CG - Chapter 39

Chapter 39

Sand swirled up without any wind, stinging their skin. Amidst the dust, eight Sand Ghosts crawled out from beneath the ground. Their desiccated corpses looked like human skeletons wrapped in a layer of skin. Funnily enough, these eight Sand Ghosts had once been merchants, buried alive in a sandstorm while crossing the desert with a caravan. Their habits hadn't changed after death; they still liked to hoard rare goods, which Shan Hong had coincidentally been the first to dig up.

The clothes on the Sand Ghosts were in tatters, revealing even their private parts. Wu Gu thought that if she died, she definitely wouldn't want a mummified body like this—it was just too ugly. The sandstorm these eight ghosts stirred up was considerable, a sign of their high cultivation. Now, it wasn't just Shan Hong swallowing nervously; the Han siblings were unconsciously gulping as well.

The Sand Ghosts controlled the dust at will, enveloping the four humans like a cocoon. The Han siblings stood back-to-back, magical instruments in hand, and unleashed the Han family's formation-breaking technique. When the moment was right, they shouted in unison, "Break." The swirling dust abruptly halted, then rustled back down to the ground.

Enraged, the lead Sand Ghost let out a mournful shriek. The desert, sun-drenched just moments ago, was instantly plunged into darkness as clouds blotted out the sky. The sight startled the Han siblings, who unconsciously tightened their grip on their magical instruments.

The Sand Ghost stopped its shriek, its head turning with the grating difficulty of an unoiled gear. Its eyeless sockets were deeply sunken; one ghost had even stuffed a pebble into a socket as a makeshift eyeball. Han Tianyang gritted his teeth and stepped forward. Among their group of four—two girls and a boy—he had to be the one to take the lead.

Though their bodies were stiff, the Sand Ghosts were not slow, and they quickly closed in. Han Tianyang charged forward, raising his Gold Coin Sword. Seeing her brother engage alone, a terrified Han Yeshuang also rushed to help with her Peach Wood Sword. Shan Hong, though scared to death, refused to cower. He gripped his own Peach Wood Sword, closed his eyes, and prepared to charge, but before his raised foot could land, someone pulled him back.

Shan Hong turned to look at Wu Gu, his face blank with confusion. "You just stay here and dig for stones," Wu Gu said. "Just give me the prettiest one later." With that, she plucked him up and set him down behind her. Then, raising a hand, she summoned the impatient Soul-Piercing Bell from her waist. One could almost hear a hint of glee in its tinkling as it shot into the air, hovering above the Sand Ghosts in an instant.

In just over a minute, the Han siblings had already expended a great deal of spiritual energy and were struggling, especially since they were outnumbered. Han Yeshuang thrust her sword at the nearest Sand Ghost, but its withered claw easily caught the blade. She watched as its twig-like fingers squeezed tighter and tighter, snapping her ancestral Peach Wood Sword clean in two.

Han Yeshuang had no time to feel heartbroken. She dropped the broken hilt and quickly pulled out a ghost-expelling talisman. Just then, she saw a red cord wrap around the Sand Ghost's neck. With a sharp crack, its head rolled onto the sand. She forgot to blink, wondering where this magical instrument had come from. In that brief moment, the heads of all eight Sand Ghosts had been severed.

Han Yeshuang glanced down just in time to see a small snake slithering out of the eye socket of the nearest severed head. She shivered on the spot, despite the blazing sun, and instinctively looked up at Wu Gu. Han Tianyang was also frozen in place by the sight. Mrs. Han truly had foresight. He had been ready to send a signal for the proctor to rescue them, yet Wu Gu had pulled off something so utterly unexpected.

Wu Gu paid no attention to the shocked and delighted expressions of the Han siblings. The Sand Ghosts' bodies were merely vessels; with them destroyed, the Vengeful Ghosts inside were free to cut loose. All four Tianshi had their Yin-Yang eyes open. Eight Vengeful Ghosts emerged at once, their Yin Qi soaring to the heavens. Eyes wide with fury, they launched a ferocious counterattack.

"Be careful!" Han Tianyang cried. He was about to activate the ghost-expelling talisman in his hand to protect Wu Gu when he saw her casually raise a hand, as if playing a game, and grab the first Vengeful Ghost that reached her. With a single squeeze, its soul scattered into nothingness. His and Han Yeshuang's eyes flew wide. Looking at the remaining seven Vengeful Ghosts, they saw them lined up under the control of the Soul-Piercing Bell, waiting for Wu Gu to pinch them out of existence.

Wu Gu dispersed the remaining Vengeful Ghosts one by one, then stood in place and spat several times to clear the sand from her mouth. She walked back over. "Let's get back to digging for stones," she said. Her mind was set on finding a special gift for Wei Jinzhi, and the Desert Rose Stone was exactly what she wanted. Exorcising ghosts seemed almost like an afterthought.

"Please, just sit. I'll handle this dirty work," Han Tianyang said immediately.

Wu Gu felt a little embarrassed. "Brother Han, you don't have to do that."

Just then, Shan Hong walked up to Wu Gu, his face full of admiration, holding a freshly dug Desert Rose Stone. "Sister Wu Gu," he said, "this is the best one we've found so far. Do you like it?"

Han Tianyang took the opportunity to tease Shan Hong a little. Han Yeshuang returned with the pieces of her broken Peach Wood Sword, her face etched with sorrow. Her sword, like Han Tianyang's Gold Coin Sword, was a family heirloom. The Han family had a tradition of Gold Coin Swords for the men and Peach Wood Swords for the women. Who could have known it would be ruined after only a few years in her possession?

Wu Gu glanced at the two pieces of the Peach Wood Sword in Han Yeshuang's hands. Its quality was only average. The best of the Peach Wood Swords Lao Wu had left behind had already been given to Wei Jinzhi. When she returned to North City, she had casually grabbed a couple of the remaining ones, thinking she could use them for a while since carrying the Xuanqing Sword was so heavy. "Sister Han, I'll give you one later," she offered. Coincidentally, she had brought a Peach Wood Sword with her, but when she was tying her sash that morning, she decided against it, feeling the scabbard was made specifically for the Xuanqing Sword and she couldn't bear to use it for another weapon.

Wu Gu wanted to continue digging for Desert Rose Stones, but the proctor, alarmed by the soaring Yin Qi and worried that the disciples from prominent families in this group might be injured, had the guide follow a compass and drive over at once. The proctor got out of the car and froze. On the ground lay eight desiccated corpses, all with severed heads. It had been no more than twenty minutes between when he saw the Yin Qi blot out the sun and his arrival. The scene before him was utterly baffling.

"Did the four of you take care of this?" the proctor asked.

The other three, not daring to take credit, shook their heads rapidly. The proctor looked incredulously at Wu Gu, the only one who hadn't. "You handled this alone?" Wu Gu nodded. He pressed on. "What technique did you use? How long did it take?"

Wu Gu had never been in the habit of timing her exorcisms, and the techniques she used were the secret arts of her sect, so she couldn't very well explain them. She could only shake her head and say, "I don't know."

Shan Hong was young and already saw Wu Gu as his idol. He said excitedly, "Master Xu, Sister Wu Gu said there were Sand Ghosts here, and there really were! They came out suddenly while we were digging for Desert Rose Stones. Sister Wu Gu's magical instrument is super powerful—it chopped off the Sand Ghosts' heads in an instant! And the most amazing part is, Sister Wu Gu can disperse a hundred-year-old Vengeful Ghost with just a pinch of her hand! I'm telling you, she took care of all eight of them by herself in just a few minutes! You have no idea how impressed I was watching her!"

"A few minutes?" The proctor glanced at the corpses on the ground and repeated in disbelief, "A few minutes?" He looked up at Wu Gu again. "What sect are you from?"

Wu Gu hadn't wanted to say, but then she remembered Lao Wu's dying wish, as well as what Wei Jinzhi had said about making a name for herself in the Tianshi Association. She answered hesitantly, "I'm from the Xuanqing Sect."

The proctor's first instinct was to call her a liar. But who else, besides someone using the legendary techniques of the Xuanqing Sect, could eliminate ghosts and demons in the blink of an eye? He pressed his lips together, swallowing his retort. He decided he would go back and ask the heads of Taiyi Palace and the Liaoshan Sect to come and verify her claim.

The Yin Qi had also alerted the proctor in the adjacent examination area. The satellite phone in the car rang. Proctor Xu answered and briefly explained the situation. The proctor on the other end was skeptical. "Lao Xu, how about this," he said. "My Tianshi have been busy all morning and haven't seen so much as a ghost's shadow. Why don't you bring this self-proclaimed Xuanqing Tianshi over? We can test her."

"Sounds good to me."

Proctor Xu ushered the four of them into the car and told the guide to drive to the adjacent examination area. When they arrived, a line of people was waiting to see the legendary Xuanqing disciple. They were stunned when they saw it was Wu Gu, especially given Hu Chen's prior rumors.

In the car, Proctor Xu had explained the reason for their trip. Wu Gu remained silent the whole way, only managing to convince herself just before they got out. Pinching Vengeful Ghosts wasn't much trouble, she figured, and she was quite adept at it now.

The proctor there wasted no time. "Little Tianshi Wu, you may begin."

The Han siblings and Shan Hong were thrilled to have another chance to see Wu Gu in action. The four young Tianshi from this area, however, were dismissive. The examination zone was huge; it wasn't as if their area would be like the last one, with eight ghosts conveniently gathered in one spot.

Wu Gu released her Soul-Summoning Bell, using it to flush out the Sand Ghosts. As each ghost emerged, the bell would fly up, snap its neck, bind the Vengeful Ghost within using its red cord, and then fly back to drop it in front of her. The weather was too hot to drag things out, so as each ghost was delivered, she pinched it. There were five in total, and this method was even faster and more effortless. She dusted off her hands and turned around to see six dumbfounded faces.

Proctor Xu was the first to react, his eyes red with excitement. "So a Xuanqing heir truly exists in this world! We must return at once and contact the other two major sects. I never imagined the three legendary sects of Xuanmen could actually be brought together."

With Wu Gu having single-handedly cleared out the Sand Ghosts from two examination areas, there was nothing left to test. The two vehicles returned to Huangshi Town. As soon as they arrived, the four Tianshi from the other group all vied to treat Wu Gu to a meal. Wu Gu had no idea how to handle such enthusiastic invitations, but luckily, Han Tianyang was there to run interference. In the end, the eight of them went to the best small restaurant in town for a few stir-fried dishes.

With the title of "renowned heir of the Xuanqing Sect," Wu Gu's reputation soared. Just as her group finished their meal and arrived outside the inn, Hu Chen's group also returned to town. They had only encountered a single Sand Ghost that day, but all four of them were deathly pale—a clear sign of severe spiritual energy depletion.

Seeing Wu Gu surrounded by a crowd, Hu Chen frowned. "You didn't run into a single Sand Ghost all day?" he asked. Otherwise, how could their complexions still be so rosy?

Wu Gu couldn't be bothered to waste words on Hu Chen. With a dismissive wave, she skipped the pleasantries and entered the inn, the Han siblings following close behind. But Wu Gu's number one fan, Shan Hong, was indignant at Hu Chen's attitude and stayed behind. "We cleared out all our Sand Ghosts," he said, then pointed to the other group. "Their area too. A total of thirteen from both zones, all gone. If you don't believe me, go ask the proctors."

Hu Chen's group looked incredulous. "How is that possible?"

"Why would it be impossible? We have Sister Wu Gu," Shan Hong retorted. He raised his hand, mimicking Wu Gu's gesture. "Just one pinch like this, and the Vengeful Ghost is gone." With that, he ignored their reactions and happily returned to the inn.

Although the Sand Ghosts in her examination area were gone, the assessment exam wasn't officially over. Wu Gu had to wait for the final arrangements before she could leave. Utterly bored, she slept in the next day. After waking, she wandered aimlessly through Huangshi Town. When she passed a shop that polished Desert Rose Stones, she turned back to the inn to grab her own stones and bring them over.

Wu Gu worked meticulously on her gift for Wei Jinzhi; even the locals praised her skillful hands. She chiseled off the piece that most resembled a rose, giving the rest to the shop owner. Using fine sandpaper, she polished the stone until it looked like a real flower, then borrowed some tools from the owner to fashion a round base for it. She planned to have a custom glass dome made back in North City to cover it before presenting it to Wei Jinzhi.

Cradling the exquisitely polished Desert Rose Stone, Wu Gu headed back, her mind preoccupied with what kind of glass dome to order. She walked along the only main road in Huangshi Town, flanked by low, earth-yellow houses. Locals worked in their doorways, smiling and calling out things she couldn't understand as she passed. She knew they were just greeting her, so she always smiled in return.

At the end of the road, the setting sun hung like a golden wheel. A breeze blew in from the desert, carrying away some of the stifling heat. Wu Gu's footsteps suddenly halted, her heart pounding in her chest. Directly in front of her, the very person she had been longing for, Wei Jinzhi, stood wearing sunglasses and holding a camera, capturing Huangshi Town in the sunset's afterglow.

In the camera's lens, an adobe brick wall was half-bathed in sunlight. Wu Gu stood in the shadows the sun had forgotten, as beautiful as a painting. Wei Jinzhi pressed the shutter, then lowered the camera and gave Wu Gu a small smile.

As if summoned, Wu Gu ran to Wei Jinzhi and held up the Desert Rose Stone. There was no glass dome she had spent half the day designing, no romantic time or place—only the urgent desire to give this to Wei Jinzhi. "This is for you," she said.

Before she came, Wei Jinzhi had rehearsed what she would say if she ran into Wu Gu. She'd say she was just a tourist, not here specifically to see her. That she'd always wanted to visit the desert. Anything to avoid looking like she missed her. But when Wu Gu stood before her, cheeks flushed, all her pent-up frustration evaporated. She accepted the beautiful Desert Rose Stone and asked, "Did you miss me?"

Her hands now free, Wu Gu could finally do what she wanted. She wrapped her arms around Wei Jinzhi's shoulders, her smile sweet. "I missed you the moment I left. I'm already done with the exam, but the Tianshi Association doesn't have a car to take me back yet." She leaned closer, inhaling Wei Jinzhi's scent, and whispered in her ear, "I missed you so much."

Holding the stone in one hand, Wei Jinzhi wrapped her other arm around Wu Gu's waist. A trace of her earlier annoyance remained. "So, will you still be looking forward to assessment exams in the future?" she asked. She had been feeling resentful ever since Wu Gu had been so excited to come alone, which was why she had been giving her the cold shoulder. She knew it wasn't fair, and that's why she was here now.

"Of course I will," Wu Gu said. Wei Jinzhi's body visibly stiffened. Smiling, Wu Gu looked up from her embrace and placatingly kissed the corner of Wei Jinzhi's lips. "I'll still look forward to them," she coaxed, "but next time, I want you to come with me."

Wei Jinzhi shot Wu Gu an exasperated glare, but a smile returned to her lips. She released her and started walking, though her words were still settling old scores. "Just a few days ago, you were telling me not to come."

Wu Gu slipped her hand into Wei Jinzhi's, wheedling, "Well, now I do." She asked, "When did you get here?"

"This morning."

"Then where are you staying tonight?"

"In the car."

Wu Gu knew Wei Jinzhi couldn't handle the conditions in Huangshi Town. "The Eldest Miss is still the Eldest Miss," she teased.

"Believe it or not, I'll spank you?"

…

The evening clouds on the horizon blazed like fire. On the streets of Huangshi Town, the silent sunset stretched their hand-in-hand silhouettes long as they walked toward the glowing sky.

【The End】

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