Chapter 1: The Haunted Yōlin (Part 1)

  "I'm really sorry."

  The red-clothed girl who was just proudly and loudly talking suddenly became shy, her face flushing with embarrassment.

  "It doesn't matter, no fight no acquaintance."

  Ding Lingxi let out a long sigh; as a demon hunter for so long, this was his first time fighting another person.

  "Hey, young master, how did you become so shameless? You're even bullying a girl?" Tie Shu interjected inopportunely, afraid that the words would fall to the ground.

  "Big brother, don't joke around, it's her who wants to kill me." Ding Ling Xiu said with a helpless expression.

  "Haha, it's not his fault, I misunderstood him."

  The girl pulled out a treasure sword from the big tree, walked over with a gentle smile, and her face was like a flower. She looked completely different from the fierce and evil appearance just now.

  "Good heavens, what a stunning beauty! I'm afraid if I look any longer, I'll break my vows." Steel Mouse's eyes were glued to the scene, silently chanting "Amitabha".

  "Big brother, spare some, you're really something, which of the seven emotions and six desires doesn't apply to you?" Ding Ling Xiu said with a glance at Tie Shu.

  "It's settled, the matter is over. This poor monk takes his leave." Tie Shu waved his hand and shook his gleaming iron teeth.

  "Goodbye, Mouse Brother." Ding Lingyu smiled and bid farewell to Tie Shu.

  He recited the incantation again, and the iron mouse transformed into a red light that merged into the book.

  "This little mouse is so cute." The girl reluctantly watched as Iron Mouse returned into the book, originally wanting to touch it.

  "Rat? This guy was also a high-ranking monk who had attained enlightenment." Ding Lingxiu closed the book and said slowly.

  "Is he an enlightened monk?" The girl felt incredulous.

  "Yes, Iron Mouse was originally a high-ranking monk at Xiangguo Temple before becoming a demon. His Buddhist name was Kong Ji, and his cultivation was extremely high. He traveled everywhere to help the villagers nearby eliminate disasters and troubles, and his good reputation had spread throughout the country." said Ding Lingxiu.

  "How did it become a monster then?"

  "This is a long story, in those years, the crown prince of the imperial court contracted a strange illness, he couldn't sleep at night and became dull and listless. The emperor summoned all the famous doctors and extraordinary people to come and treat him, but they were all powerless. At this time, someone recommended Master Kongjie, the emperor personally visited the temple to beg Master to save him. This Master Kongjie was used to saving people without asking about their identity or status, so he naturally agreed to help the emperor treat the crown prince unconditionally. Master Kongjie arrived at the palace and met with the crown prince, immediately discovering that the crown prince was being haunted by a kind of evil spirit called 'mei', this evil spirit had strong resentment, ordinary Taoist priests didn't dare to provoke it easily, so they pushed it away saying they couldn't cure it. But Master Kongjie had a kind heart and couldn't bear to watch the crown prince being sucked dry by the evil spirit until death, so he proposed a method to expel the evil spirit to the emperor."

  "What method?" The girl, being a demon hunter, was naturally very interested in the strategy for driving out demons.

  "That is to build a ten-zhang high altar in the imperial palace, with nine pillars on it, all made of Han white jade. The surface of the altar is paved with stone using Wenyueqing stone. The altar is an open-air three-layered round shape, symbolizing the sky vault. Around the altar are three layers of stone railings, and outside the altar are two layers of inverted walls, in response to 'the heavens bestowing omens'. After the completion of the altar, Master Kongque will perform rituals on it to drive away evil spirits for the crown prince."

  "Wow, this setup is to capture the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to subdue evil spirits. It's truly a grand feng shui layout." The girl couldn't help but sigh in admiration, involuntarily feeling reverence for that cute little mouse from earlier.

  "Yes, the demon is of a high level and cannot be driven out by one's own strength. However, Master Kongjie's plan was thwarted by the treacherous officials in the palace who wanted to crown another prince. They framed Master Kongjie for spreading heresy and threw him into prison." Ding Lingshu said with a tinge of regret.

  "Alas, from ancient times to the present, such things have always happened. Good people never get good rewards." The girl also helplessly pouted.

  "Kongjie Master was framed and imprisoned, but he did not resent anyone. He thought it was the will of heaven and his own destiny to suffer hardships, so he continued to cultivate and meditate in prison. However, the demon Meizhao would not let him off, deceiving the emperor into ordering Kongjie's execution. Although Kongjie had a Bodhisattva heart, seeing Meizhao's evil deeds, he knew that if he died like this, the world would fall into chaos and the people would suffer greatly. Overwhelmed with grief and anger, he borrowed the power of a mouse demon in prison to transform his body into an iron mouse, breaking free from his shackles and escaping. He then found Meizhao and engaged in a fierce battle, resulting in both being severely injured. Meizhao lost its powers for a thousand years and fled the palace, while Kongjie retreated to the mountains to continue cultivating."

  Ding Lingshu told the story of Tie Shu, her slender fingers stroking the ancient leather cover of the book.

  "I really didn't expect this demon to have such an extraordinary experience." The girl was deeply moved.

  "Of course, all the monsters that can enter the True Hundred Ghosts Painting have their own stories and dirge poems," said Ding Lingxiu.

  "Wow, your Hyakki Yagyo is actually real? A Hyakki Yagyo?"

  The girl was surprised and couldn't help but want to touch Ding Lingxiu's leather book, but was stopped by Ding Lingxiu.

  "That's right, this book in my hand is the real 'Hundred Ghosts Picture' of Qinglong Volume, also known as the 'Qinglong Hundred Ghosts Picture'."

  "You're really so lucky, to have obtained the Qinglong Baigui Tu at such a young age." The girl's face was full of envy.

  "Heh heh, passed down from ancestors, by the way, I haven't asked you what your name is yet?"

  "I'm Xia Xianyao, also a demon hunter, and you?"

  Xia Xianyao smiled and said, Ding Lingxiu looked at her lovely appearance, discovering that she was originally only cold as ice when facing monsters, but actually still a very approachable and lovely girl.

  "My name is Ding Lingxiu, same as you, a demon catcher." Ding Lingxiu rarely introduced his profession to others, and naturally had nothing good to say about it.

  "What brings you here too? Are you also after the human-faced tree?"

  "Yes, it's nothing strange for a demon hunter like me to appear here."

  "This is also true, but why was your body full of Rain Girl's evil spirit just now?"

  "This can't be helped, the human-faced tree is extremely cunning. In order to prevent it from discovering my spiritual power, I had no choice but to borrow the Rain Girl's demonic energy to help me conceal my own spiritual power."

  "You really are a meticulous person." Xia Xianyao praised with her mouth, but her heart was thinking deeply.

  The Demon Hunter usually pays close attention to everyone's movements, looking for signs of demons and monsters. So although the two chatted very smoothly, Ding Lingxiu took one glance and saw that Xia Xianyao had something on her mind, and also roughly guessed what it was.

  "What's wrong? What's on your mind?" Ding Lingxiu asked with a smile.

  "Nothing... nothing at all." Xia Xianyao echoed with a smile, her expression very unnatural.

  "Don't worry, you don't have to hide it from me. I know the purpose of your trip. The Man-faced Tree is a hundred years old and only bears fruit once every fifty years. This kind of monster has a strange personality and rarely gathers friends, but now the aura is scattered all over, indicating that there are many monsters here. With the Man-faced Tree's personality, gathering so many tree spirits must be to protect its child. If I'm not mistaken, you've figured this out and come here to steal the Man-faced Tree's seeds." Ding Ling's eyes shone brightly as he stared at Xia Xianyao.

  "I really didn't expect that at such a young age, your cultivation is astonishing, and you can even see through my thoughts." Xia Xianyao said in shock.

  "That's it, just think about it a bit. However, there is one thing that must be made clear: this time we can cooperate to hunt the demon, but I have only one request - do not harm the demon, I want to capture it alive. The tree species can be given to you, but the human-faced tree demon I must subdue."

  "That's great, this is perfect, I only needed that one seed anyway, and with your help, it's exactly what I wanted."

  "Alright, however, Xianyao sister, you have to promise me that next time we encounter a monster, don't be as reckless as before. We must remain calm in any situation."

  "Got it." Xia Xianyao raised her right hand and said solemnly.

  "Alright, it's getting dark soon, let's set off."

  Ding Lingxiu finished speaking and stood up. The two of them parted the shrubs and walked deeper into the dense forest.