Chapter 81 Chapter 81 That's meat being placed alive on a fire...

It was the scream of flesh being roasted alive over a fire. The sound came from the last ghost behind the young woman, a handsome young man whose body was convulsing violently, accompanied by painful cries. Then, one after another, the other ghosts began to scream in agony.

The young woman cried out, "Oh no! That old bastard is here! He's sent people to trap us!"

The young woman was the last to scream. The moment she cried out, the magic circle was fully activated, capturing her and all the other ghosts.

These ghosts have been absorbing the spiritual energy of this place for many years, and their ghostly power is not low. Watching so many ghosts disappear from sight in the blink of an eye, Wei Yin felt a chill run down her spine.

The entire empty house was completely empty except for Wei Yin. There was no other sound, not even the cries of insects or beasts. It was as if the house had fallen into a dead end.

A few hours later, Wei Yin heard the sound of carriages and horses outside the house, but it was quite far away, so she wasn't sure. Until the sound of carriages and horses reached the gate, she could vaguely hear some people getting out of the carriages and walking in, without stopping, heading straight for her old house.

At first, there should have been at least two or three people, but as they approached the house, only one person remained, and he sounded slightly weak and slow, even using a cane. He was probably the "old man" the young woman had mentioned.

A chilling fear gripped Wei Yin.

The man entered the house and stood at the doorway, holding a lantern in his hand. Because the lantern was dim, his face was not clearly visible, but his demeanor was refined and simple yet sophisticated.

The newcomer was also looking at Wei Yin on the carpet, occasionally nodding slightly. When Wei Yin looked at him with a bewildered expression, the newcomer slowly spoke, his voice so soft that Wei Yin almost thought he had misheard.

"Granddaughter-in-law, don't you recognize your grandfather?"

The newcomer held the lantern up to his face.

Wei Yin stared wide-eyed, her face full of surprise.

"Don't be afraid, Grandfather won't do anything to you." Old Master He smiled and walked step by step towards Wei Yin. "Grandfather just wants you to do something for our He family."

Although Grandpa He was smiling, in this empty, haunted house, his face was illuminated by the flickering lights, making him appear eerie and terrifying.

The young woman said that the person who harmed them was an old bastard, and that it was impossible for Old Master He to come here late at night just because he couldn't sleep and was wandering around. He was that old beast.

Wei Yin was stunned. She never imagined that she had married into such a family.

"Why don't you believe me, child?" Old Master He shook his head and sighed, his smile fading and his eyes suddenly turning ruthless. "It seems those wandering ghosts told you everything, didn't they? Damn it, I should have kept them locked up forever."

Wei Yin stared at him with unfamiliar eyes, clutching the blanket beneath her, unable to discern what Old Master He was planning.

“Child, listen to your grandfather. Don’t believe those wandering ghosts. They’re all trying to bewitch you. Your grandfather is still waiting for you and Wenqing to give me a grandson.” Old Master He quickly put on a kind expression again.

Wei Yin said coldly, "Old Master, He Wenqing and I have already divorced."

"Divorce? That's just nonsense from you young people who don't understand things."

"you……"

"After a while, when you have the blood of the He family, you will know what's important."

"Enough, you old fool, stop pretending. You've harmed those people so badly, what exactly do you want to do to me?"

Old Master He was very unhappy with the way Wei Yin spoke to him, so he sneered and said, "Alright, since you know everything and are now a member of the He family, I won't waste any more words with you. I'll tell you everything. Do you know what's behind this house of mine?"

"What?"

"This is the ancestral grave of the He family," Old Master He said quietly. "Back then, my ancestor was a poor scholar with no hope of success in the imperial examinations. Fortunately, he knew the art of geomancy and by chance, he discovered this auspicious land where we are standing now. The land is full of spiritual energy, and within a few years, the scholar not only passed the imperial examinations but also gained the favor of his mentor. He eventually married one of his mentor's nieces, and his career took off. Since then, although our He family cannot compare with those powerful noble families, we have been a family that has produced many talented people generation after generation. However, we later discovered that although this place is extremely prosperous, the population is small, and there is often only one lineage. By my generation, I found that it was difficult to have offspring. Even Wenqing's father was someone I had to go through a lot of trouble to have. As for Wenqing's father, he was unable to have children at all."

Wei Yin sensed something was wrong, "Then what happened to He Wenqing...?"

Grandpa He smiled and said, "What do you think?"

Although he didn't say it aloud, Wei Yin suddenly realized, "He Wenqing, could it be... you..."

Grandpa He shook his head. "Granddaughter-in-law, I placed all my hopes on Wenqing, but who knew that Wenqing would be like his father? I was not willing to give up, so I let him marry Xuanhua to try again. It seems that..."

Wei Yin frowned.

Grandpa He continued, "Granddaughter-in-law, do you think it was Wenqing's grandmother who took a liking to you? No, it was me who secretly investigated you long before Wenqing was married. I found that your destiny was the most suitable for bearing children for my He family. It was me who took a liking to you. So, as I expected, Wenqing was quite satisfied with you and chose you at first sight. As for this formation, I have nurtured it with the resentment of the people and ghosts in the house for many years. Now, it is finally complete and ready to be used."

Wei Yin felt increasingly uneasy as she listened, and slowly backed away. She frowned and looked at him: "What exactly do you want to do to me?"

"Granddaughter-in-law, don't be afraid. You are the person I have carefully chosen over many years, so naturally I won't do anything to you." Old Master He's mood improved, and he laughed, "Do you know what this formation is called? The Descendant Formation! At that time, I will choose the most suitable day to activate the formation and let you and Wenqing share a room here. The wandering ghosts I have carefully selected in this house will all become offerings for the formation. At that time, Wenqing will naturally be able to conceive, and even the descendants of my He family will be prosperous and the incense will continue. Granddaughter-in-law, just wait patiently until then."

Wei Yin's face turned deathly pale. "You old beast, you've lost all conscience! You harmed them in life, and now you want to use them as sacrifices in the afterlife!"

"Shut up!"

Grandpa He was enraged. "If you are unwilling to do as I say, then I don't mind choosing another granddaughter-in-law, and you will end up like those wandering ghosts!"

After saying that, Old Master He's expression changed instantly, turning from anger to laughter. "Granddaughter-in-law, you'd better do as I say obediently. Don't be ungrateful, understand?"

"Master," someone came over and said, "There are people outside trying to break in. They're coming in aggressively. Please come and take a look."

Grandpa He nodded and instructed, "Have someone tidy up the nice house so that the young mistress can stay there for now."

Only after Old Master He left did Wei Yin gradually relax. She was caught off guard by everything that had happened that night and was still feeling lingering fear.

Not long after the old man left, the ghosts that had been restrained by the formation were released. Wei Yin quickly noticed that these ghosts were different from before. They stared at her with resentful eyes. The pregnant woman was no exception. She had changed from her previous gentleness and, like the other ghosts, wanted to rush up and devour her alive.

"You're actually from the He family?! From that old man's family?"

"Kill her! Kill her!"

"No, we can't let her die so easily. We must tear her flesh off piece by piece! Tear off the hearts, livers, lungs, and intestines of the He family!"

Wei Yin almost fell over when she saw the group of ghosts rising up in high spirits.

The person whom Old Master He had kept behind to tidy up Wei Yin's room glared fiercely at the ghosts, "If you dare to harm the young mistress, I'll make you all vanish into thin air!"

The ghosts already harbored deep hatred for the He family, and for a moment they ignored the man's words and were about to pounce on Wei Yin. The man quickly called for people to use an array to restrain them again and hurriedly took Wei Yin away from the place.

The man sneered at Wei Yin, "These wandering ghosts have such audacity to rebel! Young mistress, let's go tell the old master quickly."

Wei Yin sneered.

She followed the man to the vicinity of the gate and saw that Old Master He was standing behind a group of people dressed in Buddhist robes, looking out. Outside the gate were Lu Hun, Ji Jiayu, and others, with many people standing outside.

Old Master He naturally recognized Ji Jiayu and said, "Young Master Ji, what do you mean by this? Why are you bringing people to trespass on my private property? Who gave you permission?"

Ji Jiayu was not intimidated at all. Instead, she smiled and said, "My lord, the case I was investigating last time happened to have a clue that points to your private residence. Please allow us to enter."

"Nonsense! What have you called my private residence? You think you can just walk in like that?" Old Master He sneered. "Do you have permission from the authorities? If not, don't even think about causing trouble in here. Young Master Ji, go back now. If you continue to cause trouble, don't blame me for writing a letter to your father!"

Ji Jiayu looked troubled and looked at Lu Hun. Lu Hun whispered a few words to him and then handed him the sword.

Grandpa He frowned as he stared at the young man beside Ji Jiayu, feeling that he seemed to recognize him.

Ji Jiayu raised his sword with one arm towards the sky and said solemnly, "His Majesty's sword, Po Jun, is here! His Majesty once said that seeing this sword is like seeing him in person. Who dares to stop me?! Who dares to obstruct me?!"

Grandpa He glanced over in disbelief.

Ji Jiayu coldly laughed and said, "Old sir, as a senior official, you should recognize His Majesty's sword, right? Does His Majesty need permission to come here? Old sir, please step aside."

Old Master He hesitated for a moment, then had someone bring the sword for inspection. As soon as he held it, he knew that it was indeed the Po Jun sword. He ordered, "Take the young mistress down and hide her. Activate the formation to collect those ghosts before letting them in."

He sneered, "This kid from the Ji family, does he think he can find out about those ghosts?"

Wei Yin wondered if Lu Hun had discovered that she had been brought here. After being taken away, she secretly grabbed a handful of dried locust flowers from a sachet and scattered them on the ground.

Over there, the door was opened, and Old Master He let Ji Jiayu, Lu Hun, and the others in. The old man wasn't afraid of being found out, and let them search as they pleased.