Chapter 105 Witch 9

Xia Qi couldn't possibly imagine being carried up the mountain by two corpses, so he decisively refused the three corpses’ request to carry him or make a sedan chair.

The three corpses seemed like they were going to try and persuade him again, so Xia Qi quickly changed the subject. "Given your current state, can you really follow me up the mountain?"

It was still daytime, after all. If these three corpses returned with him in broad daylight, it would likely scare the vice chief. Would the people of Tianxing Mountain think they had encountered evil spirits?

As far as Xia Qi knew, although the priest handled divination, sacrifices, and ceremonies such as weddings and funerals, in minority regions, the priest was also equivalent to a Taoist priest...

"Oh, the Shaman Priest is quite right," said the most clever corpse, slapping his hand against his palm. "Currently, our shamanic powers are too weak. It would be wiser to ascend the mountain when our powers are stronger at night. The Shaman Priest is very considerate."

Listening to the corpses’ spontaneous conversation, Xia Qi couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. His intention was to prevent scaring people, so how did it turn into concern for their insufficient shamanic powers?

Another corpse added, "We just hope the priest doesn't go to sleep early tonight..."

Hearing this, Xia Qi was taken aback. Was the priest part of their group?

He had originally thought the priest was there to ward off evil spirits. Now, it seemed like the old priest might be the mastermind behind the corpses.

As Xia Qi stood there thinking, the three corpses had already come to a consensus—they would not carry Xia Qi up the mountain.

"Shaman Priest, we cannot continue to accompany you," the corpses bowed and said regretfully.

Xia Qi was relieved and quickly waved his hand, saying, "It's fine. I'll go ahead then. You all hide well and don't let the soldiers discover you."

Although the soldier leader hadn’t mastered the correct method to eliminate the corpses, based on the situation, the leader should have known what the corpses were. Xia Qi was concerned that the imperial court had more tricks up its sleeve, so he reminded the three corpses to be careful.

"As you command, thank you, Shaman Priest."

The three corpses raised their hands to bid Xia Qi farewell, mechanically waving as they watched him leave with his companion on his back.

After walking a considerable distance with his companion, Xia Qi suddenly snapped out of his thoughts.

"What are these three corpses planning to do on Tianxing Mountain?"

By the time he looked back, the three corpses had already disappeared.

It seemed they had followed his advice and hidden themselves properly.

Xia Qi had no choice but to continue forward.

The route he was taking was the same direction the vice chief had fled.

Xia Qi asked his companion a few more questions in a low voice, confirming that his companion hadn’t become heavier, before continuing on his way with peace of mind.

After walking for a while, Xia Qi suddenly heard someone calling him. A person jumped out from the bushes nearby.

Seeing the familiar figure, Xia Qi couldn’t help but turn his head away.

"Xia Qi, why did you run off? There's still danger nearby. Come hide with me for a bit..." Cha Gong hurriedly ran to his side, chattering non-stop.

Xia Qi completely ignored Cha Gong, thinking to himself, it’s always the bad guys who live the longest. Cha Gong still hadn’t met his misfortune and continued to appear before him.

"Xia Qi, wait for me!"

When Cha Gong realized he couldn’t persuade him, he turned back to carry his corpse and chased after Xia Qi, running all the way.

Walking one after the other, it wasn’t long before Xia Qi encountered the vice chief.

The vice chief hadn’t expected Xia Qi to escape unscathed and was so excited that he hugged Xia Qi twice, praising him before beginning to denounce the imperial court for their malicious plot to ambush them.

Listening to the vice chief's endless rambling, Xia Qi couldn't help but press his temples and interrupted, "Vice chief, do we need to bring the others back?"

"I almost forgot!" Hearing this, the vice chief slapped his forehead and said nervously, "We need to bring them back before it gets dark."

Dark?

Xia Qi felt a chill run down his back. He glanced sideways at the big brother draped over his neck, feeling a bit uneasy.

The three corpses had mentioned earlier that their spiritual powers would increase at night. Could it be that the corpses on the players' backs would also come back to life and go berserk at night?

"We can't delay. How do we find them? Let's split up and look!" Xia Qi's palms grew hot with anxiety as he urged the vice chief to find the others.

He had been stuck with this big brother the entire journey. If the big brother went berserk at night, Xia Qi felt he might suffer a lumbar strain on the spot.

"A Qi, don't worry. You don't need to go. I have a way to call them back," the vice chief patted Xia Qi's shoulder and reached into his waistband to pull out an old, tarnished copper bell.

The bell looked greasy, as if it had been used by many people. There were red marks along the edge of the bell, resembling ancient bloodstains.

The vice chief raised his hand and shook the small bell gently.

"Ding, ding, ding..."

The sound was very faint, almost inaudible unless one listened closely.

As the vice chief shook the bell, he looked around. Xia Qi followed his gaze, curiously observing the surroundings. Before long, a player appeared on the nearby road.

Xia Qi recognized the player as Zhang Yun, who was Xiao Ou's interest. To his surprise, Zhang Yun looked disheveled, with bloody scratches on his cheeks and a torn shirt revealing red marks on his chest.

"Damn it! I hid from those soldiers for who! Why is this corpse biting me?!" Zhang Yun rushed towards the vice chief, and upon reaching him, he angrily threw the corpse to the ground, venting his frustration.

"My boy, don't be angry. This is all to bring you here..." The vice chief quickly explained to Zhang Yun, saying it wasn't the corpse's fault.

Standing by, Xia Qi realized the effect was from the vice chief’s bell.

The copper bell in the vice chief’s hand was called the ‘Soul-Capturing Bell.’ It had the effect of raising and controlling corpses. The vice chief shook it to guide the players with corpses to them.

"They can't speak, but they don’t have to scratch me! Look at my face, it's all scratched up!" Zhang Yun continued to complain. Fortunately, he hadn't been too far from the vice chief. If he had been farther away, the corpse might have skinned him.

The vice chief, looking helpless, tried to console Zhang Yun, explaining that as he wasn't a priest, his control over the Soul-Capturing Bell was limited, and it was normal for the corpses to act out sometimes.

"Ding, ding, ding..."

The vice chief shook the bell for a while longer, but this time, they weren’t so lucky. After nearly half an hour, no one else appeared.

"What's going on? Could it be that all the boys were captured by the soldiers?" The vice chief said in disbelief, his worry growing.

So far, only three people had returned, bringing three corpses. That was less than half of what they had gathered. The loss was too significant for the vice chief to accept.

Seeing the vice chief looking troubled, Xia Qi took the initiative to ask, "Vice chief, is there another way?"

"My spiritual power isn't enough. If someone with stronger spiritual powers used the Soul-Capturing Bell, its effective range would be larger..." The vice chief looked at Xia Qi with a troubled expression, muttering to himself. Then, his eyes lit up, and he excitedly handed the bell to Xia Qi. "A Qi, why don't you give it a try?"

"Me? Will it work?" Xia Qi hesitantly took the Soul-Capturing Bell, feeling it was somewhat hot to the touch.

"It will work. Although you haven't undergone the ceremony to become a true shaman, your innate spiritual power is stronger than mine," the vice chief patted his shoulder and said seriously.

Xia Qi looked up at the sky. It was about 3 PM. If they delayed any further, they might not make it back to the mountain before dark.

Xia Qi looked down at the big brother slumped over his neck. Thinking that shaking the bell might help get rid of this big brother, he decided it was worth a try.

"Alright, I'll give it a try." Xia Qi gritted his teeth, picked up the bell, and started shaking it.

"Clang clang clang."

Once the bell was shaken in his hand, the clear sound it produced was significantly louder. After a short while, a player appeared on the distant path. This player was in even worse shape than Zhang Yun who had arrived earlier. Bloodstains on his face spread like a spiderweb, and his upper body was tattered. His skin was scratched by the corpse, making it too gruesome to look at.

"Corpse brother, what's your problem with me? Where did I offend you to deserve being scratched up like a fishing net?"

As soon as the player arrived nearby, he cried out in grievance.

Xia Qi continued to shake the bell, reluctantly lowering his head, trying not to look at the player's miserable state.

He felt deep guilt, but he had no choice. To gather all the players, he had to keep shaking the soul-summoning bell.

"Clang clang clang."

Half an hour later, two more players arrived. These two were even worse off; their hair was pulled out in clumps.

Finally, when the last bungee player appeared before everyone, Xia Qi stopped his deadly bell shaking.

"Let's get moving quickly..."

Xia Qi quietly slipped the bell into the vice chief's hand and carried the corpse forward. He really couldn't bear to look at the other players' miserable conditions anymore.

Following the vice chief, they hurried forward. After walking for about an hour, crossing numerous ridges and small streams, Xia Qi stood on a gentle slope and finally saw the full view of Tianxing Mountain.

Before he could be happy for long, the vice chief suddenly pointed to a ditch below, looking nervous. "Oh no! The government has dug a trench on our route!"

Hearing this terrible news, Xia Qi felt his heart sink. However, he remained strong and continued to ask, "Is there any other way?"

The vice chief shook his head, looking regretful. "This trench is very long, and there are soldiers guarding both sides. We'll have to take a detour."

"How long will the detour take?" Xia Qi persisted, unwilling to give up.

The vice chief sighed and said, "We're probably going to have to travel back at night."

Xia Qi: "..."

It seemed as if the heavens were deliberately tormenting him. It was getting dark very quickly, and by just before 6 PM, the sky began to darken.

As the last rays of sunlight faded, they finally bypassed the government-dug trench and reached the alternate path to Tianxing Mountain.

This path was very rugged, often requiring them to grab rocks or tree trunks to climb. The other players, worried that the corpses on their backs might fall off, used ropes to secure the corpses behind them.

Xia Qi also pretended to do the same, loosely tying the big brother behind him with a cloth.

As the night deepened, while climbing a slope above a small gully, Xia Qi accidentally failed to hold onto a tree trunk and slipped down.

Before he slid to the bottom, suddenly, a hand caught him firmly around the waist. The other large hand pressed Xia Qi's right hand firmly against the wall. Then, the fingers of that hand intertwined with his, clasping them tightly.

The person who had been leaning against his neck seemed to have lifted their head. Xia Qi felt a warm breath against his ear, and a low, seductive voice said, "A Qi, are you tired? Let me carry you."

Xia Qi: "..."