Yellow River Trial (3)

And as for this “Ma Guniang”—

According to reliable sources, Ma Guniang's real name was “Ma Jiu.” She originated from the Demon Suppression Division and was likely an old ghost who had existed since the Song Dynasty. Just like the Mountain Lord of Xixiang, her strength was a mystery and her temperament unknown.

But there was a massive difference between hearing about it and witnessing it with one's own eyes.

That kind of pressure...

That kind of murderous intent...

The person who had instinctively drawn their gun earlier suddenly breathed heavily, shivering involuntarily.

Only now did he realize that if he had actually fired that shot, the outcome would not be what it was now.

“Section Head Qin, do we need to notify the hotel to conduct an emergency evacuation?”

Someone suggested. Qin Yue merely asked in a flat tone, “Do you think there's any difference between running five meters or ten meters before a nuclear bomb detonates?”

With Ma Guniang's methods, if she truly went on a murderous rampage, let alone evacuating the tourists, the hotel itself was located in a bustling downtown area; there would be no stopping her.

Still, some preparations had to be made.

“No, wait.”

Qin Yue massaged her temples. “First, evacuate the guests from the five floors directly below the penthouse to prevent them from disturbing Ma Guniang's rest. I will personally stay here to keep watch for the next few days. As for the Yellow River side, let them bicker among themselves.”

...

The authorities were about to make a major move.

Nan Zhi lay in the jacuzzi, reaching out to grab a glass of red wine from the side. She took a lazy sip, frowned, spat it out, and decisively swapped it for a cola before her expression finally relaxed.

In modern society, no one could escape electronic surveillance.

Nan Zhi had appeared openly in the city with the sole intention of getting the authorities to foot her bill.

However, she hadn't expected them to arrive so quickly, and for it to be her “old acquaintance,” Qin Yue.

Although there had been a bit of acting in her performance just now, her words were half-true.

Qin Yue was already on the verge of Qi Refinement level 1. With just a slight opportunity, she would be able to enter the Dao and become a “cultivator.”

The scent on her was indeed the stench of hungry ghost blood.

Back then, Nan Zhi had been pursued for over half a month by the heavenly maidens sent by the monk Huiyuan. She had slaughtered countless hungry ghosts, and she would never forget that foul, fishy stench even if it killed her.

Hungry ghosts only appeared in the Underworld. Even Huiyuan had only managed to release thousands of them to cause chaos by taking advantage of the Gates of Hell opening.

Logically speaking, with the Spiritual Resurgence and the appearance of demons and ghosts, the gods, Buddhas, the Heavenly Court, the Underworld, and the City Gods should have also revived.

Yet, despite purging so many demons and ghosts, she had never seen any mountain gods, Land Gods, City Gods, or River Gods.

Could it be just as suspected—that during the last Age of Dharma Decline, the gods had died out completely and the Underworld had collapsed?

If so, it wouldn't be hard to understand why a large number of hungry ghosts had escaped.

Although hungry ghosts were thick-skinned and durable, they weren't difficult to deal with. A round of concentrated firepower could easily crush them. This was especially true for a military powerhouse like Great Xia, which was more than capable of handling them.

But it was very strange for Qin Yue to appear here.

If the authorities weren't planning something big, how could they have specially transferred a regional head from the southwest to the far northwest?

Furthermore, that persistent fishy stench could only have been picked up after slaying a massive horde of at least a hundred hungry ghosts.

Where did so many hungry ghosts come from in the Xiaoning District?

Nan Zhi could tell that Qin Yue had actually wanted to ask for her help earlier.

If she were currently in her main body, she would naturally be more than happy to work with the authorities to solve the problem. But right now, she was using her cover identity as Ma Jiu of the Demon Suppression Division.

She could help, but she couldn't lower her posture. A cheap offer never made for a good deal.

Besides, Nan Zhi didn't dare to underestimate the authorities' think tank. If they spent too much time together, they might eventually dig up her past. If that happened, what would become of her cover identity?

Before she reached the deity transformation stage, her cover identities had to be kept strictly under wraps!

Once her cultivation was high enough to crush everyone, it would be a matter of “Why should this deity explain their actions to others?”—

“Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle...”

Nan Zhi submerged herself entirely in the bathtub, leaving only her black hair floating on the surface like tangled water weeds.

...

For the next seven days, Qin Yue followed Ma Guniang's demands to the letter, unfailingly having someone deliver three meals a day.

Even the fruits and fresh flowers in the room were selected from the absolute best and replaced daily.

The personnel responsible for cleaning the room were also changed from standard housekeeping to their own staff. They were cautious and responsible, knocking on the door precisely on schedule, cleaning up, and leaving immediately without asking a single question.

Furthermore, Ma Guniang's requests were highly eccentric.

The day before yesterday, she had asked for a complete set of tea whisking tools. After some thought, Qin Yue had someone deliver premium tea leaves overnight. Later, Ma Guniang mentioned she wanted to grow some plants, and Qin Yue went to the trouble of visiting every florist in the city to select the finest blooming flowers, carrying them up pot by pot.

Now, the moment one stepped out of the elevator on the penthouse floor, a lingering floral fragrance could be smelled drifting through the corridor.

—It was unknown what method Ma Guniang had used, but all of these flowers had entered a state of full bloom, with each blossom growing larger than the last.

Finally, on the seventh day, Ma Guniang, dressed in green robes, spoke up and requested to see Qin Yue:

“I want to go take a look by the Yellow River.”

Ma Guniang grinned, revealing a row of fine, sharp teeth.

...

The Yellow River was the Mother River of Great Xia. Its vast basin was like a mother resting upon the loess, nurturing the 1.4 billion people of Great Xia.

Xiaoning was the only province whose entire territory lay within the Yellow River basin. For thousands of years, the people living here drank from the Yellow River at dawn and slept on the loess earth at dusk, long ago forging a wondrous connection with this land.

Yinchuan City, the capital of Xiaoning, was the ancient Western Xia capital of Xingqingfu, and the Western Xia Imperial Tombs were located here.

The Yellow River flowed quietly, its waters—the same color as the loess earth—surging away. Not far off, the vigorous and powerful sounds of Qin Opera rang out:

“In the gloomy darkness, the night is deep and still. Trembling with fear, I leave the gates with tears... Crying for my sister, my heart breaks with grief. Your sister is exhausted and voiceless!”

“Husbands and wives! Separated by life and death, the greatest pain of the mortal world! For a month, this sorrow has built up in my heart—!”

The actor's tragic indignation seemed to affect the river. Splashes of water surged, sweeping up the loose sand along the banks and driving it all toward the center of the river.

Even though it was broad daylight, suddenly hearing theatrical music in this desolate, uninhabited place made one's skin crawl.

—An opera stage about two meters high was strangely erected on the gravel beach by the river. The actor on stage, with heavily painted makeup, performed with all his might, while the audience below stood in scattered groups of twos and threes, looking incredibly out of place.

“Is there something wrong with the organizers' heads? Setting up an opera stage facing the Yellow River in broad daylight—are they performing for ghosts?”

Lyu Dongfang stared at the red banner hanging on the stage not far away that read, "Wishing the Xiaoning Folk Culture Heritage Exchange Assembly a Smooth and Successful Event," and couldn't help but roll his eyes.

“We've been competing for seven days, and the results of the first round are already out. Why haven't they announced the location of the next trial yet? And what's with this banner? Talk about burying one's head in the sand!”

—No, that was actually the authorities' final stand of stubbornness.

The first stage of the Yellow River Trial had already concluded. Those who had gathered here today were all waiting for the announcement regarding the content and location of the second stage.

Only, who could have guessed that instead of the announcers, they would find an opera stage erected on the riverbank, with actors shrieking and performing a grand show for the Yellow River.

It was absolutely mental.

“The first round was a search in the Yellow River. By whatever means necessary, finding a marked ancient copper coin along the riverbank within a four-day limit counted as a pass.”

Hu Manni stood beside him and said softly:

“Six made it from the paper-making Zhang family, nine from the corpse-retrieving Liu family, and the coffin-making Wang family had fewer, with only two passing. Adding the eleven from your Lyu family and the three from our Hu family, at least twenty-five people still need to be eliminated over the next two stages.”

“Didn't they say that woman surnamed Qin would also participate? How come we haven't seen her?”

In the background, the actor on the stage was still shrieking. Lyu Dongfang picked at his ear with some impatience.

“Isn't she the genius the authorities are pouring resources into? Why is she refusing to even show her face? How petty—”

Before he could finish, his gaze suddenly locked onto a specific spot, and his eyes lit up.

“Is that the one surnamed Qin? She really came!”

Below the opera stage, Qin Yue stood behind a young woman dressed in ancient green robes, softly explaining something.