Chapter 237

As dusk approached, fires broke out all over Guizhou City.

Thick smoke billowed, and the sounds of shouting and killing were constant.

"The Mountain Pilgrimage Society is rebelling, kill them!"

"Brothers, follow me and charge out!"

After all, as the largest gang in the city, with the standoff at the yamen and the incident at the Wu residence, although the news hadn't spread, it had been noticed by those with ulterior motives.

Because this place was the throat of Bashu, occupying an important waterway, and additionally needing to guard against the Tusi City, a garrison of a thousand soldiers was stationed here, no more than two miles from Guizhou City.

Upon seeing soldiers leaving and the garrison troops mobilizing, some members of the Mountain Pilgrimage Society realized something was wrong, quickly left the city, and entered the nearby mountains.

Of course, only a portion left.

The Mountain Pilgrimage Society was a mixed bag, having absorbed many local hooligans and ruffians from the city, as well as criminals with nowhere else to turn.

They were only used to throwing their weight around on the periphery and acting as thugs; they were ignorant of many things and were accustomed to being arrogant.

Seeing the Wu family compound sealed and the county yamen gates tightly shut, they actually called upon friends and companions, intending to gather a crowd to break in and rescue Wu Defa.

However, when they heard that the Mountain Pilgrimage Society had been declared rebellious and that the garrison soldiers had arrived to seal the city gates, this group of people suddenly went mad.

They set fires everywhere, attempting to disrupt the situation and escape.

The common people were trembling with fear, while those children of wealthy families who had luckily managed to leave first immediately organized their retainers and guards to fight them off.

The gangs in the city that had been suppressed by the Mountain Pilgrimage Society also took action.

Under the pincer attack from inside and out, the chaos was quelled in less than an hour.

Commoners and officials organized to fight the fires, while the garrison soldiers collected the corpses, escorted the prisoners, and continued to search for the remaining members of the Mountain Pilgrimage Society...

Inside the main hall of the county yamen, the atmosphere was as gloomy as water.

One headless corpse after another was collected, soldiers used water to wash away the bloodstains on the ground, and the families of the academy students who had rushed over were crying and wailing outside.

Li Yan stood on the rafters of the county yamen, looking at the setting sun like blood over the distant river, the smoke of war inside the city not yet dissipated, and sighed slightly.

This course of action was indeed a bit reckless.

He hadn't expected to directly detonate such a huge bomb, resulting in many deaths.

But thinking about it carefully, he had unintentionally broken the deadlock.

The mastermind behind this had infiltrated Guizhou City too deeply; if he had investigated in secret, he didn't know how much obstruction he would have faced.

Although reckless this time, it had caught the opponent off guard, and the mutual biting between the academy and Magistrate Wu had caused the fog to disperse.

Seeing that the chaos in the city had subsided, Li Yan took a few steps to the eaves, leaped, and landed outside the main hall of the county yamen.

In the main hall, Assistant Prefect Zhou Kai was rapidly writing a letter to report the situation here, turning a blind eye to the foul blood being washed away.

Daoist Feng, standing to the side, was also sighing.

Li Yan didn't hide anything and asked Daoist Feng in a deep voice, "Daoist, I didn't have a chance to ask earlier, what exactly is this Great Song Ghost Sect?"

"This matter is no secret."

Daoist Feng sighed, "At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the world was in chaos, the Dao declined while demons grew, and all kinds of witchcraft and evil arts emerged one after another. Some secret Mystic Sect techniques flowed into the common folk and were wantonly tampered with, making the human world like a ghost realm."

"By the time of the Great Song, the four corners were prosperous and the world was gradually peaceful, but in private, these evil arts were never severed."

"At that time, the witchcraft culture in Ezhou was thick, and people killing to sacrifice to ghosts were constant. The 'Song Huiyao Jigao' records that the customs of the Ezhou and Xiang regions were such that every leap year, they would steal and kill young children to sacrifice to lewd shrines, calling it 'harvesting life'..."

"There were high-ranking court officials who came to Ezhou to take office, only to suddenly rise up and leave in the middle of the night; by the time they were found, their heads and livers had already been taken..."

"This matter even alarmed the imperial court. The 'History of Song' records that in the nineteenth year of Shaoxing, on the day of Dingchou in the second month, Emperor Gao Zong forbade the use of humans to sacrifice to ghosts and the creation of Gu poisons in Ezhou; those who violated this would be punished along with their Baojia, and executed by slow slicing..."

"But even so, it could not be suppressed, and it even spread to the entire south of the Shenzhou. Many officials and wealthy gentry even killed people on a large scale to sacrifice to ghosts, treating it as a common occurrence..."

"There were also martial world scum who caught people everywhere for them. According to records from that time, in the Jiangzhe region alone, there were over a hundred gangs 'harvesting life' for others!"

"These evil paths, inheriting the poisonous legacy of the late Tang, formed a demon sect known as the Ghost Sect, fighting endlessly with those of us in the Mystic Sect. For several decades, our orthodox Mystic Sect even fell into a disadvantageous position."

"The Ghost Sect was so strong that they even used those officials who had fallen into demonic ways to enter the Great Song imperial palace, leading to chaos in the world. They were subsequently replaced by the Great Xing Dynasty, which killed anyone from the Ghost Sect without exception."

"The Great Xing Dynasty ruled the Shenzhou for a hundred years, and the Mystic Sect spent almost all its time hunting down Ghost Sect members everywhere. Compared to them, the Maitreya Sect of that time wasn't even worth mentioning."

"Later, the Ghost Sect was finally eliminated, and some remnants entered the grasslands, merging with the Shamanism of the Golden Tent Wolf Kingdom to invade the Central Plains, which then formed the later situation of North-South confrontation."

"It can be said that this Ghost Sect is the true demonic path; both the imperial court and our orthodox Mystic Sect are strictly on guard against them."

"I never thought that today, they would start becoming active again..."

Li Yan was shocked as he listened.

Wang Daoxuan had once mentioned this Ghost Sect by chance, but he didn't know much about it, so he hadn't paid it any mind.

He hadn't expected it to have caused such a huge stir.

Recalling the appearance of the "Red Fan Fan Fu Ren" nearby, his heart stirred, inexplicably feeling that there was some kind of connection between the two...

Just as they were speaking, Zhou Kai had already finished writing the secret letter, having soldiers send it to Yunyang with a hundred-mile emergency, before saying to the two in a deep voice, "You are both people of the Mystic Sect, you should know that the disaster of this Ghost Sect is no less than the rebellion in the Southwest."

"I ask you both to assist me in quickly investigating this matter!"

Daoist Feng nodded and said, "My techniques are not refined, and I must rely on Li Li Shaoxia's assistance, but I have already sent a pigeon message to Wudang to request support."

Assistant Prefect Zhou Kai said in a deep voice, "It's too late. The Ghost Sect must have a plot here. Since their tracks have been leaked, they might strike at any moment. We must find them and kill them quickly..."

Whoosh!

Just as they were speaking, the sound of flapping wings rose in the air.

Soldiers immediately raised their crossbows.

"Don't shoot!"

Li Yan hurriedly shouted to stop them, and then saw Lu San's falcon descend from the sky, landing on a wooden frame to preen its feathers.

Taking out the secret letter from the bamboo tube on its leg, Li Yan glanced at it roughly, then immediately took out paper and pen, writing a few lines of text in a flurry.

Beside him, Sha Lifei whispered, "Did the Daoist and the others find something?"

Li Yan nodded and said in a deep voice, "I have told them to hide temporarily and just gather information; do not expose themselves."

The matter at Erbei Village is very likely related to the Ghost Sect.

Facing an unknown and terrifying enemy, Li Yan naturally had to be cautious, so he instructed Wang Daoxuan and Lu San to hide carefully.

Seeing his mysterious demeanor, Zhou Kai beside him flashed a hint of suspicion in his eyes and asked directly, "You two, what is this?"

"We have partners investigating outside."

Li Yan said in a deep voice, "The Ghost Sect has appeared, so I told them to be on guard."

Zhou Kai didn't hide his thoughts and said, "Don't blame me, you two. At a time like this, mutual suspicion is the most taboo, after all, no one knows how deep the Ghost Sect has infiltrated."

"Li Li Shaoxia, I don't understand the affairs of the Mystic Sect. Where do you think we should start investigating?"

Li Yan pondered for a moment and said, "First, interrogate those members of the Mountain Pilgrimage Society, as well as Wu Defa; perhaps we can find clues."

"Second, those Red Pills definitely have a problem. Currently, all the victims are people from the academy..."

"I have had suspicions about this."

Zhou Kai said in a deep voice, "At that time, the Ghost Sect originated in the Ezhou area. The ghost they sacrificed to was called the 'Lengzheng God'."

"The 'Yijian Zhi' once recorded that killing to sacrifice to the Lengzheng God to obtain officials and scholars was called a 'clever person', where one could equal three. Monks and Daoists were called 'cultivators', where one could equal two. Besides these, women and children were just one."

"If the records are correct, officials and scholars are their primary targets, followed by people of the Mystic Sect, and finally women and children."

"So that's how it is."

Li Yan's eyes narrowed slightly, "According to what that scholar Yuan Feng said, the method for refining the 'Red Pills' was suddenly found in the library."

"The effect of this medicine is to make them energetic and more intelligent; they are clearly being marked as prey."

"No, there are Ghost Sect members in the academy! Those surviving scholars are also not safe!"

Zhou Kai didn't say another word and immediately ordered, "Go, search the Danyang Academy, check the roster, see who didn't show up today, and arrest all the rest!"

"Also, find all those scholars and bring them to the county yamen, send people to guard them day and night!" "Someone, bring Wu Defa!"

Zhou Kai was also a man of decisive action. With his orders, the entire county yamen and the thousand-man garrison suddenly became busy.

Before long, prisoners were brought up one after another.

Starting with Wu Defa, they were interrogated one by one.

Li Yan and Daoist Feng asked questions from time to time to find suspicious points, while Zhou Kai's subordinates recorded all the testimonies.

The night was deep. The chaos in the city during the day had left the common people trembling, but the main hall of the county yamen was brightly lit, and the sounds of whips lashing and screams were constant...

On the other side, in the deep mountains and dense forests on the south bank.

"I never thought it would be the Ghost Sect."

Wang Daoxuan looked at the secret letter in his hand, shaking his head with a heavy expression, "I thought this demon sect had already become history, I never expected it to rise from the ashes."

"These demonic path people kill to sacrifice to ghosts, and the Ezhou, Xiangxi, and local mountain caves have a thick witchcraft culture; I'm afraid something big is going to happen."

!.

"Daoist, I can't figure it out."

Lu San frowned and shook his head, "There are proper orthodox sacrifices, and lucky gods like the City God and Earth God to worship, why risk death to kill and sacrifice to ghosts?"

Wang Daoxuan sighed, "Sacrificing to the proper gods of heaven and earth, the sun, moon, and stars, is hope. While lewd sacrifices to evil ghosts are desire..."

"Shh!"

Before he could finish speaking, he saw Lu San suddenly look nervous, signaling him to be quiet, and finally pointing to the left.

Wang Daoxuan immediately understood.

The two lowered their bodies, hiding in the grass to watch below.

The mastermind behind the scenes had hidden the object very secretly.

But after Lu San activated his secret technique, all the rats, snakes, and small birds in the entire mountain forest became his eyes and ears, and he easily found the object.

They saw that on a large tree in the valley below, something black and murky was hanging between the dense branches; if one didn't pay attention, it would be hard to find.

That was a charred piece of wood, only half a person's height, covered with all kinds of blood-colored talismans, and hanging with a cow skull.

This object was the main body of the Wood Charm.

Trees that could give birth to Wood Charms were all hundreds or thousands of years old, having experienced wind, rain, thunder, and fire, having long since turned into extraordinary artifacts that could hide themselves.

The Wood Charm was the spirit guarding the spiritual treasure.

The means of controlling it were also very evil.

If the main body of the Wood Charm was destroyed, it would turn into a bloodthirsty spirit to take revenge, and the practitioner was utilizing exactly this point.

They would first find the spiritual wood, use a method similar to trapping treasures to restrain it, and then deploy a formation to confuse its heart and seize its will.

Finally, they would burn the spiritual wood to the ground with fire.

Because of resentment, the Wood Charm could erupt with powerful strength.

And this strength was then used to harm people through secret techniques.

Wang Daoxuan didn't destroy it, nor was he in a hurry to extract the aura to prepare for the Seven Arrows Secret Curse; he was waiting for the person behind the scenes.

They saw people in the distant mountain path holding torches and moving forward, in quite a large number, like a fire dragon traveling through the dark dense forest.

Wang Daoxuan had already set up a formation, with small triangular magic flags inserted all around, and wrapped with red rope, vaguely forming a Bagua, completely masking the aura of the two.

Plus, they were hidden in the dark, so they wouldn't be discovered.

As the fire dragon got closer and closer, they finally saw the faces of the people coming.

This was a group of people in black, all with red belts tied around their waists, wearing hoods, their faces all painted with oil paint to look like ferocious ghosts.

In this uninhabited mountain forest, it was like a parade of ghosts.

Some held torches, some held sharp blades, and in the middle were eight people carrying a black wood coffin, the atmosphere very eerie.

And at the front of the team, an old man led the way.

This old man wore a blue Confucian robe, his hair white and aged; even though he was old, his back was straight as he walked, possessing quite an imposing manner.

Arriving under the big tree, the old man immediately raised his hand.

"Stop!"

After commanding everyone to stop, the old man set up an incense table, burning wood and scattering incense, making the air foul with smoke.

Around him were several people in black robes, kneeling on the ground one by one, using knives to cut their palms, inhaling the thick smoke rising from the firewood, shaking their heads, and muttering constantly, seemingly chanting incantations.

After doing this, the old man in the Confucian robe gave an order, letting several people in black climb the tree and slowly lower the charred piece of wood.

Subsequently, they actually put the wood into the coffin. They also killed a live chicken on the spot, mixing chicken blood with cinnabar to make ink, and drew all kinds of eerie runes on the black wood coffin.

Bang, bang, bang!

The coffin nails soaked in chicken blood nailed the coffin shut.

After doing this, the crowd carried the coffin and headed into the distance.

"It's the Ghost Sect!"

Watching the departing firelight, Wang Daoxuan's expression was solemn, "They must have received wind of the situation and are taking away the final clue."

"Let the falcon follow from afar, just see clearly where they go, do not alert the enemy!"

Lu San nodded and waved his hand.

The falcon soared into the sky and disappeared into the night...

Guizhou City, inside the main hall of the county yamen.

The candles were brightly lit, and the interrogation continued all night, filling the hall with a pungent smell of smoke, mixed with the stench of sweat and blood.

The ground that had been washed clean during the day once again had streaks of blood.

However, no one cared.

With the Ghost Sect reappearing, no amount of ruthlessness was too much.

"This Ghost Sect is indeed cunning!"

Looking at the confession in his hand, Zhou Kai rubbed his swollen forehead, "The Mountain Pilgrimage Society was originally a folk custom for sacrificing to mountain gods, which existed in every state, but here in Zigui, it developed into a gang."

"As soon as Wu Dehai arrived, he took them under his command, and subsequently, they were controlled by others. Now it seems the other side had long been plotting; the peripheral gang members were responsible for gathering wealth, while the core members had mysterious movements."

"The ones we caught are all small fry."

Li Yan said in a deep voice, "It's not that there were no gains."

"These peripheral gang members, under the guise of usury, often snatched women and children from commoners' homes to pay off debts, and not a single one has returned to this day."

"They handed the people over to the core members, who likely turned them into human sacrifices, and they also pretended to be river pirates, robbing passing merchants and snatching people."

"I wonder where they are hiding to perform the sacrifices?"

Sha Lifei clicked his tongue and shook his head, "Zigui County has no social order troops. Although the Zhushan Sect still often controls troops to patrol the mountains, there are too many places to hide."

"To the north is Shennongjia, to the west is Wushan, and to the south are the local mountain caves and the Miao frontier. Good heavens, this place is simply marvelous!"

Assistant Prefect Zhou Kai's expression was very gloomy, "I will write a letter to strengthen the defense of Zigui, and also the Zhushan Sect. If their Dharma lineage can't suppress the place, they might as well hand it over to the Zhenwu Palace sooner!"

"Report!"

Just as they were speaking, a soldier walked quickly into the main hall.

"My lord, we have made a discovery!"

(End of chapter)