Chapter 20, Phantom Technique!

"Open the door! Open the door! Hurry up and open the damn door!"

"The Flame Shrine's here, open the door..."

"Is there a stranger in your house? No? Then who are you?"

"Dare to run? Kill him, shoot arrows... shoot arrows..."

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In the Henshan Human Gathering Area, house after house had their doors shouted open or smashed open by the ragtag army composed of Grey Robes and predators from the Flame Shrine.

They were like bandits, oh, they were indeed...

These bandits rampaged through each house, rummaging around, then groping people's bodies, even prying open their mouths to check if the teeth were good or sturdy... before leaving, they would take whatever they deemed of any value.

Some took goods; others took people.

Those who struggled were beaten; those who resisted were killed.

The people of the Gathering Area had grown accustomed to this; as long as the fist didn't fall upon one's own head, why bother about frost on someone else's roof?

Survival, everyone was desperately trying to survive!

But today, the people from the Flame Shrine... why did they seem somewhat like predators?

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

The gate of a small stone courtyard was heavily pounded on, and a middle-aged woman's voice came through: "Coming, coming... who is it?"

"The Flame Shrine." A loud voice from outside, one of the Grey Robes, shouted: "Open up quickly, or we'll break the door down..."

The thick wooden door was pulled open from the inside, and a middle-aged woman with a wrinkled face stood at the doorway, smiling obsequiously, and said, "Turns out to be Lord Divine Envoy gracing us with his presence. May I know what orders you have for us?"

"Why does it smell so bad here?" Several Grey Robes couldn't help but step back.

They studied the old woman before them, finding her blackened face and disheveled hair that looked like a bird's nest, her clothes ragged like straw. She wore a garment full of patches, and her whole body emitted an intense sour stink that made one want to vomit.

What was more disgusting was the swarm of flies buzzing around her head, buzzing incessantly.

"Don't come any closer." The Grey Robe pointed at the middle-aged woman and asked, pinching his nose, "What is that smell on you? How long has it been since your last bath?"

"Lord Divine Envoy, my daughter and I haven't bathed in a month and a half... maybe two months. You know, in the entire Henshan Gathering Area, there's only one water point. It's really too far from us. Every time we carry two buckets back, it's just enough for drinking and cooking... who would dare use it for bathing?" the middle-aged woman responded with a 'simple and honest' look.

"You have a daughter?" A Grey Robe's eyes lit up as he asked.

"Yes, yes, her name is Ning Ning..." The middle-aged woman turned and called into the house: "Ning Ning, Ning Ning, come out; we have honored guests at home..."

Then, a lean girl with a blackened face and emanating the same sour smell emerged, waving her hands to drive the flies away from her face. Speaking timidly in a mosquito-like voice and glancing nervously at the Grey Robes from the Flame Shrine, she said, "Mom, what's going on?"

"Lord Divine Envoys, this is my daughter Ning Ning. We're all each other has," the middle-aged woman introduced with a smile. "Ning Ning, come and greet the Divine Envoys."

The Grey Robes looked at Ning Ning's face and saw the ferocious and frightening scar. The interest in their eyes instantly vanished, and they backed away awkwardly, saying, "No need to come closer; just stand there and talk... Is there anyone else in your house besides you two?"

"No one else. It's just the two of us in our family. Others don't like coming over," the middle-aged woman answered. "Lord Divine Envoys, you may search the house if you wish."

"Who would want to come with you smelling like that?" A Grey Robe cursed. "We're not searching, what's the point. As if a Qi Manipulation Skill expert would hide in a place like this? They'd be stunk to death..."

"Let's go, on to the next one. Just our bad luck."

"Exactly, I've never seen such an ugly woman..."

"I thought any woman would do, but it seems I was wrong..."

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It was only after the group of Grey Robes had walked away cursing under their breath that the middle-aged woman slowly closed the door.

She bolted it securely before collapsing against the door, gasping for breath.

"I was scared to death... really scared me to death..."

"These people from the Flame Shrine are just too vicious. They are capable of anything..."

"What's there to be afraid of? They too have one nose and two eyes, don't they?" An Ning snapped her fingers, and the flies surrounding her disappeared into nothingness.

Phantom Technique!

She had conjured these flies with a secret technique.

"Ah, you didn't see the things they do. They're inhuman... worse than pigs and dogs..."

The middle-aged woman cursed before lowering her voice, as if worrying about eavesdroppers, and whispered, "Strange, they rarely go door-to-door looking for someone before... What's going on this time? Did something happen to their Flame Shrine?"

"I don't know," An Ning shook her head, but her expression implied deep thought.

She had just heard them saying, "How could a Qi Manipulation Skill expert hide in such a house?" Could they have been looking for an expert in Qi Manipulation Skill?

"Mother, what are you thinking about?" the middle-aged woman asked.

"I'm going to take a bath," said An Ning.

"Ah, why take another bath? Those Grey Robes haven't left yet... If you wash off the skunk spray on you, what will we do if the Grey Robes come knocking again?" the middle-aged woman said. "It's chaotic outside, Tang Fei might not pass by our doorstep today."