Sun Niuzi had won a match for the Red Lantern Society, which counted as a great achievement.

If he were still alive, the position of Shopkeeper at the Green Stone Town branch might not have gone to Hu Ma.

However, the bloody events over those two days stirred much discussion among the brothers in the society regarding Sun Niuzi's victory.

Some praised, "That Sun Niuzi used to look so sly, only knowing how to take advantage of his brother-in-law's influence to get free drinks everywhere. Who would have thought, when it came to the crunch, he turned out to be a real man? If I had known earlier, I wouldn't have thrown him into the cesspit when I fought him before."

Others sneered, "What man? That was him with a Soul Stabilizing Pill in his mouth."

"Once the Soul Stabilizing Pill is in the mouth, it locks his entire life force. Even if you cut him into eight pieces, he wouldn't feel pain."

"Initially, he was able to break the opponent's Magic and boil water because he had the pill in his mouth. Breathing out and blowing fire, his soul came out of his mouth to turn the Magic Fire into Soul Fire."

"Later, when he entered the oil pot, he relied entirely on the effect of the pill to survive. As long as he didn't open his mouth to speak, he wouldn't die no matter how he was fried..."

"But when he left the stage, calling out 'brother-in-law,' his soul qi dissipated, and he died."

"What a pity. The Mana of the Soul Stabilizing Pill dissipates after one use, needing a long time to recover. Otherwise, we could have easily won all ten matches."

...

Hu Ma, after the event, also inquired about this Soul Stabilizing Pill from Manager Xu, thus understanding Sun Niuzi's strange behavior on the stage. That pill, once ingested, carried a curse and had already manipulated Sun Niuzi such that even if he wanted to go back on his actions, he couldn't.

Thinking back, perhaps Young Master Lu was also considering using such controlled puppets on the stage to win the match.

Now that they had won this match, the two sides were tied with four victories each, with the focus on the last two matches.

By now, both sides had sent out their best experts to compete fiercely.

In reality, the situation was worse than the Red Lantern Lady's Club had anticipated. Such a duel depended on both the foundation and the loyalty of the people under each side.

The Red Lantern Lady's Club was the largest Blood Food Gang in Mingzhou Prefecture. Logically, with abundant talent, it should have taken the advantage over the Green Clothes Gang. That the eight matches remained tied showed how much effort the Green Clothes Gang had put into this.

Hu Ma felt a bit of regret.

If only I had come earlier and watched the duels properly, I might have seen many novel things and understood more Paths.

Now, I could only ask around for information, which was still not as clear as seeing them myself.

That night, after Yang Gong finished his shift, he arranged to drink with Hu Ma and introduced a group of Red Fragrance Disciples. With both sides enjoying themselves thoroughly, Hu Ma returned to the residence where Manager Xu was staying, found a side room, and settled down to sleep.

By the next day, everyone had already put the matter of Sun Niuzi behind them, focusing only on that night's duel.

Everyone wanted to know what Method the only female Shopkeeper among the seventeen Shopkeepers of the Red Lantern Lady's Club would use against the opponent, and whether the opponent could break her Method.

In their speculation, some even joked, "Shopkeeper Hua's victory would be easy. Just see if the opponent sends up a man. If they do, she can just challenge him to a childbearing contest... If that takes a long time, then maybe on sleeping with men!"

Another chuckled, "Childbearing would be a definite win, but sleeping with men is uncertain."

"How do you know that an opponent who is a man can't sleep with other men?"

...

"Yuck..."

This drew shudders from a group of people, who instantly moved away from the man laughing slyly.

That evening brought unexpected events. Shopkeeper Hua, after two rounds of drums, took the stage and had someone hang a piece of embroidered cloth, about ten feet long, on stage, first covering it with a curtain.

Then she turned around, faced the Green Clothes Gang, and smiled warmly, "I'm just a woman; I don't understand your men's fighting and killing. Upon hearing of this grand event, I hurriedly embroidered a picture for the gentlemen on both sides to appreciate..."

"It's just that I'm not good with numbers. Embroidering back and forth, I lost count."

"Which master from Old Master Qingyi's side would come up and count for me? How many people are there in this embroidery?"

...

Though she spoke graciously, the Green Clothes Gang dared not be careless.

An old man with white whiskers took the stage, respectfully cupping his hands toward Shopkeeper Hua, saying, "Then, please, Shopkeeper, reveal it!"

Shopkeeper Hua smiled warmly and removed the curtain.

The crowd below saw clearly it was indeed an embroidered cloth depicting landscapes and pavilions. It clearly looked like an old item and didn't seem to be something she had made hurriedly as she claimed.

Of course, what mattered most was how many people there were in it.

But the crowd below was even more confused. The image wasn't small, and the figures, whether sitting or lying down, were distinct. Weren't there clearly seven people in total?

The shocking part was the old man from the Green Clothes Gang on stage. After widening his eyes at the embroidered cloth, he rubbed them vigorously, seemingly unable to see clearly. Those below were anxious and almost wanted to prompt him, yet he remained silent.

The more he looked, the more his head leaned forward. He stumbled forward a step, then hastily stepped back.

Shopkeeper Hua laughed, "It's alright, Old Master, look closer. If necessary, you can even feel it with your hand."

Since the Shopkeeper had said so, going forward wouldn't break the rules. The old man urgently moved two steps closer, yet still couldn't see, almost pressing his eyes to the cloth in the end.

His eyes strained until they were bloodshot. Even though the people below could see it clearly, he simply couldn't give an answer, making some suspect he was pretending.

"Hehe, Shopkeeper Hua's soul capturing map is out. This round is secure."

Next to Hu Ma, Manager Xu recognized it, stroking his beard, which had grown considerably longer, with a smile.

"Soul capturing map, what kind of Path does that belong to?"

Hu Ma was slightly curious. He had already gained some understanding of the abilities possessed by these Shopkeepers, who were also considered Worships.

"We don't know the specifics," explained Manager Xu softly. "Only that it was passed down from Manager Hua's mistress to her. As a mere woman without the skill of a Shousui man, her ability to manage such a big Manor for us and watch over it for the Red Lantern Society depends on this treasure..."

"There's quite a bit of legend regarding this treasure. It's said that one year, a demon person, with a group of bandits, broke into her Peony village, intending to take her Blood Food. Fearing defeat, she unfurled this map, trapping everyone in the village. After three days, when they went in again, that village was..."

"...A river of blood flowed, no corpses were intact, and each had another's flesh in their mouths."

...

Listening, Hu Ma imagined that scene and couldn't help but feel a bit disgusted.

This Shopkeeper Hua seemed to be the type who didn't rely on her own ability or dharma method but rather on a treasure to navigate the jianghu.

"Really... is it okay to touch?"

Back on stage, the old man from the Green Clothes Gang, unable to see despite his wide eyes, queried Shopkeeper Hua with a shaky voice.

Shopkeeper Hua smiled, "Of course, please feel free to touch it. I'll wash it myself if it gets dirty."

The crowd below stirred again, wondering if Shopkeeper Hua was being overconfident. This was embroidery, not a painting. The figures were prominent and tactile; wouldn't one just feel them out?

But due to the rules of the duel, none could openly speak up after stepping on the stage. All they could do was watch patiently.

Indeed, the old man reached out hesitantly to feel along the embroidered picture.

"One, two..."

Counting as he felt, his heart eased. He could indeed identify them by touch.

But as he counted more, his body seemed to labor, one arm trembling without pause. On the other side, Shopkeeper Hua's face still bore a smile but turned a bit worried as he counted more.

When he reached the fifth person, his body shivered slightly, and countless people from the Green Clothes Gang stood up, staring fixedly at the stage.

No one expected that when the old man reached the sixth person, he seemed drunk, shakily uttering "six" and continuing to reach forward. His fingers were already touching the seventh person, and the audience's hearts tightened in suspense.

"Soul treasure."

At Hu Ma's table, Manager Xu and the others could only watch wide-eyed, concerned yet unable to see the Path within.

It was Calculation, who had earlier conned Hu Ma out of two Blood Food Pills, who suddenly spoke in a low voice:

"The Magical Treasure in Lady Hua's hands is one used by Ghost Walkers; it houses Evil Ghosts. It seems like the Green Clothes Gang's man is feeling the embroidery, but in truth, the Evil Ghosts within are consuming his life force, as if seven Evil Ghosts were blowing on his forehead at midnight."

"Whether he wins this round depends on if his life force can last until he feels the seventh embroidered figure..."

...

Everyone at the table looked at him, surprised he was so knowledgeable, or perhaps it was something he'd heard before. Yet at this critical juncture, no one had time to inquire further.

The arena, on both sides, was still and silent, waiting for him to announce "seven."

But at that moment, he swayed slightly and silently fell like a broken piece of wood.

The man was already dead, dying without a sound.

Calculation sighed softly, shaking his head slowly, "In the end, one person cannot contend against the seven Evil Ghosts on the map. That couldn't be helped. The fact that he held out this long shows he was an expert of rare cultivation."

"He might have been a hidden expert hired secretly by the Green Clothes Gang, intending to unexpectedly secure one more victory."

"But there's no helping it. No matter how high one's cultivation, such a duel incurs a heavy toll, relying on one's life force to bear the cost."

"The Green Clothes Gang actually used the wrong strategy. If they had sent a sturdier young fellow, even lacking his cultivation, there might have been a chance of counting to the last person..."

...

Hu Ma and the others listened, each heart sinking slightly.

This Green Clothes and Red Lights Fighting was truly riddled with pitfalls. Who would have thought that without moving a muscle, the Green Clothes Gang had almost forcefully seized a victory?

On stage, Shopkeeper Hua smiled, rolling up the embroidery. Looking at the old man's body on the ground, she said:

"You've let me win, Old Master."

...

'Having revealed the secret before so many,' she thought, 'I must embroider another person on it to use it again.'