Chapter 27

"Are these the missing children from Mianyuan County? Are they really sealed inside the painting?"

Master Ma widened his eyes and examined the scroll.

Even though he was accustomed to seeing demons and evil spirits in the Demon Suppression Bureau, he still found it bizarre and strange that people could be sealed inside a painting.

Zhu Xiuzai squinted his eyes and said, "If Zhang's grandson didn't lie, the missing children are indeed sealed inside the painting."

He then glanced at the dog that Qin Shaoyou had just bought.

If the missing children were really sealed inside the painting, what about these dogs?

Could they be the result of some animal transformation spell?

If so, who were they originally?

The more Zhu Xiuzai thought about it, the more confused he became. He turned to Qin Shaoyou, wanting to hear his opinion, but found that Qin Shaoyou was staring at the scroll in silence, with a rather strange expression.

"Sir, have you discovered something?" Zhu Xiuzai asked curiously.

Master Ma and the other strongmen also turned to look at Qin Shaoyou upon hearing this.

"This painting is drawn on human skin," Qin Shaoyou said in a calm tone, which sent a chill down the spines of Zhu Xiuzai and Master Ma.

"Is this a human skin scroll?"

"But this scroll is five feet wide and ten feet long. Where could such a large piece of human skin come from?" the strongmen exclaimed in shock.

Fortunately, they kept their voices low, or it would have caused a riot.

Master Ma clasped his hands together and asked solemnly, "Sir, are you sure?"

Qin Shaoyou nodded and explained what he saw through his [Keen Eyes] ability:

"This painting is made on human skin, and not just one or two pieces, but dozens or even hundreds of pieces, cut and sewn together. The scroll's rod is not made of wood, but of human bones. Additionally, human blood was added to the paint, and in large quantities..."

"Whew..."

Zhu Xiuzai and Master Ma, along with the others, all drew in a sharp breath.

Human bones as the rod, human skin as the paper, and human blood as the paint...

This painting is too eerie!

What's even more worrying is: "Could this painting be made from the skin, bones, and blood of the missing children? Were the missing children not sealed inside the painting, but all killed?"

"I don't know."

Qin Shaoyou shook his head.

He was also worried about this possibility and the safety of the missing children.

"I can only tell that the skin and bones used in this painting have not been buried and have not been dead for more than a year... but I can't determine if they are from the missing children."

Zhu Xiuzai and Master Ma exchanged glances.

Not buried and not dead for more than a year...

It sounds more and more like the missing children from Mianyuan County.

At this moment, a chorus of shouts broke out.

The onlookers, seeing that the criminals refused to reveal the method to break the seal on the painting despite the severe torture by the constables, began to get angry and agitated.

"Kill them if they don't talk!"

"Right, kill one to set an example, and see if the others still dare to be stubborn!"

"Behead them, these criminals deserve to die, and beheading them will rid the people of a menace!"

The loudest and most enthusiastic calls for execution did not come from the parents and relatives of the missing children, but from a few unrelated people.

In their hands, they held bowls or steamed buns and flatbreads, waiting for the constables to execute the criminals so they could dip into the fresh, steaming human blood.

Seeing this, Qin Shaoyou couldn't help but think of the human blood buns described in his textbooks.

A scene from a textbook actually happening in real life...

Qin Shaoyou was shocked and felt a deep sadness for the ignorance of these people.

Zhu Xiuzai also noticed this group and couldn't help but frown and sneer, "They haven't even been sentenced to death, and these people are already eager to dip into the blood?"

One of the strongmen asked curiously, "I've heard that eating steamed buns or flatbreads dipped in human blood can cure all diseases, especially serious illnesses. Is this true or false?"

"Of course it's false!"

Master Ma's face darkened, and he snorted.

"Human blood buns are just a trick by village charlatans to deceive people. I've never heard of anyone being cured by eating human blood buns. Instead, I've heard of many people getting sick from eating them."

Zhu Xiuzai added, "If human blood buns could really cure diseases, wouldn't all doctors be out of a job? People wouldn't need medicine or wait for criminals to be executed; they could just find a woman on her period, put a bun under her, and eat it fresh."

Qin Shaoyou wrinkled his nose at this.

Human blood buns were already disgusting enough, but what Zhu Xiuzai said made him feel even more nauseated.

This Zhu Xiuzai, while capable, had a rather loose tongue.

Whether it was the shouts of the onlookers, a pang of conscience, or the inability to withstand the constables' torture, one of the criminals finally broke and revealed the method to break the seal on the painting:

"Mix incense ash, cinnabar, and rooster blood in a 1:1:5 ratio, place it on yellow paper, and stick it in the center of the painting to release the sealed people..."

Sun Boyuan, the magistrate of Mianyuan County, who was trying to boost his reputation, almost jumped for joy.

He quickly sent people to find incense ash, cinnabar, and other materials, and then patted his chest, assuring the onlookers, "Rest assured, as soon as we have all the materials, we will break the seal. I, Sun Boyuan, promise to save your children!"

After a short while, the materials were found and brought over.

Once everything was ready, Sun Boyuan personally mixed the materials according to the ratio given by the criminal, spread them on yellow paper, and stuck it in the center of the human skin painting.

The abandoned temple was silent, and everyone held their breath, staring at the painting, eager to see how the eerie seal would be broken and how the children would emerge from the painting.

Suddenly, the sky darkened.

Although it was already late in the afternoon, there was still some sunlight.

But the sky turned pitch black in an instant.

It seemed as if dark clouds had covered the sky, or night had fallen prematurely.

Not only did the light change, but a cold wind also began to blow around the temple, making a whistling sound that chilled people to the bone.

The cold wind was not only bone-chilling but also painful, as if sharp blades were cutting into the skin.

"What's happening?"

"Why did it suddenly get dark?"

"Could it be that demons are appearing?"

The onlookers fell into chaos and confusion.

Fortunately, the eerie darkness and cold wind did not last long.

After a few moments, the sky returned to normal, and the cold wind disappeared.

Fortunately, there was no stampede.

Sun Boyuan let out a deep breath, jumped off the constable, and shouted for everyone to remain calm.

As people regained their composure, they noticed a new situation—the painting in the temple yard had vanished!

Just as people were searching in surprise, someone in the crowd, who was watching from a tree, pointed to the sky and shouted, "In the sky, the painting is in the sky!"

Everyone looked up and indeed saw the painting floating above the temple yard.

"Shoot it down!" Sun Boyuan, fearing the painting would fly away, ordered the archers from the county.

But before the archers could shoot, a crack suddenly appeared in the painting in the sky.

A 'shower' fell from the painting.

But this 'rain' was not water, ink, or children.

It was countless eerie white bones!

This eerie shower of bones made the temple area fall silent once again.