Chapter 137: Nether Ferry

"We're not there yet?"

Walking through the bamboo forest, Chang Ying couldn't help but ask.

The group had already passed the seventh bamboo stockade, but there was still no sign of the Hao family sister's small courtyard.

"Just one turn ahead and we'll be there." Hao Tian quickened his pace.

Soon, the group saw a fork in the road.

A sign was set up here, reading: "Private Residence, No Entry."

"Rustle, rustle~"

A sound of bamboo leaves rubbing together came from the forest, as if a predator were lurking in the shadows.

Lu Ran frowned slightly and pulled the red cloth covering his eyes down a bit.

He saw the sign, and in the bamboo forest to the front right, he also saw a figure wearing camouflage.

Military soldiers?

The Hao family sister's residence actually had soldiers guarding it?

This mysterious follower of Lady Wangquan...

She must be something special.

"Let's go, it's right in this forest." Hao Tian turned into a small path in the bamboo forest and headed deeper inside.

"By the way, what is Brother Hao's sister's name?" Lu Ran asked.

"Li Rouyin." Mentioning his sister, Hao Tian's tone softened significantly. "The 'Rou' as in gentle as water, the 'Yin' as in lush green grass."

Chang Ying asked curiously, "The surname Li? You aren't biological siblings?"

Hao Tian: "We are biological siblings, twins. She takes her mother's surname."

"Fraternal twins~" Chang Ying was a bit envious. "What good fortune, I want that in the future too."

Hao Tian: "..."

In this special world, the Great Xia needed population, the gods needed followers, and the authorities especially encouraged early marriage and childbearing.

People could get their marriage certificates at 18, and that was just the official regulation; in practice among the common people, the age for marriage and relationships might be even earlier.

It was quite normal for Chang Ying to say such things at 17.

It was just that Hao Tian always felt like he was being taken advantage of.

"Oh?"

"Wow!" Deng Yutang and Tian Tian both looked up, their faces showing surprise.

Walking on this small bamboo path, there were tall bamboo trees everywhere, and the view wasn't very open.

However, a large residence had broken through the blockade of the dense bamboo and burst into their sight.

"So grand," Chang Ying muttered softly.

The group had originally thought the sister would live in a small bamboo hut, at most with a small courtyard.

But this...

Such a large residence, like the mansion of a wealthy family in ancient times.

The only difference was that whether it was the large house or the high courtyard walls, everything was constructed of bamboo and wood.

Above the main gate hung a large plaque—Nether Ferry.

"Hmm?" Lu Ran's expression tightened.

It wasn't because of the scale of the residence, but because he smelled an increasingly thick "ghostly aura"!

Yes, it was that kind of damp, moldy scent found in dark basements.

The closer they got, the thicker the ghostly aura in the air became.

Until everyone walked out of the bamboo forest, stood on relatively open ground, and faced the grand mansion gate, Lu Ran already felt a chill down his spine!

This... this is?

"Brother Lu?" Hao Tian turned to look, discovering that Lu Ran had stopped long ago, putting a distance of over ten meters between himself and the others.

"Master?"

"Ran-bao?" The others also came to their senses and turned to look at Lu Ran.

Lu Ran hesitated for a moment and confirmed, "The sister lives here?"

"Yes." Hao Tian was confused. "What's wrong?"

What's wrong?

Lu Ran pursed his lips, his heart feeling extremely unsettled.

In the eyes of others, this was just a grand residence.

Hidden in the forest, quiet and elegant.

But in Lu Ran's eyes, only two words could describe this residence—Evil Nest!

Except for the lack of black energy shooting into the sky and black mist thrashing about like black silk, what difference was there from an Evil Nest?

Chilling winds blew!

And it was deathly still!

Lu Ran calmed his mind and said, "Does the sister live alone?"

Hao Tian nodded and said, "Rouyin lives alone, but she carries a god with her, and it is also located here."

Lu Ran's heart trembled!

No wonder the ghost smell was so heavy!

Damn, hasn't this case been solved?

Is Lord Lady Wangquan actually an Evil God?!

Wait, that's not right either.

Lu Ran looked around, and with the help of the Evil Technique · Evil Perception, he easily found the soldiers stationed in the forest.

The Demon Cave · Bamboo Sea was under the control of the Great Xia authorities, and the level of control was very high.

How could the god Li Rouyin worshipped be an Evil God?

And how could she and her Evil God live in peace? They should have been destroyed long ago!

"Brother Lu." Hao Tian seemed to realize something. "Your senses are indeed sharp, aren't they?"

"What exactly is going on?" Deng Yutang frowned and returned to Lu Ran's side with his two teammates.

Hao Tian said, "After entering the residence, you will also notice it. I had intended to explain it then.

But now it seems, Brother Lu has already discovered it?"

Lu Ran nodded slightly: "I am quite sensitive to the presence of evil spirits."

"Ah?"

"Evil spirits? In the residence?" Hearing this, the group was shocked.

Looking at the mansion again, their expressions changed.

The original tranquility had turned into a deathly silence.

"Brother Lu, rest assured, Lord Lady Wangquan is not an Evil God." Hao Tian explained. "She is just a bit special."

The soldiers in the forest became Hao Tian's strongest guarantee: "There are military personnel everywhere here, Brother Lu, you can be ten thousand percent at ease."

"Hmm..." Lu Ran pondered for a moment and finally nodded. "Alright."

Regarding a mysterious god, Lu Ran was truly quite curious.

He was also quite certain that there was no statue of the god · Lady Wangquan in his God and Demon Sculpture Garden.

With the endorsement of the Great Xia military, it was indeed worth investigating.

Led by Hao Tian, the group walked into the mansion.

Inside the large courtyard were several clusters of huge evil bamboo, standing in the very center.

On the left and right sides were east and west wing rooms, all with doors tightly closed.

Passing the central evil bamboo, not far in front of them was a larger main room, and it was a two-story one at that.

Looking from the outside, this residence was definitely larger than it appeared; there must be a backyard.

"I feel it too, it's chilly." Chang Ying muttered softly, goosebumps rising on her arms.

"Hmm..." Tian Tian quietly reached out and hugged Chang Ying's arm.

The group could naturally smell the ghostly aura, it was just that their noses weren't as good as Lu Ran's.

"Rouyin?" Hao Tian stood in front of the closed main room door, looking up at the open window on the second floor.

The courtyard was silent, making Hao Tian's voice seem very abrupt.

"Rouyin?" Hao Tian waited a moment and called out again, "My training mission over there is finished. This time, I brought you some duck parts."

From inside the window, a young woman's voice finally came:

"Leave them at the door."

Her voice was cold, carrying a faint sense of detachment.

Just one sentence made this quiet residence seem a bit cold.

Looking at Hao Tian now, where was the arrogance that a follower of Dongting should have?

He scratched his hair in distress and spoke again: "I met some excellent young people on the way and wanted you to get to know them."

A breeze stirred, only the bamboo leaves rustled; the woman did not respond.

Hao Tian wouldn't give up: "You stay by yourself every day, sooner or later you'll get sick from boredom.

Every time you leave the residence, you have to experience those... sigh, just talk to people your own age."

From the second-floor window, the woman's faint voice finally came: "No, everyone please return."

The group looked at each other.

Good heavens, even colder than the followers of Jian Yi?

Hao Tian still wouldn't give up: "At least let the guests pay their respects to Lord Lady Wangquan, this is the etiquette a follower should have."

It was clear that this brother was indeed trying his best.

Suddenly, a slender hand landed on the window sill; even the lines on the knuckles were very faint, like a finely carved work of art.

The only flaw was that this palm seemed too pale.

Immediately, a beautiful figure stood before the window.

The woman had an extremely beautiful face, making everyone secretly marvel.

The flaw was equally obvious; like her hand, it was too white.

It was even a kind of sickly white.

However, it hadn't reached the "ghastly pale" level of the Evil Spirit · Yan Zhi Ren, so it was still within the realm of beauty.

She frowned slightly, somewhat dissatisfied: "Lord Lady Wangquan does not like too many people to know of her existence, you..."

Before she could finish, the woman stopped.

Her eyes were incomparably hollow, yet they fell upon Lu Ran and the others.

Strange to say, those pupils of hers clearly had no focus, obviously unable to see anything.

But everyone felt that the other party was indeed sizing them up.

Lu Ran truly hadn't expected that one day, he would be stared at by a pair of lifeless eyes until his heart felt flustered.

"Nice to meet you." Lu Ran broke the eerie atmosphere.

Li Rouyin nodded slightly, her attitude changing slightly.

Her thin lips parted, and she said faintly: "Lord Lady Wangquan does not like to be disturbed, just take them outside the hall to pay their respects."

Hao Tian's face brightened, and he lifted the bamboo basket: "Okay, I'll take them there right now!

You come down too, eat something, satisfy your cravings."

"Bring the things up." Li Rouyin stepped back, and her figure disappeared from the window.

"No problem!" Hao Tian said immediately.

Inside the window, the cold voice came again: "Let the one who spoke just now bring them up."

In an instant, everyone looked at Lu Ran.

Lu Ran: "..."

Hao Tian looked embarrassed and walked quickly toward Lu Ran: "Brother, help me out!

She's been alone for too long, her temper is inevitably a bit... hmm, it's rare for her to want to eat something, help me out."

Lu Ran whispered: "Is your sister really blind?"

Hao Tian: "Why would I lie to you about this? I dream of her being healthy and safe!"

Lu Ran nodded and reached out to take the bamboo basket.

"Thanks!" Hao Tian patted Lu Ran's shoulder heavily, then walked quickly to the main room door.

As the door opened, the group realized that this wasn't the main room, but a main hall, similar to a reception parlor.

The room was furnished with various bamboo furniture, exquisite and unique.

Moving forward, there were two other doors separated left and right, and the backyard was a world of its own.

The courtyard was not only lush with bamboo, but also paved with stone paths, and surrounded by rockeries, ponds, and exotic flowers and plants.

"Go up from there." Hao Tian pointed to a corner of the hall. "Please, Brother Lu.

If she says anything excessive or does anything offensive, please don't hold it against her! I'll apologize to you after we get out, and I'll make it up to you however you want!

Brother, consider it that I owe you one! If you have anything you need in the future, just say the word!"

Tian Tian was a bit worried and whispered, "Won't there be any danger?"

Hao Tian was also somewhat helpless: "How could there be danger? It's just that the divine aura here is a bit unique.

This is territory under the control of Great Xia, and I am also a legitimate believer and student.

Look, this is my student ID from Qian Tangjiang University."

"Enough." Lu Ran glanced at his brother, who was making a humble request, then picked up the bamboo basket and walked toward the bamboo steps.

"Thank you so much, Brother Lu!" Hao Tian spoke very quickly, his voice kept very low, "Since you've helped this far, please help all the way; persuade her to eat more, preferably all of the duck wings."

Lu Ran waved his hand and climbed to the second floor step by step.

"You have a pair of beautiful eyes." Before he had even reached the second floor, he heard Li Rouyin's faint voice.

Lu Ran:?

His pace slowed slightly, and just as he was hesitating, the woman's cold, clear voice came again:

"I really want to pluck them out."

Lu Ran didn't say a word and turned around to leave!

Damn,

these duck products—whoever wants to deliver them can deliver them; I'm not doing it.

This is just too terrifying!

Hearing the "thump, thump, thump" of footsteps coming downstairs, Hao Tian in the hall was completely stunned!

Seeing Lu Ran's hurried figure, he hurriedly said, "Brother Lu, hey? Where are you going, Brother Lu?"

Three updates today: 12:00, 18:00, 22:00.

(End of chapter)