Free Web NovelChapter 44: Chapter 41: Brief Words with Old Acquaintances, a Painted Skin’s Doomed Romance
At this moment, some of the servants in the Qin Mansion were discussing in stunned disbelief.
"The heart-eating Spirit Monster is actually Miss Xiaoyin!"
"I never would have guessed!"
"She’s actually a Spirit Monster!"
"When Young Master Shiqi brought her back, I thought there was something strange about her!"
Apparently, the one who had been protecting this Painted Skin Spirit was the Elder General’s seventeenth son, Young Master Shiqi.
Hearing this, the Elder General’s expression turned ugly.
Of course, the Demon Spirit had already escaped by now.
This made his expression even uglier.
After all, this Spirit Monster could still harm people!
And it had escaped from his own mansion, no less.
Although it was his seventeenth son who had brought her back,
he naturally felt he bore some responsibility.
’I have to catch that harmful Spirit Monster!’
’But how did it just get away?’ freewebnσvel.cѳm
"Divine Monk!"
Thus, Elder General Qin turned to Xu Lei in astonishment and asked, "That Spirit Monster escaped?"
Everyone else looked at Xu Lei in the same way.
After all, they had gone to so much trouble to force the Painted Skin Spirit to reveal itself.
And now it was allowed to escape?
What was that all about?
However, Xu Lei was also a bit baffled himself at the moment.
’My job was just to help find the Painted Skin Spirit.’
’Personally vanquishing a Demon isn’t part of my job description.’
’But why is Hui Ming still standing foolishly by my side?’
Of course, despite his inner shock and confusion, Xu Lei had been playing the role of a Divine Monk for over a decade. His ability to maintain a facade was top-notch.
No matter how his mind reeled, his expression remained as serene as a calm sky, as if everything was under his control.
"Rest assured, Master Wu Tan."
Right at that moment, Hui Ming’s voice suddenly entered Xu Lei’s ears, "Forcing the Painted Skin Spirit to reveal itself and flee the mansion means our mission is already a great success."
"In fact, you handled things far more beautifully than this disciple ever imagined."
"As for the Painted Skin Spirit, someone outside will take care of it."
"When it comes to capturing a Demon, if the Painted Skin Spirit had made a move inside the mansion,"
"then I would have acted."
"But if we could force it outside,"
"then my intervention wasn’t needed."
"I only need to protect you, Master Wu Tan."
Even though Hui Ming’s mouth hadn’t moved and he was still standing silently and somewhat woodenly beside Xu Lei, the voice came through to Xu Lei’s ears with perfect clarity.
Xu Lei was secretly amazed.
A desire to embark on the path of Cultivation burned even stronger in his heart.
He wanted to obtain Extraordinary Power, too.
But he knew now was not the time.
So, he could only suppress this thought for the moment.
Of course, hearing Hui Ming’s words, Xu Lei’s heart settled down.
Xu Lei felt a tinge of regret that he couldn’t personally witness Hui Ming or another master of the True Buddhist Dharma battle the Painted Skin Spirit and capture it.
But there was nothing to be done. With so many people watching, Xu Lei still had to manage the aftermath.
Besides, Xu Lei understood why Hui Ming preferred to act outside the mansion.
They were Hidden Cultivators who valued seclusion and avoided showing off their powers in front of others.
Therefore, they naturally wouldn’t want to use the True Buddhist Dharma in front of so many people in the banquet hall.
Even if the Painted Skin Spirit hadn’t been tricked into fleeing in terror, but had instead been truly singled out by Xu Lei,
and discovered right there at the banquet,
when Hui Ming finally made his move,
he would have definitely pushed Xu Lei to the forefront.
Then, he would have used his own Power from behind the scenes.
He would have let everyone think it was Xu Lei who acted.
’But it doesn’t matter. Whatever methods were used,’
’the matter is resolved now, one way or another.’
’This trip wasn’t a waste after all.’
"Amitabha Buddha."
Knowing the Painted Skin Spirit couldn’t escape, Xu Lei naturally resumed his high-and-mighty monk persona, pressing his palms together and saying, "Rest assured, everyone. This evil Demon will not get away."
"Everything is proceeding according to this humble monk’s plan!"
"Thank you all for your cooperation just now."
"With the evil Demon’s expulsion, everyone present today has, in the unseen world, gained merit!"
When the crowd heard Xu Lei confirm that everything was under control,
they couldn’t help but marvel once more.
"The Divine Monk is truly worthy of his title!"
"To the Divine Monk, a Little Spirit Monster is just a mouse for a cat to play with!"
"It’s a shame we didn’t get to see the Spirit Monster’s true face!"
"I can’t believe Spirit Monsters actually exist in this world!"
"I used to think it was all just rumors, that ghosts and gods were just superstition!"
"But this is good. Now that the Divine Monk has subdued this Spirit Monster, the heart-gouging case should finally be over!"
Then, they all resumed whispering amongst themselves, their discussions buzzing.
After this banquet ended,
one could imagine that they would naturally tell their families all about it when they returned home.
From there, the story would spread even further.
But most others who heard it would be skeptical.
They would just think the storyteller was deliberately spinning a tale about a Spirit Monster.
After all, there were many similar folk tales.
But no one had ever taken them seriously.
Most people, not having seen one with their own eyes,
believed they absolutely did not exist!
It was all just stuff made up by storytellers!
「Meanwhile.」
Xu Lei saw that in the crowd, Liang Fangying, Zhao Xiaocha, Wei Qingning, and Zhang Xiaomai were all looking at him, their beautiful eyes shining with a peculiar light.
’But that’s normal. Even though I’m a fake Divine Monk,’
Xu Lei thought to himself, ’I must have looked pretty cool at the banquet today!’
Afterward, a few people came up to flatter Xu Lei.
"Little Divine Monk, long time no see. I never thought you’d come to the Prefecture City!" Liang Fangying then stepped forward and said softly.
But Xu Lei could detect a hint of affectionate complaint in her words. freeweɓnovel.cøm
This made Xu Lei feel a little awkward and guilty.
After all, he had indeed been in the Prefecture City for some time but hadn’t let her know.
But there was nothing Xu Lei could do; this was part of the professional ethics he had to uphold as Zen Master Bu Zhong.
Of course, Liang Fangying didn’t say much more to Xu Lei, as her husband was still at the banquet.
So, like the others, she exchanged a few words and then withdrew.
"Greetings, Little Divine Monk."
Zhao Xiaocha also came forward, but there was no resentment in her voice, only excitement. "When did you arrive? Did you come because you heard a Spirit Monster had appeared in the Prefecture City recently?"
"Amitabha Buddha. Greetings, Benefactress."
Xu Lei said, "Comings and goings, meetings and partings in the Mortal World, all are governed by fate and cause. To meet again here shows that your karmic bond with the Buddha has not yet ended, Benefactress."
Since there were many people around, Zhao Xiaocha didn’t say much more to Xu Lei and quickly retreated.
Xu Lei exchanged some pleasantries with the crowd as well.
Then he went with Elder General Qin to an inner courtyard.
After all, Young Master Qin Shiqi had yet to be dealt with.
On the way to the inner courtyard, seeing Liang Fangying and Zhao Xiaocha again made Xu Lei think of Yu Fengying, and a wave of sadness washed over him.
Back when he was Zen Master Bu Zhong at Longyuan Temple,
four women had left a rather deep impression on his heart.
Liang Fangying, Zhao Xiaocha, Yu Fengying, and Consort Li.
But now, while the first two stood before him, Yu Fengying had already passed away.
And Consort Li was far away in the Kyoto Imperial Palace, and he had no idea how she was doing.
「Half an hour later.」
In the inner courtyard of the Qin Mansion.
Elder General Qin was still sitting in his wheelchair.
Xu Lei and Hui Ming stood to the side, observing.
Many of Elder General Qin’s trusted men stood guard around them.
Young Master Qin Shiqi knelt before them, with Elder Qin’s confidants holding blades to him on either side.
"Reporting to the General! Everything has been investigated!"
Just then, a one-eyed, scarred, and limping captain, one of the Elder General’s trusted men, reported, "It was all that Xiaoyin!"
"Furthermore, the number of deaths from having their hearts dug out is far greater than what the public knows!"
"Also, Young Master Shiqi previously ordered his personal guards to protect that Miss Xiaoyin!"
"His men were even mixed in among the guards in the direction Miss Xiaoyin broke through earlier!"
"That’s how she managed to break out..."
Listening to the report,
Xu Lei learned that this Miss Xiaoyin was a young woman whom Young Master Qin Shiqi had rescued while suppressing bandits in the mountains!
Aside from being beautiful,
she showed no other abnormalities in her daily life!
Young Master Shiqi was passionately in love with her!
He even broke with convention to bring the lonely and helpless girl into the mansion.
And not as a mere concubine, but with the rank of Concubine Ping!
’So it’s another cliché story of a Demon Spirit girl falling in love with a general-type guy.’
Xu Lei couldn’t help but inwardly ridicule the situation. ’Only this time, it’s a *young* general.’
However, because Elder General Qin had so many sons, and his other sons had also taken many young women from the mountains or poor families as concubines and wives,
it had indeed been difficult to pinpoint the target before.
"Tell me!"
Elder Qin slammed his hand on the armrest of his wheelchair, looked at Young Master Shiqi, and roared, "Is it true?! You colluded with a Spirit Monster to harm innocent people?"
"Have you forgotten the Qin Family’s precepts?"
"Why?"
"I’m sorry."
Young Master Shiqi’s face was pale. He said, "Father, your son was wrong."
"I know it’s wrong."
"But Xiaoyin did it to be with me... I... I love her!"
Hearing this, Xu Lei couldn’t help but sigh in his heart.
He mentally pieced the story together.
This young Painted Skin Spirit had a chance encounter with the handsome young general in the mountains.
It was love at first sight.
Afterward, he brought her back to the Mortal World.
She saw the prosperity of the Mortal World and experienced the beauty of love.
So she wanted to stay in the Mortal World, to stay by the side of the man she loved.
Plus, she saw that many ordinary people in the Mortal World had no Magical Power.
Killing them wasn’t much of an effort.
Therefore, to maintain her skin, she started killing people.
And the young general, a young master from a Noble Family of generals with a boundless future,
clearly discovered she was a Demon, but still chose to cover for her.
But her killing spree was so rampant that the bodies were discovered, sparking widespread discussion.
He was only Young Master Shiqi; he didn’t have enough power to suppress everything.
And he didn’t dare tell anyone else in his family about it.
Then, the great evil villain, the final boss who would shatter their love—Divine Monk Wu Tan—suddenly descended, bringing with him a plain, unremarkable little monk in gray robes!
And he turned their sweet love story directly into a tragedy!
"For a woman!
"No, she’s not even a normal woman!
"You harmed so many innocent people?
"Love? You love her?
"Love a female Demon Spirit?
"You have brought utter shame to our Qin Family!"
Hearing this answer, the Elder General was so angry he actually laughed.
It was a laugh born from extreme anger!
His old face was flushed red with fury, his hair practically standing on end, and his tiger-like eyes were wide with rage.
Then, he suddenly shot up from his wheelchair and viciously slapped Young Master Shiqi across the face, knocking him sideways and sending two of his teeth flying.
"You wretched son!"
