Chapter 1 A Sigh

A gentle breeze stirred, and Hu Ma woke up, feeling the sunlight warm on his body, causing a slight tickle. The surroundings were quiet and peaceful.

He turned to look at the small shrine again, dilapidated and tiny, barely bigger than a fist. There were no beautiful women or a grand hall that could accommodate a person inside.

But when he touched his chest, the letter was indeed gone, and everything Shao Daozi had told him was still vivid in his mind, as if they had just parted ways.

He sighed softly, unsure whether to feel relieved or heavy-hearted.

Heavy-hearted because, after listening to Shao Daozi, he finally understood that the thing that had come looking for him that night was not as simple as he had thought. He had mistakenly believed that the zouguiren's (ghost walker) incense array was powerful, but it turned out that that thing also followed certain rules, making it even harder to avoid.

But relieved because, indeed, finding an organization made things easier.

Thinking of their instructions, he couldn't help but wonder, "What exactly is in Miss White Wine's letter that makes them so serious?"

He had originally thought that coming here would only get him some information about the Anzhou reincarnator organization or a small favor, but they seemed to have immediately treated him like one of their own.

They even allowed him to go directly to Miss Red Wine, revealing her real-world identity.

For a reincarnator, exposing one's identity was a great favor. In Mingzhou, Di Gua Shao (Sweet Potato Liquor) still didn't know the identities of the other three people he was working with!

He sighed softly, recalling what Shao Daozi had solemnly told him in the huangliang (ephemeral dream) technique: "Ghoul servants claim lives, impermanence hooks souls. Within seven days, no one can escape."

"Spells can be broken, but this thing cannot. It's no longer a technique cast by a person. Once you're targeted by it, you can only be taken away."

"But it so happens that the only one in Anzhou who can resolve this is Miss Red Wine."

"But although she has agreed to help, it's not as simple as just showing up at her door. I need to discuss a method with you so that you can go to her legitimately, without arousing suspicion."

Hu Ma understood this very well and immediately nodded, listening attentively to what he had to do.

"You came from Mingzhou and have no relatives in Anzhou. Miss Red Wine is also a reclusive person who rarely goes out except to catch pigs. Logically speaking, there's no reason for you to know each other, let alone for her to help you solve the trouble you've encountered."

"But as long as we plan carefully, we can make your acquaintance and meeting seem reasonable."

"So, let's first have Lao Bai Gan (Old White Liquor) brother explain the cause and process of your troubles, and then see what to do."

Hu Ma agreed with his words and pondered for a moment, explaining how he had escorted Xiang Yatou (Fragrant Girl). This would reveal some of his background, but he couldn't be so cautious now.

However, after he finished speaking, he noticed that Shao Daozi didn't care about what he had done in Mingzhou, and didn't even ask much about Xiang Yatou's identity. But when he heard that he had fought with the Yao (demonic) people on the Pingnan Road in Dongchang Prefecture, his eyes lit up.

"You killed those people?"

"Do you have any proof?"

Hu Ma immediately said, "Yes, I do."

Shao Daozi laughed and clapped his hands. "That makes things easy. You can go directly to Miss Red Wine, following the rules, and there won't be any risk."

Hu Ma quickly asked, "What rules?"

Shao Daozi smiled and said, "The rules of the jianghu (martial world)."

After saying this, he gave Hu Ma something, pointed out a location, and gave some instructions before letting Hu Ma out.

A gentle breeze came, and Hu Ma woke up, feeling that this conversation was both real and illusory, truly magical. But he knew it was important and didn't have time to think about it. He quickly went to prepare.

First, he acted as if he was running around busily, going to several places and asking around about some things. Then, he went to a restaurant in the city with a red lantern, said a few words to the proprietress using a code, and obtained something.

With everything prepared and the act complete, Hu Ma returned to the inn, picked up Xiang Yatou, paid for the room, and led the two horses away.

Seeing Hu Ma's urgency, Xiang Yatou became nervous. "Gongzi (Young Master), where are we going?"

"I've been researching for two days, wanting to send you back to Lingshou Prefecture, but I haven't had a good idea."

Hu Ma had already decided on the script and said with a worried look, "Now, we can only gamble outside the city."

"Ah?"

Xiang Yatou immediately became worried. "Are you going to fight with Third Brother?"

"He... he is very powerful."

"Because he's powerful, we have to gamble."

Hu Ma said with a wry smile, "Of course, I'm not fighting him. I'm going to gamble for an opportunity first."

As he spoke, he led the horse out of the city, and then mounted them outside the city, urging them onward towards a certain location.

After several days of continuous travel, they had both become quite adept at riding horses.

However, they only rode quickly for less than half an hour before they were far away from Anzhou Prefecture. Along the way, they saw neat crops in the fields and distant green mountains and clear waters, a very pleasant scenery.

But when Hu Ma saw a large town ahead, he didn't go in, but turned north instead.

Soon, they entered a mountain path, and the horses slowed down. The path became increasingly desolate, surrounded by overgrown weeds, and they even encountered a field of desolate graves. But they still didn't stop, continuing forward until they reached a forest where the trees were covered with red cloth.

The red cloth was densely packed, looking very strange in the thin mountain mist.

"Red cloth tied, it means there is danger here."

Hu Ma sighed, saying, "Miss Red Wine has really chosen a good place to live!"

Here, it was no longer convenient to ride the horses, so they got off and led them.

As they were about to go inside, they heard a shout from the slope not far away. They turned to look and saw a woodcutter carrying firewood down the mountain.

The woodcutter looked panicked and shouted to Hu Ma and Xiang Yatou from afar, "You two little kids, are you crazy? Didn't you see the red cloth of our zouguiren (ghost walker) lineage? You absolutely can't go ahead. It's haunted! If you break in, you'll lose your lives."

Hearing what the woodcutter said, Xiang Yatou became afraid.

Hu Ma breathed a sigh of relief and said to the woodcutter, "Thank you for the reminder, sir."

"But my brother and I are in trouble and are seeking a master to cure our illness. We heard that this place isn't haunted, but that there's a master here."

"What master?"

The woodcutter was surprised. "I haven't heard of it. I only know that it's evil inside and no one dares to go in."

"We woodcutters don't go in there."

But seeing that Hu Ma and Xiang Yatou insisted on going, he could only shake his head helplessly and went back carrying his firewood.

He turned his head every few steps, feeling sorry for the lives of these two little kids.

"The jianghu (martial world) is dangerous, but there are still many good people among the common folk."

Hu Ma sighed in his heart and led Xiang Yatou further inside. After passing through the forest, the view opened up a lot, and they could see a small path trodden in the grass leading further inside.

It was just that this place always had lingering fog, perhaps because of the terrain. They led the horses here, feeling a sense of gloom and occasionally seeing strange things.

But as they continued forward, they finally saw a farmhouse at the end of the path. Because of the steep terrain, when they arrived in front of the farmhouse, they felt as if there had been nothing in front of them, and the farmhouse had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

But the farmhouse looked ordinary, with a black wooden door, stone walls, and a few willow trees planted outside the wall, giving it an unreal feeling.

Xiang Yatou was now tightly following Hu Ma, almost hugging his arm.

Hu Ma himself was tense, feeling that approaching this farmhouse gave him the same feeling as approaching the ghost village back then.

The ghost village was filled with resentment, while this place was filled with evil energy.

But he knew that this was his own people's place, so he just mustered his courage and went forward to knock on the door.

"Creak..."

Unexpectedly, just as he raised his hand, the wooden door of the farmhouse suddenly opened.

There was no one behind the door, but a cold wind with a faint smell of blood suddenly blew in their faces.

He and Xiang Yatou took a step back, shielding their faces, but after looking at each other, they continued to walk inside. However, the horses they were leading seemed to have encountered something extremely terrifying, stubbornly raising their heads and refusing to step into the farmhouse.

Helpless, Hu Ma had to tie the horses to the willow trees outside and take Xiang Yatou inside himself.

"Gongzi (Young Master), what are we here to do?"

"Shh, don't make a sound. Whether we can successfully send you home depends on whether this master is willing to help."

As he whispered, he walked into the farmhouse, only to see that it looked very ordinary. There were a few low thatched houses inside, some wooden farm tools piled against the walls, and even high stacks of grass.

But unlike ordinary farmhouses, there were no people to be seen here, and the livestock were all free-range, with pigs, sheep, cattle, and horses all scattered around.

When Hu Ma and Xiang Yatou walked in, these livestock, which were scattered everywhere in the farmhouse, all looked up at the same time.

Meeting their eyes, Xiang Yatou felt a chilling sensation.

"Is anyone here?"

Hu Ma shouted loudly, pulling Xiang Yatou, who was hugging his arm tightly, and slowly walked inside.

No sound responded to him. The farmhouse seemed even quieter, but the livestock scattered everywhere slowly surrounded them.

Some of these livestock were tall, some were short, some were strong, and some were thin, but they all walked carefully, seeming very weak. They slowly rubbed up to Hu Ma and Xiang Yatou, scaring them so much that they dared not continue forward.

The livestock crowded around, kneeling on their front legs, blocking their way, but there were no other strange signs.

They just strained their necks and made noises.

Some mooed, some bleated, some grunted. The noises were mixed together, making it difficult to understand.

But the more Hu Ma listened, the more he felt something was wrong. He carefully listened to the changes in tone and suddenly was shocked, cold sweat breaking out.

Help!

These livestock were all shouting for help!

(End of Chapter)