CHAPTER 17: CHAPTER 11: YAN DAOZI

Even though the situation was critical, Kou Yushan showed no sign of fear.

Sang Que was also calm, feigning fear as she clutched the bag strap on her shoulder and hid behind Kou Yushan.

The machete was still tucked at her waist. Sang Que secretly wondered how to take Yan Daozi down in the shortest time if anything unexpected happened.

If it really came to that, she’d have to try her luck.

"This is Yu Niang from my eldest sister’s family, here to seek refuge with me."

The identity Kou Yushan gave to Sang Que truly existed. Half a month ago, he had received a letter from his eldest sister, who was married into Wa Guan Village, saying her third daughter Yao Yuniang went missing after encountering evil spirits.

Originally, this niece was to be adopted by him as his daughter, an idea Kou Yushan had even mentioned to the village chief.

His wife had passed away early, leaving no children behind. In this world where evil spirits rampage and life is fragile, adopting relatives was quite common.

Once Yao Yuniang was adopted, she could marry someone into the family, ensuring someone would take care of him when he grew old.

Yan Daozi raised his eyebrows slightly, with a smile that was not quite a smile, as he twirled his goatee and circled to the side, carefully examining Sang Que.

A faint smell of corpses emanated from Yan Daozi, and his sinister gaze made Sang Que want to unleash a flurry of strikes on him.

"Wa Guan Village is some distance from Black Mountain Village. How could a little girl like her travel the night road alone?"

Sang Que lowered her head, continuing to act very scared. It seemed Yan Daozi hadn’t noticed anything suspicious about her; otherwise, since Kou Yushan mentioned Yan Daozi feared the Ghost Child, he shouldn’t be so calm and aloof if he sensed its existence.

Kou Yushan spoke naturally, "My eldest sister sent her through a trusted person. There are post stations along the way to rest, so why travel at night? She arrived by dusk yesterday."

"Oh?" Yan Daozi looked at Kou Yushan, "Arrived at dusk yesterday, but why not go back to the village? Why stay in this ruined temple? It’s unsafe."

Kou Yushan’s face turned icy as he stared at Yan Daozi, "Master Yan, you should ask yourself that. I’d actually say this Witch Temple is much safer than the village!"

"Insolent!"

Yan Daozi suddenly flared up, swinging his sleeve in anger, and Sang Que felt the sparks fly from the intense eye contact between the two.

Kou Yushan was alluding to Yan Daozi’s blood sacrifices involving unwed village girls. Compared to being in the village and catching Yan Daozi’s eye, staying in the ruined temple was indeed safer.

Sang Que actually didn’t understand the relationship between Kou Yushan and Yan Daozi. Yan Daozi was ruthless and controlled evil spirits, while Kou Yushan was just an ordinary person. How did Kou Yushan have the courage to confront Yan Daozi like this?

She remembered Ming Zhang Notes mentioning that Kou Yushan could summon some kind of ’village ghost’ to go all out against the Corpse Nest. Was Yan Daozi afraid of this ’village ghost’?

And why was it called a ’ghost’ here?

Yan Daozi let out a couple of cold laughs, "Brother Kou, I respect you enough; don’t push your luck. All Witch Temples in the Xuan Dynasty have been designated as immoral temples by the Prime Minister. Just for what you said, I can report Black Mountain Village to the Evil Suppression Bureau for worshiping at immoral temples and conducting immoral rituals!"

Upon hearing this, Sang Que finally realized why the temple was abandoned. The immorality of immoral temples wasn’t what the public thought; she only learned from her mother’s teachings that, in ancient times, temples that didn’t conform to propriety were called immoral temples, and ceremonies not in line with rituals were called immoral rituals.

These temples and gods couldn’t be worshipped and would be severely punished by the government, even to the point of family extermination.

Yan Daozi continued, "I told you the day before yesterday, any outsiders appearing should be immediately reported to me. Why didn’t you report this?"

"Reporting now to you isn’t too late."

With that, Kou Yushan cupped his hands to bid farewell, signaling Sang Que to follow him into the village.

Yan Daozi stretched out his arm to block them, "Hold on!"

Kou Yushan’s thick eyebrows arched, "What do you want?"

Yan Daozi’s gaze landed back on Sang Que, "The only reason I ventured out at noon today, because a whim led me to divine a prediction, which said I should take in an apprentice today."

With those words, even Sang Que showed a surprised expression, looking towards Yan Daozi.

Yan Daozi continued, "My former disciple died unexpectedly, so I’m short on help for handling miscellaneous tasks. This niece of yours seems clever and surely isn’t lacking. Why not become my disciple and join me in cultivation?"

"Brother Kou, don’t rush to refuse. I’m doing this for the good of Black Mountain Village. Brother Kou has always suspected my ulterior motives for coming here. I don’t blame you for that."

"To show my sincerity, I’m willing to pass all my skills on to Kou Yushan’s niece. She will be able to protect Black Mountain Village in the future, which is a merit of mine. Isn’t this a win-win situation, Brother Kou?"

"Absolutely not!" Kou Yushan flatly refused, "She’s a maiden yet to be married, serving you by your side, that would be inappropriate!"

"A practitioner doesn’t bother with trifles; many in the Taoist Sect possess advanced cultivation, including Kun Dao."

"She’s dull-witted, illiterate, and can barely speak clearly. She wouldn’t be able to learn Master Yan’s extraordinary skills, which might upset you!"

"No worries, just teach slowly. I have always been patient. When taking an apprentice, it’s about a connection."

"I’m afraid she won’t have this fortune..."

"I... I’m willing!"

Sang Que suddenly spoke up. Kou Yushan turned around in shock, looking at her with full confusion. Even Yan Daozi showed a surprised expression, then squinted his eyes, lost in thought.

"You know nothing, but you are willing. This is not up to you!" Kou Yushan shouted angrily.

Sang Que gripped the strap of her bag tightly, stubbornly looking at Kou Yushan. She was grateful to Kou Yushan for protecting her, but it was obvious that Yan Daozi was not here with good intentions.

The more Kou Yushan protected her, the more suspicious Yan Daozi became, suspecting she was the outsider who was with Ming Zhang the previous night. After all, only a day and night had passed, and she appeared at the broken temple outside the village at such a coincidental time. It was hard not to raise doubts.

Only by acting against the norm could she dispel Yan Daozi’s suspicions, and make herself appear to be a shortsighted person who likes to climb to higher branches. That was one reason.

The second reason was that her purpose in staying was to get close to Yan Daozi, to obtain from him the method of taming evil spirits. Continually avoiding Yan Daozi would only waste her precious time. Now was a good opportunity.

Although this was very risky, Yan Daozi mentioned taking on an apprentice, which indicated he had motives regarding her. He wouldn’t kill her temporarily, giving her some time.

If luck favored her, once she gathered enough power for the Yansheng coin, she could immediately escape this world, without worrying about future troubles.

Moreover, by letting Yan Daozi see she was not on the same side as Kou Yushan, it would prevent Yan Daozi from becoming too angry with Kou Yushan after she went back.

So, she had to agree to Yan Daozi’s request.

"I... I’m willing!" Sang Que’s voice was softer, but she repeated the same phrase.

Kou Yushan’s face was livid, thinking Sang Que still didn’t know what kind of person Yan Daozi was, "You should come back with me first."

Sang Que stepped back, avoiding Kou Yushan.

"Hahaha," Yan Daozi laughed heartily while stroking his goatee, "Alright, since that’s the case, Brother Kou, I shall head back first. Before dusk, please do bring my new apprentice to my place."

Yan Daozi took one last look at Sang Que, nodding in approval.

As he turned around, Yan Daozi’s smile vanished. Walking back, he wondered if he had made a mistake. Perhaps she was not the person he was looking for.

Thinking over and over, Yan Daozi decided to take her in first, keep her close and test her gradually. There would surely be a day when she revealed her true colors.

If she wasn’t the one, then she would be sacrificed in a blood ritual!

Once Yan Daozi walked away, Kou Yushan couldn’t help but unleash his anger on Sang Que, "Are you insane? Do you know what kind of person he is? In a place like Black Mountain Village, usually, government officials wouldn’t come here specifically. Yan Daozi’s sudden appearance is most likely because of your mother."

"Your mother has an unusual identity. She came here from Shengjing, becoming the temple priest of that Witch Temple. When I met her, she was already pregnant with you."

"It’s been nearly seventeen years since she disappeared. Although I don’t know why she is targeted by Yan Daozi or the Evil Suppression Bureau, Yan Daozi definitely has bad intentions. You offering yourself now is like seeking death."

"I know what I’m doing," Sang Que calmly replied.

Words were on Kou Yushan’s lips but he swallowed them, looking aside and taking a deep breath before speaking, "Let’s head back to the village. If you have any questions, ask."

They walked through the woods, passing the place where they encountered the suicide rope in the morning. Sang Que looked up at the branches above, finding nothing.

She withdrew her gaze and asked, "Opening Ghost Gate, Lower Nine Netherworld, and taming evil spirits, how much do you know?"

Kou Yushan stopped, looking at Sang Que, "Your mother really didn’t teach you anything?"

"I’ve said, I’ve never seen her."

Kou Yushan frowned, thinking of something, a trace of sadness flashed in his eyes.

"Opening Ghost Gate and Lower Nine Netherworld are terms from the Taoist Sect. I don’t know much, only that opening the Ghost Gate is equivalent to exiling the soul into the Nine Netherworld Hell. Then, you can directly see evil spirits with your eyes, using the power from the Nine Netherworld for cultivation."

"But even so, the power of the Taoist Sect is very limited. It can only use external objects to repel and temporarily imprison a small number of evil spirits, unable to completely destroy them, unless one is ’lucky’ and becomes a Yin Walker who tames evil spirits. About the cultivation method of Yin Walkers, I don’t know much about it. These are secrets of the Taoist Sect and the Evil Suppression Bureau."

"However, everyone knows that those who tame evil spirits do not meet a good end. They ultimately become unrecognizable, losing control as evil spirits turn back on them, becoming more terrifying evil spirits. But only those who tame evil spirits can kill other evil spirits."

Sang Que nodded. What she worried about was losing control and harming her mother. So she must figure out the way to tame and get rid of evil spirits before going back, so she could deal with hidden evil spirits in the modern world and protect her mother.

"What kind of evil spirits does Yan Daozi tame, what abilities do they have? Besides that, does he have any other special skills?" Sang Que continued asking.

Kou Yushan stopped again, staring at Sang Que, "Why don’t you ask about your mother’s issues?"

Sang Que lowered her eyes, speaking calmly, "Nothing to ask, whoever she is has nothing to do with me."