Roaring Dragon-Chapter 80: Ain’t This Some Ghostly Shit?

3:00 AM.

A silver moon hung high above. The stone-paved streets were bathed in pale, ghostly light. A night watchman passed by the alley entrance, tapping his gong in a slow rhythm—one loud, four soft:

“Dong... dong-dong...”

Deep inside a shadowy alley stood the Wu family residence.

The estate lay in darkness. Wu Su, hair graying at the temples, sat behind a rosewood desk, elbows pressed to his forehead. The crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes revealed a face twisted in torment.

Back in the corpse storage cave, when Lin Wanyi obtained a single drop of Xie Jinhuan’s blood, it had given her a feeling of total bodily bliss—an almost addicting high. That was a feature of demon path cultivation:

The Bloodthirst Craving.

Wu Su had it even worse.

The essence of demon cultivation was indulge instinct, prioritize self-interest, seize from others. The more it felt good, the more it worked. Once a cultivator reached the “Unleashed Desires” phase, every training session became a euphoric high that left them fiending for the next.

The physical body didn’t develop addiction, but the heart did—and there was no cure for that kind.

Instant gains rivaling what others grind for years...

The more unrestrained you are, the faster you grow...

No laws, morals, doctrines, or ethics binding you...

Once you’d tasted that freedom, reality felt like a cage. That hunger to rise at any cost was what drove demon cultivators onward.

Blood Essence Crystals could soothe the Bloodthirst Craving, but it was like sniffing powdered bullhorn—temporary pleasure, nowhere near the high of the real thing.

Wu Su had once been a run-of-the-mill antique dealer. In his thirties, he stumbled upon a Five Elemental Seal and took up cultivation late in life. It took him nearly two decades of stumbling to claw his way into sixth-rank.

But after realizing he’d likely never rise further, he began studying demon-path texts and consuming Demon Transformation Pills. In three years, he went from sixth rank to fourth.

At first, he dared not kill. But once he mastered the Essence-Seizing Art, and his growth stalled again, he gave in to temptation. His first victim came early this year—a full-body drain. And after that... he couldn’t stop.

He remained cautious—relying on pills 90% of the time.

But if he ever let loose—pillaging cities, draining entire villages—he was sure he could reach the peak in no time. Maybe even become an immortal like Imperial Preceptor Lu Wuzhen. No more spending silver on ingredients either.

If only this world didn’t have the Three Teachings, the Hundred Schools, court law, or so many damn meddlesome righteous heroes...

Wu Su wanted to let go—just once. See what it was like to suck a top cultivator dry, to make one of those legendary heroines his personal cauldron...

But reality was full of chains. He had to live like a sewer rat—dodging even the most ordinary officers, bowing his head at the slightest risk.

He knew the court had begun a crackdown. Fingernails digging into his temples, he suppressed the growing urge to go out and take just one more life.

But the devil in his heart never stopped whispering:

You’ve got a divine artifact. No one can find you...

Just kill one more. Quick and clean...

You trained all your life for this. Why live like a coward...

As he wrestled with himself, the watchman’s gong echoed again outside:

“Dong... dong-dong...”

On the desk, a faint glow flickered.

Wu Su snapped to attention. Bloodshot eyes turned to the seal sitting before him.

Palm-sized, engraved with a Yellow Qilin, the seal looked like yellow jade. But now the Qilin’s eyes gleamed faintly.

He picked up the Yellow Qilin Seal and infused it with qi. The eyes cast a shifting pattern of light onto the desk.

He’d had the artifact for over 20 years. It contained a rare enchantment called Magnetic Gold Curse—able to detect hidden spiritual treasures. By sensing the auras of magical tools and weapons, he could deduce where other cultivators were.

The current specks of light were black and green—likely water- and wood-type artifacts. Looked like more than one...

Patrolling immortals?

Wu Su frowned. But as he tracked the lights’ movement, he suddenly noticed they were closing in—directly toward the Yellow Qilin Seal!

?!

Despite years of caution, this was the first time his location had been pinpointed by a master. His scalp prickled with terror. No hesitation—he grabbed his prepared bag and bolted for the door.

——

Under the silver moon, the watchman’s lantern faded into the distance down the alley.

Xie Jinhuan stepped out from a side path and surveyed the shadowed corridor. After a full day of chasing leads, he was starting to feel the fatigue.

Meiqiu, who’d been napping between moments of usefulness, was now lively—soaring overhead and scanning the buildings.

Linghu Qingmo followed with sword drawn, eyes sweeping their surroundings.

They both knew Wu Su was the prime suspect. But the antique district was a wealthy area with hundreds of households. Asking around at this hour wasn’t practical—they’d have to search manually.

But Xie Jinhuan didn’t rely on eyes to hunt evil. He had his ghost wife radar.

After a few alleys, her voice tickled his ears:

“Oho~ Looks like you get to confiscate illegal goods. Someone’s using secret arts to scan ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) for spiritual items—southwest side.”

Jinhuan’s brows knit together. He casually glanced at Meiqiu, then silently vaulted the wall and headed southwest.

Qingmo didn’t notice anything off with the hawk. She was just about to ask something when Meiqiu’s call echoed overhead:

“Gu~ gu~!”

Jinhuan caught the signal. The target was fleeing.

No need to hide now. He leapt forward:

“Southwest. One hundred and four zhang. You flank left, I’ll take right.”

Whoosh—

He became a blur in the moonlight, racing toward the distant buildings.

“Eh?” Qingmo blinked but reacted fast. She charged to the left at full speed.

Within moments, they heard wind shear from half a li away—someone had just leapt from the rooftops!

Fwoosh fwoosh—

Qingmo saw the black figure and quickly formed a seal with her left hand, chanting silently:

“Heaven commands wind to rise, Earth shifts beneath... By imperial decree, move!”

Boom—

Qi surged through her. Her speed spiked dramatically, shooting her several zhang forward in an instant—momentarily outpacing Jinhuan.

Huh?

Jinhuan blinked in surprise. But her “Divine Step Incantation” didn’t last long—each burst faded fast, forcing her to dash again like a skipping stone.

Still, that was more than enough.

Jinhuan pressed in from the right; the two flanked their target, pushing him toward the main streets where patrolling immortals roamed.

But the rogue cultivator wasn’t stupid. Realizing he couldn’t shake pursuit, he dove into a maze of buildings, cutting the wind and vanishing from view.

Qingmo lost visual—no way to keep up.

Jinhuan, however, merely glanced at Meiqiu again and veered toward a side street.

Even with suppressed footsteps, the rogue somehow sensed him and doubled back.

Jinhuan turned—so did he. Again and again.

Tch.

Jinhuan realized he’d entered a “ghost mirror chase.” This guy had some serious surveillance technique—probably using spiritual detection like himself.

But Jinhuan was a walking radar system, topped with a “drone chicken.” If this guy shook him, Jinhuan might as well retire.

Still, with Qingmo nearby, he couldn’t go all-out yet.

“This one’s tricky,” he shouted. “Go alert the immortals. I’ll hold him here!”

Qingmo couldn’t read Meiqiu’s signals or track the suspect. She nodded and sprinted toward the bustling street.

The moment she left, Jinhuan dropped all pretense and went full throttle. Guided by his ghost wife, he honed in on Wu Su.

——

Meanwhile, Wu Su sprinted through shadowed eaves and corridors, using the Yellow Qilin Seal to track pursuers.

Tonight was cursed.

Go left—they go left. Go right—they go right!

They were half a li away, out of earshot, no line of sight, and he hadn’t been seen by any hawks. And they weren’t transcendent elders either. So how the hell...?

Does this bastard also have a Magnetic Gold Seal?!

Wu Su debated ditching his valuables—but the seal was his lifeline. Without it, he’d be dead anyway. So he ran, trying to escape their detection radius.

But the one chasing him was even tougher than expected.

As soon as the girl ran off, the other pursuer’s speed surged. He made a beeline toward Wu Su. No hesitation, no delay. It felt like the guy could see through walls and was hot on his heels.

What the—?!

Wu Su was shaken. The pursuer’s artifact had to be top-tier.

Rooftops would expose him. The alleys slowed him. He hesitated just a second too long—fwoosh—and the wind changed behind him.

He knew he’d been locked on. No more running.

He slid to a stop inside a large courtyard and turned to face the enemy.

Clatter...

Whoosh—

A figure shot from the rooftops, landing squarely on the west wing’s tiled roof.

Thud—

The muffled impact left the courtyard in utter silence.

Wu Su tensed. The white-robed figure gripped a mace hilt, eyes like frozen springs, gaze sharp enough to pin his limbs in place.

“You’ve got some skills,” Jinhuan said. “No wonder the magistrates couldn’t catch you.”

Wu Su’s hand tightened around the Yellow Qilin Seal in his sleeve. His heart sank.

But also... confusion.

“What artifact are you using? How did you find me?”

Jinhuan studied the gray-haired old man. Just a fourth-rank mutt. He dropped his battle stance:

“We’re all bottom-feeding rogue cultivators. Everyone’s got a lucky break or two. Seems yours wasn’t as good as mine. That Yellow Qilin Seal in your sleeve—where’d you get it?”

?!

Wu Su’s heart jolted. The seal was hidden in his sleeve—yet this guy named it directly. Clearly not someone to mess with.

He bit his lip, tossed his bag to the ground.

“Got it from a grave robber. The seal, the silver—it’s all yours. Just... please spare me.”

Jinhuan leapt into the courtyard:

“If I kill you, I get everything anyway—and I’d earn a nice ‘Defender of the People’ badge on top of it. What would you choose?”

Silence.

The courtyard fell still.