"Centurion Su, we are all here. If you have anything to ask, just ask. We will tell you everything we know."
"Yes Centurion Su, please find the demon and save us Hu Family Village."
Su Fei raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet. His voice was soft but had a calming power.
"Fellows and fellow villagers, don't worry. Since we Demon Suppression Bureau are here, we will definitely kill the monsters here Hu Family Village and restore peace to everyone."
"I invited you here today just to ask if you have seen or heard any unusual sounds. Even if it is a little bit of a subtle clue, please tell the truth. This can help us find the monster as soon as possible."
Then Su Fei asked Hu Jing and Qiu Xu to take action. One asked the villagers, and the other carefully recorded each person's testimony.
He himself stood aside, his eyes slowly scanning every villager present, running God-tier Insight Technique, carefully observing everyone's expressions and behavior, paying attention to whether there was any abnormality.
If someone has evasive eyes, vague words, or has unknown stains or abnormal smell on his body, he must be the target of investigation.
The questioning lasted for about an hour. Hu Jing and Qiu Xu worked well together and sorted out the testimonies of all the villagers. They walked to Su Fei and reported,
"Centurion Su, we have almost finished asking. Most of the villagers are talking to the village chief, but a few villagers have provided some new clues."
Qiu Xu handed over the record.
"An old woman said that she passed by the west of the village a few days ago and heard a 'dong-dong' knocking sound from the direction of the old well at the west end of the village. She did not dare to stay there any longer."
"There is also a young villager who said that when he was working in the spiritual field at the north end of the village, he saw a dark shadow running very fast through the grass on the edge of the spiritual field. He could not see clearly what he looked like. He only felt that the figure was very tall and covered in darkness."
"In addition, some villagers said that when passing by the old locust tree at the north end of the village, they seemed to see a person and a vague figure saying something, but the distance was too far, so they could not see the person's appearance clearly, nor could they hear what was said clearly."
Su Fei took the note and read it carefully, a glimmer of light flashed in his eyes.
"The old well at the west end of the village, the spiritual field grass and old locust trees at the north end of the village... these places are the focus of our investigation."
"Especially the old well at the west end of the village. There are knocking sounds coming from there. Maybe the demon is hiding nearby."
"There is also the spiritual field at the north end of the village. Anomalies occurred there before Li the Second disappeared. In addition, some villagers saw black shadows. It is worth checking."
Su Fei turned to Hu Guangnian and said.
"Village Chief Hu, please arrange for two more villagers to take us to the old well at the west end of the village, the spiritual field and the old locust tree at the north end of the village. Let's go and check it out on the spot."
Hu Guangnian nodded quickly and immediately summoned two young disciples.
"Little Three, Little Four, you two, take Demon Suppression Bureau Centurion Su to the old well at the west end of the village and the spiritual field at the north end of the village. You must lead the way and don't be lazy."
"I know the village chief."
The two juniors responded in unison, with a bit of nervousness on their faces, but also a bit of courage.
Obviously they also hope to find the demon as soon as possible and restore peace to the village.
Then, Su Fei took Hu Jing, Qiu Xu, followed by the two young men, and walked first towards the old well at the west end of the village.
The west end of Hu Family Village's village is a little more remote, with mostly idle adobe houses. The roadside is covered with weeds, and there is a faint smell of moisture in the air.
After walking for about half a stick of incense, I saw the old well. The surroundings of the old well were covered with moss. The wellhead was covered with a worn-out wooden board. There were some dead branches and leaves scattered beside it. It looked like it had been abandoned for a long time.
"Centurion Su, it's this old well. People in the village have stopped drinking the water here, and no one comes here on weekdays."
The junior student Little Three who was leading the way whispered, subconsciously stepping back, obviously a little afraid of this place.
"A few nights ago, Granny Wang heard the knocking sound here."
Su Fei walked forward, squatted down, and carefully looked at the ground around the old well. The ground was covered with moss and was very slippery, but there were no obvious footprints or drag marks.
He stretched out his hand and gently opened the old wooden board, and a cold and damp breath hit his face. The well was pitch black, and he couldn't see the bottom, and he couldn't hear the sound of water flowing. There was only dead silence, and a strange quietness.
The well was like a black hole, seeming to swallow up everything around it.
Su Fei listened attentively, then leaned forward to explore the well, carefully distinguishing the smell in the well.
There is only the cold water vapor and the fishy smell of earth, but there is no breath of living people here.
Su Fei stood up slowly, frowning slightly.
"But the atmosphere in this well is too cold, it doesn't look like an ordinary old well. Maybe the demon once stayed here."
Hu Jing stepped forward, pulled out the long knife from his waist, poked the weeds beside the well, and said in a deep voice.
"Centurion Su, do you want to send someone down the well to investigate? Maybe the monster is hiding in the undercurrent at the bottom of the well."
Su Fei shook his head.
"No, you can't see clearly down here. If you go down hastily, you may be in danger. Let's go to the spiritual field at the north end of the village to have a look."
Then, a group of people, led by Su Fei, turned and walked towards the spiritual field at the north end of the village.
The spiritual fields at the north end of the village are very large, but most of these spiritual fields are no longer cultivated. There are only a few scattered spiritual fields that are still being cultivated by villagers.
From a distance, I saw the old locust tree on the side of the road. The old locust tree had lush foliage and shade, and its trunk was so thick that it took two people holding hands to hug it. There were some fallen leaves and stones scattered under the tree.
The young man Little Four pointed at the old locust tree and said.
"Centurion Su, that's the old locust tree that Li the Second passed by before he disappeared. It was under this tree that he said a few words to a person whose appearance he couldn't see clearly, and he never came back again."
Su Fei walked under the old locust tree and carefully looked at the surrounding ground. The soil under the tree was relatively soft, and some messy footprints could be seen.
Most of them were left by villagers while farming, but no unusual footprints were found.
There were neither hoofprints of wild beasts nor footprints that did not belong to the villagers.
He looked up at the trunk and branches of the old locust tree again. There were no scratches on the trunk and no abnormal marks on the branches. It looked no different from an ordinary old locust tree.
Su Fei ordered.
"Qiu Xu, go check the grass on the edge of the spiritual field to see if there are any unusual signs. Hu Jing, go ask the villagers who are farming and see if they have seen any black shadows or heard any unusual sounds."
"Yes."
The two men responded in unison and immediately split up.
Qiu Xu pulled out the long knife and walked carefully into the grass on the edge of the spiritual field, inspecting it carefully. From time to time, he used the long knife to push aside the weeds and check for traces on the ground.