"What about the title? Is there anything wrong with it? She's always called you Mr. Song, has she made a mistake?" Zhang Dabiao looked at me with a puzzled and suspicious expression.
"She didn't make a mistake in calling me, but such a title wouldn't appear on Fang Huixin, nor would she address me like this."
"Qingyun, are you stupid? Back on Qingfeng Mountain, didn't she... she called you by your name directly, and even cursed at you when she got excited. Is that what you mean?" Su Dan Novel Network
"That's right, exactly so." I nodded and said, "Fang Huixin is a very vicious woman. She's very close to the Li family and has Xu Yi, the paper effigy maker, by her side. How could she be infected with the Illusion Gu? Besides, a witch Gu woman rarely offends others unless they provoke her into casting a Gu. Fang Huixin is just an ordinary vendor of冥器 (items for the deceased). She has no connection to a witch Gu woman, which is why I concluded she was lying."
"How did you determine that Sui Wan'er's remains were still in her possession?"
"Sui Wan'er's knowledge of witch Gu techniques indicates she might be a senior of the witch Gu tribe, which is why they are asking for Sui Wan'er's remains."
After hearing my explanation, Zhang Dabiao showed a look of understanding and said, "So, Fang Huixin was infected with the Illusion Gu because she refused to give Sui Wan'er's remains to the witch Gu tribe, and that's why they punished her?"
I nodded and said, "Yes, it should be like that."
"Then we're helping the wicked! We not only failed to catch the fox but also got ourselves into trouble," Zhang Dabiao said with some dissatisfaction.
"That can't be said. Although the witch Gu women are powerful, they are also reasonable people. I believe they won't trouble us without reason or distinction."
As soon as I finished speaking, a light snort came from outside the door: "What a distinction without difference? If you don't give me a perfect explanation today, I'll let you know what distinction without difference means." As the voice fell, the locked and tightly closed door was pushed open from the outside, and a face full of frost appeared before me.
"Witch Gu woman?"
That's right, the woman who appeared before me was the witch Gu woman who was discussing how to enter the mountain with Wang Defa and others. Seeing her sudden appearance, I was somewhat stunned. I had considered that the Illusion Gu might have been cast by her, but I still held a sliver of hope that the one who cast the Gu wasn't her.
But the outcome was as I feared most. It seemed that the goddess of fortune was not on my side, but had instead gone to Fang Huixin's.
"Senior... Senior, why are you here? Are you looking for lodging? I'll arrange accommodations for you right away." I shamelessly said, putting on a fawning smile.
"What senior and junior? Didn't you just say that we witch Gu women don't trouble people without distinction? That we are reasonable people. Now, explain to me why you broke the Illusion Gu I cast on that woman. If you don't give me a reasonable explanation, don't blame me for taking action." As she finished speaking, a small ladybug-sized beetle appeared in her hand, looking exceptionally cute, its wings fluttering and emitting a buzzing sound that belied its size.
"No way? You're bringing out the Gu King already?" Zhang Dabiao's eyes were about to pop out. Unconsciously, he had already gripped his mountain-splitting axe in his hand, and a battle could erupt at any moment.
Witch Gu women are not scary; what's scary are their methods of raising Gu and their insidious Gu insects, which are simply impossible to guard against.
"Senior, please listen to me. Decide whether to act after I've finished speaking, alright?"
The witch Gu woman didn't speak, but merely looked at the Gu King flying in her hand and said, "Fine, I'll wait for you to give me a reasonable explanation. Otherwise, my little darling hasn't eaten for days and has gotten thin." It seemed the Gu King understood her words, even doing somersaults in the air and emitting a roar like a tiger, which looked terrifying and dreadful.
I patted Zhang Dabiao's wrist, telling him to put away his axe. Against a witch Gu woman, let alone the two of us, even two more of us might not be able to defeat the Gu King in her hand. Besides, who knew if she had other Gu insects with her?
Although Zhang Dabiao was reluctant, he also understood the current situation. Our chances of defeating the witch Gu woman were slim, especially in such a confined space. Once she released her Gu insects, we wouldn't even have a place to run.
I took a deep breath, quickly reviewed the events of my previous judgment in my mind, and then said in a deep voice, "I think Senior cast the Illusion Gu on Fang Huixin to find something, or someone, is that right?"
The witch Gu woman did not answer my question, but continued to tease the Gu King in her hand. Since I was staring at her, her eyelids twitched slightly when she looked at the Gu King, which made me believe I was correct.
"Fang Huixin is an ordinary person and does not belong to the Yin category. If she had truly offended Senior, you could have killed her directly. There would have been no need to use the Illusion Gu to scare her. Senior's current objective is to find a skeleton."
As soon as I finished speaking, she stopped teasing the Gu King, looked up at me with a half-smile, and said, "How do you know I'm looking for a skeleton, and not acting on someone's behalf to torment Fang Huixin?"
Her reply further solidified my judgment. I couldn't help but say again, "Senior is joking. As the patriarch of the current witch Gu tribe, how could she personally trouble an ordinary woman?"
This time, she finally looked at me directly, with a slight hint of surprise on her face, and asked, "How do you know I am the patriarch of the current witch Gu tribe?"
"My master told me that the patriarchs of the witch Gu tribe have always raised a Gu King named 'Tiger Gu,' which is the size of a fingernail but can emit roars like a tiger, which is very magical. That's why I dared to boldly conclude that you are the patriarch of the witch Gu tribe."
After hearing my explanation, she lightly patted the Gu King in her hand and said, "It's all your fault, little one, for revealing my identity." Then she said to me, "That's right, I am Wu Yun, the current patriarch of the witch Gu tribe. Now, tell me why I need to find the skeleton. If you can explain the reason, I might consider letting you break my Illusion Gu. Otherwise..."
"Senior needs the skeleton of Sui Wan'er. She also knew how to use Gu, and her remains were as black as ink, indicating she had been poisoned. Based on my judgment, she died hundreds of years ago. At that time, there wouldn't have been such potent poison that turned her bones black. Therefore, I judge she died from a Gu worm, as only poisonous Gu have such capabilities..."
Clap, clap—
The witch Gu woman lightly clapped her hands, a look of admiration on her face, and said, "Indeed, a hero emerges from youth. Not only do you know the name of the person I'm looking for, but you also know the cause of her death so clearly. It seems I have great hope of finding her. By the way, how do you know about her existence?"
Since the conversation had opened up, and there was no need to fight with the witch Gu woman, I had nothing more to hide. I directly recounted the events of my first visit to Molu Village to see Sui Wan'er's remains.
"She still wants to be resurrected? She's truly incorrigible!"
Upon hearing that Sui Wan'er wanted to be resurrected, the witch Gu woman's expression immediately turned grim. Influenced by her, the Gu King once again took to the air, emitting buzzing sounds, waiting for her command to send me and Zhang Dabiao to our deaths.
"I heard from Wang Defa that you are an Yin diviner?"
"That's right."
"In that case, can you find Sui Wan'er's remains?"
I nodded and said yes, but I needed her birth date and time.
"Alright, I'll give you her birth date and time. You help me find her, and this time I'll make sure she never gets reincarnated..."