Gu Zhao, who was cultivating next door, glanced over. He felt that the Demon Power emanating from the master bedroom was different from how it usually felt when the White Fox was cultivating. It was more like she was casting a spell.
Moreover, the Silk Embroideress's aura felt off. Her aura seemed to be merging with the White Fox's Demon Power, and then slowly strengthening.
'What strange power. It directly strengthens one's own energy.' Gu Zhao concealed his aura and frowned, thinking, 'Is the White Fox about to leave too? Is this a final blessing for the Silk Embroideress before she goes?'
At this thought, Gu Zhao nodded. 'Before I leave, I should also leave them some more Celestial Spirit Talismans. This world seems quite dangerous, but it's actually not safe at all. Two Celestial Spirit Talismans are far too few.'
Just then, Gu Zhao's gaze shifted, and he turned to look toward the village entrance.
From the direction of the main road at the village entrance, three plumes of black smoke blended into the night, rolling toward him. Faintly mixed within were seductive whispers, ghostly wails, and cackling laughter.
"We've been searching for so long. So you were here!"
"You actually killed Old Ghost Qi! Today, I will perform Soul Extraction and Essence Refinement on you until you can neither live nor die!"
"Hee hee hee, I'm a kind soul. Just hand over the Divine Statue, and I'll give you a quick death!"
Gu Zhao shot to his feet. 'They're here for me?'
The black smoke they manifested, along with the faint, sinister Ghost Qi they exuded, was very similar to the Ghost he had killed with Palm Thunder a few days ago.
At the same time, as the newcomers brazenly released their auras, the Five Thunders Order in Gu Zhao's Sea of Consciousness began to tremble, warning him that they carried Evil Qi and were not good people.
'Three of them at once, and not a single one is an easy opponent.'
Gu Zhao's eyes glinted. His figure suddenly vanished and then reappeared, now with a belt of many small pouches around his waist. Paired with his ancient-style robes, the style wasn't a complete mismatch, but it was certainly unconventional.
'Perfect. Time to test out my new magic and these new talismans!'
The moment Gu Zhao finished his thought, he saw the three plumes of black smoke dive straight toward his courtyard. A savage voice boomed from the leading plume, "Come out, you damned fox!"
Gu Zhao: ???
SKREEE—
A piercing shriek spread out in a soundwave. Everyone in the mountain village who had been sound asleep felt their minds go blank and immediately fell into a deep sleep—the kind they definitely wouldn't wake from until the next morning.
The next moment, a clear female voice suddenly rang in Gu Zhao's ear, "Gu Zhao, hurry and stop them! I'm performing Harmony with the Silk Embroideress and can't be disturbed by any external force."
"What's Harmony?" Gu Zhao was completely baffled, but then it hit him. "You're Xiaobai? You can talk?"
Although Gu Zhao's head was full of questions, it didn't affect his actions. Besides, he already knew the White Fox was giving the Silk Embroideress a blessing; he just didn't know the process was called Harmony.
He had already prepared to deal with these three.
So, as the three plumes of black smoke entered the village, split up, and approached the small courtyard from three different directions, a figure flashed out of a side room and, with a single leap, landed on the roof of the master bedroom.
"Hm?"
"There's someone else?"
"A Junior Mage?"
Seeing Gu Zhao appear, the three plumes of black smoke stopped after entering the courtyard. The smoke then slowly dissipated, revealing the figures within.
The one from the east stood on the courtyard wall. It was an old man in brocade robes, but he was hunched over, with his head tilted and his eyes squinted, holding a cane as he sized up Gu Zhao.
The black smoke from the Northwest had stopped in an old tree in the courtyard, revealing a child less than a meter tall, with a topknot, a white bodice, rouged cheeks, and wearing Gold And Silver Bracelets.
The person from the southwest was the closest. Gu Zhao saw a flash of crimson, and then a bewitching woman slowly walked out of the black smoke. She wore a dangling golden hairpin and red-gold gauze robes that revealed a long, snow-white leg at the side.
"The Golden Wind Divine Sect is on business. Scram if you don't want to die!" The child's voice was unexpectedly hoarse and savage.
Gu Zhao's eyebrow twitched. 'So it's the Golden Wind Sect.'
'Doesn't that mean they're in the same group as that Female Ghost in green I first met?'
Seeing Gu Zhao remain silent, the old man twisted his cane, sizing him up. He let out a cackle and shrieked, "Little boy, are you from the Spirit Court?"
"It doesn't matter if he is or not. I've taken a liking to this Junior Mage." The red-robed woman's voice was the only normal-sounding one, but her words were unsettling. "After I've had my fun and drained him dry, you can have him."
"Enough nonsense! That fox is performing Harmony with the person in the house. Don't let her finish and get away again," the child said savagely. "I have things to do when I get back!"
"It's just the primordial yin of a few female believers. A few days' delay won't kill them." The old man shook his head, then cackled. "I almost forgot, we're already dead."
"You two go catch that fox. This Junior Mage is mine." The red-robed woman gave a seductive smile, then her entire body seemed to transform into a bolt of red silk, unfurling toward Gu Zhao.
At the same time, the child and the old man turned into two black shadows and shot toward the master bedroom window.
Gu Zhao couldn't help but hiss. 'Not much for talking, are they? Straight to the action. So decisive!'
'Good thing I'm the same way.'
RUSTLE—
The sound of paper rustling in the night wind suddenly caught the red-robed woman's attention. She saw that a long strip of Yellow Paper had appeared in the Junior Mage's hand.
"Star of Wood Virtue, Spirit of the East. Follow my nine Qi, expel all evil spirits."
As his voice fell, a fierce wind arose and thunder cracked. A gale mixed with lightning erupted from Gu Zhao, sweeping out in all directions.
"Ah!"
"Lightning?"
Feeling the rolling wind and thunder, the three felt their Ghost Bodies destabilize. They shrieked and hastily retreated.
At the same time, they heard the Junior Mage's voice again, "Eyes like sun and moon, opening and closing the cosmos. The origin is set, the Four Symbols complete. Yin and Yang transform, become a Divine of Shangqing."
Hearing this Spell, which was even longer and seemed more powerful than the last, the three of them paled.
The child clapped his hands, and the two gold bracelets on his wrists and the two silver bracelets on his ankles transformed into four streaks of light, shielding his entire body.
The old man slammed his cane on the ground, and it transformed into a black snake that coiled around him.
The red-robed woman, for her part, seemed to become the wind itself, instantly retreating out of the courtyard.
But the attack from this Spell never came. They looked up at Gu Zhao and saw that his entire being had suddenly become more ethereal and untouchable, making them feel an irrepressible sense of their own insignificance.
'What was going on?'
Gu Zhao smiled faintly and let the talisman paper in his hand turn to ash. He explained lightly, "The Shangqing Divine Transformation Talisman. It's mainly used to amplify Magical Power output. Think of it as a damage amplification aura."
The three of them: ???
Although they didn't fully understand, they knew Gu Zhao was probably about to unleash a major attack.
"Grand Mage, that was all a misunderstanding!" the old man shrieked.
The child nodded repeatedly. "We're only here to capture that fox! She stole our sect's Divine Statue and ambushed our Guardian. This has nothing to do with you, Mage."
"Is that so?" Gu Zhao grinned and asked casually, "Let me ask, this Guardian of yours... was he a man in black robes, with a pale face and completely black eyes?"
The faces of the old man and the child had already turned grim.
The next moment, they saw Gu Zhao nod and say, "Looks like I was right." Then, his left hand formed a strange seal, while his right hand formed a different seal as he began Chanting, "Celestial Thunder and earthly thunder, roar and shake the eight directions! Destroy mountains and topple peaks, fiercely pierce the heavens!"