Chapter 11: Passing Into the Afterlife

Liu Qingqing had not noticed her surroundings; she still thought she had merely taken a nap at home. But once fully awake, she let out a desperate scream.

“What on earth is going on? How did I end up here?”

Fear filled her eyes as she looked around, especially at the paper figure floating in midair, causing her to cling to me for safety.

“This is simple. Young Master Chen Feng used some trick to bring you here with him,” I said calmly to Liu Qingqing. It was all thanks to Chen Feng that she had come to this place.

“Chen Feng, are you done yet? I’ve told you before, there’s no chance between us. Why are you doing this to me?”

Liu Qingqing hadn’t expected Chen Feng to go to such extremes; her face had turned deathly pale.

“I want to go home. I want to go home.”

She stood up, intending to leave, but the paper figure in midair suddenly pushed her down.

This unexpected development caught me off guard.

How could this happen? I hadn’t given any command to the paper figure—why was it attacking on its own?

This strange behavior left me puzzled.

“Brother Qiyue, don’t get too close. This thing is fierce and surprisingly strong,” Liu Qingqing said, frightened as she saw me approaching the paper figure.

She clearly didn’t believe I could handle it.

I said nothing, simply glanced at her and then stepped toward the floating paper figure.

Chen Feng and Uncle Wang wore sinister expressions, watching me. If the paper figure killed me, that would be the best outcome for them.

But they couldn’t have been more wrong.

I pulled out a talisman for subduing spirits, which I had prepared earlier. If I affixed this talisman to the paper figure’s forehead, it would vanish into dust, unable to reincarnate again.

The paper figure seemed to sense the energy emanating from me, identical to the divine consciousness I had bestowed upon it.

It remained still for a moment before suddenly lunging at me with a terrifying snarl.

I couldn’t help but shake my head at the scene.

This spirit was meant to have passed on to the afterlife, yet Chen Feng and his associates had imprisoned it in the Soul Lock Tower for years. Even now, with the sliver of divine consciousness I gave it, the spirit struggled to regain its awareness.

“Go on, reincarnate. Today, our meeting is fate,” I said, palms pressed together as I recited the mantra for peaceful passage to the afterlife, taught to me by my grandfather.

This vengeful spirit inhabiting the paper figure was pitiful—I was reluctant to destroy it.

After all, its life had been filled with suffering.

Chen Feng looked puzzled, glancing at Uncle Wang, seemingly not expecting me to attempt a spiritual salvation.

Exorcising a spirit is far harder than destroying one, and he knew that well.

But I ignored him and continued the chant.

“By the Buddha’s decree, transcend your lonely soul, all ghosts and specters, receive grace in all lives. Those with heads ascend, the headless are reborn. The great ultimate and eight trigrams govern all beings, yin and yang in harmony. For humans and things alike, bear your own fate; wealth and poverty come by your own doing. Decree all to swiftly transcend life!”

Upon finishing the chant, I raised my right index finger and pressed it sharply against the paper figure’s forehead.

The figure froze briefly before its body writhed violently.

Its face contorted into a grimace, emitting eerie cries.

The sight frightened Liu Qingqing, and even Chen Feng and Uncle Wang were struck by a deep sense of dread.

“Chen Qiyue, what kind of spell are you chanting? Are you trying to kill us all?” Chen Feng shouted at me, his voice tinged with terror.

Even Liu Qingqing, who didn’t believe in ghosts, came to my side, gently tugging my sleeve and whispering, “Brother Qiyue, let’s go. That paper figure seems to be going mad, it’s really scary!”

But as they spoke, the paper figure suddenly calmed, floating motionless in the air.

At the exact moment I finished the mantra, a faint smile appeared at the corner of its mouth.

The memories lingering in its mind finally resurfaced.

The memories erased by Chen Feng and his cohorts had returned.

It smiled—more precisely, the paper figure smiled at me.

Yet as it smiled, tears began to fall.

I had restored its lost memories, yet brought it to the end of its existence.

It knew all too well what awaited it next.

Suddenly, the paper figure knelt solemnly before me, bowing deeply in gratitude.

I said nothing, simply waving my hand.

Since my grandfather’s passing, my view on life and death had changed profoundly.

Now, I accepted the cycle of life and death with ease.

Life and death are predestined.

We are all solitary travelers in this world, waiting for our final journey home.

Yet each of us seeks something different—some crave wealth and honor, others merely want to survive.

I am one who simply wishes to live.

After bowing, the paper figure transformed into a ball of flame and vanished before our eyes.

Chen Feng and Uncle Wang’s faces were pale with horror.

But soon, the sly old man bowed respectfully and clasped his fists, saying,

“Today, the young lord and I have finally met a master of secret arts and witnessed the famed Qingma technique. Truly admirable!”

“Uncle Wang, that brat must be faking it. He just wants to sabotage my relationship with Liu Qingqing and make me look bad in front of her! That scoundrel clearly has ill intentions,” Chen Feng said, displeased at how I had stolen his thunder by pacifying the paper spirit girl before him.

“Young lord, one must show respect to a master,” the sly old man warned, evidently recognizing my formidable skills and trying to stop Chen Feng from speaking nonsense lest he provoke me.

“Chen Feng, you brought Liu Qingqing here with the intent to harm her. Are you going to explain yourself? Otherwise, I won’t be able to answer the Liu family,” I said slowly, seizing the chance to reprimand his arrogance.

“What do you mean? My grandfather is the top feng shui master in the provincial city. The Liu family is courting ours, and her father, Liu Sihai, has long planned to marry her to me. Asking her out to get closer shouldn’t be a problem,” Chen Feng said without a hint of fear, even trying to intimidate me with his grandfather Chen Yanlong’s name.

But I wasn’t fooled.

“Your grandfather’s skills may be strong, but I’m not afraid of him. If you don’t explain yourself today, you won’t leave this place,” I said coldly, pointing with one hand as all the doors and windows in the room slammed shut.

Chen Feng was startled, yet to avoid losing face in front of Liu Qingqing, he stubbornly said,

“I’m not scared of cheap tricks like this.”

“Very well, then I’ll add some spice for Mr. Chen. Let’s see if you can still laugh later,” I said, casually chanting a few exorcism spells.

In an instant, the paper workshop, still bathed in daylight, transformed into an endless hell filled with wailing and torment.

Malevolent ghosts, lost souls, soul reapers...

These beings, which only adults spoke of in stories, now appeared vividly within the small workshop.

Fragments of flesh fell from these specters, clear to our eyes.

This spectacle made Chen Feng feel the presence of death for the first time.

It seemed my words were accurate—killing him was only a thought away.

The old man following Chen Feng collapsed, trembling violently, his spirit overwhelmed by terror.

As a practitioner, this was his first encounter with such a horrifying aura.

He knew well that at this moment, I could kill them both in a single breath.

This wasn’t a joke—I truly had that power.

“Master, please show mercy. We know we were wrong and are willing to compensate the young lady,” Uncle Wang kowtowed repeatedly, genuinely frightened.

Summoning the tormenting ghosts of endless hell with ease was beyond the capability of these two men.

Even Chen Feng, wielding the jade ruyi talisman, was pale-eyed and collapsed weakly.

The terror I exuded was simply overwhelming.