Book 5: Chapter 28: Difficult battle

Book 5: Chapter 28: Difficult battle

The door shut with a bang in front of me and Ah Zhan. The two of us were sprawled before it in exhaustion. We could only pant for breath, unable to speak.

This was no task for humans, especially two heavily injured ones!

Before I could recover, I felt Ah Zhan prodding my shoulder. I ignored him but he patted it again. I was about to ask him what he wanted in annoyance but he spoke first.

What?

What, what? I should be asking you that!

Then why are you nudging my shoulder?

I didnt. You were nudging me! You were the one I stopped speaking.

Silence. No one spoke and no one moved.

Something must have happened so it was best not to move rashly!

The two flashlights were by our feet. The bloodwood sword lay where their beams crossed. We could reach it by stretching out our hands but it also seemed unreachable like the edge of the world.

Our surroundings were abnormally silent. Only then did I realize that while we three youths had been struggling fiercely, Uncle Bao hadnt made a sound.

Had something happened? But how?

Theoretically, that female ghost had lost her inner core. No matter how deep her resentment and desire for revenge, she shouldnt be able to come up with anything. Besides, Uncle Bao was so experienced and was so cautious in doing things. He looked like he had a card up his sleeve this whole time. How could he so easily get trapped? But it seemed indeed the case. The two of us were facing away from the burial chamber, but things seemed to be amiss behind us!

The danger was right next to us!

Mmrgh

Uncle Baos voice suddenly sounded out. However, it seemed to be suppressed as though he had been caught by something. He was trying to get us to help, or to warn us!

The moment his voice rang out, Ah Zhan suddenly crouched and grabbed for the bloodwood sword. Yet his fingers had just touched it when he suddenly fell backwards and was then dragged into the air.

I was startled and looked over. I saw Ah Zhan hanging in midair. Because the flashlights had fallen to the floor and the burial chambers ceiling was extremely high, the light couldnt reach the top. Therefore, I couldnt see the top half of Ah Zhans body. Only his desperately struggling legs were visible, but they merely swung about uselessly in the air.

Wrapped around him and hanging in front of me was a thick cluster of long, black hair. It seemed to be growing from the ceiling. It had silently grown everywhere while we were struggling with the doors. It had grown long enough to reach our shoulders. The hair swayed silently without any wind, and had been patting my shoulders.

My first instinct was to leap for the bloodwood sword. However, the moment I moved the hair wrapped around my waist as if it were alive. It dragged me into the air!

It wrapped around me tightly, making it hard for me to breathe. My rib started hurting again. I could only grab at the hair around my waist with my good hand to maintain my balance. It felt cold, silky and clammy and also felt as if it were moving, making my scalp turn numb!

I forced down the wave of nausea and grabbed onto the hair as hard as I could. At the same time, I looked around at my surroundings. I saw Ah Zhan across from me. Since we were hanging at the same height, I could finally see his situation.

He was a little worse off than me. The black hair was wrapped around his neck, but he held onto the part above his head with his uninjured hand. This way, his entire body weight was suspended by his arm, preventing him from being hanged. Despite this, the black hair didnt loosen, preventing him from doing anything else.

I didnt speak, but looked at him questioningly. Due to the bond weve developed from childhood, he understood that I was asking Uncle Baos whereabouts.

He gestured below with his chin.

I looked down and the pitch-black coffin filled my vision.

Ever since we entered the chamber, we had noticed the coffin lid was open. However, we never had the chance to examine what was inside. Now that we were hanging above it and there happened to be a flashlight perched on the side, we were able to see the situation clearly.

Had he used some blood spraying spell to get free from her? Or had she injured Uncle Bao?

I looked doubtfully towards Uncle Bao. His face was tragically pale, not too far off from that of the female ghosts. Furthermore, he seemed to be struggling to even stand up again!

His shirt had been torn open. He had only tried to move a little when something rolled out from his robes into the corner. It glittered with white light, looking like a thread of silver as it rolled in the dark. It was the female ghosts inner core!

Hurry and grab the Yang Eye. We definitely cant let her get it! Uncle Bao struggled a little but collapsed once again, unable to stand. He could only cry out towards us.

Before I could speak, the female ghost stood up with a swish and leapt from the coffin, heading towards the inner core. Perhaps she had been injured by Uncle Bao for she walked quite slowly.

Ah Zhan! I called out.

Done! Ah Zhan responded. I suddenly felt the weight shift off me as Ah Zhan landed firmly on the floor. It turns out he had finally cut the fiendish hair at this critical moment.

The female ghost had already gotten close to the Yang Eye. Ah Zhan was clearly not going to make it in time after he dropped to the ground. Therefore, as he ran in the opposite direction towards the door, I knew he was going for the bloodwood sword. As long as he had that in hand, he still had a chance even if she got her inner core back!

The Yang Eye! We cannot let her get it back! Uncle Bao cried himself hoarse and struggled to get up. He clearly couldnt be any more anxious. Ah Zhan had grabbed the bloodwood sword and was flying over swiftly towards the female ghost.

She had already reached the Yang Eye. She didnt bend over to pick it up. Instead, she stretched her hand out and the treasure glowing faintly silver was sucked into her palm!

At this moment, Ah Zhan had arrived behind her. He didnt care about the situation and stabbed the dagger-sized bloodwood sword towards her!

Be careful! I shouted, afraid he was planning on gambling with his life.

There was a sudden swish and my vision grew blurry. I watched as the female ghost suddenly shrunk to the floor like a collapsed building, leaving only her beautiful clothing behind!

What was going on? Did Ah Zhan kill her? Was it over that quickly?!

The sudden turn of events kept me rooted in place. I forgot I was still hanging in the air and loosened my grip, causing me to swing back immediately.

I hadnt stabbed her yet! Ah Zhans voice also contained surprise.

Of course! Uncle Bao answered. To our surprise, he easily stood up and wiped the blood from his mouth. He seemed completely uninjured.

Ah Zhan looked at him. Seeing that it seemed to have all been an act by the elder, he was a little displeased. Although you are our senior, you should still explain a little.

Dont be impatient, young man. Hear me out slowly, hehe. Uncle Bao said good-naturedly. I had a reason for everything. Youll approve of my methods after hearing me out.

Im all ears.

Hey, get me down first. Im still hanging, you know!? I interrupted, reminding them that I was still in trouble after making huge contributions.

Ah Zhan raised his head. He didnt have to think about it or experiment anymore. He directly drew in the air and severed the hair around my waist. He didnt consider my broken rib and wrist, dropping me without any ceremony from up high. Luckily I was athletic and had sturdy legs. Along with Uncle Bao bracing me, I was able to avoid breaking another rib.

Impressive, kid. Your abilities have grown so quickly after only using it once! Uncle Bao praised Ah Zhan.

Well go save Bao Da Tong first! I brought it up with kind intentions.

Hes already fine. Uncle Bao responded. We father and son have a telepathic connection. He turned to Ah Zhan. In the future, you too will have a connection with people important to you.

But what happened here? Ah Zhan pointed at the ground.

As he gestured, the red clothes suddenly started writhing!