[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-nothing-is-taboo":3,"chapter-nothing-is-taboo-nothing-is-taboo-chapter-95":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Nothing Is Taboo",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2310480,4514,"Chapter 95: Pulling the Fox","nothing-is-taboo-chapter-95",95,"\u003Cp>Zhang San’s father had a good impression of Xu Yuan; the box of matches Xu Yuan gave him gave him face for many days beneath the old tree.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But how did this kid become a mountain runner?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan saw the gate of the village closed from afar and did not approach too closely, stopping a hundred zhang outside the village to wait.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure enough, not long after, the old mountain runner emerged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind him followed a hanged ghost.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The hanged ghost looked somewhat familiar—it seemed to be the one he had buried beside his mountain goods.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan bowed respectfully: “Elder.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laoyan nodded slightly, his tone somewhat hostile: “So you’re not a merchant after all.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan smiled apologetically: “I had no choice at the time, but this time I truly brought a good deal of goods.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan and Fu Jingyu set down their heavy packs and opened them—inside were salt, ironware, and other items the village needed most.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old mountain runner glanced at them and asked again: “What exactly are you here for?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan looked around: “Is it safe to speak here?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laoyan turned: “Follow me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The group moved swiftly, traveling over ten li to a hidden mountain shack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was Bai Laoyan’s resting spot in the mountains.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mountain runners all had several such places.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The shack was cramped; after everyone entered, they could not turn around. And the “ceiling” was too low—the hanged ghost could not hang, making him feel utterly out of place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laoyan paid no mind, sitting down first: “Speak.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan said: “This time, I ask you to help us kill a few people in the mountains…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laoyan replied without hesitation: “No, that would break the rules.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan then took out a leather pouch and placed it on the wooden slab serving as Bai Laoyan’s low table.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he smiled at Bai Laoyan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The pouch bore a seal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, Xu Yuan was pulling the fox’s hide to raise a banner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laoyan’s face turned from waxen yellow to iron-gray. After a long pause, he slowly reached out, took the pouch, and rubbed his rough index finger over the seal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he opened the pouch—inside was indeed a broken mountain lord stele.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a moment, the veins and tendons in his hand bulged violently, then quickly returned to stillness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hmph, using that old fox to pressure me?” Bai Laoyan’s tone grew even more hostile; he shifted his body, revealing the hatchet beneath his feathered cloak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan felt the eyeballs behind the yellow crystal lenses—pure white, without pupils—fixate on him with unwavering calm: “I am sworn brother and sister to the two young ladies of Plum Pond.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Xu Yuan pointed to the seal on the pouch: “If you don’t believe me, we can go to Plum Pond right now—you can ask my two sworn sisters face to face.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old mountain runner remained silent for a long while; the hanged ghost watched him quietly. Both knew the truth behind the massacre of the two villages years ago.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No village in the mountains dared provoke that old fox.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pah!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laoyan tossed the pouch back onto the wooden slab, took a deep breath, and asked: “Who to kill? What level? And are they connected to any of the mountain head monsters?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the village, those evil spirits capable of claiming territory were called “head monsters.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Head monsters varied in size and strength; the two foxes at Plum Pond were likely the weakest, while those on Guanghuo Street were the strongest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan tucked the pouch away and replied: “Others call him ‘Lord Qin,’ but he’s certainly not from the Purification Office.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At least seventh-rank Artisan cultivator, possibly sixth-rank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’s connected to the Haikou Toad, the Snake Pole, the Ghost Temple Idol, and the Locust Witch—we last saw him with the Locust Witch beside him.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing these four head monsters, Bai Laoyan frowned: “These are all tied to Qiao Zian…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan offered no further explanation; the old mountain runner muttered under his breath, understanding the matter in his heart, and dropped the subject.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The goods you brought aren’t enough,” Bai Laoyan pointed to the two packs: “Add five times as much.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No problem—I’ll deliver them myself after it’s done.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan had specifically traveled from the county town to purchase these goods, all to bribe the old mountain runner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The hanged ghost suddenly asked: “Where is this Lord Qin now?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan bowed with clasped hands: “How should I address you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laoyan lifted his chin: “Drifting Master.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan barely held back from blurting out, “What a fine name.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They headed toward Guanghuo Street yesterday afternoon.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Upon hearing the name Guanghuo Street, Bai Laoyan and Drifting Master both frowned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Boy, tell me the truth—what connection do they have on Guanghuo Street?” Bai Laoyan asked gravely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan shook his head: “According to our knowledge, none. They need the Locust Witch to introduce them to the few on the street.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laoyan relaxed slightly: “Kill them before they reach the street!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laoyan turned to Drifting Master: “Old ghost, lend a hand?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drifting Master hesitated: “This matter… has nothing to do with me…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan had a sudden idea and pulled out a small booklet, opening it to the pages where Lao Qian had recorded how to raise hanged ghost soldiers: “I’ll give this to you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan had studied these pages many times and memorized them thoroughly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drifting Master glanced at it once, flew into a rage, then flipped through the rest and became intensely interested.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Agreed!” Drifting Master closed the booklet, tucked it into his robes, and vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then let’s go—kill them before they reach the street tomorrow morning!” The old mountain runner rose abruptly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old mountain runner tossed the two heavy packs through the village gate and told Zhang San’s father: “Keep them safe. I’ll divide them when I return.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If I don’t come back…” he pointed to Xu Yuan and the other three: “Watch their souls—burn them on the ‘ghost stove.’ No matter what, recover the rest.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang San’s father shuddered: “Don’t come back… you…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the old mountain runner merely waved his hand and walked away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan passed beneath the village gate and grinned at Zhang San’s father: “Uncle Zhang, next time I’ll bring you a few more boxes of matches.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang San’s father quickly lowered his head, stammering and refusing to respond.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fu Jingyu and the other two followed behind Xu Yuan; Lu Zhengyan was unremarkable, but Yan Lao felt deep emotion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan had forced the old mountain runner to join them using nothing but a pouch from the old fox.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Throughout the entire negotiation, he remained utterly calm and composed, revealing not a single flaw—pulling two powerful allies for a group that was otherwise weak!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He showed the bearing of a seasoned general.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Recalling their first meeting, though the boy had some wit, he’d always seemed in need of careful refinement by the elder before he could truly stand among the elite.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet in just these few days, his growth had been astonishing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Yuan himself had no full confidence he could fool the old mountain runner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, he didn’t know whether the two sisters had exaggerated about their role in the massacre of the two villages.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it was worth a try.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, their journey to Guanghuo Street would take them past Wangxiang Village.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If it failed, he’d only suffer a few mocking words from the old mountain runner—and lose a little face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1265,"2026-06-20T12:07:23.516Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","bda20f8522c6de9997b247a04aec2c27308c076497ab6b172516521e01c681de","nothing-is-taboo-chapter-96","nothing-is-taboo-chapter-94",413,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fnothing-is-taboo-cover.jpg"]