Chapter 316: Calamity Witch

Under the deep night sky, pale snowflakes fell into the depths of a pitch-black mountain. A dense fog had arisen, varying in thickness, filthy and murky, carrying a chill more piercing than melting ice and snow, spreading all the way to the foot of the mountain.

The fog, infused with the presence of the Dusk Maiden and a massive fluctuation of haunting psychic energy, was filled with a heavy scent of moisture and the stench of decaying blood. The cold wind and snow brewed within the clouds, covering the entire land, foreboding doom.

Standing on the desolate highway, the Dusk Maiden gazed into the distance at the endpoint of the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts, as if waiting for something.

Along the way, challenges from hauntings, interceptions by The Midnight Watchers Society, and the sudden appearance of Gu Qianqian and Nanling Rao Hua, who had slain numerous hauntings, followed one after another, causing significant disruption.

However.

These unexpected events were within the Dusk Maiden’s expectations. Such a large-scale haunting activity would be suspicious without any obstacles.

But she didn’t care.

With the Plague Taisui’s organization already spread throughout the city, intercepting and killing hauntings couldn’t shake the foundation of tonight’s Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts.

In fact, the scattered flesh containing psychic energy fluctuations across the city would become a breeding ground for the Plague Taisui organization.

At this moment, the endpoint of tonight’s Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts was just beyond the mountain, less than five kilometers ahead.

If any strong figures from Hua City’s Midnight Watchers Society or among the hauntings were to challenge tonight, they would surely be waiting ahead.

Though the Dusk Maiden didn’t believe that any psychic or haunting could stop her progress now.

But to be safe, before the decisive and brutal battle began, it was necessary to ascertain the enemy’s strength and numbers.

Soon, the wind suddenly picked up.

From afar, a Black Cloak Man with two pairs of insect membrane wings on his back broke through the fog and landed beside the Dusk Maiden, clasping his hands in respect, “My lady, the situation ahead has been clarified!”

She lowered her gaze, glanced at the Black Cloak Man before her, and said coldly, “Speak, Nimblebug.”

Upon hearing this, the Black Cloak Man, referred to as Nimblebug, showed a complex and peculiar expression, hesitated for a moment, and said, “As you expected, there is indeed a haunting blocking the way ahead, but…”

“But what?” the Dusk Maiden pressed.

“But the situation you anticipated, with numerous hauntings and psychics gathering, hasn’t occurred. There’s only one haunting blocking the way ahead,” Nimblebug replied.

Only one? Ha!

The Dusk Maiden sneered inwardly with disdain and asked, “How strong?”

“The psychic energy fluctuation barely reaches Class A,” Nimblebug said seriously, paused, and then flattered, “I believe the other hauntings and psychics are probably intimidated by your overwhelming power, scared out of their wits.”

Such a vast Hua City, only one Class A Haunting came to block the way?

It seems I have somewhat overestimated their courage.

The Dusk Maiden, harboring her thoughts, steadied herself and issued a command to the assembled hauntings, “All subordinates of the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts, heed my order. Enter battle-ready state immediately. When you encounter the haunting blocking our path, do not hold back. Follow the original plan… attack with full force!”

Even though the roadblock consisted of only one Class A Haunting, underestimating it was not an option. It was essential to crush it with overwhelming might… the Dusk Maiden mused.

“Yes!” the hauntings of the Night Parade responded in unison, and the psychic energy fluctuation surged to its peak.

In an instant, the silence of the rural road seemed to resurrect with a sinister aura, as if the intense scent of blood had brought it to life.

The fog churned, and the Night Parade, composed of over a hundred psychics, hauntings, and nearly a thousand newly spawned hauntings by the Plague Taisui organization, moved forward like a colossal war machine.

Above, the seemingly tranquil clouds were turbulent with hidden currents, occasionally lit by dazzling arcs of electricity skimming their undersides.

With the fierce wind swirling snowflakes into the air, the eerie fog, thick with psychic energy fluctuation, appeared ahead, rapidly reducing visibility.

The cold began to seep into Lu Yibei’s bones, a chill so deep it made her feel nauseous with tension and pressure.

“Whoo-!”

She took a deep breath, adjusted her stance, and gently touched the Death Owl Emblem on her chest, reaching out to Bai Kai.

Though a haunting possessing the Death Owl Emblem was somewhat suspicious, under the interference of strong psychic energy fluctuation, only this standardized psychic artifact from The Midnight Watchers Society could ensure communication.

“Shui-Ge, they’re coming…”

After a brief silence, Bai Kai’s voice echoed in Lu Yibei’s ear.

“Got it!”

“Yibei, I need three to four minutes to prepare on my end. During this time, do your best to hold off those hauntings, and then…”

“And then, it’s time for me and the Dusk Maiden to settle the score, right?” Lu Yibei interrupted.

“Yes, it won’t take more than four minutes,” Bai Kai replied.

“Yibei, the Plague Taisui’s organization is scattered throughout the city, able to replenish the Dusk Maiden’s psychic energy in some bizarre way. Until my secret weapon is ready, do not act recklessly.”

“Understood, leave this side to me. You just focus on getting ready,” Lu Yibei said.

“…”

After a moment of silence, Bai Kai responded weakly, “Alright…”

Although, with the power of Hua City’s barrier, Lu Yibei only needed to defeat the Dusk Maiden to stop the Night Parade, Bai Kai’s analysis, comparing Lu Yibei’s and the Dusk Maiden’s strengths, concluded that Lu Yibei’s chances of victory were only about thirty percent.

The situation was not optimistic.

Just as Bai Kai was worrying, his connection with Lu Yibei, established through the Death Owl, was severed.

“…”

Bai Kai held the Death Owl Emblem in his hand, stunned for a moment, then gradually tightened his grip. He then retrieved a single-use talisman from his pocket, meant to activate Hua City’s barrier, and began infusing it with psychic energy.

In the darkness.

As Bai Kai’s psychic energy was absorbed by the talisman like a whale swallowing water, the first incantation on it slowly began to glow…

Feeling a strong psychic energy fluctuation, Lu Yibei looked up ahead. From behind the dense fog, the slightly contemptuous voice of the Dusk Maiden drifted towards her.

“Little girl, step aside now, and I might just spare your life.”

Lu Yibei smirked, “Old witch, I’d like to say, if you give up the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts now, I might spare you too. Heck, I’ll even throw in two hundred yuan in supermarket gift cards and a hundred in gaming credits.”

“How about that? Tempting, isn’t it?”

“…”

After a brief silence, the Dusk Maiden coldly said, “You’re overestimating your abilities, not knowing life from death!”

“So, no deal then?” Lu Yibei shrugged. “Then by the unwritten rules of the rivers and lakes, it’s just us two…”

Before she could finish, a fierce wind swept across, and something charged towards them.

Damn, not following the rules of the rivers and lakes! Lu Yibei cursed inwardly.

The moment the first group of hauntings appeared in her sight, she did not hesitate to detonate the Alchemical Bomb she had planted earlier.

“Boom-Boom-!”

The thunderous explosions rang out one after another within seconds.

The flames bursting forth from beneath the ground mingled with the stench of blood raining from the torn bodies of the hauntings, creating a lurid “flower” blooming upon the earth.

The terrifying heat wave rolled out chaotically in all directions, mercilessly uprooting everything, with molten flames converging to illuminate this bleak and desolate world.

Explosions, scorching heat waves, followed by a poisonous gas infused with disaster water…

Within moments, the first wave of hauntings had been completely obliterated, leaving behind nothing but corpses and debris.

But.

Before Lu Yibei could catch her breath, accompanied by a whisper from the distant Dusk Maiden, the second wave of hauntings broke through the thick smoke from the intense explosion and swooped in.

Thirty seconds.

Lu Yibei muttered to herself, then fiercely stomped on the ground, leaping into the air. As she retreated backwards, she anticipated the hauntings’ trajectories while pulling out the first Completion Potion from her jacket pocket and downing it in one gulp.

The psychic energy fluctuations of these hauntings, spawned by the Plague Taisui, were weak, but they seemed to possess some specialized physical strength, moving at astonishing speeds that nearly breached the defense line and headed for the mountains behind.

Just then, a muffled sound of flesh being torn apart echoed.

“Thump-!”

A flash of steel.

After slaying the foremost two hauntings with her sword, Lu Yibei, having practiced Qing Ji’s footwork countless times, dashed forward like a specter.

Then.

Accompanied by the sound of the glass vial of the Completion Potion shattering on the ground and the final incantation chanted by Lu Yibei, a pure white light burst forth from the fog.

“…the energy of the four directions returns, invoke the ninety-five curse, Four Beasts Bright Sky Cannon!”

In a breath’s time, a majestic and powerful white light burst forth, spreading in all directions.

Amid the faint echoes of dragon and phoenix cries, the spell formation’s chanting continued relentlessly.

“Desolate wilderness, withered grass, bone remains…”

“…wind and rain follow, vast and scorching…”

“…a thousand zhang of snow. North Wind and White Snow!”

Spell formations, adorned with splendid streams of light, flew toward the haunting engulfed in white light.

Then, a violent explosion echoed.

The fierce blaze struck the blood and flesh shield that suddenly opened up in front of the Dusk Maiden, its dark green tissue rapidly disintegrating even as it proliferated at an astonishing rate.

Moments later, as the light ahead gradually faded, the hauntings hadn’t even had time to scream before they seemed to evaporate on the spot.

One minute… Lu Yibei thought to herself.

If it’s just about intercepting these cannon fodder hauntings from the Dusk Maiden’s underlings, it seems quite simple? Lu Yibei mused internally.

The dark green flesh in front of the Dusk Maiden parted like a curtain, and looking forward after both assaults were thwarted by Lu Yibei, she appeared unsurprised, merely waving her hand calmly.

“Continue!”

As her words fell, those lurking in the dense fog, their skin ulcerated and bodies covered with dark green granulation tissue, charged forward once again.

A Class A Haunting possessing such exaggerated destructive power didn’t surprise her.

But how long could she maintain such power?

After all, she was alone, how could she withstand the onslaught of thousands of hauntings?

If she made a single mistake, allowing a haunting infused with the flesh of Plague Taisui to pass through this area, to contaminate the Hua City reservoir, or if she fell due to exhaustion of her psychic energy, she would lose.

Moreover, this was just the beginning! The Dusk Maiden thought, her eyes narrowing slightly, a cold smile appearing on her lips.

Elsewhere.

On the rooftop of the tallest building in Hua City-the Hua City Financial Center.

As a faintly glowing water curtain rose from the ground, gradually revealing the image at the foot of the Hua City reservoir, two tall men in black suits stepped aside, clearing the view for the woman seated behind them.

On the water screen, a petite girl holding a Broken Sword danced through interlacing steps, casting a spray of cold light.

Her figure continuously darted about, her pale white hair fluttering behind her, and then the glow of spell formations emerged from her palms, instantly enveloping the entire scene in flames.

Seeing this, the woman wearing an eyepatch spit out the grape she had been eating halfway through, exclaimed in surprise, “My goodness, letting a haunting stop the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts, is this Bai Kai’s plan?”

“What in the world is going on in his head? Entrusting the safety of a city to a haunting? Isn’t he afraid of relying on the wrong… no, not just the wrong person, but on child labor!”

“Tsk tsk, just this? At this rate, she’ll be exhausted to death over there! She might as well come and beg me!”

The woman muttered to herself, shaking her head, then turned to the two men beside her and asked, “Golden Horn, Silver Horn, what are your chances of intercepting that what’s-her-name lady?”

“Given the current situation, there’s a fifty percent chance,” one man responded.

The other man glanced at the water screen in front and added, “If that witch type exhausts some more hauntings, it could go up to seventy percent.”

“Hmm,” the woman nodded, “Then go!”

Seeing the two men hesitating, not moving an inch, she frowned and added, “What are you waiting for?”

“Now that all the hauntings in Hua City are scared stiff, do you really think…” she gestured dismissively at her chest, “that a little girl who hasn’t even grown up can stop a Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts? Don’t be ridiculous!”

“Even though I’m here to watch Bai Kai’s antics, I’m still an Inspector of The Midnight Watchers Society. I can’t just stand by and watch a disaster unfold.”

As she spoke, a sly glint appeared in her single eye, and she pointed at the image of Lu Yibei fighting fiercely on the water screen, smiling, “Besides, I’m not asking you to help her.”

“Once you get there, wait a bit. Only act after she falls.”

The two men exchanged a glance, then nodded respectfully to the woman, “Understood!”

With that, they took off, transforming into streaks of light heading towards the Hua City reservoir.

Once her subordinates had left, the woman picked up another glistening grape, bringing it to her crimson lips. But as she glanced at the water screen, her eyes widened, her lips parted, and the grape fell to the ground.

“Well, I thought…” she began, then burst into laughter, “No, this is how it should be-far more entertaining!”

Two minutes…

Lu Yibei silently counted, looking ahead.

Her heart was pounding wildly, the rhythmic beat echoing like the ticking of a clock in her ears.

In those two minutes, she had advanced 800 meters, taking down over 500 hauntings. Ahead, the Dusk Maiden’s Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts was within reach.

“Ha-!”

She took a deep breath, steadied her ragged breathing, and straightened up, sword in hand, expressionless, “Is this it? Is this all you’ve got? I thought you were supposed to be impressive!”

“No wonder you got taken down by a cripple!”

According to Bai Kai, the “secret weapon” would be ready in about three minutes. With at least one to two minutes left, Lu Yibei was already feeling the fatigue.

To ensure no haunting got through, she realized she had to resort to some extreme measures.

Like… trying to provoke the Dusk Maiden, making herself the target of attack in a short time.

“Hmph!” The Dusk Maiden scoffed, glancing at the Black Cloak Man beside her who had yet to act, “Your strength is waning, what will you…”

“You got taken down by a cripple.”

The Dusk Maiden’s face darkened, “What good is your sharp tongue…”

“You got taken down by a cripple!”

“Ha-!” The Dusk Maiden took a deep breath, her voice icy, “Is that all you can say?”

“Of course not!” Lu Yibei shook his head, blurting out, “You almost got taken down by a rabbit!”

“You!” The Dusk Maiden’s eyes widened, her chest heaving, but she quickly laughed, “Trying to stall for time, huh? Too bad, I’m not the least bit angry!”

“Besides, even though I don’t know what you’re stalling for, I think it’s best not to let you succeed. Don’t you agree?”

As she spoke, her expression turned icy, and she barked, “All Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts subordinates, immediately head towards the Hua City reservoir. Leave this woman to me!”

No sooner had the Dusk Maiden finished speaking than the Black Cloak Men behind her shot into the sky, transforming into ghostly figures that scattered and bypassed Lu Yibei, heading straight for the Hua City reservoir.

Lu Yibei’s face changed at the words, a sense of dread creeping in. Just as she was about to act, a premonition flashed in her mind, warning her of an attack from beneath and beside her.

She quickly leaped aside, narrowly avoiding the ground beneath her as it exploded. A foul-smelling mass of twisted flesh burst forth, like a plague-ridden giant’s hand, grasping at where she had just stood.

As soon as Lu Yibei landed, another premonition flashed. She focused her gaze and swung her weapon with all her might, channeling psychic energy through her arm into the blade, which flared with a brilliant light.

“Clang!” The long blade clashed with the Broken Sword, the sound of metal striking metal ringing out.

Under the Dusk Maiden’s swift and fierce assault, Lu Yibei staggered back a step. Just as she regained her footing, a soul-piercing shriek assaulted her ears.

“Meng!” she shouted, feeling her consciousness waver for a moment.

Immediately, Meng, who had been on standby, shared her unique psychic ability with Lu Yibei. The hallucinatory sound of the jaw harp filled her ears, neutralizing the negative effects of the Dusk Maiden’s shriek.

Three minutes…

Lu Yibei cursed inwardly, wiping away the blood trickling down her temple. She glared ahead, like a small but fierce beast ready to pounce, only to see the Dusk Maiden smirking and pointing behind her.

Her heart skipped a beat as she turned sharply, seeing the Black Cloak Men had advanced several hundred meters.

A sense of helplessness crept into Lu Yibei’s heart, pressing down on her, her emotions on the brink of collapse.

Her combat strength was already slightly weaker than the Dusk Maiden’s, and after being worn down by the cannon fodder hauntings, she was at an even greater disadvantage. In this state, she couldn’t bypass the Dusk Maiden to intercept the Black Cloak Men.

But the flame of hope hadn’t completely died out. Three minutes had passed, and Shui-Ge’s “secret weapon” could arrive at any moment.

However…

Shui-Ge, hurry up!

Lu Yibei thought fiercely, as the Dusk Maiden’s voice drifted into her ears.

“It seems the earlier efforts paid off. You can’t stop them now, can you? Heh.”

She whipped around, glaring at the Dusk Maiden, and cursed, “Damn it, having more people makes you so great?”

“Exactly!” the Dusk Maiden nodded. “With numbers, we can do whatever we want…”

“Boom!”

Before she could finish, a loud explosion echoed from the foot of the mountain near the Hua City reservoir, cutting her words short as they both turned to look.

Suddenly, a human-faced centipede, as massive as a train, burst through the earth and soared into the air, clamping its sharp, bone-white teeth around a Black Cloak Man who happened to pass by, severing him at the waist.

Blood splattered like flowers as the haunting twisted its head toward Lu Yibei, flashing her a blood-stained smile.

The smile, with corners of the mouth and teeth smeared with fresh blood and bits of flesh, was chillingly eerie.

“Caw-caw-caw-caw-!”

Before Lu Yibei could regain her composure, a sudden crowing filled the sky.

The next moment, seven or eight crow-headed hauntings flew from the center of Hua City, swooping down and blending into the night. When they reappeared, they were in front of another Black Cloak Man, their clawed feet lifting him into the sky.

The Black Cloak Man screamed and struggled, frantically releasing spell formations in all directions. The crow hauntings, enduring the spells with their bodies, scattered black feathers as they pulled fiercely at the man’s head and limbs in different directions.

“Crack-!”

The Black Cloak Man’s screams abruptly stopped.

…

Soon, a terrifying growl that sent shivers down the spine resonated from all around-above, and from distant directions.

Before the Hua City reservoir, a dense fog blanketed everything, casting the world in a gray haze.

Within this mist, countless figures surged forward, some flying from the horizon, others racing from afar, and some appearing out of thin air…

Thousands of hauntings and nearly a hundred psychics arrived together, their forms vaguely discernible and beyond counting.

Roars erupted, faces twisted in horror, spell formations burst forth, stirring in all directions.

Although most of them were far weaker than the Black Cloak Men, even struggling to defeat the hauntings spawned from the flesh of Plague Taisui on a one-to-one basis.

Yet, they fought valiantly, building a wall with their erratic psychic energy fluctuations. The Dusk Maiden’s Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts had already reached the foot of the mountain, but could advance no further.

Is this… to help me? Lu Yibei, pulling her gaze from the hauntings, raised an eyebrow at the Dusk Maiden, who looked incredulous, and said with a slightly choked and mocking tone, “Who was it that said having numbers equates to doing whatever one pleases?”

Panic flashed in the eyes of the Dusk Maiden as she demanded harshly, “Who are you? Why would these hauntings gather for you!?”

As the Haunt Charioteer had said before his death, “Dominating the Hundred Ghosts, Making them follow behind, Parading on a moonless night” is the true essence of the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts.

Though Lu Yibei hadn’t fully satisfied the conditions, her approach, through sheer force, was already much closer to a true Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts.

If Lu Yibei were to succeed in her challenge, the Dusk Maiden would no longer have a place in Hua City.

If previously the Dusk Maiden merely wanted to defeat Lu Yibei and head to the reservoir, now she harbored a murderous intent.

She might be formidable in gathering so many hauntings, but wouldn’t killing her solve everything?

I have psychic energy replenished from the ley lines throughout the city, drawn from the flesh of my master; how could she possibly win against me? thought the Dusk Maiden.

As the Dusk Maiden pondered, Lu Yibei suddenly drove her Broken Sword into the ground with a sharp “clang!” She lifted her head slightly, locking eyes with the Dusk Maiden, and declared solemnly, “I am…”

“Woo woo-!”

Just as she was about to announce the name she had deliberated over for so long, a sound like a symphony from the depths of hell erupted from the road behind the Dusk Maiden. The sound was akin to the wailing of a million tortured souls, yet…

Being a devoted fan of “Love and Magic Girls,” Lu Yibei couldn’t help but twitch her brow as she recognized it as Bai Xiaohua’s character theme song.

“Calamity, Calamity, ward off disasters!”

With a loud cheer, Meng led the charge, playing a suona, while behind her, Gu Qianqian and Nanling Rao Hua held up a massive colorful banner on either side, emblazoned with the words “Calamity Witch, Invincible!”

Following them was a seemingly endless stream of Non-graded little Hauntings, led by the apartment Haunting. They resembled a migrating colony of small creatures, each holding a small colorful flag or wearing a support T-shirt featuring Lu Yibei’s photo and the word “Calamity.”

Lu Yibei was baffled, “???”

What on earth is this? What’s going on? Thousands of Hauntings showing support-what are they trying to do?

After a brief moment of shock, the Dusk Maiden turned her gaze back to Lu Yibei and said coldly, “So, you are the Calamity Witch?”

As if you’ve heard of it before… Lu Yibei thought sarcastically, hurriedly waving her hands to deny, “I’m not, I didn’t, I don’t even know who the Calamity Witch is!”

This power leveling has gone too far!

I clearly said I didn’t want such a silly title, how did it spread?

As Lu Yibei was silently complaining, the Dusk Maiden suddenly stepped forward, her long blade slicing through the air, her fierce gaze like that of a cornered wolf.

“Calamity, tonight, I will slay you and your familiars here!”

Yes, as long as I kill her, the rest of the Hauntings are nothing to worry about… the Dusk Maiden thought.

“I told you I’m not, why won’t you listen?” Lu Yibei protested while dodging the Dusk Maiden’s attacks.

At that moment, the Death Owl Emblem on her chest gave a gentle tremor.

“Yibei, it’s time!”

Bai Kai’s voice echoed in Lu Yibei’s ear.

“Got it!” Lu Yibei responded, parrying the Dusk Maiden’s long blade with her sword, straightening her posture, and declared, “Alright! You want a fight? Let’s settle this one-on-one, like the rules of the martial world!”

As her words fell, a thunderous roar echoed from the sky. Countless clouds, charged with electricity, gathered above her head, illuminating her youthful, determined face and eyes brimming with fighting spirit…