Chapter 542: Shadow Binding a City
Chapter 542: Shadow Binding a City
There's nothing more terrifying than a ghost's laughter, and the entire Mingzhou Prefecture was gripped with fear after the sudden scare that night.
The Truth Sect members who remained in the city were quick to send out their people, but as soon as the green banners were unfurled, the ghosts had already vanished without a trace. Only the trembling citizens and a mysterious crimson lantern hanging high above the archway remained.
Looking at the countless closed doors and windows, and hearing the occasional cries from a distance, they trembled with anger, "How audacious! How dare they! The Altar Deity is haunting, this is against all reason!"
These Truth Sect members had come from the Official State with grand ambitions. They were recruiting soldiers and collecting money and grain, determined to make a name for themselves. But first, they encountered the grain bandits in the mountains who not only refused to hand over the grain but also dared to rob it under the guise of the Grain Protection General. This had already infuriated them beyond measure.
However, they didn't truly fear those mountain bandits. After all, they were just a disorganized mob. Gathering a group of skilled experts with secret arts, dealing with such a crowd would be an easy task.
But to recruit these people, relying solely on a small amount of money, grain, and the reputation of the Truth Sect was far from enough. In the end, they needed the most tangible thing—blood food.
This batch of blood food had been prepared specifically for the Truth Sect, who had settled in Mingzhou Prefecture long ago. When they heard that the Scarlet Lantern Society was so unyielding, refusing to give even a portion and openly provoking them, they were already enraged.
What more was there to say?
Originally, they had planned to pay a visit the next day at noon, but now they couldn't wait to go to Red Gate Town that very night. However, they had to hold back due to the possibility of an ambush during the night.
But as they suppressed their anger throughout the night, they decided to directly level Red Gate Town the next day. However, they didn't expect that on that very day...
A plague broke out...
This plague came out of nowhere. At least half of the city's population, who had only been scared the night before, woke up the next morning feeling dazed and sick.
The illness wasn't severe enough to be life-threatening, but it caused dizziness, restlessness, and labored breathing, as if something was weighing down on their chests. Even the street vendors and wine sellers on both sides of the road didn't open their shops.
At this moment, the city seemed like a ghost town.
"This plague came so suddenly, could it be that someone poisoned the city? Or perhaps someone has set up an altar and invited the Plague Deity?"
The Truth Sect members were both shocked and furious. For the time being, they had to put aside other matters and immediately dispatch people to investigate. They also sent a team to forcefully bring over the Five Ghost Manager from Caoxin Hall.
Currently, the Skilled Young Master of Caoxin Hall was not present, and the Five Ghost Manager had no intention of challenging the Truth Sect. Reluctantly, he came over, took a look, and then left with a cold smile and a wave of his hand, "It's not a plague, nor is it poisoning."
"This is beyond our capabilities at Caoxin Hall. You should seek more capable people..."
"..."
The Truth Sect members were somewhat annoyed by the Five Ghost Manager's arrogance and his cryptic words. However, the numerous noble lords who had pledged their allegiance to the Truth Sect all came to inquire, so they had no choice but to offer a reward and invite various experts from Mingzhou Prefecture to examine the situation.
With a generous reward, a fortune-teller who happened to be passing through Mingzhou Prefecture accepted the invitation and entered the government office. He explained, "There's no plague here, but something far worse..."
"Someone has used a certain object to bind the entire city's population."
"..."
"Bound?"
The Truth Sect's grandmaster in charge of this matter was shocked.
In the secret arts, there were binding, suppressing, enchanting, quelling, and even mutual generation and destruction, each with its unique meaning. Only the most skilled in malevolent arts would fully understand these concepts, but others had also heard of them and were equally astonished.
"What kind of object has the power to bind an entire city's population?"
"..."
"Hehe, the object that can bind an entire city's population must be something that once brought blessings to the city and has now been refined..."
The fortune-teller let out a bitter laugh and sighed, "In all my years of traveling south and north, I've never seen such audacity..."
"Being able to perform such a powerful technique is one thing, but daring to use it is another. Even if the sorcerer isn't afraid of incurring sin, harming heavenly harmony, or facing the wrath of vengeful spirits, the ancestors of the malevolent arts will surely send someone to deal with them."
"..."
Amidst the bitter laughter, he didn't say much more, nor did he accept the Truth Sect's recruitment or reward. After revealing the key point, he waited to see how the Truth Sect would handle the situation.
Just then, an urgent message arrived from Old Yin Mountain. The grandmasters and leaders who were leading the troops to suppress the grain bandits sent word that their soldiers had suddenly become disheartened and disorganized.
Their soldiers were provided by the noble lords of the city, and in terms of physical strength, they were superior to the mountain bandits who often went hungry. Recently, the grain bandits had gained momentum, but the troops were still able to hold them off.
However, now it seemed like all their soldiers had suddenly lost their spirit. They couldn't even get out of bed in the morning, and even with the threat of whips, they remained listless. Forget about going into battle; they wouldn't even bother to dodge if the enemy charged at them...
"Binding the people in the city is one thing, but how did they also bind our dispatched troops?"
"The Heavenly Will General of the Truth Sect, his eyes burning with impatience, grew angrier the more he thought about it, "What a bold move by the Red Lantern Lady, a mere Altar Deity, to act so tyrannically?"
...
...
"They're just too good at bullying..."
Even earlier, when the news reached Red Gate Town, the consequences were far more severe. The previous day, Sweet Potato Burn had brought the news back during the night, and the entire Scarlet Lantern Society was thrown into chaos.
The Red Lantern Lady had no idea what was happening. She had only heard that the Truth Sect was sending people to attack, and she was both furious and anxious. The Right Guardian wasn't by her side, and she was almost in tears from anger.
The Truth Sect was indeed being too domineering. They had said there was no more Blood Nourishment, and they were willing to give the remaining one or two hundred jars to them, but they didn't want it. What more did they want?
The Left Guardian, Shen Hongzi, was exceptionally furious, "We said we could give them the remaining Blood Nourishment, but the Truth Sect refused and insisted on attacking?"
"Did...you deliver the message?"
"..."
"Isn't that right?"
Sweet Potato Burn wiped her tears and said, "Sister, I went and told them that we didn't want to give up the Blood Nourishment, but it was stolen. The Truth Sect hasn't even cleared their suspicions yet, and it's too much to pretend they don't know about this."
"But instead of understanding, they not only didn't forgive us, but also looked down on us for having less Blood Nourishment. They said they're coming to attack us and even want to demolish the Red Lantern Lady's temple and take her as a foot bath slave!"
"..."
The Left Guardian was instantly enraged, "How dare they!"
"Even if she's not capable, she's still our Red Lantern Lady. How can they make her a foot bath slave?"
Sweet Potato Burn said, "Yes, Sister, we can't bear it anymore. Our society has three to five hundred men. Let's call them all and fight this battle with them..."
If the Left Guardian, Shen Hongzi, had enough time, she might have guessed that something was amiss. But at the moment, she couldn't spare the thought. She only wore a bitter expression and said, "With that group of people, what do you expect? As soon as they heard the Truth Sect was coming to attack, those who could run probably already fled."
"What nonsense?"
Sweet Potato Burn was taken aback for a moment. She glanced at the noticeably empty Red Gate Town and then reacted, quickly grasping the Left Guardian's hand, "Sister, don't worry. I won't run. I'll stay here with you, come what may..."
The Left Guardian was deeply touched, "You're truly a good sister..."
"But if it comes to the worst, we'll have to leave too. It's just that our Red Lantern Lady will suffer..."
"She truly can't leave."
"..."
"..."
"What?"
At this moment, in the courtyard of Green Stone Town, Hu Ma had sent Sweet Potato Burn on an errand, trusting in her abilities. He was leisurely drinking tea, waiting for the right moment.
Unexpectedly, before Sweet Potato Burn could return with the results of her task, a guest arrived—Xu Clan Chief from the Scarlet Lantern Society. He had rushed to the courtyard in the middle of the day, accompanied by his old slave and a captivating, alluring woman, looking worn out from their journey.
As soon as they entered the courtyard, he went to the water barrel and scooped a mug of water to drink, saying, "It's a big matter."
"The Truth Sect is using the pretext of Blood Nourishment to target our Scarlet Lantern Society. They're launching an attack at noon today. Those who could flee from the society have already left. The ones with good information departed before dawn yesterday..."
"..."
Hu Ma was momentarily stunned. He stood up to respond, "Then, Uncle Xu..."
"I left before dawn yesterday..."
Xu Clan Chief drank half a mug of water and then handed the rest to his old slave. Only then did he turn to Hu Ma and say, "Do you have a swift horse here? I need to return to the mountains to hide for a while."
'Wait, if you, a grand Clan Chief, are running away, what will happen to our Red Lantern Lady?'
Hu Ma was dumbfounded. He had only asked Sweet Potato Burn to put some pressure on the Scarlet Lantern Society and take responsibility for what she should. How did this woman end up disbanding the entire society? Just as he was feeling perplexed, he caught sight of Little Hong Tang, who had been sent to the city to gather information, returning. He quickly called out to Li Wa Zi, "First, prepare some food for Uncle Xu. Uncle Xu, do you remember? When we first joined the society, you helped us..."
After comforting Xu Clan Chief and asking him to eat something before heading to the mountains, Hu Ma found an excuse to tend to the animals and made his way to the stable. There, he listened to Little Hong Tang's description of what had happened in Mingzhou City, and his scalp began to tingle:
"Release a plague?"
I didn't ask Sweet Potato Burn to unleash a plague in Mingzhou...
But upon further inquiry, he realized it wasn't a plague. Sweet Potato Burn practiced the Soul Punishment Art and didn't have the ability to unleash a plague in the city. After asking about the specific situation, he finally understood, "This woman used that Malevolent Spiritual Treasure?"
PS Book Recommendation: I, Zhang Mu, styled Zhang Ma Zi, today, as a bandit leader, sit on the golden throne and make a three-point pact with the Immortals—Fate Anglers, die; Heaven Meddlers, die; Troublemakers of Tranquil World, decapitate, soul annihilation, no good death!
"A Good Fortune World"
(End of Chapter)
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