Waiting by the Stump for a Rabbit

Wang Qingshan did not dare delay and recounted the entire matter from beginning to end.

"Grave robbing, and the corpse vanished!" After hearing Wang Qingshan's account, Wang Changsheng revealed a thoughtful expression.

An elder of the Wang clan had had his grave dug up, and his corpse had vanished without a trace. Not long afterward, a Jiangshi had appeared.

As far as Wang Changsheng knew, Jiangshi were divided into innate and acquired kinds. Innate Jiangshi had a very low chance of forming, while acquired Jiangshi were refined by human hands.

Generally speaking, corpses of strong young adults were chosen for acquired Jiangshi refinement. But the dead clan elder had been very old. Who would use him for Corpse Refinement?

"What day was the corpse stolen? Let me see Qingyan's birth characters."

"The fifteenth of August. These are my cousin's birth characters." Wang Qingshan took out a prepared sheet of paper from his sleeve and handed it over.

Wang Changsheng was somewhat surprised. "You knew I would want to see his birth characters?"

Wang Qingshan nodded and said solemnly, "Our ancestors produced Cultivators, after all. I know a little about such matters."

Wang Changsheng swept his gaze over the contents of the paper and began calculating with his right hand.

"He was born in a yin year, yin month, and yin day. It seems the corpse encountered moonlight and became a Jiangshi." Wang Changsheng suddenly understood.

Those born in a yin year, yin month, and yin day naturally possessed heavier yin energy. If they happened to be exposed to moonlight on the night of a full moon, they could easily become Jiangshi.

"Immediately place these corpses on Lychee Wood and burn them. Also, buy more glutinous rice. Glutinous rice can ward off Jiangshi, so have every household prepare some. And take me to Qingyan's home."

"Qiuguang, Qiuming, you two organize the clan members and have the corpses burned on Lychee Wood. Tenth Brother, Thirteenth Brother, send people everywhere to buy glutinous rice. The more, the better," Wang Qingshan instructed in an orderly manner.

"Yes, Eighth Brother—Eighth Uncle." The clan elders all answered in agreement.

Wang Changsheng followed Wang Qingshan to a spacious courtyard. Several Peach Trees grew within it, while the house and all the tables, chairs, and benches were made from peachwood. In Addition, the house faced east and received ample sunlight.

Wang Changsheng secretly nodded. Wang Qingyan had been born in a yin year, yin month, and yin day, so his yin energy was relatively heavy. People with such constitutions generally did not live long. Wang Qingyan had lived past sixty for two reasons: first, his name contained the character Yan, three flames that weakened his yin energy; second, his residence carried strong yang energy. Peach Trees belonged to yang, and century-old peachwood could be made into Peachwood Swords to drive away ghosts and demons.

"By the way, Qingyan's constitution was unusual, and he could easily undergo a Corpse Mutation. Why wasn't his corpse burned after he died? Why was he buried instead?" Wang Changsheng voiced his doubt.

Since Wang Qingyan's elders knew to plant Peach Trees and use furniture made from peachwood, they should have known that those born in a yin year, yin month, and yin day could easily undergo a Corpse Mutation after death. By all rights, the corpse should have been burned.

Wang Qingshan gave a bitter smile and explained, "Back then, Second Uncle and the others left instructions that my cousin had to be cremated after death and could not be buried. But my cousin's three sons refused to agree. They said that once someone died, they should rest in the earth, and their body could not be burned. The three brothers insisted again and again. I could not bend them to my will, so I had no choice but to let them bury my cousin in the Lineage graveyard. I never expected my cousin's corpse to undergo a Corpse Mutation. Had I known this would happen, I would have burned his corpse no matter what."

To be honest, Wang Qingshan had not taken the elders' final instructions to heart before. The belief that the dead should rest in the earth was deeply rooted in the hearts of the older generation. Wang Qingshan himself wanted to be buried in the Lineage graveyard after death. If he had been firmer back then, perhaps no Jiangshi would have appeared.

The moment he thought of this, Wang Qingshan was filled with regret.

"Three sons. The eldest son's entire family has already been harmed. Where are the other two sons?"

"My cousin's second son, Qiumao, went to the county yesterday on urgent business and only returned this morning. The third son, Qiusheng, does business elsewhere, and we can't contact him," Wang Qingshan answered truthfully.

Wang Changsheng considered it, then instructed, "Send people to clean up the courtyard and have Qiumao's family move in. If Qingyan truly became a Jiangshi, he will certainly return to harm Qiumao. I'll wait by the stump for a rabbit. Also, withdraw all clan members remaining in the mountains."

"Having Qiumao's family move in won't be a problem, but we can't notify the clan members in the mountains so quickly. We don't know their exact locations."

"Assign me several guides. It would be best if they have some prestige and can make the other clan members trust me."

Wang Qingshan readily agreed and sent three clan members to accompany Wang Changsheng. Wang Tiande was among them.

Wang Changsheng used the Cloud Soaring Technique, carrying the three clan members as he flew toward the depths of the mountains.

It was noon, and the blazing sun hung high in the sky.

A total of fifteen clan members had remained in the deep mountains. Wang Changsheng found twelve of them one after another. They obediently followed the clan elder's orders and left the mountains.

The sun was scorching, and the accompanying clan elder was advanced in years. After being exposed to the blazing sun for a while, he grew dizzy and lightheaded, nearly falling from the White Cloud. Fortunately, Wang Tiande caught him.

Wang Changsheng spotted a temple below. With one hand, he formed a hand seal, and the White Cloud slowly descended into the temple.

It was an abandoned temple, overgrown with weeds.

"Eh? Someone is lying on the ground." Wang Tiande saw two men lying there and hurried over.

"They're dead. Each has two bloody holes in his neck. They were probably bitten to death by a Jiangshi." Wang Tiande spoke with some regret.

"It's Youping and Youquan. Alas, I never expected them to be killed by a Jiangshi." The clan elder recognized the two corpses and Sighed, his voice filled with pain.

Wang Changsheng frowned and instructed, "Burn the corpses immediately. Otherwise, they will undergo a Corpse Mutation, and there will be two more Jiangshi."

Wang Tiande answered and, together with the other two clan members, first settled the clan elder in a shady spot. Then they gathered some dry firewood, piled it atop the corpses, and set it alight.

The fire quickly grew fierce and burned away the corpses.

"Qingyuan, there's still one person we haven't found. Do you remember his name? Where do you think he might be?" Wang Changsheng asked.

"I remember. He's Fifteenth Brother's great-grandson, Wang Youen. That brat has never listened to discipline since he was young. He's lazy and slippery, so he's probably hiding somewhere cool to escape the heat," Wang Qingyuan answered honestly.

"Escaping the heat?" Wang Changsheng frowned.

Jiangshi generally stayed in cool places. Could Wang Youen have run into a Jiangshi's lair to escape the heat?

"Besides Wang Youen, are there any other clan members still in the deep mountains?"

Wang Qingyuan thought for a moment, then said, "Yes. There are several Quarries here. The two largest Quarries belong to our Wang Family, and around a hundred people are quarrying stone there."

"Quarries? Where are they?"

"Outside town. One is over twenty li west, and the other is over thirty li east. They are managed by members of the Qiu Generation—the second son of Seventh Brother and the third son of Sixth Brother, respectively."

Wang Changsheng nodded. After resting for half an hour, he used the Cloud Soaring Technique to visit the Wang Family's two Quarries and had Wang Qingyuan dismiss the clan members quarrying stone.

Afterward, he sent Wang Qingyuan and the others back to Green Stone Town, then took Wang Tiande and Wang Youen's father into the deep mountains to search for Wang Youen.

There were many Caves in the mountains. He searched dozens of Caves but found no sign of Wang Youen.

By the time Wang Changsheng returned to Green Stone Town, it was already dusk.

Green Stone Town was brightly lit, with dozens of strong young men holding torches.

After dinner, Wang Changsheng moved into Wang Qiumao's home.

Every household had prepared Black Dog Blood and scattered glutinous rice outside its door. Each home had a strong young man standing guard, all of them holding copper gongs. Should they encounter a Jiangshi, they would strike the gongs to sound the alarm.

Time passed bit by bit, and the sky grew ever darker. The doors of every household were shut tight. Some people could no longer resist their drowsiness and fell asleep.

Wang Qiumao's family of seven gathered inside the house. The two small children had already fallen asleep, but the adults were not sleepy in the slightest.

Wang Qiumao felt unusually heavy-hearted. He knew that his father had turned into a Jiangshi and returned to kill his elder brother.

He was now being used as bait to lure out his father, who had become a Jiangshi.

For the public good, he was a member of the Wang Family and ought to obey the elders' orders. For private feelings, the Jiangshi was his father. Being asked, as a son, to lure out his own father made him feel somewhat unfilial. Of course, he was also afraid.

Wang Changsheng sat cross-legged on a straw mat, his eyes slightly closed.

Wang Qiumao wanted to speak but hesitated. After wavering for a long while, he cautiously asked, "Ninth Uncle-Grandfather, will my father really come tonight?"

"I don't know. If it comes, I'll destroy it. It isn't your father anymore, so don't carry such a burden in your heart. With me here, I'll protect you all."

Having received Wang Changsheng's promise, Wang Qiumao felt much more at ease.

Just then, the sound of someone striking a copper gong came from outside.

At first, the sound was faint, but before long, it grew louder and louder.

"Stay inside the house and do not run around. I'll go out and take a look. If the Jiangshi shows itself, splash it with Black Dog Blood. Glutinous rice has been scattered all around the house, so the Jiangshi should not dare approach this place."

After giving his instructions, Wang Changsheng rushed outside.

The moment he rushed out of the courtyard, Wang Qiusheng, Wang Qingshan, and the others surrounded him. Every face was filled with extreme nervousness.

"Don't panic. Don't panic. Where is the Jiangshi? Where is it?" Wang Changsheng asked calmly.

"This..." Wang Qingshan and the others looked at one another. They had heard the sound of a copper gong being struck and immediately rushed over, but they did not know where the Jiangshi was.

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