There is a Wuyin County in Yangzhou. The locals call it the Little Ghost City because the city is covered with heavy fog all year round, making it difficult to see even one's fingers. Legend has it that the door to the underworld is open here, and the mist inside comes out, blocking people's sight, making it easier for ghosts to seduce people and lock their souls.
When Jing Yu and his party came to this city, there were only a handful of pedestrians on the road, and there were no guards guarding the city gate. Judging from the atmosphere alone, it fit the title of a ghost town.
"It's really rare for people to come to the inn these days." The innkeeper's wife sighed as she wiped the counter.
Jing Yu looked around and saw that there were only a few people sitting here and there in the entire lobby, but the four of them and the demon were the most conspicuous. It was dark outside the inn, and the inside of the inn was illuminated by a few hanging lanterns. The proprietress seemed used to the deserted place, and she wiped the table by herself without thinking of chatting with the guests.
Qiao Xu huddled up in a ball and sat on the chair, shivering.
"Pfft!" Jing Yu saw her action and the tea in his mouth spurted out, "You're not afraid of ghosts, are you?"
"No! I'm just keeping warm." Qiao Xu said stubbornly.
Chen Xueyun consoled her: "Miss Qiao, as a scholar, I don't believe in ghosts and gods the most. We came just before the time of the day. There is nothing to be afraid of in broad daylight. A gentleman is magnanimous and never afraid of things that don't exist."
Qiao Xu didn't listen to these words. She stared around vigilantly, as if the walls of the inn were the door to the underworld, and one or two crooks would jump out at any time.
"I never saw you so scared when I was dealing with the ghoul that day." Jing Yu was still sarcastically sarcastic.
"The monster is visible and tangible. I punch him one by one, how can I be afraid?" Qiao Xu replied.
Jing Yu held his chin: "Then I finally know what you're afraid of. It turns out you're afraid of ghosts. You can't touch it, and it can't touch you. It's big eyes and small eyes, so there's no need to be afraid."
"I don't care, I have no friendly illusions about things that are not practical."
Jing Yu ignored her, his hungry stomach was already protesting, and he had to eat quickly. Qiao Xu had no appetite today, but he finally had a full meal.
The experienced Song Qian started telling ghost stories after dinner, such as the mirror in the middle of the night, the red embroidered shoes... The chatterbox didn't stop. Qiao Xu covered her ears not to listen, but her hands didn't follow the instructions, and one sentence leaked out. The stories reached her ears verbatim. Qiao Xu began to imagine whether there was a ghost standing behind her. She quickly turned around to check, and found that after a false alarm, she felt that there was a ghost elsewhere, and her neck did not stop.
Jing Yu finally couldn't hold back his laughter when he saw Qiao Xu's funny look. He rolled on the ground holding his stomach and making goose noises. The store was filled with joy.
The three drinkers at the next table also started chatting about some weird things.
"Hey, have you heard? Someone died in the city the day before yesterday. A whole family died. The Yamen sent people to investigate. It is said that the death was extremely horrific. I don't know what made the corpse mummified and hung it in the house. The detective who investigated , I became bedridden after returning home, and I still haven’t recovered yet." One of the drinkers with scars on his face said.
Sitting on the left side of the scarred drinker was a clerk who looked to be in his early thirties. He should be working in the county government. He nodded and agreed with the former's statement: "I heard about it too. After this incident happened, Many people in the government are afraid to take this case."
Song Qian heard these chats and said, "If there is a new case, whether to take it or not is just for fun. I think it's quite interesting."
Qiao Xu was the first to object: "I won't go."
"Then you live alone in the inn, and I will help you book a room." Jing Yu raised his eyebrows.
"No, then I'd better go." Qiao Xu knew that Jing Yu had no good intentions.
At this time, Ningqu, who was sitting on the roof, jumped down, pulled back the silver thread, and took Qiao Xu's hand: "Then I'll stay with her at the inn, and you three men can go. Is it okay?"
Jing Yu looked at himself, then at Song Qian and Chen Xueyun, and said frustratedly: "If you don't go with me, I'm afraid the three of us won't be enough for one ghost."
Ningqu said with soft eyes: "There is no way, I am not suitable to use magic right now. If you are really in danger, just send a signal and I will come."
Qiao Xu hid behind Ningqu and stuck out his tongue at the three of them: "Bah, if we really encounter a ghost, you will definitely be more scared than me."
"Tch, I won't be a coward and hide behind others, but you are still a martial artist." Jing Yu rolled his eyes at her.
Song Qian put his arms around their shoulders and said, "Believe in my strength. I can easily bring you two oil bottles."
Chen Xueyun thanked him: "Then I'll trouble Brother Song."
"Aren't you a fourth-level foundation builder? Why are you not as strong as a second-level martial artist?" Jing Yu asked curiously.
"Confucian disciples are no different from ordinary people until they reach the sixth level of heavenly tribulation." Chen Xueyun said bitterly.
The three of them went to find the county magistrate first. The county government office in Wuyin County was decorated in a very upright manner. Besides two stone lions at the door, there was a stone carved brave animal, probably to suppress evil spirits.
The county magistrate is gray-haired and nearly sixty years old. He doesn't want to lose his life, so he has never dared to investigate ghost-related incidents in depth. After all, Wuyin County has a close relationship with ghosts, and he is afraid of their revenge. However, recently this matter has become well known to the people and has become a household name. More than a dozen people have signed a letter asking the county magistrate to take the initiative to eradicate the evil spirits.
"Report! There are three people at the door claiming to be from the Dingming Division in the capital. They want to see you, sir." A police officer stood outside the study and reported.
The magistrate's eyes flashed: "Let them in quickly."
In the courtroom, there were three men with tall and straight postures and different expressions. One was a boy and a girl, unparalleled in handsomeness; one had delicate features and unfocused eyes; and the other was dressed in green and had sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes.
"Those three must be my guests who want to see me." The county magistrate first observed in the corner before standing up to greet them.
Jing Yu observed the decoration of the court hall. There was a Bagua mirror directly above the door, and two copper coin swords were inserted on the weapon rack on the left. The green and black copper coins had indescribable magic power. He just took a simple glance and felt dizzy. dizzy.
While they were in a daze, they heard the voice of the county magistrate. The three of them looked at each other. It was an old official who was over fifty years old and looked quite majestic. But the dark circles around his eyes caught Jing Yu's attention. Maybe it was the case that made the old official unable to sleep well.
"It seems that the magistrate is worried about something?" Jing Yu asked pretending to be confused.
The county magistrate had mixed feelings in his heart. He said in a tired tone: "My surname is Lin. I have been the magistrate of Wuyin County for more than thirty years. I have never encountered such a shocking case. That family of four died in a bizarre way." It was strange and ferocious, and it kept me awake for several days."
"Can we go to the scene to verify?"
"Go ahead, sir. You have come all the way from the capital. I apologize for not accompanying you." The county magistrate called three detectives to go together.
The household was ordinary, and the male owner was a businessman. There was heavy fog in Wuyin County, so he took a donkey cart to sell elsewhere, usually taking four or five days to go back and forth. The family has a son and a daughter. The woman takes the children to and from school, cooks, washes and weaves.
The originally intact family is now turned into mummies hanging in the bedroom. On the surface, it can be speculated that he committed suicide by hanging. However, the marks on the neck are not obvious. As long as careful analysis is carried out, he will know that it was homicide.
Jing Yu walked around the body and found no wounds. The furniture in the house was arranged as it was when he was alive. There were no footprints, no weapons, and no traces of struggle. It was ruled out that the crime was committed by a living person. You can tell with your toes that if the county magistrate is so eager for an agency like Ding Mingsi to take action, this case must be related to evil spirits.
Previous cases were all about monsters, but this time it was evil spirits. Song Qian explained that evil spirits were transformed by evil spirits, and most of them were invisible. The environment in Wuyin County is simply their paradise. The evil spirits suck people's blood when they kill people, which can be seen from the mummies.
The evil spirits appeared randomly, and the method of squatting finally didn't work. Jing Yu felt that his vision went dark and he almost fainted. If he can't squat, he is a headless fly, and he might be the next one to die.
This kind of situation can only be dealt with by asking a Taoist priest to go down the mountain, or a disciple of Shushan. The sword energy and clear energy of Shushan can drive away evil spirits, but Shushan is far away and is unrealistic. As for the Taoist priest, there is a mountain in Yangzhou, but it is far away. Song Qian's flying sword is very fast. He is afraid that the evil spirit will attack tonight and no more innocent people will die.
"It would be great if I reached the sixth level earlier. Confucianism has great righteousness, and with the spells that can only be learned by the sixth level, it will be easy to deal with evil spirits." Chen Xueyun said angrily.
Jing Yu suggested: "There is a Bagua mirror and a copper coin sword in the county magistrate's court. Can I use them?"
After his reminder, Song Qian suddenly realized: "Those two magic weapons are spiritual and can be used normally. Just borrow them. The county magistrate only knows how to protect himself, but ignores that the biggest helper is at his side."
The three of them asked the detective to stay where they were, while they returned to borrow the magic weapon.
Song Qian walked in front, while Chen Xueyun and Jing Yu walked side by side behind. Just halfway through, a gust of wind blew from nowhere, making the fog on the road chaotic and reducing visibility to the minimum. Jing Yu found that Song Qian's back became blurry until Disappear.
The consciousness of the two people also began to collapse, and the picture in front of them was fragmented. The back of their heads seemed to hit something hard, and Jing Yu woke up from the pain.
The surroundings were still the same as before, but the atmosphere around them gradually became strange. Looking back, the house just now was replaced by a wall, and there was no figure of Song Qian in front of him. Jing Yu desperately slapped Chen Xueyun on the back. The latter was also awake and frightened by the sight in front of him.
"Where is this?" Jing Yu looked straight ahead.
Chen Xueyun didn't answer. He took a step forward and found that his walking speed was half as fast as before. He looked at Jing Yu in disbelief.
Jing Yu suddenly trembled all over. He quickly lit the talisman and sent out a signal. As soon as the talisman reached the air, it was intercepted by a mysterious force and crushed into powder.
"It's not like we're really entering a ghost town." Jing Yu pulled out his blunderbuss and aimed forward. (To be continued)
