Chapter 75 — The Talisman Painter Who Guards the Village

Blazing Blue Water

The alarm bell rang out in the middle of the night, loud and harsh, waking the entire Tông Vân Các from its restless sleep. Diệp Sương jumped up from the bed and rushed out into the hallway, where the disciples were rushing back and forth, everyone's faces were extremely tense.

"Lam Thủy Town!" a disciple shouted as he ran by. "Demons poured in from the huge crack in the middle of the market, in unprecedented numbers!"

Diệp Sương's heart tightened. Âu Bội Nhi's mother was still there, along with thousands of other people who had only just begun to rebuild their lives after the previous damage.

*

She rushed to Âu Bội Nhi's room and saw that her friend had quickly dressed, her face pale with panic. "I have to go now," Âu Bội Nhi said, her voice trembling but determined. "My mother..."

"I'll go with you," Diệp Sương replied immediately, without any hesitation.

The two ran to the gathering yard, where Tạ Vân Khê was commanding an emergency rescue team consisting of the best inner and outer sect disciples. Thanh Việt, Chung Nhã Trúc, and even Wei Bá Tuân were also present, fully equipped with weapons and spiritual ink.

*

"Diệp Sương, Miên Trà, Du Khinh — you guys come with my team," Tạ Vân Khê ordered decisively, her eyes scanning each person, quickly assessing their abilities before assigning tasks. "Thanh Việt, you lead another team to go around the north of the town to block the path of demons from spreading out. Chung Nhã Trúc, you take care of the evacuation."

The whole team immediately set out, riding as if flying through the dark night, flickering torchlight illuminating the path down the mountain. Miên Trà, though she had never taken part in such a large-scale battle, kept her spirit up as she rode the same horse as Diệp Sương, clutching her shirt tightly.

*

When arriving at Lam Thủy Town, the scene before their eyes made the whole team speechless for a moment. From the giant crack in the middle of the market square, dozens of strange creatures were continuously pouring out — not ordinary demon beasts, but distorted, mutated shapes, as if the chaotic energy of the Linh Mạch had molded them from nothing.

Fires burned everywhere, screams of terror echoed through the narrow streets, groups of imperial soldiers and sect disciples were fighting in a passive position, the overwhelming number of demons caused the defense line to continuously be breached.

"Split into three shots!" Tạ Vân Khê shouted loudly through the chaotic noise. "Diệp Sương, lead a small group to the central market, that's the main source. The rest, follow me to help the people evacuate!"

*

Diệp Sương rushed straight into the most dangerous area, already holding a pen and a specially made ink bottle mixed with Mr. Tám Mực's formula and herbs from the Thâm Vụ Forest. She continuously drew modified talisman leaves, forming an arc of light to prevent the flow of demons from spreading farther through the market.

Du Khinh fought right beside her, the Vụ Ẩn clan's strength and speed fully unleashed in the chaos. He defeated each monster with such precision that many soldiers watched with widened eyes.

"Left!" Miên Trà shouted a warning, discovering a much larger monster rushing straight towards a group of civilians who had not yet evacuated.

*

Not far away, Âu Bội Nhi and a few other disciples were trying their best to lead groups of panicked people out of the dangerous area. Her hands were shaking with fear but still trying to hold steady to calm the crying children in their parents' arms. Amid the chaotic crowd, she suddenly saw a familiar figure - her mother, trying to help an old neighbor woman escape from the burning house.

"Mom!" she shouted, rushing forward, catching the old woman together, leading them both to safety behind the lines. Her mother hugged her, tears and smoke smeared on her face, unable to say a word other than choking sobs.

Wei Bá Tuân, fighting not far away, defeated three small monsters in succession that were trying to sneak through the gaps in the defense line, his face full of fierceness, completely different from the familiar arrogance of the day before. When a young soldier collapsed from exhaustion right in front of an oncoming monster, he did not hesitate to rush forward and shield the soldier, receiving a deep scratch on his arm in exchange for that soldier's life.

*

Diệp Sương turned around and quickly drew a large talisman right on the ground, combining both the classic suppression technique taught by the sect and the soft, soothing strokes she learned from the Vụ Ẩn clan - a combination that had never been tried in an emergency situation of this level. The light flared up violently, creating a temporary barrier that was enough for the group of civilians to escape.

The monster roared in pain and turned to attack Diệp Sương directly. It backed away, its hands shaking because it had used up almost all its strength, but at the most dangerous moment, a silver arrow flashed across, hitting the monster's eye, causing it to stop long enough for Du Khinh to rush in to finish it off.

*

"Thank you," Diệp Sương panted, turning to look at the person who had just shot the arrow - Thanh Việt, who was leading his team to break through the siege from the north, promptly gathering his troops at the most difficult moment.

"Don't thank me yet," he replied, his voice serious, pointing towards the large crack in the middle of the square that was still continuously erupting with more monsters. "The source hasn't been sealed yet. If we can't deal with it, no matter how many we kill, it will be useless."

Diệp Sương looked at the deep crack, the strange purple light rising from the bottom of the abyss, and a cold premonition ran down her spine—this was not an ordinary disturbance, but a gaping wound directly on the Linh Mạch's own body.

*

"I need time," he said, his voice urgent. "If you can temporarily restrain the mouth of the crack, perhaps you can slow down the flow of chaos, until someone is capable of dealing with the root cause."

"I will support you," Thanh Việt replied immediately, without hesitation, leading his team to form a protective circle around the area where Diệp Sương was preparing to act.

She knelt down at the mouth of the crack, her hands shaking from exhaustion but still trying to hold on, and began to draw an unprecedentedly large talisman - combining everything she had learned throughout her life, from Mr. Tám Mực, from the sect, and from the Vụ Ẩn clan - a desperate attempt to temporarily close the bleeding wound of the whole land.

*

Warm yellow light gradually spread from the giant talisman, covering the mouth of the crack like a temporary shield. The flow of monsters slowly slowed, then stopped completely, although the crack was still there, smoldering with unusual heat beneath the thin layer of charm.

Diệp Sương collapsed immediately after finishing, so exhausted that she could no longer stand. Thanh Việt quickly caught her, his eyes filled with both worry and pride.

"You did it," he said softly, holding her in his arms amid the smoking ruins of Lam Thủy Town.

*

When the first light of dawn shone through the smoke, the whole town of Lam Thủy appeared in an unprecedented scene of devastation, but the number of deaths, thanks to the timely coordination between the sect, the army and Diệp Sương's alliance, was minimized compared to what should have happened.

Tạ Vân Khê, standing among the ruins, looked at the giant talisman that was still temporarily protecting the mouth of the crack, her face heavy. "This is only a temporary measure," she told everyone still standing around. "We need a more permanent solution, and we need it quickly, before other cracks across the Cửu Vân start to burst like this."

Diệp Sương, still leaning on Thanh Việt's shoulder, looked around at that cruel scene but still had the breath of life, knowing that this was just the prelude to a much bigger war waiting ahead.

Âu Bội Nhi came to her, her mother was still holding her hand tightly, they both knelt down next to Diệp Sương. "Thank you," Âu Bội Nhi said, her voice choked, "for not hesitating to rush into the most dangerous place to save this whole town."

"This is not just me," Diệp Sương replied, her voice weak but sincere, looking around at the exhausted faces but still standing firmly next to each other - Thanh Việt, Miên Trà, Du Khinh, Tạ Vân Khê, and even Wei Bá Tuân who was bandaging his wound not far away. "This is everyone's effort."

Tất Bá Kỳ, who had just arrived after completing his mission to assist in evacuating another neighborhood, stood looking at the scene and scribbled a few lines in his worn notebook, like a habit he could not abandon even in the midst of devastation. "I will fully record what happened today," he said softly, "so that no one can deny this truth again, no matter how much they want to."