"Thanks, Old Eccentric," Vincent Swallow said as he stepped forward. Old Eccentric was carrying me and just as we were about to move ahead, Vincent suddenly turned his back to us, reached out his hand, and stopped us.
I felt it too—there was something strange about this place, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.
"An illusion, huh? Step aside, let me handle it."
Tammy Blade spoke as she drew her hidden blade from her back and approached.
"Your technique is too flashy. Just like Lord Shen Yan said, it's best if the five of us don't show up at this critical moment. You're a current officer in the mortal world, right? I hope you can keep our affairs a secret."
Vincent Swallow said this to Chief Stone, who was smoking and smiling. Suddenly, Tammy Blade walked over and extended a hand.
"Give me some tobacco. Haven't smoked in centuries—I'm bored now."
Chief Stone obliged, pulling out a pack of cigarettes, taking one, and handing it to Tammy Blade.
"Old Eccentric, I'll have to trouble you. Your skills are the most reliable. I'm getting more uneasy—the array must've taken at least three months to set up."
"Vincent Swallow, you're so familiar with this array. I bet you held a high position in the Renegade Monks back in the day." Old Eccentric muttered, stepping forward.
"After all, it was my master, Brother Owen, the Ghost Insect Monk, who created this Three-Poison Array."
I let out a sound of surprise—Brother Owen, the Ghost Insect Monk, I'd seen him before, back in Lord Wraith's territory. That ghostly monk was actually once a member of the Renegade Monks.
"Oddball Moe, I need your help—just a bit of protection. Now that I'm close, I can smell it. Whatever's inside is trouble. If it gets out, we're in for a world of problems."
Oddball Moe nodded, then with a whoosh, flew up above the small soccer field—about the size of a basketball court—waving his hands as dazzling light flared all around.
"It's done. Whatever it is, nothing's getting out now."
"Let's do it," Old Eccentric said as he walked over, raised a finger, and began writing in the air with great flourish. Soon, I saw a black character for 'break' appear in midair.
"To break is to create—reveal..."
The black 'break' character floated over the small soccer field, its strokes slowly dissolving and reforming into a new character for 'reveal,' the extra strokes dispersing into the air.
Gradually, the space before us became visible. The small basketball court vanished, replaced by a huge pit, with rustling sounds echoing from within.
"Holy crap, what is that?" Chief Stone was so shocked he dropped his cigarette. My mouth fell open, and Tammy Blade burst out laughing.
"Looks like we've got dinner tonight—snake stew coming up!" Tammy Blade chuckled, stepping forward.
Inside the pit, there were countless snakes—brightly colored, with each one biting the tail of another, their bodies writhing as they devoured their own kind. The stench was overwhelming.
"Don't eat those. These are snakes specially bred by the Renegade Monks. Not only should you not eat them—even touching them could rot your skin," Vincent Swallow explained.
The mass of snakes tangled together, radiating a chilling energy. I walked over, flames flickering in my hand.
"Let me handle this. These must be ghost snakes!"
I sensed it—they were like the ghost fish I'd seen in the Netherworld, only colder and more sinister.
"No, Ethan. If you burn them, the toxic fumes could be lethal."
Vincent Swallow stepped forward, unfastening the wine gourd from his waist.
"For the drinkers—the god of wine..." Gurgling sounds came from Vincent's brownish wine gourd as he took a deep swig.
"Realgar Wine—banish evil, restore order! Ha..."
With a splash, Vincent Swallow spat out a mouthful of pale yellow wine. As it drenched the snakes in the pit, those quietly devouring their kin suddenly went berserk. Vincent flung out sanctified prayer beads, stepped onto them, and soared upward, raising the wine gourd high.
"Collect..."
A golden light streamed from the mouth of the gourd, bathing the snakes. I watched as each snake shrank, drawn into the gourd Vincent held aloft.
In no time, the pit full of snakes was completely absorbed into Vincent's gourd. Though the gourd radiated waves of black light, Vincent capped it and returned to us.
"It's safe now, Oddball Moe. Good thing they didn't use the Thousand-Eyed Venom Snake. Sigh."
Even though the snakes were gone, I could still feel the lingering yin energy in the pit.
"Ethan, use yang fire to burn the pit. Otherwise, the yin energy won't disperse," Vincent said. I nodded, walked over, and easily drew out the Phoenix Blade from my chest, raising it high.
With the cry of a phoenix, a massive flaming bird dove into the pit, flames bursting everywhere as sizzling sounds and black smoke rose into the air.
"Let's move to the next spot," Vincent said, and we started moving.
"I'm not going. You guys go on ahead—I'm hungry and need to find something to eat."
Tammy Blade said this, and Chief Stone laughed, instructing a member of the Ghost Burial Squad to take her to University Town for food—the bill would go on the Squad's tab.
"Absolutely not!" I shouted in alarm, but Chief Stone just grinned.
"Since you five are Ethan's friends, you're friends of the Ghost Burial Squad too. I was planning to treat everyone to a proper meal this afternoon anyway. Since this young lady is hungry, it's only right she eats first. After all, you five don't have a penny to your names, do you?"
Tammy Blade happily followed a Squad member downstairs. I sighed, while Old Ren looked a bit displeased and barked twice at Chief Stone.
[This chapter is not finished ^.^, please click next page to continue reading!]
"Oh, sorry, there's one more."
I looked at Chief Stone and smiled.
"She could eat the whole Ghost Burial Squad out of house and home, Old Stone."
"No problem, haha."
"You'll see soon enough." The others just sighed in silence.
We followed the floating sanctified prayer beads, circling around to the back of my apartment building. The building was about three hundred meters away. Vincent Swallow stopped; the beads hovered above a small pond—a stagnant pool filled with trash, its water nearly black and reeking.
Old Eccentric stepped forward, gesturing in the air. A bright green character for 'wrath' appeared above the pond. He repeated the same technique, revealing the pond's true form.
Suddenly, the croaking of toads filled the air, so loud I had to cover my ears. The pond was packed with red-and-black toads, all swollen and ready to burst, croaking furiously.
I shuddered, my spine tingling—so many toads, it was downright revolting.
Vincent Swallow stepped onto the prayer beads again, rising into the air. He took a swig of wine and shouted loudly.
"For the pure of heart—the god of wine—Purity Wine, bring peace and calm..."
This time, the wine Vincent spat out was crystal clear and radiant. As it splashed onto the toads, their swollen red bodies gradually calmed, the redness faded, and they returned to normal.
Vincent raised his wine gourd, collecting all the toads from the pond. I swung the Phoenix Blade again, burning away what was left of the waterless pond.
"Last spot. Let's go."
"We've already cleared two places. Maybe we don't need to bother with the rest. I want to try that yellow bun—the one with the ghostly symbols on it. Whatever's inside looks pretty good," Old Eccentric said, making me laugh.