With the Punishnt Officer's Great Saber in hand, he stepped into the night once again. He vaguely realized that this was actually a good opportunity to hone himself.
Earlier in Shima Town, the Great Mighty Sky General Seal had been refined. He had already pushed open two Mansion Gates in succession. Coupled with recent tis, after several encounters with tough adversaries and with his Blood Food supply abundant, his skills had improved significantly.
Vaguely, he began to glimpse the scenery beyond the third Mansion Gate of Shousui Entering the Mansion.
Pushing open the third Mansion Gate ant reaching the most formidable level of Shousui Entering the Mansion: where the Divine Soul receives incense and the physical body navigates yin and yang. In simple terms, it was the ability to walk in the underworld with a living body.
In fact, a Ghost Walker didn't need to wait that long. By opening the first Mansion Gate, or for those with advanced Magic, they could gain the ability of Borrowing the Road to the Underworld even at the Ascending Realm. But as a mber of the Walking Ghost Family, because he had learned the skills of a Shousui man, he had never tried it.
It was just that Ghost Walkers relied on dharma thods to borrow from the underworld. But what if he himself also possessed the ability to physically traverse the underworld? The combination of Shousui and Ghost Walking... that was a prospect to look forward to.
Hu Ma had also considered this: he had already taken over the Zhensui Mansion and wielded the Golden Mace, capable of striking down even a Mansion God. This power was far superior to the paltry abilities of Shousui Entering the Mansion.
What is power? Authority is also power, and one of the greatest kinds of power at that.
So, now that he possessed the Zhensui Mansion, did he still need to continue toiling on the path of a Shousui man?
He pondered deeply, and his final answer was still, "Yes!"
Perhaps it was rely due to his identity as a Reincarnator, an inherent lack of security. Even holding the Zhensui Mansion, he always felt unsettled and thus craved the feeling of possessing all power within himself even more, right?
Therefore, even though his skills as a Shousui man were already insignificant compared to the Zhensui Mansion and were hardly used ordinarily, he still decided to learn.
And to push open this third Mansion Gate, his current identity as a Ghost Walker of the Great sword catching sect was perfectly suited. Kill! Kill ghosts and slay demons, dispel wickedness and suppress Zhensui!
The more fierce battles he experienced, the more solid his skills beca. The more evil spirits and spirits he killed, the more he would engage in Qi Eating and Soul Nourishnt, strengthening his Dharma Form.
This was not a shortcut, but rather the most practical and effective path. However, ordinary Shousui n dared not venture this way for fear of courting disaster. Many Shousui n at this stage would choose to join a battle formation or beco officials under the Ten Surnas, partly to fulfill this obligation of slaughter.
Isn't he perfectly aligned with this path now? After all, it's common knowledge that a Ghost Walker of the Great sword catching sect is inherently a Shousui man.
Thus, as the Zhensui Mansion opened, shaking the world, and the Food Protection Army entered Mingzhou City with burgeoning luck, he was not idle. Instead, using the opportunity of pointing out ghosts on the altar, he began to stir up a storm of blood and gore.
Not only did he follow Aunt Zhang's list of ghosts, traveling from south to north to eliminate several wicked evil spirits, but he had also called out Sweet Potato and put her to use.
While on his way to Tea County to slay a Grass-headed Wild God, upon arriving, he sensed a nacing presence of ghost qi, exceptionally sinister. He searched around but couldn't find any trace of it.
He then donned the Heaven asuring Boots and searched back and forth several tis. He saw no sign, only an opera troupe with donkeys and carts, traveling under the cover of night. He blocked their way and greeted them, "May I ask where the Leader is? Please co out and say a few words."
They were in a deserted wilderness, with no one around. The sudden appearance of a person carrying a ghost head blade under his arm and wearing a smiling mask, blocking their path, startled everyone in the opera troupe.
The Leader was cowardly. He hurriedly ordered his n to grab their weapons, while he himself forced a smile onto his face and rushed forward to greet the stranger. "I don't know why you, Sir, are blocking our way in the dead of night. Are you short on travel expenses and coming to borrow money?"
"I'm not borrowing travel expenses," Hu Ma said. "I just want to ask the Leader for so information. Your troupe is used to traveling the Jianghu Road. The world is unstable now, so why risk traveling by night?"
The Leader grumbled inwardly, Who the hell would want to travel at night? And didn't we just run into you?
On his face, however, he only dared to show a bitter smile. "We normally wouldn't dare travel at night either. But earlier, we took a small road we were familiar with, one that should have taken less than an hour to cross. Unexpectedly, we got lost inside it this ti."
"We walked all afternoon. It wasn't until night began to fall, and we took out our costus and prayed several tis, that we finally found our way out. We've already delayed our schedule, so we hope you can do us a favor and let us pass. We're in a hurry to perform for our patron..."
Hu Ma listened, then nodded. "Bring out your costus again. Let have a look."
"Ah?" The Leader was instantly terrified. "Sir, you an to rob us of even our costus? These are what we use to make a living! We have two strings of coins here, and half a bag of millet. Why don't you take those and leave us our livelihood?"
Hu Ma had no ti to waste words with them. His brow furrowed, and he suddenly whispered, "Bring them out!"
He used the Ghost Whisper trump card. His strengthened Divine Soul suppressed the other party, making them seem as if possessed by a ghost—dazed, muddled, and obediently unloading the donkey cart, taking out the costus from the chests piece by piece, and laying them on the ground.
"Aiya..."
Just as these costus were spread on the ground, under Hu Ma's cold, sharp gaze, one of the scholar's robes suddenly let out a startled cry, floated up from the ground, and sped off into the depths of the night at a considerable pace.
Hu Ma watched, a cold sneer forming on his lips. Just as I expected.
This creature knew the Ghost Walker of the Great sword catching sect would co for it. Unwilling to submit yet too afraid to resist, it had borrowed the opera troupe's costus to mask its aura, planning to relocate.
Opera troupes possessed all sorts of costus for portraying gods and ghosts, of every shape and form. Moving ghosts loved to seek them out.
Seeing the creature startled into flight, Hu Ma let out another cold sneer and chased after it with long strides. Only after he left did the people of the opera troupe regain their senses. Seeing their costus scattered on the ground, they hastily took count and found one piece missing. At once, they began to pound their chests, stomp their feet, and curse loudly:
"He's a Madman! Ignoring two strings of coins, and in the dead of night, he just had to rob one of our costus and run off..."
...
anwhile, the Grass-headed Wild God, having borrowed the costu, ran swiftly, on the verge of truly vanishing into the night. Suddenly, it heard a curious chuckle. From the surrounding darkness, paper n drifted in one by one, followed by a tall, ghostly shadow emitting an extrely heavy Evil Spirit aura.
This terrified the creature so much that it let out a dreadful scream, fell to its knees, and began to wail loudly, "Please spare , sword-catching master! I truly dare not provoke Zhensui Mansion, nor can I offend Eldest Master ng..."
"I only wish to find a way to survive, I'll abandon all my possessions! Please, master, spare my life..."
...
Hu Ma erged from the shadows behind it, his eyes beneath the smiling mask glinting sinisterly. "Don't you understand? Trying not to offend either side ans you offend both."
"To spare you further suffering, it will just be one strike!"
...
Saying so, he struck it dead with a single slash of his blade. He felt his Shousui Dharma Form beco sowhat more condensed, though the change was not as pronounced as it had been initially.
"Hmm?"
Opposite him, from behind the sinister, terrifying shadow, Sweet Potato poked her head out. She looked at the opera troupe costu collapsed on the ground, then at Hu Ma, and said, "Senior, this is different from what you said. This one is too easy; it's nowhere near Ghost King level."
"This one was too cowardly," Hu Ma explained. "After being summoned by the Magic Altar, it feared we'd co looking for it, so it abandoned its own territory and fled. Naturally, it was no match for us. Had we fought it in its valley, it probably would have taken so effort."
Hu Ma, without ceremony, took out another list from his robes. "However, since you're not satisfied, I'll give you a few more. Just follow the list and eliminate them one by one."
Sweet Potato's voice trembled slightly as she hurriedly took the list. She scanned it up and down, her breath catching for a few monts. "Really... all of them for ?"
Seeing her excitent, Hu Ma hesitated for a mont. But then he thought, in these turbulent tis, why worry so much? He said, "Not only will they all be yours, but I'll also give you a sword catching order to make it easier for you to operate outside."
"However, you must strictly adhere to the rules: punish only the primary culprits and do not harm the living. After operating in the Walking Ghost Path for so long, I've only managed to secure a position as a Ghost Walker of the Great sword catching sect. I'm willing to share the benefits with you, but if you cause trouble, it could implicate ."
...
"I understand!" Sweet Potato nodded repeatedly, her excitent palpable. "If trouble arises, how could I drag my brother into it? I'll take the bla myself."
"Seriously?" Hu Ma was taken aback. What on earth did you do in your past life?
But regardless, Sweet Potato's attitude was clear. And so, the first person to step onto this stage set up by Zhensui Mansion had appeared.
「」
And at this very mont, about a hundred miles from Mingzhou City, a man with a thick, bushy beard, dressed in coarse black commoner clothes, was riding a large green mule. He was drinking from a wine gourd and sighing deeply.
This trip to Shangqiao was a bit peculiar, but the rewards weren't bad at all... I thought that once I crossed the bridge, the Walking Ghost Family would be onto , but there wasn't the slightest stir. I suppose the Walking Ghost Family only has that one silly young master left and can't be bothered with ? While he hasn't reacted, I can help Little Red Lantern improve her abilities a bit more...
The more he thought about it, the happier he beca, even starting to hum a little tune. Logically, he wasn't far from Zhu n Town. But partly to show off, and partly as a precaution, he decided to first inquire if there was any unusual news. So, while still on the mule's back, he neatly took out a red lantern.
Muttering an incantation, he tapped it lightly, and the red lantern lit up. Holding it in his hand, he swung it a few tis, intending to summon Little Red Lantern to his side.
Unexpectedly, after swinging it several tis, a puzzled look crossed his face. Why isn't it summoning?
He quickly put away the wine gourd and sat up straight. Issuing an Imperial Decree, he summoned the nearby wandering ghosts to inquire about the situation. Upon hearing their report, his mind instantly exploded. "What?"
"My Red Lantern... has beco a Mansion God?"
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