Chapter Thirteen: The White-Clad Female Ghost

I looked up at the ghostly woman hovering in the air and cursed, “Shameless!” Instantly, the ghost’s expression twisted with anger and embarrassment. She hissed, “What I hate most is people talking about my face. Today, you will die.” With that, she dove straight down at me, her razor-sharp claws reaching for my neck.

I froze, thinking, Damn, does she really need to take it so seriously… But as she lunged at me, I reacted quickly. Ever since the jade pendant had acknowledged me as its master, I’d felt my body changing day by day—my reflexes, my senses, everything sharper than before. I dodged to the side, and her claws swiped through empty air. She snapped her head toward me, let out an ear-piercing shriek, and lunged again.

I sidestepped once more, narrowly avoiding her attack. Frustration flashed across her face—missing twice had clearly worn her patience thin. She suddenly stopped, and in the blink of an eye, vanished. I froze, scanning the area in panic, but saw no sign of her. For a moment, I thought she’d been outwitted and left in humiliation. But the next moment, I realized how wrong I was.

After searching the area for a while and still not seeing her, I began to head back to my friends—just as Chu Mengxi let out a terrified scream. My blood ran cold, and I spun around, only to see the ghostly woman materializing behind me, her face deathly pale and eyes locked on mine. She struck me with an open palm, sending me flying.

I hit the ground and coughed violently, my stomach churning. When I finally staggered to my feet, blood was already seeping from the corner of my mouth. I wiped it away and spat a bloody glob onto the ground, swearing, “Damn it, even vengeful ghosts use dirty tricks now? You really think I’m scared of you? With a face like that, you want me as your sacrifice? Disgusting.”

The ghost burst into manic laughter, pleased to have finally injured me. But when she heard my last remark, her expression darkened. The pain shooting through my body burned away the last of my fear, replacing it with fury. She glared at me, venom in her voice: “You want to die!” With a wave of her hand, a surge of black ghostly energy formed a spectral skull in midair, its gaping maw snapping toward me.

Instinctively, I raised my right arm in defense. The black-and-white twin fishes tattooed there suddenly blazed with golden light, shooting from my arm straight into the skull’s mouth. In moments, holes pierced through the spectral skull, golden rays bursting outward. The ghost shrieked, clutching her face and retreating, while the twin fishes tore the ghostly head apart. When the smoke cleared, she was clutching her chest, spitting a breath of black mist, and gasped, “What is that? How can it be so strong? Impossible—black and white twin fish? Is it the Yangming Jade?”

As she spoke, fear widened her eyes. She stared at me for a long moment before muttering, “Impossible, impossible. How could the Yangming Jade appear here? It must be traces of the old seal’s power, nothing more.” A nervous smile flickered across her lips.

From a distance, I watched her shifting expressions and, mimicking a line from TV, said, “We could have left each other alone and gone our separate ways. If you don’t trouble us again, we can leave and not disturb your peace.”

She paused, as if hearing a joke, and floated in the air, laughing. “Peace? Did I hear you right? You’re amusing, kid. Even at death’s door, you’re still thinking about leaving each other alone. Interesting.” Suddenly, her laughter stopped, her face clouding with murderous intent. “I said you would die, and you will. No one can save you.”

She vanished before I could react, her laughter echoing all around me. I couldn’t determine her position. Remembering her previous ambush, I instinctively took the Yangming Jade from my pocket and held it before me. The pendant began to spin, faster and faster, until it hurt my hand and I let go. The jade shot upward, and above it appeared a golden eight-trigram diagram, enveloping the entire fourth floor. The ghost screamed, her wail sharper than ever, as if she’d been struck. She appeared on the open ground opposite me.

With her sudden appearance, the golden diagram contracted, pressing down on her. In panic, she unleashed an even stronger surge of ghostly energy, striking at the diagram. Cracks appeared on its surface. Sensing a weakness, she conjured two sharp ghostly claws and attacked again, shattering the diagram into shards, the golden light fading. The jade pendant dropped back into my hand.

She exhaled in relief, her brows furrowed as she stared at the jade. I looked back at her—summoning that eight-trigram diagram had utterly drained me. I was gasping for breath. After a moment, the ghost caught her breath and spat, “Damn it, the Yangming Jade really has reappeared. If your own power was stronger, that diagram would have suppressed me. You must be at your limit now. You dared injure me—let’s see what you can do next. Prepare to die!”

She charged at me again. Indeed, the use of the pendant’s power had left me terribly weak. I had hoped its power would frighten her off, but she wasn’t fooled.

Heart pounding, I moved aside, but she seemed to anticipate it—her claws slashed at my chest, tearing it open. I screamed in pain and staggered back, but she pursued, striking down with her palm. I raised my right arm to block, the twin fishes flying out again, but this time she showed no sign of pain. She crushed the fishes in her grip, forcing them to reattach to my arm, and sent me flying once more. My back slammed into the wall.

I couldn’t hold back—I coughed up blood. Looking down, I saw my chest was soaked with it. Sweat poured from my forehead as I tried to stand, but the moment I moved, two waves of ghostly energy bound me to the wall. Struggling only brought a searing, tearing pain to my chest. I bit down hard, sweat dripping in fat beads. My mind was growing foggy, as though I’d been drugged—I might pass out at any moment.

Off to the side, Chu Mengxi and Yu Wenzhou were huddled in the corner, pale with fear. Chu Mengxi shouted, “Lin Xuan, Lin Xuan, are you all right?”

The ghost whipped her head around, eyes locking on Chu Mengxi, who recoiled in terror, tears welling in her eyes. The ghost sneered at all of them, “Don’t worry, little girl. None of you are getting out of here. Today, every last one of you will be sacrifices for my freedom—one after the other.”

She turned back to me, grinning coldly. “Did you really think a brat like you could deal with me? I’ll let you watch yourself bleed out, watch you die in agony. Only then will my rage be soothed.”

Pinned against the wall, my limbs and body growing limp, I gasped for breath, forcing myself to lift my head and glare at her. My voice was hoarse as I said, “Let them go. They’re just ordinary people—this has nothing to do with them. Take it out on me.”

“Oh, kid, even facing death you’re worried about others? Such loyalty and righteousness! But I’m a ghost, not a human—your human values mean nothing to me. You’d better stop talking, or it’ll hurt more,” the ghost replied with a chilling laugh.

Hearing her refusal, I gritted my teeth, frustration burning in my chest. I struggled desperately against the bonds but couldn’t break free, only tearing at my wound. My face turned pale as I looked at Chu Mengxi, whose eyes brimmed with tears and a tangle of complex emotions.

I tried to smile at her, but even that brought a jolt of pain. Now, I didn’t even dare breathe deeply for fear of aggravating the wound. People say that when death nears, your life flashes before your eyes. It was true for me.

Looking back, my life wasn’t terrible, but I’d never known my father. My mother watched me with cold indifference, and the other children in the village mocked me. Only my master and my grandparents ever treated me kindly. Still, a bitterness festered in my heart—why did other children have loving parents, while I was denied both father and mother? Grandpa was right—fate is merciless, just a ceaseless cycle: live to old age, die alone, be reborn, repeat. The thought made me laugh again, even as pain seared through my chest. Compared to the ache in my heart, the pain of my wound was nothing.

The ghost frowned at my laughter, impatient. “I wonder how long you can keep laughing.” She raised her claws, sending a wave of dense ghostly energy crashing toward me. Just as it was about to hit, a sword of golden light flew up from below, shattering the attack and breaking the bonds that pinned me. I collapsed to the ground.

The ghost gaped in shock and turned to see a man walking up the stairs, a cigarette dangling from his mouth, arcs of electricity crackling around his hand. I looked up from the floor—my master had arrived. Joy surged in my chest, but when I tried to call out, blood welled up. I spat it onto the ground, bracing myself.

The ghost eyed my master warily. “Who dares interfere?”

Leaning weakly against the wall, I watched my master step onto the fourth floor and say calmly, “Tan Boqing.”

At the name, the ghost’s body trembled, and she retreated in terror. My master advanced, his aura growing with each step. He stopped a few paces from her and said, “Qing Mo Ghost General, you’re bold to harm my disciple. Are you seeking death?” His voice rose to a roar at the end.

The ghost shrank from his overwhelming presence. “I—I didn’t know he was your disciple! And I didn’t mean to hurt him—it’s all a misunderstanding, Tan Boqing. Let’s talk this out, please.”

Master’s expression was cold. “Talk? Laughable. No matter what, today you’ll be destroyed. I gave you a chance, but you really thought you could turn the world upside down?”

He made a hand seal, sending a golden light into my jade pendant. Instantly, the pain in my body eased, and my wounds began to heal. He stomped his foot, vanishing, and reappeared before the ghost, his fist wreathed in purple lightning. He struck her directly, sending her soul form flying, then vanished again, reappearing to land another blow, this time to her brow.

A blood-curdling scream echoed as the ghost collapsed, her soul flickering unsteadily. My master stood over her, hands behind his back. She glared up at him, gasping, “If my strength were restored, I’d never fear you, old man!”

He said nothing, only raised his arm and beckoned with a finger. “Purple Lightning, descend!”

A peal of thunder cracked overhead, and a pillar of purple lightning as thick as a barrel crashed through the roof, blasting a massive hole. The bolt struck the ghost, burning a gaping hole in her chest. As the lightning faded, she stared at my master with hatred. “I, Qing Mo, cultivated for a thousand years, once served beside the King of Chujiang, was a power among many. My great vengeance unfulfilled, and now I die here—I cannot accept it! Tan Boqing, you will pay for this. The King of Chujiang will avenge me, hahahaha…” Her laughter faded as her soul disintegrated. My master watched coldly. “In the end, it was nothing but a fool’s delusion.”

He turned and strode toward me. Standing over me, he shouted, “Weren’t you supposed to be at a class meeting? How did you end up here? If I hadn’t put a tracker in your phone, you’d be a ghost by now, you brat. And you dare lie to me?”

By now, the pendant’s healing had closed my wounds. I remembered the phone in my pocket, pulled it out, and saw the screen was shattered. I hung my head, unable to meet his gaze. He helped me up with a sigh. “We’ll talk about this at home.”

Clutching my broken phone, I glanced at my master. He helped me over to the others. “Let’s go. It’s over.”

Chu Mengxi stood, her voice trembling. “Lin Xuan, are you okay? I was so scared…”

I shook my head silently. My master, standing nearby, turned to Chu Mengxi. “Mengxi, if I tell your father about tonight, what do you think he’ll do?”

Chu Mengxi blanched. “Uncle Tan, I know I was wrong. Please don’t tell my dad.”

He patted her head. “Let’s go home.”

Yu Wenzhou carried the unconscious Liu Xiaohui on his back, trailing behind us. All the way, he kept looking at me as if I were a monster. Annoyed, I snapped, “Wenzhou, what are you staring at? Is there something written on my face?”

He laughed awkwardly. “No, no… But Lin Xuan, you were amazing! What was that golden light? How did you make the eight trigram diagram? Why was the ghost so afraid? Could you teach me? And, sir, how did you summon lightning with a gesture? Are you immortals like on TV? Can you do magic? Fly? Turn invisible?”

His barrage of questions left us all exasperated. My master and I exchanged a glance and shouted in unison, “Shut up!”

Feeling everyone’s eyes on him, he finally fell silent. As we neared the school gate, I saw Wu Liang and the others peering inside. When they spotted us, Wu Liang shouted, “Look, they’re out! Thank goodness, I was scared stiff.”

Yu Wenzhou, still carrying Liu Xiaohui, walked up to Wu Liang, annoyed. “Seriously, you guys ditched us and ran! And you have the nerve to wait here?”

Wu Liang, embarrassed, was silent for a moment before asking, “Where’s Zhou Ping? When we went looking for him, he was gone.”

I froze, suddenly remembering Zhou Ping was still inside the building. I slapped my forehead. My master gave me a puzzled look. “Master, there’s still someone inside—we forgot him.”

Yu Wenzhou, reminded, added, “Yeah, Zhou Ping’s still inside. We left in such a hurry.”

Master rolled his eyes. “Those who need to go home, go home. You stay here and wait for me. I’ll get him.”

A short while later, master came out carrying Zhou Ping, who was still unconscious. I went to meet them. Master glanced behind me. “Where’s the Chu family girl?”

“Her family took her home. The others all followed your instructions and left. Master, I was wrong. I shouldn’t have lied to you—I won’t do it again.”

His expression darkened. “You want there to be a next time? If I hadn’t arrived in time, you’d be dead. You think you’d still be here talking? Forget it. You know your mistake. You’re growing up, after all. Consider this your first real test. Come on, let’s take Zhou Ping to the hospital—he’s pretty badly hurt. If we wait any longer and his wound gets infected, it’ll be trouble.” He ruffled my hair.

I nodded, and together we took Zhou Ping to the hospital. Somehow, master found his parents’ number and explained the situation before hanging up.

By the time we got home, it was already eleven at night. I stripped off my shirt—my chest wound had fully healed, not a scar in sight. Lying in bed, a thousand questions whirled through my mind, none with any clear answer.

I turned to gaze at the moonlight on the balcony when master entered, saw I was still awake, and dropped onto my bed with a thud. He gave me a little smack. “Why aren’t you asleep, kid? Don’t you have school tomorrow?”

I shook my head, then looked at him. “Tomorrow’s the weekend, master. I have so many questions. Will you explain things to me? Otherwise, I don’t think I can sleep.”

He glanced at me, sat on the chair by my bed, poured a cup of water, took a sip, then gestured for me to continue.