Chapter 14: Capturing the Water Fiend¹

Watching Taoist Master Xuanxu thrashing about in the pond, Xie Sui remained indifferent, and the Lin family offered no reaction either. The crowd watched coldly as the old Taoist struggled in the water, their faces filled with a sense of vindictive relief.

When Taoist Master Xuanxu had made his move earlier, the others had also seen the Water Fiend crawling out from the pond.

Although the translucent monster was inconspicuous, ordinary people could still notice its presence when it moved slowly.

Second Uncle Lin was furious at Taoist Master Xuanxu’s interference. Even Elder Lin, who was usually steady and had remained silent from the beginning, now had a look of anger on his face.

Taoist Master Xuanxu’s earlier artistic performance had indeed impressed the Lin family, but because of his recent actions, the old Taoist’s image in their hearts had plummeted.

Two months! The Lin family had waited two months for a breakthrough, only for it to be ruined by this old Taoist! What was this guy doing sticking his nose in where it didn’t belong? Could he not stand to see someone else be more capable than him?

[Ganfan Huahua Shijie: Holy crap! That old Taoist is an idiot! I saw it clearly just now; that old geezer not only tried to steal the kill, but he also messed up and let the Water Monkey² escape back!]

[???: Water Monkey? Where’s a Water Monkey? Wasn’t the streamer just talking about the Draft of the Hall?]

[It feels like I’m not watching the same stream as Boss Huahua Shijie. Is there hidden content in the stream that requires money to see?]

Noticing this bullet comment, Lin Zixin didn’t hesitate to share Lin Ziyan’s filming perspective and the courtyard’s surveillance footage directly into Xie Sui’s stream.

Xie Sui’s stream screen suddenly split into three, becoming identical to the projection in Lin Zixin’s media room.

While a moderator couldn’t bypass the streamer to control the backend, they could freely link with the streamer and share their own video feed.

Lin Zixin was a typical second-generation rich kid. Growing up in an environment of indulgence and financial freedom, he hadn’t become a complete villain who bullied others, but he possessed every flaw typical of his class – such as a love for showing off and hearing others praise him.

For a rich kid like him, acquiring something novel and keeping it locked away at home was out of the question. If it wasn’t for showing off, then collecting it was meaningless.

To him, Xie Sui was no different from a newly purchased limited-edition sports car; both were things bought with money that could satisfy his vanity when taken out.

Because Taoist Master Xuanxu’s interference had caused the plan to lure the Water Fiend ashore to fail, Xie Sui’s attention was now entirely on the old Taoist. He didn’t notice the changes occurring on the phone screen hovering behind him.

The two young Taoists brought by Taoist Master Xuanxu saw their master fall into the water and rushed to the edge of the Pan Pond. Ignoring the chill of the early spring night and the filth of the pond water, they jumped in together. They grabbed the thrashing Taoist Master Xuanxu from both sides and hauled the old man back to shore.

The current Taoist Master Xuanxu had completely lost his previous transcendent, sage-like aura. His wide Taoist robes clung wetly to his body, and his headpiece had fallen off somewhere. A few withered yellow leaves sat on his head in place of the crown, and his pure white hair and beard were stained gray with silt. He was dry-heaving and spitting out water, looking incredibly pathetic.

The first thing Taoist Master Xuanxu wanted to do upon reaching the shore was to curse at Xie Sui, but his two disciples stopped him. The two young Taoists used the excuse of helping him change clothes to forcibly drag him aside.

It had to be said that while Taoist Master Xuanxu himself wasn’t much, his two disciples were quite observant. These two young Taoists had a good deal of self-awareness; their master’s actions had clearly enraged everyone present. If they let Taoist Master Xuanxu continue to be difficult, they might be thrown out directly by the Lin family’s burly security guards.

Xie Sui didn’t stop the two young Taoists from rescuing Taoist Master Xuanxu. He was only momentarily angry, not truly intending to let the man drown.

However, now that Taoist Master Xuanxu was out, it was his turn to enter the water.

This couldn’t be delayed. The Water Fiend had become alert after being startled by Taoist Master Xuanxu. If it managed to escape through the Water Mouth of the Pan Pond and back into the river outside the ancestral hall, it would be very difficult to catch again.

Without any hesitation, Xie Sui stepped onto the carved pond wall and walked into the Pan Pond step by step.

The murky pond water gradually rose past his knees, his waist, his shoulders…

Beneath the surface, out of everyone’s sight, Xie Sui’s left fingernails gradually turned a dark bluish-black. The five nails grew at an unnatural speed, and as he clenched his fist, the shallow wound in the center of his left palm was torn wide open.

Blood seeped from his palm, slowly flowing into the turbid water.

The pond water began to boil again.

Unlike the localized disturbance caused by the Water Fiend earlier, the water in the entire pond was now changing. As bubbles continuously burst, the splashing water droplets defied gravity, slowly floating into the air. With the pond water as clouds and the sky as the ground, an anti-gravity rain began to take shape, centered on Xie Sui.

Standing at the bottom of the pond, Xie Sui looked like Moses parting the Red Sea. Whether it was the surrounding pond water or the droplets clinging to his clothes, everything fled from him as if in terror.

The fresh water flowing from the Water Mouth pipe also floated upward in the same manner, merging with the pond water suspended in the air. The entire Pan Pond was completely emptied, revealing the bottom filled with rotting leaves and silt to everyone’s eyes.

The distant, eerie Ghost Fire³ had drifted above the suspended pond water at some point. Through the sinister green phosphorus flames, one could faintly see countless children’s faces hidden within the murky water. They were like small insects sealed in amber, struggling and wailing silently. Various deformed limbs waved incessantly, as if they might break through the water binding them at any moment, born into the world like newborns breaking through amniotic fluid.

Water and fire intertwined in the air, and ghosts were hidden within the water. All of this relied on the human standing at the bottom of the pond; that thin figure was the source of all the anomalies.

The entire scene looked incredibly eerie, as if they had accidentally wandered into another world.

Faced with such a macabre sight, both Taoist Master Xuanxu and the Lin family stood frozen like statues. They stared at the scene before them in utter disbelief, their breathing subconsciously slowing to a crawl.

In contrast to the reactions of those on-site, the livestream was buzzing. Ever since Lin Zixin shared the video from the other perspective, the chat had exploded into a frenzy of scrolling comments.

[Holy crap! Is this something I can actually watch for free? Thanks to the big boss for sharing!]

[Streamers these days are really putting their lives on the line to get famous. These special effects put domestic fantasy movies to shame, don’t they?]

[Is there a possibility… that this is real?]

[Impossible, absolutely impossible. It must be special effects paid for by that ‘Splendid World’ tycoon to promote the streamer. I’ve seen this kind of hype tactic a thousand times.]

Xie Sui didn’t care about the reactions of the people present or the viewers in the livestream; his only goal now was to find that Water Fiend as quickly as possible.

In that vast expanse of turbid pond water, the few lines of dark red blood that refused to dissolve were miniscule.

Yet these inconspicuous streaks of blood were the very center of the ghosts’ pursuit.

The state of the Little Ghosts hidden within the pond water was far more violent than what could be seen from the outside. For those few drops of blood, the ghosts in the water were on the verge of a brawl. If Xie Sui hadn’t been suppressing them, they likely would have started devouring each other long ago.

Xie Sui narrowed his eyes, looking toward the quietest area of the water.

Found it.

Finding a shivering Water Fiend among a crowd of restless Little Ghosts was beyond simple.

The drops of blood suddenly seemed to come alive, darting straight toward the Water Fiend. Once the blood merged into the Water Fiend’s translucent body, it rapidly spread and reshaped itself. A moment later, a dark red talisman appeared out of thin air on the Water Fiend’s chest.

The instant the talisman appeared, the translucent monster stiffened. Like a falling stone, it detached from the suspended pond water and plummeted straight down.

Xie Sui reached out and caught it, grabbing the Water Fiend right by the scruff of its neck.

Looking at the deformed monster in his hand, Xie Sui let out a long sigh of relief. He left the bottom of the pond and returned to the shore.

The moment Xie Sui left the Pan Pond, the countless hideous ghostly faces in the water vanished instantly. The pond water, much like the Water Fiend before it, fell straight down, crashing back into the basin with a massive splash.

As luck would have it, the splashing water gave Taoist Master Xuanxu—who had just changed into a fresh robe—another soaking from head to toe.

Taoist Master Xuanxu wiped his face, cursing his rotten luck.

Seeing Xie Sui return with the Water Fiend in hand, the Lin family members were ecstatic and rushed forward to meet him.

As Taoist Master Xuanxu watched Second Uncle Lin fuss over Xie Sui with such warmth and concern, his expression twisted once again.

Since Xie Sui had caught the water ghost, he was now obligated to apologize.

Apologizing was one thing, but looking at the Lin family’s current attitude, Taoist Master Xuanxu felt a bit apprehensive.

Although he had pointed out the Feng Shui issues of the Lin Family, he knew his own limits; he was just a charlatan with a bit of magical knowledge who relied on acting skills to navigate the world.

He thought about his earlier blunder of letting the ‘Water Monkey’ escape, the hostile looks the Lin family had given him, and the five hundred thousand yuan that might fly away before he even had a chance to warm it in his pocket… Taoist Master Xuanxu gritted his teeth and decided to make one last struggle to save some face.

Ignoring how pathetic he looked in his drenched state, Taoist Master Xuanxu walked shakily over to Second Uncle Lin. He put on a show, saying to Xie Sui, “The student surpasses the master… For a young friend like you to catch this water ghost, you indeed have some skill. However, it cannot be denied that my earlier ritual weakened the water ghost to a certain extent, which is why you were able to capture it so smoothly.”

Relying on the fact that the Lin family didn’t understand the ways of Xuanmen, Taoist Master Xuanxu threw away his shame and began frantically claiming credit for himself.

Xie Sui was currently in a very foul mood. He only wanted to take a shower and change his clothes as soon as possible.

After taking a walk through that murky pond, he felt as though his entire body had been marinated in filth. Even though the water was gone, the fishy stench of the pond clung to him persistently, and the soft mud stuck to the soles of his shoes felt incredibly intrusive… If it hadn’t been for this Taoist Master Xuanxu meddling, he wouldn’t have ended up like this.

Showing no sense of embarrassment, Taoist Master Xuanxu began an endless explanation of the wonders of his techniques, continuing to puff himself up. “That set of Bugang⁴ steps I performed earlier was passed down from my founder…”

Xie Sui had no patience for his nonsense and cut him off directly. “Fine, you’re amazing, it’s all your credit. How about I release this thing and let you catch it again?”

With that, he gave the Water Fiend in his hand a shake, making a move as if to toss it onto the ground.

Translator’s Notes