“I… I can’t explain it in just one sentence…”

Zhou Datong also helped Hu Ma pick up the red sandalwood sword and his own knife, following him outside, saying, "At first, it was Zhao the Old Man from Ganzi Village, celebrating his sixtieth birthday."

"This was a good thing, and they decided to slaughter a pig and invited us over."

"But no one expected that the pig couldn't be killed no matter what, and it suddenly jumped up, running around everywhere, knocking Zhao the Old Man down."

"And this knock killed Zhao the Old Man, who was watching the pig slaughter at the door, turning a joyous event into a funeral."

"But the funeral still had to be held. Four or five strong men held the pig down and finally killed it. They also invited people to set up a mourning hall and bought a coffin. But Zhao the Old Man lay in the coffin and refused to close his eyes, so the undertaker boldly reached out and wiped his eyes shut."

"But as a result… as the son was wailing, Zhao the Old Man suddenly sat up."

"Well, everyone in the yard was scared and ran away. His family also rushed over to call us to come and take a look."

"..."

While listening, Hu Ma finished dressing. Hearing this, his expression became slightly grave: "You went to see?"

"Didn't I tell you to be careful?"

"..."

Zhou Datong said, "We waited until dawn before going. Who dares to go out at night now…"

Hu Ma nodded and said nothing more.

Earlier, he had been observing for a while. Zhou Datong and the others were becoming more and more skilled at handling things. They didn't pay attention to ordinary Yin energy, and even if they encountered an evil spirit, they could use various tactics to deal with it and get things done more or less.

And during this time, although he had been worried, he only told Zhou Datong and the others not to go out at night and to gather more people when they did go out.

When the people in the surrounding villages came to ask for help, they still had to help.

He thought that the affairs of the Meng family wouldn't affect these ordinary people.

"This matter, it's really hard to explain…"

Zhou Datong listened to Hu Ma's words and felt a headache. He carefully said, "But… Brother Ma, you should go and see for yourself!"

Hu Ma became serious when he heard this.

As Zhou Datong and the others solved several problems, their courage had also grown, and they wouldn't be easily frightened.

There weren't many things that could scare them like this now…

He didn't even bother to wash up, just splashed some cold water on his face, and followed Zhou Datong out of the village, not forgetting to whistle and call Xiao Hongtang along.

Now, the more places he, the Graveyard Keeper, refines living energy, the more he resembles a normal person. Some Yin-related things are harder to detect. Bringing Xiao Hongtang along can help him see some things and search for information.

Outside the village, Zhou Datong had hitched up the horse cart, which also had a few buckets on it.

Hu Ma got into the cart, Zhou Datong cracked the whip, and they headed towards Ganzi Village, which was about seven or eight *li* away.

From afar, before even entering the village, Hu Ma suddenly became alert, as if the hairs on his body were standing on end.

He frowned slightly and looked up at the village, vaguely feeling a blur before his eyes.

Now, the rising sun illuminated everything, making it bright and clear, but the village was dark and gloomy, as if the sunlight couldn't penetrate it.

"Can you see anything?"

He quickly turned to look at Xiao Hongtang, but saw that she was also looking alert, but she shook her little head.

"Let's go in and take a look first!"

Hu Ma took a low breath. The cart continued forward, and from afar, they saw Zhou Liang, Zhao Zhu, and two helpers from the village, along with some villagers, all squatting by the edge of the village.

Seeing Hu Ma on the cart, they all breathed a sigh of relief and rushed to greet him with the villagers, looking flustered.

"Why did you come out?"

Zhou Datong said, "Didn't I tell you to keep an eye on things inside while I went to call Brother Ma?"

"We couldn't stay in there…"

Zhao Zhu said, "It's too creepy inside."

The others agreed, nodding repeatedly.

"Then let's go in. The others wait outside!"

Hu Ma jumped down from the cart. If there was something inside, the livestock might get spooked and go crazy, causing more trouble. The same went for the villagers outside. It would be easier for him to go in alone.

So, while thinking this, he took the red sandalwood sword in his hand and silently lit the three incense sticks in the furnace before stepping into the village, one step at a time.

He had been to this village before and couldn't say he was unfamiliar with it.

But now that he was inside, he felt uncomfortable all over, unusually oppressed.

"Woof, woof, woof…"

He hadn't walked far when he heard a fierce whining and snarling sound from the corner of a wall.

Everyone's hearts tightened. They turned to look and saw two dogs, one spotted and one yellow, fighting.

It was a real fight, not just snarling.

They were standing on their hind legs like humans, their front legs clasped together, roaring and tearing at each other. They looked just like two people, their grim and ferocious canines were snow-white, their claws were stained with blood and fur, and one of their eyes was blind.

"This…"

Hu Ma stopped and suddenly raised his foot, kicking a small stone at them.

The two vicious dogs suddenly turned their heads at the same time, staring at them, their eyes seeming to hold human-like hatred.

But they didn't actually rush up, just slowly backed away, turning around the corner.

After a while, the sounds of fighting and whining started again, as if they were fighting again.

"Where's the mourning hall of Zhao the Old Man?"

Hu Ma watched them disappear and took a low breath, turning to ask Zhou Datong.

Zhou Datong quickly pointed out the direction. The group quickened their pace, heading towards it. On the way, the uncomfortable feeling became heavier and heavier.

It felt as if every breath they took carried a chill. They saw a little girl in a blue dress, crying as she wiped her eyes with both hands, walking from the other end of the street, just calling out for her mother.

Zhao Zhu was about to go up to her, but Zhou Liang pulled him back, whispering, "Look at her feet."

Everyone looked down and saw that the little girl was floating as she walked, crying and entering a courtyard.

They followed to take a look, but she was already gone.

Hu Ma was also a bit confused by the weirdness in the village. He quickened his pace towards the mourning hall of Zhao the Old Man. Since things started with Zhao the Old Man, these strange things were probably related to him.

But as they walked, it felt as if the village path was getting longer and longer, without end.

The more anxious they became, the more they felt unable to move forward. They walked in a daze, not knowing how long they had been walking, and sweat was already breaking out on their foreheads.

"We, a group of people, can actually encounter a ghost wall?"

Hu Ma felt a bit bizarre. He frowned and suddenly spat out a mouthful of True Yang Arrow.

"Whoosh!"

He used his refined living energy in his lungs to unleash the True Yang Arrow, as if he had truly spat out a flying sword.

The surrounding Yin energy was impacted by his furnace fire, rolling and surging. A blur appeared before his eyes, and he saw the mourning hall draped with white cloth, as well as the temporary stoves set up for the funeral, the cut pork, and the tables, chairs, and bowls that had been placed together.

"This is it…"

Zhou Datong quickly said, "We were called over early in the morning. The coffin is already empty, and we haven't found Zhao the Old Man."

"It's not surprising that Zhao the Old Man ran away if he reanimated as a corpse…"

Hu Ma muttered to himself, "But what about the villagers? Why can't I see any of them?"

"That's right…"

Hearing him say this, Zhou Liang, Zhao Zhu, and the others panicked, "They were all here when we retreated just now."

"Be careful."

Hu Ma could only remind them. He slowly walked towards the mourning hall.

"Chui'er…"

They had just taken a step, approaching the area of the mourning hall, when suddenly, a cold aura rushed towards them.

Everyone was on alert when they suddenly heard a piercing scream, which rang out beside them, scaring them into a cold sweat. They hurriedly turned their heads and saw a bloody pig's head, hanging from a meat rack with iron hooks, screaming at the top of its lungs.

In its dim eyes, it seemed to carry resentment, staring at them intently.

"Earlier, the people in this village said that the pig couldn't be killed, which is why it killed Zhao the Old Man…"

Zhou Datong's voice trembled a bit, "How come now, even the pig's head is hanging up, and it still hasn't been killed?"

Hu Ma didn't speak, just stared at the pig's head, confirming that it hadn't been subjected to a "kill the pig but it doesn't die" technique similar to what Diguashao had used before. Instead, the pig itself carried a strange energy.

He gripped the red sandalwood sword tightly and approached step by step, but unexpectedly, the tables, chairs, bowls, and chopsticks beside him suddenly collided and crashed. He turned his head sharply but saw no one.

Instead, the eggs in the basket suddenly cracked one by one, and black liquid seeped out from inside.

On the burning stove, hot steam suddenly came out of the steamer, and the sound of children crying could be heard from inside.

All kinds of strangeness made the helpers feel a chill rising from their hearts.

Hu Ma suddenly frowned and shouted in a low voice, "Don't move, turn up the furnace fire!"

As he spoke, he strode forward and used his knife to lift the steamer on the stove. He looked inside and saw that no children had been placed inside the steamer. Instead, there were just steamed buns, cracked open, making the sound of children crying.

But as the steam wafted over them, these steamed buns seemed to turn into the heads of children, with their mouths open and crying.

Hu Ma couldn't care less. He simply ignored these strange things behind him and strode into the mourning hall. The mourning hall was built in front of the Zhao family's gate, connected to the gate.

After breaking through the mourning hall, he broke into the Zhao family's courtyard. Hu Ma immediately saw Zhao the Old Man's coffin, as well as the neighbors in the village whom he hadn't seen just now. But the silent scene before him made his heart tighten.

(End of Chapter)