uddenly lit up before falling silent again."Well, hello there! Fancy meeting you here again!""Master Wen, are you also here at the flower pavilion to write poems and paint"Luo Huai had a good impressi...The ripples of this time have long since left the borders of Beijing. Their group rode hard, galloping for five days straight before finally resting for a night in a small village. Then they continued westward.

"Miss, when we reach the next town, let's buy a carriage! Riding horses all day is too tiring."

Luo Huai found an opportunity and quietly proposed to Lian Yi.

"Alright, head to the next town and take care of it."

Only then did Luo Huai reveal the dimple on his cheek when he heard this.

After traveling for another three days, they finally arrived at Shuangqi Town. After checking into the inn, everyone took time to wash up. After dinner, they all went straight to sleep, as they hadn't slept well in the past few days.

With ripples recuperating her strength through meditation, she promptly covered herself with a blanket and dozed off for a while. In the afternoon, Liang Chen drove a carriage back to the inn with Luo Huai.

"Miss, the carriage has been purchased. From now on, you won't have to ride so hard."

Luo Huai's pleasure was evident as he expressed his gratitude.

"Well done! You've been on the road for days. Let's rest for one more day and set off tomorrow morning."

Ripples, with a wave of her hand, then arranged for these people to replenish the previous consumption. She herself lay lazily in the room reading a storybook, which was a "Chronicle of Strange Tales" brought back by Luo Huai. She was just reaching the exciting part when Luo Ying and Luo Huai knocked on her door.

Come in!

"Miss, everything is ready! We can depart now."

"Isn't it past dawn Don't you find riding tiring, haven't you had enough rest by now"

The ripples smiled and asked.

"It's not a Miss, this town of Double Flag is haunted!"

Luohuai's face was a bit awkward, and he lowered his voice deliberately.

"What ghost What ghost are you talking about"

A ripple of interest came over her. She closed the book in her hand and looked up, asking,

"Miss, when we were buying supplies, the shopkeeper told us that the top courtesan, Lian Yue, of Yao Yue Lou, the largest brothel here, died tragically. No murderer was ever found. Plus, since she came from a humble background and had no relatives to seek justice for her, and her madam showed no compassion, she was simply laid to rest in a pauper's grave with an old tatty mat."

Seven days later, someone said they saw Miss Lian Yue. That same day, the old madame of the brothel died. Soon after, several girls who had feuded with Lian Yue before her disappearance also died, their deaths were all gruesome.

Then several officials' sons and wealthy young masters who were deeply involved with Lian Yue's death met unfortunate ends one after another. The people of Shuangqi Town all said that it was Lian Yue seeking revenge.

Luo Huai blurted out all the gossip he had heard.

And then Did you catch the vengeful ghost

Ripple asked curiously.

"That's the crucial point. Those young masters are not short of silver, they hired many Taoists to perform rituals to exorcise ghosts and spirits, but unfortunately, all ended in failure. Some Taoists even lost their lives. Despite these families repeatedly increasing the reward, now reaching ten thousand taels of silver, no one dares to show up."

Lo Huai continued to reply.

"Didn't they send anyone to look for other immortals"

"All that goes, does not return."

Liang Chen immediately responded.

"It seems this female ghost is quite powerful."

The ripples replied noncommittally.

"So, Miss, shall we depart today"

Luo Huai cares about this the most.

"Let's see what happens tomorrow morning! If the ghost is active tonight, we can have a good show."

Ripples immediately decided.

Luo Huai's face fell. She thought to herself that she might as well just ignore this commotion.

She had not yet opened her mouth when she was sent to rest by her own mistress.

The ripples did not hurry away. She wanted to see if this was a real ghost, a human being, or if the evil spirit was using Lin Yue's body as a vessel. Since she had encountered it, she might as well get rid of it all at once. However, she had no intention of going to those young masters' homes to exorcise spirits and make money from it.

Because of the news Luo Huai brought back, including Wen Yi and Wu Meng, all the guards chose to purchase everything during the day and stayed at the inn to rest obediently that night.

Liàn Yī sat meditating until the middle of the night, then opened her eyes because she smelled a hint of evil. Immediately, she got up and went to the window, pushing it open to look at the quiet Shuangqí Town.

Because she lived in the top room of this inn, considered the best in town, she could see half the town. At this moment, a faint black evil was drifting through the town, and above several mansions, the evil was the most concentrated, black as ink, seeping into the entire house.

Ripples glanced around and then leaped out of the third-floor window, rushing towards the place where the evil energy was heaviest and the killing intent strongest.

At this time, the entire Pan residence was plunged into darkness, a darkness so profound that one could not see. A beautiful woman in a red dress raised her pale hand and gently pushed open the door covered with talisman papers.

A clang echoed through the room, reaching the man's ears. He didn't dare breathe, hiding under the covers, trembling, and begging for mercy:

"Lian Yue, please forgive me! I know I was wrong, I was just drunk at the time!!!"

With the other party's screams, he had already fallen heavily to the ground, rolling two somersaults before coming to a stop in front of bare feet.

The man, ignoring the pain, shook his body and kowtowed.

"Lian Yue, please! For the sake of our past friendship, spare my life!"

In the next instant, an icy, ghastly hand clamped onto the man's neck, yanking him off the ground. A frigid voice echoed:

"Pan Wenbin, I pleaded with you back then, considering our past friendship, not to send me to those three beasts. What was your answer"

As the question fell silent, the woman's feet left the ground, hovering in mid-air. Pan Wenbin, the wealthy man they called him, also lifted off his feet, struggling desperately. But he dared not touch the hand gripping his neck.

"Help me!!!"

Unfortunately, the entire Pan residence plunged into darkness, and no one responded to his cries for help.

Just as Pan Wenbin was rolling his eyes, he was thrown heavily to the ground.

Pan Wenbin was panting heavily, coughing constantly. After his purplish face had somewhat subsided, he began to crawl backward on the ground, as if trying to escape Lian Yue's control. He didn't even dare to look up at the other person's face.

"Master Pan, didn't you just praise me as beautiful as a celestial fairy, like the Nine Heavens Xuan Nü How come you don't even dare to look at me now"

"Please, please spare me!"

Pan Wenbin couldn't stop retreating, tears streaming down his face. Finally, he hugged his head and hid under a round table, never daring to look up.

"Hehehe! You think not looking into my eyes won't ensnare your soul You're too naive. I want you to taste the feeling of being near death, you'll love it."

As he spoke, he extended his ghastly right hand, grasped at the top of the other person's head, and pulled out Pan Wenbin's soul. He then threw a ball of black qi into Pan Wenbin's body and, laughing maniacally, left the Pan residence.

Having always watched the ripples of excitement from afar, she also followed the red-clothed woman as she left. She wanted to see where her lair was.

But hiding under the table, Pan Wenbin slowly crawled out from beneath, stiffly turning his head and limbs. His eyes were completely black, and he mechanically walked to the bedside and lay down.ing with Ripples in her mind. She felt that this fairy was reliable and genuinely considering her.Well, we can gauge the situation tomorrow first and then determine a direction, taking it step by step...