Chapter 75
Chapter 75
The moment Zhao Zixun’s eyes met the Shield in my hands, his expression changed completely.
The hand gripping his saber jerked violently. He then pressed the back of his hand against his brow, looking as if he were in immense pain.
To my surprise, the Ghost Soldiers surrounding him actually began to retreat slowly.
I took one step forward after another, and they fell back inch by inch.
Soon, Li Qingying had retreated behind the Shield.
The moment she was behind me, she whispered urgently, “Xiao Jiu, don’t linger. The Blood Runes on the Shield are fading. We have to get out of here safely before they vanish completely.”
The Blood Runes were fading?
It seemed that what was truly suppressing the Ghost Soldiers and causing Zhao Zixun’s strange reaction wasn’t the Shield itself, but the Blood Runes inscribed upon it.
I gritted my teeth and said, “Then let’s drive them back across the Small Stream!”
As soon as the words left my mouth, I charged down the slope, holding the Shield out in front of me.
Zhao Zixun, controlling his warhorse, had already retreated to the side, and the Ghost Soldiers quickly withdrew to the far side of the Small Stream.
The hole we had dug earlier was still there. I threw the Shield back into it, and Li Qingying quickly shoveled the dirt back in.
By the time we finished, the Ghost Soldiers had turned back into Blood Mist, retreating into the woods and vanishing without a trace.
Li Qingying and I didn’t dare delay; we ran back to the car as fast as we could.
Zhao Zixun remained seated on his horse, watching us the entire time, yet he made no move to stop us.
It wasn’t until we were inside the car and Li Qingying started the engine that my heart finally slowed its thunderous pounding. My nerves were still frayed, struggling to settle.
After we had driven about half a mile, Li Qingying asked in confusion, “Zhao Zixun clearly could have stopped us. Why didn’t he move?”
“The Shield might have triggered some sort of resonance in him,” I said. “But we have to move faster. We need to return that Red Banner to the Red Banner Child before his mind is eroded by the Coffin Nails again, and before someone else with ill intentions digs up that Shield.”
We wouldn’t be able to keep tonight’s excavation of the Shield a secret.
In Wufu Town, there were too many eyes watching me.
Word of my every move would spread quickly.
That was a whole unit of Ghost Soldiers. Though they were scattered, if a cultivator could bring them under their control, it would be a windfall of immense power and fortune!
Even if no one else touched the Shield, the runes on it wouldn’t last much longer.
Once the runes vanished entirely, there would be no containing those Ghost Soldiers.
Aside from Zhao Zixun, the only person who could likely control them was the Red Banner Child.
That was assuming the Red Banner Child had the Red Banner required to command them!
Now that I had the Pawn Ticket in hand, I just needed to return to the Pawnshop to finalize the paperwork, and the Red Banner Child could redeem his Red Banner.
We didn’t waste a single second.
Upon returning to the Pawnshop, I went straight to the small street-facing door of the Southern Study. I opened the Pouch and counted the Silver Coins inside-exactly thirty-three, not a single one more or less.
Then, I quickly processed the paperwork and followed the necessary procedures.
The moment I placed the Red Banner into the Red Banner Child’s hands, I let out a long, heavy sigh of relief.
The Red Banner Child was also visibly moved as he reclaimed the Red Banner he had lost over a century ago.
After a moment of thought, I asked, “A hundred years ago, Zhao Zixun took this Red Banner from you. Can you keep it safe this time?”
“I can,” the Red Banner Child replied with absolute certainty. “No matter how powerful Officer Zhao is, he is still subject to the Marshal’s orders. As long as the Marshal has no intention of starting another war, Officer Zhao will not take the initiative to seize my Red Banner again.”
I frowned, still feeling uneasy, but I knew that letting the Red Banner Child return to manage those Ghost Soldiers was our best option for now.
Dawn was breaking. Gripping the Red Banner, the Red Banner Child gave us a deep bow. “Thank you, sisters, for risking your lives to help me tonight,” he said. “If you ever have need of my services in the future, just say the word.”
Li Qingying looked utterly exhausted after her return.
She leaned half-collapsed against the counter, waving a hand at the Red Banner Child. “Hey, Child Ghost, any interest in joining our Pawnshop?”
I blinked, momentarily stunned before I burst into a quiet laugh.
Li Qingying really wanted to recruit everyone she met.
I couldn’t blame her, though. We were indeed in desperate need of help, and she simply didn’t want to see talent go to waste.
The Red Banner Child gave it some serious thought before replying, “Not for the time being. I have to go back and reorganize my troops. I also need to enter a period of secluded cultivation to realign myself with the Red Banner.”
It was a polite refusal.
We had no intention of making things difficult for him, so we naturally let the Red Banner Child depart.
Just as he stepped over the threshold, a thought suddenly struck me. “Hey, kid, I heard that once you have the Red Banner, you can trigger wars. Is that true?”
“Don’t worry, sister, it won’t happen,” the Red Banner Child said candidly. “Even if I wanted to, it would require a Blood Rain to fall first.”
In other words, the necessary conditions to trigger a war weren’t just the Red Banner and the Red Banner Child, but also a Blood Rain.
And a Blood Rain was exceptionally rare.
Relieved, I watched the Red Banner Child disappear into the distance.
As soon as he was gone, Li Qingying let out a wail of despair. “Ugh, is our Pawnshop some kind of monster? Why won’t anyone join us!”
I smiled. Our Pawnshop might actually be scarier than a monster.
I leaned my lower back against the counter and took a long, deep stretch, glancing sideways at Li Qingying. “It’s past three in the morning, and it’s been a long night. Sister Qingying, go wash up and get some sleep.”
Li Qingying looked too sluggish to move, which was a far cry from her usual energetic self.
I figured it was likely the toll of dealing with the Ghost Soldiers earlier.
That only meant she needed the rest even more.
As Li Qingying pushed herself up and rounded the counter with her eyes half-closed, I went over to steady her. I happened to catch a glimpse of the red mole on the tip of her nose. It seemed a bit redder and slightly larger than before.
But when I looked closer, it seemed normal again.
Perhaps I was just too tired and my eyes were playing tricks on me, or maybe it was just psychological?
I escorted Li Qingying back to her room. While she went to shower, I returned to my own bedroom.
I took a hot bath myself, and after drying my hair, I remembered the Blood Letter wrapped in kraft paper. I quickly brought it over and opened it.
The moment the Blood Letter was fully unfolded, I saw what was tucked inside.
It was an exquisitely carved Silver Ring and a Stamp completely saturated with blood.
The blood was so dark and the items so old that the design on the Stamp was no longer visible. It felt brittle to the touch, and a corner crumbled off right then and there.
Looking at the Silver Ring and then at the damaged Stamp, I felt a wave of intense regret.
This Stamp was likely a testament to the love between Zhao Zixun and Fu Wan, and I had gone and ruined it.
I hurriedly picked up the fallen corner with the utmost care, pieced it back together, took a few photos, and then pressed it inside a book.
I sent the photos to Tang Tang, asking if she had any way to help restore it.
Tang Tang was likely asleep at this hour, so I didn’t wait for a reply. Instead, I picked up the Blood Letter and began to read.
What I saw instantly chased away any lingering sleepiness.
The opening of the letter was heartbreaking: “Wanwan, my love, if you are reading this, it is our final farewell. I fear I shall not return from this battle. I return our token of engagement to you. I hope you find another good man to spend your life with. Please, take care of yourself…”