The crowd was stupefied for a moment.
"What? Is there a Spell Master here?" One of the man spoke, horrified.
"Indeed. And he's one of you." Song Cheng replied, walking towards the group.
The men started looking at each other, scared and doubtful, inching away from one another's body.
"Elder Meng, come out." Song Cheng spoke, stopping in front of the man, arms crossed over his chest.
Elder Meng put on a scared face and came out of the crowd.
"Why does this Noble Master do he doubt me? I have nothing to do with any spell." The man spoke.
If one could see him like this, they'd be convinced that this man was sure innocent but to Song Cheng, he was the most suspicious.
The case of the child of the household being abducted was weird although he said he knew a bit of swords, how come he never fought the spirit and ran away? If he knew only a bit, why were his hands covered with wounds like that of a martial cultivator?
Moreover, he reeked of something Song Cheng had previously failed to recognise: cinnabar.
Even if he wasn't the Spell Master, he sure wasn't just a mere servant as he spoke.
"There's no need to put on a show. We all know it is you. Since it is you, break the Seal." Bai Hua spoke coldly, as an electrifying burst of spiritual energy flowed into Hua Shou.
Elder Meng stared at the dazzling whip for a moment.
"Trust me, you don't want it to touch you." Song Cheng spoke.
"I-I don't know how!" Elder Meng quickly admitted.
"Elder Meng! You! How could you do this and put Child Cui on stake? Ungrateful sorcerer!" Somebody from the crowd shouted.
Quickly, Elder Meng tried to make a move, fishing out a talisman from his robes.
The Self Destruction Talisman!
Song Cheng was quicker than him. With his right hand forming a sword seal, Lan Tian slipped from his side and flew towards Elder Meng, stopping his arm before he could jab the piece of yellow on his chest.
Hua Shou leaped off Bai Hua's waist and wrapped around Elder Meng's arms, seizing him.
Elder Meng scowled for a good while before stopping his movements in attempt to break free.
Suddenly, a groan reached Song Cheng's ears.
His head whipped back.
Qin Su squatted on the ground, clutching his stomach tightly in pain. He gritted his teeth, almost gritting then to powder as he tightly hugged his body.
"Qin Su? What is it?" Song Cheng hurried to his side.
"I told you not to eat too much, now see!" Xue Min snarled.
"It couldn't be that bad if it was just a stomach pain. A-Su let me see." Song Cheng spoke, putting his arm on Qin Su's shoulders.
"D-Don't. It. It-" Qin Su managed to speak through gritted teeth.
A wild laughter filled the surroundings. It was Elder Meng who laughed. The crowd behind him was also scared hearing this maniacal laughter.
"You! Why are you laughing?" Xue Min stomped his feet and walked upto him.
"Did you do something to him?"
"Don't overestimate this Elder, what can I do? I've just done a little prank on this Young Master." The man answered and continued laughing hysterically.
Bai Hua lifted his gaze towards him. Hua Shou tightened itself around him, crushing soft muscles in his body. Elder Meng clenched his teeth and stopped laughing.
"Let me see." Song Cheng spoke again and this time, Qin Su didn't say a word and sat upright.
Song Cheng put his hands on the outer black robe and removed it to Qin Su's side.
What he saw filled his face with horror. On his inner robe were letters scripted in cinnabar. Strokes that looked familiar to Song Cheng. His breath hitched.
"What is it?" Xue Min asked, tensed as he observed Song Cheng's expression.
Song Cheng didn't reply but moved his hand forward before it was caught by something.
Bai Hua held his hand gently and pushed it down.
"Don't touch."
But it was too late to speak.Qin Su's hand had already moved and navigated the strokes.
As if life being added to the spell, it glistened a flashy red before once again sticking dead to Qin Su.
"You- What did you do!" Song Cheng gasped.
Qin Su sat frozen for a moment before words spilled out of his mouth.
"Soul Summoning Spell."
Hearing the words, Xue Min almost facepalmed himself.
It wasn't possible for Elder Meng to put the spell on directly. It surely must have been a fishy talisman Qin Su hadn't noticed. Behind his back, Qin Su really was deaf and blind.
"..."
"Xiao ge, get away!" Bai Hua shouted.
Before Song Cheng could get up, a dark mist enveloped Qin Su and suddenly his hand grabbed Song Cheng's neck.
Why did everyone want to strangle him??
In the same moment, a booming sound ushered in from the opposite end of the path.
In his periphery, Song Cheng could make out a vague shadows chasing after the other. The shadows walked closer and Song Cheng could make out they were two women.
And in one's arm was a child, of about ten, scared to death, praying for dear life.
"Die! You wretched being! Die!" A voice enounced from Qin Su's lips.
The voice was his but the accent was not.
His vital nerves being pressed and breath being pumped out of him, Song Cheng almost choked.
He couldn't just bring himself to attack Qin Su.
He was the first Heavenly Guardian who didn't speak ill of Lu Feng. But his mind was already telling him, if he didn't act now, he'd surely be dead in a minute, as for the one trying to strangle him wasn't Qin Su.
Song Cheng quickly formed a sword seal behind his back and summoned Lan Tian.
A blue glistened in front of his eyes as Lan Tian swiftly directed itself towards Qin Su's throat.
"This body is not mine!" Qin Su spoke gleefully, trying to strangle Song Cheng harder and almost throwing himself over Lan Tian's blade.
"But this soul is!" Song Cheng gritted his teeth as with one hand,he guided Lan Tian ahead and with other firmed a soul crushing seal, slapping his hands together.
The soul crushing seal would not affect the body but the soul. As for which one, the one that had entered Qin Su's body with an opposing energy would be pushed out automatically, safeguarding his own.
It was a seal that couldn't really be used on mortals but Qin Su was a cultivator, his soul wouldn't be crushed like that.
In a minute, Lan Tian's blue clashed with a demonic black seeping out of Qin Su's throat and erupted into nothing.
It seemed that breath finally returned to Qin Su's body as he gasped in a big amount of air, followed by ca heavy cough.
His hands were still around Song Cheng's neck and he quickly pulled them away.
"What happened?" Qin Su demanded.
"A little possession." Song Cheng spoke, leaving out the details of his strangling and staking Qin Su's actual soul with a 'haha he's a cultivator' excuse.
Song Cheng's attention moved back to Bai Hua and Xue Min. Hua Shou was tightly wound on his right hand while Xue Min's legendary Huxi Yu sword was lifeless but stil, in his hand.
Elder Meng lay into a corpse on the side while the group of men which was scared to death held swords limping down in fear.
"Lady Cui!...Madam Cui?" One of the men spoke, looking at the two females.
While one them looked fresh, her features that of a ripe flower, dressed in an elegant robe like a lady of a household, the human child balled up in her hands.
Thank heaven he was alive!!
The other one was fairly contrasting, her body almost wearing as from illness, she was draped in mourning robes and looked a bit aged. It was hard to tell if she was being referred to as Madam.
The only thing the two shared was a furious look on their faces.
"Give Cui Qingge back to me!" The frail woman spoke.
"You've killed me, do you think I'll spare this child of yours?" The other shouted.
"It was you who killed me first!" Madam Cui shouted.
"What? Madam Cui was killed by Lady Cui??" A man from the crowd shouted.
"She really bewitched Master Cui with her charm!" Another remarked.
It was perhaps, a universal problem. Wherever ink had to be thrown on someone, right or wrong, the spectators never missed the fun of it.
Even facing two souls with who knows what intent, the servants weren't afraid to comment and curse.
It was an easy to assess situation for Song Cheng.
The other lady was indeed Madam Cui. This Lady Cui, a fresh beauty had seduced old Master Cui into bed and married him. But to take the place of the commanding lady of the house, she sent off Madam Cui with some poison causing this sick death face.
As for Cui Qingge, he was Madam Cui's child and the only heir of the family, Lady Cui didn't really want to kill him away too back then but now, he plans seemed to have changed.
It was still interesting to notice that the servants called the other 'Lady' and not 'Madam' , even after Madam Cui's death. Surely Madam Cui was much liked.
This affair could've been settled hadn't there been a living child involved. The scared child reminded Song Cheng of himself.
Scared, crying, clutching onto a women's robes for dear life.
"A-Cheng. Jiejie will always stay with you. Now, don't cry. Everything is fine. " Song Mi's soft voice ushered in his ears.
His hand around Lan Tian tightened, choking it's hilt so bad that his hand wanted to bleed.
Suddenly, Bai Hua's hand cupped his. A small amount of spiritual power flowed into his hand, calming his nerves and his hand relaxed.
"Everything's fine."
***