Chapter 1 Go Down Yourself

Going up first wasn't about Hu Ma showing off; he could tell the other guys were scared. It was their first time coming with Xu Ji, and they had some courage to begin with, not usually this hesitant. But after the unexpected event, they'd lost their nerve.

Even though they'd lit the stoves, the more afraid they were, the harder it was to keep the fires going. Forcing them closer would only make them more vulnerable to whatever was in the well.

If things got chaotic, he wouldn't be able to control the situation.

Better to have them stand back a bit, at least they could keep their footing and hold their torches steady.

Once they truly calmed down and their courage returned, the stoves would be more effective.

So, he pretended to be nonchalant, using the firelight behind him to approach the well bit by bit.

Scattered shadows, like bared fangs and claws, slowly approached the well.

The piercing wails around him grew clearer, as if right next to his ears.

In the sparse, broken shadows on both sides, he couldn't tell how many fuzzy things there were, rustling like swarms of snakes and insects, eerie and sinister, slowly closing in on him.

Hu Ma felt the chilling cold seep into his body, as if he were in an icehouse, almost frozen numb.

When he felt his steps grow heavy, he looked down and vaguely saw his feet and calves covered in tangled hair.

This evil thing was quite powerful, taking advantage of the night to summon gusts of yin wind, making people slow to react. Before he knew it, the hair had wrapped around him. By the time he realized it, it was already too late. The eerie hair was pulling taut.

"Back!"

Noticing this, Hu Ma was terrified, but he steeled his nerves and shouted.

He'd intentionally suppressed the furnace fire within him to see if he could lure this thing out.

Now, he suddenly unleashed it, using the energy technique of "Splitting the Mountain" from Second Master's teachings.

The furnace fire surged, traveling through his arm to the red sandalwood sword. At the same time, he moved with the sword, suddenly swinging it backward, drawing a beautiful arc behind him.

"Chi..."

Hu Ma didn't dare to be careless, using three-tenths of his power, thinking it should be enough to ward off the danger.

But he didn't expect that this power, released through the red sandalwood sword, would be so unexpectedly strong.

The air felt scorching hot, as if invisible flames were rising. In the darkness around him, not illuminated by the torches, faint crimson shadows appeared.

The moment the hair swirling in from all directions touched the red sandalwood sword, it instantly burned away, scattering in tatters. Not only did the hair缠着Hu Ma's legs fall away, but the rest also suddenly retracted, pulled back into the well.

From the bottom of the well, the sobbing wails grew louder.

Amid the eerie strangeness, there seemed to be a hint of fear and anger.

"Good stuff..."

Hu Ma was overjoyed, and his courage grew stronger. Gripping the wooden sword, he pointed it at the well: "Don't cause trouble! I'm from the Red Lantern Mother Society, Qingwa Village... a Qingxiang disciple, ordered here to handle things. I know you've harmed some of the workers."

"Quickly return their people, or I'll have to use force..."

He meant to announce his name, but he suddenly realized he couldn't just blurt it out...

He was a worker from the Red Lantern Mother Society, so announcing the Red Lantern Mother's name was appropriate!

"A disciple of the Red Lantern Mother, acting so oppressively?"

Unexpectedly, as Hu Ma's voice fell, a choked sob rang out from the well: "I was thrown into this well by a faithless man, and my wronged soul can't dissipate. With no way to voice my grievances, I'm imprisoned here, just waiting for that heartless man to return so I can take my revenge."

"I haven't provoked you, but you disciples of the Red Lantern Mother are so overbearing, insisting on coming here to make things difficult for me?"

Huh?

Hearing this, Hu Ma's heart stirred: "She's afraid..."

Now that he had the red sandalwood sword in hand, and the workers behind him were gradually regaining their courage, suppressing the surrounding yin energy, and the evil spirits that had been drawn over from outside the village were retreating, losing momentum.

In terms of raw strength, he already had the upper hand. Now, should he take this opportunity to find a way to get rid of the thing in the well?

But he couldn't help but think of Granny. He hadn't learned ghost-walking from Granny, but Little Hong Tang had always followed her. From Little Hong Tang, he'd seen a glimpse of Granny's way of doing things.

So, he glanced at Little Hong Tang, seeing her wide-eyed and a bit worried, and he made up his mind.

Right hand gripping the knife, left hand holding the sword, he coldly looked at the well and said loudly: "Don't cry and wail. We're disciples of the Red Lantern Society, we don't mean to bully you. We just can't let you stay here and harm the surrounding people."

"If you listen to reason, then move your nest and go somewhere else!"

These words made the surrounding workers' minds waver.

Hu Ma's way of handling things was果然 different from Xu Ji's. Xu Ji would come up and start fighting, but Hu Ma was trying to persuade her.

On the other hand, although Hu Ma started by trying to persuade her, his attack just now was much more impressive than Xu Ji's.

Seeing this momentum, the workers' minds calmed down a bit.

Perhaps it was just their imagination, but once their minds were settled, they didn't feel the surroundings were as eerie as before.

Even the flames in their torches were more stable.

After Hu Ma said these words, he also narrowed his eyes, coldly looking at the mouth of the well.

During this time, he'd been leading the workers, gradually becoming familiar with the affairs around the village and some of the rules of the Red Lantern Mother Society. He knew that when workers of the Red Lantern Society dealt with evil spirits, they didn't necessarily have to fight and kill, but mostly focused on persuasion and banishment.

Even the old shopkeeper had only said to come and resolve the problem, not necessarily to eliminate it.

"You still say you're not bullying me..."

As Hu Ma's voice fell, a sobbing wail rang out from the well again, sounding aggrieved: "I was originally going to stay here and guard for that heartless man, not believing he wouldn't return to his ancestral home. Now that my vengeance hasn't been exacted, you insist on forcing me to leave."

"Besides, even if I wanted to leave, my bones are buried here. I can't leave my corpse by more than a few li. Where do you want to force me to go?"

"Complaining?"

Hu Ma's heart stirred, feeling like there was a chance.

He didn't care at all about what story the other party was bringing up, he only deeply understood one principle:

When the other party shows weakness, you must not follow their lead, or you'll get entangled.

There's no need to be too harsh, but there's also no need to be too soft.

So, he simply glared and pressed aggressively, shouting: "So, you're saying you're not willing to leave no matter what?"

Eee-yah!

From inside the well, a gust of yin wind swept out, as if resentment was rising.

But Hu Ma simply stood his ground, not dodging or evading, coldly watching.

In addition to his toughness, even the surrounding workers grew bolder, all staring intently at the well.

Their courage grew stronger, and the stove fires burned brighter.

It was as if they were following Hu Ma, using their own yang energy to suppress the yin energy in the well.

Sure enough, Hu Ma didn't follow her complaint, but forced her strongly, seemingly unreasonable, but very effective.

Although resentment was rising from the thing in the well, after a moment, there was a burst of sobbing wails:

"If you really want me to move, I wouldn't dare disobey the Red Lantern Mother, but you must come down yourselves, dig out my bones, and then bury me in a shady place beside the official road leading to Mingzhou Prefecture, so that when that heartless man returns, I can see him..."

"If you agree, then I'll move."

"Ah?"

The surrounding workers suddenly heard this condition, and their hearts were filled with anxiety, looking at the well, already with a creepy feeling in their hearts.

Just getting close to the well made them feel a chill all over, with resentment soaring into the sky.

Even when Xu Ji dealt with her, he first tried to find a way to force her out. Now they had to personally go down into the well to dig out her bones. Who would be so stupid?

Hu Ma also frowned, saying: "This matter is not difficult, we'll move your bones for you when it's dawn, how about that?"

The voice in the well was faint and echoing, full of resentment: "Moving my bones at dawn? The sun shining on my corpse, aren't you afraid of harming me?"

Not stupid at all...

Hu Ma frowned.

Now, if he waited until dawn, it wouldn't be too difficult.

However, even if he waited until dawn, the evil spirit would hide in the well. The well was already a yin and cold place, and it didn't see the sun, so he wouldn't save much effort. Moreover, in that case, things wouldn't be done neatly after all, and he wouldn't be able to show off his skills.

So, he quickly calculated in his mind, considering all the factors, and finally slowly exhaled, raised his head, and looked at the well, saying: "What you said makes sense, then I'll go down."

"Ah?"

Hearing this, the surrounding workers were all shocked, looking at Hu Ma in disbelief.

Even the evil spirit in the well seemed to be silent for a long time before saying in a幽声voice: "If you are really willing to move my bones for me, then I will leave."

"Not only will I move your bones for you."

Hu Ma said: "I will also find you a good place, where you can see the official road, and you won't have to suffer from this阴寒 cold, and I'll burn incense and worship you, so you can receive some incense offerings too!"

Perhaps these words moved the thing in the well, suddenly the yin energy at the wellhead dissipated, as if it wasn't waiting for Hu Ma to go in.

"Hu... Brother Hu Ma..."

The surrounding workers were very worried, subconsciously calling him "Brother" like Zhou Datong, and said nervously: "Be careful, she will harm people..."

"We have the Red Lantern Mother protecting us, what are we afraid of邪祟evil spirits harming us?"

Hu Ma said words that even he didn't believe, pondered for a moment, and said: "You go to the surrounding villagers' homes first, get ropes over here, prepare to pull people up, and find some quilts and straw mats, prepare to collect the bones... Don't抢, pay some change."

"After I collect her bones, bury them quickly, so they don't get晒晒sunburned..."

Hearing this, the surrounding workers all went busily.

Only then did Hu Ma take off his coat, so as not to get it dirty, then he took a bamboo basket and walked to the well.

Taking a deep breath, he tied the red sandalwood sword to his back, making it easy to take down, then supported himself with both hands and entered the well.

In the middle of the night, the阴气coldness was刺骨piercing to the bone, especially going down into the well, his skin was covered with a layer of goosebumps.

He slid down bit by bit, testing the depth with a layer of幽寒cold well water under his feet.

After testing the depth, he quickly landed, held his breath, and slowly took out the fire starter, illuminating the surroundings.

As soon as the light appeared, he saw a stiff, pale face, pressed close to his own.