Chapter 139

The train arrived at the station.

Brother Hu and two others carrying luggage bags got off the train, smiles plastered across their faces.

Zhangjiajie was exactly their old San Francisco.

Here, they would begin their gold panning dream!

Li Zhuoyuan got off the train with his backpack, the sun outside was just right, a little blinding.

Yin Meng and Lin Shuyou, in disguise, walked past. Li Zhuoyuan gave them a slight nod, and the two continued to follow Brother Hu and the others.

According to the plan, because they had ‘sufficient funds,’ for the first few days after arriving in Zhangjiajie, these three hoodlums would be very enthusiastic about searching for the non-existent village in the local area.

During this time, Lin Shuyou and Yin Meng didn’t need to do anything, their main task was to accompany them.

Once the three hoodlums’ enthusiasm waned and they started thinking about giving up, the two of them would ‘bait’ them. For example, by bribing passersby or beggars, they would throw some information at the three hoodlums to reignite their confidence and keep them in Zhangjiajie prospecting for gold.

Basically, they would just hang them along until Li Zhuoyuan found concrete new clues, and then lead the three of them in to complete the irrigation channel planning and wait for the river water to fill.

“Grandma Zhu’s Last Wish” and “Wanted Criminal Tian Meihong” were open routes.

The former was about visiting her hometown. As long as they were in Zhangjiajie, it was her hometown. Ultimately, Li Zhuoyuan only needed to return to her old village to check in.

The latter was even simpler. Even if Tan Wenbin just wandered the streets, visited night markets, and ate snacks, that was still considered searching for a wanted criminal in plainclothes.

Therefore, these two routes had a high degree of freedom. They just needed to keep the painting scroll, photos, and wanted poster in their bags, and all subsequent actions would have a basis.

But the three hoodlums, after all, were three living people who needed to be watched.

One person watching was not safe; another person was needed to switch shifts and maintain contact with the team at all times.

Of course, the most important reason was that Li Zhuoyuan wasn’t at ease sending Lin Shuyou alone to execute a task.

This Ayou guy had absolutely enough combat power. Even if he didn’t go all out, dealing with three small hoodlums was more than sufficient, but he was sometimes prone to moments of confusion.

Yin Meng was very satisfied with this arrangement. She was the last one to join the team, and now she could bring along a new junior. It gave her a sense of being a senior, almost like a small team leader.

After Li Zhuoyuan, Tan Wenbin, and Runsheng exited the train station, at Runsheng’s suggestion, the three of them walked along the street for quite a distance. They chose a rice noodle shop, sat in the corner, and ordered ten bowls of rice noodles.

The reason for walking a long distance was that Runsheng felt the shops near the train station were expensive.

Besides, there were many unlicensed taxis near the train station. Even if a licensed taxi came in, they basically had a fixed price and wanted to take you somewhere a bit farther away.

After eating, Tan Wenbin flagged down a taxi, inquired about a nearby antique market, and asked the driver to take them there.

Having arrived in Zhangjiajie, their next goal was to find the Jie family.

The antique market was a very good contact point.

This type of market often had an inner and outer market.

The outer market was where you’d find so-called antiques, both genuine and fake. The inner market was for special items like talismans, prayer objects, or curse objects.

Most antique markets had such inner market shops. Their doors were usually quiet, and the owners and assistants sat inside without shouting, waiting for knowledgeable people with needs to come in.

Upon arriving, this antique market was quite large. There was a construction site outside, seemingly planned for expansion to become a tourism and cultural street.

There were many tourists inside, including a significant number of foreigners. Occasionally, they could even hear Korean spoken.

There wasn’t much to browse in the outer market. There was no need to busy oneself distinguishing between genuine and fake because most of the items were handicrafts and souvenirs.

Tan Wenbin said, “Did this driver lead us to the wrong place?”

Li Zhuoyuan replied, “This should be the antique market he knows.”

The driver didn themt lead them to the wrong place, but he only knew this one.

Fortunately, while strolling around, Li Zhuoyuan spotted an inner market shop.

The inner market was just like the outer market, a mix of everything. Many contemporary rich people had become wealthy, genuinely by lucking out on the wind. They deeply believed in “feudal superstition.”

Their influx had also given rise to the inner market’s abnormality; it was foolish not to earn the money of fools.

After walking past three inner market shops that were just for show, with nothing real being sold, Li Zhuoyuan stopped when he reached the fourth one and looked at the two paper figures placed at the doorway.

Tan Wenbin and Runsheng also noticed that the paper figures were unusual. Both of them were professionals in paper crafting and could distinguish good quality from bad.

“Why do these paper figures have no eyes?” Runsheng asked.

Li Zhuoyuan explained, “These are paper figures used as tools, not purely for burning as offerings.”

Placing two paper figures at the shop’s doorway showed the shop’s foundation.

Li Zhuoyuan walked into the shop. There weren’t many goods inside, just enough to fill the cabinets and showcases.

An old man wearing a blue long gown and a goatee was sitting there drinking tea. When he saw customers, he didn’t get up to greet them.

Three candles were placed on the cabinet, and an oil lamp hung from the house beam.

Tan Wenbin observed the surroundings for a moment before walking over to the three candles.

Seeing this, the old man slowly put down his teacup, preparing to stand up and greet them.

Tan Wenbin began to light the candles, one, two…

One candle referred to people in the *jianghu*, meaning they were in the same trade and understood the ways.

Two candles referred to people of the same generation. By relying on his identity, he could discuss matters as an equal with the shop owner and the people behind the shop owner.

When the second candle was lit, the old man had already changed to good tea leaves and was preparing to brew tea.

But when he saw Tan Wenbin light the third candle, the old man’s hand trembled. He put down the teapot in his hand, immediately scurried over, bowed, and asked,

“I didn’t know the honorable guest would arrive. My apologies for not welcoming you properly. May I ask who the honorable guest is…”

Lighting the third candle meant, “My identity is more noble than yours, you must serve me well.”

Of course, even if you didn’t have the backing, you could still light three candles to show off, but you would have to bear the consequences if the other side found out.

Tan Wenbin looked at Li Zhuoyuan. Li Zhuoyuan began to bow:

“Chest near Nine Rivers, courage shines on Xunyang, aura covers Lushan, spirit reaches Poyang. Nine Rivers – Zhao Yi.”

Outside the door, identity was self-given.

Just like this rule of lighting lamps, it was also okay to impersonate another family, provided you could bear the revenge if the other party found out.

The old man immediately returned the bow: “Nine Rivers Zhao family, I have long admired your name. Please, Young Master Zhao, take a seat.”

Under the old man’s guidance, Li Zhuoyuan and his two companions entered the shop.

After serving tea, the old man retreated. Soon, a plump, attractive woman in her thirties with a mole under her lip walked in.

As soon as the woman entered, Li Zhuoyuan noticed her gaze sweep across his forehead.

It seemed the foundation of this shop was deeper than he expected, because this woman knew about the life and death lines on Zhao Yi’s forehead.

This also meant that the other side had already discovered he was an imposter.

“Young Master Zhao, I am…”

The woman’s mouth curled into a smile, and her movements carried a sense of allure. As her sleeve lightly waved, the items in the cabinets on both sides of the room seemed to open their eyes.

Li Zhuoyuan pressed the untouched teacup in his hand onto the table. As his palm turned downward, four ghosts mounted a sedan chair, and the eyes of the things in the cabinets on both sides closed.

The smile on the woman’s face immediately widened. She didn’t step forward but first bowed:

“I didn’t know Young Master Zhao was here. What noble purpose brings you? If there’s anything you need, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

Even if they knew he was borrowing an identity, what did it matter? In the *jianghu*, the ultimate struggle was with fists. The truth and falsehoods were less important.

Li Zhuoyuan got straight to the point: “I want to ask about something.”

“Young Master Zhao, please ask.”

“I want to find the Jie family.”

“Are they not the four families of the old Heaven’s Gate corpse carriers?”

“Yes.”

“Then, Young Master Zhao, are you looking for the Niu Dao Jie or the Yan family Xie?”

The four corpse-carrying families of the old Heaven’s Gate were Jie, Xie, Wang, and Bu.

When Jie was used as a surname, it sounded the same as “Xie.” To distinguish them, they were referred to as “Niu Dao Jie” and “Yan family Xie,” respectively.

“I’m looking for the Niu Dao Jie.”

“To be frank with Young Master Zhao, if you were looking for the other three families, it wouldn’t be difficult. This humble shop could also help you make contact. But this Niu Dao Jie, they had already declined by the end of the Yuan Dynasty. Although there were still Jie family members who took up corpse-carrying jobs during the Ming and Qing dynasties, they no longer formed a significant force.

The last time I heard of a Jie family member appearing was twenty years ago, on the occasion of Old Master Wang’s big birthday. A child from the Jie family was sent to show face. I only remember that child knew nothing about his family’s situation when asked and ate a whole table’s worth of food alone.

After that, there was no more news of the Jie family. Thinking about it, twenty years have passed, and that Jie family child should be the same age as me by now.”

“Where can I find them?”

“Is Young Master Zhao asking about the ancestral home of the Jie family?”

“Right.”

“Meiling Town, Peach Blossom Village. The birthday invitation for Old Master Wang was delivered there. We originally thought it would be like a stone sinking into the sea, but who knew someone actually came.

But after that, we tried to contact them again, but there was no result. We couldn’t even find that child anymore.”

“Why did the Wang family still want to find them?”

“Regardless, they were once the four great families of the old Heaven’s Gate. There’s a certain camaraderie. If the family was truly left with only orphans and widows, wouldn’t they, for the sake of their ancestors, have to lend a hand?”

Li Zhuoyuan looked at the woman and said, “Not everyone has the right to lie.”

The woman covered her face, smiled apologetically, and said, “They all say the Jie family has been hiding a big secret for several hundred years. Everyone is also interested in this secret. Initially, Old Master Wang also wanted to arrange a baby marriage with that child and conveniently get that secret. Who knew that child ate a full mouth of oily food, said two sentences, ‘Fortune like the East Sea, Longevity compares to South Mountain,’ and then rolled under the table and ran off.

At that time, we also sent people to follow, but surprisingly, they all lost track.”

When Tan Wenbin heard this, he couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. Knowing the events of twenty years ago in such detail, was this still just “hearing say”?

However, with his junior brother Li Zhuoyuan asking the questions, he didn’t find it convenient to interject.

Li Zhuoyuan said, “So, right now, the only clue to finding the Jie family is Meiling Town, Peach Blossom Village?”

“Young Master Zhao has deep fortune. If you truly want to go, you might really find them.”

“I’ll take your auspicious words.”

Li Zhuoyuan stood up, preparing to leave.

The woman stepped aside, making way.

However, as Li Zhuoyuan passed in front of her, the woman spoke again:

“May I ask, Young Master Zhao, are you seeking out the Jie family for revenge or…”

“Do I need to tell you?”

“You’ve misunderstood my meaning.”

“Oh?”

“Young Master Zhao, if you find the Jie family, and happen to see the one who came to the feast twenty years ago, could you please bring a message for me?”

“Speak.”

“Just say that the girl who was supposed to have a baby marriage with him that year, the one who broke a duck leg for him at the feast, is still waiting for him.”

This sentence was equivalent to exposing her identity. Her surname was Wang, and this shop was also the Wang family’s business.

She hadn’t introduced herself earlier because she saw that he was concealing his identity. Now, she took the initiative to reveal it because he wanted to find the Jie family.

However, Li Zhuoyuan didn’t quite believe this moving love story, because he could see from her face that the woman was already married, and she had given birth to children, and was blessed with many children.

This wasn’t some beautiful love story of a childhood glance leading to a long wait.

Li Zhuoyuan asked, “Waiting for him to do what?”

The woman sighed and said,

“My husband left home in the first month five years ago and hasn’t been heard from since. He left behind one son and one daughter, a pair of twins. Both children are in school now.

It’s really difficult for me, a woman, to manage the shop and raise two children. I also look down on other men. Thinking about it, it seems the only connection I have left is this half-marriage that once was, bringing a little bit of a longing story. If he is willing to come back, it’s not impossible to try living with him. He can also conveniently pick up the two children and have them call him dad, how convenient, hehe.”

As the woman spoke, she laughed herself.

After a while, she stopped laughing and said apologetically, “I’ve lost my composure, making Young Master Zhao laugh.”

“I will deliver the message.”

“Many thanks, Young Master Zhao.”

…

After leaving the shop, the three of them headed straight outside. Since they had already obtained the clue for the next stage, there was no need to delay here.

Tan Wenbin’s face always wore a thoughtful expression. He was repeatedly pondering the woman’s earlier words, and the more he thought about it, the stranger it felt.

After leaving the antique market, Tan Wenbin finally couldn’t help but ask, “Little Yuan brother, it seems the relationship between the Wang family and the Jie family is not ordinary.”

Li Zhuoyuan replied, “Mm.”

“The last segment of words she said felt very strange, somewhat inexplicable.”

“Because we still haven’t clearly determined what the Jie family represents.”

“Mm?”

“Binbin brother, try to substitute yourself. Let’s say we are old friends with the Jie family, and then think about her last words.”

“Then it’s just that there might have been a misunderstanding between the Jie family and the Wang family, and they hope to resolve it by having us deliver a message?”

“Then let’s say we have an enmity with the Jie family, and we’re on this trip for revenge.”

“Then it’s just… Old Master Wang’s feast twenty years ago could have been a Hongmen banquet, and it’s possible that this woman’s husband, who disappeared five years ago, died at the hands of the Jie family?”

Li Zhuoyuan nodded: “Mm, these two families have a great enmity.”

Tan Wenbin smiled: “It seems the name Nine Rivers Zhao really has quite a deterrent effect.”

Li Zhuoyuan shook his head: “She recognized early on that we weren’t Nine Rivers Zhao, but our daring to impersonate Nine Rivers Zhao made her more wary of our identity, so her words were so distorted.”

Stopping, Li Zhuoyuan closed his eyes, his ears trembling slightly.

Runsheng immediately became vigilant, scanning his surroundings while asking, “Little Yuan, are we being followed?”

“No, but it’s possible they’re not here.”

Tan Wenbin took out the map they had prepared from his backpack: “Let me see how far Meiling Town is from here…”

Li Zhuoyuan said, “Very far and very remote. We’ll have to take a long-distance bus.”

Tan Wenbin took out a city map again: “Then let me see where the bus station is. We can go there and charter a car.”

Li Zhuoyuan pointed ahead: “It’s just up ahead.”

Tan Wenbin put away the map somewhat helplessly. Little Yuan brother had looked at the map beforehand, and all the locations were in his brain.

“Then should I flag down a taxi?”

“It’s not far, let’s walk. We also need to give them some time to prepare.”

Outside the state-owned bus station, there was a large square where many unlicensed vehicles were parked, including motorcycles, tricycles, small vans, and even old-style minibuses.

You didn’t even need to go to the bus station ticket counter to buy a ticket. You could find a ticket scalper here and buy it cheaper.

However, you couldn’t enter the station to wait. After the state-owned bus inside drove out, the ticket scalper would take you to the roadside. When the driver stopped the car and opened the door, they would pick you up.

“Going to Meiling Town, going to Meiling Town!”

As the three of them walked onto the square, they heard two people holding handwritten plastic signs shouting to attract customers.

Many of their peers nearby cast strange glances at these two.

Meiling Town was very remote, so remote that unlicensed vehicles were reluctant to go there. Sometimes, it wasn’t a matter of not finding passengers; they just couldn’t drive there and then come back empty.

Tan Wenbin looked at the signs in the hands of those two people. He believed that if he went up and wiped the words on them with his finger, his fingertip would definitely be covered in undried black ink.

“Little Yuan brother…”

“Since there’s a special car arranged, why not take it?”

“How did they know we would come here?”

“Because we’re all carrying trekking bags, it’s obvious we didn’t drive ourselves.”

“Tsk, so that’s how it is. Then I’ll go to the phone booth over there and contact Ayou and Mengmeng.”

“Mm.”

Tan Wenbin ran to the phone booth to make a call. Anyway, the time was right, so he just called first and then waited for a return call.

And the two unlicensed taxi drivers were very considerate, continuing to circle around Li Zhuoyuan and Runsheng, shouting to attract customers.

In the middle, a woman carrying a baby on her back came forward to inquire about the price. She wanted to go to Meiling Town.

The two unlicensed taxi drivers were visibly stunned and started negotiating the price with her.

When the woman heard the price, she immediately became happy and kept saying, “Sit, sit, sit.”

Tan Wenbin finished his call and ran back, also going up to negotiate the price.

This price was truly cheap, so cheap that it might not even cover the fuel cost.

Even so, Tan Wenbin still suppressed a smile and haggled with the other side.

The other side actually agreed.

This caused the woman who was originally standing by, preparing to get into the car with her child, to become anxious. She came forward and also demanded to take the car at this price.

In the end, they also agreed. The woman’s face was full of smiles.

As soon as they finished negotiating the price here, they started doing business again. Five people came, carrying large and small bags, dressed like people from a rural town coming to the city to work.

However, their clothing was a bit too deliberate. The cloth shoes and liberation rubber shoes on their feet were deliberately wiped with dust, and their bodies were also deliberately made to look very dirty.

In this year, even if you came to the city to work, you would only be covered in dust and dirt on the construction site. Who would deliberately tidy themselves up, especially when they were returning home?

These five guys might really have lacked… what?

Of course, it was also because although he had walked there, he hadn’t given them too much time to prepare.

The two unlicensed vehicles were both vans. The woman with the child was originally arranged to go in another one, but when she saw the five men in this one, she insisted on changing to the other one.

Seeing Li Zhuoyuan and his two companions looking over through the car window, the unlicensed taxi driver had no choice but to agree to her changing cars.

The woman hugged her child and came over with a smile. In this car, there were three young people. The one with the bandaged head looked a bit scary, but the other young person and the teenager were dressed very decently. Sitting with them, she felt a sense of security.

The car started, driving first within the city, and then after leaving the city, gradually onto the mountain road.

The van behind was visible sometimes and hidden at others. There was no way to completely hide on the winding mountain road. Even if you deliberately kept a great distance, you could still see the distant vehicle when you looked back after the next turn.

Please… You… Collect_（!）

The driver should be new, but this car was old.

The van had been modified, with two rows of seats and plastic benches in the back, making it convenient to add seats.

Runsheng sat in front of Li Zhuoyuan, Tan Wenbin sat behind Li Zhuoyuan, and the woman sat to Li Zhuoyuan’s right, separated by a very narrow aisle.

The child cried, and the woman began to feed him milk.

Li Zhuoyuan turned his head and looked over.

By rights, he should have avoided eye contact at this time, but outside the door, Li Zhuoyuan would remain vigilant at all times.

What if this group of “lacking what” characters was just for contrast with the woman’s authenticity?

The woman didn’t mind the teenager looking. Instead, she smiled and even deliberately turned her body to let the teenager see her child obediently drinking milk.

Very real.

Tan Wenbin, sitting behind, saw his junior brother’s “indecent behavior.” After the woman finished feeding the child, he immediately started chatting with her.

The woman’s dialect was very strong, but it didn’t affect Tan Wenbin’s performance.

However, during the conversation, the woman also acted very normally.

Li Zhuoyuan took out some food and drinks from his bag, and even specially shared some with the woman. The woman smiled her thanks, and then she also took out peanuts and something similar to flatbread to share with the teenager.

Li Zhuoyuan also thanked her, then indicated he wasn’t hungry, put them back in his bag, and didn’t eat.

After finishing his milk, the child became more active. This was a boy. He always used his big, bright eyes to stare curiously at the teenager in front of him.

The car continued to drive. Li Zhuoyuan no longer paid attention to the woman and turned to appreciate the scenery along the way.

He actually didn’t mind these guys “arranging things for themselves” because he had taken the initiative to find them, not the other way around.

With these people’s existence, he could save a lot of “story editing” steps.

Moreover, they hadn’t shown any hostility towards him, just like the twisted expression the woman in the antique market showed, maintaining the retreat route of “we are doing this to protect you.”

But as dusk approached, they still hadn’t reached their destination, and the road ahead was blocked.

The driver was shocked and got out to inquire about the situation. When he came back, he said, “There’s a landslide, the road ahead is blocked. We don’t know when it will reopen.”

Hearing this, the woman immediately started chattering in dialect, showing her displeasure.

The driver was annoyed and said, “What can I do? I didn’t dig the mountain and make it collapse!”

After saying this, the driver’s eyes showed guilt, and he specifically glanced at Li Zhuoyuan.

He didn’t dig the mountain, but he felt guilty like a thief, seemingly afraid that Li Zhuoyuan would misunderstand that they were the ones causing trouble.

Li Zhuoyuan didn’t misunderstand, because if they truly planned to take action, they wouldn’t have waited until now. Any stop along the way would have been an opportunity.

“Is there a place nearby where we can rest?” Li Zhuoyuan asked.

“Drive back a little. There’s a roadside farmhouse on a branch road behind us. The yard is very spacious.”

“Then let’s go there. We’ve been sitting for a long time and are uncomfortable.”

“Ah, okay.” After agreeing, he suddenly felt that as an unlicensed taxi driver, he was too easy to talk to, so he added another sentence, “I also want to go out and smoke a good cigarette.”

The van turned back and drove into the roadside farmhouse.

The flat-roofed house was built beside the small road, with a small cliff behind it. But the yard was spacious, large enough to park a truck. There was a simple toilet and a water tank with a sign that said: “Add water.”

A window in the flat-roofed house was open, with the word “Smoke” pasted on it.

The owners were an old couple, both with hunched backs.

The van behind also drove in. The driver and the five people all got out.

The old couple came over to ask if they wanted to buy some food. Li Zhuoyuan and the others patted their bags, indicating they had brought their own.

The two unlicensed taxi drivers and the five people returning home then followed the old couple to buy some food and some cigarettes.

The sky gradually darkened. One of the unlicensed taxi drivers occasionally drove forward to ask about the situation. Finally, he came back and said, “I’m afraid we can’t leave tonight. The road will be passable tomorrow morning.”

The old couple came again to sell their home’s accommodation. There was a room inside where people could stay.

The unlicensed taxi drivers were quite understanding and specifically came to ask Li Zhuoyuan and his two companions, saying they could arrange for the three of them to stay in the room.

Li Zhuoyuan refused as before. Tan Wenbin took out his sleeping bag, and Runsheng set up a tent.

Finally, the two unlicensed taxi drivers stayed in the house, while the five people returning home made do on the other side of the yard. They had brought many pots, bowls, and utensils, but not enough bedding. The night sky was cold, so they huddled together, smoking heavily.

Among the five people, except for the eldest, who was close to fifty, the other four all smoked, and they would only smoke half a cigarette before throwing it on the ground and stepping on it with the sole of their shoe.

Tan Wenbin also noticed this and turned his head, letting out a slight laugh: Damn, I wouldn’t be so wasteful with my cigarettes.

The woman holding her child looked very pitiful, but she didn’t proactively come to Li Zhuoyuan for help.

Li Zhuoyuan said to Runsheng, “Brother Runsheng, go set up a tent for her and give her my sleeping bag.”

“Okay.”

Runsheng went to set up the tent, deliberately choosing a spot further away from their own three people.

As night fell, the temperature in the mountains dropped quickly.

The old couple pushed out a gasoline barrel from the house, put firewood in it, and lit it, providing light and warmth.

When the five people saw this, their first reaction was to look towards Li Zhuoyuan’s side to see if the three of them would come over.

Li Zhuoyuan and his two companions continued to stay in their original spot.

The five of them looked at each other, not knowing whether they should go over to warm themselves by the fire.

But with the fire burning there, it also seemed unreasonable for the five of them not to go over.

Finally, the eldest waved his hand, and the five people gathered around the fire basin.

The night was deep, but in the field, not many people were actually sleeping. Although the five people all had their eyes closed, their postures clearly indicated they were not sleeping.

Although the two unlicensed taxi drivers were in the house, they could occasionally see the red glow of cigarette ends flashing through the window.

“Ding ling ling… Ding ling ling… Ding ling ling…”

A bell sound came, quite far away, and it wasn’t coming from the main road direction, but from the small road below.

The old couple, who had originally gone to sleep, put on their clothes and came out. They took out two white cloths from the house and stood in the yard.

The five people were “awakened.” Seeing these white cloths, they showed some disbelief.

The two unlicensed taxi drivers also walked out of the house. After seeing the white cloths, they immediately went to talk to the old couple. They kept their voices very low, but their speech was very fast.

The old couple’s reaction was very surprised, and they kept asking them questions in return.

Li Zhuoyuan had good hearing and overheard the conversation.

The two unlicensed taxi drivers were surprised that this family unexpectedly still walked the Yin road.

The old couple were surprised that these two unlicensed taxi drivers were so knowledgeable.

As people from the Wang family, a corpse-carrying family, they encountered corpse carriers in the wild.

The bell sound got closer and closer, and human figures had already appeared on the small road in the distance.

Leading was one person, wearing a yellow Daoist robe, a Sanqing belt around his waist, an Eight Trigrams mirror on his chest, a Qingyun crown on his head, a bell in his right hand, and scattering paper money with his left.

He was quite stingy with the paper money, unexpectedly throwing it piece by piece.

However, his posture was a bit strange, somewhat stiff.

When they got closer, they discovered there was another person behind him wearing a yellow Daoist robe, also scattering paper money, also throwing it piece by piece.

The reason for their stiff walk was also found: each of the two Daoists had a bamboo pole clipped under their arm.

In between the two, there was another person. This person’s feet didn’t touch the ground.

The old couple were talking with the two unlicensed taxi drivers. The old man took out paper money and threw it into the fire basin to burn. The old woman held a mirror and swung it at the entrance of the yard. This was guiding the way.

The five people returning home all stood up and stood in a row. Except for the oldest one, the other four had mockery on their faces.

This kind of expression, under the flickering firelight, was reflected more clearly.

Li Zhuoyuan knew what they were mocking, because from their actions, the two corpse carriers were walking in a low-level way, using traditional bamboo poles to carry the corpse.

True Daoist corpse carriers could use techniques to drive the corpse and make it walk on its own.

Li Zhuoyuan furrowed his brow slightly. Of course, he didn’t have that kind of occupational discrimination from the corpse-carrying lineage. He was just curious, what was so good about carrying a corpse?

There were many ways for two living people to transport a corpse, weren’t there? Was this kind of tradition necessary?

Li Zhuoyuan’s gaze narrowed. He activated his Yin vision.

He looked towards the corpse carriers. Although they were already very close, he could only vaguely see a mass of black fog.

It seemed… there was a problem?

If he couldn’t see anything at all, that would be a very normal matter, indicating the absence of evil spirits and ghosts. But a mass of black fog? Wasn’t this clearly trying to cover and conceal, preventing him from probing?

The pair of corpse carriers was probably still fifty meters away from the yard.

Li Zhuoyuan began to try using the method from Wei Zhengdao’s black skin book, adjusting his spiritual frequency, hoping to probe that mass of “black fog” again.

Before, he always used this method to resonate with existences like dead falls.

Runsheng and Tan Wenbin always remained alert, especially after seeing Li Zhuoyuan’s eyelids start to tremble quickly. The two of them more tacitly protected the teenager more tightly.

When the pair of corpse carriers were still twenty meters away from entering the yard, Li Zhuoyuan received feedback from the black fog.

He sensed two feedbacks!

The teenager immediately stopped his action and ended his Yin vision.

Two feedbacks indicated the presence of two evil spirits!

But the problem was, in reality, they clearly looked like two yellow-robed Daoists, propping up a corpse and moving forward.

So, was the corpse being propped up a living person, and the two corpse-carrying Daoists were the corpses?

Li Zhuoyuan subconsciously took a deep breath, a chill running through his heart.

Having walked through three rivers, he should have accumulated a lot of confidence, but at this moment, he felt a deep sense of trepidation.

Because the same scene, when viewed by a corpse salvager, was equivalent to two dead falls, carrying a person and walking on the road.

Moreover, the most terrifying thing was that these two dead falls were still wearing Daoist robes and covered in Daoist magic tools!

Even if these magic tools were all fake, if you put so many fake ones on an evil spirit, it would definitely cause problems. It couldn’t be like this now, following along like a ghost with no individuality.

Distance, ten meters.

The two Daoists in front and back both looked very young. They seemed to be brothers, with similar, round faces.

The front Daoist raised his hand, seemingly waving hello.

The Daoist behind him peered out, a smile on his face, also responding.

The old woman laughed and gestured with her finger, as if guiding a car into her yard.

Among the five people returning home, someone had already laughed out loud.

The two unlicensed taxi drivers also walked to the front of the yard and pointed towards the other side.

The two Daoists chatted with them. The one behind was still somewhat acceptable, still shouting: “Yin people are on the road, yang people should avoid.”

The young Daoist in front lowered his head shyly, seemingly embarrassed to see so many living people at once.

This kind of intimacy, this kind of naturalness, this kind of behavior of normal people, were they still evil spirits?

Sometimes, when walking the river, on the Huashan Road, you had no choice. No matter what, you had to stake everything and go for it, because you knew that besides lighting the lamp and admitting defeat, there was no way to avoid it.

But now, the tide hadn’t arrived yet. This extreme situation didn’t exist.

If the other side’s danger level truly exceeded expectations, then there was no need to force oneself.

After all, walking the river at least gave you a progressive expectation, but reality never reasoned with you.

“Woo wa~ Woo wa~ Woo wa~”

A piercing cry of a child came, attracting many people’s attention, but everyone quickly withdrew their gaze and continued to look at the two corpse carriers about to enter the yard.

Li Zhuoyuan continued to stare at the woman.

“Oh oh~ Don’t cry, don’t cry~ Oh oh~ Good child, don’t cry~”

The woman coaxed the child as she walked towards the edge of the yard.

Actually, this child was very well-behaved. He had been very quiet all the way, not crying or making noise.

Many people who have raised or are raising young children can hear some meaning in a child’s cry.

Li Zhuoyuan had never raised a child, but he was intelligent from a young age. When he was very young and truly a child, adults always liked to have him play with other children.

He heard that the child’s cry was due to pain, and from the frequency, it seemed someone was constantly causing him pain.

It was the woman, who was deliberately pinching the child with her hand in a place outsiders couldn’t see. She was deliberately guiding the child to cry.

She walked towards the edge of the yard. The yard had a wall here, but the wall was very short, simply enclosed by wood. Even a child could easily jump over it.

This woman had been in disguise all the way. Although he was not completely at ease with her, he couldn’t see any flaws in her behavior.

But this time, she wasn’t pretending anymore!

So, how terrifying was the “corpse-carrying team” that was about to come in?

There was no time to continue thinking. The young Daoist in front was already turning around, preparing to walk into the yard.

The woman, still coaxing her child, had completely reached the edge of the yard.

Li Zhuoyuan stretched out his hands, pulled Runsheng and Tan Wenbin, and then ran towards the edge of the yard.

Runsheng and Tan Wenbin’s tacit understanding with the teenager didn’t need to be explained further. There was no need to ask “how” or “why.” Seeing Little Yuan running, why wouldn’t they run quickly?

Fortunately, the three of them had set up their tent in the corner. They just needed to sprint a little to reach the edge of the yard fence, and then jump!

Below the yard was a slope with a significant height difference. This was also why the car had stopped in this yard earlier, because there wasn’t much good ground nearby to stop on, only here was leveled.

As they jumped and fell, Runsheng reached out and grabbed Li Zhuoyuan’s backpack. Then, he turned his body, pulled the teenager in front of his chest, and landed on his back.

“Bang!”

After landing, Runsheng rolled continuously downhill with Li Zhuoyuan in his arms, then extended a hand and quickly inserted it into the mud beside his body, stabilizing himself.

Tan Wenbin was a bit unlucky. He had originally grabbed Runsheng’s leg, wanting to use it to stabilize himself, but everyone was wearing custom-made adventure clothes. The new material was good, relatively smooth, not to mention the boot surface. Tan Wenbin grabbed all the way down and couldn’t get a firm grip.

Finally, he landed chest first, rolling for a long distance before finally stabilizing himself.

After stabilizing, Tan Wenbin spoke for the first time, letting out a silent cry of pain. This feeling was like having his chest vigorously rubbed by a steel wire ball.

“Good~ Don’t cry, don’t cry~ Good~ Not crying anymore, not crying anymore~”

The woman was at the same level as Runsheng, but further away, about three to four meters.

Everyone jumped from the same horizontal line. Li Zhuoyuan and his two companions also sprinted and jumped, but the woman, holding a child, could still jump so far. This was a light qinggong skill.

At this time, the woman squatted steadily on the ground, not looking at Runsheng and Li Zhuoyuan beside her, and even less at Tan Wenbin who had fallen further down. She continued to coax the child:

“Oh~ Don’t cry, don’t cry~ Good~ Don’t cry, don’t cry~”

The child gradually stopped crying because no one was pinching him.

And at this moment, a chilling cry suddenly came from the yard above, making people’s scalps tingle.

Then, in the next moment, the cry suddenly stopped, and the area fell into dead silence!

So fast?

You must know, those seven people might all be from the Wang family, all with good skills and abilities.

“Ding ling ling… Ding ling ling… Ding ling ling…”

The bell rang again.

This time, the bell sound appeared above their heads.

Below, Li Zhuoyuan, Runsheng, Tan Wenbin, and the woman all looked up.

On the small road up the slope, a long procession was advancing to the rhythm of the bell.

In front and back were still the two young Daoists wearing yellow robes.

In the middle were the five “returning home personnel” on one side (four and one) and the two “unlicensed taxi drivers” on the other side (three).

They each held a bamboo pole in one hand, placing the pole on their shoulder, following the pace, step by step.

There were ten people in total,

And only one person’s feet were off the ground.

At this time, the old woman’s voice rang out from the yard, echoing in the empty mountain valley:

“Hey, hey, there are still five people who haven’t joined the road yet~”

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