Chapter 42: Shrouded in Evil

On the rooftop of the Grand Riverside Theater, I took out my compass. As soon as it appeared, the drop of blood nestled in its hollow seemed drawn by an invisible force. There was a gate.

I immediately began my calculations, pouring my spiritual power ceaselessly into the array etched on the compass. The needle jumped and twitched in a peculiar rhythm. Half an hour passed before I finally stopped, my breath unsteady. I hadn’t anticipated that this spatial alignment would take so long, draining so much of my energy and focus—almost more than I could bear.

“Got it?” asked Chen Yingen, who had been on guard nearby.

“This direction and distance. Check it for me, let me catch my breath.” I gave her the coordinates, lit a cigarette, and closed my eyes to recuperate.

Chen Yingen pulled out her phone, entered the information, and the map pointed to a location. “Xiushan,” she said.

My fingers trembled, and the cigarette fell to the ground as I stared at her. “Where did you say?”

“Xiushan. It’s under Riverside’s jurisdiction, but really, it’s right on the border,” Chen Yingen replied.

“Fu Yiman’s hometown is in Xiushan. After her concert in Riverside, she went there, and Wang Meiyu followed. But Wang Meiyu once told me she’d been to Xiushan with Fu Yiman before, said she’d never go back—something happened, a psychological shadow. So Xiushan must have a problem,” I said fiercely. Though nothing substantial ever happened between me and Wang Meiyu—we never went beyond friendship—I always felt responsible for her current predicament.

Chen Yingen glanced at me. “Then let’s go to Xiushan at dawn.”

“No, let’s go now. I’ll drive,” I insisted.

“No. If there’s something strange in Xiushan, we need a plan and backup. If we walk into trouble unprepared, we’re doomed,” Chen Yingen replied sternly.

I took a deep breath, realizing she was right, and nodded.

Back at our headquarters, Chen Yingen immediately started planning and arranging support.

Early the next morning, we drove toward Xiushan. The journey was silent and bumpy, three hours before the mountain’s silhouette finally appeared.

Xiushan belonged to Riverside’s Qubo Town, nestled at its foot was a tiny village—Xiushan Village—with fewer than a hundred people. It was fifty miles from Qubo Town, practically cut off from the world.

The road ended here; Chen Yingen and I got out and walked toward Xiushan.

They say a mountain in the distance will exhaust a horse, and it’s true. Not until three in the afternoon did we arrive at Xiushan Village.

What surprised me was seeing several groups coming to Xiushan for leisure. Mountain true to its name: steep, graceful peaks, clear streams. Whether camping, fishing, or hiking, it was an ideal spot—if developed into a tourist site, it would be crowded with visitors.

We arrived at Xiushan Village pretending to be tourists. The village was deserted, everyone out working at this hour, except for an old woman with white hair at the entrance, sewing insoles.

“Grandma, do you have any water?” Chen Yingen and I approached her.

She looked up, flashed a toothless, kindly smile. “There’s well water behind, help yourselves,” she said in the local dialect, but still understandable since it was technically Riverside.

I signaled Chen Yingen and went alone behind the house.

Behind, I found a well and looked around before approaching it.

Snap.

I stepped on a dead branch and saw a centipede, as long as my index finger, scurry into a pile of leaves.

I narrowed my eyes and kicked the pile aside—underneath, a centipede nest, dozens scattering in every direction.

---

Centipedes, one of the nine great evil insects.

I took out a talisman, flicked it between my fingers, and it burned quickly, blue smoke swirling. No sign of evil energy.

“Could it be nothing’s wrong here?” I wondered, peering into the well.

My face reflected in the water, vague and indistinct. I took out a bottle, dropped in some exorcism liquid—no reaction.

I straightened up and walked back.

Unbeknownst to me, after I left, my reflection remained in the rippling water.

Out front, Chen Yingen and the old woman were chatting, the topic was Fu Yiman.

The old woman kept praising Fu Yiman’s intelligence and beauty.

When I returned, Chen Yingen exchanged a greeting with the old woman and walked off with me.

“How was it?” Chen Yingen asked.

“Just saw some centipedes, but no evil or resentment,” I replied.

“Then let’s go see Fu Yiman’s place,” Chen Yingen said.

“You found it?” I asked.

“Of course,” she replied.

We walked for a while. Suddenly, the Eye of the Nether Dragon in my chest grew warm, giving me the uneasy feeling of being watched.

I grabbed Chen Yingen’s hand; she turned and glared at me.

“Someone’s watching,” I mouthed silently.

Her body relaxed, and she took my arm. With this movement, a faint glow flashed from her hand, as if something darted out.

Soon, Chen Yingen’s brows knitted. Quietly, she said, “About a dozen rats are following us. Let’s leave.”

We circled back and left Xiushan Village.

By a small stream not far away, we halted.

“Xiushan Village has likely been overtaken,” Chen Yingen said grimly.

“But why can’t we sense any evil energy?” I wondered.

“No idea. Let’s wait until nightfall and check again,” Chen Yingen suggested.

Darkness fell quickly. We sat under a large tree, gnawing on bread.

Nearby, a group of tourists pitched tents beside the stream, lit a bonfire, and started their own barbecue party—eating, singing, dancing.

“Captain, look at them. You spent all night preparing, and all you brought was bread,” I grumbled, biting into mine.

“Be glad you have food. If you don’t want it, give it back,” Chen Yingen snorted.

I stuffed the rest of the bread into my mouth and opened wide. “Want to take it back now that it’s in my mouth?”

Chen Yingen glared at me and looked away, clearly not interested in my antics.

Time passed slowly; night deepened and the cold grew stronger.

The tourists had gone to sleep. Apart from the sound of running water, all was silent.

Chen Yingen nudged me with her elbow. “It’s about time,” she whispered.

Just as we were about to act, two people emerged from the tents—a man and a woman.

I remembered there were two couples in those tents.

“An affair? Are they really going to do something that wild?” I whispered, a grin on my face.

---

“Must you be so depraved?” Chen Yingen murmured, shooting me a look of disdain.

The couple walked side by side, wordless, heading into the distance.

I watched for a while, then whispered, “Something’s off. Their walk is unsteady, their minds seem adrift—like sleepwalking.”

“And their vital energy is weak, a symptom of evil possession,” Chen Yingen noted.

“They’re headed toward Xiushan Village, aren’t they?” I asked.

“Yes,” she nodded.

“Perfect, let’s follow them—” But as I spoke, my body wavered, my soul pricked as if stabbed.

I bit down hard, stabbing a Yang Sha Needle quickly into my gathering point.

“Evil energy? You’ve been hit?” Chen Yingen’s face changed in shock. She’d been with me the whole time and hadn’t noticed when it happened.

I steadied myself and used a set of soul-guiding needles on my head, calming my spirit.

“No idea. Maybe when I checked the well behind alone,” I said.

“I’ll help drive the evil out,” Chen Yingen said, preparing her tools.

“Wait—actually, this is perfect. I’ll follow those two, pretend to be possessed, and probe deeper,” I said, inspiration flashing.

Chen Yingen agreed, seeing the merit in my plan.

I took a deep breath, closed my spiritual senses, letting my gaze go vacant, my face slack—just like those tourists, letting the evil guide me toward Xiushan Village.

Soon, I and the two tourists entered Xiushan Village.

Inside the ancestral hall, all the villagers were gathered—old and young alike.

They watched as the three of us approached, faces eager, some even drooling.

Once we reached the center, the villagers surrounded us.

Suddenly, their eyes glowed black, and as their mouths opened, countless snakes, insects, ants, and rats poured out.

Stunned, I reached for the Blood Fiend Blade at my waist.

Then, a shrill cat’s cry rang out. All the vermin immediately retreated into the villagers’ mouths. The villagers, now fearful, turned toward a particular direction.

A woman walked toward us.

Though my gaze remained unfocused, inside I was in turmoil—it was Wang Meiyu.

Her appearance here confirmed my suspicions: Fu Yiman never left the country, but stayed in her stronghold.

Wang Meiyu’s cat cry—did it mean the evil seed inside her had hatched, had she become an evil cat?

But why did Wang Meiyu stop them?

She strode over, calling again.

Then, six wild boars, staggering as if drunk, entered the ancestral hall.

In an instant, the villagers opened their mouths again, unleashing a swarm of vermin. In the blink of an eye, the six boars vanished without a trace.

The vermin returned to the villagers, who looked satisfied and dispersed.

Wang Meiyu fixed her gaze on me, her pupils an eerie green. She reached out to touch my face, her expression shifting between calm and savage.