"Are you saying, not allowing you to harm others is a joke, or that not allowing you to raise ghosts is a joke?" I glanced nowhere but straight ahead, my tone laced with a hint of accusation.
Just one sentence, making a ghost-banner leader turn to righteousness, is simply impossible.
The Tian Shou Daoist Temple, I have set an example.
Jiang Kang had sweat beads forming on his forehead, regaining a smile: "Fellow manifest spirit brother, you are overthinking… How could I possibly harm others? What you mean is that I should completely detach myself from the ghost shrine. I can take an oath to not harm others and not raise ghosts!"
"If oaths were effective, there wouldn't be so many traitors and scoundrels in the world," I shook my head.
"But... why should I have to move from one place to another, just to be put in jail?"
The last two words, Jiang Kang was particularly helpless.
I have to admit, Jiang Kang is very calm. Even though the conditions I proposed were incredibly harsh for him, he didn't show any anger. The more he remained composed, the more I felt that I needed to be extremely cautious and careful when dealing with Jiang Kang.
Absolutely, people who can control their emotions cannot be underestimated.
"The difference is that I won't treat you like Tian Shou Daoist Temple, constantly seeking to blame you, as long as you don't do things that are harmful to the heavens and earth, you are free within a certain range."
"There's no excluding the possibility that I might be able to get a better method of guard from my mentors, one that would only punish you for evil deeds, in which case, there would be more places you could go."
"At the moment, you don't have any other choices. Well, I won't limit the ghosts you have in your possession."
I spoke these words with another consideration in mind.
I originally wanted to confine Jiang Kang to the range of Sigu Mountain, but then I thought, why not let him go to Daxiang and entrust his soul to Zhenying!
By limiting Jiang Kang, we can even give the Zhen family a protective umbrella.
Zhen Qiqi betrayed the ghost shrine, and adding to that, my own relationship with Zhen Ying and myself has been watched. Letting a former leader of the ghost shrine go against the search and capture efforts of the Daxiang ghost shrine, the safety coefficient of the Zhen family can increase to an almost negligible level.
For a moment, Jiang Kang fell silent. He hung his head, his face thoughtful and indecisive.
"Si Yan" spoke up, her voice still a blend of female tones with the inflections of the old Gong: "Look at you, indecisive and hesitant. Do you know who my family is? You're lucky. My master wants to take you in. That Fan little brother wants to follow my master, and I'm not giving him the chance."
"Huh... Who is the young master Fan?" Jiang Kang was taken aback.
"Fellow master Fan, he he, a half-decent spirit master, in fact, he is just so-so, normally breeding ghosts and training corpses, encountered my master, only to get the chance to be refined, draw even the symbols of qi and jing. That's not just a simple spirit master anymore." The old Gong's tone carried a sense of self-satisfaction.
"……I don't know what a contract is."
"Si Yan"'s expression became stiff.
The old Gong's tone was strange and unnatural: "Then you should know, what kind of person my master is? A little apprentice of the senior elder of Sigu Mountain, destined to become the new true immortal of Sigu Mountain one day!"
"You know what my old Gong master was called on the road before? Xuan Chi Jin Xiang Di Ru Shen! Dammit, master, I've had enough. Let me take a bite out of him! He knows it, and so do I!"
Suddenly, "Si Yan"'s face sprouted a ghostly image of the old Gong's face, with his big yellow teeth constantly biting and tapping, giving off a powerful aura.
Jiang Kang's face turned ghostly pale.
"Sigu Mountain... heir? This... Sun Zhuo... he isn't..." It was clear that Jiang Kang knew quite a bit.
"You haven't... joined the Tianshou Daoist Temple... then how could you possibly be... this... it's impossible!" His voice stumbled.
I did not elaborate further.
Old Gong had already said quite a bit. People like Jiang Kang, if they cannot be used by me, then there's no choice but to be killed for me.
I quoted a phrase that doesn't fit my current status, "Only by putting down the sword can one become a buddha," but Jiang Kang doesn't have the time or ability to change little by little, he doesn't accept changes, and thus can only accept death.
"Xuan Chi Jin Xiang Di Ru Shen... the respected master of the Lin family... you were his ghost attendant..." Jiang Kang's daze deepened.
"It's no use, manifest spirit brother..." The sound suddenly stops, and Jiang Kang bitterly shouts: "Master Luo, I myself know that people like me, if entered into the Sigu Mountain, will inevitably be killed and even completely destroyed. What you promise me now will have to be bitten into my blood later."
It was evident that Jiang Kang had already wavered.
I composed myself slightly before speaking directly. I wouldn't let him go to the Sigu Mountain, but rather to another place where he would have little contact with Taoists. His life would definitely be better than it is now.
For a moment, I added: "The degree of confinement for Fan Jie is also your own degree of confinement. Perhaps, by doing more good deeds, you can atone for your sins."
"Does that mean the Sigu Mountain will protect me?" Jiang Kang's gaze suddenly turned fervent.
"The Sigu Mountain won't, but I will," I changed the wording.
After all, in order to use Jiang Kang to protect the Zhen family, I have to protect his safety to some extent, which is a relative thing.
Jiang Kang, without hesitation, pressed his fingertip against the wound on his forehead as if securing something and pulled it outward!
As he was pulled outward, a faint white mist was pulled out, and Jiang Kang's body swayed slightly, his eyes became vague, and his lips were pale.
Before I had a chance to move, the old Gong suddenly burst out from "Si Yan"'s body and swallowed that soul in one gulp!
Jiang Kang was quite frightened.
After the old Gong landed on his shoulder, he pretended to chew it twice.
Jiang Kang didn't make any other movements but respectfully bent his back and bowed to me.
"Pfft... It's no fun, you're not afraid I'll chew and swallow it for you?" The old Gong spat.
Jiang Kang did not straighten up, his face displaying a smile of trust.
"Master Luo, no... The master will not let this soul of mine be devoured. Old Gong Master, what do you think?"
Old Gong nodded.
It was "Si Yan" whose eyes, after a moment of daze, regained their clarity.
She looked at Old Gong, then at me, her eyes extremely complex.
"All of this, Si Yan is clear. I have limited Jiang Kang, and this measure can kill him at any time!"
Si Yan had no reason to dispute my words.
"Lamas have expansive hearts, and Taoists should have great love, right, Ice Mountain Miss?"
Old Gong he heed, saying: "In my memory, I have always felt that Taoists are more powerful than monks. Those foreign bald monks have little by little eaten away so many positions, and it's not without reason."
"One must keep up with the times and not be bound by old conventions."
Jiang Kang seemed to realize something, and he gently sweated profusely, looking at Si Yan with a sense of tension.
I will pretend that I didn't see this. However, I want to remind you, Manifest Spirit Brother, Senior Master will not approve of your behavior. If one day, you go astray like Sun Zhuo did, I won't agree, Han Qi also won't agree. We may not be your match, but we still stand in front of you and you'll find yourself isolated from everyone." Si Yan pursed her lips and spoke each word clearly.
