"A tiger doesn't eat its own cubs. At first, I was quite puzzled. I couldn't understand why you were so cold to your own son and even said you'd abandon him. Now I finally get it. You're not indifferent; you care too much."
Jiang Li's expression froze for a moment, and then his look gradually turned cold.
Yu Nian continued, "If I'm not wrong, you're a Yin traveler."
Yuan Ao timidly poked his head out and asked sheepishly, "What's a Yin traveler?"
While observing Jiang Li's reaction, Yu Nian explained, "The so - called Yin travel means a living person goes to the underworld and then conveys information from the other world to the living. Yin travelers make a living doing this. It's an ancient profession. Different from the mediums who communicate with the living by summoning the souls of the dead, Yin travelers can freely shuttle between the worlds of the living and the dead. However, only those with a special constitution can travel the underworld roads, which limits the development of the Yin - traveling lineage. Although Yin travelers can go back and forth between the two worlds, they face great risks. They might die in a certain mission. So when they accumulate enough merits, they can get a job in the underworld, commonly known as a ghost guard. After becoming a ghost guard, Yin travelers can not only know the lifespan of themselves and their families in advance but also avoid reincarnation after death and continue to cultivate in the underworld to accumulate merits."
Jiang Li was silent for a while and then suddenly asked, "How are you so sure that I'm a Yin traveler?"
Yu Nian said calmly, "You know how to hide a soul in a cat and can set up such a large - scale blockade for spirits..." Yu Nian paused and showed a dazzling smile. "Most importantly, you're very clear about how to avoid being hunted by ghost guards. If you're not a Yin traveler, then what are you?"
Hearing this, Jiang Li was stunned and said in an unclear tone, "I don't understand what you're talking about."
"Really?" Yu Nian chuckled. "Let me sort it out for you. When I first saw Jiang Sheng, I noticed the thick baleful aura on him, which was as heavy as that of a dying person. As a Yin traveler, you couldn't have failed to notice your son's abnormality. There's only one reason: the baleful aura on Jiang Sheng is all related to you. And the two spirits that were originally following Jiang Sheng were also raised by you, right? Later, for some unknown reason, you let those two spirits take away one of Jiang Sheng's souls. When Pei Ying came to ask for our help, you were afraid that we'd ruin your plan, so you deliberately released a ghost that died in a collision to scare us. Your purpose was to stop us from coming to Putuo Village because that soul of Jiang Sheng was hidden there." Yu Nian paused and turned to look deeply at the cat lying in the coffin. "The reason why the baleful aura on Jiang Sheng is so heavy is that the life he's living now is stolen. Am I right?"
Yuan Ao was dumbfounded. "What do you mean? Does it mean that Jiang Sheng is already dead?"
Yu Nian explained, "We don't know what happened to Jiang Sheng back then. Anyway, his name is not in the Book of Life and Death. So he has to avoid being caught by ghost guards every once in a while. Jiang Li first forcibly extracted the cat's soul from its body and then put Jiang Sheng's soul into it. Using the evil aura of the black - cat's corpse as a cover and ghost - exorcising talismans to avoid being tracked by ghost guards. In this way, Jiang Sheng is missing one of his three souls, and that lost soul is nowhere to be found. When the ghost guards come to arrest the wandering souls in the world, they'll naturally ignore Jiang Sheng. It's really killing two birds with one stone."
The cave was silent for a while. Jiang Li's face darkened. "I didn't want to kill you at first. But since you know everything, I can't let you go... Have you ever seen how powerful a Yin traveler is?"
After saying that, he suddenly took out a dark - colored flute from his bosom, put it to his lips, and blew. The blood - rain in the sky froze in mid - air as if a movie had been paused.
Suddenly, the ground shook violently all around!
Several hoarse and ear - piercing screams cut through the air. Countless white skeletons emerged from the ground and rushed towards Yu Nian one after another!
Yuan Ao had never seen such a terrifying sight before. He immediately let out a sob and was about to run out.
But before he could take a step, a pair of white skeleton hands grabbed his trouser leg. The skull grinned at him and then suddenly opened its mouth and bit at his calf.
"Mommy!!"
As he screamed, he saw a pair of fair hands reach out in front of him. Yu Nian neatly grabbed the neck bone of the skull. With a cross - handed force, there was a "crack" sound, and the skull was forced to separate from its body.
Yu Nian hugged the skull, looked up at Yuan Ao, and slightly raised her eyebrows. "Whether they're humans or ghosts, they like to bully the timid. Running is useless. If it bites you again, just twist its neck. Got it?"
Yuan Ao clapped his hands while crying. "I've learned... Ah no, I've got it. From now on, I'll follow you. You're my little grandma!"
Yu Nian laughed. "What nonsense."
She threw the skull in her hand into Yuan Ao's arms, turned around, and kicked out, shattering two more skeletons.
Seeing that the number of skeletons was decreasing, Jiang Li panicked. He really didn't expect Yu Nian to be so good at fighting!
He blew the flute again, making all the skeletons rush towards Yu Nian at once.
A vicious smile appeared on Jiang Li's face. Since he couldn't beat Yu Nian in a one - on - one fight, then they would attack in groups!
Yu Nian wasn't angry but rather laughed. She quickly formed a seal and punched out, instantly knocking all the skeletons around her two meters away. Then she took out a handful of talismans from her bosom and threw them out.
Several fire talismans ignited simultaneously, forming a wall of fire. The smoke soared into the sky. The skeletons screamed unwillingly in the flames and were instantly burned to ashes.
Seeing that the situation was bad, Jiang Li turned around and ran, but was kicked to the ground by Feng Chengyuan. Yu Nian walked forward and neatly tied a fairy - binding rope on Jiang Li's hand. Then she crossed her arms and looked at him leisurely.
"Tell me. What's the real reason for all these things you've done?"
Jiang Li gritted his teeth and finally sighed. "Maybe you won't believe it, but everything I've done was out of helplessness. I'm innocent!"
As soon as Yuan Ao saw Jiang Li, he remembered the days when he was imprisoned. He was so scared that his face turned pale. But with Yu Nian by his side, he got bolder and scolded Jiang Li, "You old bastard! You've harmed so many lives, and you still have the nerve to say you're innocent?"
Jiang Li raised his head sinisterly and said to Yuan Ao, "Kid, don't be too arrogant. If it weren't for me back then, you wouldn't have come into this world! You owe me everything!"
Yuan Ao was completely confused and retorted angrily, "Get out of here! If I have to thank anyone, it should be my parents. What does it have to do with you?"
Jiang Li sneered coldly. "Since you can remember, hasn't your mother been very weak?"
Yuan Ao was stunned. "Everyone in the town knows about this. My mother hurt her body when she gave birth to me, so she got sick."
"Hehe, that's pure nonsense. Your mother was scared sick!"