Dodge?
I wanted to dodge, but my legs were weak and my body felt like jelly. The fact that I could still prop myself up with the wooden ruler was my last bit of defiance; I had no strength left to dodge.
At this moment, Sister Zhuang was no longer recognizable as human. Her entire body was covered in thick black fur, two enormous canine teeth protruded from her upper lip, and her pair of blood-red eyes gleamed with excitement. Her claws, over a foot long, were extended, ready to draw blood.
Just as she was about to plunge her claws into my chest, I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my chest, as if I'd been hit by a car. My body involuntarily lurched backward, and the Yin Ironwood ruler in my hand was raised accordingly.
At that precise moment, Sister Zhuang flew above my head, and the end of the wooden ruler plunged directly into her eye socket.
Ah—
With a pained howl, her hands once again clawed at me fiercely.
"Seeking death."
With a furious roar from Zhang Dabiao, Sister Zhuang's head flew off. Foul-smelling black blood sprayed out like paste from her neck, none of it wasted, all of it drenching me.
Disgusted, I immediately turned my head and vomited. Mustering my last ounce of strength, I pushed Sister Zhuang's corpse aside and gasped for air, "Cough, cough... Brother Zhang, couldn't you have kicked her away before decapitating her? This smell won't wash off for a week."
"Be grateful. If I had been a second slower, you would have been disemboweled. What right do you have to complain? Don't be ungrateful..."
Zhang Dabiao was also exhausted, but more so from fear. If he had been a second later, or if I hadn't managed to stab Sister Zhuang's eye with the wooden ruler, the outcome would have been a tragic song for us.
Looking at the Zancin Ding, over a foot long, lying beside me, I realized Zhang Dabiao must have used it to hit me. Otherwise, I would have been long dead.
I cursed silently, why is it always me who has bad luck?
With my Xuan Yang True Qi almost depleted, I lost the mood for bickering. I could only gasp for air, eager to recover my strength and go home for a bath, lest I reeked of the stench.
After a brief rest, Zhang Dabiao got up and began to inspect the corpses one by one. Seeing this, I also sat up and asked him, "What are you looking for? The Zancin Ding is here, it's not lost."
Zhang Dabiao waved his hand, indicating he wasn't looking for the Zancin Ding.
"How many did you kill just now?"
I thought for a moment and said, "I don't know. I was just trying to save my own life back then, who had the mind to count? The corpses are all on the ground, just count them."
After a quick scan, Zhang Dabiao's expression turned grim. "There are only twelve Bai Sha in total. Where are the other two?"
Twelve? Impossible.
I gritted my teeth and stood up, disbelieving. I recounted them myself. Including Sister Zhuang, who had just been killed, there were indeed twelve. Two Bai Sha were missing.
Zhang Dabiao seemed to have a sudden realization and turned, knife in hand, running towards the courtyard exit.
"Where are you going?"
"Home!"
I was stunned for a moment and followed him. However, by the time I ran out of the door, Zhang Dabiao was nowhere to be seen. Coupled with my unfamiliarity with the roads and the lack of lights in the village, I got lost.
When I finally found Zhang Dabiao's doorstep, I saw the main gate wide open, and the courtyard was in disarray. Two Bai Sha, entangled by Zancin Ding and Yang Blood hemp ropes, lay on the ground, twitching intermittently. Wisps of white smoke emanated from the entangled areas.
Rushing into the house, I saw Zhang Dabiao holding Sister Zhang, who was softly sobbing and patting his chest. "I told you not to do this job, but you wouldn't listen..."
Seeing this, I also breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, I had made arrangements. Otherwise, if these two Bai Sha had rushed into the house, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
Without disturbing the couple's quiet conversation, I turned and left the house, then began inspecting the Yang Blood hemp ropes around the courtyard wall. I stopped only when I reached the back wall, near the window.
A small tuft of grayish-white fur was caught on the Yang Blood hemp rope.
"It really follows me wherever I go. One day, I will catch you." I then threw the gray fur on the ground and stomped on it fiercely.
Returning to the main entrance, I saw Zhang Dabiao sitting behind the door, smoking intermittently. Several cigarette butts were already discarded on the ground. Seeing me emerge from the back of the house, he asked, "How did you know they would come to my house? Can Yin Gua predict even this?"
"If I had that ability, I wouldn't have let Sister Zhang get so frightened. I was just guarding against other things; they were just an accident." I shook my head and said with a wry smile, "By the way, is Sister Zhang alright?"
"She's fine, just startled by the two Bai Sha that suddenly appeared."
"Guarding against other things? Guarding against what?"
I took a cigarette, took a puff, and said softly, "A cunning fox."
"A fox? You mean the one from Molu Village?"
I nodded and said, "That's right, it's that one. This thing has been following us from the south. I don't know what it wants. When we went to Sister Zhuang's house, I smelled its scent, which is why I made arrangements."
"Hmph... these damned beasts, if they ever fall into my hands, I'll skin them alive..."
Seeing Zhang Dabiao's anger surge, I decided not to mention that other malevolent spirits had also visited his house. I couldn't be sure if that guy was targeting Zhang Dabiao or me. Based on my judgment, it was highly likely targeting me, not because I could calculate it, but out of intuition.
Seeing that Zhang Dabiao was still furious, I quickly changed the subject. "Now, before it gets light, we should find the village chief! Let the families identify the bodies, and then burn them on the spot to avoid further complications."
Zhang Dabiao nodded in agreement. He threw the two Bai Sha out of the door, chopped off their heads, and then re-arranged the Yang Blood hemp ropes in the courtyard before going to find the village chief.
Upon hearing that I had killed all the Bai Sha, Lin Laoliu was so happy that he didn't even bother to put on his clothes properly before turning on the village's loudspeaker to notify the families to identify the bodies.
After all fourteen bodies were cremated, and I helped the families bury their ashes in the graveyard, the sky began to brighten. Lin Laoliu and the other villagers kept their word. After burying their own family members, they all produced money.
Returning to Zhang Dabiao's house, I took out half of the money and gave it to him.
"Young brother, I can't accept this money. You saved your sister-in-law's life; how can I take your hard-earned money? If you hadn't made arrangements beforehand, your sister-in-law would probably be gone."
Sister Zhang also heard about what happened and said that we couldn't accept the money. She said that we had enough to live on, and besides, you've already given us more than enough. The two of us have no children, so having some money is enough.
"You can't say that. Didn't you save my life at Sister Zhuang's house? If we calculate it that way, even half of it is too little. Please take it."
After much persuasion, Zhang Dabiao finally accepted 100,000 yuan, saying it was compensation for his sister-in-law's fright.
I shook my head, indicating I had no objections. I had still made a substantial profit.
Sister Zhang then chided Zhang Dabiao for his poor choice of words, asking why they needed so much money when there were only two people in the household. She said that enough was enough.
After a simple breakfast, I returned to my room and lay down, pondering how to flush out that fox. With it following me like this, it didn't feel right.
As I thought, I drifted off into a daze. After a night of turmoil and the loss of Xuan Yang True Qi in my body, I was so exhausted that I could barely breathe.
In my dream, I saw a pair of bewitching eyes.