Chapter 434: Bewitchment

Chapter 434: Chapter 434: Bewitchment

They still hadn’t been able to capture all the remnant souls outside, and stragglers would still gather from time to time.

However, the areas they had transformed were now permanently altered, so much so that even insects refused to approach.

The effects were so profound that even the Great Suanni was roused from its slumber to call for Bai Mo.

"What is going on outside?"

Bai Mo was meditating in his room to restore his focus when he was abruptly awakened. He answered without a moment’s hesitation:

"The river upstream from Cleansing Robe Falls was diverted, causing the water level to drop drastically. The disciples on guard were also careless, allowing the remnant souls from the ghost cave there to escape."

The Great Suanni understood.

"So it is you people out there, capturing remnant souls?"

"That’s right."

The Great Suanni then began to languidly scold him.

"You are all fools."

"Mi Mountain was already a sparsely populated place to begin with. Now, the outside has practically become a Ghostly Land. Without the presence of the living to suppress it, the ghostly aura will only become more entrenched."

"At that point, it won’t be something that can be solved by just torching the place. Have the people from the Foreign Affairs Hall handle it."

Upon hearing this, Bai Mo wasted no time. He immediately sent a formal message to the Foreign Affairs Hall via a messenger goose.

With the Great Suanni having spoken, the disciples of the Foreign Affairs Hall naturally dared not delay. They sent people over that very night.

By then, the remnant souls that had gathered were few and far between, no longer the astonishing tide they had been before.

A disciple from the Foreign Affairs Hall helped Bai Mo fold and lift the black cloth used to collect the remnant souls, only to discover it now weighed over a thousand pounds.

Inwardly horrified, he felt even more incensed at the disciples who were supposed to be guarding the ghost cave.

’The last reprimand was too light. We’ll have to give them a stronger dose next time...’

The collected remnant souls were, of course, left for them to handle.

The dozen or so disciples who had come from the Foreign Affairs Hall were not proficient in combat.

They began to break ground on the area before Mi Mountain, a place that still felt bone-chillingly cold even under the warm midday sun.

Where the soil needed to be replaced, they dug it up and replaced it. Where the ley lines needed to be realigned, they realigned them.

Some areas were teeming with nests of horrifying little insects, their carapaces marked with patterns resembling human faces. The disciples poisoned them all, leaving none alive.

If the Great Suanni were to act, it could have simply scorched the earth, burning away the topsoil and the qi veins. That would have worked just as well.

But the old beast was not in good condition, and since it never mentioned intervening, no one dared to bring it up.

Amidst all this bustling activity, Bai Mo summoned Ah Er and handed it a Pill.

"The remnant souls wandering around outside now are all small fry. I imagine that even back in the ghost cave, they were lone spirits that never amounted to much."

"Take this Pill, patrol the area, and clear them all out."

With that, Bai Mo handed it a silk pouch embroidered with a bagua trigram pattern.

He had gotten it from the Foreign Affairs Hall disciples; it was an item designed specifically for capturing spirits.

Ah Er, having seen its fair share of major events by now, agreed without a second thought, thumping its chest in assurance.

Bai Mo, for his part, took the meal Ah Er had prepared and headed to the black prison.

Over the past few days, thanks to Ah Er’s persistent meal deliveries, the hunchbacked Cultivator had become rather delirious.

The mad Cultivator, on the other hand, was still his usual rambling self, greeting Ah Er’s daily meal delivery with the utmost surprise and fascination.

"Huh! How does the warden know my tastes?"

The mad Cultivator exclaimed in wonder, looking up mid-bite as he devoured his food.

Bai Mo didn’t answer, merely nodding to him before approaching the hunchbacked Cultivator.

Seeing Bai Mo approach, alarm bells went off in the hunchback’s mind.

"Why isn’t it... that beast... coming today!?"

"You... You’re finally showing your true colors!"

He subconsciously tried to back away, but his limbs wouldn’t obey him.

He stumbled forward in large, lurching steps, ending up right in front of Bai Mo.

Bai Mo watched as the man’s face contorted—his features seeming to move independently, eyes twitching, gasping for air, mouth agape and tongue lolling out. He knew the drug had taken proper effect.

"Here, eat this meal. I have something to discuss with you."

The hunchbacked Cultivator refused, but then a wisp from a starving ghost’s remnant soul possessed him, and he began to wolf down the rice.

The rich, oily meals had kept the man well-nourished, making him quite resilient. Bai Mo wasn’t worried about anything happening to him.

Seeing that the man was nearly finished with his meal, Bai Mo casually flicked a finger.

A Pill, carrying the faint smell of soil, landed in front of the man. He snatched it up and stuffed it into his mouth.

Once the meal was finished, the wisp of the starving ghost’s remnant soul departed, dissipating into the air.

The hunchbacked Cultivator regained control of his body and was about to let loose a string of curses when his expression suddenly went slack. He collapsed to the ground with a THUD.

Bai Mo waited for a moment. The man simply stared straight ahead, his eyes vacant.

"Fellow Daoist, could you tell me about the Outer Pill?"

Bai Mo asked tentatively.

"Y-y-you... I-I-I-I-I..."

The hunchbacked Cultivator stammered.

He seemed to be trying to say something, but it was as if his brain had disconnected from his body; he couldn’t form a single complete word.

Bai Mo sighed in resignation.

’It seems the Pill, refined from the dregs of a ferocious soul meant to cloud the mind, has an extraordinary effect.’

Bai Mo was extremely patient. He waited for about ten minutes before the man gradually came to his senses.

But now, the hunchbacked Cultivator wore a peaceful expression, nothing like his usual guarded look.

There was a faint smile on his face.

"Where is this? And who might you be?"

Bai Mo was about to answer when the man seemed to have a sudden realization, his expression turning solemn.

"I see Pill Qi swirling around you. You must be one who studies the Great Alchemy Skill alongside me."

"We can address each other as fellow disciples."

Bai Mo was taken aback for a moment, but then his own expression grew serious.

"Senior Brother!"

The hunchbacked Cultivator nodded. He was about to speak but then seemed to recall something.

"But... didn’t everyone who studied with me die?"

"I remember you all died quite horribly."

Bai Mo blinked, watching the man mutter to himself.

"Never mind. That’s not important."

"So, what’s my situation now? And what is it you need, Junior Brother?"

The hunchbacked Cultivator asked, having apparently convinced himself.

Bai Mo began to explain.

"Senior Brother, you became muddled. You lost your mind while performing Alchemy and locked yourself in here to prevent yourself from doing anything untoward."

The hunchbacked Cultivator looked around at the other prisoners, who indeed did not seem quite right in the head, and sighed.

"I see. How careless of me!"

Bai Mo seized the opportunity, striking while the iron was hot.

"I came here today, Senior Brother, hoping to ask for your guidance on the method of the Outer Pill."

A look of shame appeared on his face.

"My skills are lacking, and I haven’t been able to grasp the key points. I must ask Senior Brother to explain it in detail."

"If I succeed, I can help cure Senior Brother’s affliction in the future..."

At this, the hunchbacked Cultivator didn’t hold back. On the contrary, he seemed eager to play the role of a teacher.

"Is that so? What is it that you don’t understand, Junior Brother?"

Bai Mo thought for a moment before replying:

"I wish to refine an Outer Pill that, when consumed by a Cultivator, will grant them a new ability."

"But no matter how I think about it, I’m at a complete loss. I don’t know where to begin..."

Though the question was vague, the hunchbacked Cultivator seemed to know exactly what he was getting at and asked directly:

"Do you have a Human Cauldron?"

A "Human Cauldron" was a term from old Pill Books for a Cultivator who used their own body for Alchemy.

Bai Mo shook his head.

"I do not."

"I see. That makes things difficult..."

A troubled look appeared on the hunchbacked Cultivator’s face.

"Junior Brother, you should know that the simplest way to refine such an Outer Pill is to have a master Cultivator imprint their own ability into the Pill."

"The second-best way is to use a Human Cauldron."

"You likely lack the means for the best method, and you don’t have access to the middling one, either."

"That leaves only the worst method to try..."