Chapter 102 – Three Against Two

That’s right, there were two people! The alley nearby had no streetlights, and from inside the room, only a blurry shadow could be seen. However, when the overwhelming killing intent surged, the man in the shadow also revealed himself. In an instant, Zhang Xiuqi understood that the sleeping curse cast downstairs was merely a diversion, and the real killing move was in the back alley.

This was completely unexpected. After all, Old Yao was just an ordinary person. Who could have imagined that the enemy would go to such lengths? But there was no time to hesitate now. Zhang Xiuqi slapped five talisman papers into the air, sending them flying in front of the window. Yet, the Heaven-Breaking Sound still didn’t ring out. The talismans trembled as they hung mid-air, failing to ignite. Instead, cracks began to appear on the paper, as if they were about to be devoured by the evil formation.

This was no longer the filthy blood curse from before. It was something far more terrifying. The enemy’s goal was no longer to capture Old Yao’s soul but to kill both of them outright. It was the middle of the night, the time when the curse’s power was at its peak. If they couldn’t withstand the attack, not only would they be in danger, but the other residents in Building 6 would also be severely affected. At such a critical moment, how could the Little Celestial Master retreat?

Zhang Xiuqi’s teeth clenched against the tip of his tongue. He was about to bite it, using his blood as a medium to amplify the power of the talisman. But suddenly, the killing intent faltered, showing signs of collapsing. In that split second, the five talismans erupted in a dazzling blaze of fire, forcing the evil energy outside the room back. With a deafening explosion, all the glass in the living room shattered, as if a gas canister had exploded. Not only was the room in chaos, but even the cars downstairs were alarmed, their sirens piercing the night sky.

Yet, Zhang Xiuqi sprang to his feet and called out in a low voice, “Uncle!”

What had disrupted the overwhelming killing formation was another formation. Just as the two sides were locked in combat, someone had used a curse-dispersing talisman to weaken the blood curse, breaking the stalemate and allowing Zhang Xiuqi’s side to strike decisively. That technique was undoubtedly the specialty of the Sanliao Village. Who else could it be but Zeng Jingxuan?

Master Zeng was here too? Wei Yang felt a wave of relief, but it was quickly replaced by tension. Jumping into the fray like this, would Master Zeng come out unscathed? Without hesitation, he shouted at the Little Celestial Master, “Brother Qi, I’ll hold things here. Go help Master Zeng!”

Zhang Xiuqi hesitated for only a moment before dashing out the door and rushing downstairs. The living room windows were completely shattered, and the howling night wind poured in, along with the deafening car alarms from below. Standing in the room, Wei Yang swallowed hard and gripped the Bone Formation around his neck. Although it was powerful, he still hadn’t fully grasped how to use it. Facing the enemy was undoubtedly risky, but compared to himself, Master Zeng’s situation was far more critical. Silently reciting the incantation he had learned from the Jiang Family, Wei Yang stood firmly in front of the window, refusing to budge.

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Zeng Jingxuan’s current condition was far from good. He had quietly ambushed nearby, even preparing to intervene at the right moment when the enemy was casting their spell. However, he hadn’t expected the enemy to increase from one person to two, and now they were locked in a magical battle with someone in the residential area.

The world of magic was vast, but even from hundreds of meters away, Zeng Jingxuan could easily recognize the technique being used against the curse masters. It was the Dragon and Tiger Mountain’s formation talismans—the same ones he had seen countless times before. Who else could wield such talismans with such sharpness and intensity? Without hesitation, Zeng Jingxuan immediately set up a formation on the ground.

The Sanliao Village was most adept at feng shui, which was also one of the foundations of Taoist magic. Whether it was identifying the Seven Passes or controlling the earth’s energy, no one was more skilled than Zeng Jingxuan, a direct descendant of the Sanliao Village. However, engaging in a magical battle was not like a normal confrontation. He couldn’t directly intervene in the ongoing fight, as the backlash would injure all three of them. Instead, he had to indirectly influence the already formed curse formation through his own array. But this was like suddenly opening a dam’s floodgates—the rushing killing intent would sweep over him like a tidal wave. The damage from this would far surpass the clash of yin and yang energies from the previous day.

Yet, knowing this, Master Zeng didn’t hesitate. He quickly calculated the positions of the Seven Passes, inserted chicken throats into the Yunken Pass, Shangyang Pass, and Taiyou Pass, and drew curse-dispersing talismans. Using the chaotic energy of the train station as a guide, he disrupted the enemy’s curse formation in one go.

Caught off guard by the ambush, the curse master was startled. Before he could regain control of the formation, a loud Heaven-Breaking Sound rang out. The evil formation was shattered, and the backlash struck him like a hammer, causing his gaunt figure to stagger backward. On the other side, Zeng Jingxuan could no longer stand.

He finally understood the taste of having yin energy invade his body. His soul felt like it was boiling, struggling desperately to escape, while his body felt as if it had fallen into an icy abyss, his teeth chattering uncontrollably. His vision blurred, and he could no longer see clearly. With a retch, he spat out a mouthful of blood and slowly slumped against the wall.

In his bloodshot vision, the gaunt curse master in the distance staggered to his feet, seemingly in slightly better condition than himself. Zeng Jingxuan let out a bitter laugh. At this moment, all he could do was cling to the last shreds of his consciousness, preventing himself from falling into complete unconsciousness. There was no way he could deal with the enemy now.

He wondered if Xiao Qi could hold on… His eyelids trembled, growing heavier and heavier, until he could barely see the road in front of him. Just then, several copper coins whistled through the air, embedding themselves in the ground before him. A figure rushed forward, exuding an unstoppable sharpness and a terrifying fury. The figure stood firmly in front of him, slashing down with a white chain!

Someone shouted, but Zeng Jingxuan could no longer hear clearly. He simply stared blankly at the figure in front of him, blinking slowly. The figure looked both familiar and unfamiliar, as if seen through a distant haze. Yet, the name finally flickered on the tip of his tongue. Zeng Jingxuan’s lips trembled, as if forming a faint smile. His tense nerves finally relaxed, and he slowly closed his eyes.

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The car alarms downstairs continued to blare, making it impossible to sleep peacefully. Yet, Building 6 remained completely dark. No one turned on their lights, and no one woke up. It was eerily silent, like a tomb.

This was the effect of the sleeping curse. Like all other curses, as long as the spell remained unbroken, those affected would not wake up on their own. Although it was an extremely simple spell, its effect was unexpectedly potent. Unfortunately, the range of this sleeping curse was too small. The railway residential area was a medium-sized complex with seven or eight buildings, and the other buildings near Building 6 were gradually lighting up as people began to open their windows to see what was happening.

Under such circumstances, no matter how bold the curse master downstairs was, he should have been looking for a way to retreat. Yet, Wei Yang didn’t relax even for a moment. He knew that Brother Qi had already gone to the back alley to rescue Master Zeng, which meant the curse master downstairs was likely unguarded. If he didn’t do something now, it would be a waste of the day’s efforts.

Therefore, instead of letting his guard down, he scattered several strings of copper coins on the floor. These coin formations had been personally arranged by Zhang Xiuqi earlier. Although they weren’t as powerful as when the Little Celestial Master activated them himself, they were still enough to block a few attacks.

After about thirty seconds of stalemate, a cold, eerie wind suddenly blew through the broken window. The wind was strange, not like a normal breeze but more like a sticky, icy tentacle. It slowly crept over the windowsill, and the coin formations on the floor didn’t react at all. Wei Yang didn’t know exactly what a real curse was, but he knew this wind was definitely sinister.

Without hesitation, he raised the Bone Formation in his hand. In an instant, the wind seemed to come alive, lunging toward Wei Yang. At that moment, Wei Yang’s heart nearly leaped out of his throat. Yet, the Bone Formation in his hand showed no reaction. It lay there quietly, as if the approaching wind was nothing worth noticing. He tried to activate every incantation he knew, but it was already too late. The wind had surged forward, pressing against Wei Yang’s face. Just one more step, and it would pierce his flesh, cover his mouth and nose, and take his life.

But the wind stopped. Not only did it not attack, it gently pressed against Wei Yang’s body. The cold, sticky sensation suddenly disappeared, as if washed away by something, and the wind turned back into a normal breeze, vanishing with a whoosh.

Wei Yang blinked, as if he couldn’t believe it. Was that all it could do? However, the man in black downstairs was even more incredulous. Although he hadn’t yet fully mastered the art, this was the most powerful curse he could cast. How could it have no effect at all, as if he had punched a ball of cotton? The backlash from his own spell made his internal organs ache.

But this was no time to dwell on the details. Another Heaven-Breaking Sound echoed from the alley, not as loud as before but even more terrifying. The curse master hesitated for only a few seconds before deciding to abandon his target upstairs and the soul he had failed to capture. He quickly fled toward the main entrance. The car alarms were still blaring, and more and more people were opening their windows to see what was happening. He didn’t dare to linger for even a moment. Like a rat scurrying through the shadows, he dashed out of the residential area.

A few minutes later, Wei Yang finally realized something was wrong. The curse master downstairs had actually run away? How was that possible? All he did was blow a gust of eerie wind, and then he disappeared? But after only a moment of confusion, he turned his gaze toward the alley in the distance. There, the blood curse and yin energy had dissipated once again. A figure lay on the ground, limbs twisted and convulsing as if in the throes of death. Standing beside him was Zhang Xiuqi, who was still in place, looking toward Wei Yang.

Feeling a wave of relief, Wei Yang let out a sigh. It seemed Brother Qi had dealt with the enemy. Calming his nerves, he didn’t hesitate any longer. Pulling out his phone, he began preparing for the aftermath.