The true form of Sister Si Snake was a green snake.
Facing the old toad demon before her, she exerted a complete suppression.
I watched from afar, like an observer.
I didn't care who sealed these demons, nor why they were sealed here.
The only thing I understood was that they were a group of evil fiends who needed to be eradicated.
The serendipitously obtained Mermaid Pearl was an unexpected bonus.
I would study it carefully after taking it back.
The old demon croaked "gu gu gu" at this moment, emitting a black aura. The energy of negative emotions surged outwards.
He was fighting for his life, attempting to escape.
Unfortunately, he was facing his natural predator.
Furthermore, surrounded by the Twelve Demon Souls, escape was impossible.
The old demon struggled for only about ten minutes before Sister Si Snake bit into its head.
Amidst the old demon's screams, it died at the riverbed.
However, its soul could not escape.
Just as it was about to flee, it was ensnared by Sister Si Snake's tail and pulled back.
"No, let go of me, let go of me, you lied, you lied..."
As it spoke, it glared venomously in my direction.
But I shrugged nonchalantly.
I did say I would let him go, and I didn't intervene.
The Twelve Demon Souls made the move; Sister Si Snake killed him. What did it have to do with me?
Sister Si Snake's eyes glowed green as she spoke coldly:
"So much nonsense..."
With that, she lunged and bit into the toad demon's soul, swallowing it whole.
The old demon died here with a final, unwilling cry.
The surrounding ghosts, corpse fish, lost their control in that instant and began to scatter, fleeing in all directions.
After the old demon's death, Sister Si Snake transformed into human form.
The Twelve Demon Souls also returned to my side.
"Young Master Qin, the toad demon has been eliminated!"
"..."
Seeing the Twelve Demon Souls, I nodded with a smile:
"You have all worked hard. However, the problems here are not completely resolved. Several fish-headed monsters escaped earlier; I'll trouble you to hunt them down to the last."
With that, I clasped my hands.
I truly had no way to pursue the escaping water elemental spirits.
I could only let the Twelve Zodiacs, who were also demon souls, hunt and clear them out.
The Twelve Demon Souls did not hesitate.
They immediately nodded:
"As you command!"
"Young Master Qin, rest assured, we will report back before dawn!"
"Brothers, let's split into twelve directions and pursue!"
"..."
The Twelve Demon Souls quickly made their arrangements.
Swiftly, they dispersed in twelve directions, commencing the pursuit of the previously escaped fish-headed water elementals.
After the Twelve Demon Souls departed, I turned my gaze to the more than forty human souls kneeling on the ground nearby, bound by chains of black mist.
With my invisibility cloak, my speed in the water was considerable.
In a short while, I arrived before these souls.
Upon seeing me, these souls became extremely agitated.
My second aunt cried out:
"Xiao Ze, Xiao Ze, I'm your second aunt, your second aunt! I held you when you were little! Hurry and save me, save me!"
I was somewhat speechless.
You remember I'm your second aunt now?
In the village, my uncle and aunt were notorious.
One was a miser, stingy to the bone, always trying to gain an advantage.
The other was a notorious shrew, who would verbally abuse anyone who so much as glanced at her house.
But since my aunt was already dead, I wouldn't say much.
I simply replied briefly:
"I see!"
At the same time, the public officials from the Environmental Protection Bureau looked at me excitedly:
"Brother, you, you're actually a Taoist priest!"
"You, I never expected you to be this powerful."
"..."
Looking at these public officials, I merely smiled:
"Didn't I tell you? I would intervene. Now look, you've even sacrificed your lives."
"Ah? Our lives, we, we can't go back?"
"We, can we still be saved? I don't want to die!"
"Brother, please save me!"
"..."
For a moment, the more than forty souls spoke out.
They pleaded with me to save them, to send them back to life.
I did not immediately agree, but gestured for them to quiet down.
Seeing them silent, I formed hand seals and struck a pitch-black chain of mist on the ground.
With a "crack," the chains shattered.
The more than forty souls were freed, regaining their liberty.
Then I spoke:
"Don't fall behind, follow me to the shore first. I need to catch my breath. I feel suffocated in the water!"
With that, I didn't hesitate, turned, and swam towards the shore.
The forty-odd souls behind me scrambled to catch up.
Perhaps unaccustomed to their ghostly forms, they tumbled and staggered in the water.
When I emerged from the water and reached the shore,
I took a deep breath and removed my invisibility cloak.
I was soaked, but thankfully the weather wasn't cold.
I glanced beside me; my bag, left on the bank, was still there. Fortunately.
It contained many tools and talismans that would be useful later.
The ghosts, one by one, crawled out of the river.
I wasn't in a hurry, just waited nearby.
After the human souls came ashore, they cautiously approached me, afraid of offending me.
They seemed hesitant to speak, appearing timid and apprehensive.
I waited by the bank for about five minutes before all forty-odd human souls had landed.
Seeing that all the souls were ashore,
I said to the crowd:
"Is everyone here?"
"Yes, yes!"
"Taoist Master, please send us home quickly!"
"Yes, yes, Taoist Master, please send us back!"
"We will repay your great kindness."
"..."
All the souls spoke out.
I nodded:
"Alright, listen to me now. Those who died within the last day, stand over here.
Those who died more than a day ago, stand over here."
The souls exchanged glances, then began to form lines.
Soon, they were divided into two groups.
Most had died more than a day ago.
Thirty-four people.
Only eight had died within the last day.
In other words, these thirty-four people had virtually no chance of resurrection...