“What… what kind of ghostly thing is that? Utterly terrifying?”

As the breeze passed, the figure vanished, but the melodious singing lingered in everyone's ears. Everyone present possessed some skill; even if they encountered a Ghost King, they could crush it with a single hand. Now, they merely encountered a wisp of a ghost, yet everyone's expression changed.

“Cai ren ai!” (Woe to the Talented Man!)

Before Hu Ma could answer, he heard Fairy Miaoshan say in a low voice, "This is a poem written by the Great Virtuous Teacher, the former leader of the Bu Shi Niu sect (Those Who Do Not Eat Beef)."

"He once entered the capital to serve as an official, was granted a high position, and presented this poem to the Dōu Yí Emperor."

"..."

"He brought it?"

Hu Ma was slightly stunned. He also had this poem in his memory and naturally knew its origin.

Those who transmigrated and stole poems to make a name for themselves were not uncommon; it was practically standard practice. However, in this world, because there were too many reincarnated individuals, few did this, fearing the ridicule of their peers.

Hu Ma didn't know that an early reincarnated individual like Old Junmei hadn't chosen any other poem but left this one in this world, and furthermore, presented it to the emperor?

No wonder he wanted to flay the emperor alive. Even if he didn't, the emperor would have skinned him alive, wouldn't he?

"Just a kind-hearted person..."

Hu Ma sighed and stepped forward, using the Faguan Dadao (Magistrate's Executioner Blade) to dig a pit in the ground, burying the remaining bones. Then, he offered incense and sighed, "Even after experiencing such misery, he still reminds passersby not to go forward."

"What the shoushi hun (corpse-guarding soul) leaves behind is obsession..."

Old Suanpan had been watching Hu Ma bury the remains and said in a low voice, "To have faced the axe and served as military rations, one should be filled with resentment."

"But this lonely soul only left behind a trace of desolation and despair, reminding passersby of the terrifying place ahead. We must be careful. In chaotic times, soldiers are like ghosts, and people are like sheep..."

"If even for us the road ahead is terrifying, then what about others?"

Hu Ma sensed his concern and said, "What appears on our path is what we are meant to see. Let's go take a look!"

With that, he took the lead back to the carriage, and the group set off again. However, they were much quieter now, looking around, feeling like something was hiding behind the roadside weeds. Before half the night had passed, they could already see a dark town ahead.

Everything was now submerged in the night. They could see the town because of the two tall lanterns hanging on either side of the pailou (ceremonial archway) in front of the town.

But strangely, the entire town had only those two lanterns on the pailou; everything else was dark.

They slowly passed through the pailou and entered the town. At this point, the scouts should have found an inn and knocked on the door to seek lodging. However, the scouts weren't fools; they had long seen that something was wrong with the town. So, they huddled next to the carriage, their eyes darting around.

Finally, they edged forward to a place that looked like an inn, but they didn't dare to knock.

Hu Ma understood them, so he turned to look at Little Hongtang.

Little Hongtang turned to look at Dou Guan, who immediately raised his hand and adjusted the two wings on either side of his hat.

Then, with measured steps, he went to the front of the inn and used all his strength to knock a few times.

The "dong dong" sound was extremely clear in the silent night, echoing throughout the town.

Everyone held their breath, waiting for a response. Unexpectedly, suddenly, from both ends of the town, the sound of gongs and drums began to ring out.

Immediately, the sound of hooves broke through the silence, and doors were kicked open everywhere. Countless lights appeared as if leaping out of the water, including braziers and lanterns, instantly illuminating the town brightly, revealing狰狞 (zhengning) faces in the light.

The door of the inn was flung open, revealing rows and rows of shelves in the courtyard, with people's hair braided into long strands of coarse hemp rope, hanging a row of emotionless human heads with upturned eyes.

Next to it was a cauldron bubbling with human flesh that had turned white. Beside it was a clean ground, lined with headless corpses.

A stout woman sat on a small stool, scooping out coarse salt from a large basin and vigorously rubbing it on the corpses.

Lifting her head, her eyes, almost squeezed shut by her fat, gleamed with a sharp light.

People surged forward from all directions, their faces flashing past, sizing up Hu Ma's group. "Fat sheep have arrived..."

"A good haul, a good haul. This batch will cover half the quota..."

"They're people who haven't gone hungry. Those outside look fat and strong. Those inside the carriage must be tender..."

"And those few large animals..."

"..."

In the midst of the greedy voices, someone stared at the horses pulling the carriage and the donkey ridden by Old Suanpan, only to be slapped by someone next to him. "Don't be foolish. Such good livestock should be kept for breeding!"

"Can't you get enough from eating sheep?"

The caravan hands, seeing such a scene, had already panicked and hurriedly tried to drive the animals back out of the town.

They had been carefully selected by Fairy Miaoshan, or rather Little Dou Guan, from among those who had followed Bu Shi Niu, possessing quick wits even if they hadn't learned much skill. Their reaction was already fast, but unexpectedly, just as they retreated a few steps, they heard the sound of hooves behind them.

It was a group of tall horses, each ridden by a dark figure in armor, pulling several large carts behind them.

The people riding in front held bamboo poles high, each with a human head dangling from the top, swaying back and forth.

The people in the town laughed. "The food collection team is back too..."

"A good harvest tonight..."

"They deliberately lagged behind to block this group of fat sheep and send them into town..."

"..."

Blocking the retreat was the food collection team. Carrying bamboo poles in front was their custom. When they found people outside, they would first cut off their heads and hang them on the bamboo poles as a show of merit. The more heads on the poles, the greater their contribution.

In their panic, the caravan hands glanced backward, and the firelight swept across the heads on the bamboo poles.

Someone suddenly felt a chill down their spine, seeing two of the heads.

One had white hair and a gaping mouth.

The other had a childish face and a blank expression.

It was the grandfather and grandson they had encountered, who had been rushing south at night to avoid the food collection team.

They had not escaped this calamity after all…

Inside the carriage, Hu Ma knew he would encounter such a tragic event and had prepared himself mentally, but seeing it still made his heart sink.

He sighed softly, picked up the Faguan Dadao from his side, and slowly stepped out of the carriage.

“Brother Hu, don’t be hasty…”

At that moment, from the next carriage, Fourth Miss Zhou suddenly stepped out. She seemed to have anticipated Hu Ma’s reaction and reached out to grab his arm, saying in a low voice, “I know you’re upset, but…”

“But people from our Ten Surname Sects usually don’t interfere in such matters. As long as we reveal our identities, these people, no matter how ferocious, won’t dare to provoke us.”

“Even if some of them don’t recognize us, those above them will.”

“The Stone Pavilion Alliance set the rules that disputes in the world are destined, and Jianghu (Martial World) people should not interfere.”

“…”

In the distance, the eyes of the food collection team members widened slightly upon seeing her, and they swallowed hard.

Hu Ma looked at her strangely and asked, “Not interfere?”

“It’s that we can’t interfere in everything.”

Fourth Miss Zhou’s face was still childish, and her Jianghu experience was far less than Miaoshan's, but at this moment, she had her own views: “I… I never thought this would really happen, but according to the rules set in the Stone Pavilion, people of the Mandao (Esoteric Way) shouldn’t interfere in these things.”

“The world is gradually declining, and human tragedies are endless. We can’t manage everything, and if we insist on interfering, it would become the Ten Surnames directly taking over the world.”

“In this era, good and evil are difficult to distinguish. Outside the city, the attacking forces have food collection teams, and inside the city, they do too.”

“This… this is the strictest thing my father told me when I left home…”

“Don’t try to find good people in this chaotic world, and don’t try to find bad people either. They… they are just, people.”

“…”

Hu Ma didn’t expect that the Ten Surname families would have such rules.

But he looked at Fourth Miss Zhou and saw that when she spoke, she only looked at him, occasionally turning her gaze away, or even closing her eyes.

Her face was extremely pale, and the hand holding his arm was trembling slightly.

He understood that she didn’t want him to break the Ten Surnames’ rules, so he smiled and said, “Then why don’t you open your eyes and take a look?”

Fourth Miss Zhou trembled, hesitating to speak.

Hu Ma said in a low voice, “It’s not just your Zhou family that has this rule; the Zhensui Fu (Demon Suppression Bureau) also has a rule of not killing living people.”

“In chaotic times, there is no way to avoid it. With the general trend and human tragedies, I understand all that.”

“But along the way, I have gradually understood the difference between myself and them, and you. You and them have always been incompatible, but at certain times, you are so similar.”

“One is detached from this world, like watching a painting, and the other is high above, with their eyes closed. But my biggest problem is that I am too close to this world, unable to disengage…”

“…”

As Hu Ma spoke, he gently grasped Fourth Miss Zhou’s hand and moved it away from his arm.

Then, holding the Faguan Dadao, he slowly stepped forward, his mind quickly flashing through his current identity.

He couldn’t claim to be a transmigrator, after all, even his Benming Lingmiao (Soul Altar) was sealed.

He also couldn’t claim to be a Hu family member, because the Zhensui Fu didn’t kill living people, and he couldn’t even summon the Golden Armor Warriors.

So, the identity he could use at this moment was…

As he thought, he faced the stern-looking soldiers, the Faguan Dadao reflecting the firelight, shining brightly.

“Jianghu man Hu Ma, passing by this place, seeing evil and taking offense, draws his blade here…”

“You, deserve to die!”