Volume One: The Soul-Gathering Gourd and the Flame of the Spirit Chapter 50: Stretching One’s Limbs

Suddenly, the gunfire outside the wall of flames ceased in an instant, plunging the scene into an awkward silence.

Gu Mo and Xiao Yulou exchanged glances, both sensing that something was amiss.

After a moment, Xiao Yulou craned his neck to peek beyond the wall of fire, then quickly pulled back his head with a mischievous grin.

A leering, almost grotesque face pressed close to Gu Mo.

“Brother Gu, it seems those soldiers are afraid of this poor priest. They’ve drawn their steel knives and daggers, trembling in fear!”

Gu Mo furrowed his brow, half-believing, half-doubting.

Just as Gu Mo was about to investigate, Xiao Yulou waved his hand, dispersing the wall of fire before them.

Abruptly, a shadow flashed by Gu Mo’s eyes. Three armed men, bristling with weapons, gripped custom daggers and closed in on him, blades at his face!

Stunned and slack-jawed, Gu Mo suddenly heard the silvery tones of his underworld wife echo in his mind.

“Husband, allow me to lend you a hand!”

No sooner had she spoken than a commotion arose in the black bundle Gu Mo held.

With a whoosh, in a fraction of a second, the three underworld treasures—the Celestial Measuring Ruler, the Soul-Burning Lantern, and the Spirit-Summoning Gourd—were ready at hand.

The rune-engraved Celestial Measuring Ruler flew into Gu Mo’s grasp, while the Spirit-Summoning Gourd and Soul-Burning Lantern landed at his feet.

As soon as the lantern touched the ground, a wisp of eerie green flame danced upward.

Standing firm, Gu Mo gripped the Celestial Measuring Ruler—there was a thunderous boom!

A piercing cold washed over him, and green ghostly flames blazed across his body.

In a flash, Gu Mo instinctively raised the Celestial Measuring Ruler before him.

There was a metallic clang.

Three custom daggers struck the ruler, sending a numbing shock through Gu Mo’s hands!

Sensing the gravity of the situation, Gu Mo gritted his teeth and braced himself, enduring the overwhelming pressure from the three attackers.

Boom!

A flash of green light burst from Gu Mo, and the three armed men before him were hurled backward by a tremendous force.

Witnessing this strange scene, the remaining armed men showed no fear—they charged forward like a pack of wild beasts.

At that moment, Li Hetang, who had been smoking in the back, noticed something was wrong.

Without hesitation, Li Hetang pressed his earpiece, adjusting the high-tech headset.

Gu Mo, watching the attackers flying toward him, curled his lips in a devilish smile.

Waving the Celestial Measuring Ruler, Gu Mo summoned a raging wind and dark clouds; the light dimmed, and the surroundings plunged into gloom.

As the armed men lunged, Xiao Yulou, cigarette in hand, made a single gesture.

With a thunderous roar, a wall of fire seven meters tall appeared out of thin air, sending waves of heat across the field.

Seeing this, everyone present broke out in a cold sweat.

With another flick of his fingers, Xiao Yulou transformed the blazing wall into a ring, trapping the opposing force within.

Already burdened by their heavy gear, the armed men found themselves sweating profusely under the scorching heat—soaked to their underwear.

Gu Mo looked at Xiao Yulou, puzzled. “Priest, if you had such tricks, why didn’t you use them earlier? Were you just waiting to watch me make a fool of myself?”

Xiao Yulou merely flicked his sleeve in a sage-like manner and replied calmly, “Not at all. The perfect opportunity was right before us—I simply wanted these rotten tomatoes and bad eggs to give you some exercise, Brother Gu.”

Gu Mo nodded, half convinced.

But the next second, Xiao Yulou put on airs again—

“Boundless Heavenly Honor!”

With a flick of his sleeve, Xiao Yulou leisurely lit another cigarette and met Gu Mo’s gaze.

“Brother Gu…to deal with these rotten tomatoes, a single fireball would suffice. But where’s the fun in that?”

Gu Mo gave him a thumbs-up. “Priest, you really are something! The art of subtle showing off is the deadliest!”

Xiao Yulou took a deep drag and smiled breezily. “Brother Gu, how many do you think you can handle at once?”

Gu Mo silently raised three fingers.

Xiao Yulou grinned, cigarette dangling from his lips. With a quick hand seal, he muttered an incantation, “Three Pure Ones, Three Woods, all is impermanence. Heavenly thunder, fire’s edge reveals its blade. Fire, open!”

At once, a large gap opened in the seven-meter wall of flames.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

Three armed men, gripping knives and daggers in reverse, charged out, wisps of smoke rising from their black combat uniforms.

Inside and outside the fiery ring, the temperature was vastly different.

Xiao Yulou took a drag on his cigarette and said, feigning humility, “Boundless Heavenly Honor! I didn’t expect I’d miscalculate the range and cause you gentlemen some suffering. My apologies!”

With a fierce glare and a raised hand seal, Xiao Yulou caused much of the fire ring to dissipate.

Within the ring, the remaining armed men and Li Hetang stood ready, clearly not intending to break out.

Seeing this, Gu Mo grew even more suspicious that something was afoot.

Just then, Li Hetang inside the ring fixed Gu Mo with an odd look and asked, “As two armies face off, may I have your illustrious name?”

Gu Mo curled his lips in a devilish smile. “Before asking another’s name, you ought to introduce yourself first! Don’t you have any manners?”

Li Hetang shrugged, flicking his ear with the hand holding his cigarette, and replied in a loud voice, “Vice Food Factory, Special Action Unit—Li Hetang!”

Gu Mo burst out laughing. “Ha! So you’re just a peddler of spicy sticks and sausages!”

Unbothered by Gu Mo’s mockery, Li Hetang shrugged again. “You still haven’t said who you are.”

With a couple of coughs, Gu Mo reined in his laughter, raised his head, and replied sternly, “Northern Wilderness Town, little candle shop owner—Gu Mo!”

At once, Li Hetang flashed a sinister grin inside the ring of fire. “Attack!”

A sharp crack sounded from not far away!

A sniper’s bullet streaked toward Gu Mo’s temple.

In that split second, as the bullet was about to hit, green ghostly flames flared on Gu Mo’s chest.

A bone-chilling, soul-binding chain shot out.

With a metallic clang, the icy chain saved Gu Mo’s life once again!

The bullet clattered to the ground as the chain withdrew back into Gu Mo’s body.

Cold sweat broke out across Gu Mo’s back. Outwardly, though, he maintained a cocky front, glaring at Li Hetang. “Coward…sniping from the shadows—isn’t that a bit unsporting?”

Li Hetang shrugged, unconcerned. “Can’t be helped…orders from above—life or death, all must be eliminated!”

Fury surged in Gu Mo, but Xiao Yulou just smiled calmly. “Well, let’s see if your lot has the ability.”

With that, Xiao Yulou flicked his sleeve, a yellow talisman appearing in his hand.

Golden light emanated from his body as he formed another hand seal, readying a new spell.

Suddenly, twelve armed men raised their guns and opened fire.

Gu Mo’s heart lurched—this was bad.

Purely on instinct, he lunged forward, using his mortal body to shield Xiao Yulou.

Ratatatat—

Merciless muzzles spat flames—bullets rained down on Gu Mo—

Thud, thud, thud—

The hail of bullets spent, Gu Mo found himself stunned and petrified.

“I'm doomed! Why was I so stupid? That many bullets should have buried me alive! I’m definitely riddled with holes now!!”

But as he came to his senses, he saw a golden tortoise-shell shield before him, blazing with green ghost fire. All the bullets were lodged in the shield, never reaching the ghost fire itself.

Clearly, the priest’s “Wealthy Shell” was truly an artifact!

Xiao Yulou then grinned and waved a hand.

Thunder rumbled in the clouds.

With a sharp crack, a streak of blue lightning tore through the night sky.

A scream rang out from the treetops—a smoking armed man tumbled heavily to the ground.

Li Hetang grinned slyly at this outcome, as though he’d achieved his goal.

In a sudden motion, Li Hetang waved his hand, and the remaining twelve armed men, knives in hand, charged out.

Gu Mo, seeing a black wave before him, could only swing the Celestial Measuring Ruler in fury to meet them head-on.

Clang, clang, clang—surrounded by attackers, Gu Mo gritted his teeth, fighting desperately, while Xiao Yulou crouched nearby, smoking at his leisure.

Catching a glimpse from the corner of his eye, Gu Mo fought while shouting without turning his head, “Priest, what the hell are you doing? If you don’t help soon, I’ll be dead on my feet!”

But Xiao Yulou just smiled wickedly and said calmly, “Brother Gu, this is the perfect opportunity. Watch their movements closely—after this battle, you’ll be a changed man!”

Hearing such detached words, Gu Mo ground his teeth in frustration, cursing the attackers, “Damn it, why don’t you go fight that priest? Why are you all after me?”

The twelve specially-trained men shifted tactics constantly, leaving Gu Mo hard-pressed to keep up.

A sharp crack—there was a deep scratch on the golden tortoise shield behind Gu Mo.

But the uncanny shield healed itself in a blink. Encouraged, Gu Mo’s confidence grew.

If he could just decipher their movements, finding an opening wouldn’t be so hard!

But reality struck hard. The attackers were using coordinated tactics, converging on him—his shield rang out again and again. Without his artifacts, Gu Mo would have died several times over.

Then Gu Mo realized: whenever he brandished the ghost-fire Celestial Measuring Ruler, the men before him would retreat, while those behind would strike.

Clearly, if this continued, he’d be captured for sure—not only could he not save his “big brother,” he’d get himself killed as well!

With this realization, Gu Mo’s thoughts cleared.

“What do I have? What can I use?!

Celestial Measuring Ruler: a black, rune-covered metal rod!

Spirit-Summoning Gourd: absorbs and refines souls.

Soul-Burning Lantern: this useless thing is just an antique—I still don’t know what it does!

Wait!”

…

As Gu Mo fought, he suddenly remembered the three ancient manuals Old Master Chu had given him.

“Fuxi Serpent Fist, Seven Star Heavenly Step!”

He began moving, swinging the flaming Celestial Measuring Ruler; the attackers, thinking he was about to unleash a great move, retreated.

Gu Mo seized the chance, dropped his stance, and recalled the Seven Star Heavenly Step.

His feet moved swiftly in a strange pattern. The armed men stared, bewildered, not knowing what he was doing.

Xiao Yulou laughed aloud on the sidelines: “Brother Gu, you’re finally showing your true skills!”

Suddenly, the twelve attackers, outnumbering him, could not follow Gu Mo’s footwork.

Frowning and gritting his teeth, Gu Mo swung the ruler and struck a man’s chest hard.

A crunch—the man clutched his chest and collapsed to his knees.

The others gasped.

Still, Gu Mo never aimed for vital spots. After all, with such advanced weapons on home soil, he’d best not make too many enemies, lest he face retribution later.

The injured man, regaining his senses, reached into his bulletproof vest.

A tearing sound—the vaunted ceramic plate was now shattered to pieces.

Seeing this, the wounded man dared not join the fight again.

Gu Mo, emboldened by his success, continued to swing the ghostly ruler at his foes…

On the other side, Li Hetang frowned, eyes fixed on the Soul-Burning Lantern and Spirit-Summoning Gourd.

A fight was one thing, but those two bizarre objects were out of place.

With a flash, Li Hetang drew his pistol.

Click, click!

Bang, bang!

Two bullets sped toward the gourd and lantern.

Just before impact—boom!—the bullets’ trajectories were twisted aside by the green ghost fire.

Li Hetang took a deep drag, pressed his finger to his earpiece, and murmured, “Codename Nine…you see that?”

…

Ten minutes passed; the last of the armed men collapsed, and Gu Mo lay sprawled, exhausted.

Panting, Gu Mo pointed the flaming ruler at Li Hetang, who had not joined the fight, and cursed, “Coward, it’s your turn!”

Li Hetang, unfazed, only laughed and applauded, then said something that left Gu Mo utterly stunned…