In the vision of the future, a Daoist sage descended, forcibly killing Zhou Xuan and severely injuring the Red Coffin Lady.
Lord Jian halted his steps, looked up at the heavens, and after a half-minute of silence, said to the Red Coffin Lady,
"Guan Niang, I just used the method of ’Insight’ to observe the future. When I enter the Arrow Qi Cage to capture the Evil God, a Daoist sage will seek trouble with you and the Zhou Family’s Nuo God.
Therefore, the task of eliminating the Evil God falls to you. I’ll wield my bow and send out a few arrows to act as your protector."
"A Daoist sage lurking nearby? One from the Time-Space World?" the Red Coffin Lady asked.
According to Miss Qiang, the ’master’ of Jing Country could turn five years of past time into a world.
Thus, the Red Coffin Lady wanted to know whether the Daoist sage lurking nearby was from the Time-Space World or...
Lord Jian nodded and said, "The Daoist sages nearby are not from the Time-Space World but are from the real world of Jing Country."
In the Time-Space World, Lord Jian, the Red Coffin Lady, and Zhou Xuan were isolated and unsupported.
The Daoist sage sought to take advantage of this opportunity to act.
"Why has the Daoist sage come?" the Red Coffin Lady asked Lord Jian.
"Daoist sages are sent by the Gods as personal guards. Gods fear that human geniuses might ascend after the Ninth Incense stick, becoming New Gods. To eliminate this threat, they send Daoist sages to kill talents while their wings are still unformed."
Lord Jian continued, "However, the God of Divine Arrow Hall, ’Gong Zheng,’ never engages in such despicable acts. So I suspect the Daoist sage might belong to your Bitter Ghost lineage. They’ve descended into the Time-Space World solely to kill you?"
"Impossible. Our Bitter Ghost lineage consists of impoverished families reliant on waterwork. Bitter Ghost pities the Tangkou disciples and, like ’Gong Zheng,’ doesn’t kill Tangkou talents. Bitter Ghost doesn’t even possess real Daoist sages; instead, all Bitter Ghost disciples across the world are its Daoists."
The Red Coffin Lady refuted Lord Jian’s speculation.
But Zhou Xuan found it curious. Ever since he learned of ’Daoist sages,’ he assumed every hall’s God was equally ’shameless,’ nurturing Daoists to kill human geniuses.
But now it seemed that the moral standings among Gods varied significantly.
"If they’re not targeting me nor targeting you, then the Daoist sage must be after..."
Lord Jian turned to Zhou Xuan and asked, "Could they be coming for you?"
"Probably," Zhou Xuan said with a bitter smile. His cultivation speed was indeed extraordinary.
"Guan Niang, no matter who they’re after, you handle the Evil God. I’ll act as the protector."
The Red Coffin Lady extended her jade finger and tapped Zhou Xuan’s brow with a playful laugh, saying, "Young Master, I’m not very familiar with Mingjiang Prefecture. Is East Market Street far from Mingjiang?"
Zhou Xuan replied, "After leaving the street, walk two more blocks, and you’ll reach Mingjiang. Walking leisurely, without rushing, it’s less than half an hour."
"That’s close, then,"
The Red Coffin Lady said, "Our Bitter Ghost lineage’s prowess shines in great rivers and waters. Being too far from rivers might weaken our abilities."
With that, the Red Coffin Lady tilted her head back and began singing a sorrowful song,
This type of lamenting tune was one Zhou Xuan and Lv Mingkun had heard before while having breakfast at the dock of Nineteen Berths.
It was a unique kind of dockworker’s labor chant.
There are only three types of ultimate hardships in life: forging iron, piloting boats, milling tofu.
The hardship of navigating boats—daily surrounded by heavy water vapor—over time causes inflammation in most joints, and during rainy weather, the pain becomes unbearable.
At the same time, boatmen in vast rivers face grave dangers. Encountering storms often leads to both boat and crew being swallowed by the Water Dragon King.
With lives full of misery, boatmen dislike singing those loud and enthusiastic chants when laboring. Living off the river, what joy could there possibly be?
Thus, lamenting songs became their emotional solace.
Now, as the Red Coffin Lady’s sorrowful tune reverberated, Zhou Xuan, standing not far away, could clearly feel a sense of sadness,
His mind conjured images of tugmen and boatmen with muscular arms, their hair soaked from the river mist.
And as Guan Niang’s lament carried on, Mingjiang surged with towering waves.
The waves lifted a massive red coffin and propelled it toward East Market Street.
At this moment, if anyone in Mingjiang Prefecture lifted their head, they would see a transparent cloud of water hovering in the sky.
The water cloud carried the coffin, rushing forward, and as it moved, the water’s energy dissipated. This was why the Red Coffin Lady asked Zhou Xuan about the distance between East Market Street and Mingjiang.
Bitter Ghost lineage’s skills manifest in water—they grow even more domineering the closer they are to great rivers.
Fortunately, East Market Street wasn’t far from Mingjiang. When the water cloud enveloped the street overhead, its aura remained intact.
"Water Coffin Ascends, Stealing Heaven and Confusing Fate."
With both hands moving in opposite directions, the Red Coffin Lady seemed to part a curtain of water.
The water cloud and coffin in the sky separated from one another.
The coffin hovered directly above Zhou Xuan’s head,
While the water cloud flowed into Lord Jian’s Arrow Qi Cage, transforming into a human figure that shimmered with colorful radiance under sunlight.
As the brilliance intensified, the coffin above Zhou Xuan’s head erupted with a crimson glow, accompanied by deafening clashes from inside.
When the light in the Arrow Qi Cage grew even brighter, blinding to the eye, the coffin began shaking violently in mid-air, and the clashing sounds grew unceasing.
The Evil God within the cage had been swapped into the coffin—this was the Red Coffin Lady’s Stealing Heaven and Confusing Fate.
"Foolish creature, still struggling?"
The Red Coffin Lady bent her knees slightly, pushing off the ground. Her figure moved like a water swallow, gracefully landing atop the coffin. With great force, her right hand slammed downward onto the coffin’s interior.