to live and get out, or do you plan to die here? Instead of thinking about fighting back, it's better to settle this matter sooner!"
Ma Rulong naturally understood that I made sense, but he couldn't swallow his anger. I tried every way to persuade him, and even Qin Senior Sister joined in to advise him. After a while, he gradually calmed down. Although his face looked grim, he was finally willing to communicate with Jiao She Ling and ask what it had discovered.
A few minutes later, he told me that Jiao She Ling had passed through the mud layer and found a metal pillar buried in the mountain. It was engraved with many talismans; just getting a little closer felt like losing one's soul. So it hurried back without taking a closer look. Although it didn't see the talismans clearly, judging from this description, this location should not be where the portal was. Ma Rulong knew very well that the entrance to the underground space was quite ordinary—just two wooden boards with two Paper Talismans stuck on them and nothing else.
The metal pillar that Jiao She Ling saw should be used to seal off this area to prevent Yin Ling from sneaking out. Or perhaps it was meant to release Yin Ling inside? In any case, it had nothing to do with the exit.
Once this was confirmed, Ma Rulong held onto the compass and began wandering around again.
As the saying goes, where there is one, there will be two; where there are two, there will be three.
Before long, we found several more locations in succession. However, our luck was terrible; none of them were correct positions. In fact, two of them were dead ends—Jiao She Ling rushed in and nearly got sucked into the metal pillar there. It lost almost one-tenth of its Yin Qi in an instant.
Perhaps for everyone else, one-tenth doesn't seem like much, but that was just in a moment. If it had really been sucked in, within a few seconds, it would have truly lost its soul. No wonder that Old Ghost didn't dare to take risks; it must have some understanding of this place and knew that the dangers here were immense. Ma Rulong kept muttering curses under his breath in frustration, which made me feel anxious. Fortunately, the Old Ghost attached to Zheng Xuejie seemed not to have heard anything and thus nothing serious happened.
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