Qi Rongsheng looked at the calm girl in front of him, unable to put into words what he was feeling.
He had always harbored hostility towards Yu Nian because of the Elder Xuande, and had even spoken to her harshly on many occasions.
However, Yu Nian not only didn't blame him but also saved him from a desperate situation.
For the first time, Qi Rongsheng felt a twinge of guilt in his heart. "Yu Nian, I..."
Yu Nian glanced at him and said in a voice only audible to the two of them, "Let's talk about it after we get out."
She tilted her head slightly and gave Feng Chengyuan a meaningful look. The latter immediately understood and stealthily disappeared into the crowd.
Lord Long stared menacingly at Yu Nian's departing back and waved his hand at the people beside him. "Do you think you can leave after winning so much money from me? Chase them down! I want them alive or dead!"
Yu Nian's steps were extremely light. She led Qi Rongsheng through a series of turns and entered a dark alley. The footsteps behind them were getting closer. Qi Rongsheng was a bit confused. "With our strength, we should be able to defeat them. Why are we hiding?"
Yu Nian turned her head to look at him. "This is the Ghost Market. There are plenty of people from the Blissful Courtyard. Aren't you going to find your junior brother?"
The moment her words fell, a group of strong men blocked the middle of the road. They all took out their swords from their waists, the blades glinting coldly in the moonlight.
The leading burly man sneered disdainfully. He flexed his wrists forcefully, making chilling cracking sounds. His broad palms looked as if they could easily snap a person's neck. He growled menacingly, "Run! Why don't you run anymore, bitch? Has no one ever taught you how to be low - key? Didn't you even bother to find out who Lord Long is? You can only blame your bad luck for ending up like this..."
After saying that, he rushed towards Yu Nian suddenly.
The burly man wasn't human. He was already huge in size, and when he ran, he was like a moving mountain. Qi Rongsheng even felt the ground trembling violently.
Yu Nian narrowed her eyes. Just as the fist was about to hit her, she deftly dodged to the side.
Yu Nian was still holding Qi Rongsheng with her left hand, but her movements were incredibly light. While the big guy was still in a daze, Yu Nian lightly tapped her toes and leaped into the air, stepping heavily on the burly man's back.
The burly man staggered and fell to the ground. Due to his bulky body, half of him sank deeply into the mud.
"What are you standing there for? Don't let them get away!"
Only then did the others react. They quickly formed a line to block Yu Nian's way.
The cold - glinting swords rushed straight at Yu Nian and Qi Rongsheng. If they weren't careful and bumped into them, there was only one outcome: being stabbed into a sieve.
Unexpectedly, instead of dodging, Yu Nian dragged Qi Rongsheng and ran straight towards the row of swords.
As they got closer and closer to the tips of the swords, Qi Rongsheng's eyes almost popped out of their sockets. He didn't know where Yu Nian got so much strength from, and he couldn't break free.
The cold wind rushed into Qi Rongsheng's chest, making him cough so hard that tears welled up in his eyes.
"Cough, cough, cough, cough. Yu Nian!! Stop quickly! Are you fucking crazy?!"
Not only Qi Rongsheng, but even the people who were surrounding them were stunned when they saw Yu Nian rushing towards them like a whirlwind.
What's going on? Have they had enough of living and come to court death?
Just as the two of them were about to hit the wall of swords, Yu Nian suddenly took a deep breath. The spiritual energy around her gathered in an instant. She took advantage of the momentum and flew up, stepping on the wall and jumping onto the eaves.
Yu Nian looked down from above. She waved her hand and threw out several red threads and a few stones, then left with Qi Rongsheng without looking back.
Qi Rongsheng was still in a state of confusion. He subconsciously looked back.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The stones accurately hit the centers of everyone's foreheads, knocking them to the ground one by one. At the same time, the red threads flew forward and tightly bound everyone together.
Qi Rongsheng twitched the corner of his mouth and couldn't help but curse. "This is fucking... too outrageous!"
Yu Nian didn't let go of Qi Rongsheng's hand until they reached a safe place. Qi Rongsheng was out of breath. He wanted to say something, but Yu Nian suddenly put her index finger to her lips, signaling him to be quiet.
Above the sky, a thick layer of yin energy loomed. Countless red threads, invisible to the naked eye, were twined together, gathering all the demonic miasma floating in the Ghost Market towards one direction, pointing to a wooden door.
Qi Rongsheng frowned. "This is..."
Yu Nian used the sound - transmission technique to contact Zhou Feiyu. The group quickly regrouped at the same spot.
Yu Nian walked up to the wooden door and quietly turned the doorknob. A low and narrow passage appeared in front of them.
As they walked deeper into the passage, the light around them became dimmer. They needed some time to adjust their eyesight to see clearly.
The ground was a bit wet, covered with some unknown sticky liquid. Every step made a soft squeaking sound.
At the end of the narrow passage, they finally saw a vast cellar.
Qi Rongsheng lit a fire - talisman. Finally, they could see the people in the cellar clearly. It was Zhou Qian, who had been missing for a long time, and the disciples of Fengming Mountain.
Different from when they first met, Zhou Qian now looked haggard. She was leaning weakly against the damp wall, her eyes dull.
Hearing the noise, she looked up. When she saw Yu Nian, she slowly rolled her eyes but didn't say a word.
The moment Zhou Feiyu saw Zhou Qian, his eyes turned red. He strode up to her and tried to pick her up.
"Sister, what's wrong with you? I'm Feiyu!"
Yu Nian observed for a moment and found that the strange red thread was directly connected to the back of Zhou Qian's head.
Yu Nian could clearly feel the negative energy constantly spilling out around this red thread, which affected Zhou Qian's emotions, magnified the depression in her heart, and at the same time, was constantly absorbing Zhou Qian's life - force to replenish the other end of the red thread.
As the red thread continuously absorbed Zhou Qian's life - force, her spirit became more and more listless.
The red thread was not only connected to Zhou Qian. In this dim room, many young Taoist priests also had red threads connected to the back of their heads. The other ends of the red threads led to the same place.
It was just that the red threads of the others were not as dark as Zhou Qian's. Some were light pink, and some were semi - transparent.
These cultivators had been connected to the red threads for a shorter time than Zhou Qian, so their negative emotions were not as strong as hers, and the life - force absorbed from them was also less.
Yu Nian reached out her hand to stop Zhou Feiyu and whispered, "Zhou Qian's situation is extremely critical. If we don't take measures quickly, she will die here."
If Zhou Qian died, the red thread on her body would find another host, absorbing the life - force of others like a parasite. It would become more and more powerful, and the yin energy and resentment covering the Ghost Market would become heavier and heavier.
Seeing Zhou Feiyu's excited state, Yu Nian suggested that he stay to guard Zhou Qian, while she, Feng Chengyuan, and Qi Rongsheng would go together to find the mastermind behind this.
After leaving the house, Yu Nian followed the red thread all the way. The red threads were densely intertwined, leading to a more and more remote place. In the end, they condensed into a thick rope as thick as an adult's wrist.
The ghost bride, who had been following Yu Nian, suddenly swallowed hard and murmured, "It smells so good. I really want to take a bite."
Yu Nian raised her eyebrows slightly. In an instant, she seemed to understand something.