Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Su Changyu was a little perplexed.
‘Is the woman in blue in front of me sick in the head?’
‘If you have something to say, just say it. Why do you keep moving closer towards me?’
‘Don’t you know that these clothes are very expensive?’
‘If you keep rubbing yourself against me and end up damaging my clothes, can you afford to compensate me for it?’
Su Changyu was in a terrible mood.
The woman in blue fell silent.
She could feel that Su Changyu had become disgusted and repulsed by her.
If not for the fact that Kong Hai was nearby, she would have probably already lost her temper.
“Immortal, it’s not appropriate for us to keep staying here, right? Why don’t we leave first and find our way down the mountain?”
The woman in blue forced herself to smile while saying that.
“No, I’m not going.”
Su Changyu’s expression was cold and indifferent.
Although he was a little silly at times, he wasn’t stupid. If he stayed there, he would at least be near Kong Hai who would be able to step in and help if there was really any danger.
However, if he left that place, God knows what would happen.
Su Changyu didn’t think that the woman in front of him would pose any danger.
After all, Su Changyu was still very confident in his own charm. He knew that the woman in blue had done everything for the sake of obtaining his body. Since it wasn’t the first time that happened, Su Changyu did not find anything wrong with that.
On the other hand, in the mist, Ye Ping sat cross-legged in silence.
He didn’t seem flustered at all, and in fact, he was even thinking about expiation.
‘I wonder if our Dao sect’s expiation method is better than the Buddhist methods.’
‘However, regardless of whether it is the Dao sect’s expiation method or the Buddhist expiation method, Eldest Senior Brother’s one is the best.’
Ye Ping thought in his heart.
At this moment, the white mist in the surroundings gradually dissipated and his vision became clearer.
Soon, a figure appeared in front of him.
It was Su Changyu, who was also sitting cross-legged on the ground.
“Eldest Senior Brother.”
Upon sight of Su Changyu, Ye Ping couldn’t help but exclaim in joy.
Not far away, Yang Wen opened his eyes when he heard Ye Ping’s voice again.
He was a ghost cultivator who was good at the method of transformation and was there to lure Ye Ping away.
Yang Wen was very confident in his own method of transformation. In fact, at one point, he even suspected that he might have been an actor before he died.
He was great at imitating the tone of voice and actions of others.
He had been sizing up Su Changyu and observing him closely. Hence, he managed to imitate Su Changyu’s actions and behavior to a T. The only flaw was that it was difficult to imitate the aura and temperament of others. However, the white mist was spreading in the surroundings, so it was difficult to detect.
Besides, his goal was just to lure Ye Ping away, and the details were basically impossible to be detected.
At the thought of this, Yang Wen couldn’t help but get up.
“Junior Brother.”
Yang Wen called out to Ye Ping. His tone was calm and the way he imitated Su Changyu was indeed splendid.
Ye Ping walked over without thinking much.
They were not that far apart from each other.
“Eldest Senior Brother, is everything okay?”
Ye Ping walked towards Yang Wen, his eyes filled with curiosity.
“The array formation may have somewhat weakened but it’s not the end yet. It’s not very safe here. Junior Brother, come with me.”
Yang Wen said seriously.
He wanted to trick Ye Ping into leaving this place.
“Are we leaving now? What about Venerable Kong Hai?”
Ye Ping was curious.
“Venerable Kong Hai has the ability to protect himself. I sensed that there is some instability here. Maybe, the Ghost King is about to be revived. We have to leave quickly.”
Yang Wen even revealed some news to Ye Ping.
“The Ghost King is going to be revived? Isn’t the Ghost King already dead?”
Ye Ping was a little surprised. When he was reading the records of Qingzhou, he read that the Ghost King had been subdued and killed by the Buddhist monks with the Demon Subduing Seal, so how could he still be revived?
“That’s just a lie that the Jin Nation spread to stop people from prying further. However, the Ghost King had indeed been severely injured, though he didn’t die and has only been sealed.”
“Junior Brother, stop being so long-winded and come with me.”
Yang Wen did not want to delay any further. The array formation could only last for two hours, and if they waited until the array formation lost its effects, it would be troublesome.
For some reason, Ye Ping felt that there was something wrong with the Su Changyu who was in front of him.
However, he was unclear of what the exact problem was. He just had a gut feeling that the Su Changyu in front of him was a little different from the one he usually faced.
“Junior Brother, what are you still hesitating for? Do you not believe me?”
Yang Wen spoke again, but this time, he looked a little displeased.
“No.”
Ye Ping shook his head. He just couldn’t put his feelings into words. However, it wasn’t a strong feeling, so he simply got up and walked towards Yang Wen.
“Eldest Senior Brother, which expiation sutra were you referring to previously?”
Ye Ping came in front of Yang Wen and looked very curious.
Hearing these words, Yang Wen couldn’t help but be stunned.
‘Expiation Sutra?’
‘What Expiation Sutra?’
‘You’re asking me, a ghost cultivator, to teach you expiation?’
‘Isn’t this equivalent to asking a promiscuous woman to teach you the virtues that women should follow?’
‘Are you humiliating me?’
‘No, are you testing me?’
Yang Wen froze for a moment. Although Ye Ping had walked up to him, Kong Hai was still close by, so he didn’t dare to make a move.
However, Ye Ping’s question and the peculiar gaze in his eyes just now left Yang Wen with no choice but to guess if Ye Ping was deliberately trying to test him.
Thinking of this, Yang Wen could not help but fall silent.
Immediately afterwards, he spoke slowly.
“Oh, the expiation is not an important mysterious Dharmic Dao. I’ll teach you when we return to the sect.”
Yang Wen didn’t know a thing about the expiation and decided to stall for some time first.
“Return to the sect? Eldest Senior Brother, why don’t you show me the expiation sutra first? I’ll read it slowly.”
Ye Ping persuaded.
He was very interested in the expiation sutra. After all, the expiation of ghosts would bring about merit. Who wouldn’t like free things?
After hearing his words, Yang Wen got even more nervous.
He somehow felt that Ye Ping was testing him.
However, the problem was that he didn’t know any expiation sutra at all.
‘No!’
‘It seems that I do know an expiation sutra.’
Yang Wen suddenly thought of an expiation sutra.
It was the expiation sutra that was used to seal the Ghost King, which was inscribed by a Daoist master who tried to use that expiation sutra to wear down the opponent’s grievance power.
Unfortunately, the Ghost King had too much resentment.
Thinking of this, Yang Wen couldn’t help but cough.
“In that case, I’ll read it out to you. Junior Brother, listen up.”
Yang Wen had been to the sealing place and seen that expiation sutra before. However, he couldn’t remember it very clearly.
Although Yang Wen was a ghost cultivator and didn’t know the expiation sutra, he knew what the grievances of a ghost cultivator were.
The so-called expiation was actually a type of counseling to alleviate the grievances in the hearts of the ghost cultivators and to get rid of the negative karma in their hearts.
Hence, he planned to repeat to Ye Ping half of the expiation for sealing the Ghost King and make up the other half on his own.
‘Hey!’
‘I’m such a smart little ghost.’
“Eldest Senior Brother, please teach me.”
Ye Ping was rather shocked.
“Infinite Heavenly Venerable, light up three worlds…”
As Yang Wen spoke, he brought Ye Ping further away too.
“All things come with spirituality. They are born with joy, die with misery, and leave with resentment. Those are all obsessions.”
“All resentment turns into a sea of misery. The unwillingness to return ashore and the stubborn obsessions…”
“Obsessions are a double-edged sword that hurts others and oneself. Mahākāśyapa, put down the knife and you can be redeemed.”
Yang Wen recited the sutra, the first half of which he copied. However, the second half was a kind of enlightenment.
As a ghost cultivator, his grievances deepened and his pain was unbearable. He wanted to be redeemed, but the grievances in his heart could not be redeemed. He didn’t know the root of the grievances at all.
Heaven and earth were like a sea of suffering, Yang Wen felt like a tiny boat in this sea of suffering, wanting to struggle but unwilling to at the same time.
It was easy to pick it up but hard to put down.
‘Damn it, I’m making myself cry.’
After reading the last sentence, Yang Wen somehow felt sorrowful.
Ye Ping, who was at the side, started listening to the sutra attentively.
For some reason, he felt a little emotional.
The death of humans was akin to the extinguishing of lamps. All things would come to an end, but if a human could still persistently live in this world, what kind of resentment did it harbor?
What kind of suffering did he suffer in his life to have such great resentment?
He suffered when he was alive and when he was dead too.
All of a sudden, Ye Ping stopped walking.
‘Why did you stop walking?’
Yang Wen froze for a moment, thinking that Ye Ping had discovered the flaw.
However, Ye Ping didn’t do anything and simply sat cross-legged on the ground to comprehend the expiation sutra.
“Junior Brother, what are you doing?”
Yang Wen was a little confused.
“Senior Brother, I seem to have had an epiphany so I want to ponder over it.”
Ye Ping gave an answer based on his own understanding.
He had vaguely sensed something.
Hearing his words, Yang Wen froze in shock.
‘You’re having an enlightenment here?’
‘What are you trying to comprehend?’
‘Although the first half of what I said was part of a legitimate sutra, I made up the other half.’
‘You can get an enlightenment out of that too?’
‘If you can, I’ll go reincarnate immediately and give up on taking revenge.’
Yang Wen felt his tooth aching.
They were leaving soon and yet, Ye Ping came up with such an issue. Who would be able to stand it?
Yang Wen was at a loss for words.
He really couldn’t figure out if Ye Ping was really comprehending the Dao or not.
After hesitating for the duration it took for one incense stick to burn, Yang Wen finally couldn’t wait any longer.
“Junior Brother.”
He was just about to speak up and tell Ye Ping to leave first.
However, a clear breeze blew over at this moment.
