Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 69: The Soul-Swapping Technique

Lu Yang was so nervous he could die.

Jiang Xun had gone into the forest with Lu Wei to catch Blondie, leaving Lu Yang and A’Qiao to guard the main house.

A’Qiao’s support ability was “Misty Smoke”, which could emit choking cigarette-like smoke to conceal himself and disorient enemies. To increase their combat readiness, Lu Yang had even released the hanged corpse to act as a bodyguard.

He’d stuck a talisman on the corpse’s face to keep it from being possessed by evil spirits.

Unfortunately, talismans could ward off spirits, but they couldn’t stop the natural process of decay.

The corpse had begun to emit a faint stench and showed signs of livor mortis. It stood silently by the living room furniture, and together with the dilapidated old house, the sight was so creepy Lu Yang didn’t even dare look in its direction.

As for why they were so on edge…

That red-clothed leader across the way, Fang Xiu, refused to leave the courtyard, strolling around casually like he was out on a walk. He inspected the surroundings right under their noses, looking more like a wandering overworld boss than a sacrificial offering.

That wasn’t a sacrifice at all! That was a mini-boss!

Once Jiang Xun left in the afternoon, the “boss” did a few more laps, then started heading toward the main house. A’Qiao grabbed the iron stove hook for protection; Lu Yang retreated beside the corpse, stiff with tension.

Fang Xiu politely knocked on the door. Naturally, no one responded.

Then they saw a strand of long hair snake in through the door gap, smoothly unbolt the latch, then slip back out again.

Through the door’s glass panel, they could see Fang Xiu speaking to empty air, smiling gently.

Lu Yang’s breath caught.

If it hadn’t been for that strand of hair, he would’ve just thought the guy belonged in a mental hospital.

But the real question was: where the hell did the hair come from?! Was there a female ghost following him? One even Jiang Xun hadn’t detected?

A’Qiao slowly lowered his stove hook and gulped loudly.

Having unlocked the door, Fang Xiu strolled right in.

He walked past the two of them like it was no big deal and placed two cans of Wangzai brand drinks on the table. “Sorry for the intrusion. Consider this a token of apology.”

A’Qiao, Lu Yang: “…”

Aren’t we supposed to be enemies? Could you act a little more like one? Also, why the hell is there Wangzai in here?

Fang Xiu was acting so much like he belonged there that they weren’t even sure whether they should attack him or not.

He said sincerely, “I’ve checked most of the outside already, but haven’t investigated the main house. If you’re worried, feel free to supervise me the whole time.”

Lu Yang: “Uh…”

He thought about Jiang Xun being away trying to catch Blondie and guilt crept in.

A’Qiao shot Lu Yang a look and licked his lips. “Go ahead, take your time.”

Jiang Xun had anticipated that Fang Xiu might pay them a visit.

According to him, Fang Xiu was a rational type. He wouldn’t kill meaninglessly. It was only the second day of the ritual. Fang Xiu would either try to win over the newbies or lure them into triggering taboos.

The talismans on them were excellent warning tools.

If Fang Xiu dared cast a spell near them, the talismans would combust on their own, and Jiang Xun would know immediately. If the talismans remained intact, they could just stay on guard and conserve strength.

Lu Yang had imagined many scenarios, but not this. Fang Xiu being this polite.

He even turned his back on them while inspecting the dish cupboard and TV cabinet, completely exposing himself.

A’Qiao’s evil instincts kicked in, and he swung the stove hook at the back of Fang Xiu’s head. But… the hook froze midair, stopped by something invisible.

Before their shocked eyes, the iron hook was crushed like putty and dropped to the floor with a thud.

Fang Xiu, seemingly unaware, was enthusiastically examining a frayed toothbrush.

The toothbrush was jammed upright in a cup by the basin, toothpaste squeezed from the back like a snail’s spiral, in a metal tube.

A’Qiao, undeterred, started signaling Lu Yang again, flicking his gaze between the corpse and Fang Xiu, urging him to launch a sneak attack.

Lu Yang furiously shook his head and waved his hands. He even backed up a few steps and almost tripped over a stool, its legs scraping loudly against the floor.

Fang Xiu still didn’t react. He moved on to inspect a small steel basin on the ground.

It was dusty, dented, and slightly deformed. It lay in the shadow beneath the cupboard that Fang Xiu almost missed it on first glance.

Lu Yang watched in confusion.

Fang Xiu seemed the complete opposite of Jiang Xun. He didn’t chant or perform any esoteric gestures. Instead, he flipped through the wall calendar, checked out the photos on the bedroom wall, just like someone evaluating a rental apartment.

He was skinny and didn’t look threatening. Even A’Qiao, with all his artsy pretensions, had thicker arms.

Yet Fang Xiu carried a strange confidence, like he was certain they couldn’t touch him. He wandered around completely at ease.

There was no persuasion, no explanations; just calm investigation.

Jiang Xun’s prior safety protocols, all their prepped counter-dialogues were completely useless now. Lu Yang stood awkwardly, his gaze following Fang Xiu like waiting for the other shoe to drop. The polite approach was worse than violence; it was torture.

…For once, Bai Shuangying empathized with the humans.

Fang Xiu was so relaxed it was impossible to tell if he was conning them or actually looking for clues.

His human was too clever to comprehend. Fang Xiu seemed to be acting every moment of the day. Even though Bai Shuangying had warned the Master of this place to avoid Fang Xiu, he still couldn’t rest easy.

Worried as he was, Bai Shuangying also hesitated to interfere directly.

By now, he had a vague premonition: if he did intervene, even if Fang Xiu forgave the betrayal, he’d lose the chance to truly understand him forever.

So he could only keep watching.

Lately, he’d been staring at Fang Xiu more than during any previous ritual.

And, strangely enough, 99 times out of 100, Fang Xiu caught him.

And every time, Fang Xiu gave him a sly, satisfied smile. Sometimes it was more sly than satisfied, sometimes vice versa, and sometimes with a hug thrown in.

Even though Fang Xiu also looked at him more often now, Bai Shuangying still felt the imbalance and he didn’t like it.

And when Bai Shuangying got irritated, he wanted to ruffle his human.

Thought became action. He reached out and ran a finger down Fang Xiu’s warm neck. Fang Xiu gave a small shiver and hunched his shoulders.

“That Jiang Xun isn’t here. He might try something with the others,” Bai Shuangying said, disguising his voice as he analyzed.

“I know. They’re probably planning to use Blondie to test a taboo.” Fang Xiu replied casually, “If Blondie has even a shred of team spirit, he won’t get himself killed. And if he does… well, this ritual isn’t particularly dangerous. He won’t drag the rest of us down.”

In other words, let fate decide Blondie’s outcome.

“How do you know?” Bai Shuangying was genuinely curious. Sometimes he wondered if this kid had clairvoyance.

“Bai Shuangying, do you know what makes a lie convincing?” Fang Xiu asked quietly, answering with a question.

“I don’t.”

Fang Xiu: “A little bit of falsehood mixed into a whole lot of truth… That kind of lie is the hardest to detect.”

Bai Shuangying frowned and leaned closer. “So?”

Fang Xiu stroked his hair and explained patiently, “If Jiang Xun were just a dumb villain, he’d outright trick the newbies into testing taboos. But I’ve observed him all morning. He’s not doing that.”

“He’s smarter than that. He manipulates events to make the newbies test the death taboo, reducing their numbers. Then he ‘sincerely’ recruits the survivors. As long as he labels us as ‘enemies’, the newbies will cling to him without question and won’t easily defect.”

Bai Shuangying said nothing.

No wonder Fang Xiu hadn’t tried to win them over. At this point, the newbies were under Jiang Xun’s “sincere” protection. It’d be difficult to offer them something better.

Jiang Xun’s manipulation of people was quite skilled. But in a way, Fang Xiu, who could see through it, was even scarier.

“With his subordinates in place, he can now use them to test taboos on ‘enemies’. I’m staying with Mei Lan, so I’m not an easy target. Cheng Songyun is a defense expert and constantly guards Guan He. Blondie, ironically, is the easiest to snatch.”

Fang Xiu opened a drawer and continued rifling through it as he explained. “As for Blondie, I already warned him.”

Bai Shuangying: “I don’t think he’ll listen.”

To him, Fang Xiu and Blondie weren’t even the same species.

Fang Xiu didn’t look up. “Then he’ll help Jiang Xun test the taboo, and help us test Jiang Xun’s methods.”

His voice held no sorrow or regret. It was as calm as a frozen lake, and not very human.

“For the sake of the others?” Bai Shuangying moved closer.

“No.”

Fang Xiu closed the drawer with a puff of dust. His voice was softer than the floating ash.

“…Because I have to keep moving forward. I can’t die here.”

As he said it, he withdrew his gaze from Bai Shuangying.

……

Compared to the peace inside the courtyard, things outside were much more lively.

Cheng Songyun, ever patient, continued methodically searching the area and managed to gather a large amount of food again. This time she collected some ripe jujubes and dug up a few sweet potatoes. After filling her basket, she sat down beside Guan He to rest and keep watch while he practiced his “no-damage defense”.

After training for several hours that morning, Guan He seemed to have caught onto something. He imitated Fang Xiu’s approach and, after subduing the evil spirit, fed it directly to the little child ghost.

Now he had captured another evil spirit, planning to use it as practice again and feed it to Cheng Songyun’s vengeful ghost afterward.

“I still can’t hold them securely yet, but once I get the hang of it, I’ll bring back a few to give to Fang Ge.”

Guan He rolled up his wrists and stared intently at the evil spirit.

Blondie, on the other hand, was bored out of his mind.

Fang Xiu was obviously protecting Guan He. All the kid had to do was play his role as the group’s lucky charm. Being a minor was such an advantage. Blondie would’ve swapped places with him in a heartbeat.

But Guan He was still unsatisfied, insisting on messing around. Even if he managed to pull off that “no-damage defense” bullshit, what could he actually do? Offense was what really counted.

Just a brat showing off, Blondie thought to himself. And what was Cheng Songyun thinking, encouraging him?

Still, all this worked in his favor. It gave him more time for his stalling tactics.

“I’m going for a walk,” Blondie yawned.

Cheng Songyun: “No. We’re not allowed to act alone.”

“That’s your problem. I’m fast. I won’t be in the way,” Blondie scoffed. “What’s gonna happen in one little lap? You think they’re targeting me specifically?”

“No means no.” Cheng Songyun frowned.

“Oh yeah? Stop me if you can.” Blondie grinned, and his face darkened with spiritual energy as he activated his ghost power.

With a big leap, he vanished on the spot.

Neither Cheng Songyun nor Guan He had strength-boosting abilities, so they could only watch helplessly as he ran off. Guan He looked like he wanted to give chase, but Cheng Songyun stopped him.

“Just wait here. Otherwise, he might not find us when he comes back.”

“What if he’s attacked…?”

“Then we wouldn’t be able to help him anyway,” Cheng Songyun said honestly.

Guan He: “…” True.

Blondie’s father had destroyed his family so Guan He had zero emotional investment in him. He he obediently stayed put and returned to training with focus.

Meanwhile, Blondie bounded over the treetops a few times and quickly spotted his target. Jiang Xun was dragging Lu Wei through the woods, seemingly up to something shady.

Lu Wei’s hands were bound tightly behind his back, and a cloth gag was stuffed in his mouth like a bit on a horse. Around his neck was a collar covered in talismans, the end of which was chained to Jiang Xun’s hand.

Damn, kinky. Blondie barely held back the urge to whistle.

He decided to go for a surprise attack and snap Jiang Xun’s neck. Once the leader was gone, the remaining three newbies wouldn’t be a problem.

Blondie acted on the thought. Choosing a sharp angle, he kicked off a tree trunk and launched himself at Jiang Xun like a cannonball.

But the moment he came within five steps of Jiang Xun, there was a sharp crackle of static, and his limbs went numb. With a thump, he dropped to the ground like a mosquito that had hit an electric bug zapper.

“Two souls in one body, ghost possession. You think I wouldn’t recognize it?” Jiang Xun said calmly, placing a foot on the back of Blondie’s head. “Using ghost arts to attack a Taoist? How foolish. I was just about to come find you, and you’ve delivered yourself.”

Blondie panicked. He tried desperately to move, but his limbs wouldn’t obey. He opened his mouth to shout, but suddenly his head went cold, and his vision spun into a slurry of color.

When he regained awareness, he was hit by a searing pain in his mouth and felt his arms tightly bound behind his back. Around his neck…

Wait, this situation felt way too familiar.

As his vision cleared, he saw “himself” staggering to his feet, wildly shaking his head.

“Amazing! This is the Soul-Swapping Technique?” “Blondie” examined his own hands in wonder, gasping in awe.

Jiang Xun: “Yes.”

“Blondie” patted his body excitedly. “So weird not wearing glasses… This body’s senses feel normal. If I break a taboo in it, I’ll still feel pain, right?”

He said this while sneaking glances at Jiang Xun.

Jiang Xun replied calmly, “Indeed.”

“But the death taboo has already been identified. The risks of the remaining taboos are low. If the body is destroyed, you’ll return to your original one. As for any suffering endured, I’ll compensate you with extra talismans.”

“Oh, thank you, Master!”

At last, the real Blondie understood. He’d been cursed. They had swapped his soul with that of  Four Eyes!

And his ghost hadn’t transferred with him. He couldn’t use its powers at all. He was trussed up like a roast and couldn’t break free.

It’s over. It’s so over. What now?! Blondie shook his mushy brain and tried desperately to think.

Wait… Fang Xiu! They still had Fang Xiu. Fang Xiu would definitely notice something was wrong.

That thought calmed him somewhat. He gave up struggling. It was better to not take unnecessary risks. He was the only offensive member of the team. Fang Xiu would surely save him.

Reassured, Blondie was dragged back to the courtyard by Jiang Xun. Through the blurry lenses of his dirty glasses, he scanned the area frantically. Damn… Fang Xiu wasn’t in the yard right now. He had no idea where he’d gone.

Before he could do anything else, “Blondie” lifted a torch and boldly walked toward the empty side room.

Oh shit. Wait… no way…

Lu Wei raised the torch and threw it into the firewood storage.

As the flame ignited the pile, “Blondie” vanished in a flash, leaving nothing behind.

Blondie, watching his own body disappear before his eyes, let out a muffled scream.

At that exact moment, a panicked voice rang out from outside the courtyard.

“Master, help!” Lu Wei screamed. “I’ve been thrown out… I can’t get back in the yard!”

“I want my body back!!”

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Blondie’s special move: Fast Delivery Service.jpg

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