Twilight Boundary

"Was the winner decided?"

As they watched the silent and eerie scene on the stage, the audience on both sides held their breath, not daring to make a sound.

The Execution Soul Path's Magic was truly too bizarre; killing a pig from start to finish without the pig feeling any pain or attempting to escape was already extremely strange. Now, even after the pig's head was cut off, it remained alive and even continued to graze. This visually impactful scene had already made the people from both factions feel their scalps tingle. If she could do this to a pig, could she also do it to a person?

Those who had just been captivated by the charming and cute Miss Sweet Potato on stage all snapped back to reality. Now when they looked at her, she had an indescribable sinister and eerie aura.

At the same time, some people looked at the old man in camouflage and felt a sense of despair.

There was a saying in the jianghu that the Trick Door could counteract the Execution Soul Path. That's why the Red Lantern Lady invited the elder from the Trick Door on stage. However, whether it counteracts or not also depends on the timing. Right now, it was evident that things were tough. This colorfully-dressed old man, from the beginning, had merely been struggling to keep up with Sweet Potato, who was effortlessly casting spells. It was clear to any discerning eye that he was at a disadvantage in this duel.

And now, Sweet Potato had just used her trump card and severed the pig's head. No matter what he did now, it was unlikely he could outdo Sweet Potato. This round was already determined as a loss.

Seeing him sitting with his eyes lowered, the Green Clothes Gang was about to cheer—only a breath away from doing so—while the Red Lantern Society was in a slump. Everyone on their side felt an invisible pressure, like a mountain weighing on their hearts, unsure of what the future would hold.

Would it really end in a draw?

How could the Red Lantern Lady stand for this? Who among her followers would escape unscathed?

Only Hu Ma in the audience frowned, vaguely feeling that things might not be so simple. After all, Er Guotou must have known something all along; with his personal arrangements, how could there be a reason to lose?

Sure enough, just when the audience thought the colorfully-dressed old man had no choice but to admit defeat, he suddenly raised his head and let out a deep sigh, as if lamenting something. Then, he took out a cloth scroll from his robe, which had some eerie runes on it. He tore off the runes and spread the scroll open.

Countless heads stretched out beneath the stage, peering intently at the scroll, which revealed rows of needles and threads. The needles looked like ordinary ones of varying sizes, gray-black in material, similar to those used in a tailor's shop. The threads were black, wound in clusters, and it was unclear what they were made of, though it seemed there weren't many, just a few clusters.

The colorfully-dressed old man silently glanced at Sweet Potato and sighed, "Young lady, you have great skills. To have such a trump card at such a young age, who could even imagine the future?"

As he spoke, he picked up a needle, drew out a length of thread, threaded it through the eye of the needle, and then turned towards the dismembered pig, carefully stitching it up starting from its body.

The audience below vaguely guessed what was happening but found it hard to believe. They held their breath, eyes wide open, unwilling to miss a single detail. They watched as he started from the pig's body, piecing it together with stitches. The needlework wasn't dense, seemingly to save on thread. Finally, he lifted the pig's head, attached it to the neck, and sewed a circle around it with his needle and thread.

The pig appeared to have recovered its original form, only scarred and covered with stitching marks.

Having done this, the colorfully-dressed old man pulled out a cloth embroidered with a carp and draped it over the stitched pig's head. He silently chanted for a while, then abruptly pulled the cloth away and gently slapped its rump before sitting back down.

SQUEAL!

The crowd, previously silent and watchful, was startled as an ear-piercing pig's cry suddenly rang out. That pig on stage had been variously sliced and even decapitated without making a sound, but now it let out a sharp scream out of nowhere.

Blood gushed out from two places on its body. These were the two pieces that were initially cut and then cooked; the colorfully-dressed old man had tried to sew everything else back, but not these two pieces. Now, they became the most conspicuous wounds, and the pig seemed to feel pain, desperately trying to flee. Squealing and running wildly, it knocked over numerous tables and chairs and scattered the onlookers before escaping.

Surrounding the scene were Disciples of the Blood Food Gang, all skilled, some even armed. However, not one dared to strike the pig as it ran out.

One junior manager, having already grasped what was happening, exclaimed joyfully, "Don't hack it, don't hurt this pig! Let's raise it, treat it like an ancestor, and see it off properly in its old age..."

"It's a win!"

The quick-witted members of the Red Lantern Society all realized this. With the colorfully-dressed old man's final Magic, everyone knew this round was decisively won.

You killed the pig without it dying, and I revived it from the dead. You made the pig feel no pain, and I not only brought it back but made it feel pain, even to the point of wanting to escape. From every perspective, this was a more skillful Magic.

The crowd beneath was in an uproar, while Sweet Potato, on stage, was slightly taken aback. She glanced at the black cloth scroll in front of the colorfully-dressed old man, at the rows of Bone Needles and the scarce Magic Thread left, and finally sighed gently, saying, "Injustice Bone Needle, Evil Hair Line... the elder is indeed superior. With your Ghost Sewing Needle trump card, how could I possibly win against you?"

Though it sounded like praise and a clear admission of defeat, the colorfully-dressed old man showed no joy. His old face appeared quite gloomy. The other party was just a young girl, while he had spent decades perfecting his unique skill, earning his reputation for decades in Mingzhou Prefecture. Yet, upon entering the ring, she merely cast a spell effortlessly. Even though he finally won, it was by using his most treasured, last-resort asset, and now all those life-saving threads were expended on the pig...

He truly didn't know how to be happy about this...

This round, though technically his win, was essentially using his decades of reputation to elevate the young girl's prowess.

"I concede, I concede..."

The audience stood in a daze, but after hearing Sweet Potato's words, they suddenly erupted in cheers. They had heard clearly; Sweet Potato admitted her inferiority and conceded. This concession was set in stone, irrefutable. The Red Lantern Lady's Club had secured a solid victory in this round.

Six wins and four losses; the Red Lantern Lady's Club won this duel beautifully.

"The Trick Door counters the Execution Soul Path, indeed it does!" Manager Xu, standing beside Hu Ma, was already so excited he stood up, repeatedly exclaiming, "Old Mr. Fan truly has extraordinary skills."

Someone next to him added, "What he used to win in the end, it didn't seem to be a Trick Door skill, but..."

"...Winning is enough; winning is skill."

Hu Ma watched this round and felt truly enlightened. He quickly asked Manager Xu, "How did the saying 'The Trick Door counters the Execution Soul Path' come about?"

Manager Xu, in a good mood amid the surrounding cacophony of voices, wasn't afraid of being overheard and loudly replied, "Young brother, you probably haven't truly seen the people from the Trick Door. They are all quite mystical... Things like Empty Cup to Get Water, Canvas to River, Immortal Picking Beans, and Three Dragons Enter the Sea are all baffling techniques. Precisely because they often roam the jianghu, entertaining people, they are called the Trick Door..."

"Isn't this just magic tricks?" Hu Ma listened, finding it quite strange. At the first mention of the word 'trick,' he had started making associations. Now that he was hearing more, it only confirmed his thoughts, yet he found it even more unbelievable. These methods of deceiving with illusions were common in his previous world, some even quite astonishing, but could they be considered a Path?

"Haha..." Seeing Hu Ma's surprised expression, Manager Xu realized what he was thinking and said, "In the Trick Door, there is a saying: 'nine falsehoods to one truth.' This means that ninety percent of their skills are fake, designed to deceive. Once exposed, they disappoint greatly, but there's always one that's real. Because you can't distinguish which one is real, you can only assume they all are. There are many in this world who roam the jianghu performing tricks, but not everyone can be said to belong to the Trick Door. What distinguishes those with true Path from mere performers is whether, among all their tricks, there is that one genuine, unique skill..."

"Frankly, the principle that 'The Trick Door counters the Execution Soul Path' lies in this: the Execution Soul Path involves much probing and startling preparation. But when members of the Execution Soul Path encounter the Trick Door, they often find themselves stymied. This is because people of the Execution Soul Path like to masquerade as jianghu travelers, using reconnaissance, probing, and employing covert methods. The Trick Door, however, truly originates from the jianghu. When the two meet, whether it's reconnaissance or some other clandestine tactics, the Execution Soul Path members' moves are often seen through by Trick Door members before they can even be fully executed. And yet, you can never see through them!"

Listening to this, Hu Ma felt his knowledge broadened once more and was quite amazed.

Come to think of it, the Tan'er Sect seemed to belong to the Trick Door as well, except they had veered onto a malevolent path, unlike this old man. The Tan'er Sect was reviled by all, while this old man had to be invited by the Red Lantern Society with great ceremony and respect.

The only thing Hu Ma couldn't understand now was whether Sweet Potato had truly lost or was just gracefully accepting defeat to save face?

Just as these questions remained unclarified, and the members on each side showed varied expressions due to the duel's outcome, with Sweet Potato and the colorfully-dressed old man still on stage not yet having stepped down, a sudden cold snort was heard by all.

Chilling ghost qi suddenly surged through the surroundings, and all the flames abruptly turned an eerie green.