The next day, nothing out of the ordinary happened.
Chu Xun had already sent people to count the number of scarecrows in the city to see if there were enough scarecrows. Every household had also begun to pack some of the meager belongings, preparing to leave the city for Mount Putuo the next morning under Chu Xun's arrangement to take refuge.
Mo Ran sat at the entrance of the government office, looking at the people coming and going. He sighed and said, "Chu Xun's arrangement was very thorough. If no one leaked the information, with the intelligence of a normal ghost, it would be difficult to quickly distinguish that the people left in the city were all puppets.
It seems that there really was a leak.
Shidi, what do you think? "
No one responded.
"Hey?
Shidi? "
Mo Ran turned his head. Unknowingly, his youngest Shidi had walked to the side to look at the cavalry that was ready to set off. Instead, it was Young Master Chu's son who silently came to his side and sat with his chin resting on his hand.
"Big Brother …"
Mo Ran was startled by his sudden appearance, "What's wrong?"
The little guy pointed at an old tree next to him, on which a kite was hanging. He said with a lisp, "Mother left it for me. It flew up and I can't get it down.
Big Brother, can you help me? "
"Of course, of course."
Mo Ran floated to the top of the tree with his lightness skill. He picked up the butterfly kite and steadily landed back on the ground. He handed the kite to the little guy and said with a smile, "Hold it well, don't lose it again."
The little guy nodded in confusion.
Mo Ran saw him wandering around alone and thought that Chu Xun didn't have time to take care of his son. He asked him, "Where's your mother?
There are a lot of people here, I'll take you to your mother. "
"Mother?
Mother is at the back of the mountain. "
Mo Ran asked curiously, "What are you doing at the back of the mountain?"
"Sleeping." The little guy opened his round eyes and said softly, "Mother always sleeps there.
She blossoms in the spring, so Father often takes me to see her. "
Mo Ran let out a soft "ah" and was speechless for a moment.
On the other hand, the little girl didn't seem to care at all. It seemed that because she was still young, she didn't understand the so-called life and death. She happily played with the kite in her hand. Then, she raised her head and looked at Mo Ran. Suddenly, she moved closer and said in a crisp voice, "Big Brother, thank you. I'll give you … I have something to give you."
As he spoke, he began to rummage in his pocket. He rummaged and rummaged until he pulled out a small piece of pastry wrapped in a reed leaf.
These days, everyone in Lin 'an City was starving and could not eat their fill. He wondered how this little thing could save such a snack.
He broke the pastry into two halves, keeping the big one and giving the small one to Mo Ran.
"Big brother, you eat … Shh, don't tell anyone, I don't have more."
Just as Mo Ran was about to reach out to take it, the little guy suddenly changed his mind. After thinking for a while, he took back the small piece and handed the big one to him.
"It's delicious. There's red bean paste."
This small action made Mo Ran's heart suddenly feel warm and sour. He had always been used to others treating him badly, so he didn't know how to deal with sudden good things.
He reached out to take the flower cake and murmured thanks.
The little guy seemed very happy because of this. He raised his face and smiled brightly. His black eyelashes curled gently.
Mo Ran took the flower cake. He was reluctant to eat it, so he went to the side and picked a piece of pine leaf. He wrapped the flower cake and put it in his clothes.
He wanted to say a few more words to the little guy, but after all, a child was a child. He couldn't stay in one place for too long. He had already turned around and jumped away.
At this time, Chu Wanning came over. Seeing Mo Ran standing there in a daze, he slightly raised his eyebrows and asked, "What's wrong?"
Mo Ran looked at the back of the little guy and sighed, "I'm thinking, why did so many people suddenly die?"
At night, the sky was covered with dark clouds. From time to time, blue and purple thunder tore the sky.
In the second half of the night, the wind was blowing, and the rain was coming.
The rain was of the Yin attribute, which would make the power of the ghosts stronger.
So that night, Chu Xun asked all the survivors of Lin 'an to gather near the governor's office and not to step out of the enchantment of Shang Qing.
Because of the heavy rain, many places where people could barely sleep were ruined.
At first, Mo Ran could keep track of Young Man's whereabouts, but as more and more people crowded in to take shelter from the rain, Young Man disappeared.
Mo Ran whispered, "Not good."
Chu Wanning was small, so he immediately said, "I'll go and see."
After saying that, he hid in the crowd. He was immediately squeezed by the dense crowd and couldn't see his back.
After a while, Chu Wanning came back. His eyes were gloomy, and he said coldly, "She escaped."
"Out of the enchantment?"
"Yes."
Mo Ran didn't speak. He looked at the pouring rain outside and the people of the governor's office who were busy in the rain.
These were just illusions from two hundred years ago. Everything had become a fact.
But suddenly he felt a little sad. The women and children around him were full of hope, thinking that after dawn, Chu Xun would take them away from this ghost town and take refuge in Putuo.
In the heavy rain, the guards in white and red hoods were wholeheartedly making the last defense for the migration when dawn came.
They didn't know that they wouldn't live long.
It was late at night, and the noisy people were sleeping on each other's pillows.
However, Chu Wanning and Mo Ran were not sleepy at all. What they needed to do was to kill the Ghost King as soon as it appeared.
Since Young Man had run out of the enchantment, the change must be tonight.
Mo Ran looked at Chu Wanning and said, "You sleep. I'll wake you up if something happens."
Chu Wanning said, "I'm not sleepy."
Mo Ran stroked his hair. "Then eat something.
You haven't eaten since you came here. "
"I …" The word "not hungry" was replaced by the action of swallowing silently when he saw the flower cake Mo Ran took out.
Mo Ran handed the cake to him. "You eat it."
Chu Wanning took the cake and broke it in half. He gave the big one to Mo Ran and held the small one himself.
Mo Ran looked at his actions blankly. No one knew what he was thinking.
After taking a bite of the cake, Chu Wanning suddenly murmured, and then asked, "Did you buy this in the Peach Blossom Spring?
Why is the taste different from before? "
"What's wrong?"
"The osmanthus fragrance is so strong."
Mo Ran smiled bitterly. "Really?
Chu Xun's son gave it to me. It's probably the flavor of Lin 'an. "
"It's indeed the flavor of Lin 'an."
Chu Wanning silently took a second bite, but when he opened his mouth a little, he suddenly froze, as if he suddenly realized something. The blood on his face suddenly faded.
"Something's wrong!"
Chu Wanning suddenly got up. His eyes were wide open, and his face was extremely ugly.
Mo Ran didn't know what was wrong. "What's wrong?"
Chu Wan Ning did not reply. Instead, she stood up and walked into the courtyard. Braving the heavy rain, she looked around. Then, she picked up a sharp stone and made a deep cut on her arm. In an instant, blood splattered everywhere.
Mo Ran hurriedly pulled him. "Are you crazy?"
Chu Wanning stared at the meandering bloodstains on his arm for a while. Then, he suddenly raised his head. His eyes flashed with lightning and were extremely fierce. "Don't you know what happened?" He said sternly. "Someone wants to harm us!"
Blood kept flowing down his arm, and was washed into a light pink by the rain.
In the pouring rain, Chu Wanning's face was pale and stern. His dark eyebrows were deeply furrowed. The raindrops closed tightly, making him wet all over.
With a boom, thunder broke through the sky. In an instant, the dark night was illuminated as if it was daytime.
Mo Ran also suddenly reacted in this thunder and couldn't help but take a step back.
He also knew what was wrong.
The so-called virtual world, no matter how real the things inside were, were all fake.
Pastries couldn't really have taste, and sharp weapons couldn't really hurt people.
In a word, the things in the virtual world couldn't have any effect on them.
"Someone made the virtual world real," Chu Wanning said softly.
The virtual world was a very difficult spell to perform. It was also called the "Way of Illusion and Reality."
The one who was best at this spell was the "Lonemoon Night" of the Ten Great Sects. This sect's motto was "To help the world, to heal the heart with divine hands". The latter part of the sentence meant that some of them specialized in the Way of Illusion and Reality, and made a virtual world real.
There were many people in the world who couldn't accept the death of their relatives, but through the "Way of Illusion and Reality", they could make a virtual world where the dead lived and accompanied the living.
However, because this kind of virtual world was very difficult to control, usually, only a short scene could be made.
For example, drinking with an old friend, sleeping together, and so on, at most one thing.
However, this virtual world made by the feathermen was huge and vast. It lasted for a long time and involved a lot of things. To make all of this real, even the sect leader of the Lonemoon Night might not be able to do it.
Mo Ran immediately thought of a person. He thought to himself — could it be the fake North Star at Jin Chenghu?
However, before he could think further, he suddenly heard a strange explosion in the sky.
Those who were sleeping woke up like frightened birds. They opened their frightened and haggard eyes and looked around. Then, they saw the sky.
After a moment of dead silence, the screams exploded like water splashing in boiling oil.
Everyone ran in all directions, but they realized that there was nowhere to go. There were screams everywhere.
A crack appeared in the sky, and a huge blood-red ghost's eye was glaring at the top of the barrier.
The eye was so close that it was almost touching the opening of the barrier.
A murky and cold voice rumbled, "Chu Xun, how dare you. You're just a mortal and you want to fool me."
Mo Ran muttered, "It's the Ghost King …"
There were nine kings in the Ghost World, and their mana was very different. At this time, he had not appeared, so it was unknown which king it was.
There was only that bloody eyeball in the sky, staring at the mansion below, "You're overestimating yourself, ridiculous!
Ridiculous mortals — you want to save them?
I might not have killed everyone in the city, but since you want to go against me — I'll kill everyone in the city!
Not even a chicken or dog will be left alive! "
Following a scream, a blinding red light burst out from the center of the ghost's eye, slashing towards the Shang Qing barrier!
In an instant, the sky changed color, and gold and red met!
Sand and stones flew in the storm, and the trees in the courtyard were destroyed. The people under the barrier were in a mess, crying and wailing.
The Shang Qing enchantment withstood the first attack, but then another ray of red light struck down, striking the same spot again. The enchantment withstood the heavy machine again, but this time, there were cracks appearing.
"You're overestimating yourself — how hateful!!!"
Beams of red light hit the barrier one after another, bursting into clusters of sparks.
Seeing that the barrier was about to crack, Chu Wanning knew that it was not good — since this virtual world had been solidified, the opponent's attack was no different from the attack in the real world.
If the attack landed, he and Mo Ran would most likely die in the Emptiness Realm!
Chu Wanning thought, and the golden light was already shining between his fingers.
If he used his big move now, his identity would be seen through by Mo Ran, but there was no other way.
He was about to summon Tianwen to end the battle quickly.
Suddenly, a colorful light pierced through the sky like a sharp arrow, piercing through the clouds and piercing the gap of the barrier!
Everyone looked back and saw Chu Xun walking in the rain from the roof beam.
He held a phoenix-headed konghou in his arm, and his fingertips plucked the strings of the konghou.
The sound of the zither was sharp, like the cracking of metal and stone. Beams of light were drawn out and gathered in the sky.
In an instant, the Shang Qing barrier that was in danger was re-strengthened.
"It's the Young Master!"
"Young Master!"
The people below shouted, and some were crying with joy.
Chu Xun fought against the Ghost King's eye technique, and he was not at a disadvantage. In the blink of an eye, they had exchanged hundreds of moves, and the Ghost King could not even get close to the barrier.
The cold voice in the air became gloomier.
"Chu Xun, with your ability, no one can hurt you if you run for your life. Why are you meddling in other people's business and making an enemy of the Ghost World?"
"You want to hurt the people of Lin 'an City, how is that meddling in other people's business?"
"Ridiculous!
Ghosts usually eat the souls of living people. My clan eats souls, just like you eat meat and vegetables. What's the difference?
When you're dead, you'll see it clearly! "
Chu Xun answered naturally, and the sound of the zither did not stop, "Then let's see if you have the ability to take my head."
As he spoke, the sound of the zither became more urgent and louder. In the end, it was a dragon light that shone through the sky and pierced the ferocious bloody eye in the rainy night!
"Ah –!!!"
The mournful and terrifying roar shook the heavens and the earth.
The eye was burned by Chu Xun's technique, and smelly blood splashed everywhere. In an instant, the sky was filled with blood, and the ghosts were crying.
Under the anger of the other party, a beam of light that was several times stronger than before slashed horizontally in the bloody rain.
Chu Xun shook his sleeve to block, but this blow was the Ghost King's violent attack. Under the confrontation between the two sides, Chu Xun was shaken by the wave of air and stagnated.
"Young Master –!"
"Crack!
There's a crack!
The barrier is going to break! "
"Mother – mother –"
Everyone in the porridge was in a state of panic. Some relatives cried and hugged each other, while others curled up in a corner and shivered.
Chu Xun gritted his teeth, and his eyes were like torches, but he was unwilling to give up so easily.
In the difficult stalemate, a ray of light suddenly lit up on his left and right.
He glanced sideways, and saw that Mo Ran and Chu Wanning had already moved forward. The golden light and the red light surged and merged with him, sealing the barrier again.
A ferocious roar came from the sky.
The ghost eye disappeared.
The three of them landed on the ground. The smelly blood in the sky continued to fall for a while, and then slowly turned back into transparent rain.
Chu Xun's face was pale, and he bowed to Mo Ran and Chu Wanning, "Thank you for your help."
"You're welcome," Mo Ran waved his hand, "You should rest, you don't look good."
Chu Xun nodded. He had indeed used up a lot of his mana, so Mo Ran helped him to the corridor to rest.
The panicked people saw that Young Master Chu had repaired the hole and saved them. They were all very grateful.
They all gathered around, and some even handed him water and put on his clothes.
Someone said, "Young Master Chu, your clothes are soaked, why don't you go to the fire and dry yourself."
Chu Xun thanked them one by one, but because he was too tired, he didn't want to move anymore, so he politely declined their invitation.
Those people weren't discouraged, and simply brought some pine branches over, and built a fire pit next to Chu Xun.
The surroundings gradually quieted down, and only the crackling of the fire could be heard.
Suddenly, a citizen asked him, "Young Master, we arranged it so carefully, how did the Ghost King see through it?
Sigh, what should we do? "
"Yes, yes."
"How did he know we were going to move?
Young Master clearly said that this ghost couldn't tell the difference between a puppet and a living person. What's going on … Could it be … "The speaker's voice gradually trailed off as he turned to steal a glance at Chu Xun.
He clearly wanted to ask if Chu Xun had made a mistake, if Chu Xun hadn't figured it out.
This gaze was seen by the white-clothed guards of the governor's office, and one of them immediately said angrily, "What are you thinking!
Someone must have leaked the news and let the Ghost King know! "
That person muttered, "Who would leak information to ghosts and monsters?
It won't do any good … … "But when he saw that the people around him were glaring at him, he resentfully stopped talking.
After a moment of silence, another person asked,
"Young Master, that ghost old man definitely won't let this go, what should we do next?"
Chu Xun was very tired, so he didn't open his eyes, but he still said in a gentle voice, "It'll be fine as long as we can hold on until dawn. After that, we'll leave the city and hurry on our way, they won't be able to do anything during the day."
"But there are so many of us, old and young, and some are even injured, can we make it to Mount Putuo in one day?"
Chu Xun said warmly, "Don't worry, all of you should rest.
Tomorrow, you just need to hurry on your way, I'll think of a way. "
It had always been the young master who protected them, and since he said so, everyone obediently agreed. A child came over, holding a small piece of sesame candy, and wanted to give it to Chu Xun.
Chu Xun slightly opened his eyes, smiled and touched the child's hair, and was about to say something, when suddenly a guard ran over in panic and shouted, "Young Master!
Young Master, something bad happened! "
"What happened?"
"Young Master, Young Master … … Young Man … … Outside the City God Temple … …" That person was obviously greatly affected, and couldn't say a complete sentence. He stuttered, and suddenly knelt on the ground with a thump, and cried loudly.
Chu Xun suddenly got up, and the last trace of blood on his face disappeared, and he ran into the rain.