43 Second time

◎【Death. die. die. 】◎

Wuling Village was impoverished; its villagers typically rested at sunset, rarely lighting candles for illumination. Wanze City, on the other hand, was a bustling metropolis, ablaze with lights, and every household lit lamps and candles. Tonight, a bright moon hung in the sky, blurring the lines between day and night.

Ying Jianhua was momentarily blinded by the bright light and rubbed her scalp uncomfortably.

As a doctor, he paid great attention to maintaining his eyesight, but years of lack of food and clothing had left him with limited vision at night, even though he hadn't developed night blindness. Now, under the flickering light of lanterns and candles, he found it difficult to open his eyes.

On the street where Huo Qing lived, most of the residents were small merchants with modest means, who could afford to light a few oil lamps, which made it easy for him to spy on them. But the Huo family's courtyard was completely dark.

Silence reigned, as if it were about to vanish into the darkness.

He frowned.

Strange. The previous two nights, Huo Qing had ordered servants to deliver candlesticks to their room, and even said that if they needed more lamp oil, they could take some from the storeroom. Could it be that the storeroom's stock had run out after just one day? Or perhaps, Huo Qing is actually very frugal and was only reluctantly giving up the candlesticks to entertain his guests.

However, judging from the treatment of the servants and butchers in the Huo family, Huo Qing was not such a stingy person.

The two lanterns in front of the Chen family's house next door were lit, making the Huo family's house appear even dimmer. The upper floor was utterly quiet, and he couldn't help but tighten his robe.

Darkness breeds fear in people's hearts, and he was no exception.

Suddenly, he saw someone emerge from the side gate of the Chen family's house at the edge of the light. At the same time, the two lanterns hanging on the main gate were carried back into the inner courtyard from the outside. If Ying Jianhua hadn't been standing on high ground and witnessed the whole scene, people would have only noticed the Chen family's return home at night, thus ignoring the fact that someone else was also coming out from inside.

He raised an eyebrow.

It's true that the butcher's assistant has to get up early to slaughter pigs, but what does that have to do with the owner? Besides, if it's a serious matter, why can't they use the main entrance?

An absurd idea was slowly forming in his mind.

After leaving the Chen family's residence, the man stealthily walked away and disappeared from sight. When he reappeared under the lamplight, he was carrying a small bundle. The Huo family's three walls were very high, but the southern wall had a section that had collapsed. Huo Qing was probably too busy and hadn't sent anyone to repair it. Now, the man entered through the gap in the southern wall, carrying the bundle straight to the backyard.

What is he going to do? What's in the backyard?

Ying Jianhua thought about it carefully, and suddenly realized...

There was a well in the backyard, from which the Huo family drew water for drinking, washing, and other purposes. There was no light in the yard, so he couldn't see the person's exact movements, but by the dim moonlight, it seemed the person had approached the well and taken something out of a bundle...

Oh no, he's trying to poison me!

Ying Jianhua's pupils constricted suddenly, and she was about to go downstairs to rush over when a sharp female voice suddenly erupted from the Huo residence.

"Aaaaaah!"

He stopped in his tracks and almost lost his footing and fell off the building.

Is that... Huo Qing's voice?

Not only that, after Huo Qing screamed, the originally quiet neighborhood instantly erupted in excitement, and the number of lanterns increased from one or two to four or five, eventually forming a long dragon that swam towards the Huo family.

"Quick, quick, the Huo family home is haunted again!"

The long line of flames reached the main gate of the Huo family mansion. The leading soldiers shouted a few times, but seeing no response from inside the courtyard, they rallied everyone to work together to break down the gate. A painting on the high-rise building clearly showed the poisoner's frantic escape. At the same time, Huo Qing, seemingly possessed, grabbed the only living creature in the courtyard and began slapping it repeatedly, shouting and screaming, wailing and crying loudly.

He understood completely.

It's no wonder Du Zhijin didn't notice, because Huo Qing wasn't entangled by the "drowning ghost" at all.

She orchestrated and acted in all of this herself.

Huo Qing arrived in Wanze City alone, only to be ostracized by her competitors, making her business extremely difficult. It wasn't until she partnered with a teahouse to launch honey-glazed meat jerky that her business gradually improved. However, the Chen family, her competitors and neighbors, became envious and repeatedly used underhanded tactics to harass her, including throwing excrement at her.

Huo Qing may have resisted, but as an outsider with no connections, the neighbors turned a blind eye to the Chen family's behavior and did not help them. After accidentally falling into the water, she somehow came up with the idea of ​​pretending to be possessed by a ghost. She used this trick several times to scare away the Chen family. Having tasted success, she decided to stage an even bigger show.

Human nature can be more treacherous than demons, and mere "scare" is useless. Huo Qing had been waiting for the right moment, waiting for the Chen family to lose their temper and do something even more outrageous.

Tonight is the opportune moment. She must have already made arrangements with the patrolling soldiers, just waiting for her to pretend to be "possessed by a ghost," so that she can "accidentally" catch the Chen family red-handed.

Suddenly, everything became clear.

Master Jun said there were no Class C monsters in Wanze City, Du Zhijin couldn't sense the existence of monsters, and Huo Qing refused to believe Huo Bai. All of this was because it was all her own doing.

Unbeknownst to her, Ying Jianhua had approached the crowd and overheard soldiers reprimanding the Chen family for plotting poison. Amidst the throng, Huo Qing stood disheveled, his hair unkempt, but his eyes gleamed with a clear, lucid light.

Instead of making a point of approaching to acknowledge him, he silently retreated back into the crowd.

These two sisters are both intelligent and will surely achieve great things in the future.

Since there were no demons causing trouble, he decided to keep the firework tube safe and not waste it. He decided to go to the West Market to meet up with Jiangwei first, and then go to find Du Zhijin together.

Du Zhijin must be surprised when he hears the whole story.

Thinking of this, he slightly curled the corners of his lips, then suddenly lowered them.

He suddenly realized that Huo Qing's lack of "possession" verified Elder Jun's words. Elder Jun said there were no monsters above Grade C in Wanze City, so what about the one in his mind?

A chill crept up my back, as if countless ants were crawling along my spine.

Du Zhijin's judgment was correct; Huo Qing was neither possessed by ghosts nor demons. He had initially thought the demonic energy within his own mind was too high for Du Zhijin to detect, but what about Elder Jun? Wasn't he currently in Wanze City?

Looking back now, it seems that when Master Jun said those words, he was intentionally speaking to him... As his thoughts deepened, the thing in his mind, which was usually quiet, suddenly surged and resisted, and just like the first time it happened, it hurt so much that he broke out in a cold sweat.

The unfamiliar babbling seemed to have a physical presence, rampaging through my mind. First, my temples throbbed, then a strong smell of rust suddenly filled my nostrils, and the world before my eyes began to distort and spin.

When the excruciating pain, accompanied by dizziness, exploded, his fingertips dug deep into his palms, blood seeping from under his nails. He slid slowly down the wall like a puppet whose spine had been removed.

[It's still so heartbreaking to watch again... Zhouzhou and Amo were so in love, why did they end up like this...]

[...climb over the wall and have a sip, Lu Ping, you're a good kid...]

【Ahhh, don't go out! Zhouzhou isn't outside...】

How can I sleep? The little fox has already ranked up...

[...not a Taoist priest, but a marquis...]

[...]

【die. die. die. 】

【die. 】

The night wind rustled the treetops, and the pale moonlight pierced through the gaps in the branches, intertwining the shadows of people and trees on the wall. The shadows twisted and shifted, merging into one, then splitting in two, and finally, slowly giving rise to a third, entirely new silhouette.

————

Du Zhijin no longer cared whether flying on her sword would reveal her presence. She pushed Zuilan forward with all her might, while sending Xingyue to clear all obstacles in her path.

The creature that can lure the cave demons to migrate is definitely not an ordinary demon!

Her mind raced as she hurried along, trying to figure out who this unexpected visitor was.

With Elder Jun presiding over Wanze City, no demon has been able to cultivate to at least the C-rank level in recent years, making it nothing to fear. However, the more untouched a large city is by demons, the more it tempts and stirs the filthy creatures. After Master's ascension, Elder Jun retired to the background, and although not as old as the other True Immortals, his temples are already gray, and his cultivation is far from what it once was. Tonight happens to be a full moon night, when demons are at their strongest, and it seems that the unknown demon has its eye on this opportunity.

Damn it, she was careless. She was so focused on Huo Qing's matter that she didn't notice anything amiss!

Despite the rain in Wanze, the city remained as bustling as ever, with people coming and going in the streets.

The little girl finally managed to beg her aunt to buy her a sugar painting, but just as she raised it to her lips, something flew past her with a "whoosh," and the sugar painting fell to the ground with a "plop."

The little girl was dumbfounded. Before she could burst into tears, her aunt's hand landed first: "You child! What's wrong with you? You bought it but didn't eat it. Do you think your mother's money falls from the sky?"

"Waaaaah—"

I'm so sorry! I'll definitely come back to make it up to her after she finishes her business!

Du Zhijin made a silent vow when Xingyue, who was leading the way, suddenly stopped at the intersection. She froze, turned around, and bumped into Jiangwei.

"My benefactor!" "Little Red! Have you seen Amo?"

Jiangwei was taken aback at first, then shook her head in denial: "No... I was just about to go out of the city to tell you! Something happened at the Huo family, but Young Master Amo didn't set off fireworks!"

Those with low cultivation levels, both humans and demons, couldn't see the specially made fireworks. Therefore, Du Zhijin had specially opened his "eyes" so he could rush to the Huo family the moment he saw the signal. But he waited and waited, until news of the Huo family's misfortune reached the butcher shop, but Ying Jianhua still hadn't sent the signal!

Something must have happened. As soon as this thought crossed his mind, he hurriedly rushed out, only to run into Du Zhijin on the way.

The Huo family... With these two matters intertwined, she had a bad feeling. Without time to say more to Jiangwei, she only left behind the words, "Go to Zhufeng Hall in the west of the city to find Master Baopu," leaving Zuilan as a token, before disappearing into the night once more.

Caught off guard by the sudden sword strike, Jiangwei froze for a moment before transforming back into his original form, sword in his mouth, and running towards the west of the city. When he was guided by Zuilan to the front of Zhufeng Hall, he found the door already open.

Old Master Jun, wearing a mask, seemed to have been waiting for a long time. She took the Drunken Orchid from his mouth and patted the fox's head: "Let's go."

The eyes beneath the mask slowly moved, and an invisible net enveloped the sky above Wanze City, blocking out the pure white moonlight.

The little girl, still teary-eyed from her mother's scolding, stared at the sugar painting that had fallen onto the flagstone. She sniffed and reached out to pick it up, but when her fingertips were only half an inch away from the painting, it was as if she had hit an invisible barrier; no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't touch it.

"Auntie..." She instinctively opened her mouth for help, but to her horror, she found that the sound she made was like falling into a deep pool, not even causing a ripple. When she tried to speak again, it felt as if her throat was stuffed with water-soaked cotton, and she could only make muffled sobs.

She turned around abruptly. The streets were still bustling with people, but the usually noisy Wanze City was deathly silent. The night watchman's clapper had stopped abruptly, the vendors' cries had vanished, and even the distant barking of dogs seemed to freeze in mid-air.

Time stood still.

[Author's Note]

Second time