Chapter Eighteen: The Enchantress

The old man drove the sheep all the way to Yian County. Along the way, he glanced back several times, but each time saw no one; in the end, he dismissed it as his own over-sensitivity. After the long journey, his final destination turned out to be a somewhat dilapidated Taoist temple in the city.

At the temple door, the old man knocked a few times. Soon, a plainly dressed man emerged. Upon seeing the visitor, his expression shifted, and after scanning the surroundings, he invited the old man inside. As soon as he entered, the man immediately asked, “What happened? Why are you a day late? I thought you’d been caught and were running for your life.”

The old man sighed before replying, “There were some problems on the road. Hurry and unload this batch of goods, and remember to replenish some food and water.”

“Alright,” the man answered without pressing further. Since the old man had returned, their business could continue. As long as there was profit, he was willing to do anything.

The old man finally exhaled deeply, picked up a nearby teapot, poured himself a cup of water, and eased his stiffened body. Just then, a sudden, urgent knocking came from outside, making the old man start slightly. It was not early anymore; who would come to this rundown temple at this hour?

Curious, he opened the door and saw the visitor was none other than the previously encountered Taoist, Ling Xiao.

“Oh, it’s Taoist Ling Xiao. What brings you here?” the old man asked.

Ling Xiao smiled lightly and said quietly, “I haven’t found a place to stay yet here in Yian County, and I happened upon this temple. I was wondering if I could come in for a moment. I didn’t expect you to be living here too.”

“Ah, yes, well… Taoist Ling, please come in. The temple’s owner is busy at the back and will be out shortly.”

Sweat began to bead on the old man’s forehead. He never imagined Ling Xiao would actually come here. If he turned Ling Xiao away, it would only raise suspicion. After some thought, he decided to let Ling Xiao in and then have the man from inside reject him if necessary. He owed his survival to Ling Xiao and couldn’t refuse him outright. But having the other man refuse Ling Xiao wouldn’t be so suspicious, just a matter of unkindness on his part.

Inside the small temple, Ling Xiao looked around and sneered. The rest of the temple was shabby, but the floor was polished and spotless, standing out oddly against the rest of the surroundings.

Ordinary people might not notice this detail, but Ling Xiao, already suspicious, immediately realized the significance. The people here frequently transported others through this place, putting constant pressure on the ground, causing it to crack. While other areas might be neglected, the floor had to be maintained regularly.

“Please sit, Taoist Ling,” the old man said, pulling over a stool. He dared not let Ling Xiao wander around; the man inside was still dealing with the captives, and if Ling Xiao saw them, with his strength, he could tear this temple apart.

Ling Xiao sat down leisurely and smiled softly, “Are you a little nervous, old man?”

Hearing this, the old man tensed up and after a long moment, stammered, “N-no.”

Ling Xiao chuckled, “No need to be nervous, I’m not a bad person. By the way, may I ask who else is in this temple?”

Startled, the old man saw Ling Xiao shifting the topic and, without thinking, replied, “Only the temple master, no one else.”

“Oh, I see…” Ling Xiao nodded slightly, thought for a moment, then said, “In that case, I’ll be on my way.”

“Ah, okay… wait—what?” The old man nodded at first but quickly realized something was wrong. Before he could react further, an iron rod came crashing down.

*Bang!*

Like a giant watermelon bursting open, red and white matter splattered everywhere, staining the ground like ink.

Ling Xiao’s face remained expressionless as he shook off the blood on the rod, then looked toward the doorway.

A man stood there, stunned at the scene.

“It’s your turn,” Ling Xiao said calmly.

The man turned to flee, but there was no way he could outrun Ling Xiao. Within a few steps, Ling Xiao caught him, and with others, they finished him off.

Ling Xiao pushed open the temple door. Soon, Li Tiedan arrived.

“Taoist, have you dealt with them inside?”

Ling Xiao nodded. “Just two people. I saw no other accomplices, so I killed them all.”

“Well done!” Li Tiedan laughed heartily. “Two human traffickers, they deserved it.”

“The captives are still there. Captain Li, come with me and we’ll rescue them all.”

“Alright,” Li Tiedan agreed promptly.

They entered to find several women and children restored to their human forms but gagged and tied up nearby. Others remained in the form of goats, not yet recovered.

“Hey, Taoist Ling, what should we do about these?” Li Tiedan urgently asked.

Ling Xiao thought for a moment. “Give them water. Once they’ve drunk enough, they should recover.”

He had no specific talismans to break the curse, and feared that using anti-evil charms might harm the captives. However, a scripture by the layman Liu Quan mentioned that those under such beast-transformation spells could recover by drinking plenty of water.

Ling Xiao wasn’t sure if this applied in this world but decided to try. If it failed, he would resort to using charm-breaking methods.

Li Tiedan quickly fetched two buckets, drew water from the well, and kept feeding it to the goats.

Ling Xiao untied the women, who immediately thanked him. He waved them off, deflecting credit to Li Tiedan, saying he was just passing by.

Once the goats drank their fill, their skins suddenly split open, revealing the women inside.

Ling Xiao pulled Li Tiedan aside, ready to leave, but unexpectedly saw a familiar figure.

...

“Ah, so these girls were all shrunk into sheep by secret magic. Just give them water and they break free,” Li Tiedan said, sitting down and listening to Ling Xiao.

Ling Xiao nodded slightly. “There may be other techniques involved, but that’s roughly it.”

In truth, such spells likely involved illusions and physical transformations, but Ling Xiao himself didn’t fully understand and wouldn’t explain it to Li Tiedan.

“Heh, that old bastard got off easy with just one blow from you,” Li Tiedan scoffed, spitting on the old man’s corpse.

Ling Xiao sighed, “How many families have been ruined by these beasts…”

“They must be dressed now. I’ll take them to the authorities to identify where they’re from and notify their families.”

Ling Xiao fell silent, then handed all the silver coins he had to Li Tiedan.

“Hey, Taoist, what’s this for?”

Ling Xiao sighed, “If any refuse to be taken back, use this money for them. Captain Li, please give them a way to survive.”

Li Tiedan paused, then understood Ling Xiao’s intention.

Regardless of whether these women were victims, their reputations would be tarnished. Those with children might be accepted back, but those without would have a harder time.

“Alright… it’s tough for everyone, really tough…”

Faced with such a situation, Li Tiedan didn’t know what to say and just sighed.

Ling Xiao said no more. Such injustices were common—clearly not their fault, clearly the victims, yet this was their fate.

Li Tiedan led several women away. At the end, the last woman closed the temple door and slowly returned.

Ling Xiao smiled, “Miss Li, aren’t you coming with them?”

Li Qingqing snorted, “If I really left, Taoist Ling would hit me with his staff.”

Indeed, the familiar figure Ling Xiao recognized was none other than the White Lotus Sect’s enchantress, Li Qingqing.

But now, her condition was poor, lacking the previous arrogant and domineering spirit. Even if Ling Xiao said nothing, she dared not follow Li Tiedan and the others away.

“I’m curious, Miss Li. With your skills, how did an old cripple catch you?”

At this, Li Qingqing bit her lip, then slammed the table, furious: “If I hadn’t been sealed of all my powers, would these petty villains have succeeded?”

Ling Xiao looked at her. At this moment, her powers were completely locked, unable to mobilize at all. Were it not for Ling Xiao’s careful sensing, he might have thought she was an ordinary person.

He couldn’t help but laugh, “You’re usually the one trapping others, but today you’ve been kidnapped yourself.”

Li Qingqing snorted but said nothing, her eyes flickering as she considered her thoughts.

Ling Xiao picked up his staff and smiled coldly, “No need to wait for a better time, Miss Li. You have done countless evil deeds. Today, this Taoist will send you on your way. Those two old crooks likely haven’t gone far—you’ll keep them company.”

Li Qingqing jumped back in fright, “Taoist Ling, why must it be like this?”

Ling Xiao shrugged slightly, “When in Fang City, I wanted to kill you. But you traded the whereabouts of Yuan to me, and for the safety of the people, I had no choice. When I got rid of Yuan, I wanted to get you too, but lacked the means and let you escape once more.”

“Today is the third time you’ve crossed my path. As the saying goes, third time’s the charm. If I don’t send you off now, I’d feel like I’m cheating myself.”

“Wait! Taoist Ling, I can see you don’t really want to kill me. If you did, you wouldn’t waste so many words,” Li Qingqing hurriedly said.

Ling Xiao showed a sinister smile, cold and indifferent: “You’re wrong. As I said before, you don’t understand me. I’m a rather picky person. Sometimes I kill without a word, but other times, I like to chat and chat until I kill.”

Li Qingqing swallowed nervously. She could tell Ling Xiao’s murderous intent was genuine.

“Wait! Taoist Ling, if you kill me, what about Miss Zheng?”

Ling Xiao stopped, his gaze icy as he looked at Li Qingqing. “Tell me everything.”

Li Qingqing breathed a sigh of relief, knowing her gamble had paid off. If she threatened that the White Lotus Sect would retaliate after her death, Ling Xiao wouldn’t care. Only by threatening others might he hold back.

Though even that was uncertain. Earlier, when dealing with Yuan, Ling Xiao could have abandoned the people of Fang City.

“You disappeared, and I naturally couldn’t do nothing. Unable to find you, I had to target Zheng Xin and Wang Yue.”

“The forces behind Wang Yue are too strong. Angering them is beyond me. So, I chose Zheng Xin.”

Ling Xiao glanced at her, scoffing, “You?”

Zheng Huyi’s martial skills were no joke. Anyone attacking Zheng Xin would surely be caught by him.

Li Qingqing smiled, “I didn’t kidnap Zheng Xin directly. If I had, we’d have made enemies of the Loyalty Hall, which isn’t worth it. After all, the person I want is you, not Zheng Xin.”

“I chose two handsome male disciples from the sect, posing as chivalrous gentlemen to follow Zheng Xin. If they find your whereabouts, capturing Zheng Xin will be easy.”

Ling Xiao was stunned. If so, Zheng Xin might really be fooled. Though clever, she often rebelled against her father, especially when it came to going out and exploring. The more Zheng Huyi forbade her, the more determined she was to go out.

Indeed.