Chapter 165: White Smoke Seals the Village

Back then, Liu Junyan made a deal with the Copper Coin Person, going to Lofty Mountain to trace her past life—could this be part of that deal?

If the Copper Coin Person truly comes from Lofty Mountain, could Liu Junyan's journey there have some subtle impact on his future?

I couldn't help but recall how he sat in meditation, chanted sutras, and turned his prayer beads.

This subtle, unconscious change…… makes me inexplicably worried.

Li Qingying lightly patted my shoulder and comforted me: "Xiao Jiu, don't worry, Seventh Lord will be back soon."

I smiled at her, saying I was fine and telling her not to worry.

After we each washed up, the meal I ordered arrived.

After a hearty meal, everyone was exhausted; these days in the town we haven't eaten or slept well, and coming back we just want to lie in bed and rest properly.

I almost fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

I don't know how long I slept, but I actually started dreaming.

I dreamed again of the Qilin Temple behind Tafengcun, dreaming that I was shoved into a pit, torn apart by countless ghost hands, with something pressing down hard on my back…… That scene left me desperate, unable to breathe.

Not only could I not breathe, my whole body ached, especially my cheeks and arms…… I struggled desperately, but all I saw were burns of various sizes appearing on my body, spreading bit by bit, with what seemed like firelight glowing beneath the burns…… No!

I jolted awake from the dream, sat up suddenly, and reached to cover the lower right cheek, which throbbed with sharp pain.

When I lifted my arm, the inner side of my left arm was scraped and also hurt.

What's going on?

Could it be that I wasn't just dreaming a moment ago?

I turned on the light, pulled up my sleepwear sleeve, and exposed the inner side of my left arm.

There had been a burn there before, which Liu Junyan had sealed with a scale plate, and it had been fine for all these days.

But now the Golden Scale has vanished, and the burn is showing signs of flaring up again.

I immediately got out of bed, went to the dressing table, and turned my right cheek toward the mirror—there, a bloody-red 'slave' character was starkly etched on my cheek.

How could this happen?!

Although the battle at Ox Tiger Mountain was perilous, with Liu Junyan and Hui Moqiong taking the lead and Hu Yulin helping out, aside from my right hand being pierced by a blade, I hadn't suffered any major injury.

But why can't even that scale plate suppress this burn anymore?

I sat long at the dressing table, carefully recalling every detail of my time at Ox Tiger Mountain, especially my encounter with Feng Lishu.

No matter how I think, I can't find any clue.

After I punched Feng Lishu in the mouth last time, when we met again this time she was very cautious, and she wanted to appear weak in front of Hu Yulin; before her disguise was torn apart, she never even came near me.

But if it's not Feng Lishu, where else could the problem lie?

I glanced again at my right cheek; before, the character wasn't that obvious, and a dab of concealer would hide it when I went out, but now it can't be covered at all.

The key is, judging by the condition of the burn on my inner left arm, the problem lies in my own body.

Covering it with concealer only treats the symptom, not the root.

Once it reaches a certain point, I expect my cheek will also ulcerate and ooze pus like the burn on my inner left arm, eventually rotting away completely.

Stay calm!

Liu Junyan isn't here; I must not lose my composure.

When the burn on my inner left arm appeared, Tafengcun had a problem.

Now the scene repeats—could it still be a problem with Tafengcun?

Thinking this, I quickly got dressed and glanced at the time.

It was afternoon, past four o'clock.

In winter, darkness falls early; if I set out for Tafengcun now, it will be pitch black by the time I get there.

Although a dark, windy night is good for doing business, Tafengcun gives me a bad feeling, and the dangers lurking in the night are even greater.

Or maybe I should just wait a bit longer.

Wait until tomorrow morning and then I'll go over to check it out.

Afraid that Li Qingying and the others would see me like this and worry, I didn't go out at night and stayed in my room.

At around nine o'clock, Li Qingying knocked on my door once, got no reply, and I heard her mutter: "Xiao Jiu is really worn out; she's slept so long, I don't even know if she's hungry."

Early the next morning, as dawn was just breaking, I left a note on the table in the guest room of the inverted house, telling Li Qingying I was going out for a trip and would return in the afternoon, not to wait for me to have lunch.

The car sped all the way, and by around eight o'clock I had already reached the mountain road outside Tafengcun.

I parked the car in a concealed spot, preparing to enter the village on foot, trying not to attract the villagers' attention.

The villagers of Tafengcun have been hostile toward me since the moment I was born.

I'm only here to confirm some of my suspicions; I'm not looking to cause trouble.

What I didn't expect was that, even before entering the village, far off I saw Tafengcun shrouded in a expanse of white mist.

No, it looks like mist, but it isn't mist.

Getting closer, I immediately smelled a strong scent of incense.

It's not mist; it's smoke.

Even if the whole village burns incense towers together during a festival, it shouldn't be blanketed in white smoke like this.

What's happened to Tafengcun?

When I reached the village entrance and tried to go in, I discovered a strong barrier at the gate that I couldn't pass through.

This is…… a barrier?

Who set up this barrier?

Why trap the whole of Tafengcun and its villagers inside the village?

The villagers live in such thick white smoke—aren't they suffering?

Unable to enter through the village gate, I took a detour.

But no matter whether from the main road or a side path, without exception, none could be entered.

I didn't dare to force my way in.

I have always known that Tafengcun is a thunderbolt buried in my life; as soon as I set foot there, sooner or later it will blast me to pieces.

But I never expected the change to come so quickly.

No wonder my body has undergone changes.

I quietly retreated back to the car, sat there for a while, but still couldn't make sense of what was happening before me, so I had to turn the carriage around and go back.

As soon as I returned to the pawnshop, Li Qingying noticed the 'slave' character on my face.

It was too vivid, a blood-red color, as if it were about to drip blood.

And it kept feeling hot.

Li Qingying paced anxiously: "What should we do? Seventh Lord isn't here, Xiao Jiu, what are we to do about your face?"

I felt she was about to cry: "Maybe… I should go to the Bai family and have a look? That damned Bai Jingmo hasn't shown his face for so long—could he be dead?"

Li Qingying disliked Bai Jingmo, but now, for my sake, she actually had the idea of going to the Bai family to beg Bai Jingmo to come help treat my illness.

I reached out and grabbed her, speaking calmly: "Qingying sister, don't worry, this isn't an illness; even if Bai Jingmo could come, he probably couldn't cure it. Although I'm suffering a bit now, it's not fatal—I'm hungry, let's first make lunch to eat."

I got up at night and casually had a bite; after that whole morning I hadn't drunk a drop, and now I'm indeed both hungry and thirsty.

Li Qingying hesitated for a good while before going to cook.

She had barely left when Hui Moqiong, rubbing his sleepy eyes, swayed over from the main courtyard.

As he passed me, he instantly saw the mark on my cheek.

It was so conspicuous that anyone with eyes couldn't help noticing it.

Hui Moqiong is tall; he bent over, tilted his head, and stared at my cheek for a good while.

He suddenly said: "Xiao Jiu'er, you've been out all this half day—did you go get a tattoo? Why would you ink such an inauspicious character onto your face for no reason?"