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墨書 Inktalez
When the town mayor heard that he was willing to stay, he immediately agreed to his request. However, it was during this attempt to change the feng shui that things went awry.
After the mayor's agreement, the businessman successively brought in several so-called Feng Shui Masters. They worked day and night, performing rituals to exorcise spirits and invite deities. Eventually, they gathered a considerable amount of labor in the village to erect a large stone tablet, which was the one we had just seen.
Strange occurrences began in the town from that point on. Initially, livestock raised by the townspeople began to die mysteriously. The deaths were gruesome, as if something had gnawed them to death. Soon, people couldn't sit still; they believed that the Feng Shui changes had angered the local spirits, leading to the inexplicable deaths of their animals. They sought out the businessman to demand a return to the original state.
To their surprise, those who went to find the businessman returned with adverse effects. Not only did the town not revert to its original state, but they also fell ill with ailments that no treatment seemed to alleviate. Eventually, they began to harm themselves in a manner similar to how their livestock had died, with some even biting themselves to death.
This caused widespread panic among the townsfolk. At this moment, the mayor stepped forward and declared that the stone tablet was an object for inviting deities; only through sincere worship could they receive divine protection.
Seeing the mayor's stance, everyone felt they had no choice but to try and believe him. They began to bow and worship at the stone tablet daily. For those who showed sincere devotion, the mayor distributed talismans and jars containing items meant to protect their homes.
The villager surnamed Hu then returned to his room and pulled a jar from under his bed, placing it before us. "Look at this," he said. "This is what the mayor says is a reward from the true deity for faithful followers..."
I recognized the jar immediately, while Yao Long and Death Apostle instantly identified it as well. They muttered under their breath, "This isn't some divine treasure; it's clearly Ghost Oil!"
The Hu Villager didn't hear them and sighed as he continued, "Actually, thinking about it, this is a good thing; it can prevent some outsiders from invading and at least ensures the town's safety..."
Hearing this, I began to understand. It seemed that this Hu Villager was indeed a follower of this so-called "true deity." I asked him, "If that's the case, how did your family leave?"
He sighed again and replied, "Ah~ my parents died young; they passed away when I was in my teens and twenties. I originally had a daughter, but my wife didn't believe in the 'true deity' and divorced me over it. She took our daughter, who was just a month old at the time, and only occasionally comes back..."
He calculated some dates and continued, "It's been quite a while since she last visited; I wonder how they are doing..."
A look of sadness crossed his face as he spoke. Hearing his words made me think of how similar his story was to that of the girl we encountered in the hospital. Could this man be her father? What a coincidence...
I looked at the Death Apostle and Yao Long sitting across from me. Their faces were serious, and their eyes were fixed intently on a small jar of Ghost Oil on the table.
At that moment, Li Zhisheng pondered for a moment before suddenly asking, "Brother, you mentioned that merchant agreed to stay, but you never said what he was doing. Is he still in town?"
Li Zhisheng's question left me puzzled as well. "Right, since he's a merchant, he must have his own motives. Even if it's not for money, there must be something else at play. If we can find out where that merchant is, we might gain a deeper understanding of this whole situation."
As I thought about it, I patiently listened to Hu Villager explain, "It's strange about this merchant. Ever since he hired a few Feng Shui Masters to perform some rituals, he hasn't been seen again. I heard he was in the mining business, dealing with gold and silver ores or something like that. Anyway, he's quite wealthy..."
After finishing his explanation, he turned and went into the kitchen to pour himself another glass of water, which looked murky. I looked at the cup he was holding and asked, "Brother Hu, won't there be any issues with that water? It looks unclean..."
He chuckled, "You don't know. This water is actually considered good now. In the past, it was like yellow mud soup—hardly drinkable..."
Hearing this made me shake my head in concern for the health of the residents here. Just then, Death Apostle, who had been silent until now, asked with a puzzled expression, "What about the town mayor? Is he still in town?"
The villager replied, "Although the mayor has several houses in the city, he often comes back to stay here—probably for work convenience..." He then downed the water in his cup.
"Could you take us to meet the mayor?" Death Apostle asked.
Hu Villager looked confused. "What do you want him for? Are you planning to do business here too? If that's the case, I advise you to leave quickly; otherwise..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Yao Long interrupted him: "That's none of your concern. We have some matters to discuss with him..." He pulled out some money from his backpack and placed it on the table. "You need to tell us; this money is all yours..."
Seeing the money made Hu Villager's eyes light up. He grinned at Yao Long: "Finding the mayor is easy; the tallest building in town is his—white bricks and red tiles. You'll know it when you see it..." With that, he reached for the money on the table.
Upon hearing this, the Death Apostle turned to me and said, "There's no time to waste. If we stay here any longer, it might be too late. We need to act quickly, or we won't have a chance." With that, he and Yao Long stood up to thank the Hu Villager and bid farewell.
I followed behind them as we made our way down to the first floor and exited the villager's home. Once outside, the Death Apostle frowned at me and said, "If I'm not mistaken, that so-called merchant is likely the Yin Master. If it were the Yang Master, they wouldn't allow someone with such power as Onizuka to roam freely. Moreover, I suspect that the town mayor may no longer be alive!"
"Not alive?!" Hu Fang exclaimed in surprise.
I was also taken aback and asked, "You mean he has become one of those Undead that the Yang Master studies?"
The Death Apostle shook his head. "I fear that's not the case. Those Undead have only been created by the Yang Master in recent years, so the timeline doesn't match. Furthermore, as far as I know, the Yin Master has other methods to control living people..."
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