usatvline Chapter 150 The Painted Skin Ghost's Counterattack
Chapter 150 The Painted Skin Ghost's Counterattack
Chapter 150 The Painted Skin Ghost's Counterattack
Based on a certain suspicion in his mind, when the two Shang brothers returned, Yue Wuque did not expose their lies. Instead, he immediately sent them to Meng Danqing, saying that he wanted to draw a portrait of their missing sister.
They carried portraits of Shang Sanguan, but those were painted several years ago, before Shang's father got into trouble. They were mainly used by matchmakers to arrange marriages. Regardless of the painting techniques popular now, or the expressions of the people in the paintings, they are definitely different from Shang Sanguan himself.
At the very least, Yue Wuque didn't believe that a heroine like Shang Sanguan, who avenged her father, would usually have the submissive and meek demeanor depicted in her portrait. Since it was meant for matchmakers, the portrait would definitely have been designed to reflect a different person than the real one. To find out what Shang Sanguan actually looked like, Meng Danqing would have to do it.
Shang Chen and Shang Li had no objections. Since their father's accident, the two brothers had been preoccupied with the lawsuit and hadn't paid much attention to other family matters. They hadn't commissioned anyone to paint portraits of their family members again. When Shang Sanguan disappeared, the family had used the same portrait they used for matchmaking. Moreover, after learning about Meng Danqing's abilities, they were eager to see how he would demonstrate them, and thus failed to notice Ding Ziming's complicated expression beside them.
Having learned about the Painted Skin Ghost, Ding Ziming realized that the "Shang Sanguan" in the White Lotus Sect was almost certainly not the real person. Looking at the two brothers who were completely unaware, her eyes involuntarily filled with sympathy. After all, their sister's body was most likely stolen by the Painted Skin Ghost, her skin peeled off and made into "painted skins." Without skin, her body would probably not be left behind and would be forced to rot in the wilderness.
When Ding Ziming first heard them using the excuse of "searching for their missing sister" to deceive others, she considered the brothers' psychology. Perhaps in the eyes of the two brothers, their sister was capable of killing their father's killer, so faking her death to escape wouldn't be out of the question. After all, the body had disappeared as a whole, and no one could be sure of the truth. She had returned after her last disappearance to avenge their father; perhaps she would return after this disappearance as well?
"Mr. Shu Long."
Ding Ziming looked at Shu Longqinxin.
Do you think there's any possibility that Miss Shang could be brought back to life?
The story of Shang Sanguan avenging his father was widely circulated in the local area. To be fair, Ding Zimo did not want such a legendary woman to end up being skinned alive by a monster, without even a complete corpse or a proper burial.
"While the possibility of bringing the dead back to life is astonishing, it is not impossible."
After all, the plot of reincarnation in Liaozhai is quite common. The management of the underworld is flexible and adaptable. When it is strict, it is unquestionable, but when it is lenient, anyone can return to the mortal world and play a second life. Even if someone is reincarnated, the Meng Po soup is as good as nothing. When asked, all they have are memories of their past life.
"But the matter of Miss Shang is basically impossible."
Shang Sanguan's body disappeared only after she was confirmed dead. After she was found hanging, there was a series of procedures to collect the body, conduct an autopsy, report to the authorities, and have someone from the Shang family identify her. If she had the ability to resurrect during this time, she should have done so long ago.
She killed her enemy with her own hands, and committed suicide after achieving her revenge. In this situation, there's probably no possibility of her soul lingering. Shang Sanguan himself probably couldn't have imagined that his body would be stolen after his death. Moreover, this matter is related to the illegal time traveler. The guy who turned himself into a painted skin not only harmed people with other painted skins on a daily basis, but also had the job of disguising his companions.
The truth is basically clear; now only the final portrait is missing. For the two brothers who have traveled a long way to find their sister, the truth may be somewhat cruel, but they cannot be allowed to face the imposter with hope. If they do, the harm they suffer will only be greater.
"Although I had heard before that there were many cruel people in the White Lotus Sect, I never expected..."
Zhao Wang used to be a Buddhist, and his family was known as "great philanthropists" in the village. With the Zhao family around, Ding Ziming even considered that the White Lotus Sect wasn't all bad people. After all, there were all sorts of branches, and maybe the people who attracted Zhao Wang to join were a group of good people?
"It's hard to judge. The larger the group, the more diverse its composition will be. There may be good people in it, but they will definitely not be the ones we are facing."
If there were good people in there, there wouldn't be so much trouble.
Once the portrait of Shang Sanguan was drawn, the last bit of doubt disappeared. The face drawn based on the memories of Shang Chen and Shang Li was basically the same as the real person. After removing all the impressionistic elements that would lead to imagery, the face actually looked quite familiar.
To be honest, they would rather Shang Sanguan's face didn't look so familiar.
"...It's Lan Ying."
After confirming several times that she hadn't misread it, Liu Qingyuan put down the portrait and couldn't help but sigh.
Liu Qingyuan left Huoran Realm and came to the south to help trick the enemy, but when he arrived at Yue Wuque's place, he was met with a bombshell.
This painting, created by Meng Danqing based on the memories of the two Shang brothers, depicts Shang Sanguan, who is clearly the female time traveler named Lan Ying. Although their clothes, hairstyles, and temperaments are different, their basic facial features are completely identical.
Looking back now, Lan Ying was indeed taller than most of the women here, and compared to the masked woman she first met who was a completely mature woman, she looked relatively younger.
Because the focus was on her abilities, Liu Qingyuan didn't pay much attention to her appearance or age. Everyone had become transmigrators traveling between different worlds, and the life and death of normal humans had no relation to her or them. Age had long since become just a string of numbers.
Unexpectedly, Shang Sanguan's body disappeared for more than half a year. At that time, Liu Qingyuan had not yet arrived in the world of Liaozhai. Lan Ying should have used Shang Sanguan's skin around that time, perhaps simply for disguise, or perhaps to better blend into the residence of the Yan family's women. In any case, Liu Qingyuan arrived later and happened to witness the Painted Skin harming people, and incidentally took in the transmigrator as well. Lan Ying has maintained this appearance ever since.
It turns out that they had known "Shang Sanguan" for a long time.
The merchant who knew the businessmen met Lan Ying at the White Lotus Sect's headquarters. This makes sense. Lan Ying is currently a high-ranking member of the White Lotus Sect, so she can naturally observe business negotiations at will. In fact, her role as a bystander may even be to supervise the transaction process.
The rare woman was able to move freely within the White Lotus Sect's territory. When a merchant tried to inquire about her, he would be driven away by other believers because the woman he was trying to find out about was actually the group's "superior," and of course, they wouldn't dare let outsiders inquire about her at will.
"If it's her, then the other guy..."
Of the remaining four illegal transmigrators, only two have a real human form. If Lan Ying's current appearance is just a skin peeled off someone else, then Yi Yang's appearance is probably not his true face either.
With such a useful "painted-skin ghost" as a companion, he didn't believe those people wouldn't take advantage of it. In that case, neither of them would have their true appearance. Wouldn't it have been a waste of time if he had taken their facial information to the underworld to ask Li Huaiwen? Their faces weren't theirs; he wouldn't get any information from them.
"There's something you should probably be mentally prepared for."
Looking at the Shang brothers, Shang Chen and Shang Li, and being stared at by their curious gazes, Liu Qingyuan suddenly didn't know what to say.
As soon as he arrived, Yue Wuque, Shu Longqin, and Xin each grabbed one arm and pulled him in front of the portrait, asking him to identify the person in the painting and tell the Shang brothers the truth about their sister. Theoretically speaking, Yue Wuque and the others had never fought Lan Ying head-on, and although Meng Danqing had met the other party in the capital, it was not a direct confrontation.
Jian Zixianji is different; he is the one who dealt with the Painted Skin, and he even temporarily formed a "White-Clad Sword Immortal" duo with Jian Feidao, chasing Lan Ying and Yi Yang around the capital.
In short, Liu Qingyuan is to play the villain who shatters the brothers' illusions and reveals the cruel truth. Good, good, Yue Wuque, you are truly my best disguise.
Yue Wuque: What Lan Ying? Yu Ren doesn't know her, Yu Ren doesn't know her, you go ahead and do it in your true form.
Liu Qingyuan: I am reporting that Yue Wuque, in collusion with Shu Longqin and Meng Danqing, is engaging in bullying by the majority against the minority!
"Is there something wrong with the portrait of this immortal master?"
Shang Chen and the others were unaware of what had happened. When the portrait was completed, Yue Wuque and Shu Longqinxin came over to look at it for a while, then suddenly left. Soon after, they each pulled a Taoist priest dressed in white into the room and asked him to continue looking at the portrait.
The newcomer was quite different from Yue Wuque and the others. Shu Longqin was dressed in all white, but his coat with a fur collar made him look like a noble young master, and the fan in his hand added to his air of nobility.
Although this person was also dressed in white, and his clothes were different from those of ordinary people, he was dressed in plain white without much decoration, which gave him a sense of returning to simplicity.
Moreover, this person not only has an upright appearance, but also wears clothing with obvious Taoist symbols. Compared to the colorful clothes of Yue Wuque and the others, which make it impossible to tell their identities, this person is clearly a Taoist master.
When Jianzi Xianji's face turned serious, he was quite imposing. After seeing the person in the portrait, he frowned and mumbled a few indistinct words, creating a very intimidating atmosphere. As a result, Shang Chen changed his original address from "Daoist Master" to "Immortal Master".
They were told to prepare themselves mentally, yet their expressions were so serious. More importantly, the portrait depicted their younger sister. When Shang Chen asked them questions, a bad feeling had already arisen in his heart.
"You've come here to find your younger sister, Sanguan, haven't you?"
"Yes, my little sister has been missing for so long..."
Shang Li wanted to continue with his original "sister missing" theory, but Liu Qingyuan interrupted him by raising her hand. When he first arrived, the whole truth had already been explained to him; those two guys had been explaining it to him while supporting him.
“I have seen the woman in the painting before.”
"Really?"
Upon hearing that someone had seen them, the two people opposite were very excited, almost beaming with joy. However, Liu Qingyuan's words quickly took a sharp turn for the worse.
"But the person I know could never be your sister."
It's better to have a short, sharp pain than a long, drawn-out one. Let's get straight to the point.
"The woman I met was named Lan Ying. She was a member of a heretical sect and could control a strange insect, turning other creatures into puppets for her to manipulate. At present, she should be in the White Lotus Sect, working with the Asura King."
"Evil and heretical teachings? How could this be? Sanguan has always..."
Their sister is a courageous and filial heroine; how could she possibly turn into a demon?
"That's why I said she's definitely not Shang Sanguan. As for her appearance... Shang Sanguan is long gone, and her body is missing, right?"
Liu Qingyuan's question immediately caused the two emotionally charged brothers to freeze in their tracks: When did the other party find out the truth?
"……Correct."
Regardless of when they found out, seeing that the other party had no intention of admitting guilt, they directly admitted that they had lied. Their top priority was to find out how their sister had become a heretic. Their initial assumption was that Shang Sanguan might have been bewitched and tricked into joining the White Lotus Sect, just like the second daughter of the Zhao family.
"I have dealt with two harmful painted-skin demons. One of them was connected to Na Lanying. Painted-skin demons are best at peeling off people's skin to make clothes and disguise themselves as beautiful women to bewitch people."
"So, you mean... Sanguan was..."
At this point, it's quite clear: the whereabouts of the younger sister, Shang Sanguan, are unknown. It wasn't some miraculous resurrection, but rather that her body was stolen and skinned by the Painted Skin Ghost, and her appearance was stolen by someone else.
The one in the White Lotus Sect wasn't their sister at all; she was just a wicked and heretical person wearing their sister's skin.
"How could this be... how could this be..."
The locals generally know about Shang Sanguan's deeds. Women rarely go out, so not many people know what Shang Sanguan looks like. However, she once disguised herself as a man to attend her enemy's birthday banquet. Many people have never seen Shang Sanguan, but they have all seen Li Yu at that long banquet.
That's why the merchant traveling south was so surprised when he saw a woman in the White Lotus Sect who looked almost exactly like the deceased Shang Sanguan, and he kept it in his heart until he returned home and told his family.
The body disappeared on the day of the burial. The two brothers were not sure whether their sister was dead or alive. If they told others that they were looking for someone who had been dead for more than half a year, they would probably be thought to be crazy.
So once they left their hometown, the two brothers lied and said their sister was just missing. If Shang Sanguan really was alive, they could take her home and reunite with her. Even if she was truly dead, but just looked a lot like him, they wouldn't regret making this trip.
But they never thought of this answer. Their sister was indeed dead, and her body was stolen and skinned by a demon. She was then impersonated by a stranger who used Shang Sanguan's appearance to commit evil deeds.
"That bastard!"
"What are you doing!"
Seeing the two suddenly leap up, Ding Ziming was startled. Seeing them running towards the outside, he quickly reached out to pull them back, but he couldn't hold back Shang Chen and Shang Li by himself. He could only be pulled along by the two brothers, slowing down a bit with his own weight.
"Damn the White Lotus Sect..."
"Calm down, Immortal Master! Mr. Shulong!"
The two brothers looked like they were going to the White Lotus Sect to settle scores with Lan Ying, but where did they get the strength to do that? Liu Qingyuan had anticipated this development. Who wouldn't be angry when their loved one's corpse was treated like this?
Suddenly, a gust of wind picked up in the room. Without opening the window, Ding Ziming, who was pulling hard on the person, felt two strong gusts of wind blow past her from behind. Suddenly, her grip loosened, and Shang Chen and Shang Li fell to the ground unconscious.
"Take them to rest."
Looking back, I saw two people stopping, one holding a whisk and the other a pipe.