It is evident that Moxi Qi's understanding of the Zhou family may not even be as deep as Moxi Ying's...
"It should be a desperate attempt." I squinted my eyes, deep in thought.
Old Gong had indirectly told me about some things, such as the Upper Nine Streams, Lower Nine Streams, methods of various levels, but when reaching a certain level, it only depended on one character - fate.
Old Gong did not elaborate on the fate of the Upper Nine Streams.
But about the Lower Nine Streams, he had quite a bit to say.
For example, the life of passing through the underworld is actually a fate that is inherently detrimental to one's health.
Some of them have hard fates like fire, clashing and killing their families.
Some lives are incredibly soft, attracting evil spirits and causing misfortune.
My fate of passing through the underworld has almost encompassed most of the hard features of the Lower Nine Streams.
Both fierce and tough!
Old Gong also mentioned that when he encountered some gentlemen with insufficient means, they might not even want to give him a fortune telling.
The Zhou family kills people out of thin air, this method is undoubtedly linked to the ephemeral destiny.
Who kills whom is actually not certain...
Even if the Zhou family's methods are as formidable as they are, my passing through the underworld fate is still not enough to match it.
Then what about the plague-ridden fate?
Thinking of this, the breath I was holding relaxed.
"Don't worry, Moxi Qi. Zhou Kang is a bit clever; he won't be able to kill me with a spell in one go. He'll just have some bad luck, but if he doesn't come to his senses, his days are numbered."
"Actually, if Zhou Ji had spoken up earlier, it might have been better."
Moxi Qi looked at me in silence, with more confusion and bewilderment.
"Alright, I'm a bit hungry. Want some noodles?" I asked Moxi Qi with a smile.
"……I… I'll go," Moxi Qi said, looking down and hurrying off in the direction of the kitchen.
There are no other things in the house except plain noodles.
Not even green onions.
Moxi Qi's cooking skills, however, were exceptionally good.
The plain noodles floated with a few grains of Sichuan pepper, releasing a pungent aroma.
After a meal, Moxi Qi's face looked much better and she worried about me less.
However, she still seemed a bit nervous.
"I don't know if Grandfather and the others will head up the mountain as soon as it gets dark."
"Maybe… they're waiting for the spell to take effect?" The topic was once again steered back by Moxi Qi.
I smiled faintly and said, "As the night falls, we'll see who is right. I can also see what kind of medicine Zhou's family has in their pot."
Moxi Qi pursed her lips.
She didn't respond to my comment.
Moxi Qi absentmindedly used her chopsticks to stir the remaining soup in the bowl, which was floating with Sichuan pepper, muttering softly, "Poor sister has been trapped for so long; I wonder how long it's been since she had a bite of hot food. It's fortunate that it's sister; if it were anyone else, they might have starved to death."
"Brother-in-law, your mind is sharp, but there are still some careless moments." I remained silent.
What Moxi Qi said, in a way, did make sense.
However, she doesn't understand the Malevolent Prison or the Ghost Wall very well.
Once the Malevolent Prison reaches a certain degree, those drawn into it actually face a state that is neither dead nor alive.
Particularly, this Malevolent Prison is formed by nightmares.
Nightmares are a person's bad dreams.
In dreams, when a person desperately craves something, that thing will mysteriously appear.
The malevolent aura of the Malevolent Prison will nurture the people who are neither dead nor alive, trapped within it.
The aftereffects are merely fearing sunlight after being released, and it will take quite some time for them to no longer be afraid of the sun and day.
Just as Moxi Qi said, "Fortunately, it's Moxi Ying," and that puzzled me somewhat.
Of course, I explained the Malevolent Prison to Moxi Qi before asking her what she meant by her words.
Moxi Qi was stunned for a long time before telling me that the bamboo mouse can track and find simple items, so it can find some food.
As she spoke, she lightly patted her chest, clearly feeling more relaxed.
But she hesitated for a moment and then seemed uneasy again, asking, "Brother-in-law… according to what you said earlier, if someone is neither dead nor alive in the nightmares of the Malevolent Prison, what will they become in the end? Will they become living dead?"
"Zombie Demon," I corrected Moxi Qi with a slight breath.
"But it takes ninety-nine days to become such," I explained.
"Alright…"
After that, Moxi Qi fell silent. She cleaned up the dishes and went into the kitchen. When she came out, she was still very quiet.
I reminded Moxi Qi again to pay attention, and when the night falls, to use the bamboo mouse to investigate. If there are any actions from Zhou's family, we must follow them immediately.
Moxi Qi nodded, indicating that she understood.
Time passed slowly.
Finally, the sun set in the west.
The remaining sun is like blood, slowly being engulfed by the twilight.
When the last ray of sunlight disappears, the night curtain falls.
I was originally keeping an eye on Moxi Qi, who was carefully grooming a bamboo mouse and looking at me cautiously.
It was evident that she intended to use the bamboo technique but was also worried about me.
However, I felt that my vision was blurry...
This blur, came too suddenly, with no warning at all.
All of a sudden, I heard a faint cough.
Instinctively, I looked towards the sound of the cough.
The sound came from the courtyard door.
Everything in the yard seemed to be overlapped with a ghost image, even more blurry, and it made me feel as if I were about to fall…
At the courtyard door stood a person quietly.
The person was dressed in a crimson robe, with a blank expression.
He looked somewhat like Zhou Kang...
But the vision was too blurry, and I felt that it was more like a possessed mouse wearing a coat.
Suddenly, he raised both hands and strangled his own throat!
My eyelids twitched suddenly.
Unable to control myself, my hands unconsciously rose to choke myself!
However, after a moment of fear, I slightly resisted, feeling as though I had broken free from the control of this ethereal feeling.
The blurry vision instantly became clear.
My hands were just lowered from around my neck.
"Brother-in-law!" Moxi Qi's delighted shout caught my ear.
Her voice sounded hoarse, as if she had shouted many times.
I felt that the strange state earlier might have made me unable to hear other sounds?
My gaze did not shift to Moxi Qi; it remained fixed on the doorway.
Because, there was an extremely bizarre thing at the doorway.
He looked similar in size to Zhou Kang, but he was wearing a crimson robe of gray and black color.
He had a rat-like face with a pointed mouth and a beard.
In appearance, he was very similar to Zhou Kang.
But he was definitely not Zhou Kang!
Moreover, he was holding his neck tightly, and that ugly face showed an unusual amount of pain!
My pupil shrank.
I could see from the corner of my eye that Moxi Qi was terrified.
She didn't speak but swallowed several times.
Time passed slowly, and the bizarre thing suddenly stopped its actions.
He gasped heavily, his eyes cold and full of malice, staring at me.
A feeling arose in me.
If I had not resisted the control from that ethereal feeling.
Maybe, by now, I would have choked myself to death!
The deep neck marks on that thing...
A normal person with such deep marks would likely have a broken neck...
At this moment, I could see that Moxi Qi's eyes showed a mix of surprise, but she still didn't dare to make a sound.
In the next second, that bizarre mouse face person suddenly let out a high-pitched scream like he was choking.
"Luo Xian Shen, you are destined to die at midnight!" Flash, his gray-black Qin clothing fell off, revealing a yellow robe underneath.
Then, he turned around, took a step out of the courtyard door, and vanished without a trace.
