Wanxi Rebirth - Chapter 9

Not long ago.

“I’m going to act as the Netherworld Master? Are you serious?”

After receiving the plan Qin Suliu had sealed within the gray moth, Yue Ting-xi pointed at herself in disbelief.

“Since you’re so keen on getting your revenge with your own hands, you’ll have plenty of opportunities for a face-to-face confrontation later,” Qin Suliu said calmly, letting the gray moth rest on her fingertip. “Why not try it out by borrowing someone else’s body first? It’ll also be a good test to see if the puppet sorcery still works through my disguise to control your actions.”

Yue Ting-xi’s eyes lit up.

She was eager to try, but since the plan didn’t mention what would happen if it failed, she pretended to hesitate. “But this is too bold! What if…”

“Isn’t that what I’m here for?” Qin Suliu repeated the words Yue Ting-xi had said earlier. “This gray moth of mine can create disguises, change voices, and even temporarily control a willing target. If the puppet sorcery still works, I’ll take over your body immediately, help you get away from him, and then knock him out and bring him back so you can vent your anger.”

“So, are you willing to take this risk with me?”

“…Fine, I’ll trust you this once!” Yue Ting-xi played her part perfectly, feigning a look of reluctance while her heart pounded with excitement.

This was a great opportunity to test things out. If the puppet sorcery didn’t work against Miss Qin’s “gray moth technique,” then she could finally strut around in front of that dog Lin without a care in the world!

So, Qin Suliu disguised herself as Lin Chaoyao and used the gray moth to create a sound-isolating barrier. She then slipped into the basement to find the Netherworld Master, who was still preparing his “goods.”

Just as the plan had anticipated, the Netherworld Master, named He Shen, easily fell for the “Lin Chao-yao” disguise. He was so moved that he immediately knelt down and pledged his loyalty.

“I have no other skills besides the path of ghosts and corpses, and my body is disabled. You are the one who gave me a second life! Just give the word, and I will…”

He didn’t get to finish his sentence before Yue Ting-xi, who was hiding her form and aura, knocked him unconscious with a single Shocking Thunder Talisman.

“Miss Qin is so clever. This guy’s place has a lot of hidden mechanisms and secret passages leading to rooms piled with corpses,” Yue Ting-xi praised sincerely, feeling the gray moth technique still gently flowing over her body as she shook the dust from the talisman off her fingertips.

“He’s too vigilant. If we couldn’t subdue him instantly, we would probably be greeted by an army of the undead. With guys like him, using conventional methods can easily put you at a disadvantage,” Qin Su-liu said. She then expertly dislocated He Shen’s jaw and stuffed a gray bead formed by a gray moth into his mouth. “Like this, he is now our puppet.”

Having been through a similar experience, Yue Ting-xi felt a bit uncomfortable watching, but when she thought about how the puppet sorcery was finally being used to get revenge on a truly evil person, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of schadenfreude.

“Can’t we make that dog Lin eat this thing?” she asked casually.

“His cultivation is too high. The gray moth bead would be removed the moment it entered his body,” Qin Suliu explained. “Unlike this Netherworld Master.”

Time was short, so she didn’t elaborate, but Yue Ting-xi understood what she meant.

It was said that Netherworld Masters cultivated by absorbing ghost qi, and their meridians were completely different from those of orthodox cultivators who absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Before they reached a high level of mastery, their ghost and corpse arts, though powerful, left their bodies extremely fragile. This was why they usually didn’t show themselves in public and instead used refined corpses to do their bidding.

Lin Chaoyao’s sudden visit made He Shen completely drop his guard. Even though Lin had scolded him for “not walking the righteous path” during his last visit, He Shen still wagged a flattering “tail” filled with anticipation at their reunion.

And Qin Su-liu used that trust to put on this show with Yue Ting-xi.

After taking the gray moth bead, He Shen was tied up and locked in a room where he couldn’t reach any corpses. They would return to him after they went upstairs to beat up Lin Chao-yao.

With Qin Suliu’s help, Yue Ting-xi followed the plan, disguising herself as He Shen, the one delivering the goods to meet Lin Chaoyao. She also carefully put away several fast-acting poison pills that Qin Su-liu had given her.

She was immune to any poison and could ensure that she wouldn’t be affected while still taking down Lin Chaoyao.

“Miss, do I… look like He Shen?”

After her face and voice were changed, Yue Ting-xi imitated He Shen’s tone. She leaned on a walking stick to support her “disabled and weak” body and asked timidly, nervously, but with a hint of excitement.

Since his cultivation was not yet at a high level, He Shen’s confidence was lacking, and his body was already disabled. When meeting his benefactor who had once saved him, she had to pay attention to every small detail when mimicking his tone and movements.

Yue Ting-xi recalled how, in her previous life as a puppet on a string, what she looked forward to the most was being taken out to meet people. Even if she just sat there motionless, she could secretly mimic the people who appeared in her line of sight to amuse herself. Without realizing it, she had developed the ability to mimic others quickly.

The downside was that she could only mimic the superficial aspects and could only fool people for a short time. If this kind of situation happened often in the future, she would have to find a way to practice more.

“…Very good, very similar.” It was unclear whether it was surprise or hesitation, but Qin Su-liu was silent for a few seconds before answering. “I don’t see anything wrong. If you’re ready, take this with you.”

She waved her hand, and a life-sized peach wood box was placed next to Yue Ting-xi.

Yue Ting-xi’s senses were sharp. The moment the peach wood box got close, she wrinkled her nose at the foul smell emanating from it. “Is this a living person, a corpse, or a ‘living corpse’?”

“Based on my understanding of Netherworld Masters, this is a ‘living puppet’ that has been refined in the special state between life and death,” Qin Su-liu said. “Don’t worry, she’s in a dormant state right now, and her condition won’t get worse. Let’s just use her to continue our plan for now. Afterward, I’ll see if I can save her.”

Believing that her knowledge of Netherworld Masters was not as extensive as Miss Qin’s, Yue Ting-xi didn’t ask any more questions. She gently lifted the peach wood box with her magic, turned her head, took a deep breath, and prepared to go meet Lin Chao-yao.

Before leaving, she pointed to her abdomen. “I’ve cultivated an ‘inner chamber’ inside my body. As long as I seal the scent of the peach wood box and put it in there, I won’t feel uncomfortable.”

She planned to help take this poor, unnamed woman away.

The poison pills Qin Su-liu gave her were as potent as her tea. When Lin Chao-yao was knocked down with a single punch and then fell into a coma from the poison just a few breaths later, Yue Ting-xi felt a sense of unreality.

“Why aren’t you beating him?” Qin Su-liu emerged from the darkness like a ghost, took back the peach wood box containing the living puppet, and began casting a spell to block the stench of the corpse.

“He didn’t seem to notice that He Shen was a different person,” Yue Ting-xi said with a frown, slapping Lin Chao-yao across the face through his sleeve.

She felt that the test hadn’t been successful this time. Since Lin Chao-yao hadn’t realized that He Shen wasn’t He Shen, he naturally wouldn’t have used the puppet sorcery on her.

“Look on the bright side, from such a close distance, he couldn’t see through my disguise, nor was he immune to my poison pills. He isn’t invincible,” Qin Su-liu said, taking over the conversation as if to comfort her.

“Then we’ll be more discreet and try to leave as few traces as possible, so he won’t find a way to counter us next time!” Yue Ting-xi couldn’t help but think of mystery novels where the protagonist cracks the case and identifies the culprit precisely because the criminal left traces behind.

She was about to get up and clean up, but Qin Su-liu stopped her.

“Leave the cleanup to me,” Qin Su-liu said, rolling up her sleeves. “The poison will last for fifteen minutes. You’d better seize the moment to vent.”

Yue Ting-xi felt a strange sense of confidence in her words. Then, when she saw Qin Su-liu quickly restore the tables and chairs and erase all the “evidence,” including cleaning up the white foam that had fallen on the ground, she showed a complicated expression.

Miss Qin seemed… to be very used to doing this kind of dirty work.

Support Wanxi Rebirth