Twilight Boundary-Chapter 542 - 533: Shadowing a City
The saying goes, "Fear not a ghost’s cry, but a ghost’s laugh." Mingzhou Prefecture experienced such an unexpected fright that night, leaving the entire city in a state of panic.
The Truth Sect followers who remained in the city hurriedly sent people out. But as soon as the green banner was raised, the little ghosts had long vanished without a trace. All that remained were the trembling townsfolk and a sinister Red Lantern hanging high on the archway.
Gazing at the countless closed doors and windows and the occasional cries heard in the distance, they shook with rage. *"How brazen, how brazen! For the case god to cause havoc like this! There is no reason for it!"*
Coming from Official Zhou with grand ambitions, they were recruiting soldiers and gathering resources, intending to achieve something significant. But unexpectedly, they first encountered those grain bandits from the mountains. These bandits not only refused to hand over their supplies but also claimed the title of food-protection general to rob grain, leaving the Truth Sect fuming.
In the end, though, they hadn’t taken the mountain people too seriously; after all, they were just a motley crew. Assembling a group of Path experts with trump cards to deal with them should have been easy.
Yet, to recruit these individuals, relying solely on a bit of supplies and the reputation of the Truth Sect was far from enough. Ultimately, it came down to the most tangible thing:
Blood Food.
However, for the Truth Sect, which had long-standing plans for the Blood Food positioned in Mingzhou Prefecture—supplies specifically prepared for them—hearing about the Red Lantern Society’s firm refusal to yield and their open provocation had left them incandescent with rage.
What more was there to say? Originally, they were supposed to visit Zhu Men Town at noon the next day for a meeting. Now, however, they wished they could go there that very night. Their only hesitation was that leaving the city after dark might lead to an ambush, so they held back for the time being.
However, after fuming with rage all night, they intended to raze Zhu Men Town directly the next day. Yet, unexpectedly, on that very day, a plague broke out...
This plague came with shocking abruptness. At least half the city’s population, merely frightened the night before, woke up feeling lethargic and fell ill by morning. The illness wasn’t severe, nor was it life-threatening. However, it left people dizzy and restless. They felt as if they couldn’t breathe evenly, as though suffocated. Even merchants selling goods and wine with their shop signs displayed couldn’t open their doors. For a while, the city appeared deserted.
*"This plague appeared so suddenly! Could someone have poisoned the city? Or perhaps, performed a ritual to summon the plague god?"*
Shocked and furious, the Truth Sect couldn’t attend to anything else and immediately sent people to investigate. They also dispatched a team to forcibly bring over the Five Ghosts Shopkeeper from Grass Heart Hall.
With the Holy Hand Young Master not present at Grass Heart Hall, the Five Ghosts Shopkeeper, having no desire to contend with the Truth Sect, had no choice but to comply. After a brief observation, he chuckled coldly, shook his head, and left, saying, *"This is no plague, nor has anyone poisoned the city."*
"Our Grass Heart Hall can’t handle this matter. You’d better invite some more skilled experts..."
The Truth Sect members were disgruntled by the Grass Heart Hall Shopkeeper’s arrogance and cryptic words. However, with numerous nobles who had flocked to them demanding answers, they had no choice but to offer a reward and invite various experts from Mingzhou Prefecture to examine the situation.
With a substantial reward offered, capable individuals naturally came forward quickly. A fortune-teller passing through Mingzhou Prefecture was promptly called into the government office. He simply stated, *"There is indeed no plague here, but it is far worse than a plague..."*
*"Someone used something to overshadow everyone in the entire city..."*
"Overshadowed?"
Hearing this, a certain Altar Master of the Truth Sect, responsible for handling this matter, was greatly taken aback.
Among various Paths, there were terms like "overshadowed," "suppressed," "possessed," and even concepts of "symbiosis and antagonism," each with different meanings. The Haishou Path was most familiar with them, but others had generally heard of such things, though they were still deeply surprised.
*"This affects an entire city! What could possess such power to overshadow all of an entire city’s inhabitants?"*
"Hehe, to overshadow an entire city, it must be something forged from an item that once could Benefit a whole city..."
The fortune-teller gave a bitter smile and sighed, *"In all my years traveling far and wide, I have never seen someone so audacious..."*
*"Having the power to use such potent Magic is one thing; daring to use it is another. The person who cast this spell might not fear the burden of sin or the wrath of heaven. They might not fear dying at the hands of ghostly gods’ retribution. However, the ancestors of the Haishou Path will likely send someone to apprehend them..."*
He chuckled bitterly. He refused both the Truth Sect’s recruitment offer and the reward silver, only highlighting the key point. Then, he waited to see how the Truth Sect would handle the situation.
Meanwhile, at that very moment, an urgent message arrived from the direction of Old Yin Mountain. The Altar Masters and various leaders, who were leading soldiers to wipe out those grain bandits, suddenly reported through their little ghosts that their troops’ morale had collapsed, and they had disintegrated into a rout.
Their soldiers, supplied by the city’s nobles, were physically superior compared to those mountain people who couldn’t even get enough coarse grain to eat. Therefore, even though the mountain grain bandits had grown strong recently, the soldiers could still barely hold them off.
But now, suddenly, it seemed as if everyone under their command had wilted. They couldn’t even get out of bed in the morning. If forced up with whips, they remained listless. Never mind going into battle; they looked so lethargic that if the enemy charged, they’d be too lazy to even dodge.
*"Overshadowing the people in the city is one thing, but how could it also affect the dispatched troops?"*
The Heavenly Destiny General of the Truth Sect found his eyes burning with fury, growing increasingly angry as he fumed, *"What an audacious Red Lantern Lady! A mere case god dares to be so tyrannical?"*
***
*"They’re bullying us too much..."*
「Earlier」
When the news reached Zhu Men Town, the consequences were even more severe. Late one night, when Sweet Potato brought the news back, the entire Red Lantern Society was thrown into chaos.
The Red Lantern Lady had no idea what had happened. She only heard that the Truth Sect was sending people to attack, leaving her both furious and anxious. With the Right Protector absent, she was almost driven to tears.
The Truth Sect was indeed too overbearing! She had already told them there was no more Blood Food. They didn’t even want the remaining one or two hundred jars, so what more did they want?
Left Protector Shen Hongzhi was exceptionally angry. *"We said all the remaining Blood Food could be theirs if they wanted it, yet the Truth Sect refused and insisted on attacking?"*
*"Did you deliver the message clearly?"*
Sweet Potato, wiping her tears, said, "Sis, I explained it to them well. It wasn’t that we didn’t want to give the Blood Food—it was stolen! The Truth Sect’s own suspicions haven’t even been cleared yet. Isn’t it too much for them to pretend they don’t know about this?
"But in the end, they not only refused to understand but also looked down on us because there was less Blood Food. They said they’d attack us, demolish our Red Lantern Lady’s temple, and take her back to be their foot-washing servant!"
The Left Protector instantly became furious. *"Such audacity!"*
*"However weak she may be, she’s still our Red Lantern Lady! How could she become a mere foot-washing servant for them?"*
Sweet Potato said, *"Right, Sis, we can’t tolerate this anymore! Don’t we have three to five hundred men in our society? Let’s gather them and confront them head-on!"*
This Left Protector, Shen Hongzhi, given enough time, might have guessed something was amiss. But now, she had no such leisure and just lamented bitterly, *"Counting on that bunch? Once they hear the Truth Sect is coming to fight, those who can run will have already fled."*
"What?"
Sweet Potato was dumbfounded for a moment. She glanced at the noticeably sparse Zhu Men Town and then realized. Quickly, she clutched the Left Protector’s hand, saying, *"Sis, rest assured, I won’t run. I’ll stay here and face this together with you..."*
The Left Protector was immediately moved, sighing, *"What a good sister..."*
*"But, if all else fails, we have to leave when necessary. It’s just unfortunate for our Red Lantern Lady... she truly can’t leave."*
***
「Meanwhile, in the Manor at Green Stone Town」
Hu Ma had assigned Sweet Potato a task. Believing in her abilities, he was leisurely drinking tea while waiting for the right moment.
But unexpectedly, before seeing the results of Sweet Potato’s efforts, he welcomed an unforeseen guest: Incense Master Xu from the Red Lantern Society. He arrived at the Manor around noon with his old servant and a rather charming, seductive woman. They all appeared travel-worn.
Upon entering the Manor, Incense Master Xu first scooped a ladle of water from a large water jar, drank, and said, *"Something serious has happened."*
*"The Truth Sect, under the pretext of Blood Food, intends to strike at our Red Lantern Society! Today, by noon, they’ll attack. Those who could run have already run—the well-informed ones left before dawn yesterday..."*
Hu Ma was left bewildered, rising to greet him. *"Uncle Xu, you..."*
*"I was one of those who left before dawn..."*
Incense Master Xu drank half a ladle of water and handed the ladle to his old servant. Then, he turned to Hu Ma and said, *"Do you have a fast horse here? I need to retreat to the mountains to take shelter."*
What? Even a prominent Incense Master like you has fled? Then what will happen to our Red Lantern Lady? Hu Ma was stunned. He had tasked Sweet Potato to apply pressure on the Red Lantern Society to make them take responsibility. How did that woman manage to completely disband the Red Lantern Society instead?
As he pondered, he noticed Little Hongtang returning from reconnaissance in the city. He called to Li, *"Prepare some food for Uncle Xu. Do you remember him? He helped us when we first joined the society..."*
He reassured Incense Master Xu not to hurry and to eat something before heading into the mountains. Then, finding an excuse to check on the horses, he went to the stables. Listening to Little Hongtang’s account of the events in Mingzhou City, he felt his scalp tingle.
*"A plague unleashed?"*
He had told Sweet Potato to stir up trouble in Mingzhou, not to wipe out the city...
But upon further questioning, he realized it wasn’t a plague. After all, Sweet Potato followed the Execution Soul Path and didn’t possess the power to unleash a plague upon an entire city. After understanding the specific situation, he mused, *"Did she use that Blessed Evil Spirit Treasure?"*
PS Book Recommendation: I, Zhang Mu, courtesy name Muzi, also known as Zhang Mazi, sit on the golden throne today as a bandit and issue three decrees to all Immortals—Those fishing for fortune shall die; those recklessly tampering with celestial secrets shall die; those who disturb the peace of my human world shall meet with execution, have their souls destroyed, and suffer a terrible death!
"Such a Fortunate Human World"
