https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-162-Eliminating-the-Haunting-Tale/12979273/
Chapter 161: Mountain Ghost
Chapter 161: Mountain Ghost
Three days later, with the help of a lawyer from the Blood Stain Gang, Zorro was released from the police station after paying a hefty temporary release fee.
Due to the police's deliberate delay, the best time for reattaching his arm had already passed, and during his detention, even with his injury, he was thoroughly beaten up both overtly and covertly. As a result, he now looked exceptionally listless.
When he got into the car that came to pick him up, an elderly man sitting in the backseat looked at him silently, then glanced at his bandaged broken arm and advised, "Forget about reattaching your hand. I'll get you a new implant, and I guarantee it'll be even better than your old one. It won't affect your combat abilities either."
Zorro smirked, revealing a nervous smile, "I want to kill that kid."
The old man shook his head, "Don't even think about it. I've checked, and that kid's uncle is the captain of the police station. He's well-connected within the police force. If you go after him, the police will definitely make things difficult for us."
Zorro turned his head, his bloodshot eyes staring intently at the old man. With this look, it seemed like he might explode at any moment, "So, Uncle Han, you're saying we should just let this go?"
Uncle Han turned to face him and said sternly, "The gang is dealing with all sorts of issues right now, not just the Iron Chain Gang. There's another force targeting us, and some people are even trying to take a bite out of us behind the scenes. Don't cause any more trouble for now. Wait until the gang settles external matters, then you can look for an opportunity. At that time, I won't stop you either."
On the other side, as soon as Zorro was released, Chen Chuan received a notification from the police station, informing him that if this person appeared before him again during the temporary release period and caused any trouble or attacked him, he could directly eliminate him without any consequences.
Chen Chuan thanked the notifying officer, but he didn't care about this. If it weren't for not wanting to expose his Infinite Defense Certificate, he would have killed Zorro on the spot.
As for the Blood Stain Gang's revenge, not only is the gang currently too busy to bother, but even if they did come, without using guns, it would only serve as practice for him.
Ordinary people and fighters are not comparable. With the gradual strengthening of the Mutation Organization, the gap between him and ordinary people had been growing, and they couldn't be compared at all.
Compared to the Blood Stain Gang, he now needed to be more vigilant against the Mutual Aid Society.
By noon that day, Cheng Zitong came to see him and said after sitting down, "Xiao Chuan, I've looked into it. Director Lei's information is very accurate. Due to the water pollution incident, many officials from various government departments were dismissed. Liu Zhan has also been actively seeking a transfer.
His transfer won't happen that quickly, but the official appointment will likely come earlier. As soon as he gets his hands on that, he might consider the promise null and void."
Chen Chuan nodded. He understood that for a bureaucrat like Liu Zhan, the previous promise was made only out of respect for Director Lei. Moreover, the Foreign Affairs Bureau had been manipulated by the Secret Sect Review Bureau and had no choice but to follow Director Lei's lead. Once transferred out, he wouldn't care about this matter anymore.
In Director Lei's words, this person would most likely use this incident to benefit himself, and the news about the evaluation would likely reach the Mutual Aid Society immediately.
Cheng Zitong spoke in a low voice, "The teacher will follow up on that side and pay attention. There shouldn't be any changes before the end of the month, so you can rest assured and continue your activities. The teacher sent a telegram to Old He the other day, but there's been no reply yet. He might still be in cultivation, so I sent him another letter. We should get a response in the next couple of days."
Chen Chuan thought for a moment and said, "Teacher, I want to try to take on that haunting tale commission. It'll also be a good explanation for the company."
"That haunting tale..."
Cheng Zitong immediately knew which one he was referring to. This haunting tale was particularly challenging due to the lack of precedents, and they had discussed it several times because of its complexity.
He said, "Your approach is right. If the Mutual Aid Society comes after you this time and you can't handle it, you'll have to leave to avoid them for a while. The company does need an explanation. If we can complete this haunting tale, we'll have done right by them."
Although this haunting tale seemed far from simple, he had confidence in his student, so he didn't stop him. Instead, he gave a few words of caution and reminded him of some things to pay attention to. After the instructions, he stood up and said, "Alright, the teacher has to go. I'll wait for Old He's call."
Chen Chuan replied, "Okay." After sending Cheng Zitong off, he began preparing for the haunting tale.
He wasn't just looking for the haunting tale to give the company an explanation; he also needed to enhance his combat abilities as much as possible.
Especially, he needed to increase the time overlap with his Second Self as much as possible.
He didn't know what kind of enemy he would encounter, but the Mutual Aid Society would definitely gather all kinds of information about him, making meticulous and targeted arrangements. The increased time overlap could effectively improve his chances of winning.
During the previous Infinite Defense Certificate assessment, he gained over an hour of additional time overlap, bringing the total overlap time to more than four hours.
A few days ago, defeating Zorro only added a quarter of an hour, a relatively limited increase, as this person didn't give him much pressure. Unless he gave up his weapons and fought him hand-to-hand.
Even if he faced him again, he wouldn't do that. He would always choose the simplest method to defeat his enemies, rather than opting for more complex approaches.
However, only by encountering stronger targets and defeating them can the overlapping time be effectively improved. Currently, this haunting tale commission from the company seems like a suitable target.
But he needed to prepare and bring along some suitable tools.
The next day, he spent a day preparing and made a call to the company, indicating that he would take on this commission.
The following day, he brought along the necessary items, and Xiao Wei, the driver, took him southeast of Yangzhi to the foot of the mountain. When they arrived at a small village, Xiao Wei said, "Specialist Chen, I didn't expect there to be a village here. It's not marked on the map."
Chen Chuan knew that there were many villages not marked on the maps, especially those slightly further from the city, and smaller villages were often not indicated. These people were also mostly not recognized by Yangzhi.
From a distance, the houses here looked old, and like the villages in other places, they had a distinct style from the Great Expansion era. The original watchtowers had been transformed into warehouses.
After entering the village, he tried to inquire about the situation. The villagers heard that they were here to resolve the haunting on the mountain, and they all found it strange. They all came out to watch, for since the last team that failed to eliminate this haunting, many years had passed without anyone coming. Even they themselves had almost become accustomed to this haunting.
There was an elder-like villager who half-believing and half-doubting, asked, "Young man, can you really resolve it?"
Xiao Wei, the driver, said, "Don't you believe it? This Specialist Chen has resolved the Flying Head monster. It was a commission from the Political Affairs Bureau."
"The Flying Head monster..." At the mention of this, the villagers' gaze towards Chen Chuan changed, as the Flying Head Sect had a long history in this area, with a wide range and significant influence. This haunting tale was far more well-known than the one on this mountain.
Since they could resolve the Flying Head monster, they should also be able to resolve the thing on the opposite mountain. After all, this haunting had been a nuisance for many years. The earliest villagers had pooled money to hire someone, but after several failures, no one was willing to take on the task. If one could live normally, who would willingly coexist with a haunting?
So, the villagers enthusiastically found them a hunter to guide the way.
There was only one path into the mountain. Only the initial section of the road was drivable, and the rest had to be traveled on foot.
Chen Chuan asked Xiao Wei, the driver, to return to the village and wait, while he followed the hunter towards the mountain. After more than two hours, they arrived at a high slope, and the hunter pointed to the opposite mountain, "Specialist Chen, it's over there, in that temple. My uncle's generation and even my grandfather's generation had entered with people."
Chen Chuan said, "Thank you. You go back. I can handle the rest from here."
The hunter, seeing that he was alone, was truly worried and said, "Specialist Chen, do you really not need help? I can call the village, and ten or more good hands can be found among the neighbors."
Chen Chuan patted his sturdy shoulder and said, "Go back. I'll take care of the rest."
The hunter said, "Then be careful."
After the hunter left, Chen Chuan looked towards the mountain, recalling the intelligence about this haunting.
This haunting was called "Mountain Ghost," and it had a long history. In the Three Mountains Legend, there was a record about this matter, stating that in the mountains of Xia Shan, there was a temple that originally enshrined a divine statue. But at some point, it was replaced by a statue of a ghost monster.
Two children went to play in the temple, and they said that the statue's eyeballs moved. The villagers, upon hearing this, thought that the mountain god had manifested. They offered sacrifices, and the mountain ghost 'ate with its belly, chewing as if it were candy.'
The villagers were initially delighted, thinking that the mountain god had shown its divine presence. But who would have thought that this mountain ghost not only ate the offerings but also ate those who brought the offerings, and every month, there would be one or two evenings when it would come to the village to eat people.
Therefore, every evening, the villagers would tightly shut their doors and windows, hoping it wouldn't be their turn. But even so, no one left the village.
Because this place was remote, those hiding in the mountains didn't have to pay taxes or perform labor for the government.
At the end of the legend, the villagers dispersed, and finally, a group from the Secret Sect came and confined the mountain ghost. This was also a frequent protagonist in the Three Mountains Legend.
When the Republic was established, the originally desolate place was rebuilt with new villages. The first few decades were fine, but then someone discovered a mountain ghost temple in the mountains. The old events repeated.
But the current villagers were different from those in the past. After all, they mostly came during the Great Expansion era. When they discovered the situation wasn't right, they immediately gathered people, weapons, and surrounded the area. They even hired a commission, but in the end, all attempts failed, and most of those who went didn't return.
Until now, the nearby villagers, especially at night, would go to the distant fortress to avoid being disturbed by the haunting. But even so, over these two decades, the ten or more villages surrounding Xia Shan had successively disappeared, and most people died from the strange disease.
Upon learning about this, Chen Chuan had been pondering how to resolve this haunting. Previously, he felt his self-preservation abilities weren't sufficient, now, at the Second Limit, he had a certain level of assurance.
After watching for a while, he was about to take a step towards there when he suddenly became aware of something. He raised his hand to look at his wrist, where a strand of the Flying Head monster's hair was tied. At this moment, it slightly reacted.
He thought about it and realized this should be due to patting the hunter earlier. He silently put down his hand, looked towards that mountain again, tightened his grip on the Snow Lady Sword, and walked towards that direction.
...
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(End of Chapter)
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