Chapter 160: Chapter 124: Ghostly Realm in the Painting

"I have a few words... for Benefactor Zheng Shan."

"Please, speak."

"It is difficult to discern reality from illusion, to distinguish black from white, to know right from wrong."

Zheng Xiu was taken aback. "Master, what do you mean by that?"

"You... would do well to be careful."

After speaking, the old Monk said no more.

Zheng Xiu was left speechless.

The old Monk’s "Wait and See Zen" left Zheng Xiu completely disarmed.

After they stepped out of the main hall, Ruchen bowed toward the interior and then respectfully closed the great doors.

Ruchen let out a long sigh of relief. "My master has barely seen any outsiders for years. I never imagined he would make an exception to see you today."

"Thank you, Master Huahua."

Zheng Xiu nudged his chin at Feng Bei and started walking toward the exit of Yunliu Temple.

Following the old Monk’s instructions, Ruchen respectfully escorted them all the way to the gate.

The other Monks were still taking stock of supplies in the aftermath of the fire, looking around to see who could have started it.

On the way, Zheng Xiu mentioned he had seen a figure hiding in the woods.

Ruchen just smiled at his words, saying that with Master Dengdeng presiding, Yunliu Temple would be perfectly safe.

"I appreciate your concern, but you can both rest assured."

Ruchen said with a smile.

"Forgive me for asking, but how exactly did Master Dengdeng master his ’Wait and See Zen’?"

Zheng Xiu was genuinely curious.

Ruchen suddenly let out a strange snicker, a peculiar, sleazy look flashing across his face before vanishing. He cleared his throat twice and answered, "Little Monk once heard that when Master Dengdeng was young, he was just a gatekeeper Monk. Whenever visitors arrived, he would step forward and say, ’Wait a moment.’ Seeing his kind face, the visitors couldn’t help but stop. One ’wait,’ one pause, one phrase, over and over. Decades flew by. Then one day, my master simply... achieved it."

Zheng Xiu and Feng Bei stared at each other, dumbfounded.

’You can fucking master something like that?’

Zheng Xiu was certain that Master Dengdeng’s Miracle Technique had nothing to do with him.

Master Dengdeng’s Age made him a man of a bygone era.

In other words, Miracle Techniques had existed in the world long before Baili Village; they were just hidden so deeply that no one took notice.

Understanding this, Zheng Xiu bid farewell to Ruchen and walked out of Yunliu Temple.

「In the mountain forest.」

Feng Bei walked beside Zheng Xiu and said calmly, "The painting contains a world unto itself. It’s highly likely it has become a special kind of Ghostly Realm."

"You think so, too?"

Zheng Xiu smiled. "Do you think the painting is a Deceitful Object?"

Feng Bei pondered for a moment, then shook her head. "I don’t think so. If Gongsun Mo, who lived two hundred years ago, was truly an Innate Mystic, any Deceitful Object bound to him would have vanished between Heaven and Earth upon his death. The Deceitful Object would then reappear on its own someday, choosing a new host to be born with. Unless..."

"Unless what?"

Feng Bei said, "Unless... Gongsun Mo is still alive."

Zheng Xiu remained noncommittal.

He felt it was impossible.

But at this point, what wasn’t possible?

Feng Bei then said, "They must be in the painting. The Cannibal Painting... if that painting hides a Ghostly Realm, it would explain everything. They were all pulled into it."

Zheng Xiu frowned. "But one thing doesn’t add up. The conditions required to form a Ghostly Realm are extremely strict. It can only form at the intersection of the Darkness and the Common World. To even approach the Darkness, you need a massive amount of Human Souls’ ’Will’ to strike the barrier between them. A mere painting... No, perhaps it only makes sense if Gongsun Mo was a true Innate Mystic."

Zheng Xiu had originally wanted to argue that it was impossible according to conventional theory. But thinking back on his recent experiences, he felt that when a Mystic was involved, nothing was impossible.

Mystics are born already standing on the Path; they cannot be understood with common logic.

This was true for both Zheng Xiu’s [Prisoner] and Feng Bei’s [Executioner].

"But since the painting is in Master Dengdeng’s hands, it wouldn’t be right for us, as members of Ye Weiyang, to take it by force," Feng Bei said. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Zheng Xiu looked resigned. "True. We have no quarrel with him, and Master Dengdeng even granted our request to see the painting. I’m also reluctant to take it by force. But the strangeness of that painting has certainly piqued my interest."

Feng Bei nodded. "If that painting really does hide a Ghostly Realm, then the missing Constellation and Lower Four members must be trapped inside it. The Ye Weiyang token I glimpsed didn’t look like a fake."

Zheng Xiu asked with a smile, "What do you think? Are you going to fulfill your Ye Weiyang duty and save them?"

A faint smile touched Feng Bei’s lips. "I will do whatever Brother Zheng thinks is best."

Her meaning was clear: she would let Zheng Shan make the decision.

"Big Sister, Uncle..."

Chu Susu, like a child who had done something wrong, looked around evasively and timidly raised her hand. "There’s something... I... I..."

"I couldn’t help but try something just before we left."

"I thought that since the old Master looked so kind, he wouldn’t get angry."

"I didn’t expect,"

She pulled her hand from where it was hidden inside her robes and, as if performing a Magic trick, drew a long, oil-paper-wrapped object from the folds over her thin chest.

Chu Susu lowered her head and presented the Cannibal Painting. "I just casually tried to steal it, and... I succeeded."

Zheng Xiu and Feng Bei stared in astonishment, momentarily speechless.

Chu Susu knew she had done something wrong.

She hadn’t been able to resist and had stolen the painting.

Seeing the looks on her uncle and big sister’s faces, she thought they were angry.

After all, her uncle had just told her not to act without his orders.

"I just couldn’t help myself." Seeing them remain silent, Chu Susu thought Feng Bei and Zheng Xiu were angry, so she asked timidly, "So... should I take the painting back?"

...

「Not long after Zheng Xiu, Feng Bei, and Chu Susu had left.」

「Yunliu Temple.」

Inside the main hall, its doors shut tight, the old Monk sat alone, striking a wooden fish in the darkness.

The hollow, dull sound of the wooden fish being struck echoed through the vast, empty hall. One strike, two, three, four...

The old Monk’s movements as he struck the wooden fish grew slower... and slower.