Palace-dressed female ghost

I still had the Yin Talismans and the Clear Heart Talismans on me.

But these two types of talismans had no effect on the female ghost at all.

While dodging the ghost's attacks, I quickly approached my backpack.

Finally, I managed to grab the backpack!

However, my head slammed into the wall because the female ghost had thrown me.

A sharp pain surged through my forehead, and blood began to drip down.

As I reached for the Chengying sword, the ghost lunged at me again!

With no other choice, I spat a mouthful of saliva directly at her face.

To my surprise, she actually covered her face and let out a ghostly scream!

I realized there was an opportunity. I grabbed her hair and spat more at her.

But I forgot that without essence blood, my saliva was just ordinary spit.

Sure enough, I quickly found myself in a bad situation. The female ghost grabbed my body and slammed me hard into the wall.

Just as I was dazed, I heard loud banging on the door: "What the hell is going on in your house? Are you tearing down walls or something? If you don't shut up, I'll call the police!"

"Sorry, sir! We're renovating!" I dodged the ghost's claws and shouted.

I then rolled to the side, putting some distance between me and the ghost, and took out the Chengying sword!

I infused it with Yang Qi, and a fiery sword blade quickly extended from the hilt, radiating intense Yang energy!

Yes, this is how you use the Chengying sword!

Once activated with Yang fire, even the female swordswoman would be wary of it!

But my Yang fire is limited, so I had to end the fight quickly!

I raised the sword and struck at the ghost!

The swordswoman once told me: Vengeful ghosts often die with grievances, and in fact, they are very pitiable.

If we can transform them, it's best to do so, just like the great master once helped me.

But looking at the situation today, it's either her death or my survival—there's no time to try and transform her!

If I don't eliminate her, Xu Xiaoling will still be in danger.

The intense Yang fire on the Chengying sword caused the female ghost to feel fear. She only knew how to dodge, not daring to face it head-on.

From the living room to the bedroom, I grabbed the wooden comb from the vanity table and returned to the living room. I placed the comb in the strong sunlight and took out a Yang talisman. After lighting it, I threw it onto the comb.

The ghost chased after me, her already terrifying face contorted even more, and she screeched, "Cao Yan dog, I will take you down with me!"

With that, she charged at me, as if wanting to perish together.

Yan dog? Referring to a eunuch, right? And she was dressed in ancient palace attire. Could she have been a consort or a member of a court official's family? It seems this ghost had a tragic past.

Unfortunately, I had no time or energy to ponder that.

My head was spinning, every part of my body ached. If I didn't deal with her now, she'd definitely kill me in a heartbeat!

So, I turned around and stabbed the Chengying sword into the wooden comb!

The intense Yang fire soon set the comb ablaze!

The ghost howled in agony as flames engulfed her!

She was quickly consumed by the fire and vanished, as if she had never existed.

I was right—she had merged with the comb. As soon as the comb was destroyed, her soul scattered.

It was just unfortunate that I didn't have the luxury of transforming her. If my spiritual abilities were higher, I would have chosen to purify her slowly. But with my low cultivation, self-preservation was the only option.

I never imagined that my first time hunting a ghost would almost cost me my life. If I had died, I'd never be able to face my ancestors.

The wooden comb had turned to ash. The living room was in ruins—glass coffee tables shattered, the TV cabinet smashed, three flowerpots were broken, dirt scattered everywhere, and the sofa had been tossed around.

I had three shallow scratches on my face, a big bump on my forehead from the wall collision, and my body had been tossed around by the ghost. Every part of me hurt, but luckily no bones were broken. My Yang Qi was nearly depleted, and I felt extremely weak.

I had to thank the swordswoman, though. Her daily "training" had greatly increased my tolerance to pain.

After finally dealing with the ghost, I returned to Xu Xiaoling's hospital room, my injuries shocking her.

"The ghost is gone, it's been destroyed."

I sat on the chair and emphasized again, "I saw her soul scatter with my own eyes."

"Why are you covered in wounds? Are you okay?"

"It's fine. Here's your key."

I handed her the key, "By the way, I made a mess in your living room during the fight. The comb has been burned, so don't worry. The ghost won't appear again."

"I'm going home to rest. See you."

I placed the key on the table and slowly walked out of the room.

After that, things returned to normal—work, exercise, and the like.

But with the swordswoman gone, no one was left to spar with me.

On the fourth day at noon, Xu Xiaoling came to find me, her face cold.

After I served her the fast food, she suddenly asked, "Did he send you?"

"Who?"

"Stop pretending. Tell him that I won't submit!

Even if I die, I won't beg him!

Don't think that using some tricks will make me go back!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Still pretending? If he didn't send you, why would you help me catch ghosts for free? Why would you get beaten up and not ask for any reward? Why would you pay over ten thousand in medical bills for me after knowing me for less than 24 hours?!"

Xu Xiaoling pressed, staring at me intensely.

"Don't make no sense."

I frowned, ignoring her and continuing to eat.

To me, her hospitalization was because of my mistake, and I had broken so much furniture, so I should compensate for it. That's why I didn't ask for the money back.

I never expected Xu Xiaoling to be so unreasonable. To avoid paying me back, she even said all this nonsense. I thought she was a good girl, but I was wrong.

Days passed, and two months later, it was already July, the summer of 2011.

During these two months, I secretly helped someone deal with a vengeful ghost that had been haunting him.

The ghost was weak, so I chose to purify it. However, the ghost didn't repent, and I had to destroy it.

The swordswoman still hadn't returned. To be honest, I missed her. I wondered where she had gone.

I still carried a heavy load of lead in my body, and to cover it, I wore loose sportswear even in the scorching summer.

That day, I received an invitation from Cheng Dong. A businessman was being haunted by some "dirty things" and was offering a hundred thousand to find someone with real skill to deal with it.

After the job was done, Cheng Dong and I would split the payment 20/80—he would get two thousand as an introduction fee, and the remaining 80,000 would go to me.

Since I didn't have a phone, Cheng Dong specifically waited for me outside of work, and we took a taxi to the agreed location.

In the car, Cheng Dong asked, "Xiaolong(Bruce), didn't you get invited to Xu Xiaoling's birthday party the other day?"

Cheng Dong was older than me, but he always called me Xiaolong(Bruce), which made me feel a bit awkward.

I answered truthfully, "No."

"Well, speaking of Xu Xiaoling, her identity is really mysterious. On her birthday, we celebrated at a restaurant, and suddenly a line of luxury cars showed up—BMW 7 series, at the very least!"

When the cars stopped, a group of people in black suits escorted a middle-aged man into the restaurant. The man said to Xu Xiaoling: 'Xiao Ling, stop being stubborn, come home with dad.'

And Xu Xiaoling, completely ignoring him, kicked the man out... haha, what do you think? What's her real identity?"

Cheng Dong asked.

"I'm not interested in guessing."

I answered coldly.

Seeing that I didn't want to talk, Cheng Dong turned to chat with the driver, talking about all sorts of things from adult jokes to national issues, and eventually, the conversation turned to Sino-Japanese relations.

In the end, Cheng Dong sighed, "The slow download speeds of adult films is one of the key reasons behind the deterioration of Sino-Japanese relations."

This remark was heavily endorsed by the driver, who didn't take any fare when we reached our destination. He said that meeting Cheng Dong was late, but rare friends like him were hard to find...

We arrived at a high-end restaurant, and Cheng Dong led me to a private room on the third floor.

Inside, there was a middle-aged man, about forty, with a yellowish smile and a thick gold chain—a bit like a nouveau riche. When he saw us, he stood up. Cheng Dong introduced, "Mr. Qian, this is the Master.

Master, this is Mr. Qian."

"Hello, Mr. Qian."

I politely shook his hand.

"Master, you really have a distinguished presence. I can tell you're not like us ordinary folks.

I've heard about your feats from Cheng Dong. Please

, have a seat."

Mr. Qian gestured for us to sit and instructed the waiter, "Bring the dishes."

Mr. Qian chatted aimlessly for a while before finally addressing the main issue.

"Master, I've been haunted recently," he said.

I shook my head. "People who are haunted usually have weak Yang Qi. But Mr. Qian, you have more Yang Qi than some young people."

Mr. Qian froze for a moment before replying, "Master, you truly have skills!

Actually, it's thanks to this jade pendant. A master gave it to me and said as long as I wear it, I can ward off evil and prevent Yin energy from invading my body."

He took the jade pendant off his neck and showed it to me.

I nodded. "Tell me about the ghost you've encountered."

Mr. Qian's face grew serious. "It happened two weeks ago. One night, my wife and I were sleeping soundly when I suddenly heard crying outside the window—male crying, very loud. It kept me awake.

But when I looked out the window, there was nothing.

The scariest part was that I was the only one who could hear it. My wife couldn't hear anything!

When we were building the house, we hired a master to lay out the feng shui. He said he set up a 'three-mu gathering yang array,' which prevented any unclean things from entering my house. It's supposed to raise the Yang Qi of anyone who lives there, keeping ordinary ghosts away."

"But four days ago, while I was having a sauna with some important clients..."