Dong Fangxiao: "…Why me?!"
"Because you're the most chivalrous and adaptable among us," Pei Yu said in a timely manner.
Dong Fangxiao was rendered speechless.
The students from other groups around them all looked over, trying hard not to laugh, their eyes full of anticipation. Dong Fangxiao's face flushed bright red. After hesitating for a while, he finally shut his eyes tightly and let out a deafening cry with a look of resignation: "Quack—!"
"Pfft—"
Everyone couldn't hold back their laughter. The boisterous laughter instantly shattered the tense atmosphere in the morgue. Even Zhong Shengwan's pale lips curved slightly, almost imperceptibly.
"We asked you to imitate a baby crying, not a toad in the pond," Zhong Shengwan added coolly.
Veins popped up on Dong Fangxiao's forehead. He clenched his fists so tightly that they cracked: "Stop blabbering! If you can do better, then you go!"
Just as the two were about to quarrel, Shen Cuiyu suddenly frowned and raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet.
Perhaps Dong Fangxiao's imitation of a baby's cry had really worked. In the once-dead morgue, there came a very faint stir!
"Creak..."
The sound was extremely harsh, as if someone was scraping the coffin lid continuously with their long fingernails.
One sound after another, it gradually became clearer, making one's hair stand on end!
The next moment, right before everyone's eyes, the corpse lying stiffly in the coffin suddenly sat up without any warning!
Then, it leaped out of the coffin at an incredibly fast speed that defied common sense. Its eyes were hollow but it had a clear target. It hopped straight towards the door!
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The dull sound of its hops echoed on the ground. The cold and putrid stench enveloped them, making everyone involuntarily shiver!
Zhong Shengwan simply closed her eyes and pinched her own hand tightly to prevent herself from fainting from fear...
Everyone quickly held their breath and stared fixedly at the figure of the corpse without making a move.
It wasn't until the corpse brushed past them and hopped some distance away that everyone followed the pre - arranged plan and quietly trailed after it!
The corpse seemed completely unaware of the pursuit behind it. It chose desolate and secluded paths. Although its movements seemed stiff, its speed was not slow at all. It hopped stubbornly in a certain direction whole - heartedly!
The group held their breath and followed it stealthily in the moonlight. They passed through the deadwood forest and crossed the rocky slope. The atmosphere was tense and oppressive.
After following for a while, a student who was out of breath gasped softly:
"…If I didn't know it was a corpse, I'd think it was a rabbit that had become a spirit! How can it run so fast!"
After about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, the corpse's speed gradually slowed down. It stopped in front of a lonely thatched cottage on the outskirts.
A faint light shone from inside the cottage. The corpse hesitated for a moment, then slowly approached. It tilted its head and peeked inside through the crack in the door!
Those who practiced the arcane arts had excellent hearing. At this moment, listening intently, someone suddenly exclaimed excitedly: "There are the breathing sounds and mumbling of a child inside the cottage!"
They'd found it! Everyone was overjoyed. All they had to do next was follow the plan step by step—first lead the corpse away from the cottage to avoid accidentally harming the child, and then take turns to step forward and bind the corpse together!
"Go!"
A group of disciples quickly stepped forward to lure the corpse. They pinched spells and recited incantations. Sure enough, the corpse was disturbed and hopped straight towards them!
Unbeknownst to it, the other two groups of disciples had quietly taken up advantageous positions. Their magical artifacts and talismans were ready to be used, and they surrounded the corpse without making a sound!
Everything was going smoothly. The corpse was clearly at a disadvantage. Dong Fangxiao couldn't hide his joy on his face:
"I didn't expect our first mission to go so smoothly!"
At this moment, all that was needed was for the last group of members to step forward and cast the last few binding talismans, and the mission would be accomplished!
Before his words faded, a tall figure quickly appeared in front of the corpse. Liu Ruyan, a member of the last group, had a flash of impatience and determination in her eyes. Somehow, there was a red talisman in her hand that was surging with an extremely powerful spiritual aura!
"The talisman paper in her hand... How can it have so much spiritual power?!" Zhong Shengwan's tone suddenly turned solemn.
Shen Cuiyu's eyebrows twitched violently, and his expression instantly turned terrifyingly cold.
"It's a lightning - attracting talisman."
All they needed to bind the corpse was the basic evil - suppressing talisman distributed by the academy. But the one in Liu Ruyan's hand was clearly a rare and high - level talisman!
Where did Liu Ruyan get such a hard - to - come - by thing?
This talisman would be put to good use in the hands of a real master. But if it fell into the hands of someone without moral cultivation and who didn't understand the rules of the arcane arts, it would backfire!
The corpse had a cold constitution. If it was suddenly struck by this extremely yang and powerful lightning spell, it would surely go out of control!
At the same time, Zhong Shengwan's angry shout rang out: "Come back! Don't use the powerful lightning spell!"
But Liu Ruyan turned a deaf ear. She twirled her finger and suddenly threw out the talisman in her hand!
"Evil creature, submit!"
The talisman, carrying a surge of spiritual power far beyond her level, turned into a blinding bolt of lightning and struck straight at the corpse's forehead!
After a flash of blinding white light, the confident smile on Liu Ruyan's face suddenly froze!
The lightning attracted by the talisman didn't subdue the corpse as Liu Ruyan had expected. Instead, it was like pouring cold water into hot oil, triggering a terrifying reaction!
The corpse in front of them trembled violently. The evil qi that hadn't completely dissipated in its body instantly became violent and boiling. It let out a terrifying scream from its throat!
At this moment, the yin qi around it surged. Its movements suddenly became several times faster. It became extremely manic. Not only did it break free from everyone's restraints, but it also pounced on Liu Ruyan!
"How... How could this happen..."
Liu Ruyan's face turned deathly pale. In extreme fear, she even forgot to dodge. She just stood there, trembling.
Fortunately, Dong Fangxiao quickly stepped forward and kicked the corpse hard in the chest!
The corpse staggered. Dong Fangxiao took the opportunity to push Liu Ruyan out. But in the blink of an eye, the corpse pounced on them again!
Dong Fangxiao showed no fear at all. He put on the mask that symbolized the power of the witch doctor and stepped forward to fight!
Zhong Shengwan reminded him: "Fool, don't fight it head - on. Avoid the evil qi it exhales from its mouth and nose. Attack from behind!"
After being kicked several times by Dong Fangxiao, the corpse suddenly turned around and attacked another group of disciples!
"No!"
"Quickly stop it!"
The scene instantly turned chaotic. Several disciples hurriedly tried to make up for the situation. The lights of the talismans and magical artifacts flashed randomly, but the corpse was now overflowing with evil qi and they couldn't get close to it!
The corpse charged left and right, then leaped into the vast night!
"It's over, all over!" A disciple collapsed to the ground, his face ashen. "That corpse was already unconscious. Now that its evil qi has leaked out and it's completely out of control... If it escapes into the mountains, it'll be almost impossible to find it again!"
The atmosphere at the scene was extremely gloomy. No one had expected that their first mission would fall short at the last step and end up in such a miserable situation!
Liu Ruyan stood there, her face alternating between red and white.
She had thought that using this hard - to - come - by high - level talisman would allow her to complete the mission neatly and cover up the fact that she couldn't use talismans to subdue ghosts. But unexpectedly, she had only made things worse!