Chapter 1770: Hostage

At this moment, the chubby one suddenly said, "Fengchu, there's one thing I really don't understand. Since Jing Teng is so important to the Ghost King, why doesn't he act personally? Why does he insist on sending some trash to their deaths first?"

The skinny monkey rolled his eyes. "If you were the richest man in the world and a small convenience store opened in your hometown's village, would you personally hold a meeting to deal with it?"

The chubby one scratched his head and chuckled naively. "You've got a point there. But let's not be like those human stories, where they don't immediately kill the protagonist but instead send their subordinates piecemeal to be defeated and give experience, only to be ultimately counter-killed by the protagonist..."

"Bah, bah, bah!" The skinny monkey slapped him. "I told you to stop reading those trashy human stories. You talk as if you're a scholar. What, do you want to become a Jinshi?"

"Jinshi doesn't taste good, it's too sour," the chubby one shook his head like a rattle-drum.

The skinny monkey was clearly not in the mood to discuss whether Jinshi tasted good or not. He lowered his voice and said, "Let's discuss how we'll act later. We'll do this, then that..."

Meanwhile, Zu An and his companions finally found out about Little Sakura's parents' whereabouts. It turned out they had been searching for Little Sakura all these years, but despite exhausting their family's wealth, they hadn't found her.

Little Sakura's father had passed away from illness due to years of overwork.

Only Little Sakura's mother remained in the family. In their search for Little Sakura, the couple had long since sold their ancestral home and everything else they could sell. It was said that they now lived off their last meager acre of land, residing in a simple hut they had built nearby. The place was so remote even ghosts wouldn't go there.

When the group finally reached the mountain and found the dilapidated hut, they saw from a distance an old woman dressed in bright red clothes sitting by the doorway, staring blankly at the horizon. Her face, full of wrinkles, seemed to tell of all the hardships and trials she had endured throughout her life.

"A vengeful spirit?" Zu An and Qiu Honglei were startled. From their experiences on this journey, red clothing was often associated with vengeful spirits, so it was now an instinctive reaction for them.

Just then, Little Sakura's tears suddenly gushed forth like a spring, and she rushed forward, crying, "Mother!"

The old woman seemed hard of hearing; she didn't hear at first, only reacting when Little Sakura threw herself in front of her.

She turned her head numbly to look at her, a flicker of confusion in her clouded eyes.

"Mother, don't you recognize me?" Seeing her mother's appearance, Little Sakura felt a pang in her heart. She had been dead for so many years, and even her mother had aged so much.

"Sakura, is that my Sakura?" A sudden spark of clarity shone in the old woman's clouded eyes.

"It's me, Mother! Your unfilial daughter, I've come back late." Little Sakura sobbed.

"It's good you're back, it's good you're back." The old woman's face was streaked with tears. "Where have you been all this time! If only you had come back two years earlier, your father would have seen you."

Hearing this, Little Sakura became even sadder. Mother and daughter quickly embraced, weeping uncontrollably.

"And these people are...?" After the mother and daughter recounted their sorrow of separation, the old woman suddenly noticed the others.

"They are friends who brought me back; it's because of them that I was saved." Little Sakura wiped her tears. Seeing her mother's joy, she didn't even dare to tell her that she was already dead.

Fearing her mother might suddenly realize that her appearance hadn't changed, she quickly changed the subject: "Mother, your clothes are quite pretty."

"Pretty?" The old woman looked somewhat comforted. "This is a burial shroud your father bought for me years ago with the last of our family's money. I can feel that I'm going to die soon, and I'm worried I won't have the strength to put it on when I pass. There are no neighbors around here, and even if there were, who would dress an old woman for burial? I'd be dirty and smelly then, so I put it on beforehand, to avoid bothering anyone..."

"Mother..." Little Sakura could no longer hold back; she hugged her tightly and burst into loud sobs.

Only then did everyone understand the scene they had witnessed earlier. It wasn't an old woman dressing up out of vanity, but rather her sitting there in her burial shroud, quietly awaiting the arrival of death.

Jing Teng and Qiu Honglei immediately burst into tears, and Wei Suo couldn't stop wiping his eyes.

Zu An couldn't help but think of his parents from his previous life. He wondered how heartbroken they must be now.

Listening to the weeping around him, he felt particularly oppressed. He walked straight outside. Jing Teng and Qiu Honglei were comforting Little Sakura and her mother, so they didn't notice him.

Zu An went to a mountain hollow. Watching the clouds roll and unfurl in the distance, his mood finally calmed down a little.

Just then, two dark figures suddenly appeared beside him.

One of the chubby ones said, "This kid is really damn handsome. If I had a face like that, wouldn't I be unstoppable in the Yin-Yang Realm?"

"Unstoppable my foot! In our Yin-Yang Realm, strength is paramount. The stronger you are, the more handsome you are; looks are secondary," the other skinny figure couldn't help but retort.

"You've got a point, but can't someone be both handsome and powerful?" the chubby one, Wolong, couldn't help but say.

"How could such a person exist in the world? Even the Dao of Heaven wouldn't allow it," the skinny Fengchu said discontentedly.

The two subconsciously glanced at Zu An and shook their heads. This kid was handsome enough, but there wasn't a trace of elemental energy fluctuation in him. He was just a pretty boy who couldn't even tie up a chicken.

"Why do women like guys like this? Are they all blind?!"

Zu An had initially thought two formidable enemies had arrived. Who knew they were two clowns? "Can I help you?"

Wolong and Fengchu exchanged glances. "It's not that we need something; it's that you're in trouble."

"I don't seem to know either of you, let alone have any grievances." Zu An observed the two at his leisure. Their bodies exuded a chilling ghostly aura; they didn't seem quite human.

He had heard Jing Teng mention before that ghosts capable of moving freely outdoors in broad daylight were usually very powerful.

"Blame it on you appearing next to that woman," Wolong, who was as round as a ball, chuckled darkly.

At this moment, the skinny Fengchu hastily said, "Enough talk. Jing Teng isn't far from here; it'll be troublesome if she discovers us and rushes over. Let's grab him and leave first, then we can interrogate him slowly in a safe place."

"Alright!" Wolong nodded repeatedly and reached out to grasp Zu An's shoulder.

Zu An had originally intended to strike. But after hearing their conversation, he decided to observe the situation first.

When Wolong's hand clamped onto his shoulder, he immediately felt a chilling aura instantly invade his body through his shoulder. He secretly activated the Primordial Chaos Scripture, instantly dispelling the chilling aura. Of course, on the surface, he pretended to be subdued.

"Just as I thought, a pretty boy who can't even tie up a chicken." Wolong easily grabbed Zu An, his tone full of disdain.

Fengchu also let out a sigh of relief. "Let's get out of here first."

With that, the two quickly left, taking Zu An with them. They arrived at a cave they had prepared beforehand.

"We're safe now," Wolong sighed in relief.

Fengchu scanned the surroundings. "I'll go set up traps now, then figure out a way to lure Jing Teng here. You keep a good watch on him and interrogate him, be careful."

"Don't worry, what can this pretty boy possibly do to turn the tables?" Wolong dismissed the concern.

Fengchu thought the same. Dealing with Jing Teng was more important, so he quickly flashed out to prepare.

Only then did Wolong turn to Zu An. "Hey, pretty boy, from now on, you answer whatever we ask. If you cooperate obediently, I can spare you some physical pain."

Zu An feigned alarm and asked, "Who... who are you?"

"Heh heh, we're not human. We are two of the Ghost King's great ghost generals. My name is Wolong, and my companion is Feng..." He paused mid-sentence, glaring at Zu An irritably. "Am I asking you, or are you asking me?!"

"Ghost generals?" Zu An secretly mused. He seemed to recall hearing before that the Ghost King had eight great ghost generals, each a top expert dominating their own region. "But this guy in front of me doesn't quite fit the image."

"What do you want to ask?"

"That's more like it," Wolong said, growing more contemptuous seeing Zu An's cooperation. He thought, "This pretty boy is indeed unreliable; I haven't even used torture, and he's already spilling it." As he spoke, he took out a piece of candle and lit it. "Don't even think about lying to me. This item can distinguish between truth and lies. If it's a lie, the flame will flicker."

As he spoke, the candle was already lit, and its flame seemed fixed, not moving at all.

Zu An was greatly surprised. "Such a thing exists? Then why doesn't the Ghost King use this to test the loyalty of his subordinates?"

"Who would dare to be disloyal to the Ghost King? This item naturally has no use for the Ghost King." After Wolong answered subconsciously, he felt something was off. How was the other party asking him questions again?

He cleared his throat and hastily asked, "Why did all those sent by the Ghost King to capture you earlier fail?"

"Because they were too weak," Zu An replied.

Wolong subconsciously checked the candle flame. It was completely still—the truth.

"How exactly did you defeat them? Logically, with your strength, you shouldn't have been able to."

Zu An replied, "Your intelligence is wrong; our strength is very great."

Wolong thought, "So that's it." "Has Jing Teng's strength already returned to its peak?"

Zu An was a little surprised, thinking, "Is Jing Teng's peak strength really that formidable?" Nevertheless, he replied, "She hides too many secrets; I don't know."

Wolong glanced at the candle: truth.

His heart was greatly shaken. He thought, "The problem truly lies with Jing Teng!"

"How strong is your Ghost King exactly? What's his combat power compared to how many of you ghost generals?" Zu An asked curiously.

"The Ghost King is an invincible existence; even all eight of us ghost generals combined are no match for him..." Halfway through his answer, Wolong realized. "You brat, I'm the one asking the questions here!"

Zu An ignored him. He continued to ask, "I just saw your companion leave. Are you trying to lure Jing Teng here?"

"That's right," Wolong said, looking somewhat smug. "Although you're a weakling, you're handsome. That woman, Jing Teng, seemed quite concerned about you, asking after your well-being throughout the journey. As long as we use you as a hostage, she'll definitely take the bait. We've already set up 49 traps in this vicinity. No matter how strong she is, once she comes, she'll have no choice but to surrender."