https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-142-Burning-the-Drought-Demon-Second-Update-/12898673/
Chapter 141: Midnight Corpse Guarding (First Update)
Chapter 141: Midnight Corpse Guarding (First Update)
That wanderer wasn’t our close friend or relative, but what was originally a simple matter has now become so complicated, increasing both the difficulty and the risk. So, if you want me to continue helping you, the corresponding payment must also be increased.
Hu Ma wasn’t trying to leverage his position for a higher price; he was simply stating the facts.
Even Mr. Zhao understood this logic, but the idea of paying more money made him feel uneasy.
He had already agreed with the wealthy households in the surrounding villages that, regardless of which village the thing ultimately came from, everyone would chip in three hundred taels of silver.
But now, it has been confirmed that the wanderer came from his own village, and they need to pay extra money. The wealthy households in the neighboring villages might not be willing to contribute.
Does this mean I have to foot the bill myself?
In theory, he should ask the main household, but he knew they couldn’t afford it.
Hu Ma didn’t pressure him. Instead, he said to Mr. Zhao, “A malevolent spirit that rises from the earth first harms its own family. The more people it harms, the stronger it becomes. On the first day, it eats livestock; on the second day, it harms family members. Can you guess what it will do on the third day?”
Mr. Zhao was startled, “Harm... harm the villagers?”
“Not just the villagers.”
Hu Ma combined the content from the Year-Guarding Book and the stories Second Uncle had told him, saying, “It will also spread corpse poison, causing an epidemic. In ancient times, it was said that a great drought would be followed by a great epidemic, and this is the reason.”
“To me, it’s no big deal if I don’t earn this silver. As you can see, I haven’t slept all night because of this matter, but I can’t stand to see my village in such a state.”
“For you, you need to think carefully about this.”
Mr. Zhao listened, his face turning red with shame.
Being criticized by an outsider about the state of his village was embarrassing.
But because of this matter, he couldn’t say anything. He just managed to say, “Master, please put in more effort. I’ll find a way to pay the fee.”
At that moment, a cold laugh suddenly echoed from the crowd.
Hu Ma turned to look and saw an old man dressed in tattered clothes, with a monkey perched on his shoulder, smoking a pipe and looking inside.
He ignored the old man and said to Mr. Zhao, “You decide how to handle this. I’m just speaking the truth.”
“Now that it’s daytime, we should send people to look for it. If we can find it and burn it, the matter will be over.”
“If we can’t find it, we’ll have to work hard tonight.”
“I stayed up all night last night, and I’m afraid I won’t be able to hold out if I stay up again tonight. I need to go back and rest for a bit.”
“...”
“Of course, of course...”
Mr. Zhao agreed repeatedly and ordered his servants to escort Master and the junior masters back to rest.
But Hu Ma also made some arrangements. Zhou Datong and Zhao Zhu would rest with him, taking a nap, but Zhou Liang would have a tougher time.
He was steady and reliable, and during the day, he would follow Mr. Zhao’s people to look for the thing. If they couldn’t find it, then at night, he, Zhou Datong, and Zhao Zhu would deal with the wanderer, while Zhou Liang would rest at night.
This was to ensure that the matter was handled properly. If they found and burned it during the day, and his people didn’t participate, the village might refuse to pay.
Back in the room, Hu Ma washed his face with a hot towel and then went to bed.
When he opened his eyes, it was already afternoon. In the large Zhao family manor, they had already started steaming buns and preparing dinner to entertain them. Since everyone knew they had work to do at night, they ate early, had a hearty meal, and then went to prepare for the night.
Hu Ma washed his face and stepped out. Before the meal was ready, he heard a commotion at the door.
“What’s happening?”
Curious, he asked Zhou Liang, who was approaching. Zhou Liang frowned and said, “We searched for the wanderer for a long time but didn’t find any trace of it. On the way back to the village, we encountered an old man with a monkey.”
“He said he heard the news from a traveling merchant and came to solve the problem. But since we’ve already taken the job, and no one in the village paid attention to him, he wanted to come in and have a meal. The family only wanted to give him two cornbread buns.”
“He refused and started shouting that he wanted to come in and eat with us.”
“...”
“So, a fellow practitioner has arrived?”
Hu Ma was a bit curious. After a moment’s thought, he said, “We’re all wanderers. Why deny him a meal?”
“Bring him in!”
“...”
Zhou Liang went to the servant and had the old man brought in.
Hu Ma glanced at him and saw an old man dressed like a beggar, with a clearly trained monkey perched on his shoulder. His hair was disheveled, one eye was cloudy and dull, and when he smiled, he showed two gaps where teeth were missing.
At first glance, there was nothing special about him. Hu Ma didn’t want to offend anyone easily, but he also didn’t want to cause trouble, so he just sat down with him.
Mr. Zhao first whispered to Hu Ma, explaining how hard he had worked to convince the villagers to chip in and that he had agreed to give Hu Ma an additional hundred taels of silver after the matter was resolved, asking if he was satisfied.
A job worth two hundred taels of silver had now become three hundred taels due to the complications. That was acceptable.
Hu Ma nodded in agreement and picked up his chopsticks to eat.
“Little brother, are you really planning to face this thing head-on tonight?”
The old man with the monkey was smiling as he observed Hu Ma and the other apprentices, striking up a conversation.
"Taking money from others to eliminate their calamities, what's there to talk about?"
Hu Ma, while eating, replied, "Old sir, do you have a better idea?"
"He, I just make a living by getting by the day, what idea could you possibly have?"
The old man smiled, almost admitting he was a fraud, then asked, "What sect do you follow, young brother?"
"Are you probing my background?"
Hu Ma knew that the old man was a family member of the affected household. Since they were all focused on this matter, he invited the old man in to make it look better and to avoid offending anyone.
But since the old man was probing, he smiled and said, "I'm young, how could I know what sect you belong to? It's just that I see you as quite capable, do you have better techniques?"
"..."
The old man chuckled, "I just make a living in the Wandering World, how could I have any techniques?"
Hu Ma, seeing he was unwilling to speak, did not press further but kept a cautious eye.
In the Wandering World, it was important to first show respect, then observe the other party. This task was already half done; he had to see it through. If anything went wrong, he would face the consequences directly.
After finishing the meal, he had Zhou Datong and the others pack what they needed to bring, find thick wooden stakes, tattered blankets, and fish nets, which they couldn't find, so they used thick ropes to weave a net temporarily. They then gathered everything and headed to the affected household.
Zhou Liang didn’t have to participate that night, but he insisted he wasn’t tired and came along.
Upon arriving, they found the place crowded with people. The women of the household were crying and fussing, "Don’t stop me, I need to return to my mother’s house."
"You’re afraid, so I’ll go back to my mother’s house. There are many people there, so they won’t be afraid!"
"..."
Hu Ma, hearing this, felt helpless but knew the woman was terrified and unwilling to cooperate.
He didn’t want to deal with this, so he glanced at Zhou Datong, signaling him to handle it.
Zhou Datong, already eager, immediately approached the rather attractive woman and said sternly, "Big Sister, you’re wrong."
"If it were daytime, you wouldn’t be afraid, and with a few strong men, a fire would scare it away. But that thing only comes out at night. What good would it do to have more people from your mother’s house?"
"Even if you wanted to run, have you thought about how far you could run in one night?"
"Do you really think that thing can’t see in the dark like you and wouldn’t find you and your child at night?"
"..."
The woman, frightened by his words, sniffled and choked, "Then what should I do?"
Zhou Datong patted his chest and said, "Don’t worry, with me around, you can sleep soundly on the bed tonight, and I’ll guard the door for you."
The woman glanced at him, sniffled and choked, and agreed.
"Always felt that Second Uncle sealing Zhou Datong’s furnace was a good deed for the villagers..."
Hu Ma, watching from the side, couldn’t help but feel impressed.
He calmed down and first had the people dig a large pit in the yard, planting the prepared wooden stakes halfway in, filling the soil above, and tamping it down firmly.
Then he found a broken quilt, covering it on top, squeezed a bit of blood from the child’s fingertip onto the red paper, secretly asked the child’s birth date and Time, wrote it on the back of the red paper, and pasted it onto the wooden stake.
After these preparations, they could only wait.
During the day, the villagers gathered densely, all vying to watch the commotion, more gruesome than a dead sheep.
But as dusk fell, fear gripped everyone, and they retreated to their homes, tightly closing their doors.
Even Mr. Zhao couldn’t manage it, still wanting to arrange a few strong men from the village to guard, hoping they could lend a hand, but the strong men were also scared. In the end, he promised a string of cash to each, convincing a few to hide inside and wait.
Hu Ma knew this was a hard fight, so he directly had the people open the doors and set a small table.
He had someone boil a strong tea, drinking to stay alert.
Beside him, a steel knife and a wooden sword were placed, and Little Red Apricot was on the roof, crouching and watching.
Zhou Datong, with Zhao Zhu, hid on both sides, each holding a rope, with a net stretched between them.
That night, it seemed to grow dark especially early, and soon the surroundings were silent.
Two lanterns were hung in the yard, one on the left and one on the right, illuminating the surroundings in a dim, hazy light.
Everyone had mustered up their courage and waited, but as they waited, nothing appeared. The people waiting in the house became increasingly bored and drowsy, as if nothing would happen.
It was just as the night grew its deepest and darkest, a sudden gust of wind rushed in through the open door, carrying a foul stench.
The wind directly extinguished one of the lanterns and ignited the other.
By the flickering light, Hu Ma was suddenly alert, looked up, and saw a human-like creature climb through the door. It was covered in foot-long white hair, with blood and flesh peeling off its face, revealing a set of jagged, sharp fangs.
It rushed into the yard, directly targeting the wooden stake.
It let out a mournful wail, as if crying, but its movements were vicious, pouncing at the stake with tearing and biting.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
