Chapter 155: Wang Ying Wakes Up

The sword radiance of the Fengchi divine weapon slashed through the night sky. The group of Japanese ghosts froze for a moment, and instead of showing any fear, they actually began to close in on us from all sides. Realizing the situation was turning bad, I hurriedly called out to the Ziyjin Colt. At the same time, I swept the Fengchi divine weapon forward with a resounding swish.

After a piercing and chilling wail, a large swathe of Japanese ghosts collapsed before me. Grabbing Wan'er by the hand, I leaped with a single bound onto the back of the Zijin Colt, and instantly we soared into the air.

"Wan'er, are you alright?" I asked, looking back at her as we rode the Zijin Colt.

"I'm fine, but it was so terrifying! Are those actually the Japanese ghosts from the anti-Japanese war movies?" Wan'er asked, wrapping her arms tightly around my waist.

I couldn't help smiling. Even this little girl knew about anti-Japanese dramas. In truth, I couldn't really blame her; during the days I was away, the only companion she had was that old, battered television set.

Glancing down, I saw that the group of Japanese ghosts in the Killing Gully was still dancing around wildly. This stirred a bit of anxiety in me. Would they come out to cause trouble in the middle of the night? Now that I had disturbed them and ruined whatever they were up to, what would happen if they went out to plague the villagers? On second thought, it seemed unlikely; all these years, I had never heard of any nearby villager being harmed by ghosts.

I would just have to take things one step at a time. I couldn't worry about all that right now; the most pressing matter was to return Li Zheng's wife's primordial soul as quickly as possible.

Setting the group of Japanese ghosts aside, I patted the neck of the Zijin Colt and shouted, "Li Zheng's house in Huangjiahe Village!" In the blink of an eye, we arrived. We drifted down at the village entrance, where I put away the Zijin Colt and summoned Qingting into the spirit urn. Since Wan'er possessed a physical form and it was nighttime, there was no need to worry about her. Only then did we walk toward Li Zheng's house.

When we reached Li Zheng's home, his wife was lying on a reed mat in the courtyard, and the entire family was shrouded in deep sorrow. Some of the elders were squatting in the corner, puffing on their long-stemmed pipes and discussing when they should start preparing for the funeral arrangements.

The moment they saw Wan'er and me arrive, Li Jun, Li Zheng, and the others instantly lit up with joy. Li Zheng, in particular, swept away all his arrogance from earlier in the day and grasped both my hands tightly. "Daoist Priest Wang, can my wife still be saved?"

I nodded. "Your wife's soul has been found. Everyone, step back a bit!"

I exchanged a glance with Wan'er, who seized the opportunity to guide Li Zheng's wife's primordial soul back into her physical body. The woman stirred and quickly opened her eyes.

Seeing that his wife had woken up, Li Zheng grabbed my hands and shook them vigorously, his face swollen like a pig's head and streaming with tears. "My good nephew, your uncle was a bastard before, please don't take it to heart!"

Li Jun stepped forward from the side and handed me a thick stack of banknotes. "Daoist Priest Wang, please take this."

I shook my head, naturally unwilling to accept it. "Uncle Li, I have already left the Yin-Yang realm. I won't make a living by this anymore."

A look of guilt crossed Li Jun's face. "Nephew, just take it. This is my older brother's wish, and this is the money your second uncle gave you back in the summer."

While I was hesitating, Wan'er reached out and took the money. "Since it's rightfully ours, we'll take it then!"

While the family was still immersed in their joy, Wan'er and I slipped away. Wang Ying was still at home, and I was quite worried about her. Furthermore, I still needed to channel my genuine qi into her to properly awaken her soul.

Upon returning home, I was surprised to find that the lights in the main hall were actually turned on. Wan'er looked at me and asked, "Brother, did we forget to turn off the lights when we left?"

I shook my head. "I don't think so! I clearly remember turning off the lights when we left." Indeed, I was certain I had extinguished them.

We exchanged a glance and quickly walked toward the main hall. Through the glass window, I was astonished to see that Wang Ying had actually sat up and was sitting there in a daze.

"Brother, Sister Ying is better! Sister Ying is better!" Wan'er said excitedly. A wave of excitement surged within my own heart as well, and with trembling hands, I pushed open the door.

I hadn't seen wrong; Wang Ying had indeed woken up. The young girl sat there, looking as blank and motionless as a person painted on a scroll.

"Wife, you're awake?" I walked over in pleasant surprise and reached out to grasp her hand.

Wang Ying stiffly turned her neck and blinked her pretty eyes. "Who are you?"

"I—I'm your husband, Wang Dachuan!" I said, clutching her soft little hand.

"Wang Dachuan? Husband? That's not right, I don't think I'm even married!" Wang Ying glanced at me, and as if suddenly remembering something, pulled her hand out of my grasp.

Good grief! What on earth was going on? Was this amnesia? People could suffer from amnesia after being injured, but could ghosts too? No way! Surely life couldn't be this tragic! She had finally woken up, yet she didn't remember me.

"Wang Ying, I really am your husband, and you truly are my wife." Looking at the blank-faced Wang Ying, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. If a living person lost their mind, they could go to a hospital for treatment, but what was one supposed to do when a ghost lost her mind?

Wang Ying shook her head like a rattle-drum. "Impossible. I've never been married at all, and you are definitely not my husband. Huh? Buddy, what did you say my name was again?"

Her words struck both Wan'er and me like a bolt of lightning, stunning us completely. What kind of situation was this? I had never anticipated such an outcome. Laughing bitterly, I turned to look at Wan'er. "Little sister, what is going on here?"

Wan'er offered a wry smile as well. "Brother, I've never encountered anything like this before!"

"Sister Ying, your name is Wang Ying, and his name is Wang Dachuan. He is your husband, and you are his wife," Wan'er stepped forward and said, taking Wang Ying's hand.

"Who are you?" Wang Ying tilted her head, looking utterly innocent. If she were a living person, her mental age would probably be around five or six years old.

"My name is Shangguan Wan'er, and I call him brother." Shangguan Wan'er knew that Wang Ying was not fully lucid yet, and saying too much would only confuse her further.

"His name is Wang Dachuan, your name is Shangguan Wan'er, and you're his younger sister? You must be lying!" Wang Ying bit her finger, tilting her head in naive and bewildered doubt.

"This..." Wang Ying's words left Wan'er completely stumped, not knowing how to respond for a moment.

"You two must have gotten it wrong. He has the surname Wang, and I also have the surname Wang, while your surname is Shangguan. The two of you must be the couple, and I'm his younger sister." With that, Wang Ying giggled to herself, perhaps feeling quite proud of her own deduction.

"Wan'er, you just woke up, don't dwell on these things for now. Get some good rest." Seeing that her mind was still unclear, I decided not to argue with her any further. I reached out to take her hand, intending to lead her to the bed so she could rest.

Instead, Wang Ying violently shook my hand off. "No! Men and women should not touch hands when greeting; you should go hold her hand instead!"

Wan'er walked over and smiled at me. "Brother, don't worry. It's already great that Sister Ying has woken up. I think she will slowly recover over time. Let's just wait patiently, there's nothing pressing anyway."

Speechless, I could only accept this. It was already a relief that her soul had revived. Perhaps the residual malevolent yin poison inside her body hadn't been fully expelled yet, and that remnant poison was suppressing her soul! I shared this thought with Wan'er, and she agreed it made sense. Since it was still nighttime anyway, there was no harm in channeling a bit more genuine qi into Wang Ying to clear out any remaining yin poison in her body.

Wan'er took Wang Ying's hand and said gently, "Sister, come sit over here and let brother help you deal with the yin poison in your body, okay?"

"Yin poison?" Wang Ying knitted her brows and looked at Wan'er in confusion.

Repeating herself, Wan'er gently helped Wang Ying to sit down. Wang Ying sat there looking extremely uneasy. The moment I pressed my hand against her waist, she bolted upright with a start. "No! Don't touch me!"

It was utterly depressing. I had only touched her waist through her clothes, yet she reacted so intensely. It seemed she really had zero impression of me left.

"Brother, you're tired too, go get some rest. I'll go chat with Sister Ying and help her recall the past," Wan'er said with a warm, comforting smile.

With a bitter laugh, I nodded. I had no better options left right now, so I could only let the two female ghosts go communicate in the other room.

Watching them head toward Wan'er's room, I lay down feeling thoroughly helpless. Lying in bed, I couldn't describe the strange mix of helplessness and desolation in my heart. Tonight's harrowing experience in the Killing Gully could be entirely overlooked because of Wang Ying's awakening, yet now that she was awake, I couldn't bring myself to feel happy. How could a perfectly fine, beautiful female ghost end up with amnesia?

When a living person suffered from amnesia, it was a problem with their brain. But what was going on when a ghost lost her memory? Where had things gone wrong?

Though I lay in bed, my mind had drifted entirely to the room where Wan'er and Wang Ying were. How wonderful it would have been if Wang Ying were just like her old self! What a poetic and romantic moment this should have been.

Yet she had lost her memory—so completely that she didn't even recognize me. I had never encountered such a situation before; how was I supposed to handle it? A living person could go to the hospital for treatment, but where on earth could a ghost seek medical help?

Just as my mind was racing with wild thoughts, Wan'er came out and sat down on the edge of my bed with a helpless expression. "Brother, Sister Ying wouldn't listen to a single word. She can't remember anything from the past at all. Not only does she refuse to admit that the two of you are a couple, but she insists that the two of us are the couple instead. Look at that, she chased me out and told the two of us to sleep together."