I Went Crazy Killing in the World of Gods and Demons - Chapter 32

Chapter 32

In an instant, Xie Qingling seemed to see a soft halo resembling moonlight rising from Shen Huaizhou’s body.

Within the halo, a white Nine-tailed Fox slowly unfurled its magnificent nine tails.

The Nine-tailed Fox was pure white all over, noble and sacred, yet its eyes were filled with enchantment.

Suddenly, the sound of shattering glass echoed. Xie Qingling’s pupils contracted sharply, and then the Illusionary Realm faded away. The scenes of the real world gradually came into her view

Ling Fang was pinned to the ground by a Huapi Ghost, being violently pummeled. Ling Fang barely defended himself with his arms while shouting, “Xie Qingling, calm down! Calm down!”

Ye Anran, holding her long needle case, was also besieged by another Huapi Ghost. She struggled to cope, as she had to spare moments to detoxify and heal herself.

Yu Wei held his blade, his sharp eyes fixed murderously on Xie Qingling, radiating such fierce intent that it seemed he was ready to battle her for three hundred rounds.

Dai Xingyu, Jiang Lvlv, and Yang Xianxian had not joined the fight, so they remained unaffected for the moment.

Chaos. Utter chaos.

Recalling how fiercely she had been fighting only to realize she had been assaulting her own teammates Xie Qingling’s face darkened.

When had they fallen under the illusion?

It must have started with the first shriek, when her body began to lose control.

Then, the second shriek completely distorted her perception.

“Brother Yu, stop fighting!” Xie Qingling yelled at the bloodlust-crazed Yu Wei.

As the Huapi Ghost’s Illusionary Realm shattered, the rest of the team quickly regained their senses.

Ling Fang focused his eyes and saw that the one pinning him down was not a teammate but a Huapi Ghost. His face darkened, and he immediately kicked out fiercely without holding back.

Ye Anran, while using her Black Needles to restrain the Huapi Ghost, ducked behind the others, seeking cover.

A healer must survive by staying hidden.

The team regrouped, restoring their combat capability.

Shen Huaizhou chanted once more, “Mirage.”

【Flowers in a mirror, the moon reflected in water. All is emptiness, all is illusion. In the Nine-tailed Fox’s Illusionary Realm, all beings are inverted, and the five senses are indistinguishable. Indulge, indulge in the dreams woven by the Nine-tailed Fox. Then, meet death with a smile.】

The two Huapi Ghosts, which had been in a frenzied state moments before, suddenly grew still.

They touched their faces with their hands, and on their featureless expressions, ecstatic smiles gradually emerged.

At this moment, they seemed to enter a state of self-oblivion, completely unaware of their surroundings. The two ghosts stood there, laughing in blissful delight.

“Now’s the chance,” Shen Huaizhou said. “Take their lives!”

The Huapi Ghosts had fallen into the dream woven by Shen Huaizhou.

Xie Qingling immediately raised her blade and charged at the Huapi Ghosts.

Blinded by the illusion, the Huapi Ghosts were incapable of resistance. They could neither see Xie Qingling’s movements nor sense her presence, wholly immersed in that illusory world until Xie Qingling’s Blood Oath blade pierced through its spine and sliced open its bumpy skin. The searing pain jolted the Huapi Ghost awake from the illusion.

It screamed in agony and attempted to disorient Xie Qingling with another shriek, but having learned her lesson, Xie Qingling would not be fooled again.

She withdrew the blade with her right hand, while her left hand swept horizontally across the Huapi Ghost’s throat, silencing it forever.

The shrieking could no longer be produced.

Stripped of its bewitching abilities, the Huapi Ghost was nothing more than a lump of meat waiting to be slaughtered. Once its capabilities were understood, it was no longer difficult to deal with.

Xie Qingling snarled, “I’ll cut you down!”

The Blood Oath sliced through ghosts like mud; Xie Qingling didn’t need to infuse it with Spirit to attack directly. Using Spirit to envelop the tips of her feet, she leaped up, hovering briefly in mid-air to adjust her direction before bringing the blade in her right hand down with maximum force, cleaving straight through the Huapi Ghost’s face.

The Huapi Ghost was split in two by this strike.

Xie Qingling landed back on the ground, sheathed the Blood Oath, and reattached it to her back.

The Huapi Ghost collapsed to the ground, its arm still stretched forward in a posture of unwilling resignation.

Just moments ago, it had obtained their skins it had been so happy.

It didn’t understand how things had suddenly turned out this way.

Meanwhile, Yu Wei had also concluded his battle.

“Yang Zhenhua” had been similarly cleaved in half, and now its body was gradually dissipating.

The more troublesome the fight had been earlier, the quicker it ended now.

Without its Illusions, the Huapi Ghost was a fragile entity with very limited offensive capabilities even inferior to some well-trained, physically strong humans and equally poor defensive abilities.

The group exchanged glances, their expressions slightly peculiar.

Shen Huaizhou was an Illusionist. In combat, they had always treated his Illusions as a useful control skill, but they hadn’t realized how terrifying it would be to fall victim to one themselves.

Illusions didn’t cause physical harm, but in battle, making someone mistake falsehood for reality and error for truth was a horrifying experience.

Ling Fang said to Shen Huaizhou, “Well done.”

Shen Huaizhou merely gave a faint nod.

If his initial mission hadn’t been to retrieve Yang Xianxian, these two Huapi Ghosts wouldn’t have had the chance to deploy their Illusions at all.

In Shen Huaizhou’s view, the Illusions of these two Huapi Ghosts were far too crude.

A true Illusionist should be able to execute Illusions seamlessly under the watchful eyes of many, without anyone noticing.

These Huapi Ghosts relied on shrieking for mental attacks making such a racket stripped away all mystery and greatly diminished the effectiveness of their Illusions.

With such hideous appearances and clumsy Illusions, they had no redeeming qualities. Shen Huaizhou wondered how these two Huapi Ghosts had even survived this long.

It was also because he hadn’t previously exposed his teammates to mental-type attacks that they had all fallen for it this time. He hoped this experience would teach them to be more cautious in the future.

Yu Wei approached Xie Qingling and, noticing the wound on her hand, said apologetically, “I did this, didn’t I…”

Xie Qingling nodded, only now feeling the sting of the injury.

“Brother Yu, your blade really hurts,” Xie Qingling joked.

Yu Wei smiled awkwardly. “It does hurt quite a bit. But this time, you only got a cut looks like you’ve been practicing a lot in private lately.”

Normally when sparring with Xie Qingling, he wouldn’t go all out, but this time he had genuinely treated her as an enemy to eliminate, showing no mercy at all. Yet Xie Qingling managed to escape his attacks completely unscathed her progress was remarkable.

Xie Qingling smiled faintly, tacitly acknowledging it.

At the same time, Ye Anran cast a healing spell, and the wound on Xie Qingling’s arm healed completely. If not for the torn sleeve, no one would have known she’d been injured.

Ye Anran hung her head, somewhat ashamed. “I… I can’t counter mental attacks. Negative status effects are beyond my ability to dispel.” Even as a medic, she had fallen victim to it. Fortunately, there was still an Illusionist in the team who remained unaffected, or they might have faced a grueling battle.

“Human capability has its limits,” Ling Fang said as he approached, putting away his spear. “Let’s first inspect the scene to see if we missed anything.”

Once confirming the fight was over, Dai Xingyu brought Yang Xianxian out from the storage room.

Xie Qingling was currently crouched on the ground, gathering the two human skins shed by the Huapi Ghosts. The skin of “Yang Zhenhua” was partially scorched, while his wife’s skin remained relatively intact. Both skins were severely decayed no wonder they were in such a hurry to find new ones.

As she pondered this, Jiang Lvlv emerged from some corner. Her face turned deathly pale at the sight of the two piled-up skins. She approached Xie Qingling and asked, “Qingling, is it over? Are they dead? Am I… safe now?”

Xie Qingling paused and glanced at her, reassuring, “They’re dead. You’re safe.” After a brief hesitation, she added, “With the Huapi Ghosts gone, the mental control they placed on you should have lifted. Try to sense whether that urge to kill remains in your mind.”

Following her suggestion, Jiang Lvlv closed her eyes and concentrated. When she opened them again, tears welled in her eyes as she smiled. “It’s gone! They’re really dead!” She exclaimed, “Thank you so much, Qingling. Without you, I wouldn’t have known what to do.”

Xie Qingling patted her head and smiled. “Don’t worry, I won’t abandon you.”

Jiang Lvlv nodded, her expression a mix of laughter and tears. Finally, her wish had been granted. She looked utterly overjoyed. “You’re truly wonderful, Qingling,” she said.

Xie Qingling responded with a silent smile.

Meanwhile, Ling Fang beckoned to Dai Xingyu. “Use your Herdsman talent to sense whether the Huapi Ghosts have been completely eradicated.”

Dai Xingyu nodded and stepped forward. “Spirits of heaven and earth, seal of yin and yang. Demons and Monsters, reveal your true forms.”

As Dai Xingyu extended his perception, the already dim and cramped space felt even more suffocating. After a moment, he opened his eyes, his expression grim.

“Chief,” he reported, “there’s still one ghost left…”

Yu Wei immediately raised his eyebrows, ready for another fight.

“But I can’t accurately sense it, nor can I lock onto it. The Huapi Ghost is skilled at disguise, so I can’t directly use the Herdsman’s innate perception,” Dai Xingyu said with a woeful expression.

Was this damned Huapi Ghost specifically designed to counter him?

Ling Fang’s face turned faintly ashen, then he shifted his gaze to Xie Qingling: “What about you?”

[Spirits Burn Their Tails, Monsters Paint Their Skins. Demons and Monsters all want to secure a place in human society, employing countless methods to obtain disguises, striving to become genuine “humans.” They mimic human behavior, forming families, attempting to possess a happy home in the mortal world.]

[But now, despicable and brutal humans have forced them to be separated by life and death, never to meet again. Oh daughter, dear daughter, how could you bear to abandon your father and mother? Come, come here, come stay with your parents, for family will always be your warmest harbor.]

The voice in her mind timely resounded, and Xie Qingling’s body stiffened. She lifted her eyes to look at Ling Fang: “There are three Huapi Ghosts. They’re a family of three.”

A family… of three?

Ling Fang was stunned, and the others were equally shocked.

Then, everyone involuntarily turned their gaze toward Yang Xianxian.

Yang Xianxian still hadn’t emerged from the Illusionary Realm. She was obediently waiting for her parents to pick her up from school, her smile innocent and radiant. Dressed in a pure white ballet outfit, standing there quietly, she appeared almost unnaturally well-behaved.

But looking at her pure, childish face again, everyone present couldn’t help but feel their scalps tingle with dread.