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墨書 Inktalez
Li Mao leaned over the edge of an ancient well, carefully observing the situation inside. The well was deep, and even with his demon power, he could not see through it. The water appeared as black as ink in the night, a chilling aura creeping up the moss-covered walls.
"Are you really looking closely? Is there a female ghost in there that looks a lot like me, Consort Ruyi?"
Yin Yuan leaned against a withered tree, lazily dozing off. He had been traveling for a long time without replenishing his energy, feeling somewhat sluggish. If it weren't for Li Mao telling him that there was a female ghost in the well who resembled Consort Ruyi, he wouldn't have bothered to come out here in the middle of the night to peer into a well.
"I swear on my Yin Ye, I really saw something."
Li Mao dejectedly withdrew and sat down on the edge of the well.
"Bai Shi, every time I pass by here, I get this very strange feeling. It's like I hear a wailing sound coming from inside the well; it's a woman's voice and sounds very sorrowful. You know, after spending so much time with the Shopkeeper, my heart has softened, so I secretly came to the edge of the well to take a peek inside."
The white well was as dark as the night, with no bottom in sight. But as I got closer, that crying sound became clearer; it definitely came from below the well. At that moment, I also felt a chill rising from the depths of the well.
"Nonsense! At this time of night, is it possible for anything down there to be warm?" Yin Yuan shot Li Mao a glance.
Li Mao chuckled awkwardly and continued, "Just as I was about to get up and follow you, I suddenly noticed that something seemed to be climbing up from the bottom of the well. Although I'm a demon, I don't like that eerie feeling. But while I was distracted, that thing in the well suddenly lifted its head and looked at me. I was stunned because the woman in the well looked just like the Shopkeeper."
"And then? What did you do?" Yin Yuan yawned and stretched his body.
"I didn't do anything!" Li Mao looked at Yin Yuan with grievance. "Oh right, I reached my hand into the well."
"What did you reach your hand in for?"
"I thought that ghost was struggling too much climbing up and worried she might fall back down if she couldn't make it. So I reached out to help her. But instead, she slipped away and fell back down. Tsk tsk, in that regard, she's not like the Shopkeeper at all. If the Shopkeeper were in the well, she would definitely pull me up first."
"Yes! If my Consort Ruyi were in there, she would definitely let you pull her up first and then kick you back into the well."
"Why?" Li Mao asked in confusion.
"Because you're foolish!" Yin Yuan took a few steps to Li Mao and poked his head with her chubby finger. "Why would I, Consort Ruyi, go down into the well? Even if I did go down, do you think you could pull her up? Even if I, Consort Ruyi, were willing, my jealous Father Fox would definitely not agree. If you use that hand to pull my Mother up, he would chop off that hand of yours. And what was that metaphor you just used? How dare you compare me, Consort Ruyi, to a ghost in this well? Do you want to be beaten back to your original form and start your training all over again?"
"Oh dear, it was just a slip of the tongue!" Li Mao said, getting up and bowing to Yin Yuan. "Please, for the sake of carrying you all this way, don't let Shopkeeper and Yin Ye know about what I just said. Being beaten back to my original form and starting over is something I truly don't want to experience again."
"That's good to hear. What about that ghost? Have you found her or not?"
"To answer your question, no!"
"If that's the case, let's head back." Yin Yuan stretched lazily, feeling increasingly lethargic. "Consort Ruyi and Father Fox have probably already left the Su Family. According to their schedule, they should have arrived here by last evening."
"But we haven't seen Shopkeeper and the others."
"That means they must have encountered some trouble on the way." Yin Yuan's expression changed slightly. "I can't shake the feeling that this place is a bit strange."
"You feel that way too?"
"Any place with good Feng Shui not only nurtures people but also tends to nurture ghosts. Li Mao, haven't you noticed how heavy the yin energy is in this village?"
"It is quite strange. Bai Shi has also looked at the terrain here; as you just mentioned, it is definitely a Feng Shui treasure land capable of producing high-ranking officials. However, once we entered the village, we found the yin energy quite dense. Even more bizarre is that in such a heavily yin-infused place, there are no cultivating monsters around; even ghosts are only seen in that well."
"And one more thing! The villagers here neither believe in Buddhism nor Taoism; even the common deities usually worshipped by ordinary families are absent here. For example, the Earth God and Mountain Deity."
"What you're saying does seem true." Li Mao scratched his head. "According to what I've heard, there's a temple not far from this village. The Tang Dynasty Empress was known for her devotion to Buddhism; this is something all citizens of the Golden Tang Dynasty know. Therefore, any temple near a village would usually be bustling with worshippers. But when we went looking for Su Family's Eldest Young Master Su Jingbo, we found that temple very quiet; aside from Su Jingbo, there were no other visitors."
"Strange occurrences must have their reasons; perhaps these bizarre phenomena are related to the ghost you saw. Forget it; since that ghost won't come out, let's head back for now and wait for Consort Ruyi to arrive. With her Ghost Technique skills, even if the ghost in the well wants to hide, it won't be able to escape. By then, we'll see clearly whether she is round or flat."
"I should have thought of this earlier! If I had thought of it sooner, we wouldn't have had to come here ahead of time; we could have just followed Shopkeeper and them."
Li Mao said as he got up and glanced into the well again. The previously calm water seemed to stir up waves and made bubbling sounds in the darkness.
Li Mao let out a sound and shrugged, saying to Yin Yuan, "Well, why isn't this female ghost coming out? Is she hiding at the bottom of the well, eating dumplings? Listen to the sound of the water in the well; doesn't it sound like water boiling?"
"I'm not cooking, so how would I know?" Yin Yuan wrinkled his nose. "I'm tired and need to go back for a nap. As for you, either catch this female ghost from the well to serve as my breakfast or bring me back two chicken legs. Otherwise, if I get too hungry, I'll just swallow you to fill my stomach."
"Don't worry, I can't guarantee I'll catch the ghost in the well, but I will definitely bring back chicken legs."
Li Mao said, scratching his head and chuckling at Yin Yuan.
Just as Li Mao turned around, something slowly rose from the dark well. He sensed a strange aura behind him and turned back to see a woman's head emerging.
The woman's body gradually rose up, and Li Mao and Yin Yuan noticed that she was wearing a bright red bridal gown. In no time, the female ghost had revealed most of her body and eventually floated completely out of the well.
"This... could it be that she's finished eating dumplings and came out for some fresh air?"
Li Mao looked at the female ghost, who merely floated in the air with her head bowed. The bright red bridal gown appeared eerie and terrifying in the night. Just after Li Mao finished speaking, the ghost slowly raised her head little by little.
Seeing the ghost lift her head, Yin Yuan straightened his back and looked at her face. Indeed, like Li Mao said, this ghost bore some resemblance to her Fox Demon mother.
The ghost's face was pale, her eyes completely white without pupils, and her expression was grim and heavy. She stared at Li Mao and Yin Yuan for a while before slowly tilting her head back until it reached an angle unattainable by common people.
Li Mao scratched his nose and asked Yin Yuan, "Sir, what do you think this ghost is doing? Practicing dance?"
Yin Yuan narrowed his eyes and quietly reached out to catch the ghost. However, as soon as his hand touched a corner of her form, she suddenly transformed into a wisp of white smoke and vanished.
"Not a ghost; it's a soul!"
Yin Yuan clenched his hand as ancient energy drifted down from above the well.
Li Mao also dropped his playful demeanor and stood behind Yin Yuan.
"It seems that there is indeed something strange in this village!"
"Let's go find Mother and the others! Although Father Fox is here, it doesn't mean that Mother and the others are in any danger. However, because Father Fox is present, they might not notice these subtle oddities."
"Are you worried that someone has set a trap in this village?"
"Do you remember that Moxuyou?" Yin Yuan looked towards the ancient well.
Li Mao nodded, "I remember! That person is quite mysterious; even Yin Ye couldn't see through his true nature."
"I have a feeling that person came for Consort Ruyi and Father Fox. Many events that occurred in Divine Capital Luoyang were related to him, but after leaving the city, there has been no news of him. I suspect he is hiding in the shadows. As for what he is plotting, it's still unclear, but his intentions are not good. Those with good intentions do not come uninvited; we must remain vigilant."
"What about Lord Chang? Could he be connected to that Moxuyou?" Li Mao frowned. "The new Xie Xuan from the Metropolitan Government Office seems to have some ties to this Moxuyou as well. Although Lord Chang is the Shopkeeper's brother, he ultimately takes orders from Xie Xuan. Mortals are different from us; they can easily be tempted by money and power. Especially since Lord Chang hasn't won the Shopkeeper's heart yet, he might harbor resentment out of love."
"Chang Tai? I don't think so." Yin Yuan pondered quietly. "When Mother and the others left the city, they deliberately left me behind. On the surface, it was to let Chang Tai and Shengzi help take care of me, but in reality, it was to allow me to protect them from the shadows. Throughout this journey, I haven't noticed anything unusual about Chang Tai; his feelings for Mother are genuine. It's just a pity that Mother already has Father Fox."
"In that case, your worries seem unnecessary." Li Mao said, also feeling relieved.
From the other side of the village came the sound of the Night Watchman calling out, "The night is dry, and the heart burns—bang, bang!"
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