Chapter 37
Chapter 37
Hua Jiunan originally wanted to comfort Chen Daji, but the guy’s current appearance was simply too wretched to look at.
He truly didn’t know what to say.
Chen Daji was actually quite sharp; he understood everything just by looking at Hua Jiunan’s expression.
“It’s over! This young master was planning to make a living on his looks!”
As he spoke, he pulled out a tissue to wipe the blood, but Hua Jiunan stopped him.
“Don’t move. Fresh blood has strong Yang energy; it can prevent filthy things from possessing you!”
“Is that so? Big Brother, why didn’t you say so earlier!”
Chen Daji spread his palms and smeared the blood evenly across his face.
He didn’t even forget his neck.
Worried there wasn’t enough blood, he even went as far as squeezing the clotted blood out of his nose.
“Big Brother, help me check. Did I miss any spots?”
The cave they had fallen into was over ten meters deep.
They tried for a long time but couldn’t climb out.
Left with no other choice, they could only steel themselves and head deeper in.
To their surprise, there was a whole other world beneath the cave; the further they went, the more spacious it became.
After rounding a corner, the residence of an ancient, wealthy family appeared before their eyes.
It had blood-red wooden doors with couplets pasted on either side.
The first line read: “Yin-Yang fish, white within the black.”
The second line read: “Between man and ghost, different paths lead to the same end.”
The horizontal scroll above was just one large character: “Death.”
The Human-skin Lantern that had lured them here was hanging right above the couplets.
Chen Daji’s face instantly fell.
“We’re doomed. Big Brother, we’ve fallen right into a nest of ghosts!”
“Do you know how to perform a ritual? Quick, invite an Immortal Spirit to come and deal with these filthy things!”
As mentioned before, after Hua Jiunan had his skin replaced with Dragon Skin, no ox ghosts and snake spirits could possess him.
Otherwise, given Hua Jiunan’s relationship with Chang Huaiyuan, it would have been effortless to invite the Chang Family Patriarch.
“Daji, Hu Wa and the others should be inside.”
“We have to go in and save them!”
Although Chen Daji had many flaws, his virtues were equally prominent.
For instance, he was full of brotherly loyalty and would do anything for his friends.
“Big Brother, can dried blood still ward off filthy things?”
Hua Jiunan shook his head. “No, it has to be fresh blood!”
Chen Daji gritted his teeth and delivered a punch directly to his own nose. *Thump!*
Same old rule: if there isn’t enough blood, use nosebleeds to make up the difference.
While smearing himself, he said to Hua Jiunan, “Come here, Big Brother, I’ll share some with you.”
“Since my face is already ruined anyway, might as well let me be the only one to suffer!”
Hua Jiunan decisively declined Chen Daji’s kindness.
“My constitution is special; filthy things can’t possess me.”
Hearing this, Chen Daji looked at him with a face full of resentment.
“Big Brother, you should have said that sooner! If I’d known, I wouldn’t have punched myself so hard!”
“Oh, for Pete’s sake, I think I’ve even knocked my nose crooked!”
This ruthless character complained while walking up to the door and pounding on it forcefully.
“Is anyone home? Come out and serve your guests!”
A line of black appeared on Hua Jiunan’s forehead as he listened.
*That sounds a bit impolite…*
With a creak, the large doors swung open, and a wave of putrid stench hit them.
The one who opened the door was a woman in ancient clothing with the head of a rat.
She even gave Chen Daji a charming smile.
Except the smile was utterly terrifying.
Chen Daji, who had been so brave just a moment ago, leaped back in a flash and hid behind Hua Jiunan.
“B-B-Big Brother!”
“W-w-what kind of ghost is that!”
Hua Jiunan answered softly, “A Guichu!”
“It’s a filthy thing formed when an animal’s soul attaches itself to a human corpse!”
“Ignore it. Let’s go in!”
The Guichu didn’t make things difficult for them either; she stepped aside to clear the path.
However, she kept giggling at Chen Daji with a high-pitched “tee-hee-hee.”
Terrified, Chen Daji grabbed the hem of Hua Jiunan’s clothes and muttered to himself, “Damn his ancestors, I already look like this, and she’s still lusting after my beauty…”
The courtyard was densely packed with crawling black corpse beetles; there was nowhere to step.
The two could only steel themselves and trample over them.
The beetles they stepped on let out sharp squeals before bursting.
It was like stepping on leeches engorged with blood.
The putrid stench in the air grew even thicker.
Hua Jiunan and Chen Daji finally managed to cross the courtyard and reach the main hall.
Two black coffins were placed on either side of the hall, and a large character for “Fortune” hung in the center.
Below the character was an Eight Immortals table.
Two rattan chairs sat on either side of the table.
Hu Wa and their other roommate, Zhang Shun, were leaning back in the rattan chairs, puffing away happily on water pipes.
They looked exactly like opium addicts in an old-society den.
Hu Wa was even acting in a coy, affected manner-the spitting image of a woman.
Seeing this, Chen Daji couldn’t help but get angry.
“Damn it! I’ve been looking for you guys all night, and here you are in this ghostly place smoking and playing around.”
“Get your asses over here and come back with me!”
Chen Daji reached out to pull them, but Hua Jiunan stopped him.
“Don’t go over there. They’ve been possessed by filthy things!”