Blood Tai Sui…

The thing I’ve been eating for so long is actually the Blood Tai Sui that old man mentioned?

Isn’t this stuff supposed to be extremely rare, something ordinary people wouldn't even dream of? And I’ve been eating it like it’s rice?

Is this village too rich, or is my mother-in-law actually a hidden old rich woman?

A strong curiosity about this extremely precious Blood Tai Sui also arose in his heart.

What’s the use of eating it?

Why haven’t I felt any changes in my body?

…Except that my injuries heal faster than usual.

However, although shocked inside, Hu Ma could only try his best to suppress the astonished expression on his face. In his current state, he was theoretically still amnesiac, so he shouldn’t know the preciousness of Blood Tai Sui.

He just lowered his head, trying to control his slightly trembling hands, and helped his mother-in-law pack up the baggage. He even tied the legs of the two roosters next to him with hemp rope and lifted them up.

Casually saying “oh,” he changed the subject and asked, “Mother-in-law, where are we going with all this stuff?”

“Taking you out to find a master to learn some skills.”

His mother-in-law didn’t look at Hu Ma, but slowly said, “The ancestors in the village don’t recognize you, so we’ll think of another way to protect you from evil spirits.”

“Learn skills?”

Hu Ma finally understood that the things his mother-in-law was preparing were gifts for seeking a master.

He also quickly took this opportunity to shift his attention.

He couldn’t think too much about the Blood Tai Sui, fearing that the shock on his face would be seen by his mother-in-law.

After failing to return from the old fire pit, and then refusing that ghost marriage, his mother-in-law had been worried about his condition. Besides helping him stabilize his condition every day with that Tai Sui meat…the best Blood Tai Sui…she seemed to have been thinking of other ways.

So, the master she was going to take him to see now must be the one she had in mind.

But what kind of master was she taking him to see?

Speaking of skills, in this bizarre world, she herself seemed to be quite capable.

Could there be someone even more powerful than her here?

Although his heart was full of doubts, he didn’t ask a single question.

He had long summed up a set of rules for survival in this world, by his mother-in-law’s side: ask less, inquire less, observe more, and think more when something happened. After all, he was now helpless in this world, so what choice did he have?

He could only act obediently, change his clothes, support his mother-in-law, and walk out, one foot deep, one foot shallow.

Judging from the direction, they weren’t entering the village, but walking step by step towards the outside of the village.

“Not someone from the village?”

When they arrived at the edge of the village, Hu Ma was already slightly surprised.

Was she really taking him out of the village?

After being awake for so long, Hu Ma had already learned that there were far more evil spirits outside the village than inside.

Now, it was also after he came to this world,

Looking at the towering giant trees and the gloomy scenery from afar, his heart trembled slightly for a moment.

He wondered how many evil spirits similar to upright goats and white-faced monkeys were hidden in this deep forest…

But on second thought, with his mother-in-law and Xiao Hongtang by his side, he should be fine, right?

Outside the village, he could see a small path that had been trodden out, leading into the forest overgrown with weeds and tall trees.

Everything was quiet around them, as if even the birds had stopped singing.

The forest was too deep and too dense.

He didn’t know what this world had gone through, but the deep mountains now had a suffocating lushness.

It was broad daylight, but the forest was dark and oppressive.

Beneath his feet was dense wild grass, almost submerging a small path that had been walked by countless people.

On both sides, dense, winding branches and twigs intertwined, and as they passed, they seemed to be alive, always silently extending, quietly climbing onto his shoulders and缠 onto his legs.

But when he turned his head to look, he saw nothing unusual on either side.

He could only suppress the faint unease in his heart, follow his mother-in-law closely, and delve into the forest little by little.

The deeper they went into the forest, the more dense the surrounding trees seemed to become.

Branches and vines intertwined in front of them, making it seem as if they were walking into a thicket of thorns.

From the depths of the dense forest, it always felt like something was watching them.

“Stop for a moment.”

Just then, his mother-in-law, who was walking in front, suddenly stopped and said quietly.

Hu Ma immediately stood still, holding his breath.

A sweep of his peripheral vision on both sides made him feel horrified, realizing that, without realizing it, the place where he was standing was already filled with scattered branches, densely packed, almost缠 his body and that of his mother-in-law in front of him.

But looking forward or backward, he found that the small path that had been trodden out was as clear as ever, without such dense branches.

“Are these branches alive?”

Hu Ma felt a chill in his heart. They were缠 him and his mother-in-law, tightening more and more without him realizing it. What were they trying to do?

“This is my little grandson. Everyone, take a look so we don't end up fighting each other.” (lit. so we don't let the flood wash the Dragon King's temple)

Just as he was thinking this, his mother-in-law suddenly opened her mouth coldly, and then slammed the crutch in her hand heavily on the ground.

With a "whoosh," a gust of yin wind suddenly swept past.

The dense branches that had缠 Hu Ma and his mother-in-law seemed to be cut by an invisible sickle, falling to the ground with a rustling sound.

He faintly heard the sound of something being in pain, with a kind of miserable groan.

Whether it was an illusion or not, after this gust of wind, the surrounding branches swayed and seemed to be afraid, retreating to the side.

The road ahead of Hu Ma and his mother-in-law was significantly wider.

“So powerful…”

Hu Ma's scalp went numb for a moment.

He didn’t know whether he was marveling at the power of his mother-in-law’s sudden strike with her crutch, or shuddering at the fact that this forest seemed to be truly alive.

He had heard before that it was dangerous outside the village, but he didn’t know that the danger was so great.

Fortunately, he hadn’t really escaped from the village, and fortunately, he had come out with his mother-in-law this time.

In such a world, Hu Ma's previous life's rationality and disbelief in ghosts and gods had vanished. He didn't dare to speak loudly, but could only follow his mother-in-law silently, walking into the deep mountains, carefully, not daring to touch anything.

This world filled him with awe, especially since even his mother-in-law seemed to be very careful.

In addition to these strangely evil branches and trees, the forest was filled with all kinds of strange things.

There was a small puddle of water that didn't seem strange on the surface, but when it appeared in front of the path, his mother-in-law frowned and led Hu Ma to detour. But before they had gone far, they saw the small puddle again, exactly the same as before.

They detoured again, but this small puddle was unusually persistent, appearing once again.

His mother-in-law sighed helplessly and had Hu Ma hand over the live chicken he was carrying.

She scratched the chicken's neck with her fingernails, cutting open its throat.

She threw it into the puddle, fluttering, and told Hu Ma to turn around and not look at what was happening in the puddle.

Soon after, they heard strange chewing sounds behind them.

Several minutes later, his mother-in-law said, "Turn around!"

Hu Ma turned around and saw that the puddle was gone, and they continued on the smooth path.

When they passed a charred tree stump that seemed to have been struck by lightning, his mother-in-law stopped again.

She had Hu Ma bow to the tree stump, then walk fifteen steps ahead and wait for her.

She stayed behind, muttering to herself as if communicating with the tree stump.

"Are there so many evil things?"

Hu Ma couldn't understand these bizarre phenomena, feeling vaguely terrified, but also a little bit of novelty.

He couldn't help but ask Xiao Hongtang next to him, "How do people in our village dare to come out usually?"

Xiao Hongtang seemed to be very careful after entering this forest, and didn't talk much.

Hearing Hu Ma ask, she poked her little head out from behind a nearby tree and said, "Other people don't encounter so many of these when they come out. They have a lot of yang energy and carry the ashes from the ancestral hall."

"Brother Hu Ma smells better and is different from others."

"…"

"?"

Hu Ma couldn't help but shudder and couldn't help but ask, "Mother-in-law is so capable, can't she just chase them away?"

"Mother-in-law is a zou gui ren (spirit walker)."

Xiao Hongtang said, "Zou gui ren (spirit walkers) usually don't chase away evil spirits, they only attract them."

"Zou gui (spirit walker)?"

Hu Ma thought silently, "Is this a kind of identity, or the name of some kind of skill?"

Seeing that his mother-in-law was still chatting with the charred tree stump not far away, he took the opportunity to ask:

"Do you know which master Mother-in-law is taking me to see?"

"…"

"Go south after leaving the forest…"

Xiao Hongtang thought and said, "Then Mother-in-law must be taking Brother Hu Ma to find Second Master!"

Hu Ma's heart stirred slightly. If that "Second Master" lived outside the village, he should be quite capable.

Curiously, he asked, "Which one is more capable, this Second Master or Mother-in-law?"

"I don't know."

Xiao Hongtang honestly said, "Xiao Hongtang is closer to Mother-in-law, but afraid of Second Master."

"Xiao Hongtang has delivered things to Second Master for Mother-in-law, but Xiao Hongtang doesn't dare to enter the house, she just throws them at the door and runs away."

"…"

Hu Ma thought silently, "Someone who makes Xiao Hongtang so scared must be somewhat capable…"

…Suddenly, he was startled. His mother-in-law hadn't seen through his problem, but if he changed to someone more powerful, would they see through it?

"Let's go!"

At this time, his mother-in-law finally came back, looked ahead and said, "We met an acquaintance and caught up. Let's hurry on our way!"

"We'll be there in another incense stick's time."