Granny Meng
“I know how to enter now,” said Mu Yu, drawing inspiration from the Ghost Gate disciples coming and going.
Mu Yu tailed a Body Severing Realm disciple who scrambled into the woods leading to a city. Mu Yu fired off a branch, tangling up the disciple and knocking him unconscious. “And now, we just need him to take us in.”
“We’re going to hide in Wood Spirit, and have him take us through the formation?” queried the dragon vine.
“No, they’d still detect us even if we hid in Wood Spirit. We need him to take us through the entrance.”
The guard captain was on a mission to locate seventeen souls that passed away between eleven at night and one in the morning for some mysterious ritual. Mu Yu tried his luck at finding out about Walk-in Heart Genesis, but he failed. Finding out his name was Gui Congliang, which could mean ‘reform’, Xiaoshuai found it hilarious.
“Doesn’t it matter if the victims were killed or die of natural causes?” questioned the dragon vine, disgusted with Ghost Gate’s ways.
“We need to let him go off and collect the souls even though we hate it. Anyway, let’s make haste.”
Gui Congliang took Wood Spirit Sword to the tomb just as Mu Yu suspected he would and pressed his hand on it, injecting ghost qi into the gravestone. The gravestone shone grey and sunk down, revealing a staircase leading down to a deep, dark cave. It wasn’t safe yet because Gui Congliang informed there were guards down there. Though disciples with twins seldom took this route, it wasn’t too hard for them to remember the way.
At the end of the quiet staircase were two rows of green flames hanging from the stone walls along a stone passageway. At the end of the passageway was a narrow timber bridge they had to cross to climb the staircase leading to the sect grounds. Ghouls could be heard crying from beneath the bridge.
“Which faction are you with? Why are you crossing the bridge?”
Mu Yu never noticed the skinny, anxious-looking granny, who had ascended beyond Body Synthesis Realm, standing in a dark corner, using her bone walking stick that had an actual hand for a handle.
Granny Meng was in charge of having new disciples drink the burbling red liquid in her hovering stone basin and the four bowls orbiting the basin as a welcoming ceremony for new disciples. The liquid was aptly called dead soup, which was purportedly brewed from the bones of the dead.
“I am with the seventeenth faction. I came here because… because…” Gui Congliang gulped at the sight of the red liquid as he racked his brains for an answer. Mu Yu took over, continuing, “Because my twin was hurt while I was on a mission and, therefore, cannot pass through the formation.”
Granny Meng coughed. “I see. You seem interested in this walking stick of mine. This is my husband’s hand. After I killed him to turn into my twin, I cut his hands off for I couldn’t bear to part with him. Now we can always hold hands.”
“I-I-I know the story. You told me last time.”
“Of course you have. I’m sharing the story with our visitor. Dear guest, why are you trying to sneak into Ghost Gate?” questioned Granny Meng, staring at the grass blade on Gui Congliang’s shoulder.
“All those who wish to become one of us must pass my test. Do you want to become one of us?” asked Granny Meng, casually passing the stone basin over using her walking stick.
Only then did Mu Yu notice the second hand that supposedly belonged to her husband was used as the base for her walking stick! The hand she held could move as if it was alive, scooping up a bowl of the red soup with said hand.
“You can’t pass the bridge unless you drink my soup.”
Seeing the hand and bowl floating in the air, Mu Yu called, “Leg it!”
Mu Yu forced Gui Congliang to attack Granny Meng to afford himself time to slip past.
“I told you: you can’t cross unless you drink my soup,” repeated Granny Meng, showing that she had lost all her teeth upon attempting a Cheshire smile.
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