The original owner of this inn had died in the lobby, and their family in the back courtyard. The bloodstains that had once soaked the ground were nowhere near as intense as they were today. The visual impact of eighteen severed heads piled together was far greater than that of the corpses lying on the ground. The air was filled with the stench of urine. The waiter had wet his pants the moment the man had pulled out the first head.
The heads piled at the bottom as a base were still oozing blood, while those stacked on top had begun to rot. White worms even wriggled through the split flesh of the scalps. The entire scene was both bloody and disgusting.
Poison Elder and Nan Shiying were already accustomed to seeing dead bodies, let alone the constables of the Dali Temple. Nan Shiying took the nameplate from Jinyang and carefully re-examined it, then placed the plaque on a nearby table. The others also took their seats.
"May I know your sect, Brother Jin?"
"Our mountain gate is hidden in the wilderness; we are not a renowned sect," Jinyang replied.
Seeing that he was unwilling to reveal his sect, Nan Shiying did not press further. After nodding slightly, she asked, "Eighteen heads, eighteen bottles of pills. What kind of pills do you desire, Brother Jin? Are they for stopping bleeding and detoxification, or for nourishing yin and replenishing yang?"
"Either will do."
Jinyang smiled gently, his smile hearty and forthright.
His back was straight, his posture upright, his hands resting on the table, his fingers clearly defined at the knuckles. The sleeves were slightly rolled up, revealing his strong wrists.
Jinyang exuded an air of open and magnanimous temperament. Nan Shiying's long lashes cast shadows over her pupils, and her lips curved into a smile. Poison Elder, seeing the smile on her face, his brow twitched. He then shifted his gaze, quickly glancing at Jinyang.
"Then, a little of each."
"Good!"
Jinyang nodded.
Nan Shiying returned to her room to fetch twenty bottles of pills and handed them to Jinyang.
"That's too many."
Jinyang said.
"A gift for you!"
Jinyang did not refuse, accepting them directly. He then took a book from his embrace and handed it to Nan Shiying. "By chance, I obtained this book. It is of no use to me, so I shall give it to the divine physician."
"A scripture?"
Nan Shiying was somewhat surprised.
Jinyang explained, "My master, while traveling through mountains and rivers in his younger days, accidentally fell into a valley. After miraculously surviving, he discovered a cave. By a stroke of fate, he learned a profound martial art. According to my master, the superior martial arts manuals in the cave were scattered everywhere, but only this scripture was carefully hidden, suggesting it was no ordinary item. However, over the years, my master read this scripture countless times, and even until his passing, he never discovered any secrets within it. My master passed this scripture to me, and I should not have given it away. Yet, in the years of reading and searching, I slowly realized that my master and I were both trapped in a certain obsession. For the past two years, my martial arts have not improved even slightly. I am unwilling to discard this book, yet keeping it prevents my progress... Rather than giving the book to you, it is more like resolving my obsession. I hope the divine physician will not refuse."
With him explaining it as such, Nan Shiying did not refuse.
Whether he was telling a story or a true account was unimportant. The cover was not treated, nor were the pages. It appeared to be an ordinary scripture.
Since her transmigration and rebirth, Nan Shiying had studied the Buddhist concepts of reincarnation and the six realms of existence. She opened the book, and this scripture spoke of reincarnation.
On the first page, written in Buddhist script, were three characters—Dizang Sutra!
Jinyang stayed at the inn. In the following days, more people from the martial world gradually arrived in Xiling County. The open space in front of the inn was fenced off, and within it, the mountain of heads was erected.
Initially, the nearby residents were too frightened to come out. Later, their courage grew, and they would occasionally stop to watch, counting whether the number of heads had increased from the previous day.
Cao Zhiwei had been so worried these past few days that his hair was turning white. Although Xiling County had always been under the influence of the Ghost煞 Gate, the Ghost煞 Gate had never dared to kill people so openly in recent years. While the conflict between Divine Physician Feng and the Ghost煞 Gate was an affair of the martial world, martial world affairs also involved human lives. If they were allowed to resolve everything on their own, what was the point of the government? What was the point of the law?
Just as Cao Zhiwei was hesitating whether to report to the imperial court, he received an official dispatch.
Three days ago, a hall master of the Ghost煞 Gate attempted to assassinate a prince outside the royal府.
Upon seeing this news, Cao Zhiwei's eyes widened like copper bells. What? The Ghost煞 Gate assassinated a prince? Were they tired of living?
This obviously false information plunged Cao Zhiwei into deep thought.
This was a blatant frame-up by the prince. With this, not only could he arrest members of the Ghost煞 Gate, but even eradicating the entire sect would be considered suppressing bandits.
Cao Zhiwei looked at the memorial he had half-written, made up his mind, and tossed it aside. "Fine, no need to write it. This is no longer a matter of the martial world. Now, it depends on how far the prince... oh no, rather Feng Luan intends to go."
"Someone, summon Commander Zhang. Tell him I have something to discuss with him!"
...
"Pfft!"
A mouthful of blood spurted out, and Saint Aunt's face turned deathly pale.
Ever since Feng Luan issued the kill order, her complexion had not been good. Meisha, who had been watching with amusement, could no longer laugh.
This idiot in front of her vomited blood and died. Why provoke Feng Luan? Did they insist on making Feng Luan unhappy? Now it was all well and good, Feng Luan was unhappy, but what was the result? The result was that everyone in their Ghost煞 Gate was now considered a rebel.
Assassinating royalty was a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of kin.
The fact that their heads were still on their shoulders was entirely dependent on the geographical location of their Ghost煞 Gate. Had they been in open terrain, their heads would have long been chopped off by the Demon Hunter Army.
"Spit it out, spit it out! What else can you do besides bleeding?"