Chapter 545: with translation of chapter title

"We've arrived, this is the place……" Seventh Master got out of the car first. After bouncing for over an hour, we finally arrived at the Yuan family's manor.

The one who opened the door for me was Yuan Qiu. Seeing me and Pangzi, a hint of surprise appeared on his face.

"Hai Sheng, Xiaoqiang, how did you guys come?" He asked us doubtfully, but at this moment, looking at his familiar face, my own face was filled with mixed emotions. Yuan Qiu, is he really deceiving me and Pangzi?

"Little Qiu, where's your grandfather? Is he home?" QingSongShu gave Yuan Qiu a complex look; he had once misjudged as well, never imagining that Yuan Qiu was the grandson of the former senior master.

"My grandfather…… he's upstairs." Yuan Qiu's face showed utter dejection and gloom.

"Where is he? Quickly take us there!" Seventh Master urged impatiently.

"Um.... Seventh Uncle, do you know my grandfather?" Yuan Qiu stared at Seventh Master in astonishment. Seeing the confusion on his face, I and Pangzi exchanged a doubtful glance, and the same thought simultaneously arose in our minds.

Yuan Qiu, could it be that he truly doesn't know his grandfather's background?

Yuan Qiu, face darkened, stared at us as we went up to the third floor. The third floor was a place completely different from the first and second floors, all white buildings; it didn't look like a residence but rather more like a hospital.

"My grandfather…… is he inside?" Upon reaching the third floor, Yuan Qiu's eyes welled up with tears.

Doubtful Seventh Master took the lead, pushing the door open and walking in; I and Pangzi followed closely. However, at the moment we entered the room, we all simultaneously froze.

On a white hospital bed lay an old man, his complexion sallow, skin and bones, only a few sparse strands of hair left on his head, his cheeks completely sunken, at death's door, appearing as if he could pass away at any moment; a tube was inserted into his nose, sustaining his life with intravenous fluid.

"This is……" QingSongShu opened his mouth wide, eyes widened.

Yuan Qiu, gloomy and silent, ran to the bedside, squatted down, gently pushed the old man on the bed, then softly said: "Grandfather, grandfather, friends have come to see you!"

After a long while, the emaciated old man on the bed slowly opened his eyes, looking at Yuan Qiu yet saying nothing, his gaze vacant, devoid of consciousness.

When QingSongShu and Seventh Master entered the old man's line of sight, his eyes suddenly widened, his hands involuntarily flailed rapidly, his mouth opened as he cried "ah ah ah," as if trying to say something.

"Doctor, doctor, my grandfather has had an accident, please come quickly!" When the red line on the nearby instrument spiked, Yuan Qiu panicked and ran out.

QingSongShu felt he seemed to have something to say, so he leaned his ear close; I watched from the side as his chest twitched rapidly twice, his chicken-claw-like hand tightly gripping QingSongShu's sleeve.

After those two twitches, the old man suddenly went limp and collapsed onto the bed.

"Ah…… senior brother, may your journey be peaceful!" QingSongShu gazed at the old man who died with eyes unclosed, let out a long sigh; this old man was indeed QingSongShu's senior brother, Yuan Yang.

Just then, Yuan Qiu led several doctors in white coats running in; upon seeing Yuan Yang lying breathless on the bed, he could not help but burst into loud sobs.

"Grandfather…… grandfather!" Yuan Qiu wailed bitterly, his face filled with astonishment and disbelief, not seeming feigned.

"Ah, let's go out first!" QingSongShu sighed, shook his head, and walked out.

"Rotten bark, what did the senior brother just say to you!" As soon as they stepped out of the ward, Seventh Master couldn't help but grab QingSongShu and ask.

"He wanted to say 'junior brother,' but never got to utter the 'junior' before he passed away." QingSongShu said with a sorrowful tone, his expression also very complex.

An hour earlier, we had rushed to the Yuan family manor with mighty vigor and unstoppable anger; but an hour later, a nameless gloom had settled over everyone's hearts.

After all, he was once a senior brother; the deceased is gone, so how could we recklessly blame him without evidence? QingSongShu and Seventh Master's hearts wavered between pain and doubt; while my heart remained only with confusion.

We should have had a clue, but in the end this lead also broke; Yuan Yang is dead, he absolutely could not be the murderer? Then who exactly is the murderer?

I crouched in the third-floor hallway, pondering bitterly; afterward, Yuan Qiu emerged from Yuan Yang's room, his face sorrowful, streaked with tears and snot, choking as he walked out.

"The dead cannot be revived; please mourn and move on." I walked over, patted Yuan Qiu's shoulder; the only comforting words I could think of were just that.

Yuan Qiu nodded through his sobs; upon reaching the second floor and everyone sitting down, his mood remained immersed in grief.

Seeing everyone sitting there stunned, Yuan Qiu picked up the teapot on the table, poured everyone a cup of tea, wiped his tears, and with a voice still tinged with crying asked Seventh Master: "Seventh Uncle, Uncle Wang, how did you know my grandfather?"

"Nothing much, we were good friends with your grandfather years ago; now that we've heard news of him, we came specially to visit." QingSongShu gave an evasive glance, paused, then asked Yuan Qiu: "By the way, your grandfather's condition is……"

In an instant, the other three turned their gazes to Yuan Qiu's face; my heart was equally puzzled—how could the once mighty senior brother have become this miserable state?

"My grandfather had a stroke five years ago and thereafter became a vegetative state." QingSongShu's question stirred Yuan Qiu's painful memories; he wept while recounting Yuan Yang's history before and after the stroke. From Yuan Qiu's manner of speaking, we could basically conclude that he had no idea his grandfather was a practitioner of the Dao, nor had he ever been exposed to anything related to the occult.

After comforting Yuan Qiu a few words, we all left the Yuan family ancestral home. By car we returned to Chan Yi Hall; just as we stepped inside the doorway, Han Duo couldn't help but run toward me.

"How is it? Did you catch him?" Han Duo anxiously chased after me, asking; seeing the expectation on her face, I felt deeply reluctant. But after much inner turmoil, I still prepared to tell her the truth.

"Yuan Yang isn't the murderer; when we went, he had just suffered a stroke and passed away." I shook my head, speaking frankly.

Han Duo's face darkened, she gave an indistinct hum, and slowly released the hand gripping my shoulder.

"Don't lose heart; we will surely catch the murderer someday!" I grasped her hand and gently comforted her.

I approached QingSongShu, hesitated a moment, but finally asked: "Uncle, now that Yuan Yang has passed away, what should we do? The murderer is still killing, isn't he?"

QingSongShu waved his hand, instructing me: "Don't worry about this matter; moreover, Miss Han and Xiaoqiang are not to interfere. I and Old Seven will continue investigating this case until we catch the culprit." A flash of cold light crossed QingSongShu's face.

The night gradually darkened; in the evening, Han Duo stayed behind, and QingSongShu had me tidy up the storage room so Han Duo could move in.

That night's meal was cooked by Han Duo; although we had gone through so much and had little appetite, when the dishes were served, I and Pangzi couldn't help but drool heavily.

Including Seventh Master and QingSongShu, seeing the full table of dishes, they widened their eyes, utterly unable to believe that this spread was prepared solely by Han Duo.

"Delicious, delicious, this is truly delicious; compared to this, what we used to cook at home was just dog shit." Pangzi shoved rice into his mouth big mouthfuls, and ate the vegetables in big mouthfuls.

A cold snort, a deadly chill shot forth, frightening Pangzi so that his hair stood on end, his body shrank, and he hastily corrected: "Dad, what I mean is, although Han Duo's dishes are tasty, compared to yours, old man, they're still a bit lacking—just the difference between dog shit and pig shit."

Han Duo happily pursed her lips and smiled; Seventh Master Yang, without hesitation, grabbed Pangzi's shoulder: "You're right, what your father cooks is dog shit, it stinks just by smelling it."

"But……" Seventh Master Yang shifted his tone, speaking at length to instruct Pangzi: "You also shouldn't say it like that; by describing it this way, aren't you actually saying you eat x big? Remember, the highest realm of disparaging others is to hint and drag, to pull and tug, to carry a bit of satire, but must never be blatant; one must reach the level where hearing 'mountain' it's not a mountain, hearing 'water' it seems like a mountain,"

I almost couldn't help but spit out my food instantly; Seventh Master Yang, this guy is truly amazing, actually merging the realm of Zen cultivation into insulting people.

Han Duo, seeing the scene at the table that made one unable to hold back laughter, also couldn't help but purse her lips and laugh lightly; her smile was like a spring flower in full bloom. I glanced at her from the side and couldn't help but stare. It seems, from a side view, Han Duo is also quite pretty.

Everyone was chatting and laughing, while I was quietly observing Han Duo, when suddenly a piercing siren wailed from outside, woo-woo as it passed the gate of Chan Yi Hall. Moreover, gradually, noisy clamor came from outside, as if something had happened.

"Let me go see what's going on," seeing QingSongShu's furrowed brows, the ever-curious Pangzi put down his bowl and chopsticks and walked out.

I also felt strange; the security around here has always been good, so why would tonight bring so many police cars?

More than ten minutes later, Pangzi returned, his face solemn; he walked to the table and, with a gloomy expression, said: "Another person died, a child, just like before—his skull was pierced with a large hole, his brain matter drained, his soul extracted."

With a bang, a huge sound, my heart tightened as QingSongShu had already slapped the table and stood up.

"Come on, Old Seven, let's go take a look; I really want to see who is creating this heinous atrocity."

"I'll go too……" Han Duo stood up immediately,

"You're not allowed to go." I grabbed Han Duo and pulled her down, fearing that seeing the scene would remind her of the dead children from Tongyuan Bay, causing her emotions to spiral out of control.

"You, Hai Sheng, and Xiaoqiang stay at home; I and Old Seven will go." QingSongShu waved his hand, signaling Han Duo to sit at home and wait for news, then he and Seventh Master Yang walked out.