Chapter Thirty-Three: Bewitched

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A chill wind swept up, dust stinging their eyes.

From the shrubs flanking the ancestral hall, skeletons emerged one after another, shambling into view.

This spectacle truly startled both Cui Xiu and his companion. Cui Xiu, in particular, was struck by a sense of uncanny familiarity.

“Brother Cui…” Wu Yu suddenly spoke, his tone wary, body edging backward, clearly contemplating a retreat to the ancestral hall.

Cui Xiu understood his meaning at once. The sudden appearance of these skeletons was obviously directed at them, and given their limited means, they had little defense against such eerie entities. Their only hope lay in relying on the strength of Guan Yuan and his companions.

“Brother Wu, let’s fall back inside,” Cui Xiu said.

If he were alone, Cui Xiu might have considered other options, but with Wu Yu in tow, he dared not take unnecessary risks. Returning to the ancestral hall was the safer course.

But before they could retreat, Wu Yu exclaimed in alarm, as if he had made a troubling discovery.

At his words, Cui Xiu turned around, his heart tightening. Behind them, the ancestral hall had vanished without a trace, replaced by a dense forest, though he could not say when the change had occurred.

This…

Cui Xiu’s mind raced. Thinking of Guan Yuan, he was certain the ancestral hall could not have been an illusion. Unless they had been unknowingly transported elsewhere, there was only one explanation left.

Their senses had been tampered with.

A Bewilderment Array?

The thought flitted through his mind. As the skeletons drew closer, he recalled a certain figure—more accurately, a certain old specter.

Cui Xiu had experienced a similar situation before, and at that time, it was an old crone from the Valley of Shadows who had trapped him.

“Brother Wu, take out that item Captain Guan gave you,” he urged.

Recalling his previous encounter, Cui Xiu still had no effective method to counter such an adversary.

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The only means he could think of, apart from relying on Guan Yuan’s group, was that short rod.

He remembered well how apprehensive the old crone had been when he wielded it.

Cui Xiu didn’t know the precise secret of the rod, but now was not the time to question it. Whatever worked was worth a try.

Wu Yu, not knowing of Cui Xiu’s previous ordeal, was momentarily confused by the request. Yet he trusted Cui Xiu enough to comply, retrieving the short rod from his sleeve and passing it over.

Cui Xiu accepted the rod without inquiry, gently caressing it. Wisps of energy seeped into his palm—a familiar sensation.

The rod itself seemed unchanged, but Cui Xiu noticed that the mysterious patterns and deep hue along its surface had grown faint, as if dimmed.

He paused in puzzlement; he had never noticed such changes before.

Just then, as he studied the rod, the skeletons all halted in unison, amplifying the scene’s eerie atmosphere.

Before either man could react, a sudden sense of being watched gripped them.

Cui Xiu, more sensitive than most, felt it keenly. He had a suspicion.

Perhaps it truly was an “old acquaintance” come for him.

Yet with the rod in hand, he felt a measure of reassurance. Even if things were as he guessed, he would not lose his composure.

“Is it you, madam? Why not show yourself?” Cui Xiu called out, gripping the rod, and Wu Yu, surprised, stared at him.

“Brother Cui, what are you doing?” Wu Yu asked. With the skeletons stilled, the immediate danger seemed to have passed, and his curiosity was piqued.

Cui Xiu merely shook his head, bidding him be patient.

As Wu Yu wondered at this, Cui Xiu received the answer he was waiting for.

“Master Cui, old as I am, I’ve finally found you. I didn’t expect you to bring along a few cultivators to deal with that wild god—quite a surprise.” The aged voice was unmistakable; it could only be the old crone whom Cui Xiu had once confronted.

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Though her voice reached them, the old crone’s figure was nowhere to be seen; who could guess where she was hiding?

Cui Xiu was surprised that she could manifest even in broad daylight and for a moment was uncertain how to respond.

“Brother Cui, could it be…” Wu Yu, recognizing the voice, suddenly recalled their previous encounter with the old crone. At the time, he had sensed something was amiss and even invited Cui Xiu to join him. For various reasons, Cui Xiu had declined.

Whether their choices then were right or wrong was hard to say, but it was that incident that brought them together.

Now, facing the old crone once more, it felt as if fate had brought them back to their intended path.

Cui Xiu nodded in answer to Wu Yu’s unspoken question, offering no further explanation.

The old crone’s methods were unfathomable. Though she remained unseen, her ability to create such commotion in daylight proved she was no ordinary wraith.

What’s more, this was the ancestral hall of the Liu family, near the dwelling place of that wild god. Guan Yuan and his group were still in the cave battling the deity. The old crone’s appearance at this moment seemed hardly coincidental; it was unclear what connection she had with the wild god.

Recalling the tales she once spun for him, Cui Xiu now doubted their veracity. Yet the truth of the matter was beyond his grasp.

He knew only this: the visitor bore ill will, and she had come for him and Wu Yu.

Perhaps she was even an accomplice of the wild god.

So, even holding the mysterious rod, he dared not let down his guard.

“Have you come for this, madam?” he asked, mind racing. Though the old crone had not shown herself, the skeletons alone were threat enough. For all his martial skill, he doubted he could prevail against so many bone soldiers—especially with Wu Yu to look after.

Unless all hope was lost, Cui Xiu was determined to keep Wu Yu safe.

“You do see through old folks’ hearts, Master Cui,” the old crone’s laugh came, eerie and drifting. “I suppose you know little of what’s happening in that cavern. The god within is no ordinary being. However clever those cultivators may be, they may not prevail. I have no wish to make things hard for you, Master Cui. As I’ve said before: hand over the item, and I’ll let you both go. Otherwise, even if I spare you, these skeletons will block your path. Soon enough, you’ll realize your predicament—by then, my words will count for little.”

Cui Xiu pondered this.

Clearly, the old crone had some connection with the wild god, perhaps even aiding it against them. Yet her words suggested a more complicated relationship; it seemed she had her own designs.

Of course, it was possible she was simply bluffing.