Twilight Boundary-Chapter 559 - 550 Setting up the Altar for Exorcism
"Hmm?"
Upon unexpectedly hearing Immortal Miaoshan utter such a phrase, Hu Ma seemed intrigued, his gaze falling upon her face.
Immortal Miaoshan was also clearly conflicted, as if afraid of offending Hu Ma. She spoke softly, "Martial Uncle, we discussed this as soon as we arrived.
"Everyone here is accustomed to handling matters and has seen a great deal. The land of Mingzhou is exceptional, even better than the places we’ve meticulously prepared for so many years. It shows that once Martial Uncle takes action, the outcome is vastly different from what we less competent people achieve.
"But truly, Mingzhou’s luck was abysmal. It encountered the very troubles it should have avoided. That Official Zhou has suffered disasters for years, with demonic individuals from the theft disaster path causing chaos, plunging the populace into misery. The followers of Not Eating Beef had already sent people there, intending to leverage this chaos to establish a foothold.
"Ultimately, however, they couldn’t gain control and had to retreat, only for the Truth Sect to pick up the pieces. Why is that? It’s not that the abilities of our martial brothers were lacking, but rather that Official Zhou was too wretched. To succeed there, one would have to employ heaven-defying methods and commit atrocious deeds.
"The Not Eating Beef, under the guidance of the Virtuous Master, cannot bring themselves to make people resort to cannibalism, or even use human flesh as military rations. This self-restraint became a handicap, leading to their disastrous defeat and retreat.
"Now, these hungry ghosts in Official Zhou have become a formidable force..."
As she spoke to this point, she shook her head and continued softly, "Confronting this horde of hungry ghosts isn’t an issue of Mingzhou’s inadequacy; rather, all states currently lack the means to deal with them."
Hu Ma had long been aware of this. After a slight pause, he said, "The Not Eating Beef has countless skilled experts. Do they truly have no good ideas?"
"It’s difficult."
Immortal Miaoshan, seemingly fearing Hu Ma’s displeasure, said with a troubled expression, "Time is very tight. Even if we had methods, there’s no way to train the Food Protection Army effectively in such a short period. Secondly, this Ghost Army is an exceptionally rare and malevolent presence in the world.
"Their numbers are vast, their spirits are dead, they carry their sins with them—neither human nor ghost.
"Previously, when my fellow disciples of the Not Eating Beef Sect were traversing the world, they learned that some ambitious individuals have been secretly preparing for the coming major shifts in power. Among them are many formidable forces or entities cultivated in private.
"For instance, the Fire Crow Army of Tengzhou, the Gourd Army of Wu State, the Grass Lake White Fish Army, as well as the Chain Army and Black Flag Army, are all exceedingly formidable. However, even they might not gain an advantage against this Ghost Army, let alone the hastily assembled Food Protection Army of Mingzhou...
"If Mingzhou had a generational Lord that it Worshipped, capable of suppressing this pervasive ominous ghost qi, there might still be some hope...
"But we also saw that Mingzhou did indeed invite a Lord, yet this Lord is..."
At this, she gave a distinct, bitter smile. She didn’t finish her sentence, but Hu Ma understood. Although they had invited a Lord, this Lord was aligned with the enemy, effectively ensuring control over Mingzhou’s food supplies.
"You don’t need to worry about that thing in the city."
Hu Ma, having listened carefully to Immortal Miaoshan, then said, "Just considering how to deal with these thirty thousand hungry ghosts, do you, a group of professional rebels, truly have no solution?"
"Are there really thirty thousand of these hungry ghosts?"
Immortal Miaoshan was slightly surprised upon hearing this. They had only recently discovered the presence of hungry ghosts in Mingzhou. Since they appeared intermittently, their exact numbers were uncertain. She recalled that two months ago, when people from the Not Eating Beef Sect were monitoring the situation there, they had estimated the number to be as high as one hundred thousand.
She couldn’t help but admire the Sect Hierarch; he seemed to know the exact number despite apparently not leaving his residence. After a brief moment of contemplation, she said, "If we are forced to fight, there might be a pyrrhic victory, but Mingzhou would likely be drenched in blood...
"...and that’s with the assistance of us from Not Eating Beef. Otherwise, this small Food Protection Army wouldn’t stand a chance; they would scatter at the first charge."
"We cannot have blood flowing like rivers. Mingzhou cannot withstand any more turmoil."
Hu Ma slowly stated, "We need to win, without heavy casualties, and this problem must be resolved quickly."
"Huh?"
Immortal Miaoshan was taken aback, her face scrunching up in distress. She truly didn’t know how to relay this message to their waiting martial brothers from the Not Eating Beef Sect, who were eager to act. They had eagerly awaited the Sect Hierarch’s orders, all planning to showcase their skills, so why was he presenting them with such a daunting challenge right from the start?
"But this isn’t meant to make things difficult for you."
Hu Ma looked at her and slowly said, "My question is, if the ghost qi on these thirty thousand members of the Ghost Army were suppressed, or even entirely cleansed, could it then be done?"
Immortal Miaoshan, who had been inwardly troubled, suddenly brightened upon hearing this. She responded repeatedly, "Yes, yes! If that’s the case, with the abundance of experts within Not Eating Beef, what difficulty could there be?"
"Martial Uncle, please don’t think us disciples are incompetent. Truthfully, if we were given a little more time, or if those few senior martial brothers handling important matters in distant places could come, perhaps we could devise a plan..."
"Alright, alright, there’s no need for such talk. Let’s see your true abilities in action."
Hu Ma stopped her and said seriously, "Go inform them so they can begin preparations. Mingzhou’s food supply is already stretched thin; not a single grain can be wasted."
"Yes!"
Anyone else might have demanded clarification and assurance before acting, but Immortal Miaoshan had immense faith in Hu Ma. She immediately left the residence cheerfully to discuss matters with her fellow disciples. Just before stepping out, she suddenly added a reminder, "My luggage is still at your place, Martial Uncle. Please look after it for me..."
Hu Ma waved his hand helplessly. At a time like this, who still cared about luggage?
But as he prepared to leave himself, he paused, then turned back to lock the main gate of the courtyard. After all, these were tumultuous times, and as the Bean Official had mentioned, Miaoshan’s dowry was incredibly valuable...
Stepping out, he turned and walked to the small Case God Temple of the Red Lantern Lady, a faint smile on his face.
The Left Protector, Shen Hongzhi, who had been waiting here; Seventh Aunt, who had only just awakened as evening fell; and Aunt Zhang, who had been diligently standing guard all day, were all present.
They were surrounded by a group of fierce little ghosts, requiring them to periodically chant to soothe them. If the chanting faltered, the little ghosts might rush in and attack them. In this predicament, the Red Lantern Lady, feeling quite aggrieved, looked over.
"Everyone, I have already gone up the mountain to meet that esteemed person."
Hu Ma didn’t stand on ceremony. He directly saluted everyone present, then sat down and began to speak.
This statement startled everyone present. Although they vaguely understood their own status, granted by that ’esteemed person’ in the mountains, an involuntary tension gripped them upon suddenly hearing him mentioned.
Aunt Zhang, being the most discerning and aware of the urgency, quickly stood up and asked with concern, "What... what did the esteemed person in the mountains say?"
Hu Ma replied, "The esteemed person only said to go ahead and do what you must. Whatever happens, he will take full responsibility."
"Huh?"
At these words, Aunt Zhang, the Left Protector eavesdropping outside, and the Red Lanterns from the temple opposite were all startled. They had been hoping the esteemed person would offer a strategy, but he only said he would bear all responsibility. What did that mean?
Only Seventh Aunt, in a corner of the room, blinked her small eyes, clearly not understanding, and continued to focus on her pot of sugar eggs.
"We’re all on the same side here, no need for formalities."
Hu Ma stated directly, "In Mingzhou City, there are demonic individuals who have turned the city into an altar and summoned an evil object to preside over it. Let’s all discuss how we might break this altar of theirs."
This question once again left everyone dumbfounded. They looked at each other, and it was Aunt Zhang who finally spoke with characteristic honesty, "Little Shopkeeper, I don’t like to boast, but I’ve been a Ghost Walker since I was young, and in these twenty years, I’ve never seen such a massive altar."
"According to tradition, setting up an altar requires careful consideration of feng shui, the terrain, the practitioner’s cultivation and skill, and the entities invited to the altar. In all these aspects, they...
"...have exploited every advantage."
Saying this, she looked at Hu Ma.
Hu Ma knew what she wanted to convey. It would require Zhensui Mansion to suppress the other side’s altar.
They had set up their altar in Mingzhou City and were waiting, likely for Zhensui Mansion to appear.
"The esteemed person in the mountains will take action and has already given me guidance. However, breaking that setup in the city will still depend on our own abilities..."
Hu Ma spoke slowly, his words causing Aunt Zhang’s heart to flutter. Could that esteemed person truly be relying on them to break the altar in the city? Wasn’t that an impossible task? Before she could voice her thoughts, Hu Ma suddenly looked at her and asked, "Aunt, how many Ghost Walkers are there in Mingzhou?"
"Ah, this..."
The question startled Aunt Zhang.
When it came to Ghost Walkers, one could say that practically every village and household had some. If not every single household, then at least a significant portion did; it was impossible to count them all.
The problem was, many of these Ghost Walkers were just village elders or local witches. Most were self-taught, and it was debatable whether they could even be considered practitioners of the Path, requiring further assessment...
Even someone like her, a renowned great Ghost Walker in the countryside, felt out of her depth upon arriving in this town. How could such individuals be expected to engage in a proper duel of magic if they were gathered?
"That’s enough."
Seeing Aunt Zhang’s expression, Hu Ma didn’t need her to answer. He simply nodded, as if he already had his answer. Then he turned to Seventh Aunt, who was just about to bite into a chicken neck, and smiled. "And how many spirits are there in Mingzhou?"
Seventh Aunt paused, quickly wiped her mouth, and said, "Definitely more than the people in my household."
"That’s also enough."
Hu Ma smiled and stood up. He offered them a respectful half-bow, then gazed towards Mingzhou City, took a deep breath, and said, "The method to break this altar is actually quite simple, isn’t it?"
"Their altar is large, so we shall set up an even larger one."
"They’ve summoned something powerful, so we shall summon something even more powerful."
"’Their methods are vicious...’ He paused, his eyes turning cold. ’But do you think we honest folk lack methods of our own?’"
"Ultimately, they are merely some distant relatives of the Hu Family from the mountains. Although they still possess some valuable items, they’ve long since lost their legitimate standing. Now that all pretenses are shattered, they’ve lost even the last vestiges of dignity."
"Now that all Four Great Hall Officials of Zhensui Mansion are present, surely we can break this pathetic evil altar, propped up by a few outsiders borrowing the fate of an entire city’s populace?"
With that, he slapped the table—not too heavily, but with firm resolve—and rose to his feet. "There’s no time to delay! Tonight, we shall set up our altar, execute the Lord, suppress the hungry ghosts, and restore clear skies and tranquility to this land of Mingzhou!"
