The explosion's shockwave and the piercing roar echoed in the moonlight, accompanied by a violent shaking. Zhou Li and Tang Wan simultaneously kicked open the carriage windows and barely managed to escape from the carriage before the raging flames engulfed them.
Just as they left the carriage, the surging wave of fire consumed the entire vehicle. The crackling sound warned them that if they hadn't left the carriage, their fate would definitely not have been good.
At this time, the entire line of tall carriages was completely swallowed by fire. The neighing of the horses, the painful howls of people, and the struggling, twisted black shadows in the flames were especially ferocious under the moonlight. Zhou Li watched the raging flames with a grave expression, while Tang Wan had already drawn out her silver needles and hidden weapons to stand guard around them.
"Whether in joy or sorrow, all enter samsara."
In his hands, the Chan Staff was silver-cast and copper-embroidered, and his body was draped in a kasaya as red as blood. Where there had once been eyes, now only empty bloody sockets remained, yet his aged face was full of tranquility. The monk, who slowly emerged from the boiling flames, slammed his staff heavily into the ground, brought his hands together in prayer, and said with a face full of compassion:
"Benefactors, you should enter samsara."
Everything has a spirit; spirits can communicate, but they can also be devoured.
"Soul-Devouring Ghost..."
Confronted with the strange evil spirit emitting mixed auras of compassion and bloodlust, both Zhou Li and Tang Wan's faces hardened with a solemn expression. Within the territory of Da Ming, apart from the Spirit Qi Masters who communicate with spirits, there was another kind of cultivator related to spirits, the "Soul-Devouring Ghosts" in front of them.
These individuals also cultivated Qi, but the Qi they practiced was neither the Innate Qi nor the Myriad Spirits Qi. Instead, they cultivated the Visceral Turmoil Qi hidden within the heart and flesh.
This Qi was bloody and violent, and at the same time, it affected the minds of others, causing them to unconsciously engage in frenzied slaughter. With the advancement of the Visceral Turmoil Qi, these individuals would hollow out their own spirits and then bind the Spirits of All Things with this tumultuous Qi, finally refining the Qi Spirits with their own flesh and blood as the furnace, transforming them into controlled evil spirits.
"This poor monk, made a speech and paid homage, greets you two."
After bowing respectfully, the eyeless Soul-Devouring Ghost said to them with a gentle tone: "This poor monk's understanding of the path is humble. Please enter samsara, and if you do not comply..."
Grasping the Chan Staff tightly, the hollows that were like bloody sockets suddenly filled with blazing scarlet light, and a wailing like that of an evil ghost resounded within his body. The one named made a speech and paid homage had his figure swell violently, his kasaya bursting in an instant, and his terrifying muscles contained a smothering, searing breath. With one hand upright and his body slightly bowed, his voice resonated like a bell:
"To kill without exception."
"You take the left, I'll take the right!"
Accompanying Zhou Li's angry shout, Tang Wan dashed toward the right without looking back, sprinting swiftly. Zhou Li, too, wasted no time and ran straight back after shouting.
They couldn't win, definitely not.
Zhou Li was very clear that whoever could incinerate an entire six-carriage train with such violent flames in the blink of an eye was definitely not someone he and Tang Wan together could contend with.
Moreover, this opponent was a Soul-Devouring Ghost, bloodthirsty and impervious to pain. If it really came to a fight, his tactics of targeting eyes and groin would surely be ineffective; even throwing lime probably wouldn't do much good.
Of course, Zhou Li's flight was not without basis. He could tell that while persuading him and Tang Wan to die quickly, this Soul-Devouring Ghost named made a speech and paid homage clearly seemed to be focused on him; his target was most likely Zhou Li himself.
Sure enough...
After running for about five or six meters, Zhou Li sensed the heat of the flames burning fiercely behind him. His mind sharpened, his body contorted into a strange pose as he leaped through midair, avoiding a ball of bone-corroding fire.
Watching Zhou Li soaring through the air, made a speech and paid homage's face still bore a compassionate smile. Shaking his staff, he sent another wave of intense fire rolling toward Zhou Li who had no leverage in midair.
Whoosh.
Accompanied by a barely perceptible adhesive sound, Zhou Li's body jerked violently as if pulled to the side, smashing into the thicket on the right. But this dodge allowed the raging wave of flames to brush past him. After steadying himself on the ground, Zhou Li looked towards Si Ci, who was standing a hundred meters away in a daze, shook off the spider silk from his hand, and mouthed a shape.
[Bald Donkey]
Seeing this, Si Ci was first taken aback, as he had never seen someone being chased to death still having the leisure to turn back and mock him. He wasn't angry, though; instead, he smiled and raised the Chan Staff high.
Hiss~~~
The condensed blade of fire was thin as a cicada's wing, the sound of it slicing air chilling. The Chan Staff smashed heavily onto the ground, creating a roaring sound, while the blade of fire, snake-like and secretive, slashed towards Zhou Li's head. The speed of the fire blade was so fast that the summer cicadas shaken from the trees hadn't even touched the ground at the moment the blade burst forth.
"Audacious thief!"
"Punishment Order Thirteen: Deprive of Five Senses!"
A roar came from the wreck of the carriage, followed by a steady low chant from deep within the forest. Just as the fire blade was about to split Zhou Li's head, a steel-tipped feather arrow tore through the air, directly scattering the fire blade.
Meanwhile, Si Ci, who had a look of surprise on his face, was just about to turn around when an indescribable force spread through his body and instantly stripped him of his five senses.
Zhou Li looked at the fire blade shattered before him and breathed a sigh of relief, quietly putting away the Ten Thousand Vermillion Spirit Ling Zhu Sphere he had been clutching in his palm.
As expected.
In fact, the moment he escaped from the carriage, Zhou Li had looked towards the last section. The explosion and flames, though fierce and obviously premeditated, were not enough to instantly kill a Jinyiwei Hundred Household sitting in the last compartment who had sufficient time to react.
Of course, if that Hundred Household had indeed been killed by those flames, Zhou Li wouldn't have much to say. He would have just opened the Ten Thousand Vermillion Spirit Ling Zhu Sphere, transformed into a bird and fled, considering himself unlucky to have come across a purebred case of nepotism.
Moreover...
Looking at Si Ci, who had been deprived of his five senses and was protecting himself with flames, Zhou Li narrowed his eyes and gently tapped his index finger thoughtfully.
It wasn't just any Hundred Household...
At that moment, Si Ci was enveloped in flames, his Chan Staff glowing red-hot. Though deprived of his senses, he did not struggle or attempt to flee; instead, he remained still. Clenching his Chan Staff, he shouted aloud:
"Is there a master here? Please show yourself!"
"To ambush a Government Office's carriage within the territory of Da Ming and commit murder in public, the crime is unforgivable, absolutely unforgivable!"
The ash-grey kasaya burned ferociously, revealing the great red brocade robe embroidered with swimming qilin. The man held a longbow curved like a crescent moon in his hand, reached out, and removed his hood, smearing a line of traveler's blood across his forehead. Standing atop the burning carriage, he felt the flying scent of blood and flesh, his rage surpassing the heat beneath his feet.
"Remember, he who kills you..."
The feather arrow was nocked, his arm drawn back, his stance as firm as a mighty pine, with two moons in the sky. His eyes, piercing like dragon's gaze and tiger's glare, fixed intently on the bloodied monk, Guo Lingyun clenched his teeth, his voice laden with sharp edges.
"Great Ming's Brocade-clad Guards!"