Roaring Dragon-Chapter 140: A Ghost Wife’s Punishment!

Daylight broke bright and early over the Imperial Apothecary Office.

Located outside the imperial palace, the Apothecary Office was basically the empire’s official hospital—and also in charge of medicinal formulas. For example, the Dragonblood Pill recipe was state-owned. If you wanted to refine it, you had to report it, get approval, and pay tax. Otherwise? You were illegally seizing national property and could be exiled to Lingnan!

That’s why the Gu Poison Sect got the reputation of being fake-medicine traffickers—the unlicensed pills circulating in the martial world were all their handiwork. Sure, they cost half as much, but the quality... let’s just say: a hundred schools of trash medicine competing.

After leaving his “wife’s house,” Xie Jinhuan headed to the Apothecary Office, where five constables from Danzhou were still recovering.

Junior Constable Xiao Wang and his partner had regained consciousness. Their whole bodies were slathered in some mystery ointment, awake but unable to get up yet.

Liu Qingzhi and his partner were from the Prince’s elite guard, so their condition was better.

As for Yang Dabiao—he was simply built different, his foundation strengthened by seven bowls of lamb soup for breakfast. Sitting by a table now, he was stuffing his face while bragging to the old physicians:

“That ghost-cultivating freak? First time I’ve seen one in my whole damn life. The few of us tanked over a hundred moves. Even the Celestial Officers from the Astronomical Bureau don’t have that on their resumes...”

“No doubt, the world’s getting more unstable. Even Jingzhao Prefecture’s got ghost cultivators showing up...”

...

Seeing that his comrades were doing fine, Xie Jinhuan relaxed a little. After greeting Yang Dabiao and the others, he turned and headed for the Fengyi Riverbank.

Thinking back to last night, Jinhuan was half-giddy, half-worried.

Walking now along the river cloaked in thick autumn, he made sure there was no one around, then placed his hand on the Zhenglun Sword:

“Big Beautiful Ye?”

The sword gave no response.

Shit...

Jinhuan had really gotten carried away yesterday—after that pouty, disgusted little look from her, he lost his mind and decided to test out the realism of the “Ghost Glasses Lady” experience. And... yep, turns out it was 100% immersive!

Now that his ghost wife wasn’t responding, Xie Jinhuan started to get nervous. He gently cradled the sword:

“Hongshang? I was wrong, okay? I thought you really didn’t feel anything, so I just... barely moved...”

Before he finished speaking, the daylight dimmed slightly.

Looking up, Xie Jinhuan saw a monstrous carriage had appeared on the riverside street.

Towering over five meters tall, a figure in a blood-red long dress stood atop it. A golden dragon motif adorned her belt. In one hand, she held a massive red umbrella that blocked out the sky. Her gaze bore down from above, soul-snatching eyes looking at him like he was some pathetic insect:

“Don’t look at gods with mortal eyes. I didn’t feel anything because that was Wan Yi reacting, not me. When she woke up, I left.”

Really?

Xie Jinhuan had no idea how this whole possession thing worked, but now definitely wasn’t the time to argue. He just looked up and said:

“Well, good...”

“But your reckless nonsense pissed me off. Get me back where I belong ASAP, and let’s part on decent terms. Don’t dig me back up again.”

“?”

Seeing his ghost wife threatening a breakup, Jinhuan’s expression turned grave. He tried reaching out but couldn’t reach her hand—so he hugged his knees:

“How about... you hit me one more time? I accept the punishment!”

Ye Hongshang didn’t appear through the sword this time. She just looked down and studied him:

“Why would I reward you?”

“Uh...”

Jinhuan figured it wasn’t exactly a reward...

But if that’s how she saw it, he’d accept it. He looked up again, but her clothes filled his entire field of view like a giant curtain—he couldn’t even see her face. Leaning back a bit, he offered:

“Maybe come up with some way to make peace? I’ll accept anything. Completely open.”

Ye Hongshang blinked once, considered for a moment, then closed her umbrella. Her figure slowly shrank until she stood shoulder to shoulder with him. Lifting her hands, she revealed two orbs—one red, one blue:

“You choose. One is a reward, the other a punishment. Watch each for fifteen minutes. When you’ve watched enough to total twelve hours, I’ll forgive you.”

Jinhuan looked at the red and blue spheres: “Uh... isn’t that a bit much?”

Ye Hongshang raised a brow, her gaze sharp:

“Only fear makes a lesson stick. If you don’t pick, you miss your chance.”

“...”

Jinhuan glanced around and pointed at the blue orb.

It instantly turned transparent. He was absorbed in a single moment—no surprise—then turned toward his ghost wife:

“At least pretend it’s random. Whether I pick or not, the result feels rigged...”

Ye Hongshang narrowed her eyes: “I gave you a choice. You picked wrong. Are you saying I cheated on purpose?”

What do you think?

Jinhuan quickly waved his hands: “No no no...”

Ye Hongshang didn’t press further. The red orb transformed into a crystal ball, showing a scene of him and Wan Yi asleep together, holding each other.

?

Jinhuan blinked.

“This is the reward?”

“Isn’t it?”

Actually... maybe it was. He leaned in to examine it carefully, even trying to touch the image. To his surprise, the view rotated—blowing his mind.

Ye Hongshang walked beside him, holding the light orb, humming:

“One reward session first. If your gaze strays for more than one blink, it starts over.”

“Who’d ever look away from this...”

...

Later, at Suyun Studio.

The riverside two-story building was still closed up tight.

Xie Jinhuan sat on the front steps, trying hard to rinse his eyes with the memory of Wan Yi’s beauty. Ye Hongshang leaned against the door with her arms crossed, back to her usual teasing self:

“Oh~ not so smug now, are we? You holding up alright?”

“Sigh...” 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Jinhuan had accidentally picked the wrong orb once just now—still a little bitter. Shaking off the distraction, he fixed his robe and said:

“Back to business.”

He knocked on the door.

Knock knock knock~

No response from inside.

Ye Hongshang pulled out the red and blue spheres again, holding them up in her palms:

“Ahem?”

Xie Jinhuan noticed the ice princess wasn’t around. Weird, but considering she’d borrowed something as important as the Jiazi Lotus, it wasn’t strange she hadn’t returned yet. He decided to come back in the afternoon.

In the meantime, he left with his ghost wife, playing another round of death roulette as they walked...

Danzhou – Zihui Mountain

Midday.

At the summit of Zihui Mountain, inside the Sword & Book Pavilion.

Thousands of enchanted swords stood in neat rows inside the great hall. In the center crouched seven statues of divine beasts suppressing evil. Their mouths clamped onto chains that led to a suspended, hollow orb.

The orb burned with searing white light, like a thunder pool. A flickering ghostly figure could be seen inside—twisted face, full of pain—but no sound emerged.

Three Pavilion Elders sat cross-legged below, channeling lightning arts into the orb.

On the second floor, Nangong Ye walked the corridor. Clad in a black-and-white Daoist robe, she searched through the towering bookshelves for anything on dealing with ghost cultivators. Her aura—cold as glaciers—kept the disciples so tense they barely dared breathe.

But in her mind, she kept replaying something overheard last night.

He knew to blindfold himself when entering the bath, thought he was some gentleman—but then both he and the girl got hurt, and the girl ended up crying...

Mo-mo was light as a feather, pure and kind-hearted—getting manhandled by that brute who threw all his force into her sister? How was she supposed to take that?

And she herself had...

Sigh...

The more she thought about it, the more unsettled her Dao heart became.

Behind her, a little girl hugged a pile of books and followed along, barely tall enough to reach Nangong Ye’s shoulder. Curious, she asked:

“So, Master means to say... this ghost cultivator tried to possess someone, but got killed over and over by a little hawk?”

Nangong Ye flipped through a volume, calm-faced:

“Hawks are the lions and tigers of birds—sharp beaks and claws beat any fancy tricks. If Sect Leader Lu turned into a sparrow or rabbit, he’d get ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ pecked to death too. That man just had bad luck—didn’t run into a mountain bear or tiger first.”

“Oh.” The girl thought for a moment: “A full-fledged ghost cultivator losing to a bird—that’s gotta be recorded as ‘The Shame of the Ghost Cultivators.’ But... why didn’t he try to possess the black hawk?”

“That bird’s pitch black, with amber eyes. Likely a spiritual beast of the wild. Black aligns with Yin. From Black Qilin down to black cats and dogs, they often repel evil. Seeing through ghosts and curses isn’t unusual. Same reason lightning beasts resist thunder arts—if you use fire spells on a fire phoenix, you’ll get bitten.”

“Pitch black all over...”

The little girl furrowed her brows, then lit up:

“Hmm... According to the Northern Territories Chronicle, in the darkest Yin regions lives a bird called the Blackwing Roc. Looks like an owl—black wings, golden eyes. Can see evil, lives 3,000 years, and when grown its wingspan stretches a thousand zhang. Eats dragons for breakfast...”

Nangong Ye shook her head:

“That book’s a myth. It also claims there’s a sleeping Qilin south of the Huai River guarding a demon god that could destroy the world. Every dynasty builds its capital there, hoping for peace. Yet when demons run amok, no Qilin shows up.”

“Maybe the demons just aren’t big enough yet.”

“The Ancestor of Corpses isn’t big enough? What else are we waiting for...”

...

The two chatted idly.

But Nangong Ye soon remembered the Jiazi Lotus.

She’d promised to hand it over to Xie Jinhuan today. Even if he’d... violated her a little, a promise was a promise.

However, remnants of the Dark God Cult had already begun moving toward their fallback location. They’d act within days. With one leader captured, today’s interrogation was crucial—they had to squeeze out intel to prevent disaster.

As long as she delivered it before midnight, she wouldn’t be breaking her word.

With that, she shelved her thoughts, grabbed the book, and headed into the main hall—to continue interrogating the captured ghost cultivator...

Elsewhere – The Li Residence

The long street was bustling with traffic. County Captain Fei Ji sat in a small tavern in plain clothes, face thunderous.

Across from him, Yang Dabiao, arms bandaged and wearing hospital clothes, sat with legs spread wide, munching loudly:

“You know what level that old ghost was? Same tier as Iron Phoenix Zhang. I walked up and whack—head gone. I swear, Old Fei, that feeling? You’ll never experience it in your lifetime...”

Fei Ji lifted a wine jug—empty. He put it back down:

“You dragged your injured ass all the way from the Apothecary Office just to say this?”

“What else?”

Yang Dabiao gestured out the window:

“Go count how many folks in the capital have my kind of record? You used to call me ‘little punk,’ I let it slide. But from now on—eh, forget it. This kind of big win? We gotta celebrate. Shopkeep, another jug!”

CLANG—

A government blade slid out three inches—startling the waiter into retreat.

Yang Dabiao toned it down and raised his hands:

“C’mon, Old Fei. I treat you as a former boss. You’ve been staking out that Thief Saint for two days with zero results. I dragged my injured ass here just to visit. You won’t let me drink? Fine. But not even a single dish—eh?”

Mid-sentence, Dabiao’s gaze shifted to the street:

“Aren’t those three the ones who left yesterday morning?”

Fei Ji turned—sure enough, three horses were galloping down the street. He straightened his face and observed:

The three riders were dusty, their belts and bracers matched yesterday’s. They clearly hadn’t changed clothes or slept.

Duan Mushan led the group, holding a black-cloaked object—obviously a birdcage. A ration pouch hung from his belt, with a rusty yin-yang symbol.

He rode a new green horse, six to eight years old, a fresh buy from the Dengzhou market. The saddle matched Dengzhou make.

They’d burned out three horses, checking the cage every few steps to protect it—high value.

A spirit bird from the Taoist sects in Dengzhou...

Fei Ji mentally noted all this. As the three entered the side alley of the Li Residence, he turned to Dabiao:

“Go notify Jinhuan—ghkk?!”

There were now four dishes of cold appetizers on the table, and Dabiao was opening a fresh bottle of wine. He poured a full cup for Fei Ji, grinning:

“Notify Jinhuan about what? I’m going right now!”

“I look away for one second and you order four dishes?”

“Just trying to have a nice chat! Last night was seriously rough...”

“Get lost!”