But it was already too late. Yang Ce had already come into contact with the gu powder Chen Afu had scattered. His head swam, and all at once the scene before his mind's eye seemed to change—Yunnan, the Miao frontier, a jumble of images flashed before him. Yet these lasted only an instant; Yang Juehuan's vision cleared at once, and when he looked again at Chen Afu, he saw that Zhang Zhishen had already seized him and snatched away the little vessel in his hand.

To be continued

1007. The Mysterious Right Elder

That was it—that was exactly the feeling. Yang Juehuan's heart clenched violently. That day with Xia Xue, it had been this same feeling: first the hallucination, then clarity returning.

So it really was that brat Chen Afu up to his tricks. Who would have thought that by a strange twist of fate, he had actually caught the fellow today?

With the gu powder in Chen Afu's hand snatched away, he instantly wilted. It was the only weapon he had to rely on for victory; without it, he had lost the means to fight on against Yan.

When it came to a brawl, he was no match for Yang Juehuan at all. Pit him against Yan in a fight, and he would probably be knocked pissing himself within three moves. Of course, this was Chen Afu being optimistic. Given Yang Juehuan's current strength, a single move would be enough to send him to the King of Hell.

Before leaving home today, Chen Afu had already braced himself for the worst. At most he would be caught by the police—but even being caught was better than being killed by the Right Elder. Chen Afu had witnessed the Right Elder's methods firsthand; the man was simply inhuman. Chen Afu would rather face a firing squad than be drained into a dried-up corpse by the Right Elder.

"Don't hit me—I won't resist." Chen Afu came right out and said it, with the bluntness of a man with nothing left to lose.

Yang Yongjin couldn't help but laugh. This guy was far too timid—and with that kind of nerve, he still went out to frighten people? Yang Ce shook his head.

In next to no time he had hauled Chen Afu into the car and tossed him onto the back seat.

Yang Ce and Zhang Zhishen sat in the front, both twisting around to stare at Chen Afu.

Zhang Zhishen wanted to speak, but Yang Jiyan raised a hand to signal that he should hold his tongue for now.

"Chen Afu, I never expected this—half a year since graduation, and here we are face to face again." Yang Ce stared at Chen Afu for a moment, then said with a cold laugh, "Though I have to hand it to you. Your ghost act has gotten more and more sophisticated. Now you're even playing with gu."

"H-how did you know?" Chen Afu was startled. He had assumed Yang Ce had grabbed him because of that business last time at the foot of West Star Mountain outside the city, where he had ruined Yang Juehuan's plans. He had never imagined Yang Ce knew so much.

"Of course I know. And I also know that this recent string of ghost hauntings—you were behind all of them, weren't you?" Yang Ce had not expected Chen Afu to be such a spineless coward. He had barely asked before the man admitted it.

He had not said "What are you talking about?" but "How did you know?"—which amounted to a roundabout confession.

"Ah—" Chen Afu's face went deathly pale at those words, and he lowered his head. He had not expected Yang Ce to know even this. "W-what do you want?"

"This gu technique of yours—who taught it to you?" Yang Ce did not answer Chen Afu's question, but pressed on with his own.

"I—" Chen Afu gave a start. This he could not tell. Thinking of the Right Elder's terrifying appearance, a chill ran through Chen Afu's entire body. He could not sell out the Right Elder—otherwise he would die a miserable death. At the thought, Chen Afu could not help but shudder.

"So you won't say?" Yang Ce chuckled and fixed him with a glare.

For some reason, Chen Afu felt a fear of Yang Moyi rising from the depths of his heart, much like his fear of the Right Elder. He was afraid of the Right Elder, true enough—but he was afraid of Yang Ce as well.

And besides, right now he was facing Yang Shuoxuan, not the Right Elder, which left Chen Afu rather torn. He did not know whether he ought to tell the truth.

"All right, even if you don't say it, I've more or less figured it out." Yang Linyue said flatly, "It was a man called the Right Elder who taught you the gu technique, wasn't it?"

A moment ago, while Chen Afu's mind was in turmoil and his nerves were frayed, Yang Ce had used his ability to probe Chen Afu's thoughts, and had come away with this one small clue.

But it was only a small clue. Yang Shuoxuan had no idea who the Right Elder was; he had simply seen that name flash through Chen Afu's mind.

"Y-you know it all already?" Chen Afu cried out in alarm. "You already know?"

"I know most of it. But I'd still like to hear it from you." Yang Ce was bluffing, letting Chen Afu believe he already knew everything, so that the man's psychological defenses would likely collapse on the spot.

In truth, Yang Ce was greatly overestimating Chen Afu. What psychological defenses did this fellow have? A few more threats from Yang Ce and the man would probably spill everything.

And now, since Yang Ce already knew so much, Chen Afu decided to hold nothing back. Like beans pouring from a bamboo tube, he rattled off the whole story: how he had dressed up as a ghost to frighten people, how he had encountered the Right Elder in the hospital, taken the Right Elder as his master, and helped the Right Elder frighten people to death.

Yang Ce listened, dumbstruck. He had never imagined Chen Afu could have had such an extraordinary string of experiences.

"What sort of person is this Right Elder? What's his full name?" Yang Ce demanded sharply.

"I-I don't know either," Chen Afu stammered in reply.

"You really don't know?" Yang Puqi bared his teeth and glared at Chen Afu in a most frightening manner.

"I really—really don't know. I wouldn't dare hide it from you," Chen Afu said, repeatedly.

Seeing Chen Afu trembling like that, and judging that he did not seem to be lying, Yang Ce nodded and continued, "Then what does the Right Elder want with so many dead bodies?"

"That I'm not too clear on either. I heard it's for some kind of cultivation practice—he needs the blood of people who have just died. Something like that—what was it called?" Chen Afu furrowed his brow, as though he could not quite remember.

"The Evil Gu?" Zhang Zhishen suddenly cut in.

"Yes, that's it—the Evil Gu, the Evil Gu!" Chen Afu nodded and said.

"Just as I thought. Then there's no mistake." Zhang Zhishen turned to Yang Yanzhou, deep in thought. "Brother Yang, I think I have the gist of it now."

"Hold that thought for now." Yang Ce shot Zhang Zhishen a look, telling him to be patient—once he had finished interrogating Chen Afu, they could discuss the rest.

"Can you get in touch with that Right Elder?" Yang Yanchuan asked Chen Afu.

"I can." Chen Afu nodded. "After I frighten someone to death, I just call him, and after a while he comes to collect the corpse. But it might not be him in person—that I don't know."

Yang Ce suddenly had an idea. Could they get Chen Afu to call the Right Elder and lure him out? Seeing Yang Juehuan's expression, Zhang Zhishen seemed to grasp his thought as well, and at once shook his head.

Yang Mo felt puzzled, but it was not the moment to ask. He glanced at Chen Afu, then brought his hand down in a sharp chop to the side of Chen Afu's neck, knocking him unconscious.

Only then did Yang Cenbin speak. "Is there something wrong with having him lure that Right Elder out?"