Chapter 14

That man was an old man, around sixty or seventy years old, with a round face, short hair, and very small eyes, but he wore a large pair of glasses.

I became extremely cautious. If he had come from outside, I might have let him be, but this guy actually came out from Xiaoyi Village. In Xiaoyi Village, besides the road leading to Kanglong Village, there was indeed another road. That road, I had never dared to walk, and my grandmother would never let me walk it.

That was the road leading to the Dead Town!

What was Dead Town? Before the founding of the country, it was a place where thousands of people died from a plague! The road was so dangerous that even the living dared not enter. To put it bluntly, ghosts were considered extremely common there!

It was only because someone like my grandmother came here and sealed the road to Dead Town that Xiaoyi Village exists today.

Now, this strange old man suddenly appeared out of nowhere in the village. If I didn't run, wouldn't I be foolish!

Even if Sister-in-law hadn't reminded me, I would have quickly pulled Yu Xiaoxue and run behind Zhao He.

Although Zhao He somewhat despised my behavior, seeing that neither of us was strong, he took the initiative to hide behind himself, acknowledging his own strength. That's what smart people do.

So, Zhao He's heroic spirit came out, and he puffed out his chest, loudly questioning the newcomer: "I am Zhao He from Dalong County. Who are you? How did you just come in? Are you trying to sabotage my and my sister's ritual?"

Zhao He? Oh, Zhao He! What a coincidence, I'm your Uncle Hai! The newcomer quickly came to the bridge, waving all the way.

Uncle Hai? Zhao He was stunned, staring at the newcomer with wide eyes.

Uncle Hai, quickly help me! The soul of Captain Huo was taken by the ghost soldiers, and I can't do anything about it! Zhao Qian was pacing anxiously; Captain Huo's soul had already crossed to the other side of the bridge. If it wasn't brought back soon, it would be difficult.

Oh! Oh! Alright, Zhao Qian is here too, and Huo Dade's soul was also taken? What a coincidence. The old man quickly agreed and immediately took out a stack of paper figures from the bag on his back.

The paper figures were already cut out, with noses and eyes, quite scary.

It turned out he was someone I knew? I felt a bit relieved, but I still didn't dare to let my guard down. Who knew how he appeared here? I touched the soul jar in my pocket, ready to open the lid at any time.

When the old man called Uncle Hai reached the bridge, I could clearly see his appearance. His skin was a bit dark, probably from being in the sun for a long time, and he carried a backpack that only young people would carry, indicating that he often traveled.

The old man also looked at me, but only for a moment before turning to look down at the bridge. He seemed to have noticed the ghost soldiers taking someone and saw many ghosts, but his expression didn't change much.

He took out a cinnabar pen as if he hadn't seen anything, wrote a few words on the paper figure, then pulled a strand of Huo Dade's hair and tied it to the paper figure. He then casually threw the paper figure into the river and muttered a few spells.

The two ghost soldiers seemed to sense something, released the faint soul of Huo Dade, and turned to chase the paper figure.

Zhao Qian, call again! Uncle Hai chuckled and sat steadily, his skills clearly very proficient, like a daily routine.

I was surprised and became even more cautious of this old man. He was definitely a powerful yin-yang practitioner, able to easily deceive the ghost soldiers.

Moreover, when he came to my side, he was like a shadow; I didn't feel his presence, as if he had used some yin-yang secret technique to hide his aura.

If a person loses their yin-yang aura, no evil thing can see them. This is a powerful technique for hiding in broad daylight and deceiving ghosts and monsters. Since the old man had such skills, it wasn't surprising that he dared to take the road to Dead Town.

Good, thank you, Uncle Hai. Zhao Qian happily recited the soul-summoning spell, and Zhao He began to lock the soul.

After a while, they successfully brought Huo Dade's soul back.

Then Zhao He opened an umbrella and held it over Huo Dade's body, while Zhao Qian recited some spells. Huo Dade's body convulsed, and bubbles came out of his mouth.

Although he looked terrible, his soul had returned. However, it wasn't over yet, as part of his soul was injured, and Huo Dade would still have to be seriously ill.

Uncle Hai, seeing their success, immediately smiled: "I didn't expect you to be able to handle things on your own. It's been only a few years since we last met, and you're already better than your father was back then. Haha."

Uncle, you flatter us. We are far from our father and grandfather. Zhao He chuckled, but he was actually quite pleased.

Uncle Hai, let me introduce you. This is our new friend, Zhao Qian, who we just met here. She extended her hand, intending to introduce me.

Xia Yitian, Xia as in summer, Yitian as in one day. I didn't wait for Zhao Qian to finish and introduced myself, as she only knew my name from Huo Dade, and I had never properly introduced myself.

I am Yu Xiaoxue, just Yu Xiaoxue. Yu Xiaoxue blushed; she had never introduced herself and had always lived in Xiaoyi Village, so she didn't have such formalities.

Oh, Xia Yitian and Yu Xiaoxue? Good names, good names. You are the same generation as Zhao He and his sister, so you can call me Uncle Hai or just Hai. I am also a local from Dalong County. Uncle Hai smiled, perhaps thinking that we weren't ordinary people to be so polite.

Zhao Qian smiled and nodded, and Zhao He added: "Uncle, Xia Yitian is the grandson of Zhou Xian."

I frowned, my eyes showing concern. This Zhao He was too talkative.

Hiss? Zhou Xian? You are the grandson of Senior Zhou Ying? Uncle Hai drew a deep breath and looked at me carefully.

Is there a problem? I forced a smile and asked: "How did Uncle Hai come out of Xiaoyi Village? That narrow path in Xiaoyi Village is not easy to walk."

Seeing my unfriendly expression, Uncle Hai immediately showed a meaningful smile and said directly: "Hehe, young man, do you think I have something to do with the death of Senior Zhou Ying?"

Brother Yitian, Uncle Hai is one of us; he has nothing to do with your grandmother's death. Zhao Qian, being very smart, immediately understood why I asked.

Since we are all from Dalong County and have come to this place, there are some things you might already know. Some things that are unclear will eventually be figured out. Uncle Hai adjusted his glasses, extended his hand to lead us away, and said: "Carry Huo Dade, our time is almost up."

Are we leaving the village? Uncle Hai, we tried to leave before, but the ghost soldiers were there, and we couldn't go out. We came back after losing a police officer. Otherwise, we wouldn't be staying here. Zhao He complained.

Only one person died? Hehe, under the aftermath of this incident, you being able to hold on until now might be considered lucky. I accompanied a few friends to observe, and three of them died, and I almost didn't make it back. Uncle Hai shook his head and smiled bitterly.

What? Uncle Hai, was there a ritual battle? Uncle Hai, you must tell us about the details of this ritual battle! Zhao He was very excited, carrying Huo Dade without any strain.

Indeed! I was invited to observe, and my friends didn't participate, but they were secretly harmed and couldn't return with me. Uncle Hai sighed and glanced at me.

I didn't know why he looked at me, but I could guess it was related to my grandmother.

Brother Yitian, do you know about the events before the founding of the country? Or what your grandmother was called outside? Or do you have any clues about the cause of the recent events? Uncle Hai asked me instead.

I thought for a moment and immediately denied everything: "I have been working outside these past few years and don't know much about my grandmother. She never told me about her past."

I see, no wonder. Sigh, she was hiding her identity. Uncle Hai shook his head and continued: "Zhou Xian, who was known as the famous Zhou Ying back then, was the Great Demon Zhou."

Haha, Great Demon Zhou? How could my grandmother have such a name? She always saved people and drove away evil. Uncle Hai, are you mistaken? I laughed coldly, staring at Uncle Hai. My grandmother was always kind and charitable, and being called the Great Demon Zhou was like being called a liar to my face.

Uncle Hai chuckled, seeing my anger, and said: "Little brother, don't be in a hurry. The Zhou Xian in my heart is Senior Zhou, not the Great Demon Zhou. That name was given by outsiders who feared her. I met her once and know her character. Don't be in a hurry, let me explain."

Uncle Hai, is this true? Is Zhou Xian really the Great Demon Zhou? Zhao He looked at him with admiration. Anyone called a demon was a powerful figure.

Although Zhao Qian's eyes were bright, she wasn't as impatient as Zhao He.

Hehe, Zhao He, do you know who Senior Zhou Ying was? Before the Cultural Revolution, she was already the famous Great Demon Zhou, the only successor of the Ghost Cult! Would I lie to you?

Alright, don't interrupt. I'll tell you as we walk. Take these paper figures and put them in your pockets. Uncle Hai took out a few paper figures and distributed them to us.

I took them, looked at them carefully, and put them in my pocket since Sister-in-law didn't remind me.

Since I mentioned the demon and Senior Zhou Ying, I must also mention her enemies, the righteous path. What is the righteous path? The righteous path includes Sutu, Mayi, Zhongge, Quanzhen, and Maoshan. These are their so-called orthodox righteous paths. As for us, the smaller branches, they call us minor paths or even evil paths. Although we usually coexist peacefully, there was once a problem. Uncle Hai spoke with a nostalgic tone, looking at where my grandmother lived and shaking his head: "I never thought the Great Demon Zhou was her. I thought it would be a man."