I Can Devour Spirits

It was the latter half of the night, a time when sleep was deepest. The Temple Priest turned over in bed but was suddenly awakened by a strong urge to urinate. He squinted and reached towards the bottom of the bed, feeling around for some time before remembering that he accidentally broke his night pot while rinsing it out this morning, and hadn’t yet bought a new one.

”Oh no!”

The Temple Priest mumbled and wrapped himself in his quilt again, continuing to sleep. The night pot was broken, and the cold winter made him unwilling to get up and suffer the chill, so he held his urge and continued to sleep.

But it didn’t take long, the urge was evidently too strong, and the Temple Priest had to pull back the quilt, don his cotton clothing, and walk outside the door. He went to the corner garden of the yard and opened his pants...

As the Temple Priest finished relieving himself and shivered slightly, suddenly a dark shadow jumped in from outside the yard.

”Who is it?” The Temple Priest shouted while pulling up his pants.

The dark shadow coughed and said, ”It’s me.”

The Temple Priest’s face changed at hearing this; his hand almost let go of his pants. ”What’s the matter with you? Why didn’t you use such a secretive method of communication, but came to see me directly?”

”It’s urgent, no time to lose. Just now, Wei Yutian’s Secret Chamber Mandala was taken by Shen Yanliu!”

”What...” This time the Temple Priest’s pants really fell down, revealing two quite smooth and round legs that weren’t those of a sixty-year-old man’s withered and shriveled legs.

In the heavy night, the back door of the City God Temple opened a crack, and a beggar staggered out from inside. The back door facing Wild Lake, this time the beggar didn’t exercise his form to cross Wild Lake, but staggered along the lake...

After sending the beggar off, the Temple Priest held a lantern and went to a cage in the backyard, where more than ten pigeons were kept, but only three were messenger pigeons.

The Temple Priest, under the lantern’s dim light, eyed the pigeons in the cage, selected one, and reached his hand inside to grab one out, only to find it wasn’t the one heading to Jiuchong County, then put it back.

It was only the second time the Temple Priest managed to get the messenger pigeon he wanted.

Xianggu County, Tanghe County, Jiuchong County formed a pivotal position, with Tanghe County in the middle.

Moreover, Tanghe County hasn’t established a branch of the Filthy Blood Sect.

The Temple Priest pinched the pigeon, attaching a small wooden cylinder holding rolled paper to its leg carefully, then he touched the pigeon’s head and released it into the night.

The pigeon flew out of the City God Temple, flapped its wings, and disappeared into the dark night.

The Temple Priest watched the pigeon disappear into the night; murmuring with a flickering gaze, ”It should make it in time... If not, this old priest will have to switch places... Been here for most of my life; familiar with every blade of grass and wood, life is quite pleasant, really reluctant to leave...”

While saying these words, the Temple Priest felt little desire to sleep and began practicing martial arts in the empty space in the backyard.

The Temple Priest had just practiced a little, when suddenly a thin thread of blood seeped from his ear, startling him to immediately cover it with a hand, saying: ”I know you’re thirsty, old priest here is thirsty too, but there’s nothing to be done, it’s a tense situation, bear with it for now...”

With that, the Temple Priest sighed helplessly.

Building the Secret Chamber Mandala in that mansion, Wei Yutian originally disagreed with the Squad Leader. The city was too full of eyes and ears; once exposed, there’d be no room for maneuver.

Later, Wei Yutian insisted several times, and the Squad Leader let him go ahead, but strictly banned any other members from their branch from practicing in Wei Yutian’s Secret Chamber Mandala.

Only Luan Jingfu had a good relationship with Wei Yutian, privately visiting a few times; the Squad Leader merely turned a blind eye.

Unexpectedly, Wei Yutian really ran into trouble.

Fortunately, the Squad Leader was wise; otherwise, the brothers of the branch would have been caught completely off guard.

Thinking about this, the Temple Priest’s respect for Ruan Fengshan deepened a bit more. He, already in his sixties, joined the Filthy Blood Sect only two years ago. Two years ago, he fell terribly ill, seemingly about to perish, when Ruan Fengshan visited, discreetly telling him there was a martial art that could cure his illness.

The Temple Priest, initially despaired, suddenly grasped at straws like a drowning man.

Ruan Fengshan then took him to a mysterious place to begin practicing a bizarre martial art.

This martial art indeed cured the Temple Priest’s illness, wiping out his chronic minor ailments completely, even curing the ringworm at the root of his thigh.

Yet, practicing this martial art turned out to be extraordinarily eerie and terrifying!

Gradually, the Temple Priest discovered what martial art he was practicing. It was the notorious Filthy Blood Sect being targetted by Taiyi Sect.

But at that time, the Temple Priest couldn’t pull himself away. The Filthy Blood Divine Skill not only cured his illness but through devouring others’ blood and flesh, nourished himself and postponed aging, essentially increasing his lifespan.

Meanwhile, Shen Yanliu and Li Chong, carrying a large team, surrounded Luan Jingfu’s mansion.

Li Chong infused his inner breath, exerting the full force of Third Level Inner Breath Realm’s power, and slammed the latch of Luan Mansion’s door, causing splinters to fly as a group rushed in.

The gatekeeper barely rushed out before a government constable knocked him out with a Water and Fire Stick.

Inside the mansion, chaotic calls sounded everywhere.

Luan Bao rushed out with a knife, slashed down a constable; Li Chong intended to approach when Shen Yanliu suddenly emerged and struck Luan Bao’s dantian with a palm.

Shen Yanliu controlled the force, destroying only Luan Bao’s dantian without taking his life.

Even so, Luan Bao still flew out like a severed kite, hitting the ground, blood oozing from his mouth and nose, face ashen.

He knew his dantian was destroyed.

The moment a person realizes they’ve become a cripple... is actually a moment of disorientation... even more so for the youthful Luan Bao...

Just then, the rear courtyard of Luan Mansion resounded with the cries of horses, the surrounding chaotic noises evidently startling the horses in the stable.

Shen Yanliu looked at Li Chong, saying, ”Li Chong, keep everyone in check, wait for me to return for interrogation.”

”Yes!” Li Chong clasped his fist and responded in a deep voice.

After Shen Yanliu finished speaking, his figure flashed to the stable in the backyard, where there were five steeds, choosing a majestic black horse he mounted, raced across the courtyard, and dashed out through the main entrance...

Luan Bao, blood in mouth, looked at Shen Yanliu galloping away, muttering: ”Hei Ling’Er is my horse! Mine...”

Shen Yanliu rode furiously; in the pitchblack night, horse hooves clanking against the blue stone paved path, disturbing countless people’s deep sleep...

Shen Yanliu galloped to the East City Gate, shouting, ”Open the gate!”

The constable guarding the gate shouted back: ”Who is it? In the middle of the night, rushing like hot soup in a pot...”

As the person spoke, he walked closer, holding a torch high. Under the blazing flame, he could see Shen Yanliu in official attire, his face steely.

The person was startled, almost burning his own hair with the tilted torch, ”C-County Magistrate...”

”Shut up, open the gate!” Shen Yanliu shouted.

The city gate thundered open, and Shen Yanliu rode along the official road heading towards Lin County, Tanghe County.

Speaking of which, in the afternoon, Luan Jingfu and Sun Huang, each on horseback, leisurely exited the East City Gate, then accelerated after walking quite a bit along the official road.

The pair arrived at Tanghe County by dusk; Sun Huang was eager to return, but seeing Luan Jingfu’s slow pace, he couldn’t urge him.

Finally after delivering the Sealed Letter Dart, Luan Jingfu unexpectedly invited Sun Huang for flower wine.

Sun Huang wouldn’t agree, saying his large wife was fierce at home, and if she knew he drank flower wine, she’d cause a scene.

”A true man! We live on the edge of a knife outside; what’s wrong with drinking flower wine once in a while? Furthermore, this is in Tanghe County, how would your large wife know? Trust me, nothing will happen!”

Sun Huang saw he couldn’t refuse and had to follow Luan Jingfu.

The brothel in Tanghe County, although not as famous as Huaying Building in Xianggu County, still had decent wine, food, and girls. After a night passed, both were drunk.

At dawn, they stumbled out, the brothel’s keeper brought around their horses, and the two rode towards west city gate, swaying...