Chapter 656: Extra 1: Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, I Want to Pawn Something

I couldn't see his back, so I didn't know whether there were any runes or similar things on his back.

What's even more terrifying is that he had an ancient copper coin in his mouth!

That was a sealing coin.

Someone had nailed him to death, sealed his soul with runes, and used a sealing coin to shut his mouth, leaving him no way to call for help.

He stared at me fixedly, constantly shedding blood and tears, his gaze pitiful to the extreme, as if pleading with me for rescue.

I also saw his hands, his fingernails black and long, with blood mixed with wood shavings dripping down……

I instinctively wanted to rush over and hug those three poor little ones.

But as soon as I moved, the three little guys vanished instantly.

I woke from my dream with a start, sat up abruptly, and gasped heavily.

The next moment, Jin Wuya also sat up, placed a hand on my lips, and whispered, "Shi Rou, don't make a sound, calm your emotions, and listen carefully."

I instantly sobered up, struggled to steady my breathing, pricked up my ears, and listened attentively.

In the pitch‑black night, you couldn't see your hand in front of your face, yet the drop of a pin could be heard.

Yet in that silence, a sound came from the main hall.

I had heard that sound before…… it was the noise of fingernails scratching the coffin wood.

We lived in the east wing; right next door was the main house's main hall, the two rooms separated by a single wall.

So that sound came in waves, and I felt as if it were scratching my scalp, making my whole body go numb.

This process lasted for a while before it stopped.

Jin Wuya turned on the light, picked up his phone to check the time—it was just past three a. m.

We both got up; he threw a coat over me, and then we two went out the door to the main house.

That small coffin remained on the offering table in the main hall; in the lamplight I saw the two black soul‑soothing talismans pasted on its front and back, which had almost turned medium gray.

Jin Wuya walked over, examined it closely, and then sucked in a breath of cold air.

I hurriedly asked, "What's wrong?"

Jin Wuya pointed to the side of the coffin's head and said, "Look here."

Following his finger, I saw a crack there.

It was a very shallow crack, hard to notice unless you looked closely.

This wasn't there before.

This means the small coffin is about to be unable to keep what's inside sealed.

Back then, the Red Armor Army, the main force of the Mount‑Removing Strongmen, entered the tomb and almost got wiped out; the thing in the small coffin nearly caused my family to lose its line… With just Jin Wuya and me, we lack the power to seal what's inside.

There's still no news from Shi Yin.

We truly are at the end of our rope now.

Jin Wuya suddenly turned, went into the room, fetched a piece of cloth, and wrapped the small coffin completely.

I asked him, "What are you doing?"

"This thing can't stay here." Jin Wuya said while grabbing his tool kit, "Now we can only try a desperate remedy—Shi Rou, I plan to pawn the small coffin together with whatever's inside at the pawnshop; Liu Qiye and Xiao Jiu Zhanggui are capable and well‑connected, they surely have a way to suppress it."

I worried, "Jin Wuya, is this a bad idea? We can't just drag them into trouble for no reason—this could cost lives."

"First, this is a pawnshop transaction; I'm not giving the small coffin and the earth fetus to Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, so it shouldn't affect his offspring."

Jin Wuya added, "Furthermore, Xiao Jiu Zhanggui's children are no ordinary folk; even if the thing in the coffin is arrogant, meeting his descendants would likely force it to tuck its tail and behave."

"More importantly, Liu Qiye himself is a dragon clan person, well‑traveled and knowledgeable; he might know where the Spiritual Qi is strong enough to suppress the small coffin, or he might be able to find Shi Yin's whereabouts."

Hearing Jin Wuya's words, I already felt my heart begin to waver.

"At first I didn't want to do this, and I share your reluctance to bring trouble to Xiao Jiu Zhanggui and his lot, but Shi Rou, the arrow is on the bow; we still can't find a breakthrough. Should we wait for that thing to burst out and harm innocents? In the end we'll still have to seek help, right?"

I nodded: "Yes."

Jin Wuya said, "I'll handle this; I trust that, given my relationship with Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, she won't stand by idly."

I quickly said, "I'll go with you; after all, this matter originated from our Shi Family, I need to show our stance."

Jin Wuya didn't argue, had me change into warmer clothes, and we set out overnight.

By the time the sky began to lighten, our car had entered the territory of Wufu Town.

Along the way, Jin Wuya kept telling me what had happened recently at the Wufu Town Pawnshop.

Yu Nian had become a ferryman, Li Qingying seemed to be preparing to attempt the Leap Dragon Gate, and Hui Moqiong dropped all pawnshop affairs to chase after Li Qingying.

Jin Wuya parked the car at Xijiekou, got out, and lifted the small coffin.

I also got out and hurriedly followed his steps toward the pawnshop gate.

The pawnshop gate was open, and the small door of the Nan Shu Fang was also open.

Jin Wuya went straight to that small door and knocked hard.

Soon after, Xiao Jiu Zhanggui's voice came from behind.

Seeing us, Xiao Jiu Zhanggui was quite surprised; she first greeted me, then said to Jin Wuya, "Earlier I sent you messages and called you, but you never replied; later I asked Old Fang to inquire locally in the South of the Ridges…… it seems the South of the Ridges has been rather unsettled lately, hasn't it?"

It was obvious that the storms and rains in the South of the Ridges were already known to Xiao Jiu Zhanggui.

She invited us to sit in the living room, and Jin Wuya said, "Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, I've come today because I have a request…… I want to pawn something……"

He hesitated to speak.

The knuckles of the hand holding the small coffin turned slightly white from strain.

At that moment, he hesitated.

Xiao Jiu Zhanggui glanced at the item Jin Wuya was holding, tightly wrapped in cloth, and asked, "Do you want to pawn this?"

Just as Jin Wuya was about to speak, I pulled him aside and said, "Xiao Jiu Zhanggui, we're here to ask for your help, but this matter involves a lot and is very tricky; you can first look at the item, then hear the Shi Family's story, and finally decide."

Jin Wuya has already sacrificed a great deal for me and for the Shi Family.

Xiao Jiu Zhanggui is not only Jin Wuya's friend; he also owes him a debt of gratitude. I don't want him, because of the Shi Family's mess, to anger Xiao Jiu Zhanggui.

So I settled for second best; I won't talk about pawning first—I came to your door seeking help.

"These past few days, I've also heard some rumors." Xiao Jiu Zhanggui said, "All of South of the Ling Mountains is spreading that the Shi Family rose to prominence relying on a treasure called the 'Earth Embryo'; after the Shi patriarch passed away, various forces are stirring, but anyone who has touched the 'Earth Embryo' never meets a good end. After hearing the rumors, I had a premonition that the 'Earth Embryo' will surely return to your hands, Shi Rou."

She paused, looked into my eyes, and said solemnly: "In fact, before you came to see me, another person had already come."

I asked doubtfully: "Who?"