Ghost Town 1

The three of them stepped past the border of the town, and in that instant, black fog enveloped them entirely, their figure blurring until eventually, not even their shadows could be seen.

Ouyang Xueqing vigilantly observed her surroundings as the ominous premonition in her heart grew stronger. It wasn't without any reason though, the town was well deserved of its name.

The building were deserted, with trashes and woods strewn around. What was seen of the remaining lively town could be detected from the stalls of the market that was left behind, the cups and plates of a restaurant that hadn't been cleaned, the small and humble wood houses with colorful curtain, yet the depressing, eerie atmosphere and the darkness around were making them look more terrifying.

They stuck together, covering each other's back as they stepped forward. Dried leaves painted the ground, creating a crackling sound every step they took, the trees grown wildly, each branch stretched taut which gave the impression of claws that were waiting to ambush them.

The originally green, lush leaves turned brownish black, emitting a strange odor that made her stomach churned.

"This town spanned only a mile, not even one tenth of Capital City, so I guess we can slowly investigate here." An Zhengnan muttered with a low voice.

Ling Xiaochen scoffed. "As if it will be that easy."

The talisman on their body shone with a faint light as they ventured deeper as it sensed the thickening ghost qi. The black fog hindering them from seeing clearly further than five meters ahead.

Ouyang Xueqing's pursed her lips and frowned. "Do you hear that?"

They halted. "What?"

"That sound."

An Zhengnan looked around. "What sound?"

She tapped her chin and sharpened her senses. "The wind. Doesn't it seem weird to you?"

Ling Xiaochen gasped. "Now that you said it, the more you hear that, the more it sounds like—"

"A cry," An Zhengnan finished.

Ouyang Xueqing nodded. That was what bothered her the most, more than the eerie black fog, more than the half broken dolls on the ground. The whistling wind were akin to the sound of shrill cry that was reverberating through the air.

"Ghost qi," she concluded. "Do you need more talisman?"

An Zhengnan shook his head. "Save it. We don't know yet how long this will take. How many do you have left?"

"Around two hundred."

The corner of his mouth twitched. "That's quite an extravagant amount. The Lord clearly loves you to death."

"Hehe." Ouyang Xueqing grinned awkwardly and hurriedly changed the topic. She felt guilty of lying, but how could she tell others that those were the talisman that were extorted from the boss of underground black market by his own daughter? "Let's go toward the source of the cry."

Ling Xiaochen agreed. "That is suspicious, indeed. Let's go, maybe we can find something there."

It was a narrow road. Stalls on their left and right, while some buildings were used as restaurants, inns, or houses. She could clearly imagined how it was before the tragedy strike. The lively market, the bustling crowd, the smiles and laughter. Now it's all gone.

They marched toward the source of the sound. Going closer, the wind gale around them grew wilder like small and fierce tornado. The fallen branches and dried leaves flew around them. It didn't hurt when they got struck, but they had to pay attention to the broken pieces of glass, ceramics, and metals lying around. Lower their guard a little bit could cause them death if it pierced their body.

Even if they were born strong and sturdy, hard materials, especially sharp ones, still could hurt them.

The wind against their ear was sharp and shrill, and it was annoying and numbed their senses. Ouyang Xueqing held her breath as the air around was slapping her cheeks hard. Gritting her teeth, she strengthened her foot and stomped forward.

An Zhengnan had to yell so that she could hear him. "Princess! Are you okay?!"

She yelled back. "I'm fine, keep going!"

There was no way to see what laid ahead them as the air was misty black. Her heart pounded, whether if it's fear or excitement, she didn't know. She just knew that she had to keep going.

The wind was harsh, and her small body was the perfect candidate of lamb to be slaughtered. Suddenly, the whistling sound approached them with such a speed that when they realized it, the attack was right in front of them.

"Princess, watch out!"

The originally misty air formed and morphed into the shape of human face that was screeching loud with black tears streaming down its face and hands with black claws . Ouyang Xueqing's eyes widened as she noticed the attack too late because it came from her right side where her sight was limited there. The ghost qi went straight past An Zhengnan toward her.

Her reflexive response was to cross her arm in front of her body as the ghost qi slammed against her and threw her flying.

She could hear An Zhengnan's voice and the blurry image of his constricted pupils filled with panic, his hand stretched out to reach her. They were totally caught off guard and underestimated the ghost qi. It knew that Ouyang Xueqing was the weakest, and using a split second when they were distracted from each other, it attacked her first and just like that, their formation broke.

"An Zhengnan! Don't be rash!" Ling Xiaochen grabbed his hand before he could disappear into the mist. She was worried too, but she was trained to keep a cold head in any situation. Blindly going after her wasn't the best solution. They had to stay together or else they would easily be led around.

He certainly didn't know anything about demonic seed and the effect of ghost qi toward them. Now was the moment that it had been waiting for, when they were separated, full of panic, fear, and distress.

Alas, the man brushed her hold harshly. He didn't control his strength at all, and Ling Xiaochen was pushed three steps backward. "Let go!"

Without even looking back, he dashed toward Ouyang Xueqing's direction, completely not concerned about his own safety or the plans that they had made beforehand.

The Princess had repeatedly briefed them not to be consumed by fear and panic no matter what they saw there.

But what would she expect?

There was no way for him to remain calm when Ouyang Xueqing was taken away right in front of his eyes.