Chapter 39 Magnolia - Requiem
After the maid finished copying the classics, Hua Xiaomei read the contents of the Soul Purification Technique, secretly sighed in her heart, and asked Ye Jie with interest:
"By the way, what do you plan to do with that pale evil spirit, Brother Jie?"
Ye Jie answered truthfully, "Her name is Luo Bei. She did many good deeds in her life, but when she died, she harbored a strong grudge and eventually turned into a demon. She is very resistant to re-entering the cycle of reincarnation, and she still has ties to it. I will help her fulfill her last wish and then send her back into the cycle of reincarnation."
Hua Xiaomei hinted, "If it were me, I would probably follow Master Black Hawk's example and enslave that evil spirit for a hundred years, letting her earn good karma for me. She's a third-level evil spirit who has cultivated a Dharma body, so her strength is undeniable. With her, many things would be much easier. If I want freedom, I'd have to pay at least one million good karma, right?"
Ye Jie shook his head helplessly and continued, "...In the end, he was attacked by a fierce ghost and ended up like Master Black Hawk, with his soul shattered."
Hua Xiaomei smiled awkwardly, "I'm definitely more careful than Master Black Hawk."
"Luo Bei did nothing wrong in her life and should not be enslaved like this. She did many good deeds in her life, but ended up dying with resentment. Heaven has treated her unfairly. As ghost messengers, how can we continue to harm her?" Ye Jie asked back.
"Laojun once said: Heaven and earth are unkind and treat all things as straw dogs. The world is like this, we can hardly protect ourselves, and there is nothing we can do to change anything." Hua Xiaomei waved her hand.
Ye Jie smiled and said, "You only know this sentence, but Lao Jun also said: Heaven has no relatives and is always with the good. Just do good things and don't worry about the future. Maybe we are powerless to change the world, but we can stick to our original intentions and not let the world change us."
Hua Xiaomei was stunned for a moment, and stopped talking. She just looked at Ye Jie with a different kind of light flashing in her eyes from time to time. Even Fuling's eyes turned soft as she looked at Ye Jie.
"By the way, have you ever seen the ghost messenger An in the underworld? Safe and sound An."
After some casual chatting, Ye Jie remembered something important and asked everyone about it.
"Ghost Officer An? Why are you asking for this information?" Fuling raised her eyebrows, as if she knew something.
Ye Jie truthfully recounted the situation: "I found a Ghost Messenger Order from Master Black Hawk's hiding place. There was a single character, 'An,' engraved on it. I suspect Master Black Hawk is Ghost Messenger An's contact in the human world, and he might cause trouble in the future."
Fuling took a deep breath. "If this is true, then this is no ordinary trouble. The ghost messenger order engraved with the word 'An' doesn't belong to an ordinary ghost messenger, but to a powerful being in the realm of impermanence."
"What?" Hearing this, Hua Xiaomei immediately lost her composure and screamed, "When you asked us to deal with Master Black Hawk, you didn't tell us that he had the fourth-level Black and White Impermanence standing behind him! This is really bad. If the ghost messengers in the Impermanence Realm find out about this and plan to deal with us, we will be completely powerless to resist."
Ye Jie also understood the seriousness of the matter and hurriedly asked, "Are you sure? Is that Ghost Officer An really a high-level Ghost Officer in the Impermanence Realm?"
Fuling nodded slightly. "I'm absolutely certain that the Ghost Messenger An is actually Xie Bian, the White Impermanence. A few days ago, I saw his Ghost Messenger Order in the wine country with my own eyes. It had the word 'An' engraved on it. If Master Black Hawk is really his contact, things are really going to get complicated..."
"What? It's that Bai Wuchang. This is bad." Hua Xiaomei said in a trembling voice.
Ye Jie pressed on, "Do you know anything else about Xie Bian?"
Fuling pondered for a moment before relaying the information, "Xie Bian has been deeply involved in the underworld for many years and is the current head of the Xie family. The Xie family is immensely powerful, their influence permeating both the mortal world and the underworld, and they possess cultivation resources unattainable for ordinary people. I heard that not long ago, the Xie family on earth sent down a gifted direct descendant, extremely skilled in feng shui, and now officially a ghost messenger. A few days ago, Xie Bian came to the wine country to host a banquet to welcome this ghost messenger. I think his name was Ghost Messenger Yu..."
"Wait..." Ye Jie was stunned and couldn't help but open his mouth slightly. He glanced at Nan Linghe and said, "It can't be such a coincidence, right? Guicha Yu is also a member of the Xie family..."
Nan Linghe scratched his head, his eyes filled with confusion. "Who is Guicha Yu?"
Ye Jie was almost defeated by her: "It was Xie Xinyu who challenged you a few days ago. Have you forgotten? You have to defeat her within a year, otherwise you will have to give her all your earnings for the year. I was wondering why she was so arrogant and looked down on everyone. It turns out she is from a noble family and has the support of a high-level ghost messenger from the Impermanence Realm."
After hearing what Ye Jie said, Nan Linghe finally remembered: "Oh~it turned out to be her."
Ye Jie held his forehead helplessly. He didn't expect Nan Linghe to forget Gui Chai Yu's challenge so quickly. If he hadn't reminded her, she would have definitely lost this challenge.
"These are not the key points. That's Xie Bian, the powerful Bai Wuchang. What should we do now? If he finds us, how should we respond?" Hua Xiaomei said with trembling teeth and a worried look on her face.
Fuling waved her folding fan and said, "Master Black Hawk has committed countless evil deeds, and his death is the end he deserves. Now that things have come to this, if Xie Bian pursues me, no matter what tricks he uses, I will take them all."
Hua Xiaomei said with a sad face, "Of course you're not afraid. You're the head maid of the wine country, and you have the ghost fairy backing you up. Not to mention Wuchang, even the judge can't do anything to you. Brother Jie and I are in trouble. Humble second-level ghost messengers like us are afraid that Xie Bian will crush us to death if we're not careful. Brother Jie, don't you think so?"
Ye Jie also felt that this was a difficult situation. He analyzed, "As long as we don't use the Mysterious Shadow Step and the Pure Soul Technique, even Xie Bian wouldn't be able to confirm our identities based on the traces left in the battle. Perhaps we can keep this a secret."
Hua Xiaomei glared at Fuling, insisting, "Aren't skills meant to be used? If you don't practice them, what's the difference between that and not having learned them at all? In this mission, we risked our lives and offended Xie Bian of the Impermanence Realm. In my opinion... you should pay more."
Ye Jie was speechless: "You don't even want your life, but you still want good deeds. Do you think Xie Bian will forgive you for these good deeds after he finds you?"
Hua Xiaomei was also helpless: "What should I do? I don't know any high-level ghost messengers in the Wuchang Realm. If something goes wrong, I will definitely not be able to stay in Guangwang Palace. I can only run away to Tianxuan Palace, and that requires a lot of good karma."
After hearing the name of Xie Bian, several people became dejected, and the joy of obtaining the skills disappeared.
Nan Linghe's eyes suddenly lit up, and he suggested, "How about this? Sister Mei, you can also move into Aunt Meng's winery's basement and live with us, so we can look after each other."
Ye Jie nodded slightly: "Staying in the Ghost Immortal's territory, even Xie Bian wouldn't dare to act recklessly here. This is also an option. I just don't know if Fuling, the owner of the basement, would allow this..."
Fuling glanced at Ye Jie lightly. "I lent the basement to Nan Linghe. She has the final say on who lives there and doesn't have to report to me. It was indeed inconsiderate of me to let you and Hua Xiaomei get involved in the conflict with Xie Bian. To avoid trouble, it's better for you to stay here."
"Really? I can live in this high-end wine country?" Hua Xiaomei said in surprise.
Ye Jie reminded her, "Don't be too happy too soon. There's no furniture in the basement. If you think you're living in a magnificent palace, you'll probably be disappointed."
"How could I be disappointed? This is a winery run by ghost immortals. Being able to share a room with a true immortal is every ghost messenger's dream." Hua Xiaomei sighed, looking at Nan Linghe with gratitude. "Thank you for inviting me. I never thought that one day I would become a drowning dog. From now on, I will protect you like Brother Jie did."
Nan Linghe opened her eyes wide and smiled calmly, then heard Ye Jie say in a rather helpless tone: "I don't trust you to protect her. If we encounter a battle next time, it will be considered a success if you don't get hurt first."
Hua Xiaomei pouted, unable to find the words to refute.
Just as a few people were chatting, they heard a burst of hurried footsteps. Looking in the direction of the sound, they saw the maid Chang Yulan, with a round face and hair in a bun, wearing an elegant sky-blue long dress, rushing over with an anxious look on her face, holding a white jade pipa in her arms.
"Hello, Sister Lan." Ye Jie stood up, clasped his fists in greeting, and patted Nan Linghe beside him, indicating that she should also say hello. Nan Linghe obviously didn't understand what he meant. She looked at him with puzzled eyes, not understanding why he patted her.
After seeing Ye Jie, Yulan breathed a sigh of relief: "I heard from Bai Luo that you and your group were injured and are recovering in the clinic. I was worried that something might have happened, so I came to visit. Now I see that you are okay. I'm glad."
"Hmph." Fuling snorted softly. Seeing Yulan looking at Ye Jie with affection, she felt a little uncomfortable for no reason. She quickly unfolded her folding fan and said, "I'm injured too. Why don't you care about me?"
Seeing the sting in Fuling's words, Yulan raised her eyes and replied lightly, "It seems that the injury is not serious enough. If it were any more serious, you wouldn't have the strength to speak."
"What?" Fuling was furious, but her injury was aggravated and she kept coughing. If she was not still lying in the hospital bed, she would have had a good argument with Yulan. Nan Linghe, who was beside her, hurriedly brought the medicine soup and carefully fed it to her.
Ye Jie coughed dryly and said, "Don't be angry, Fuling. Your injury hasn't healed yet. Doing this will only make you feel worse. You should do the same to Yulan. You know her injury hasn't healed yet, so don't get angry with her."
Under Ye Jie's persuasion, Fuling turned her head away, fanning the folding fan in her hand quickly without responding. Yulan just smiled lightly, pulled Ye Jie and said, "Since Brother Jie said so, I will do as you say. I won't bother you anymore."
Ye Jie nodded, and then seemed to have thought of something, and asked, "By the way, Sister Lan, have you ever heard of the Soul Purification Technique?"
Yulan nodded slightly: "I have heard that it is a technique used by ghost cultivators to refine souls. Brother Jie, do you want this technique?"
Ye Jie waved his hand and said, "I've already obtained the technique from an evil cultivator. Not only that, I also found a third-level evil spirit whose mind has not yet been fully refined and has fallen into a state of violent confusion. I've heard that the Way of Music can soothe people and calm their restlessness. I'd like to know if the soothing melodies of the Way of Music can restore the evil spirit's mind."
Yulan smiled faintly, "Brother Jie has found the right person. A major sign for a musician who follows the path of the immortals and reaches the third level of the Oxen and Horse realm is the ability to convey the artistic conception contained in the music to the ears of oxen and horses, who are completely unfamiliar with rhythm, inspiring them with the music. This is what is meant by playing the lute to a cow. With my abilities, I am more than capable of meeting Brother Jie's requirements."
Ye Jie's face lit up with joy, but he soon gave another bitter laugh: "With my Yin De, I'm afraid I can't afford to listen to Sister Lan's song. I wonder if Sister Lan accepts spirit stones?"
Yulan covered her lips and chuckled. She was about to say something when Fuling spoke first, "How difficult is that? I'll pay for you."
Fuling's sudden interruption infuriated Yulan. Her breathing became rapid, her chest rising and falling, and she glared at her with her almond-shaped eyes, "Eight thousand eight hundred Yin De, not a single cent less."
"I'll give you two hundred more. I don't care about the mere nine thousand good deeds." Fuling shook her folding fan, with cold confidence between her brows.
Ye Jie was helpless. Why were the maids from the wine country arguing with each other? He had no choice but to change the subject and said, "Sister Lan, I think we should find a safe place and release the evil spirit. The clinic is full of wounded people. If the evil spirit suddenly attacks and hurts people, it will be difficult to deal with."
Yulan nodded gently: "It should be so. Then please let Brother Jie lead the way."
After letting a few people recuperate here in peace, Ye Jie took out the Shrinking Stone and the Green Nether Branch, and left with Yulan. They soon moved to a sunny beach.
"Master." As soon as Ye Jie arrived, he heard a voice full of surprise calling out. Xia Wei ran over quickly, her eyes falling on Yulan, who was holding a pipa beside her. A hint of confusion crossed her pretty face, "Who is she?"
"She is Yulan, my friend in the underworld." Ye Jie introduced.
"You have a disciple in the human world?" Yulan looked Xia Wei up and down. She was surprised to see that she had a young face and a pair of pigtails tied behind her head. Although she was not very old, her brows were sharp and her knife-like eyes concealed a decisive murderous intent.
Ye Jie nodded: "She is Xia Wei, my apprentice."
Xia Wei clasped her fists and bowed to Yulan, "Since you are Master's friend, you should accept Xiaowei's greetings."
Yulan played the zither in return, and then listened to Ye Jie say, "Alright, Xia Wei. Yulan is best at the art of music. When she plays later, you must protect the surroundings and make sure no monsters disturb her."
Xia Wei nodded in agreement, and Ye Jie took out the spirit-summoning banner and the golden bell from his arms. "Next, I will release the third-level evil spirit from the spirit-summoning banner. I'll trouble you, Yulan, for the rest."
Yulan plucked the pipa strings with her bare hands, and the melodious music rang in everyone's ears. The soft melody contained the power of music that inspired people: "Leave it to me."