Chapter 87: After All, I Must Rely on Myself

Although Huang Yan said he would no longer involve himself with Guo Shi, he still sent people to investigate the case further.

Two days later, Guo’s three children were found dead in an abandoned house north of the county.

Perhaps it was a mother’s intuition—soon after the government office runners discovered the bodies of her children, Guo Shi smashed her head against the prison wall and died.

When Huang Yan heard the news, he sighed: “Give them all a proper burial.”

I thought the matter had ended here, and nothing new would arise until the Daoist demon reappeared.

But then something unexpected happened.

Just as the government office runners were burying the family of four, He Yumao from Changfeng Escort Agency returned with several escort masters.

He returned to the agency, heard what had happened, and rushed straight to his wife and children’s graves, kneeling for a long time until he wept himself into unconsciousness.

When he awoke again, he was already in the courtroom.

A crowd stood around him.

Huang Yan sat on the main seat, watching him coldly.

“He Yumao, where were you during this time?”

He Yumao sat on the ground, his eyes bloodshot. He tried to stand, but two government office runners immediately pinned him down with their fire-and-water staves.

He Yumao did not resist. He looked left and right, then said hoarsely: “For the past few days, I hid in Jincheng.”

“You’re dead,” Huang Yan snorted. “Someone claims to have seen the white bones of all the people from Changfeng Escort Agency in the wild—and one of the skeletons was wearing your clothes.”

He Yumao’s face twisted in bitterness: “I had two extra sets of clothes. One of my brothers’ garments were dirty, so I gave him mine. It was him who died, not me.”

“Then how did you survive?” Huang Yan asked again.

“Those aberrations appeared strangely,” He Yumao recalled that night, his body trembling involuntarily. “They came from all directions. Logically, we shouldn’t have seen them—but we saw them all. The men, women, and children we escorted all went mad, running everywhere.”

“Some stripped naked and copulated, regardless of age or gender. Others went insane, biting anyone they saw. I and a few of my brothers still had some clarity—we kept running in one direction. After running far, we only dared to stop when daylight came.”

He then burst into tears: “My lord, I didn’t want to abandon them—I just couldn’t save them.”

“Regardless, eighty-two people died because Changfeng Escort Agency failed in its duty. You must bear this crime. Take him into custody for now; we’ll hold a formal trial later.” Huang Yan snorted. “Seal Changfeng Escort Agency. Inventory and sell all assets. Use the silver taels to compensate the families of the eighty-two dead.”

He Yumao was imprisoned; his fate was likely grim.

Meanwhile, all the Spirit Hunters gathered in the courtyard behind the county office.

Huang Yan looked at them all and said: “The incident with Changfeng Escort Agency was caused by that Daoist demon. They were victims too.”

Everyone nodded.

Huang Yan continued: “Your immediate task is to find that Daoist demon.”

“His flying-head spell is troublesome.”

At that moment, Huang Yan placed a talisman on the table.

The talisman was long, like a rod, etched with bronze-colored patterns.

“True Lord’s Talisman,” Huang Yan said. “Find the Daoist demon and strike him with this. Just a light touch will let the True Lord see him. After that, leave the rest to the True Lord.”

Everyone exhaled in relief.

This made the plan far more feasible.

Huang Yan turned to Li Lin: “Since the Daoist demon is targeting you, you must act boldly these days—wander freely around town. The rest of you will watch him covertly. Understood?”

Everyone bowed.

Huang Yan left. The Spirit Hunters stayed behind to discuss shift assignments.

Not everyone could guard Li Lin nonstop—rotations were necessary.

Soon, the eight were divided into four teams. Zhao Xiaohu wanted to help, but was sent back to the village.

He was still too young and too weak.

Li Lin’s life became casual from then on.

He wandered outside during the day and rested at home at night.

For over ten days, the Daoist demon never appeared.

The Spirit Hunters secretly guarding Li Lin grew lax.

Until one evening, after strolling through the marketplace, Li Lin was about to head home.

Suddenly, he felt a chilling cold fill the air.

He looked around—the pedestrians had vanished. The entire street was empty except for him.

The silence was terrifying. Not a single sound.

Farther out, the scenery blurred, as if a mist blocked his vision.

Li Lin tried to take a step forward—and the ground beneath his foot made a sharp “pop.”

It sounded as if something echoed his every step.

He took another step forward—and again, “pop.”

This time, the sound was louder, clearer. At the same moment, he felt his heart being lightly stepped on.

A jolt of palpitations. A sensation of imminent death.

He frowned, scanning his surroundings.

Then he dropped a small paper doll.

He had once used small paper dolls to track the Daoist demon—when the demon hadn’t yet transformed into a flying-head, they had worked.

But since the demon became a flying-head, they no longer worked.

Dozens of small paper dolls hopped and bounced around Li Lin, trying to move away—but once they passed a certain distance from him, blue flames erupted on them, turning them to ash.

Li Lin paused, then put on his mask.

Immediately, he saw several invisible “flames” burning around him.

The paper dolls had ignited upon touching these flames.

But Li Lin found it strange: these flames were invisible, deadly—so why weren’t they directly aimed at him? Why were they scattered, here and there?

He took another step forward.

“Pop.”

The strange sound echoed again. His heart felt stepped on once more—this time with greater force.

Li Lin frowned, thinking.

After a moment, he pulled a folded sheet of paper from his robe and unfolded it into a large paper doll.

He infused it with yin energy.

The paper doll came alive.

“Lady, I’m sorry to trouble you again.”

As Li Lin spoke, the doll’s eyes turned vivid red.

She gave him a reproachful look, then suddenly “frowned.”

The doll’s eyebrows were painted—they couldn’t move—but at that moment, she clearly looked like she had.

The “Lady” glanced around, puckered her lips, and blew out a breath. The invisible flames vanished instantly.

Then the doll pointed toward the distance and slowly collapsed to the ground.

No more yin energy? Already?

Had the previous use drained it too much?

Li Lin picked up the doll and infused it with yin energy again—but this time, it showed no reaction.

What was going on?

Li Lin was puzzled.

Then, the paper doll in his hand crumbled into tiny scraps and fell to the ground.

Li Lin suddenly remembered: all paper dolls had a limited number of times they could absorb yin energy.

And this doll had already been possessed by the Tree Immortal Lady twice—surviving this long was already remarkable.

That meant, from now on, he had to rely on himself.

Li Lin looked at the spot the Tree Immortal Lady had pointed to, then walked toward it.

(End of Chapter)