Silently listening to the cicadas, the moon gradually rose in the east, and the silver glow brushed over the mountains, making the ancient house look as if it was covered in frost.
After finishing the soup, the junior sister, at You Su's repeated insistence, went to rest. Although she was a night owl, she couldn't withstand two days of sleeplessly taking care of You Su, not to mention You Su himself couldn't bear it, so he sternly ordered her to sleep.
You Su had recovered quite a bit of strength and was now leaning against the head of the bed, fumbling with the Qiankun Bag in his hand.
He deceived his junior sister by saying that it was a trophy surrendered by the likes of Wu Ping after their defeat. It's a brocade pouch made from special materials, which can lock in the Spiritual Qi of freshly picked Reishi and other heavenly treasures to the greatest extent, making it a very valuable treasure.
After all, they couldn't use it, so he would sell it another day, exchange it for a large sum of money, and then split it equally with his junior sister. The young girl wiped the drool from her mouth, patted You Su's head with reassurance, and even helped wash the brocade pouch clean.
It's no wonder that Ji Lingruo believed too easily, after all, the Qiankun Bag that recognizes a master can only be opened by infusing the owner's Profound Qi. To outsiders, it just looked like an exquisitely embroidered brocade pouch.
And You Su was now the new master of this Qiankun Bag.
There are two ways to eliminate the Restriction Technique on the Qiankun Bag. One is extremely troublesome; you need to go to the Celestial Revelation Divine Mountain and ask an array master to perform a complicated "unbind" procedure. The other is extremely simple, and that is to make the Qiankun Bag's former owner disappear.
Connecting with a Qiankun Bag that has returned to being an ownerless item is also extremely easy. It's similar to the "imprinting" in nature: whoever is the first to input Profound Qi into it becomes its new owner.
You Su mobilized the recovered Profound Qi in his body and injected it into the bag. Suddenly, he felt a mental connection. This connection gave the impression that the Qiankun Bag was not an independent small space but a branch of his own Sea of Consciousness.
Inside, a dazzling array of items seemed to be placed directly in You Su's mind. As long as he wanted, he could immediately take out whatever he desired.
You Su also took stock of this hard-earned windfall in his mind.
The space inside wasn't actually that large; a set of sandalwood table and chairs took up most of it. Below were three different sets of tea utensils and several jars of elegantly packaged tea leaves, indicating that Mr. Ling truly loved tea.
You Su didn't expect that such a hideous Evil Cultivator would have a refined side, which seemed strange yet reasonable.
Upon further search, there were many Magical Treasures whose uses You Su didn't know, and they were somewhat tainted with evil energy. Surely these were used by Mr. Ling during his evil acts.
Several old books caught You Su's attention, titled "Ruyi Wind Manipulation Skill," "Five Elements Magic Selection," and "Spirit Treasure General Knowledge." The old pages even had dried blood marks, evidence they were looted by Mr. Ling from others.
Peculiarly, although he had never learned these characters, You Su naturally understood their meanings.
You Su skimmed through briefly; aside from the interesting Ruyi Wind Manipulation Skill, the other two appeared to be basic books from the Spirit Treasure Sect. No wonder Mr. Ling would falsely claim he was from the Spirit Treasure Sect.
Despite the vague content of these books, they contained profoundness unseen, making them invaluable to You Su at that moment. He had been a Sword Cultivator since childhood, and his master only taught him Swordsmanship. Apart from wielding the sword, he knew almost nothing about the other uses of Profound Qi. These two books were a great way for him to get to know Profound Qi.
Following that, You Su stumbled upon quite a few books on Evil Cultivators. From these cultivation technique names, he learned the name of Mr. Ling's original sect: the Evil-Repelling Sect, noting it down silently.
Despite this, he wasn't interested in the techniques of Evil Cultivators, except for one book, "Evil Spirits Atlas," which caught his attention. He leafed through it for a long time without finding any evil spirits similar to those affecting his junior sister and master.
Aside from that, there were primarily some worthless miscellaneous items, except he unexpectedly found a large number of Spirit Stones. These were the currency used in the Cultivation Realm that held high transaction values but could also be used to quickly restore Profound Qi.
With such an unexpected windfall, You Su could really be considered well-off.
He took out the Exorcism Order, which had restored its emerald-green color, and toyed with it between his fingers. While thanking Mr. Ling, he also began to critically reflect on the changes occurring around him and within himself over those days.
Regarding the whole sequence of events, he had a preliminary judgment: Mr. Ling, for unknown reasons, set his sights on the Mandarin Duck Sword Sect. His original plan must have been to use an evil spirit to invade my body, throw me into chaos, and have me aid him in killing both myself, the junior sister, and the master. However, this plan was not only seen through by me, but also shattered from the start by that slash from the master.
In fact, the master's slash wasn't meant to kill me, but to cleave away the dream centipede on my neck. She had saved me, and I had misunderstood her.
The evil spirit tainting the junior sister and the master must have been extremely powerful, which resulted in me, after seeing them in my dream, encountering the Lantern Ghost as Mr. Ling anticipated. This led Mr. Ling to believe his plan was proceeding smoothly.
The later battle with Mr. Ling also had many incomprehensible aspects.
For instance, why did I suddenly see Mr. Ling transform into a monster? If it was because my cultivation was sufficient, then I should have been able to see him from the beginning. And clearly, Mr. Ling was possessed by a flesh-bound evil spirit based on his remarks, and cross-subordination authority does not apply. Then what was the reason I could suddenly see him?
You Su ventured a reasonable guess: the evil spirit on the junior sister and master were not one but two.
Attached to the junior sister was a flesh-bound evil spirit, while within the master was a Dream Master-type evil spirit, and their authority was extremely high. This was likely why Mr. Ling, upon realization, completely gave up resistance.
Thus, after eating that piece of rotten flesh cut from the junior sister, I also succumbed to the evil, having gained a surge in flesh-bound power, and could even briefly restore vision, ultimately turning defeat into victory.
From this perspective, though the junior sister and master were affected by the evil, they each saved me once.
Thinking of this, You Su was flooded with mixed emotions.
He could see how arduous the road ahead would be. He needed to hide the fact that all three of them were under the influence of evil from everyone, while also seeking a way to help them rid themselves of the evil spirits.
But he wouldn't regret his choice.
"It doesn't matter anymore. No Mr. Ling, no grandmaster, no chaotic Celestial Revelation or Chuyun; nothing can stop me."
You Su clasped the Exorcism Order tightly, growling with the weight in his heart, like a scarred lion surrounded by hyenas yet unyielding.
Suddenly, he sensed a change in the Exorcism Order; it began to tremble slightly. Uncertain of the cause, You Su infused his Profound Qi into it, and the Exorcism Order calmed down while lines of text appeared in his mind:
The Celestial Revelation Divine Mountain on Nanyang Continent is holding the Grand Sacrifice to the Immortal Ancestor, yet the Dream-eating Ghost has absconded with the altar's treasures and is likely in the borders of Zhongyuan Continent. Any holders of the Exorcism Order on Henggao Divine Mountain, if you have any clues, report back promptly! Remember! Those below the Feather Transformation Realm must not act rashly!—Divine Mountain Exorcism Bureau of Henggao Divine Mountain.
As You Su finished reading, he hadn't had time to ponder before his eyelids, weighing a thousand pounds, shut, plunging him into slumber.