Chapter 347: The Mysterious Person

Several small beasts ran out from the bamboo basket.

They were covered in pus-filled sores and bore various ailments.

The sickness made them extremely irritable; as soon as they were released, they scrambled in all directions.

There was also a small snake, its head scales peeling off, cracked open into rows of bloody fissures.

It suddenly lunged and burrowed into a Kong Dong in the Pig-Screaming Rock.

Those four people withdrew swiftly.

The three on the tree looked on in confusion: Where had these people come from?

Villages in the mountains had their own secret methods of communication with one another.

Even a few old mountain runners who had grievances would present a united front when facing "outsiders."

If an outsider stayed in the village with suspicious behavior, the mountain runners would surely find a way to inform each other.

So these four people seemed to have appeared out of thin air.

And the sick small beasts they had released had already run off, leaving no trace.

Xu Yuan could not help but think of "Juyi."

Gao Guanzi and Bai Laoyan were eager to follow and see, but everything depended on my lord's decision, so the two stared at Xu Yuan with longing eyes.

Xu Yuan considered for a moment and said in a low voice, "Follow them."

The two immediately slid down from the tree and, relying on Gao Guanzi's two ears, followed the four from a distance.

Even without Gao Guanzi, Xu Yuan could see the lives of the four.

These four were all Eighth-Rank.

And all were Wu Xiu.

Their strength was not bad, but judging by their attire and conduct, they were merely a group of servants.

It inevitably made one speculate what kind of figure their master behind them must be.

Following them for seven or eight li, they crossed a mountain peak, and the four ahead stopped.

Xu Yuan and the other two advanced stealthily, slowly approaching.

On a sloping field, Xu Yuan saw two tents.

Those four drilled into one of the tents.

Gao Guanzi perked up his ears and said in a low voice, "They are reporting to someone that the matter has been done."

Afterwards, the four came out and walked into the other tent.

Gao Guanzi spoke again, "There are seven people in total."

Two people emerged from the previous tent, and a hunted wild deer hung outside the tent.

They lit a fire, sliced off the deer meat, and began to roast it.

The sky was not early; it was time for dinner.

The wild beasts in these mountains, influenced by Yin Qi, were somewhat strange in one way or another.

Suddenly, several insects drilled out from within the deer's body.

They quickly grew wings and long mouthparts, and flew toward the two people.

The person tending the fire was a Rank Dan Xiu; without panic, he ignited the fire, separated several fireballs, wrapped each strange insect in one, and in the blink of an eye, burned them to ash.

Xu Yuan's eyes lit up as he watched.

This Rank Dan Xiu was Seventh-Rank.

But his control over fire was extremely exquisite.

Moreover, it was a different path from his own "Five Cauldrons Cooking."

Most Rank Dan Xiu, including Xu Yuan himself, controlled "fire" that was Fu Zhong Huo.

But this Rank Dan Xiu below first used Fu Zhong Huo to ignite the firewood on the ground.

The fireballs that burned away the strange insects were drawn from the bonfire.

In other words, this fellow could control ordinary fire.

It was very likely that Fu Zhong Huo was needed as an ignition source.

But this was also a new path carved out.

Xu Yuan, seeing prey and feeling joy, even hoped for a chance to exchange insights on this matter with the other party.

The other person obviously trusted his companion very much.

When those strange insects flew out, he was completely unaffected and continued to focus on marinating that piece of deer meat.

Bai Laoyan frowned and said in a low voice, "I know I might be seeing things, but there are two great evil spirits lying below; how can these people be companions with evil spirits?"

Gao Guanzi was stunned: "Evil spirits? Where are the evil spirits?"

Xu Yuan's mind turned and he understood immediately, smiling, "It is those two tents."

He then explained further, "These people ventured deep into Ghost Wushan and did not need to seek lodging in the village at night; they relied on these two tents."

"In the eyes of evil spirits, these two tents are two evil spirits of considerable level."

The principle was the same as Xu Yuan's Mud Face; both could disguise themselves as evil spirits.

Gao Guanzi immediately fell silent.

To say more would expose certain secrets of Bai Laoyan.

Xu Yuan paid no mind.

When he first met Bai Laoyan, he felt his eyes were not quite right.

The tents were seen as kin by evil spirits—why did Bai Laoyan also see them as evil spirits?

Besides, Gao Guanzi's pair of ears; no normal person would grow such ears.

Broaden the scope even further: which one of the villagers in Wangxiang Village does not exude a certain strangeness?

The villagers and mountain runners living in the mountains have inhabited this Ghost Wushan for generations, and their bodies have inevitably been affected.

Just like the wild beasts in these mountains.

Xu Yuan watched for a while longer, focusing mainly on that Rank Dan Xiu.

While roasting the venison, the Rank Dan Xiu manipulated the flames, sweeping them over the surface of the meat repeatedly like a brush.

Xu Yuan nodded continuously, highly approving of this "fire control" skill.

Once the meat was roasted, they called the others out to eat.

Their leader also appeared.

This was a sixth-tier Law Cultivator; Xu Yuan could not tell what Law he cultivated.

This person carried an extraordinary bearing, obviously someone accustomed to holding high office.

Xu Yuan beckoned to the two veteran mountain runners, and together they quietly withdrew.

"We must find a place to spend the night."

Bai Laoyan and Gao Guanzi exchanged a glance; finally, Bai Laoyan said, "We can only go to the Divine Lady Niche."

This place is near Guanghuo Street.

Even the mountain runners rarely come here, so no one has built shelters in the vicinity.

Even if one were to build a temporary shelter... the evil spirits here are powerful, and the shelters would not be safe.

The two veteran mountain runners led Xu Yuan to the top of a towering cliff.

Bai Laoyan unhooked a coil of rope from his waist, located the position, lowered the rope down, then grabbed the rope himself and said to Gao Guanzi, "You go down first to check."

"Good."

Gao Guanzi slid down along the rope.

Xu Yuan stood at the edge of the cliff, stretching his neck to look down at Gao Guanzi.

Gao Guanzi slid down to a spot more than ten zhang below, where there was a small stone niche.

No one knows in what year or month it was carved out.

There are no passages leading up or down.

Gao Guanzi crawled inside; after a moment, he poked his head out, tugged the rope, and called up to the cliff, "It's habitable, come down."

Bai Laoyan tied the rope to a large rock nearby and went down first himself.

Xu Yuan controlled the Fire Wheel and flew down after them.

This stone niche was exceptionally narrow, originally meant to accommodate only one person.

Three people entering made it somewhat crowded.

Bai Laoyan said, "My lord, we'll have to make do for one night."

He told Xu Yuan the history of this place: "Several decades ago, there was a village near Zhujiao Rock named Qidou Village..."

The veteran mountain runner from that village possessed the greatest skill among all mountain runners.

He carved out several of these stone niches.

But in the end, the village still met with disaster; overnight, everyone, including that veteran mountain runner, vanished without a trace.

Where the village once stood, only a gigantic claw mark remained!

... As if the entire village had been completely snatched from this world by some unknown giant monster!

Bai Laoyan pointed in a certain direction: "It's right there, about twenty-plus li. If you go there now, that claw mark has accumulated a vast amount of rainwater and spring water, turning into a small lake."

Gao Guanzi spoke to Xu Yuan again: "This place can serve for the night, but there is one problem. At night, a 'Gu Xian Niang' might come to measure your length."

(End of this chapter)