Chapter 1740: Test

Seeing his eagerness, Zu An quickly stopped him: "Be careful, it might be a trick!"

In this remote wilderness, there wasn't a soul in sight, not even an animal. How could there be zither music, followed by a frail girl running for help? It all seemed suspicious.

Wei Su broke free from his grasp: "This is exactly what I came for."

Zu An: "???"

Qiu Honglei: "???"

Wei Su rushed forward a few steps, then seemed to remember something suddenly. He hurried back, instructing Zu An as he ran: "Don't move, I'll go open the door in a moment."

Zu An and Qiu Honglei exchanged a glance, a little confused about what he was doing.

Wei Su quickly pulled a scholar's robe from his satchel and put it on. At the same time, he ran behind a dilapidated Buddha statue, took out a bamboo book basket he had hidden there earlier, and slung it over his back, then nodded with satisfaction.

It must be said that his attire did indeed resemble a refined scholar. Unfortunately, his two prominent buck teeth and lewd expression made him seem rather out of place with the ensemble.

"What are you doing?" Qiu Honglei couldn't help but ask.

Wei Su smiled proudly: "Don't you know? Scholars and female ghosts are a perfect match. I heard this place was haunted, so I specifically prepared this outfit."

Qiu Honglei was taken aback: "Who told you that?"

"Haven't you heard the story of 'A Chinese Ghost Story'?" Wei Su asked with a puzzled expression. "I heard a talented young master gave it to an oiran, and now the storytellers' stalls are all buzzing with it."

Qiu Honglei shook her head. She had been in secluded cultivation recently to prepare for the trip to Purple Mountain, so she didn't know much about outside affairs.

She thought to herself, wondering which oiran was so fortunate. The young master didn't give common gold and silver but a story, clearly a refined individual. Having once been an oiran herself, she naturally understood such matters. Wealthy patrons were common, but a refined gentleman who put such thought into a gift was one in a million. She sincerely wished them well.

At this moment, Zu An's expression was peculiar, as he remembered that the story of 'A Chinese Ghost Story' was one he had given to Kong Nanwu and Nan Xun, specifically tailored to Nan Xun's ghost characteristics. He hadn't expected them to spread the story.

Then Mi Li's voice echoed in his mind: "Tsk, tsk, tsk, you even wrote a story specifically for a female ghost. When are you going to write one for your master?"

Hearing her voice, Zu An was delighted and secretly replied, "You're not a female ghost."

Mi Li snorted, "Isn't it because of you, you scoundrel? Without a physical body, I'm just a soul, what's the difference between me and those female ghosts?"

Zu An quickly apologized cautiously, "Haven't I been looking for materials to reconstruct your body all these years? I've already found more than half..."

"That's more like it." Mi Li nodded in satisfaction.

In that short time, Wei Su had eagerly rushed to open the door. Outside, there was indeed a beautiful woman whose dress was somewhat disheveled and torn, likely due to a frantic escape, scratched by roadside branches.

Seeing the woman's face, Wei Su's eyes went wide. Although she was slightly less beautiful than Qiu Honglei, she was certainly beautiful enough to be an oiran in most brothels. For Wei Su, such a woman was usually an unapproachable existence.

Especially upon seeing the snow-white skin revealed by the tears in her dress, he became utterly rigid.

Qiu Honglei secretly transmitted a message to Zu An: "A'Zu, this woman seems a bit strange."

Zu An nodded. With their current cultivation, they keenly sensed that the woman's aura was peculiar—exceptionally ethereal, yet imbued with a chilling coldness.

But strangely, she didn't possess the death qi found in the skeleton soldiers they had encountered before.

Zu An secretly asked, "Empress Master, can you discern this woman's true nature?"

Mi Li replied nonchalantly, "Isn't she just a ghost?"

Zu An: "..."

He couldn't help but ask, "How is she different from the ghosts I've seen before?"

In the secret realm where he first met Mi Li, there were also many undead creatures, and even Zhang Han's form was indistinguishable from a legendary ghost.

Mi Li seemed to know his thoughts and replied, "What you saw before were just low-level undead creatures, without much intelligence. These types of ghosts are different; besides their fundamental origin being different, their appearance and other characteristics are not very different from humans."

"As for Zhang Han and others you encountered before, strictly speaking, they weren't true undead creatures. They were a type of neither-living-nor-dead monster formed by special arrays and curses, unable to enter the Six Paths of Reincarnation until you freed them."

Zu An was surprised: "Are there really Six Paths of Reincarnation in this world?"

"Of course there are," Mi Li said, as if puzzled by his question. "Since there are gods and immortals in this world, there are naturally Six Paths of Reincarnation. Only then can the dynamic balance between life force and death qi be maintained."

She paused halfway through, a look of confusion on her face: "However, I've noticed that many of the worlds you've experienced don't seem to have the Six Paths. Has it also been cut off from your world, like the Immortal Realm?"

Just then, the woman at the door spoke pitifully, "Young Master, I..."

After the door opened, she instinctively stumbled towards Wei Su's embrace. However, upon seeing his appearance, her body stiffened noticeably. At that moment, she caught sight of Zu An standing nearby, and her eyes immediately lit up.

Zu An was naturally handsome and elegant, and beauty is often enhanced by contrast. Compared to Wei Su, his extraordinary handsomeness and refined aura were even more accentuated.

The woman twisted her waist, naturally shaking off Wei Su, and lunged towards Zu An: "Young Master, help me!"

Wei Su had originally spread his arms wide, eagerly anticipating a soft, fragrant body in his embrace. Who knew the plot would unfold this way? He stood rooted to the spot, as if turned to stone.

Zu An cautiously stepped back: "What's wrong, miss?"

The woman missed, stumbled directly to the ground, and let out a delicate cry of "Ouch!" She then looked up at Zu An with a resentful gaze: "Young Master..."

Her appearance was truly pitiable. Wei Su, who had been petrified, felt his heart melt upon hearing her, and he quickly ran over to help her up: "Miss, how can you be so careless?"

The woman rolled to the side, directly reaching Zu An's feet, and pulled herself up by grabbing his leg.

"Thank you for your help, Young Master." The woman looked at Zu An with her large, fluttering eyes, her gaze seeming to speak, exceptionally alluring.

Wei Su awkwardly retracted his hand. How many times had he encountered similar situations in his life?

He seemed to have gotten used to it.

Zu An calmly brushed her hand away: "Who are you, Miss, and why are you here?"

Although he knew she was a female ghost, he had too little information. He decided to talk to her more, to see if he could gain any useful clues.

"My humble name is Xiao Ying. My father was recently reassigned as the county magistrate in a nearby city. After he settled in, he sent for me to join him. However, while passing through this area, I was ambushed by mountain bandits. My maids and loyal servants risked their lives to protect me, allowing me to barely escape with my life. I wonder if Young Master could escort me to the city? My father will surely reward you handsomely, and I, too, will remember your kindness and serve you like an ox or a horse to repay you."

As she spoke the last sentence, she continuously blinked at Zu An, her tongue slightly protruding, full of suggestive implications.

Zu An shook his head: "I don't farm, what would I do with an ox or a horse?"

Xiao Ying: "..."

She hesitated, then said coyly, "Young Master, an ox or a horse can actually be... ridden."

Zu An: "..."

Are the female ghosts in this world all so bold?

Mi Li couldn't help but laugh aloud: "Why don't you consider it? This female ghost has some charm. Perhaps a 'life-and-death acquaintance'? At worst, she'll just absorb a bit of your Yang energy; you have plenty anyway."

Zu An thought to himself, *Is this how a master behaves? What kind of brazen words are these?*

The woman named Xiao Ying was about to continue speaking when she suddenly saw Qiu Honglei leaning nearby, a faint, unreadable smile on her face, silently watching the performance.

In that instant, she was awestruck by the other woman's beauty. Even as a woman herself, she found her enchantingly beautiful.

She finally understood why her attempts to seduce Zu An had been unsuccessful. She looked on the verge of tears, distraught, and said, "So, Young Master has such a peerless beauty by his side. No wonder you don't care for the humble appearance of a concubine like me. I won't trouble you any further."

After speaking, she covered her face with her sleeve and ran off, sobbing. Though she appeared frail, her speed was remarkable, as if she were floating through the air.

Wei Su couldn't even catch up. At the doorway, he couldn't help but thump his chest and stamp his feet: "Come seduce me! I'm easily hooked!"

Zu An: "..."

Qiu Honglei: "..."

Meanwhile, in another ruined house, Yun Jianyue and Xie Daoyun also woke up. They found themselves very close to each other, while the others were nowhere to be found.

Yun Jianyue frowned: "Why are you here? Where are the others?"

Xie Daoyun trembled slightly, remembering that the person before her was the legendary female demon who killed without batting an eye: "I... I don't know either."

Yun Jianyue was well-informed and quickly realized that this was not a void, but a new world similar to a secret realm.

After searching around for a while and failing to find Zu An and Qiu Honglei, her irritation grew: "Little girl, don't hold me back, or I'll destroy you."

Xie Daoyun nodded like a chick pecking at rice. Now that she had suddenly arrived in a new world, completely in the dark, having a familiar person made her feel a little more at ease, even if the other party seemed a bit fierce.

Yun Jianyue mused that while the girl's cultivation was ordinary, she was quite accomplished in array formations and might prove useful later.

So, with a tacit understanding, they allowed each other to team up.

Just then, Yun Jianyue's expression suddenly hardened: "Who's there?"

Xie Daoyun vigilantly looked in the direction she was staring, ready for battle at any moment.

"Hehehehe..."

A harsh, unpleasant cackle echoed, making the entire space feel eerie.

Immediately afterward, a monster suddenly appeared on the rafters, making even Yun Jianyue's scalp tingle.

This monster had the body of a lion but the face of a woman, and its entire form was as grotesque as could be, making anyone who saw it feel their sanity assaulted.