Otherworldly Merchant

Senior Shu thought for a while then said, “That’s why I wanted to talk to you. I want you to take control of the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation and attract most of the enemy’s firepower. As for me, I’ll stay in the rear and ambush them. We’ll gradually wear them out and kill them. If we cooperate well, perhaps we can win this.”

I nodded. “Sounds good. Let’s do that.”

Senior Shu sighed again. “Don’t you want to think about yourself for a moment?”

I gave a bitter smile. “Our Zhang family might be destroyed soon. If that happens, I’m likely to die as well. I would rather try my best here. As long as you don’t leave me, I’m not afraid of death.”

Senior Shu said, “You don’t even know what you’re going to face. I want you to become the eye of the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation, and you will have to bear a large part of the formation’s power. Moreover, you will have to bear the resistance from those twenty wicked souls. I’m worried that your body won’t be able to endure it.”

He continued, “If you fail, the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation will backfire on you. If that happens, not only you, but all of us will be in grave danger.” The more Senior Shu talked, the less confident he sounded. “What I’m afraid of the most is that your body won’t be able to handle the formation’s power…”

I forced a smile and said, “But we don’t have a better option, do we? We can only give it a try. I’ll do my best.”

“Good.” Senior Shu nodded and said, “I’m going to tell you the incantation to control the formation. You have to remember it. Using the incantation will maximize the power of the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation. Here, take this spirit boosting pellet. When you find that you can’t stand it anymore, swallow it. It will help you put up with it for a while.”

I carefully stored the pellet away and started to learn the Fiery Thunderbolt Incantation.

When I memorized the incantation, it was around 10 PM. We didn’t have any more time to waste. We had to get ready for the battle.

I was worried about Li Mazi and Zhang Ai. “Senior Shu, will Li Mazi and Zhang Ai be safe in the morgue? If not, we should force them to leave.”

Senior Shu answered, “Don’t worry. As long as they stay in the morgue and do not step out, they’ll be safer than wandering outside the police station. After all, Zhang Ai is on the Longquan Villa’s list of people they want to kill.”

I nodded and told him that I understood.

Senior Shu took me to the front of the morgue and asked me to draw a circle. “You should never leave this circle. It’s the eye of the formation, and you have to stay within the circle to maximize the power of the formation. When the time comes, use your spiritual power to activate the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation. No matter what happens, you have to hold on.”

Then, Senior Shu left to find a hideout. He planned to break the enemy formation with a sneak attack.

Li Mazi and Zhang Ai came by and asked if they could give us a hand. Staying in the morgue made them restless and fearful. They thought I was better off as I was standing outside.

I scolded them. “You’re so lucky, and you don’t even appreciate it. I would rather stay in the morgue and feel fearful than stand here and wait for the danger to come. You have no idea how scary it is! When the time comes, you shouldn’t leave the morgue. I won’t have the time to protect the two of you. It would ruin our plan.”

Li Mazi lowered his head in distress. “Are you sure about this? I can tell from Senior Shu’s face that things don’t look good.”

“Enough, nothing bad will happen to you two.”

While talking, I felt a strange wind blow in the morgue. Right after that, I heard the rattling noise of the pages being flipped.

I was startled. “Li Mazi, Zhang Ai, get back in the morgue and stay there. No matter what happens, do not come out.”

Li Mazi immediately grabbed Zhang Ai’s hand and rushed into the morgue while I watched the entrance.

The wind became stronger. Sand grains and stones rolled in, and I couldn’t keep my eyes open. The pages of the Wordless Heavenly Book flipped and rattled.

They are coming! I carefully watched the entrance. I was prepared to read the incantation to activate the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation at any time.

While I was contemplating, a black mist burst from the morgue. I turned to see and shivered in fear.

The black mist separated at speed visible to the naked eye. Soon after, they became human shapes that lunged toward me.

Without hesitation, I started to read the incantation, which activated the formation.

The moment the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation was activated, I felt cold air hit my body from every direction. In just a blink of an eye, it all entered my body.

I felt the cold fill my body and freeze my organs. I couldn’t breathe, and my whole body felt numb. I thought that I had lost my sense of touch.

In just a few seconds, the souls had approached the border of the formation. It seemed they were ready to break through it.

I didn’t mind the pain and the cold that numbed my body; I continued to read the incantation.

The cold became stronger and stronger. In the end, my lips stiffened as if they were frozen, and the sound I produced was hoarse.

“Whoosh~”

Eventually, I saw green flames appear and flash unceasingly at the border of the formation. The Fiery Thunderbolt Formation was successfully activated.

The souls that were attempting to escape the formation were sent backward by the flashing flames. They crouched on the ground and couldn’t contain their rage.

Since I had somewhat adapted to this annoying pain, I found the strength to look at the souls.

The souls wore rough ancient clothes, and their faces looked malicious. They neatly stood in groups, and ominous light sparked in their eyes as they gazed at me.

The one who led the group looked especially gruesome. His facial features shrank together, and he bared his sharp teeth at me. It felt as though he wanted to swallow me whole.

I didn’t waste time and read the incantation harder. Soon after, the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation stabilized and produced more flames.

The ghosts didn’t dare to approach me. As such, the leader snorted and charged toward the border of the formation one more time.

I cursed under my breath. It seemed they wanted to forcefully break through the formation. I couldn’t let that happen, so I kept chanting the incantation.

After the leader charged toward the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation, he was sent backward. However, the souls behind him seemed fearless. They kept pushing to break the formation.

The strange thing was that whenever they hit the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation, my body felt pain, just as if someone was hammering my insides.

They kept attacking the formation, and the agony I had to endure became more intense. At this time, I felt as if those twenty flames were burning in my body. However, they brought no heat, only endless cold.

The souls continuously hit the formation, which was no different than hitting my body, so I kept vomiting blood.

They seemed to know that they could damage me this way. Although they couldn’t break or escape the formation, they still forcefully hit the border.

If they continued this way, I knew that I couldn’t endure it any longer. My head buzzed, and my eyes blurred. I knew that I would lose consciousness soon.

I took a deep breath to force myself to stay sane. Then, I swallowed the spirit pellet Senior Shu had given me.

The cold in my stomach eased. However, it wasn’t enough. Soon after, I, once again, felt a pain that put me on the edge of death. My head went blank, and I couldn’t even remember the incantation.

Right at this moment, a soul successfully broke through the Fiery Thunderbolt Formation and ran out.

I felt as if someone had made a hole in my stomach. My spirit energy quickly drained, and I could no longer move. I lay on the ground, convulsing as if I had received an electric shock.

It’s over! I thought to myself.