Free Web NovelChapter 432: Chapter 370: Transporting the Corpse
His mind whirling, Yang Xiao couldn’t decide until the last moment, but he believed that the people of the Du Family Village wouldn’t kill them all, especially since there was a task tonight, this was their last chance. Therefore, the person coming from outside must have been sent by Patriarch Du.
After soliciting opinions from the rest of his teammates, Yang Xiao took a deep breath and opened the room door. When they saw the true face of the person, everyone inside the room couldn’t help but hold their breath—it was a face of Zhang Sheng, one they had never seen in the village.
"The Third Watch of the Night has arrived, the Patriarch urges you to hit the road quickly." It was still that discomforting tone, the tall man’s mouth opening and closing.
Yang Xiao, who was closest to the tall man, didn’t dare to breathe heavily because he noticed the man’s eyes were unfocused. He merely stared blankly, not looking at any one of them.
From every aspect, the person before him seemed more like a ghost than a human. Suddenly such a judgment flashed through Yang Xiao’s mind—perhaps this was the true face of the Du Family Village people. They appeared human during the day but turned into this ghostly form after the Third Watch of the Night.
After pondering for a moment, Yang Xiao thought it very likely. This must be why the people of Du Family Village didn’t want to be seen after the Third Watch of the Night. After all, the ghostly villagers from Mangjia Village would not easily enter a courtyard protected by incense ash, which meant they posed no threat to the people in the ancestral home of Du Family Village. Even so, the people of Du Family Village wouldn’t move around casually inside the ancestral home after the Third Watch of the Night.
"How might we address you, sir, and what preparations do we need to make?" Yang Xiao greeted him with a bow, observing proprieties while also testing the other’s reaction.
But the tall man ignored him completely, not even looking at Yang Xiao, still repeating his earlier words. Time was pressing; Yang Xiao turned around, gestured to his companions to stay calm, and then stepped out of the room by himself, with his left hand tucked in his sleeve, clutching the joint-heart lock.
He was not sure whether this item would be of use in danger, but having it was certainly better than not having it, even if it was just for some simple psychological comfort. ƒгeewёbnovel.com
But the man continued to ignore Yang Xiao, repeating like a broken record, until Cheng Cha and Tong Han also came out with the other two. Only then did he stop.
"You walk ahead; go to the western side of the village to look for the wine cellar. I’ll follow behind," the tall man said word by word, the lantern in his hand swaying in the night breeze.
"Sir, we are not familiar with the way; you should lead from the front instead," Tong Han responded politely, and her reason was well-founded. In truth, she was worried that if this fellow walked behind them, he might take the opportunity to chop off their heads when they were least expecting it.
"The Third Watch of the Night has arrived, the Patriarch urges you to hit the road quickly."
Here we go again...
With no other choice, the group had to line up as instructed, with Yang Xiao leading. The last person in the line of five, who stood just in front of the tall man, was in the most dangerous position. Surprisingly, Wuma Haoming voluntarily stepped forward.
He was visibly scared, his calves shaking, but there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Tonight, he needed Yang Xiao, Cheng Cha, and Tong Han to help keep him alive.
He saw very clearly that if these people were all killed, then he would have no chance either. By taking the initiative, he could earn their favor, so that even if there was danger, they might still give him a helping hand.
"Click."
"Click."
"Click."
As the group walked outside, moving along the desolate streets, Yang Xiao suddenly felt very strange, as if their team was a corpse-driving team, only the last tall man was the Corpse Driver, and they were the bodies being driven.
The situation here was also different from before. After the Third Watch of the Night, the village was shrouded in fog and teeming with ghostly shadows of the ghostly villagers from Mangjia Village roaming around. But tonight, the village was eerily quiet, the doors of the stone-paved road tightly shut.
Wuma Haoming was so oppressed by the strange atmosphere that he dared not even breathe heavily. He unnaturally shrank his neck as if he were about to be struck by a knife at any moment. His ears were pricked up, constantly aware of any noises behind him. Perhaps because he was distracted, Wuma Haoming didn’t notice what was underfoot. The next second, he stepped on the heel of the person in front of him. Caught off guard, his body lurched forward and he suddenly fell to the ground. Fortunately, he changed his movement at the last moment and crashed to the left side, otherwise he would have toppled several others in succession.
Regaining his senses, Wuma Haoming immediately scrambled up, turned around, his knees weak, his mind a blank. He knelt down facing the tall man, pleading incessantly, "I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I wasn’t watching my step, please don’t misunderstand, please..."
At that moment, the procession stopped. Yang Xiao and the others stiffened completely, daring not to turn back, their hearts in their throats.
The more they feared something, the more likely it was to happen, but the key issue was that they had no idea whether Wuma Haoming had fallen on his own or had been tripped by something.
But the next second, what happened took everyone by surprise. The man escorting them, who was neither human nor ghost, appeared even more nervous than they were. His gaze swept around constantly, his face pale as iron, repeating incessantly, "Only four people left, we’re missing one, where did that person go?"
"Only four people left, we’re missing one, where did that person go?"
Upon hearing this, Wuma Haoming froze, baffled, but Yang Xiao and others soon understood. To confirm their suspicions, Yang Xiao was the first to turn around, facing the direction of the man. True enough, the escort became even more anxious, his words changing again as he twisted his neck to look around, "Only three people now, missing two, where did those two go?"
Now Yang Xiao and the others fully understood. This man couldn’t see them at night, or more accurately, couldn’t see them from the front, only from behind. No wonder he stood at the back of the line. It seemed this was also one of the restrictions imposed by the curse.
Yang Xiao also remembered that every time the Du Family people killed at night, they always approached from behind, specifically emphasizing not to look back.
Tong Han swiftly pulled Wuma Haoming, who was still confused and kneeling on the ground, back to his spot. Yang Xiao also turned back, and the escort’s expression finally returned to what it was before, his face becoming numb, "Five people now, everyone is here, the Patriarch urges you to get moving."
Then, as if nothing had happened, the group continued forward and soon stopped in front of a mansion. Everyone’s gaze naturally focused on the gate of the courtyard because it was too peculiar. A yellow talisman was pasted on the gate, written on with a brush were several extremely complex characters, narrow yet extremely long, the strokes resilient and powerful, demonstrating exceptional skill.
"This is the place, you go in, I’ll wait outside." The man behind them said precisely, then reached into his sleeve, pulled out two incense sticks with a stiff motion, and lit them with a fire starter. He handed one to Yang Xiao and pinched the other between his fingers in a strange gesture.
Without any superfluous words, Yang Xiao naturally understood the implications, they were supposed to find the wine cellar within the time it took one stick of incense to burn and bring out the jar of wine requested.
Everyone immediately sprang into action. Yang Xiao stepped forward to push the door, but surprisingly, he could not push the door open. It was clearly unlocked, but the talisman seemed to have fused the two door panels together.
The next second, the talisman suddenly burst into flames. In the blink of an eye, it turned to ash, and then the door creaked open.
The interior of the courtyard was pitch dark. Yang Xiao and his company cautiously walked inside, but did not dare venture too deep, staying only a few meters near the courtyard gate until their eyes adjusted to the darkness and they could make out some outlines in the courtyard before moving toward the center.
Assured they were out of the escort’s sight, Yang Xiao and his companions gathered together, and Mi Shu was the first to speak, his voice noticeably tense, "Did you see just now? That talisman paper caught fire, it wasn’t... it wasn’t burning on its own, I saw that man move his fingers slightly."
"It wasn’t just a movement, he formed a hand seal." Cheng Cha corrected in a lowered voice, "That man is a Taoist. I noticed on the way here, didn’t you realize his footsteps were silent? He was using the ’Yu Step’, also known as ’Stepping on the Big Dipper,’ a technique from the Taoist Sect. Though subtle, his skills couldn’t deceive anyone, this Taoist is quite profound."
Yang Xiao remembered that the Du Family Patriarch had mentioned several times that the village had received instruction from a high-ranking Taoist. Now it seems this was the man, but he hadn’t expected him to mix with the scum of Du Family Village.
"I’m guessing this Taoist, like us, was tricked into the village initially, only conspiring with these villagers after learning the truth, in order to survive. Of course, as a reward, these villagers didn’t steal his body." Mi Shu analyzed quietly.
Now, this Taoist was clearly no longer human, but had become a being as grotesque as the Du Family Village’s beasts. It was unknown how many bodies he had switched in between.
"For all we know, this method of stealing bodies to prolong life might have been conceived by the Taoist." Tong Han said, his gaze vigilantly sweeping toward the courtyard gate.
