Volume 2, Chapter 82 – Ghost Tomatoes (Part 1)

“Senior Sister, are you hogging her all to yourself?”

“Hurry up and chase her! Let’s snatch Junior Sister’s doppelgänger!”

“If we grab her, who gets to keep her?”

“The capable one takes her. I won’t go easy on you this time.”

It took the junior sisters a while to react, but soon they swarmed after her in a frenzy.

“Senior Sister! What are you doing? I’m supposed to be exorcising demons!”

Qi Huang was startled and immediately protested. Though being close to the senior sister wasn’t bad, being carried over her shoulder like a bride was beyond embarrassing.

“Exactly, we’re going to exorcise demons too”, Ruan Lingyu replied without slowing down, her eyes darting behind her with a wary expression.

“You’re clearly trying to abduct me!” Qi Huang accused.

“Well, exorcising demons while abducting someone on the side,” Ruan Lingyu admitted. However, carrying a person slowed her down, and soon the junior sisters caught up, surrounding her.

What followed was Qi Huang being tossed around like a ragdoll among her senior sisters, leaving her disheveled, clothes in disarray, and spirit utterly drained—as if she had been thoroughly “played with”.

If she were an ordinary man, she might have been overjoyed. But she had a conscience. She knew full well that her senior sisters were doing this to soak up the scent of the Golden Fate Blossoms, intending to sacrifice themselves in her and her main body’s stead. How could she indulge in their fleeting affection without a care?

“Stop!”

Qi Huang finally snapped, threatening, “If you keep this up, I’ll have my main body summon me back immediately.”

The moment the senior sisters heard this, they obediently froze.

“Now, explain. What’s really going on? Where’s Master?” Qi Huang demanded as she straightened her robes.

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“Master had urgent business, so she sent us instead. With you—a human-shaped ‘Nine Nether Demon Cat’—here, she doesn’t need to worry too much,” Ruan Lingyu panted.

“As if I’d believe that! Did you pull some scheme to keep her from coming?” Qi Huang wasn’t a child. She saw right through the flimsy excuse.

“Ah, no need to say it out loud! We meant well—think of it as filial piety!” Ruan Lingyu awkwardly defended.

‘Filial piety? More like lustful intentions.’

Qi Huang inwardly scoffed. If she hadn’t stopped them, these senior sisters would have devoured her alive.

“Fine, you can come. But one condition—none of you get within three meters of me. Otherwise, I’m gone. Test me if you don’t believe it.”

Qi Huang issued her ultimatum.

“Ohhh…” The senior sisters reluctantly agreed.

“Good. Now, where are we heading first?” Qi Huang asked, her fighting spirit blazing.

“Master said to start with the earliest case. First come, first served—we’ve kept them waiting long enough,” Ruan Lingyu answered, pulling out a stack of “haunting incident” records from her bag.

“Which one’s the oldest?” The junior sisters crowded around.

After flipping through the papers, Ruan Lingyu pulled out one. “This one. The request was made about half a year ago.”

“Half a year?! Who knows what state the person’s in now?” Qi Huang was shocked. A malicious ghost wouldn’t wait around—it killed on sight. It wasn’t some lustful spirit that took its time setting the mood.

“Exactly. We need to hurry.” Ruan Lingyu’s expression turned serious. “Let’s move. I’ll read the details as we walk.”

The junior sisters understood the urgency and stopped pestering Qi Huang, obediently following behind.

Soon, Ruan Lingyu finished summarizing the case. It was straightforward: half a year ago, in a village called Wang Family Village by the river, villagers reported hearing a baby’s cries at night. Soon after, people began dying mysteriously, prompting them to seek help from the Honghua Sect.

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“A baby’s cries? What kind of ghost is that?” Shen Yuan frowned, her face tense.

The other sisters shared her unease. Though the record lacked details, the description alone was chilling.

“You don’t think… it’s really a ghost, do you?” Miao Xiang asked fearfully.

“Even if it is, we can’t back down! Cultivation is about vanquishing evil and protecting the people. If we retreat, how will the Honghua Sect maintain its standing in Huangtian Prefecture?” Ruan Lingyu’s brows knitted with authority.

“Don’t worry. With Junior Sister here, even a real ghost won’t be a problem,” Yun Fei reassured.

‘They trust me that much?’

Qi Huang suddenly felt the weight on her shoulders grow heavier. But looking at her delicate senior sisters, she had to tough it out.

And so, Qi Huang and the group of fairies set off for the riverside county. Before that, they stopped at a nearby town to buy fast horses—fairies couldn’t very well travel on foot.

Aside from a horse, Qi Huang also bought a white cloak to hide her face and the doppelgänger mark on her forehead, which drew too much attention.

“Senior Sister, here’s the money I owe you.”

She also took the chance to return the forty taels of ill-gotten silver to Ruan Lingyu.

“Why forty? Twenty should be enough.”

Ruan Lingyu looked puzzled.

Qi Huang paused. “The silver was borrowed by my main body. You should return it to her.”

“You’re the same person—why split hairs?” Ruan Lingyu rolled her eyes. “How about this? Keep the money, and just sleep with me for two nights?”

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“Don’t agree! I’ll pay thirty taels a night!”

“Is that all Junior Sister’s worth to you? I’ll pay forty!”

The other junior sisters immediately jumped in.

“Pfft. You’re treating her like merchandise? Sleep with me—I won’t objectify you!” Shen Yuan offered.

“You’re just broke and trying to freeload! Don’t act noble!” Ruan Lingyu shot back.

“Enough! Do I look like the kind of person who’d sell myself for silver?” Qi Huang scoffed, channeling the aura of an aloof fairy.

“…You’re right.”

The senior sisters sighed in resignation. They knew her too well.

‘Actually, I would! If you’d pushed a little harder, I might’ve caved!’

Qi Huang lamented inwardly.

Riding at full speed, they reached the riverside village by afternoon. But when they cautiously entered, they found it peaceful—chimney smoke curling, laughter in the air—nothing like a haunted place.

“What’s going on?”

Qi Huang was baffled. Was this ghost some patient seducer, taking its sweet time before striking?

“Junior Sister, use your Divine Sense. See if this is real.”

Ruan Lingyu instructed after a moment’s thought.

Qi Huang obeyed, extending her Divine Sense over the village. Everything was real—no illusions.

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“Was the haunting a hoax?” Yun Fei mused, stroking her chin.

“No time to wonder. Let’s ask the villagers.”

Under Ruan Lingyu’s lead, the fairies marched into the village.

The villagers noticed them quickly. At first, they were friendly—pretty young women were always welcome. But the moment they learned they were from the Honghua Sect, their expressions darkened.

“You dare show up now? We begged for help half a year ago! Is this some half-hearted gesture?”

“The Honghua Sect claims to protect Huangtian Prefecture, yet even the Heyi Sect from the next prefecture did more! If not for them exorcising the infant spirit, we’d all be dead!”

“We’ll never trust the Honghua Sect again! Get lost!”

The villagers vented their fury without an ounce of reverence or pity. Their resentment ran deep.

“What did they say? The Heyi Sect? How dare they interfere in Huangtian Prefecture?”

“The Immortal Alliance’s rules are clear—each sect has its own territory. This is ours!”

“Outrageous! Do they think the Honghua Sect is powerless?”

The fairies were livid.

But Qi Huang was overjoyed. Not only had there really been a ghost, but someone else had already dealt with it—meaning free spoils for her! Compared to Ghost Tomatoes, the Honghua Sect’s reputation and rewards were trivial.

‘I need to find out where that infant spirit was hiding. There might still be a Ghost Tomato or two left—useless to anyone else, but priceless to me.’

The thought excited her beyond measure.