He then took out a stack of yellow paper and scattered it towards the sky, followed by a loud roar:
"Taishang Laojun, with utmost urgency, I command: all evil spirits and unorthodox ways, be utterly vanquished by this sword!"
With all his might, he roared the incantation, then picked up his treasured sword and forcefully jabbed it towards the falling yellow paper.
A piece of yellow paper was pierced onto the tip of the sword.
At this moment, a miraculous event occurred. The yellow paper, upon contact with the sword tip, suddenly turned blood red.
"Vile creature, surrender!"
Daoist Zhang bellowed, then held up the blood-stained paper speared on his sword for everyone below to see.
A gasp erupted from the crowd!
"The evil spirit has been slain by Daoist Zhang! Excellent!" Daoist Zhang's confederate below quickly shouted and applauded.
In an instant, the bewildered common folk also clapped vigorously, letting out sounds of admiration.
Everyone buzzed with excited discussion, and the visitors who had come to witness Daoist Zhang "capture demons" felt their money had been well spent.
This spectacle was something they could brag about to their friends and family, for decades to come.
The crowd was utterly convinced of Daoist Zhang's divine power.
Gu Qingcheng, however, couldn't help but grin, revealing her gums.
If this were modern society, Daoist Zhang's trick would have been exposed in less than five seconds; even a primary school student could see through his deception in minutes.
The yellow paper used here was dyed with turmeric water, and the treasured sword had been soaked in an alkaline solution. Turmeric, upon contact with alkali, turns blood red.
By means of such deceptive tricks, he gained the reverence of the common folk.
As Daoist Zhang was basking in his triumph, he inadvertently glanced at Gu Qingcheng and saw her smiling at him with a look of mockery.
*Tsk! Is she laughing at my magic being fake?*
Daoist Zhang inexplicably felt a surge of indignant anger at having his trick seen through.
However, he snorted coldly. After all, this little brat was about to be buried alive. Why argue with someone who was already dead?
Thus, he continued his ritual, chanting incantations and jumping about for a good while. He jumped until he was drenched in sweat, expending all the energy from the fatty meat he had eaten that morning. Once he could jump no more, he finally stopped.
Then, Daoist Zhang turned his attention to Gu Qingcheng and Mi Guo.
He instructed the attendant to move the boy and girl to face each other. Gu Qingcheng and Mi Guo exchanged bewildered glances, unsure of what Daoist Zhang was planning.
Gu Qingcheng's father's family stood at a higher vantage point, watching with keen interest. Liu Cui and Zhang Manzhi even applauded along.
*Ah, good heavens, this is practically cannibalism!*
Gu Qingcheng desperately missed the power of the Master's calligraphy to ward off evil, like "When I live, I shall be an outstanding man."
The Master's righteous and awe-inspiring words were more potent at warding off evil than a virgin boy and girl!
Although, despite that, it seemed this wasn't written by the Master either.
Gu Qingcheng cleared her mind and decided to focus on how to get the oxygen tank into her mouth later.
Just then, the attendant rose, lifted Gu Qingcheng and Mi Guo from their lotus thrones, and moved them into a large, deep pit below the high platform.
This pit was meant for the construction of the Seven Stars Town Evil Pagoda. The current task was to bury them within it, then pour the foundation on top, and build a pagoda. And thus, it would be done.
Gu Qingcheng surveyed her surroundings and inwardly cried out, "Bad news!" It seemed they intended to bury them alive and immediately pour the foundation, which would seal her inside.
The better outcome would be if Mi Guo and she were sealed in the same pit. The worse scenario was being buried and then immediately having stone slabs pressed on top for the pagoda's construction.
*It's over!*
Gu Qingcheng regretted it.
She had had so much time last night and hadn't found a way to escape. She had thought the oxygen tank was a brilliant plan, but she had been too careless.
As they were placed in the deep pit, Mi Guo suddenly broke into a smile and said,
"Sister Immortal, thank you for accompanying me on my final journey. If there's a chance in the next life, I hope you can be my elder sister!"
Mi Guo murmured, forcing a smile.
They were placed facing each other. Gu Qingcheng saw Mi Guo's smile was open and innocent, but his eyes still held a flicker of the unwillingness of one facing death.
Gu Qingcheng replied to him,
"Don't worry, we won't make it to the next life."
"Why not?" Mi Guo asked.
At this moment, dirt began to be shoveled down from above their heads.
Many people were shoveling, as the plan was to fill the pit while the boy and girl were still breathing, and then quickly build the pagoda. According to Daoist Zhang, this would generate enough resentment to combat the drought demon.
The dirt-fillers worked with great speed. Just as Gu Qingcheng was about to reply to Mi Guo, she received a mouthful of dirt, filling her mouth.
She quickly spat it out repeatedly.
The surrounding scene was now deathly silent.
Perhaps they were truly shocked to see the virgin boy and girl being buried alive.
Everyone watched intently, as if expecting something extraordinary to emerge from the two. Perhaps they were all imagining how their resentment would surge to the heavens and slay the drought demon.
Gu Qingcheng just wanted to curse them all: *Bullshit! Once dead, you're just dead. I don't want to die.*
But as the mud piled up around her, nearing her chest, Gu Qingcheng couldn't help but mutter, "In the end, I was still too careless."
Mi Guo looked at Gu Qingcheng with confusion. His expression was a mixture of despair and relief, and he secretly wondered:
*What is my sister muttering? Is it a mantra for reincarnation?*
At this moment, the sound of rhythmic hoofbeats seemed to approach from afar, orderly and vast, as if a thousand armies were rushing to the scene.
The dirt had already piled up to Gu Qingcheng's nose. If it went any higher, blocking her mouth and nose, she would suffocate.
Mi Guo, being shorter, only had his eyes visible. He had already given up struggling.
Gu Qingcheng was frantic. She shook her head, clearing the dirt from her face, and anxiously said to Mi Guo,
"Brother, shake your head and loosen the dirt a little."
Mi Guo heard Gu Qingcheng's words and indeed tried to turn his neck. The dirt loosened slightly, creating a small space near his nostrils.
As another pile of dirt was about to fall, which would completely bury Mi Guo,
Gu Qingcheng suddenly felt the ground shaking.
*Is this an earthquake?*
Before she could react, after bursts of neighing horses, panicked shouts echoed from all around...
*Bandits?*
Gu Qingcheng's mind drifted with the thought.
At this moment, a large officer's head appeared above the pit.
"Gu Qingcheng, who is Gu Qingcheng?"
Gu Qingcheng desperately shook her head at him.
Seeing she was still alive, the officer sighed with relief and quickly jumped into the pit, brushing away the loose dirt around her.
Seeing Mi Guo's head was already buried, the officer also brushed away some dirt, revealing Mi Guo's mouth and nose.
Then, two more soldiers jumped down. They pulled Gu Qingcheng and Mi Guo out of the pit and cut their ropes with their swords.
After getting out of the pit, Gu Qingcheng discovered that the situation had completely changed:
Daoist Zhang, Old Master Gu, and a group of previously curious local gentry and ruffians were all being held down and tied up by the soldiers. httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
*Ah, what is going on?*