Chapter 37: Three Corpses: Zhi

【HP: 87%】

The leopard-man monster's HP surprised Chu Danqing.

From its appearance, it looked mortally wounded, yet its HP indicated only minor injuries.

This meant the leopard-man monster's wounds were merely an illusion.

Chu Danqing's gaze swept repeatedly over the leopard-man monster, searching for clues.

Da Bao and the crossbowmen's attacks were steadily reducing the leopard-man monster's HP, but the monster's assaults grew increasingly fierce.

At first, Da Bao’s life-drain effect kept pace, but as the enemy’s attack speed increased, the drain could no longer sustain.

Chu Danqing felt he couldn’t just wait passively, so he immediately launched a chain of energy.

The chain appeared, sank into the leopard-man monster's body, then slowly dissipated.

“Missed? That’s impossible!” Chu Danqing stared at the dissipated chain—it hadn’t been shattered by the enemy’s attack.

A miss meant dissipation; destruction meant shattering—two entirely different outcomes.

“It’s parasitism, Da Bao—find the host.” Chu Danqing understood: the human-faced black leopard had died completely; something was controlling its corpse.

The HP decreased slowly because Da Bao and the crossbowmen were striking non-vital areas.

In online games, scraping the feet might work, but this was reality—semi-digitalization was for reference, not because the world was fully digital.

Hearing this, Da Bao gritted his teeth and began tearing flesh from the leopard-man monster with his rending claws.

“Wrong spot—try again.” Chu Danqing watched the battle log; damage had dropped, meaning the target was still wrong.

Creak~

After Da Bao's repeated attempts, he tore off the leopard-man monster's sternum, revealing a strange creature hidden within.

Chu Danqing used his Scan technique again, and finally learned its name.

【Three Corpses·Zhi】

Seeing the name, Chu Danqing naturally felt puzzled.

He knew a little about the concept of Three Corpses—originating in Daoism as internal informants and sources of evil within the human body.

Beyond that, only fragments of Honghuang lore remained, none of which connected to Zhi.

Once the source was found, Da Bao’s attacks caused Zhi’s HP to plummet rapidly.

One claw strike drained most of its HP; the second killed the strange creature outright.

【You killed Three Corpses·Zhi】

With Zhi’s death, it instantly dissolved into a pool of pus.

The leopard-man monster's corpse emitted a foul stench—not like a fresh kill, but like a corpse rotten for days.

Simultaneously, an Excellent-grade chest appeared atop the corpse.

Da Bao grabbed the chest and returned.

Chu Danqing casually stuffed it into his storage space.

He felt this matter wasn’t so simple.

Contribution credited; the trial quest was completed.

【Quest completed. Reward: Return eligibility, Paradise Points ×1000, Attribute Points +1】

Chu Danqing ignored the Paradise notification, pondering instead: Three Corpses should have three—why was there only one?

Perhaps there were clues here.

“Master Offerer, truly remarkable—this vile beast is finally dead.” The overseer, seeing the battle end, hurried over.

“Overseer, do you know the origin of this leopard?” Chu Danqing sensed an opportunity to dig deeper.

In response, the overseer shook his head: “I don’t know. I only know it appeared recently.”

“Have there been other strange beasts or anomalies nearby?” Chu Danqing asked again.

Seeing Chu Danqing press repeatedly, the overseer dared not give a careless reply and thought carefully.

“Actually, yes,” the overseer said at once. “This vile beast first carried off Lu San.”

“Lu San was an old miner, frugal his whole life, saving to return home and build a house and marry.”

“A few days before he vanished, he changed completely.”

“He bought new clothes, went to Chunyuan Pavilion, feasted on fine wine and dishes, and spent the night with three courtesans.”

“Later, he passed out drunk outside the mine. When someone found him, the beast had already dragged him off and eaten him.”

“Master Offerer, would you consider this abnormal?” The overseer summarized.

Chu Danqing immediately replied: “Yes, absolutely.”

He knew little of the Three Corpses, but this clue was too obvious to ignore.

The original host of the Three Corpses wasn’t this human-faced black leopard—it was the miner named Lu San.

“I’ll immediately send men to investigate,” the overseer said at once.

“Investigate—I suspect this may be a targeted strike against our Lu family,” Chu Danqing said, not speaking lightly—he genuinely believed it.

Zhi might be one of the Three Corpses’ names.

He had killed only one of the Three Corpses; two others remained at large.

From the description, the Three Corpses triggered three desires: vanity, gluttony, and lust.

The human-faced black leopard’s frequent human consumption was gluttony.

Additionally, it likely granted the host corresponding power.

“This vile beast was merely a mountain predator. Only after consuming Lu San—whose nature had changed—did it transform so drastically.”

“Think—if this beast had been Lu San himself, how many would have noticed?”

“Someone is surely scheming against the Lu family’s mining operation,” Chu Danqing concluded.

Though coincidence was possible, Chu Danqing’s inference was reasonable.

The overseer was deeply alarmed by Chu Danqing’s words.

“Master Offerer, rest assured—I’ll have men closely monitor the mine and report any anomaly immediately.”

“Investigating Lu San will take time—I’ll deliver the findings to you by tomorrow morning at the latest,” the overseer pledged urgently.

This matter involved the Lu family; the overseer had to act for his own sake.

Leaning on a great tree offered shade—without the Lu family, his wealth and status would collapse, so they actively protected Lu interests.

The Lu family had endured for generations; their household management was masterful.

“Remember—keep this quiet and discreet. If you alarm the culprit, catching them later will be nearly impossible,” Chu Danqing warned.

There was another possibility: not an external threat, but internal treachery.

In large households, disunity was inevitable.

Especially since Lu Yin, the Lu family’s eldest son, was a sickly invalid, unlikely to live long.

“Master Offerer, I understand,” the overseer replied, then added: “Shall I escort you back to the manor?”

“No,” Chu Danqing said. “Take me to the Ji residence.”

“The Ji residence in Yangxian County isn’t ordinary. Without an invitation, gaining entry won’t be easy,” the overseer gently warned.

Aristocratic families had their rules—the Ji family was nothing compared to the Lu family, whose customs were far more elaborate.

(End of Chapter)