“How could it be possible to abandon the name Jiangtou Chen?”

Hearing the old woman’s cold and deep words, the Chen family’s chief steward staggered back as if struck by lightning. His mind in turmoil, the poisonous sores on his body grew even more severe, and blood even flowed from his cheeks.

It seemed even more terrifying than the curse itself.

Although he was the Chen family’s chief steward, he leaned more towards the arts of manipulation and descending. The Chen family’s most powerful Jiangtou techniques (a type of Southeast Asian black magic) and authority were all in his hands.

The Chen family’s Second Aunt, however, served as the executioner and knew more about matters of karma. She had also served the Meng Po Shop (a shop in the underworld) for the Chen family for the longest time. She was more skilled in reasoning and exploring other pathways, so the Chen family steward trusted her.

However, the solution she offered to counter this curse of the masses was simply impossible to achieve.

To avoid the karma by abandoning the three words "Jiangtou Chen"?

Impossible!

One of the ten surnames, the Jiangtou Chen family. This name was even greater than the life of the Chen family steward himself, and greater than the lives of anyone in the Chen family.

He could not burn this incense, nor could he do such a thing. Without even thinking about it, his eyes remained fixed on the executioner, as if hoping she could offer other suggestions.

But the old woman had already closed her eyes, seemingly exhausted.

Endless panic and rage surged into his mind simultaneously. In that instant, the Chen family steward’s thoughts raced. Above his head, the endless black threads continued to descend upon the Chen family. Far down the mountain, the cries of agony from his clansmen never ceased.

On his face, a look of ruthlessness flashed at that moment. Then, he suddenly spoke in a stern voice, shouting into the hall, "Open your eyes, stop hiding!"

With this stern shout, countless poisonous sores on his body burst open, and blood flowed.

He glared at the clansmen and officials in the hall who were desperately trying to hide their souls and avoid the curse. He sternly shouted, "Those evil beings...they seize the heavens with curses, then we shall invite the heavens back."

"Let the heavens see us again..."

"..."

"What?"

Those who were forcibly awakened were already in a nightmare. As soon as they opened their eyes, they felt as if they were surrounded by spiderwebs, and even seeing the people and hearing the sounds of reality seemed unreal.

They had nowhere to hide, and the Chen family steward's words plunged them into despair. "Master, if we go..."

"Then...there will be no hope!"

"..."

At this moment, they were already targeted by the curse. Hiding forcibly, they didn’t know if they could even hide successfully. Going out to do things would be even more inescapable. The master’s method of inviting the heavens back might work.

But whether it succeeded or not, they would all face certain death.

"What if we die?"

The Chen family steward glanced at the foot of the mountain, feeling a pang of heartache. He wanted to look at the foot of the mountain to see if his wife was alright and how many people had died under this curse, but he dared not, fearing to see too terrible a sight, so he simply didn’t look.

He clenched his teeth and shouted at these people, "When you appear under this heaven and earth, you will block the curse, at least."

"You have all been sheltered by the name of Jiangtou Chen. For so many years, beneath one name, above ten thousand, you have enjoyed wealth and prosperity, and your families have grown large."

"Now that it has come to this crucial moment, how can you not risk your lives for Jiangtou Chen?"

"Go!"

"Use descending nails to pierce your skulls, securing your souls, measure the extent of this curse, use your bodies as a descending force, stand firm in all directions, and invite the heavens back!"

"..."

Amidst the angry shouts, he suddenly waved his sleeves. With a few clangs, an iron nail fell in front of each person, placed squarely before them.

"Use...use our bodies as a descending force?"

The various talents in the Chen family, upon seeing the iron nails, knew that there was no hope. For a moment, they felt a sense of collapse and despair.

But facing the Chen family steward's angry face, they knew there was no other choice.

Just now, they were hiding their souls and had heard the words of the chief executioner, knowing that if they wanted to live, they had to abandon the name of Jiangtou Chen. But that was impossible. The entire Chen family, even if they died, would definitely protect the name of Jiangtou Chen.

So, they could only fight with their lives.

Even if it was the curse of the masses, as long as these people left the old mansion, the curses would first concentrate on them. So, as long as they didn’t die...

But…

Someone’s voice trembled as they spoke, "Even if we barely live by piercing our skulls with nails, there is still the matter of lifespan. Under this curse, how many incense sticks' time can we...can we endure?"

It wasn't a matter of whether they were willing to go out and block it, it was that they couldn't block it.

The Chen family steward glared at them and slowly said, "If this life's lifespan cannot block it, then borrow the lifespan of the next life. No matter what, as long as we endure until we invite the heavens back and dispel this curse, our Chen family can still win this battle of techniques!"

"Those evil beings are ruthless and dare to sacrifice themselves. Could it be that all of us in the Jiangtou Chen family are spineless?"

"..."

Hearing his words, the various strange individuals in the hall were horrified. They slowly exchanged glances, but only saw deep despair in each other's eyes.

Then, starting with the reasoning official, they all clenched their teeth and suddenly grabbed an iron nail, fiercely inserting it into their foreheads, directly piercing into their brains.

"Chih" "Chih" "Chih"

This was a common method used by various sects to stabilize the soul and prolong life.

However, it was only prolonging life, not continuing it. This was at the cost of damaging the soul, forcibly preventing oneself from dying for a period of time, waiting for the opponent's technique to pass. It was a desperate measure used in the arts when there was no other way out.

But for Chen Jiangtou, the most brilliant part was not here.

In theory, even if they prolonged their lives by piercing their skulls with iron nails, their own lifespans would still be exhausted, and they would not be able to block for others.

Therefore, the Chen family steward had said from the beginning the most vicious and ruthless method, which was to borrow lifespan from the next life, use the borrowed lifespan to invite the heavens back, and block the curse for the clan in the process.

Amidst the angry shouts, the iron nails entered their skulls. They all clenched their teeth, enduring the intense pain and suppression, and stood up. Without even thinking, they rushed out of the hall, knowing that time was short and there was no time to say a word.

As for the method the Chen family steward used to break this curse, they understood it as soon as they heard it.

It was a foolish method.

The Chen family controlled the Meng Po Shop, one of the Eight Views of the Yellow Springs, so they could borrow the Meng Po Shop to avoid karma. But they were avoiding karma within the area shrouded by the demon heavens and ghost lands.

If the living turned into resentment and dispelled the heavens and earth, then the Chen family’s ability to avoid karma would be gone.

The only way was to invite back the old heavens. What they had to do immediately was to go out, measure the boundaries, and invite the heavens back. When the demon heavens covered their heads, the Chen family would still be invincible in this world.

"Shua" "Shua" "Shua"

As the people went out, the Chen family steward clenched his teeth and continuously paced in the hall. Then, he waved his palm, and the lids of three of the four iron coffins in the hall were lifted.

Instantly, surging baleful aura gushed out from the coffins, almost filling the area in a short time, supporting the power of resentment and curses that were descending from the sky.

He spared no expense, chanting loudly, driving the zombie descendants in the three coffins. Accompanied by a cloud of blackness, they flew out of the old mansion in an instant. He, on the other hand, was already pale and bloody, sitting in the armchair, panting heavily.

"This…"

At the same time, seeing him give the order, the old woman whose eyes were almost completely blind finally showed a look of despair on her face. "Was it worth going to this extent?"

Was the name Jiangtou Chen important, or were the lives of the Chen family, young and old, important?

She couldn’t say for sure, but the Chen family steward undoubtedly had the answer.

"The Chen family’s foundation cannot be destroyed in my hands."

The Chen family steward, in the empty hall, took a long time to catch his breath before speaking in a low voice, "We must endure this difficulty, even if we die, we must endure it."

"Otherwise, wouldn’t twenty years of meticulous planning be a joke?"

"..."

The old woman didn’t speak, already powerless to answer. The principles she had lived by all her life could no longer provide her with a convincing answer in the face of what she was now encountering.

"Father, have you lost this battle of techniques?"

At this moment, a voice sounded from outside the hall. A woman wrapped in a black robe stepped over the threshold. Although one couldn’t see her appearance, one could tell that when she walked, she had a sense of not touching the ground.

"A’Bao…"

The Chen family steward looked up at her.

His daughter, Chen A’Bao, was famous among the ten surnames for being clever and obedient.

In this battle of techniques, he had considered that it might be too dangerous, and because she had been delayed by worldly affairs, she had not been able to cross the bridge, so he had not allowed her to come.

It was not until this curse descended and someone blocked it that he dared to call her up.

Clearly, it was out of concern, but now, so many clansmen at the foot of the mountain had already suffered. How could she, as the Chen family’s eldest daughter...

His voice even trembled, afraid to ask about her injuries.

He could only try to open his somewhat blurred eyes, staring at her to make sure she was still alive, before勉力(mian li) saying, "In this battle of techniques, we...we underestimated those evil beings."

"No one in the Jiangtou Chen family can escape this curse."

"But you are different, A’Bao. You have long been betrothed to the Zhao family’s child and are already half a member of the Zhao family. Therefore, today, I…"

"…I will send you off to be married!"

"..."

Chen A’Bao stood in place, unable to tell her happiness or anger, but her voice carried a sob as she spoke, "You don't even have a bridal sedan, how can you marry me off?"

"Once you are married, you will no longer be a member of Jiangtou Chen, so regardless of the outcome of this battle, you can escape this curse."

The Chen family steward looked at his daughter, trying to make his voice sound 厚道(hou dao) yet dignified, and said in a low voice, "Moreover, the Zhao family’s boy is good to you. Since childhood, he was the only one who didn’t fight with you among those who played with you."

"I am relieved that you will be living with him in the future, but, in case...in case you don't have a mother’s family, you can ask him privately whether you can find one of your future children to be named Chen?"

"..."

"What's so good about being named Chen?"

The Chen family steward tried to keep his words steady, but Chen A’Bao’s voice was filled with anger as she spoke, "I just came up, and I already heard everything outside."

"Father, are you going to risk the lives of the entire family for these three words, Jiangtou Chen?"

"What's so good about this name? It's not even nice to hear, and people secretly call us Living Ghost Chen behind our backs!"

"..."

The Chen family steward’s expression was covered with a layer of sadness, and he could only勉力(mian li) smile and say, "A’Bao, you...you still don't understand this."

"I understand, Father."

Chen A’Bao looked at her father with a serious expression, rubbing her head a bit painfully. When she accidentally rubbed it askew, she straightened it again and said, "I listened to that young master Hu more seriously than you did."

"Father, you regard the reincarnated people as evil beings, even though you already know that they were invited down by the Da Luo Dharma Sect, but you still refuse to believe them."

"But I have heard their principles, and I even think they are right."

"..."

The Chen family steward's face was already a bit cold as he shouted, "Shut up, A’Bao, you shouldn't say these words."

"Father, I know what your real purpose is in letting these uncles go out to block the curse."

Chen A’Bao turned her head to look at the hall, where there was still an iron coffin. Her voice paused and she said, "I also know why you want to have my younger brother guard here."

"But it's so boring, Father."

"You can't abandon the name of Jiangtou Chen because you want to continue being treated like a master, always treated like a master. But our Chen family comes from a family of morticians. None of those aristocratic families can look up to our family."

"Why do you have to squeeze into their ranks?"

"When you were a child, you were嫌弃(xian qi) by the nobles for having the smell of corpses, so you dreamed of becoming a noble, but have you ever thought that perhaps pulling the nobles down is the right thing to do?"

"..."

For the first time, Chen A’Bao showed such an angry expression on her face, but Chen A’Bao interrupted him and said in a low voice, "Father, you are my father, but I think you are wrong."

"You still want to take my younger brother to do this kind of thing..."

She looked at the fifth iron coffin in the hall,抿了抿(min le min) her lips, and said, "You will lose, Father."

……

……

"I have never seen this kind of battle of techniques in my entire life in the arts…"

"All of them are half-immortals who have crossed the bridge, but they have already lost before they have even made a move, and they still have to use the lifespan of the next life to抵(di)?"

"There's no such thing!"

"If everyone is so unreasonable, are our skills that we have cultivated for a lifetime worthless?"

At this time, the Four Prefectures and Seven States were already in a chaotic mess, and there was silence everywhere, because everyone had fallen into a deep sleep, as if this world no longer existed, only an angry dream.

But the Chen family's experts, with nails hammered into their foreheads, were already full of resentment, tiptoeing through the night. They felt that they were surrounded by hazy black shadows, walking in the world as if walking in hell.

But they became more and more angry, gritting their teeth and rushing to various places.

Behind them, there was a putrid and wronged aura. In the rolling black clouds, three flying corpses flew out of the Chen family’s old mansion. Wherever they passed, everything withered, and even the empty night was covered with a layer of strange smell.

When they passed through the Changping Army, they saw the scattered soldiers and aristocratic nobles fleeing in panic in this night, crying while sitting on the ground.

The Changping Army had been废(fei)掉.

The evil aura in the army can break spells, but the resentment of the people is far heavier than the evil aura in the army.

They could no longer expect the Changping Army to do anything. How could they, who couldn’t even stop this resentment, bear the tide of millions of angry people that would surge in after dawn?

That anger was even impossible to quell. To quell their anger, they would have to be fed. But where in the Four Prefectures and Seven States would there be so much grain to feed them?

Only by relying on people like themselves to invite the heavens back could everything be restored to the original勉强(mian qiang) maintained appearance…

Fortunately, the Chen family still had four great descending corpses and a dozen people who had crossed the bridge. Fortunately, the Chen family’s skills could欺天窃寿(qi tian qie shou) and reverse the universe!

The dense black lines were endless, but they also used this heavy and indescribable curse to see the boundary of the curse. Above their heads, the fierce aura of the descending corpses rolled. On the ground, the descending masters walked with great strides, and their anger grew stronger, already pointing their swords in all directions.

However, in this slumber of the masses and the silence of heaven and earth, there were also figures emerging from the night, staring at them from afar.

"That Tian Shui actually seized the opportunity to create such an上头(shang tou) situation?"

Some people faced the Chen family’s experts, and others looked up at the corpse generals, either smiling or sighing, "Damn it, he snatched such a good opportunity…"

"The most stubborn guy made the most clever and ruthless decision at the most critical moment, then we…"

"We can only be good supporting roles for him…"

"..."

But although they were all complaining, their faces involuntarily revealed smiles, and with the most relaxed and comfortable expressions, they went to meet the various capable people who came out of the Chen family.

Their sleeves fluttered, some people had nine lamps floating around them, some people had ghosts following them when they stepped, some people sat in sedan chairs, and some people still had a wine gourd in their hands. Facing the various experts who had crossed the bridge and the descending corpses that could affect the heavens and earth, they calmly raised their hands:

"Daoist friend, please stop…"

No matter how great the Chen family members they met were.

No matter how fierce the three descending corpses raised by the Chen family were, they all felt so relaxed because they had already won this battle of techniques.

……

……

In the Underworld Palace, Hu Ma was full of confidence when the five surnames took action to stop this great massacre, and swung his knife at the Sixth Palace Emperor Ghost.

However, the Sixth Palace Emperor Ghost had suppressed countless rebel armies during his lifetime, and was also full of murderous aura. Facing the obstruction of the massacre in the human world, the two fought, and Hu Ma was unable to reach his limit, and was repelled by the fierce Emperor Ghost and his court officials.

His feet landed on the ground, plowing a deep ravine in the ground. He was clearly in his own dream, but he actually had a feeling of being broken and his soul was凌厉(ling li).

If an ordinary person suffered a serious injury in a dream, he would already uncontrollably wake up, but he felt as if he were in reality. He understood in his heart that this was because he had entered the Underworld Palace too deeply. The depths of the dream were no different from reality.

The Meng family ancestor next to him let out a non-human roar, and the longevity characters on his body became ragged and scattered. Countless spears were pierced through his body, and even his森然(sen ran) ghostly aura seemed to have become黯淡(an dan).

Little Hongtang had also just grabbed a civil official and beaten him for a long time, and a strand of hair was torn off by the white-bearded old man, while Little Hongtang was still holding a handful of his beard in his hand.

The three of them had already suffered heavy injuries and were in critical condition.

"Although he is the son of a seal-bearing minor official, he sent himself to be a bridge, which is better than the human offerings…"

In the upper seat, the Sixth Palace Emperor Ghost also森然(sen ran) looked down at Hu Ma and shouted sharply, "Today, I will use your body to return to the human world and let the world of bandits see my Yi Emperor's dignity again!"

In his angry roar, he was already high above, suddenly raising his hand, and thousands of troops and horses flew out of his sleeves, fiercely rushing towards Hu Ma.

All of them were elite soldiers and strong generals who had followed him to kill countless rebel armies during his lifetime. Now, even if they were dead, they were not inferior to the凶戾(xiong li) of their living days in the purple qi幻化(huan hua).

Around him, civil and military officials flew in the air, pointing at Hu Ma's nose and罵(ma)声(sheng)不(bu)绝(jue), and every word was extremely heavy, as if to压(ya)入(ru)尘(chen)埃(ai).

His true body remained in the human world, and he only entered the Underworld Palace for a single stick of incense. Although he had夺(duo)了(le)无(wu)尽(jin)紫(zi)气(qi), he was, after all, borrowing the human massacre to make a move. With the human massacre being blocked, Hu Ma was unable to reach his limit in front of this Sixth Palace Emperor Ghost.

But at the same time, Hu Ma also felt the changes in the human world.

He knew that this change would definitely happen, so he had never worried about it, but when he turned around and saw what his old friend Laozao was doing, he still felt震动(zhen dong) in his heart and had indescribable emotions.

At this time, facing the fierce Sixth Palace Emperor Ghost rushing towards him, he suddenly slowed down his movements, slowly turned around, pointed the tip of his knife downwards towards the human world, and bowed deeply.

Even his eyes were uncontrollably moistened as he whispered to himself:

"Brother Laozao, you made a good move…"

"..."

In his sigh, he turned around and suddenly faced forward, the second knife directly迎(ying)着(zhe)斩(zhan)去(qu).

In the human world, to the east of Mingzhou, in the Four Prefectures and Seven States, there were a million resentments shining into Hu Ma’s dream. This knife, which had been萎靡(wei mi) in momentum because of the obstruction of the massacre, suddenly gave birth to endless anger and its power暴(bao)涨(zhang).

The thousands of troops and horses were斩(zhan)成(cheng)了(le)滚(gun)滚(gun)紫(zi)气(qi) under Hu Ma’s knife, and they surged towards Hu Ma’s back like a潮(chao)水(shui).

The golden words were not even as loud as the震(zhen)鸣(ming) of the枭(xiao)皇(huang)大(da)刀(dao).

The梟(xiao)皇(huang)大(da)刀(dao) even directly劈(pi)开(kai)了(le)这(zhe)第(di)六(liu)殿(dian), and the Eighth Palace and Seventh Palace Emperor Ghosts, who were originally a bit废(fei)物(wu), were directly剖(pou)开(kai)了(le)两(liang)截(jie) by this knife, and then Hu Ma grabbed them and塞(sai)进(jin)了(le)嘴(zui)巴(ba)里(li)大(da)嚼(jiao).

Looking at that凶(xiong)刀(dao), which had already斩(zhan)至(zhi)了(le)眉(mei)前(qian), he even felt昏(hun)天(tian)暗(an)地(di), and only felt that his figure was becoming无比(wu bi)渺(miao)小(xiao), and that knife that was举(ju)到(dao)了(le)自(zi)己(ji)头(tou)顶(ding)上(shang)来(lai) was so凶(xiong)戾(li)逼(bi)人(ren).

An unprecedented 恐(kong)惧(ju) filled the heart of this Emperor who had鎮(zhen)壓(ya)义(yi)军(jun) and 斬(zhan)尽(jin)草(cao)芥(jie) in his life, and he only had time to shout, "You...you...what is this?"

The Sixth Palace Emperor Ghost was already罕(han)见(jian)之(zhi)强(qiang), but he did not understand why the murderous aura, which had just been insufficient, suddenly had such a凶(xiong)的一(yi)刀(dao).

He did not understand how the peasants who had been践(jian)踏(ta) by iron hooves like野(ye)草(cao) could bring such a可(ke)怖(bu)加(jia)持(chi) to the person who闯(chuang)冥(ming)殿(dian) in the blink of an eye.

"This knife is called..."

The face of Hu Ma, who was映(ying)亮(liang)了(le) by the刀(dao)光(guang), also seemed无比(wu bi)阴(yin)森(sen) at this time, with a bit of湿(shi)润(run) in his eyes, but he also gritted his teeth fiercely, his voice unprecedentedly响(xiang)亮(liang) and愤怒(fen nu):

“There is no fear in reason, if heaven refuses to take me, I will take, the hearts of the people give birth to resentment, even heaven is afraid, let you know…”

"…Who is your daddy!"

"..."

The喝(he)声(sheng)荡(dang)开(kai),压(ya)在了(zai)这(zhe)已(yi)经(jing)倾(qing)塌(ta)近(jin)半(ban)的(de)第(di)六(liu)殿(dian)上(shang), and it already 赫(he)然(ran)压(ya)垮(kua)了(le)此(ci)冥(ming)殿(dian) , and he chopped off the Sixth Emperor Ghost's head with one knife.

Until this moment, the headless corpse of the Sixth Palace Emperor Ghost and the触(chu)手(shou) on his body were still挥(hui)舞(wu) and摸(mo)索(suo) in unconsciousness.

The expression on his face had an unprecedented 恐(kong)惧(ju) and迷(mi)茫(mang).

(End of this chapter)