The cold wind blew, and the shadows of ghosts loomed.
The dead woman stood before him again.
Facing all of this, Li Jue surprisingly did not show any fear. Perhaps, the torment of the soul was more painful than death or monsters.
The ghost formed by Situ Yan finally spoke faintly.
"I don't hate you, and I can't kill you." Her voice was icy, as if coming from the depths of the underworld.
"I..." Li Jue looked at her, at a loss for words for a moment, not knowing what to say.
Suddenly, Situ Yan urgently yelled, "You need to leave!"
"What's wrong with you?" Li Jue was somewhat frightened, seemed to be a little confused, and remained sitting on the ground, not moving back.
"Ah—"
Situ Yan looked up to the sky and let out a sharp cry, the cold wind howling, the trees swaying.
In an instant, the lakeside became bone-chilling, as if in a realm of ghosts, and her eyes gradually emitted a crimson light.
"No...” But she struggled to croak these words, as if in some kind of pain, lifted her head, and shouted at Li Jue again, "You need to leave!"
It was only then that Li Jue felt something was amiss. He got up and staggered backward.
But as he watched him leave, Situ Yan's black hair suddenly rose, revealing an entire face covered in dark blood vessels, a horrifying and menacing ghost face!
"Stay!" Her voice turned completely cold.
Her attitude changed rapidly.
Raising her hand, her ghostly figure instantly pounced toward Li Jue.
On the other side, Song Qingyi, who had been secretly observing for a long time, no longer stood by. She said to Chu Liang, "I'll deal with it."
With that, she leaped forward, and a green glow surged from her palm, exuding from a jade ruler - a legendary ancient divine weapon called River-Quantifying Jade Ruler. Song Qingyi's version was a replica of the River-Quantifying Jade Ruler, called Inch-Heart Ruler.
There were many such replicas in the cultivation world, usually created by the original owners of the treasures. The high-quality replicas were often not inferior in grade to the original treasures.
The Inch-Heart Ruler exuded a strong righteous energy as it soared through the air and struck at Situ Yan, who was about to pounce on Li Jue, catching her off guard.
Thanks to her now being a ghost, her form was elusive and shifted several feet in an instant, barely escaping being hit.
But Song Qingyi's attack followed closely, as she tossed the ruler, landing a blow directly at Situ Yan's waist with a muffled sound.
Bang—
The ethereal body was hit, and the ghostly figure dispersed into a cloud of black mist, falling heavily to the ground.
The jade ruler fluttered back into Song Qingyi's palm. Just as she was about to pursue the advantage, a figure flashed and intercepted her.
Li Jue opened his arms to block Song Qingyi, and pleaded, "Master Song, don't kill Situ Yan. She's not a bad person, she's very pitiful..."
"Li Jue!" Song Qingyi urged, "Situ Yan is already dead! Now she has become a ghost. Only by dispersing her can she enter the cycle of reincarnation properly. Letting her continue like this will only prevent her from being reborn for eternity!"
"Ah?" Li Jue trembled at the words.
Song Qingyi's words were not deceptive. In the cultivation world, the consensus was that... when dealing with ghosts, regardless of good or evil, dispersing them into the cycle of reincarnation was an absolute act of kindness.
During this delay, Situ Yan, who was lying on the ground, slowly regained consciousness and let out a sharp scream, sending a burst of black mist in their direction!
The black mist surged with the wind, instantly turning into an endless black fog that shrouded the entire lakeside.
"Trying to escape?" Song Qingyi immediately leaped high into the air, evading the shroud of black fog. She then raised the golden scripture half-page above her head, ensuring that the ghostly figure in the black fog could not escape by constantly shining a clear light below.
But no figure appeared to emerge.
After a long while, as the night wind crept in, the black fog by the lakeside gradually dissipated, and Song Qingyi landed again.
The scene in front of her, however, left her stunned.
Li Jue sat slumped on the ground, looking bewildered, evidently dazed by the recent experience.
Beside him, another Li Jue also looked bewildered, surveying his surroundings.
Indeed, there were two Li Jues by the lakeside!
"What... what's going on?" Li Jue A panicked.
Li Jue B also looked terrified, immediately moved away from the other, and then looked at Song Qingyi, "Master Song..."
Song Qingyi frowned as she looked at the two identical Li Jues.
Who was the real one?
"I am the real one..." "I am the real one!" the two Li Jues said simultaneously.
Song Qingyi was at a loss for words.
At that moment, footsteps could be heard from the nearby bushes, and a handsome man with a smile slowly emerged.
Chu Liang made a dazzling entrance.
He went over to Li Jue A and said with a smile, "I have a way. The fake Li Jue hasn't met me. Whoever can say my name is the real one."
"You are Chuliang!" Li Juejia beside him immediately answered.
Li Jueyi was stunned, speechless.
At this moment, the eyes of Chuliang, Song Qingyi, and Li Juejia all turned to him.
At this critical moment, Chuliang suddenly moved, half a gold brick suddenly smashed towards the back of Li Juejia's head, bang!
With one brick, black energy surged, Li Juejia clutched his head, groaning strangely, instantly transforming back into the appearance of a painted skin ghost!
Chuliang did not give her a chance to struggle, with the left hand revealing the brick's true form, and the right hand holding a glistening sword!
Chirp—
The long sword pierced through the body of the painted skin ghost, immediately cracking its ethereal form!
"Situ Yan..." Li Jue gently called out.
The painted skin ghost turned back, looking at Li Jue, a glimpse of relief in its eyes.
Bang.
The ghost body shattered, turning into dust.
"You..." Song Qingyi was curious, "It clearly spoke your name, how did you know it was fake?"
"I don't know, but I thought that as the painted skin ghost lurked in the academy every day, it might have heard my name." Chuliang smiled, "Asking questions was just to get close to it, a brick is more secure."
"Thank you so much for this." Song Qingyi said.
If it weren't for Chuliang being here, the painted skin ghost's trick would have caused her a lot of trouble.
"Everyone here is a righteous cultivator, so slaying demons and monsters is our duty." Chuliang waved his hand.
Speaking of which, he should also thank the painted skin ghost for causing some twists and turns in the end. If it had been easily subdued by Song Qingyi, he really wouldn't have been able to intervene, after all, it was a matter in her Confucian territory.
Now, it was a natural move to take the lead, and Song Qingyi should be thankful for that too, quite good.
Only Li Jue looked lost and confused, staring blankly at the place where Situ Yan had disappeared, unsure of what to do.
Chuliang stepped forward and said, "If you want to atone, then go to the authorities and confess to accidental killing. Seeking death will not escape all consequences."
"Okay..." Li Jue nodded lightly.
Song Qingyi's eyes also showed some sorrow, feeling that Situ Yan's life was pitiful, but also committed many wrongs, not knowing how to judge.
The calm lake ripples, the night wind blows helplessly.
...
"Damn it!"
Not far from here, in an inn in Yanjiao City, a figure in a black robe suddenly smashed the lamp on the table, which contained an extinguished black candle.
Snap!
The lamp fell to the ground, shattering, as the black-robed figure clenched their teeth.
"I spent so much effort refining the painted ghost. If I could gather more souls with its help, I would have a chance to be promoted in the next soul-gathering ceremony!"
"Just a few days, and it was killed by someone..."
"It's really hateful!"
"I want to see who dares to touch my painted ghost..."