Chapter 11 Foolish Words Wear Away the Time "Can you let go now?"
With a pitiful cry from the Pixiu cub, the heavy mist dissipated from the mountaintop, and the talisman burned from bottom to top, turning to ashes inch by inch.
The wind suddenly stopped, and the merciless formation vanished into nothingness.
Lou Yan closed his eyes to calm his racing heart. After a long while, he opened his eyes and found that the annoying talismans had long since disappeared. He realized that they were still standing on the mountain path they had been on before.
The sky was already bright, and in front of me was a dense forest. The eaves of the houses in the distance were clearly visible, and the terrifying and gloomy mansion from before was nowhere to be seen.
"Can I let go now?"
Lou Yan was startled when she suddenly heard Heng Qichun's voice. She turned her head sharply and found herself nervously clutching a small section of Heng Qichun's sleeve.
Lou Yan: "..."
Like grabbing a hot potato, Lou Yan quickly let go of Heng Qichun's sleeve, but before she could even speak, she felt a sharp pain in her arm.
"Aww!"
—The baby Pixiu bit his arm hard.
Lou Yan no longer cared about explaining anything to Heng Qichun. She bared her canine teeth and stared fiercely at the little beast in her arms, complaining and accusing one sentence after another.
I carried you all the way!
"It was just a drop of your blood that was used!"
"Is it really necessary to be so stingy!"
The little Pixiu understood human speech. It whimpered and struggled in Lou Yan's arms for a long time, and the little gold left in its mouth fell out. It angrily opened its mouth and bit Lou Yan's hand that was holding it.
"Aww!"
The man and the beast ran off noisily, leaving a trail of footprints on the deserted mountain path.
Heng Qichun stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the arrogant and childish figure in front of him, and couldn't help but chuckle.
Without the mischief of the wicked, their journey was exceptionally smooth, and they soon arrived at the town where Tan Chengyi's family lived.
Looking at the time, it was about the time when the town's market would open.
As the summer heat intensifies, the people of Huatan Town begin setting up stalls and selling their wares. Scrolls of talisman paper are laid out, and people start a new day of hawking their wares.
This is a much more prosperous market.
Heng Qichun's white hair was so eye-catching that even without revealing any spiritual energy, it was easy to associate him with someone from a celestial sect. As a result, as soon as they approached, vendors came up to them with talismans in their hands.
After a brief examination, he approached Lou Yan, who was holding a divine beast and seemed more easily fooled, and said, "Young master, it's so hot today, why not buy a heat-relieving talisman?"
"No, no, no—" Lou Yan dodged away as quickly as possible after seeing what the vendor was holding, keeping as far away from the talisman as possible. "Take this thing away from me!"
Being unable to speak was too painful; he really didn't want to encounter a second silencing spell.
Seeing his firm attitude, the vendor had no choice but to give up and leave.
Lou Yan clutched her chest and let out a long sigh of relief, but when she turned around, she met Heng Qichun's gaze.
"What?" Heng Qichun glanced at him, a faint smile playing on her lips. "Don't you feel hot now?"
No way.
It was many times hotter outside than inside the Heartless Formation. Heng Qichun had already withdrawn his heat-avoidance spell, and the sweltering wind was blowing everywhere. Lou Yan felt like he was about to see stars.
He wiped the sweat from his forehead, gave Heng Qichun a sheepish grin, and stubbornly said, "It's not hot at all~"
Heng Qichun chuckled lightly, too lazy to pay him any more attention, but as his gaze returned to Lou Yan, he suddenly grabbed her, "Watch out!"
The Pixiu cub was just about to be bumped into by someone running from a distance, and nestled in Lou Yan's arms, making "whooshing" cries.
Lou Yan staggered to her feet and looked up at the person she had almost bumped into.
His clothes were tattered, his hair was unkempt, and his almond-shaped eyes were dull and lifeless. When he walked up to them, he let out a silly laugh.
"hey-hey……"
—It's that crazy woman.
She tilted her head and exchanged a glance with Lou Yan, then walked away with a carefree smile. When she passed Heng Qichun, she suddenly stopped, raised one arm high, and with her fingers loosely clenched into a fist, she knocked something out of thin air.
She took a step forward, murmuring, "At the fourth watch of the night, there are no taboos—"
Lou Yan subconsciously looked up at the sky.
The sun blazed high in the sky, the horizon was cloudless, and the scorching wind whipped the willow branches in the distance, as if someone were lashing out with a painful whip from afar.
He confirmed that it was daytime.
“Master…” Lou Yan took a step closer and tugged at Heng Qichun’s sleeve, “Why is she reciting such a night watchman’s chant during the day?”
Before Heng Qichun could speak, the vendor who hadn't gone far scoffed in disgust and pointed at the crazy woman, saying, "Hey, is that the crazy woman?"
“I don’t even know who her husband’s family is,” the vendor said. “I only heard that she lost her child due to negligence and went insane. At first, she wandered around the town every day looking for her child, but after a while, she stopped looking for the child altogether and spent her days pretending to be crazy in the alleys, causing the babies in the town to cry every night.”
Perhaps because there were infants in his family involved, he became increasingly angry as he spoke, and spat fiercely at the madwoman's retreating figure, "Pah!"
Lou Yan knew very little about the human world and was a beat slow to react. He heard Heng Qichun ask, "How long has she been insane?"
The vendor hesitated for a moment, then said, "Who can say for sure... It must have been more than half a year, right?"
Heng Qichun didn't speak again, his bright eyes narrowed, his gaze fixed on the crazy woman.
In the time it takes to say a few words, she has slowly walked away, her strangely behaving figure turning a corner of the alley, her dejected appearance like a piece of withered and rotten old wood.
A sweltering breeze surged up again. Lou Yan squinted and said, "Was she heading in the direction...?"
“It’s Tan Chengyi’s house.” Heng Qichun grabbed a small section of Lou Yan’s wrist with one hand, pulling him forward, and said simply, “Let’s go.”
Unlike the illusions they had seen before, Tan Chengyi's home was not a grand mansion, but rather a small two-courtyard house of modest size.
The vermilion paint on the gate was peeling off, revealing mottled marks on the door. The two doors were densely covered with talisman paper, some of the seal script characters had faded and were about to fall off along with the talisman paper.
It looks like it hasn't been taken care of for a long time.
Everything seemed to be on the verge of collapse.
Heng Qichun revealed his identity, and the two of them were invited into the courtyard by the old servant by the gate. After passing through a hanging flower gate, they finally got a clear look at the appearance of the residence.
The brick-paved ground was covered in dust, and the soil peeking out from the cracks showed signs of cracking. Even the bamboo grove under the hanging flower gate had become withered.
The grass and plants lacked water; the drought that year was ultimately too severe.
The old servant noticed their hesitation, sighed, and reluctantly began to explain, "Ever since my young lady Qiqi went missing, my master and mistress have been worried day and night, spending a lot of money to seek talismans and inquiries. As a result, most of the servants in the manor have been dismissed."
"Now there is only one servant in the house, and no one cleans the courtyard. Please don't be offended, two immortals."
Heng Qichun naturally wouldn't take offense at him, but casually adjusted his sleeves and asked about the real purpose of their trip, "How long has the child been missing?"
"Uh..." the old servant silently calculated, "about three or four days."
"The old lady has fallen seriously ill. My lord is worried that Qiqi's disappearance is caused by evil spirits. We've already consulted all the Taoist priests in town, but there are still no clues." He then smiled flatteringly, "Fortunately, the Eighteen Realms are not far away. The villagers have invited two immortal lords. Quickly, please come in!"
Further ahead was a corridor. Lou Yan stared at the pair of vermilion lanterns under the pillars, then suddenly sniffed sharply, frowned, and asked, "Is that madwoman from the market coming this way?"
"A crazy woman?" The old servant was taken aback for a moment, then suddenly realized, "Oh, you mean the woman in town who likes to imitate the night watchman's clapping?"
The old servant sighed. "She's a pitiful woman. She usually just wanders around the alleys and has never been here before, but... is there something strange about her?"
Lou Yan frowned, vaguely sensing that there was something fishy about this.
He recalled the direction in which the madwoman disappeared, and said in bewilderment, "But we clearly saw her..."
"Lou Yan," Heng Qichun interrupted him, saying to the old servant, "It's nothing, perhaps my apprentice misjudged."
Lou Yan didn't know why Heng Qichun had stopped him, but he must have his reasons. He held the Pixiu cub for a moment, then decisively followed.
Heng Qichun was still trying to change the subject. He probably had a lot of experience dealing with ordinary people, and the question he asked was just the most common "What is your honorable surname, sir?"
The old servant gave a forced laugh: "My surname is Li."
Heng Qichun didn't ask anything else, but continued the conversation by answering his own question, "I have been working in this household for more than thirty years."
In just a few words, the east wing was already in sight.
"My lord went to find Qiqi and hasn't returned yet."
"My lady is seriously ill. She took her medicine this morning and just went to bed. Only my master is in charge of things at home, and he didn't know that you two would be coming today."
"Please wait a moment, Immortal Lord. This old servant will go and invite my master."
He was referring to Tan Chengyi's father.
The old servant invited Heng Qichun and Lou Yan to sit in the outer room, while he went into the inner room to invite Old Man Tan.
The sound came through the screen and curtains, and faintly, one could hear an old woman coughing.
Lou Yan placed the Pixiu cub on a round stool to the side, letting it climb down and explore the area on its own. Hearing the coughing sounds inside, he couldn't help but curl his aching arm, raising an eyebrow and asking Heng Qichun a questioning look.
Is his wife so seriously ill?
Heng Qichun could see the look in his young apprentice's eyes, but he didn't speak. He gently tapped his teacup, his eyes unusually calm, as if he were thinking about something.
The coughing coming from inside grew louder and louder.
After a flurry of anxious inquiries, Old Man Tan was about to fetch a doctor when he turned around the screen and met the gazes of Heng Qichun and Lou Yan.
He was an extremely thin and hunched old man, who looked to be nearly sixty years old. His clothes and appearance were very ordinary, and he had two heavy bruises hanging over his eyes.
"Immortal Lord?" He was clearly taken aback when he saw Heng Qichun stand up, and subconsciously said, "I did not know that the Immortal Lord had arrived. I have failed to greet you properly. Please have a seat, both of you. I will be right back."
Heng Qichun tucked his sleeves into his hands, smiled modestly, and said, "I have some medical knowledge. If you don't mind, I can take a look at the old lady."
Tan Chengyi's mother's illness had dragged on for several days, and all the doctors in the town had been consulted, but there was no improvement, and in the last two days, it seemed to be getting worse.
Old Man Tan was worried about having no one to turn to, so he immediately thanked Heng Qichun profusely and invited him into the inner room.
Lou Yan casually followed them inside to take a look.
The bed curtains were half-drawn, revealing a figure bent over coughing on the couch. The old lady, Madam Tan, had a sallow complexion and her eyes were weakly open. After a long while, she managed to raise her hand slightly towards Heng Qichun and said in a hoarse voice, "Thank you... Immortal Lord."
Heng Qichun said "It's alright," and sat down to take her pulse.
For a moment, no one spoke, and only the bitter smell of medicine remained in the inner room.
Lou Yan suddenly wrinkled his nose and squinted at the sick body on the bed.
A wisp of demonic energy, filled with curses and resentment, was rising and clinging tightly to Tan Wangshi's body.
A note from the author:
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See you tomorrow! [Dog head with rose in hand][Dog head with rose in hand][Dog head with rose in hand]
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