Li Xuan didn't know how much time had passed before he slowly drifted back into consciousness.
When he opened his eyes, he realized he had returned to his living quarters in Earl Chengyi's mansion. The mosquito net, the beams, and the intricately carved bed frame - he was familiar with all of it.
It seemed to be late evening, judging from the slightly dim lighting in the room. Outside, a thunderstorm roared, the rain pouring down in torrents.
Li Xuan didn't feel any pain in his body, but he was aware of his own breathing and heartbeat.
——He was truly fortunate he was still alive!
However, when Li Xuan tried to climb out of bed, his body froze unexpectedly.
He noticed that there was a young girl in a vivid red dress standing not far from his bed.
Her features suggested she was about sixteen or seventeen years old. An exquisitely crafted phoenix coronet sat atop her head, shrouding her in a vibrant red embroidered vest. Her features were striking, radiant and unmatched.
But upon closer inspection, Li Xuan couldn't help but feel a shiver run down his spine.
That was because the girl showed no signs of life and her eyes were devoid of pupils, filled only with a chilling crimson red. Her face was ashen white, pale as paper. The lightning outside sporadically illuminated her face, casting an eerie glow.
"Miss, may I ask your surname?"
Li Xuan tested, but received no response. Only blood drops fell from the girl's vacant eyes, accompanied by an indistinguishable chilling force that began to permeate the room.
Li Xuan's heartbeat stuttered, but he quickly regained his composure. He even stretched out his hand to attempt to touch the girl's shoulder, testing whether she had a physical form.
As a forensic doctor who has dissected dozens of corpses, Li Xuan was not faint-hearted. Even though he suspected that the girl before him could be some kind of ghost, he knew this world was full of skilled exorcists.
Li Xuan's father, Earl Chengyi, was a formidable cultivator at the tenth house level, capable of suppressing any fierce demon, so there was no need for Li Xuan to fear anything.
However, a chill ran through Li Xuan's body as his fingers merely met empty air. Simultaneously, his fingertips inexplicably picked up a dead grey mist that immediately spread, causing a sudden wave of weakness to wash over Li Xuan.
The next moment, a delicate thread of electricity appeared in front of Li Xuan. The size of a human hair strand, it hit his fingers, creating a stinging numbness that consumed his entire body and radiated the grey mist from his fingertip.
Li Xuan knew that this small electric current was due to the activation of the 'Wulei Pimo Array' arranged in Earl Chengyi's mansion.
In a world ravaged by demons, as long as they could afford it, people would set up protective arrays to ward off evil spirits in their residences.
Earl Chengyi's mansion was no exception, and their 'Wulei Pimo Array' was exceptionally powerful.
The grey fog that tangled his fingertips made its origins obviously clear.
Li Xuan couldn't help but look up at the young girl in surprise. He wondered why the 'Wulei Pimo Array' didn't seem to affect her.
Moreover, where did this red-clothed ghost come from? Is she here to claim his life? How did Li Xuan offend her?
Just as Li Xuan was lost in thought, he saw that the door curtain was raised. Earl Chengyi, Li Chengji, stepped in. The moment he saw that Li Xuan was awake, his face brightened.
"You're finally awake." He sat down next to Li Xuan's bed, "Fortunately, this time you were wearing the 'Kuiniu luminous armor', otherwise you would have been hovering between life and death."
Li Xuan was curious about how he had managed to survive? What had happened after he passed out? What were the origins of those two Taoists? What was inside the coffin?
But right now, the priority was to deal with the female ghost beside his bed.
Li Xuan lifted his hand, pointing to the girl who was standing less than three steps away from Earl Chengyi, Li Chengji, he asked tentatively, "Old man, don't you see such a big female ghost standing right here?"
"Female ghost?"
Li Chengji was taken aback. He glanced towards where Li Xuan was pointing, then exchanged a puzzled look with his eldest son, Li Yan, who had just entered.
※※※※
Two hours later, still in Li Xuan's room, Li Chengji bowed in salute to a monk in a kasaya, "Thank you for your help, Master Yuanwu. Yan, see Master off and present him with a ceremonial gift."
The smile on the monk's face became more genuine. He put his palms together and returned the salute: "My Lord, don't worry, as far as I can see, your son most likely suffered a heavy blow to the head, causing hallucinations and a delirious mind. He only needs to rest for a while, and some calming and spirit-soothing medicine should help."
Meanwhile, Li Xuan sat stupefied on the bed, numbly staring at the red-dressed girl. He was wondering, how was this possible? How could this be happening?
Earl Chengyi, Li Chengji, a great master at the tenth house level, was actually completely ignorant of her presence. And that Master Yuanwu bidding farewell was the abbot of the Great Baoen Temple. His cultivation was even higher than Li Chengji's and specialized in this area. But even after Li Xuan had explicitly indicated the position of the female ghost, he remained oblivious to her existence. He also tried to touch the ghost, hoping to stir up those ashes-like breaths and trigger a response from the 'Wulei Pimo Array,' but it was strange. This seemed to have no effect either in front of Master Yuanwu or his father.
What were the origins of this red-dressed female ghost? Did she have consciousness?
"Xuan?" Li Chengji saw Li Xuan remain silent as if in a daze for a long time and couldn't help frowning. "If you still insist on seeing the ghost, I can bring some more people to take a look. Although Master Yuanwu is powerful, he is not the best in Jinling City."
"Dad, you're wasting money."
This was Li Yan, who had just seen off Master Yuanwu. He entered with a folding fan in hand. "Would someone else be more capable? Although Master Yuanwu is not the most powerful, if it comes to discerning evil beings, probably no one in Jinling City exceeds him. I also think Li Xuan has hit his head, causing his mind to become abnormal. It's absurd. In our 'Wulei Pimo Array,' how could ghosts possibly exist?"
"Shut up!" Li Chengji glared coldly at his eldest son. After some deep thought, he stood up abruptly, "Wait for me for a bit."
He walked out of the room, and about ten minutes later, he returned to Li Xuan's bedroom holding a vermilion wooden box.
Li Yan looked at the wooden box and couldn't help taking a deep breath. "Is this the blood of the Sky Eye Monster? Dad, you should have just called someone. This stuff is even more expensive, a mere drop costs two thousand teals."
However, Li Chengji, without uttering a word, took out a porcelain bottle from the wooden box. He then poured out a drop of bright red blood and applied it on his forehead.
Immediately after, this Earl Chengyi initiated a spell that made his eyes shine with spiritual light.
Li Xuan recognized this to be the 'Spirit Eye' technique. Under the amplification effect of the Sky Eye Monster's blood, its power could be greatly increased.
But to his disappointment, after Li Chengji glanced at him and looked around, he still shook his head slightly, "I can detect no trace of any evil yin energy, only some weakness in this body. I'll have someone bring you another jar of Shaoyang Elixir. You should replenish your strength."
He hesitated for a moment before adding, "Do not go messing around in the brothel in the next few months, or I will break your legs."
At this point, Li Xuan was entirely perplexed, staring blankly at the red-dressed female ghost. It wasn't until Li Chengji became doubtful, thinking that there might be something wrong with his younger son's mind, that Li Xuan finally turned his head and asked, "How long was I unconscious? And how did I get back to the mansion? Also, were those two Taoists caught?"
Since the female ghost issue could not be resolved for the time being, he decided to act as if nothing had happened and sought other alternatives.
He suspected that this red-dressed female ghost, had something to do with the events that transpired before he fell unconscious.