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One big difference between forbidden regions and forbidden grounds were the inhabitants. Forbidden regions usually contained beasts and grues. Sometimes they also had mysterious entities sealed in them. But forbidden regions didn’t produce intelligent species. Only forbidden grounds could do so.

One example of that was Forbidden by the Zombie in the Forbidden Sea. That was where the Seazombies had come to be, and it was why they lived so close to Forbidden by the Zombie. Similarly, there were species associated with Forbidden by the Phoenix. [1]

However, because Flame Phoenix was friendly with humans, the species born within Forbidden by the Phoenix lived in harmony with them.

At the same time, it wasn’t unheard of for humans to explore Forbidden by the Phoenix, whether to acquire resources, hunt beasts, or the like. Humans would usually leave the intelligent species alone, but sometimes those species were willing to trade with humans.

That was how the ghost wards came to be.

As the name suggested, ghost wards were walled cities where ghosts and monsters would gather for commerce.

Truth be told, the inhabitants of the ghost wards weren’t unique to Forbidden by the Phoenix. Many forbidden grounds had such beings. From the outside, the ghost wards didn’t look much different from regular cities. But inside, the inhabitants were freakish and grotesque. And most of them were grues.

Normally speaking, they traded goods that humans rarely encountered, and most of them were of the unhealthy yin variety.

Xu Qing’s first goal in Forbidden by the Phoenix was to find one of the ghost wards.

Ghost wards don’t have fixed locations in Forbidden by the Phoenix. They appear and disappear randomly. Finding one is going to require a bit of luck....

Currently, Xu Qing was slipping through Forbidden by the Phoenix like a specter, moving at top speed.

He would occasionally leap into the air and occasionally randomly shift directions. Sometimes he would fly to the top of a tree and take a look at his surroundings, and sometimes he would scatter poison powder on himself.

If any disciples from the First Peak were here to observe Xu Qing, they would be astounded at how he moved with such practiced ease. The reason he would occasionally leap into the air was to avoid beasts hiding on the ground. The reason he would change directions randomly was to avoid dangers like spider webs or beasts on the prowl. The reason he would fly to the treetops was to scout the way ahead and make sure he didn’t get turned around in the jungle. And the reason he wasn’t flying was that there was no cover in the sky, and he had no idea what dangers might be lurking unseen.

Even given Xu Qing’s current level of battle prowess, he was being just as vigilant as he’d always been when traveling in forbidden regions. That level of vigilance was part of his blood now, and would never disappear.

It doesn’t matter what type of forbidden region you’re in, you should never go around slaughtering things randomly. The scent of blood will attract even bigger and fiercer beasts.

Eyes narrowing, Xu Qing suddenly shot his hand out and grabbed a strange looking bug that had just flown out from the dirt. It was about three inches long, and resembled a fish, except with a long stinger tail. It had flown out upside down, and had been preparing to use its stinger as a weapon to stab Xu Qing in the neck.

It’s a terrestrial stickleback.

Crushing the fish-like bug’s head, he tossed it into his bag of holding. Randomly slaughtering things wasn’t a good idea, but selectively killing and harvesting was different. The terrestrial stickleback’s tail contained a powerful poison that could be very dangerous to cultivators without life flames.

Even though this was Xu Qing’s first time in Forbidden by the Phoenix, he was familiar with the various types of plants and vegetation that could be found here. He had also done a lot of research into the types of beasts present.

The first humans to find ghost wards had to rely completely on luck. But after trade was established, the ghost wards started giving out ghost flutes.

I need to find an empty area, then use three logs to create a triangle design and set up three candles in the corners. Finally, if I play the ghost flute at exactly fifteen minutes before midnight, a ghost ward should appear.

He had read all about the process of finding ghost wards, and had made sure to come equipped with candles. Thankfully, ghost flutes could be purchased in the sect.

Looking up at the sky to check the time, he eventually came to rest on a large tree. After looking around, he murmured, “This place should work.”

Waving his hand, he sent the black iron skewer out. It zipped back and forth like lightning to chop down three trees. Rumbling sounds echoed out as they fell to the ground. The tree he’d been standing on was one of them, and as it fell, he floated up into the air. Then he waved his hand, causing the three resulting logs to form a triangle.

Then the iron skewer flew back to him. Inside, Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior was looking around vigilantly. Obviously he was working hard to demonstrate his loyalty.

After making some adjustments to the triangle, Xu Qing landed in the middle. Taking out three white candles, he put them on the logs, then waved his hand to produce a flute made from a bone.

With the flute in hand, he looked up to the sky and waited for the right time.

Before long, it was fifteen minutes before midnight. Without any hesitation, Xu Qing lifted the ghost flute to his lips and gently blew on it.

An ear-piercing sound erupted from the instrument, almost like the cry of an owl. As the sound filled heaven and earth, a sinister wind picked up. The wind blew the three candles, causing them to flicker, while simultaneously filling the area with frigid coldness. Frost appeared on the ground, covering dirt and plants alike. The candles’ flames turned green, and at the same time, a sound rose up like faint whispering or muttering. It wasn’t possible to hear words being spoken, but it was like countless individuals engaged in a muffled conversation. As the sound entered Xu Qing’s mind, his heart pounded and... a fog built up.

The fog came suddenly and seemingly out of nowhere, billowing and roiling with such thickness that the trees in the surrounding jungle quickly disappeared.

Shortly thereafter, a city appeared in the fog. The city walls were gray, as were all the buildings inside. The architecture seemed ancient, as if this city had been buried in the sands of time for ages.

The city... was bustling. It was possible to see countless figures floating about inside of it, packing the place. There were all types of creatures. Some were headless, some had the bodies of beasts, some were tall and burly, some were extremely thin, some had mouths so huge they had to hold their own chins up, and some seemed to pulse with evil. There were also countless shops lining the streets, the proprietors of which were all vicious grues.

Any mortal who saw a place like this would be scared witless. It was definitely a city of ghosts. Perhaps there were living beings inside, but if so, they were hiding their auras and instead made sure to pulse with mutagen.

That related to one of the rules for ghost wards. Though humans were allowed to go inside for business purposes, they were required to have very strong mutagen, to the point where they were like a human on the verge of experiencing mutation. Another rule was that the countless grues who filled this ghost city were supposed to stay quiet. Talking wasn’t allowed.

The most unusual thing about the city was that, in the very center of it, floating high overhead, was a gigantic head. It looked like the head of a middle-aged man, except with no hair on it. In that respect, it looked like the head of a monk. Its eyes were closed, and it didn’t move at all. Surrounding it were countless chains that seemed to be keeping it suppressed and sealed. Shockingly, a close inspection of those chains would reveal that they were actually made from skinless arms!

Furthermore, standing guard at each of the four city gates were enormous, burly figures with heads the size of babies, naked to the waist, with 15-meter-long ghostheaded greatsabers slung over their shoulders. Two such guards stood at the gate in front of Xu Qing. [2]

As Xu Qing took all of this in, he kept his expression neutral. However, his heart was pounding. Although he had read about the ghost wards of Forbidden by the Phoenix, this was his first time seeing one in person, and it reminded him of the ghost cities he had seen at the bottom of the Forbidden Sea. [3]

Well, this is obviously a ghost ward, right?

Instead of rushing inside, he took a minute to look around. Off to the side, the candles were flickering wildly in the sinister wind.

Xu Qing wasn’t in a hurry. By the time he finished studying his surroundings to his satisfaction, the candles were about to blow out, and the city was starting to fade. At that point, he reached out to his shadow and drew on its mutagen.

Instantly, mutagen filled him, causing his skin to turn black, and becoming so strong it seemed like he might mutate at any point. When he was virtually surrounded by a cloud of mutagen, he started walking toward the ghost ward.

Each step took him some nine meters forward, and thus, within only a few breaths of time, he reached the city gate.

When he arrived, the burly fellows with the sabers on their shoulders looked down at Xu Qing.

Xu Qing didn’t stop walking. He just let them look at him as he entered the city.

After he entered, they looked away. At the same time, the fog surrounding the city grew even denser, to the point where it was the only thing visible. Apparently, when outsiders came into the city for business, the outside world was cut off. The only thing visible was the moon, which was now an odd green color as it shone down. All of that was in line with what Xu Qing had expected. His expression was the same as ever as he started walking down the street amidst the crowds of grues. He was strolling along with ghosts.

Around then, the nose of the huge monk’s head twitched, as though it were sniffing out a scent. It almost seemed like it was about to open its eyes.

1. I want to clarify that “by the” is a deviation from the Chinese, and is in there to make it pithy and work linguistically the way I wanted it to. The name of these places in Chinese simply combines “forbidden” with “phoenix/zombie,” that’s all. In other words, the name basically means “zombie forbidden (ground)” and “phoenix forbidden (ground).” It doesn’t necessarily mean that those places are literally forbidden “by” some specific entity/being/item/group etc. ☜

2. A ‘ghostheaded saber’ is a real type of Chinese weapon. Basically it’s a saber with a hilt that has a ghost carved on it. Here’s a picture. The type described here is presumably a much larger fantasy version of that kind of weapon. ☜

3. Xu Qing ran into some ghost cities in chapter 179. ☜