The dark street was quiet as Yu Daochen walked slowly towards the hotel alone.
A faint light emanated from the jade pendant at his waist, and Rui Ye's voice emerged.
"Do you smell anything floral?"
Yu Daochen paused, then sniffed, realizing he had lost his sense of smell.
"Rui Ye, what kind of scent is it?" Yu Daochen asked.
After a moment, Rui Ye's voice came through, "I don't know. This scent is very special, and it feels familiar."
Yu Daochen didn't pay much attention. "This shouldn't be dangerous, right?"
Rui Ye, from within the jade pendant, cautioned, "It's better to be careful."
Yu Daochen nodded. "With you here, Rui Ye, ordinary people shouldn't be able to harm me."
With Rui Ye's strength as a Ghost King, as long as it wasn't five Heavenly Ranking experts attacking together, others were truly not worth fearing.
Rui Ye in the jade pendant remained silent. Indeed, with his power, ordinary people couldn't do much to him.
Yu Daochen scanned his surroundings, finding no one following, and quickened his pace. After all, caution is the parent of safety.
As Yu Daochen rounded a corner, his eyelids began to droop.
"Damn it, that scent was definitely problematic. I've been ambushed," Yu Daochen cursed inwardly.
"Kid, are you alright?" Rui Ye's voice from the jade pendant inquired.
Yu Daochen shook his head. "That scent is problematic!"
Yu Daochen leaned against the nearby wall, slumping to the ground. His eyelids grew heavier, and though he tried to stand, he had no strength.
"Someone's behind us!"
Rui Ye in the jade pendant suddenly exclaimed. Yu Daochen sensed it; indeed, someone was following.
Yu Daochen's heart pounded with extreme tension. If the enemy attacked now, he would be utterly defenseless.
Yu Daochen's eyelids felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, impossible to lift. If this continued, he would surely lose consciousness.
Yu Daochen bit his tongue to stay awake.
"Rui Ye, I'll have to trouble you for now. I'll try to expel this thing with my energy."
As soon as Yu Daochen finished speaking, he sat down cross-legged, channeling his energy to force the substance out.
Rui Ye in the jade pendant grunted, and a wisp of white smoke drifted out.
In the dark corner behind them, Xiao Jie's expression changed upon seeing this. "He actually has a Ghost King with him!"
Tan Qi, standing beside her, was also surprised that Yu Daochen carried a Ghost King.
"Xiao Jie, maybe we should retreat. We can't deal with this Ghost King."
Tan Qi began to falter. A Ghost King required at least four Heavenly Ranking experts to handle, and the two of them were far from enough.
Xiao Jie snorted. "I don't want to let a duck that's already in my grasp get away."
Rui Ye stared coldly at the two. "Either leave, or die!"
Tan Qi swallowed. Xiao Jie pulled a small black flag from her pocket. "This treasure is specifically designed to counter ghosts."
Seeing the small black flag Xiao Jie produced, Tan Qi was astonished. "How did a sect treasure end up in your hands?"
Xiao Jie grinned. "I stole this treasure from the treasure vault."
Upon hearing this, Tan Qi immediately exclaimed, "You're crazy! If the sect leader finds out, we'll both be expelled!"
Xiao Jie was unconcerned. "What are you afraid of? This treasure was gathering dust in the vault. I'll just use it for a bit and then sneak it back when we return."
Seeing the small black flag, Rui Ye clenched his fist and lunged at the two. Although he didn't know what this little thing did, striking first was always the best policy.
As Rui Ye charged forward, Xiao Jie quickly planted the black flag into the ground and chanted, "Heavenly Gang Earth Fiend Immortal Locking Chain, Locking Immortal Array, activate!"
As Xiao Jie finished speaking, Rui Ye's fist was less than half a meter away from them. Suddenly, countless pitch-black chains emerged from beneath Rui Ye's feet.
Rui Ye cried out in alarm, realizing he was in trouble. He tried to retreat, but it was too late. The chains wrapped around Rui Ye's thighs, then his arms.
Rui Ye channeled his ghost energy, attempting to forcibly break the chains, but the moment he did, the chains absorbed all of his ghost energy.
"This is the Soul Reaping Chain of the Underworld!" Rui Ye's face changed drastically. This small black flag could summon the Soul Reaping Chain of the Underworld.
Xiao Jie chuckled. "This Heavenly Gang Earth Fiend Flag can even lock a Ghost King-level treasure."
Yu Daochen, watching from the side, also changed his expression. He had heard Old Huo talk about this Heavenly Gang Earth Fiend Flag before; even he would be trapped for a while and unable to escape. He never expected it to be in their hands.
Yu Daochen leaned against the wall and slowly got up. Just as he was about to use his Nine Reincarnation Eyes, Xiao Jie rushed towards him in a single stride.
As Xiao Jie reached Yu Daochen, she pulled a small black pill from her pocket. "Handsome Yu, I've heard about your Nine Reincarnation Eyes."
As Xiao Jie spoke, the hand holding the pill lunged towards Yu Daochen's mouth.
Yu Daochen tried to raise his hand to block, but he had no strength, so he could only let Xiao Jie force the pill into his mouth.
Xiao Jie brought her nose close to Yu Daochen's neck and took a deep breath, looking as if she was savoring it. "Is this the scent of an unparalleled prodigy?"
Yu Daochen knew he couldn't confront them directly right now. He staggered backward, preparing to condense his Nine Reincarnation Eyes.
Yu Daochen's left eye focused, but he couldn't summon his Nine Reincarnation Eyes at all.
"That pill can seal the energy within the body," Yu Daochen realized who they were.