Chapter Thirty-Six: The Intent to Leave

With the frequency of supernatural incidents on the rise, Chen Mu found himself at a loss. During the day, he stayed close to Jie Jia; at night, he took shelter near the Zuo family residence. Both were individuals capable of dealing with malevolent spirits. In the meantime, he intensified his efforts to practice the Body Refining Technique. Jie Jia had once remarked that mastering this technique would grant one a modicum of ability to contend with such entities.

...

In the dead of night, a sharp, piercing scream jolted Chen Mu from his sleep. The sound was thick with terror, as if the victim had encountered something unimaginably horrific. Chen Mu scrambled up and rushed to the window to listen. Yet, outside, there was only oppressive silence; even the usual chirping of summer insects had vanished.

A malevolent spirit? This close? The scream he had just heard was not far from where he was staying; otherwise, it would not have been so clear. Chen Mu no longer dared to sleep. He got dressed and sat by the door, ready to bolt at a moment’s notice. He remained in a state of terrified vigilance for the rest of the night. It was only when the sky turned bright that he cautiously stepped outside.

On his way to the residence in the west of the city, Chen Mu encountered a group of yamen guards. They had cordoned off a small alley, blocking the curious onlookers. Chen Mu couldn't help but glance over. The interior of the alley was pitch-black, as if it had been scorched by a massive fire. Chen Mu’s heart tightened. He had walked through this very alley yesterday afternoon, and it had been perfectly fine. The fire must have been intense to char the entire alleyway, yet he had sat awake from midnight until dawn without seeing a single flicker of light or hearing a sound.

A cold dread washed over him. Could this be the work of a malevolent spirit? He dared not look any longer and hurried away. Before he left, he caught sight of the eldest young master of the Zuo family among the crowd. The man’s expression was grave as he stared intently at the blackened alley. Chen Mu’s anxiety deepened. If even the young master of the Zuo family was this somber, this matter was undoubtedly linked to the supernatural.

"They say malevolent spirits only terrify people or possess them," Chen Mu thought, "how could they set a fire without a sound?"

...

"Malevolent spirits have varying degrees of strength," Jie Jia said indifferently behind the Tianyi Studio in the west of the city.

Chen Mu smacked his lips, feeling a bitter taste in his mouth. He didn't even know how to handle ordinary spirits, and now a more powerful one had appeared. "Can't that Assistant Magistrate Li think of something? This Qingshan County is supposed to be the Li family’s territory, isn't it?" Chen Mu asked, feeling rather annoyed.

"The core members of the Li family have already been sent to Nanyang Prefecture," Jie Jia replied coldly.

"He’s willing to abandon such a massive family legacy?" Chen Mu asked, incredulous. Was he planning to slip away in secret?

"He didn't leave himself," Jie Jia said, glancing at Chen Mu calmly.

Chen Mu calmed down, lost in thought. "So, this Assistant Magistrate has some kind of reliance, though it doesn't seem very secure."

Jie Jia nodded. "He has posted rewards through all the secret channels in Qingshan County, including the Zhu-Yi Pavilion, looking for large-scale protective talismans. There has been no news yet."

"The Qingfeng Temple outside the city still has some methods. In a crisis, they could hold out for a couple of days."

"Qingfeng Temple?" Chen Mu immediately took note. When he first arrived in this world, he had woken up at Qingfeng Temple. His predecessor had died there mysteriously, which had made him keep his distance from the temple ever since. He hadn't expected them to actually have ways of dealing with supernatural entities.

Even though Assistant Magistrate Li was responding actively, Chen Mu remained uneasy. He did not want to entrust his safety to others. "Is Nanyang Prefecture safe?" Chen Mu asked suddenly. At that moment, he harbored thoughts of leaving Qingshan County.

"It’s relatively safe, though the road is not easy to travel," Jie Jia said.

Chen Mu looked at him, confused.

"With the constant natural and man-made disasters under the Great Liang Dynasty, the wilderness is infested with bandits, and malevolent spirits lurk along the roads. It is truly a difficult journey," Jie Jia explained patiently.

"Can't we follow a merchant caravan?" Although Qingshan County was remote, there were always one or two caravans that dared to travel to Nanyang.

"Those people might not fear bandits, but they have no means to deal with spirits," Jie Jia said calmly. "You only see the caravans that return successfully; the ones that don't, you’ll never see."

Chen Mu’s face darkened. "Is there really no safe channel?" He didn't believe it. How else had the Assistant Magistrate sent his family away? And the proprietor of the Miaohua Workshop, Boss Zhen, had also gone to Nanyang.

Jie Jia didn't speak; his eyes shifted, glancing at Chen Mu’s right sleeve.

Chen Mu’s face turned black. The old man was eyeing his coin purse again! The road wasn't safe, but as long as he found a reliable bodyguard, it wouldn't be a problem. Jie Jia was just such a bodyguard.

"Does Qingfeng Temple have ways to deal with these spirits?" Chen Mu asked, feigning hope.

"They do," Jie Jia replied unhurriedly.

"But the price for their help is something you cannot afford," Jie Jia added, purposely using a cold tone.

Chen Mu’s expression sank. Seeing Chen Mu’s sullen face, a glimmer of a smile flashed in Jie Jia’s eyes.

"Nanyang Prefecture has large-scale spirit-repelling mirrors, so supernatural incidents rarely occur. It is also home to several great clans, all of whom have methods to suppress malevolent spirits," Jie Jia softened his tone, coaxing him. "Go. I can guarantee I will get you there safely," he added firmly.

Chen Mu’s face turned serious. "You said Qingfeng Temple still has some tricks up its sleeve?"

"What about it?" Jie Jia nodded, confused. Shouldn't he be asking about the price for a bodyguard?

"Then I won't go," Chen Mu said calmly. "You might not know this, but I have a very good relationship with Daoist Cheng Yi of Qingfeng Temple. I stayed there for over half a month last time."

Jie Jia: "..."

"If you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have known Qingshan County had such a safe haven," Chen Mu said cheerfully. "My thanks to you!"

Jie Jia’s face went black.

...

That night, near the Zuo family’s mansion, Chen Mu locked his doors and windows tightly. He dared not light a lamp, moving in total silence, terrified that any noise might attract a spirit.

He reached under his bed in the dark and pulled out an earthenware jar. Chen Mu sat at the square table in his room, poured out a pile of broken silver and copper coins, and began to count. What he had said during the day was mostly to tease Jie Jia. He had no real friendship with Cheng Yi; it was a miracle they hadn't become enemies. In their few encounters, that stubborn old priest had shown him nothing but disdain. If a real crisis hit, he might actually have to pay Jie Jia to get him out.

One hundred and fifty-six taels of silver, nine hundred and sixty-seven copper coins.

"Not quite enough," he muttered. Knowing how greedy the old man was, he wasn't sure if this would be enough to hire him.

"The White Wave Gang is useless now, too," Chen Mu thought with dissatisfaction. Recently, those guys had become increasingly shrewd, not carrying a single copper coin on them. Last time, their Hall Master Jia had taken a gulp of his concoction, and all they could scrape together from him was one tael of broken silver. The leader of the three main halls of the White Wave Gang, and he only had one tael of silver on him—truly pathetic!

"Tomorrow I’m going to sell fish; I might as well have a chat with that Leader Zhang." As the head of the entire gang, he had to be wealthier than a hall master, right?

...

The next day, in a residential house in Dengjia Alley, west of the city, a few members of the White Wave Gang were on patrol.

"Don't leave after we dismiss this afternoon; brother will take you to the Anle District to have some fun," the leader, a small boss, said with a grand wave of his hand.

"Did you run into some good fortune, Boss? Your monthly pay wasn't confiscated by the sister-in-law yesterday?" a henchman asked with a smirk.

"Go on, go on! Why should I hand my pay over to her?" the leader said, rubbing his bald head and puffing out his chest defiantly.

"The boss is tough!"

"Big brother is mighty!"

"Haha..."

The leader didn't mind the teasing from his subordinates; he just chuckled. "I told her I was going to buy her some rouge from the Apricot Blossom Shop today."

"Then Boss, how can you afford to treat us to wine? If you don't buy the rouge, aren't you afraid the sister-in-law will scratch your face off?"

"Haha..."

"I have my own ways," the leader said, looking smug. "I told her I ran into that poison-throwing guy again, and all my money was robbed—gone!"

The henchmen’s jaws dropped. "Why didn't I think of that!" a short, chubby member lamented, hitting his head in regret.

"Heh heh!" The leader looked triumphant, his bald head gleaming.

The next moment, he suddenly felt dizzy. He looked up and saw two suns in the sky. A bad premonition washed over him. Turning his head, he saw his subordinates already lying skillfully in the shade of a large tree. He took only two steps before crashing to the ground with a thud.

This familiar feeling...

Damn it!