Xie Lingyun looked at the young man in front of her, feeling sinful, the kind that was impossible to forgive.
The world was still the same world, yet people like her, so filthy, had soiled it.
Gazing at the young man’s pure and innocent eyes, Xie Lingyun was at a loss for what to do.
"Keep this rune with you. I will draw one for you every day from now on to make sure that Celestial Demon won’t dare to provoke you until you master the drawing of runes yourself!" Zhang Chen looked at Xie Lingyun and pushed the rune over.
Xie Lingyun did not refuse but pointed to the soft couch beside her, "You just sit there and stay put. If I come across any problem in talisman drawing, I’ll come and ask you. Feel free to eat the snacks and fruits on the table. Don’t be too polite, just treat this place as your own home."
Hearing this, Zhang Chen sat down on the couch, picked up some snacks, and started eating quietly, looking very well-behaved.
Xie Lingyun looked at the rune on the table and slowly started outlining it with a brush.
Time flew by swiftly, and soon the sky darkened. Zhang Chen took his leave, leaving Xie Lingyun in the room to continue drawing symbols, delving into the ’镇’ character.
When Zhang Chen returned to the courtyard, a strong smell of medicinal decoction suddenly hit him. Surprised, Zhang Chen walked into the house and saw Xiaodouding sitting on a chair, sipping the decoction with a grimace.
"Why are you drinking medicine?" Zhang Chen asked in surprise, looking at Xiaodouding drinking the decoction. He hadn’t heard that this girl was sick?
Xiaodouding replied with a bitter expression, "I just felt my foundation was unstable and wanted to drink some medicine to strengthen it."
Zhang Chen didn’t think much of it and instead pulled out fruits like pears and grapes from his pocket, handing them to Xiaodouding. Xiaodouding’s eyes lit up at the snacks, quickly putting down the decoction, and skillfully catching the fruits with her apron front. A hint of delight appeared in her eyes, "Zhang Chen, you really are the best to me."
"Go ahead and eat," Zhang Chen patted Xiaodouding on the head and walked into the house.
As Xiaodouding watched Zhang Chen’s back, she suddenly asked, "Zhang Chen."
"Hmm?" Zhang Chen stopped and turned to look at Xiaodouding.
"Do I look like I’m mentally ill?"
With that, Xiaodouding looked at Zhang Chen with her big, adorable eyes, full of anticipation in her gaze.
Startled by her words, Zhang Chen stood dazed, unsure of what Xiaodouding was playing at.
Yet, faced with Xiaodouding’s question, Zhang Chen answered earnestly, "You’re just a normal person, how could you be mentally ill?"
Hearing this, Xiaodouding took a bite of the pear, "Well, it seems my illness isn’t that severe."
Zhang Chen shook his head in amusement at Xiaodouding’s question, baffled by what peculiar thought had crossed her little mind this time.
That night
In the northwest corner of the Daoist Temple, where coffins were stored, under the moonlight a black shadow resting on the coffin suddenly opened its eyes, "That kid’s radiance is quite bizarre, able to harm my body. Fortunately, during my last fight with that Gu Mingyue of the Yellow Heaven Dao, a wisp of Qi Mechanism escaped and was absorbed by this vengeful spirit, allowing me to create a split body. Otherwise, I might have been trapped within that woman’s body forever."
As it spoke, the black shadow flickered into the form of a white-clad woman of enchanting allure, leaving the coffin and entering the quarters of a disciple, knocking softly on the disciple’s door, "Is anyone inside?"
Inside, the disciple was practicing, startled upon hearing the woman’s voice, "How strange! Where would a woman come from in the dead of the night?"
Nonetheless, he opened his door, and the next moment, a bundle of warm jade-like softness fell into his embrace.
Zhang Chen had cultivated all night. Now his soul felt full, ready to make up for previous missed lessons, though before dawn, a sudden clamor accompanied by the sounding of bells jolted Zhang Chen from his meditative state.
"The bells rang six times, calling all disciples of the temple to gather. How strange, it’s not yet time for morning lessons; why summon everyone now?"
Suspicious, Zhang Chen quickly got out of bed and cleaned up, but still did not see Xiaodouding come downstairs from above. He climbed up to the second floor to knock on her door, but heard Xiaodouding muttering inside, "Oh no, my condition’s worsened. Hearing bells in the middle of the night must be an illusion."
Hearing her muttering outside, Zhang Chen was dumbfounded, "Is Xiaodouding sick? This child has been acting a bit off since last night."
"Senior sister, it’s time to get up! The Daoist Temple is calling all disciples to gather. Being late will get you punished." Zhang Chen urged from outside the door.
Soon, a ruckus of noises came, followed by Xiaodouding’s miserable voice, "Something’s not right! That’s the sound of bells, but I took them as hallucinations. Is my condition really that severe?"
Not long after, the door opened, revealing Xiaodouding with dark circles under her eyes, emerging from the room, yawning as she wearily looked at Zhang Chen, "Have the elders gone mad? Knocking on bells in the middle of the night."
"Something must have happened."
Zhang Chen picked up Xiaodouding and quickly headed towards the plaza.
Upon reaching the plaza, Zhang Chen realized indeed something had happened. Disciples were gathered, discussing around ten dried corpses.
Zhang Chen listened and soon knew the truth. It turned out that an evil presence had caused harm last night, draining the Essence Qi from the ten disciples, their souls completely absorbed, leaving them for dead.