Chapter 419: Sever the Heart, Not the Person

Lu Yibei really had quite the talent for becoming a criminal. Knocking someone out, searching them, tying them up-she did it all in one smooth motion, as skillfully as a bandit chief who’d been robbing for years.

A white porcelain saucer, a strangely shaped bone flute, a notebook with a deerskin cover, two or three bottles of alchemical potion of unknown purpose, plus a phone and a room card-these were all of Hu Yue’s personal belongings.

As for clothing…

Professor Hu was at least a respectable person, so she decided to leave him his underwear.

Laying out everything she’d found on Hu Yue in a row on the floor, Lu Yibei propped her chin with one hand and examined them for a while. Then she raised the Pure Lotus Sword in her hand and smashed the white porcelain saucer to pieces, following up with a few spell formations. Only when the saucer was completely unrecognizable did she finally feel somewhat at ease.

Although the white porcelain saucer found on Hu Yue might not necessarily be related to Lady Zi, she couldn’t rule out the possibility.

Ever since that deadly mess at Shihekou High School, every time she saw a white porcelain saucer, she thought of Lady Zi-it was practically PTSD by now.

After dealing with Hu Yue’s white porcelain saucer, Lu Yibei finally picked up the notebook and began carefully breaking the sealing spell formation cast on it.

Although the spell formation on the notebook wasn’t particularly complex-probably only at the level of a standard spell formation-she didn’t dare to recklessly use psychic energy to force it open.

During her time as a proxy operator, she’d come into contact with bronze boxes used by The Midnight Watchers Society to store files.

The surfaces of those boxes were inscribed with similar sealing spell formations, and inside were a series of alchemical material-based trigger mechanisms. If the mechanism inside sensed the psychic energy fluctuation caused by forcibly breaking the spell formation, it would generate high temperatures to incinerate the documents within.

Although Hu Yue’s notebook might not have similar mechanisms, just to be safe, Lu Yibei thought it better to take her time and break it slowly.

After spending several times longer than it would have taken to force it open, an hour later, the sealing spell formation on the notebook finally unraveled under Lu Yibei’s patient efforts.

With a soft “click!” from the clasp, a faint purple glow flowed across the notebook’s cover, and the incantation gradually dimmed.

Lu Yibei opened the notebook and saw the contents recorded on the first page.

[Qi Nanzhu, that woman, drove Master out of Hua City. We have lain low as ordered, waiting for Master’s return.

I hope that day will come, and we’ll witness a grand Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts.]

Who is Qi Nanzhu?

She was actually able to drive Hu Yue’s master out of Hua City?

Judging from the psychic energy fluctuation this insider professor had just displayed, he was already above average among psychics. His master should be at least one or two levels higher than him.

Thinking this, Lu Yibei scrutinized the first page of the notebook, frowning.

Perhaps because a long time had passed, the paper on the first page was already somewhat aged, yellowed, and the corners showed signs of wear. There were only two lines of small characters written in blue-black ink, with no date.

Seeing this, Lu Yibei glanced at the still-unconscious Hu Yue and glared at him fiercely.

Seriously, if you want to be proper, be proper all the way-don’t write this weird stuff. If you don’t want to be proper, then just write a diary honestly. What’s with these undated notes that only record events? Trying to have it both ways?

After grumbling inwardly for a while, Lu Yibei continued flipping through.

Page three.

[Three catastrophe-class beings actually appeared.

Qi Nanzhu is dead. Serves her right.]

Dead? Lu Yibei was stunned for a moment. She’d thought that supposedly powerful psychic or haunting would at least stir up trouble in Hua City for a while, but before she’d even gotten through three pages, the person was gone.

After the first and third pages, there were more than a dozen pages of pointless daily notes, until page eighteen, when something caught Lu Yibei’s interest.

[Today, the noble school built on Master’s former residence was finally completed. As instructed by Master, I hid Master’s token within the school.

Waiting for someone destined to find it.]

Page twenty-two.

[That kid named Zhao Ke seems to have sensed the presence of Master’s token.

Maybe I should give him a hand?]

Zhao Ke? Then the noble school mentioned earlier must be Shihekou High School?

Seeing this, Lu Yibei turned to look at the now-powdered white porcelain saucer not far away, goosebumps rising on her arm.

What did I say? What did I say?

What normal person carries a white porcelain saucer around with them!?

When I get home, I’m replacing all my tableware with glass and stainless steel! Lu Yibei thought.

Page twenty-eight.

[Didn’t expect Zhao Ke to die, and the girl who was supposed to be sacrificed to Master ended up becoming Master’s familiar. How interesting.]

“Damn it, interesting my ass!” Lu Yibei couldn’t help but curse.

She’d met Lin Yiqi before. That girl might have been a bit two-faced, but if it hadn’t been for this Hu Yue meddling, at least she could have had a relatively normal life.

Now she was haunted by a ghost baby every day and had to serve Lady Zi, that kind of evil god. Her life was basically ruined-how could any of this be called interesting?

Page thirty-three.

[Gou Meng has finally left Hua City. It’s time to start organizing the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts for my master.]

He’d even secretly organized the Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts? Lu Yibei flipped ahead two more pages, and when she reached page thirty-five, she paused at the sight of red ink handwriting.

[Plague Taisui! How dare you deceive me!? I swear I won’t rest until I’ve avenged this!]

Page thirty-seven.

[Calamity…]

“???”

Seeing Hu Yue draw over a dozen big X’s back and forth on her own codename, Lu Yibei’s mind filled with little question marks.

What the heck?

Lady Zi is fine, but Calamity isn’t, huh?

When the Dusk Maiden was killing indiscriminately in Hua City, why didn’t you come out and draw a few X’s on her face?

Lu Yibei thought bitterly, pulled out her phone, and snapped a few photos of Hu Yue-who was now wearing nothing but underpants. She pixelated his face and uploaded them to the haunting chat group’s bounty website.

After all, Hu Yue was a living, breathing person, and Lu Yibei couldn’t bring herself to kill him outright.

But she vaguely remembered that Gu Qianqian had previously used the haunting chat group’s bounty website and its live-stream sales platform to sell the two black-clad men sent by Plague Taisui to a research institute under the Eclipse Society. Hu Yue could be dealt with through the same channel, and he’d suffer a bit in the process.

[Class B Psychic, a mythical type haunting familiar, Spirit Pattern unknown, strong and healthy, good looks. DM for details. [pic][pic][pic]]

After all those encounters with Gu Qianqian, Lu Yibei hadn’t picked up any of her hardworking, enduring, simple, or honest qualities. Instead, these oddball tricks-she only had to hear about them once to master them instantly.

After editing the bounty note, Lu Yibei put away her phone and picked up the notebook to keep reading.

Page forty-one.

[The big haunting Gou Meng in Taoyuan is about to fall?

That’s truly wonderful news.

Rumor has it Gou Meng and Fuyang are twin siblings from the same root. If Gou Meng falls, Fuyang probably won’t escape misfortune either. If handled well, wouldn’t there be a chance to obtain two different mythical type powers?

But the source of this news…]

Isn’t Fuyang Mao Sanyou’s dad? So the pesky little sister is actually his twin? That would make the pesky little sister Mao Sanyou’s aunt?

Lu Yibei sorted out the relationship between Gou Meng and Mao Sanyou, sensing that some hidden truth was surfacing. Her gaze finally landed on a line of text, and next to it was a hand-drawn emblem.

The emblem depicted a deformed beast of indeterminate species, looking like a hairless skinny cat, or perhaps a lizard arching its back.

Dense scales grew along its spine, and on closer inspection, each scale was shaped differently. Though Hu Yue’s drawing wasn’t very detailed, it was clear those were sensory organs from various creatures-cat ears, human eyes, snake tongues… all sorts of bizarre features, exuding a sinister vibe.

Was there something wrong with the source of this information?

And what did this emblem represent?

Forget it, now wasn’t the time to dig deeper. Besides, with this kind of ghostly stuff, who knows what danger you’d run into if you kept investigating?

As her strength grew and her understanding of hauntings and psychics deepened, Lu Yibei increasingly felt that surviving in this world was just too hard.

In theory, the more you know, the better you understand the powers and special skills carried by various hauntings and Spirit Patterns, and the higher your chances of winning when facing enemies.

But often, when researching and learning all kinds of knowledge, a single careless move could attract some mysterious entity. At best, you’d end up confused and insane; at worst, you’d drop dead on the spot. Actually, sometimes dying quickly was a relief.

Page forty-three.

[Lately, the atmosphere in Taoyuan has been off. All the factions are stirring.

Going solo probably won’t cut it for the coming upheaval.

Looks like it’s time to consider that woman’s proposal and work with them.]

Page forty-four.

[Those guys seem interested in Taoyuan too. They accepted the invitation right away and set out to infiltrate Tang City.

But that woman seems very resistant to working with strangers.

Hope nothing goes wrong.]

Page forty-four.

[2:30 PM, Furong Street, meet at the usual spot.]

Lu Yibei stared thoughtfully at the last page.

The usual spot… That should be the small building she’d seen earlier in the illusion.

From what Hu Yue had just said and what was written in the notebook, it seemed he wasn’t meeting just one person…

Lu Yibei glanced at the time; it was still early for 2:30.

After a moment’s thought, a bold idea began to take shape in her mind.

She’d already been a traitor to The Midnight Watchers Society so many times-what did it matter if she played the traitor for the criminal underworld this time? As long as she could tag along with those people and safely sneak into Taoyuan, that was enough.

After all, she was an old hand at this kind of job!

Half an hour later, an unconscious woman was heavily thrown down beside Hu Yue.

After examining the woman from left to right, Lu Yibei silently took out her phone, snapped a couple of photos, and uploaded them to the haunting chat group’s bounty website, adding a supplementary note.

[[Pic][Pic][Pic] Buy one get one free, more new arrivals coming soon…]

She clicked to submit the supplementary note, put away her phone, and sighed, holding her forehead. “Sigh, why do I feel like I’ve unknowingly set foot on a rather remarkable path? What a sin, what a sin.”

As she spoke, she gently stroked the Broken Sword in her hand. Having obtained the Pure Lotus Sword for so long, it was only today that she truly experienced the feeling of equipment suppression.

In fact, Lu Yibei had only realized that when Fu Xinyi was knocked on the head with the Pure Lotus Sword wrapped in a jacket, it produced an effect similar to a consciousness shock. That was why, when she sank into the Dream last night, she specifically asked the Ancestors about it.

Unexpectedly, after hearing her question, Qing Ji was surprised that she had only now discovered the special effect of the Pure Lotus Sword after all this time.

…

Last night, atop the dilapidated rooftop.

After hearing Lu Yibei’s question, Qing Ji asked in surprise, “Then how have you been using this sword before?!”

“Well…” Lu Yibei mimed a sword-drawing gesture. “Just grab the sword and slash directly!”

Even a haunting of Gou Meng’s level could be wounded by it-what more did she need to do?

Just slashing already greatly enhanced her combat power, didn’t it!

“Tsk!” Qing Ji clicked her tongue, wanting to say more but stopping, her face showing a look of bitter disappointment. After pondering for a few seconds, she seemed to understand something and nodded thoughtfully.

“I see. Most likely, this sword was reforged many years ago. Though it has now been restored, it is still incomplete, which is why its original wonders have only gradually begun to manifest after so long.”

So it really does have special effects!? Lu Yibei was delighted and pressed further, “Ancestor, then please tell me quickly, what exactly is so special about this sword?”

Qing Ji glared at Lu Yibei, turned around, clasped her hands behind her back, and said meaningfully, “Ling Tai means heart, Jing Ye means a merciful heart that does not kill. The Pure Lotus Sword is the sword of the heart, so naturally it can cut the heart without cutting the person.”

“…” Lu Yibei pondered for a moment, then her eyes lit up. “Oh~! I get it, Ancestor!”

Wretch, what do you get! Qing Ji frowned.

“So the Pure Lotus Sword can both kill and strike at the heart, right? Truly a must-have artifact for murder, robbery, ambush, and sneak attacks!”

Qing Ji, “…”

Although that’s not entirely wrong, she just felt that Lu Yibei would use this trait for something strange. Qing Ji grumbled inwardly, not expecting her words to become a prophecy.

–

Lu Yibei wandered around Furong ancient street for quite a while. It wasn’t until nearly 2:20 in the afternoon that she returned to the three-story small building where she had agreed to meet Hu Yue and his companions.

She had the jacket imitate the woman’s clothing style, changed its appearance, and styled her long hair to match the woman’s, even inserting her hairpin.

Then, she carried a chair to the center of the courtyard and waited quietly.

After sitting in the chair for about five minutes, a sudden gloomy wind rose outside the courtyard. The light before her dimmed, and a vague sense of foreboding approached, stirring her psychic sense.

The next moment, the courtyard door creaked open. Three blurry figures flashed in and appeared before her.

The three looked almost identical: bald, with skin so pale it looked like it had been painted with wall putty, and lips so exaggeratedly large and red they seemed to have just drunk blood. They all wore dark green burial clothes styled like Tang suits, and the only difference was the embroidered pattern on their foreheads.

After all this time, it was the first time she’d seen someone draw a Spirit Pattern on their forehead… Lu Yibei thought to herself, then said calmly, “Are you three the reinforcements Hu Yue invited?”

The three glanced at each other, then at the woman before them in a black dress with a frosty face, and tentatively asked in childlike voices, “Are you the Lady Jin that kid mentioned?”

“I am,” Lu Yibei replied coolly, subtly releasing a faint charm.

“…” The three sized her up for a while longer, then pressed, “Where is that kid Hu Yue now? Why are you the only one here?”

“He’s already gone ahead to Taoyuan. Something happened over there. For some reason, Fuyang’s power was actually awakened by the Crow Slave.”

Lu Yibei repeated what she’d heard from Hu Yue.

The three frowned and asked, “How can you prove what you’re saying is true?”

Lu Yibei shot them a sidelong glance, then slowly drew Hu Yue’s bone flute from her collar and said coldly, “This is the token he left behind. He said to show it to you when you arrived. If you still don’t believe me, you’re free to leave.”

The three looked at the bone flute, then at Lu Yibei, exchanged glances, and nodded…