Spirit Infant Ghost Fetus (Seeking Monthly Votes)

Chen Mo bid farewell to Chen Wu and the others, then followed Haitang hurriedly to the central courtyard, where he met his parents.

After a brief greeting, Chen Mo went straight to the point. "Father, has Daoist Priest Li replied?"

Chen Yin Fu was in high spirits. "Daoist Priest Li said that the skills of Black Mountain Stronghold aren't something just anyone can learn. But the gift I sent was far too generous, and in the end, he couldn't refuse out of face. He agreed to come to the manor tomorrow to test you. If you pass, he'll take on this matter."

Chen Mo let out a huge sigh of relief, but still felt some unease. "Did Daoist Priest Li say what the test would be?"

Although Chen Mo had entered the internal martial arts realm, the skills of Black Mountain Stronghold mostly focused on restraining and countering evil spirits. The test was likely very different from assessing martial talent or bone structure. That left Chen Mo feeling uncertain.

Chen Yin Fu shook his head. "Daoist Priest Li didn't specify. He only said we'd know tomorrow evening."

"Thank you, Father, for making these arrangements on my behalf." Chen Mo cupped his hands in gratitude, looking forward to the next day.

After dinner in the central courtyard, it was already the Hour of the Boar by the time he returned to the East Courtyard.

Chen Mo first practiced Black Tiger True Qi, but found no progress, so he lounged back in a rocking chair, enjoying pastries fed to him by Qiulan while flipping through the booklet Xie Lianghong had given him.

The booklet was thick, detailing every symptom of the Mad Demon Disease corpses Xie Lianghong had dissected, along with annotations, analysis, and conjectures.

After reading the first few pages, Chen Mo felt Xie Lianghong was a skilled coroner. By around the tenth page, he grew intrigued and slowly sat up from the rocking chair.

Through extensive dissections, Xie Lianghong divided Mad Demon Disease patients into three types:

The first type, and the vast majority, died within a few days of going mad.

The second type developed a kind of Guard Qi inside their bodies that could resist the toxins of Mad Demon Disease. These patients could live a long time, but their bodies underwent various mutations—growing fur, rotting, or turning into other monsters.

The third type produced something even more miraculous inside them, allowing coexistence with Mad Demon Disease. These were called symbionts. Symbionts looked no different from normal humans on the outside, but they could use Mad Demon Disease to gain all kinds of uncanny powers, even mastering dark arts with ease.

Seeing this, Chen Mo was deeply shocked.

Symbionts... looked no different from normal people, could gain all sorts of miraculous powers, and easily master dark arts?

Chen Mo's heart skipped a beat, and a figure surfaced in his mind:

Granny Li!

No wonder she was versed in all kinds of dark arts. She had taken advantage of Mad Demon Disease.

And in Xie Lianghong's records, he explicitly stated: the only symbiont he had ever seen was Granny Li.

Xie Lianghong also made a conjecture: the most terrifying thing about symbionts wasn't their own power, but the offspring they bore... Innate Variants!

The information above had already broadened Chen Mo's horizons, but... the real key came next:

[I, Xie Lianghong, have dissected no fewer than two or three hundred Mad Demon Disease corpses. I have a strong premonition: the reason Mad Demon Disease patients go mad and eat people isn't because they want to, but because of the will of that Baby Face. Aside from symbionts, there should be an even more terrifying existence—where a patient's body and mind can bear the will and needs of Baby Face, and Baby Face slowly transforms and grows inside the patient, becoming a true infant. This infant I'll tentatively call the Spirit Infant Ghost Fetus.]

[The way Mad Demon Disease spreads is extremely bizarre. I suspect that somewhere in this world, there is an infant searching for a suitable host. That's why it uses Mad Demon Disease to screen candidates. Once it finds the right host, Mad Demon Disease might disappear, and... the true Spirit Infant Ghost Fetus will be born within the host—this is Rebirth Through Another's Womb!]

Hiss!

When Chen Mo read this, he couldn't help but suck in a cold breath.

On the surface, Xie Lianghong's deductions seemed wild and fantastical. But as a Mad Demon Disease patient himself, Chen Mo had a strong feeling... this was very likely true.

Because Chen Mo knew that Mad Demon Disease wasn't a disease—it was a ghost curse. And it was Resentful Ghost Qi.

If an infant was using Mad Demon Disease to screen hosts, that made perfect sense.

Pretty terrifying!

Chen Mo couldn't help but think to himself: You can pick anyone you want, but don't pick me... My Mad Demon Disease is almost cured. I can't handle this kind of trouble.

After some mental preparation, Chen Mo continued reading.

What followed was about the transmission route of Mad Demon Disease.

[I, Xie Lianghong, have studied Mad Demon Disease for years and know that its transmission route is very unusual. I have a bold conjecture—Mad Demon Disease spreads through perception. Those patients might have heard a certain story, a certain figure, or seen a certain thing. Through perception, an image forms in their minds that triggers the infection.]

When Chen Mo read this, he was utterly stunned.

As a modern person, he had seen plenty of stories and films about demons and monsters. The idea of transmission through perception didn't seem far-fetched to him.

But Xie Lianghong was a native of this ancient world, with conservative thinking and no experience of the information explosion era. Yet he could deduce such an imaginative transmission route as perception.

Absolutely a genius!

A wave of respect welled up in Chen Mo's heart.

But there was also a sense of regret.

Xie Lianghong's deductions were too ahead of their time, and without solid evidence, they were rejected by the Xie Family and the authorities. He had always been looked down upon by his family and the yamen.

But Chen Mo had a strong intuition—Xie Lianghong was right.

This was a great talent buried by the times.

If he and Xie Lianghong joined forces, they might be able to fully uncover the root cause of Mad Demon Disease, and perhaps even find a way to prevent or cure it in the future.

He pushed aside his stray thoughts and continued to the final section.

This part studied the origin of Mad Demon Disease.

[I have worked as a coroner in the yamen for decades, and I've always been most devoted to cases of Mad Demon Disease. My greatest wish is to find its cause and then develop a cure, to benefit the people of this land. That way, I won't betray my master's trust, nor waste my decades as a coroner. My family looks down on me, the yamen despises me—coroners have always been seen as lowly and unlucky. I want to prove with my whole life that coroners can also be of great use.]

Seeing this, Chen Mo felt a profound respect rise in his heart, and the image of Third Master Xie's aged, lonely figure naturally came to mind.

After that, there was one last passage.

[The places where Mad Demon Disease appears are random and follow no pattern. It's inside the city, outside the city, and even in neighboring Qingwu County. I have no solid evidence pointing to the source, but I have a strong feeling—the source is in Qinghe Town, Li Village! Although according to the records, the earliest case of Mad Demon Disease in Honghe County wasn't in Li Village. But after my investigation, I learned that person had been to Li Village. I wanted to investigate Qinghe Town, but it's at the foot of Dayin Mountain, and now it's been sealed off by the people from Black Mountain Stronghold. I can't get in.]

After reading everything, Chen Mo let out a long breath.

"The source is in Qinghe Town, Li Village... and it's been sealed off by Black Mountain Stronghold!?"

"Xie Lianghong is truly remarkable. The Xie Manor looked down on him, the yamen looked down on him... that's everyone failing to recognize talent. My Chen Family can receive him with the highest courtesy."

With that thought, Chen Mo called for Qiulan. "Qiulan, have the large cart and horses meant for the Xie Family been sent?"

Qiulan said, "I've already sent Ma San to deliver them. He should be back soon."

Chen Mo nodded and glanced at the nearby Bronze Clepsydra. It was already deep into the night, just past the start of the Zi hour, nearly midnight.

Chen Mo couldn't wait any longer. "Go to the stable and prepare the carriage. You'll accompany me to the Xie Manor late tonight."

Qiulan nodded in acknowledgment.

Just then, Ma San rushed in frantically, gasping for breath and barely able to speak. "Young master, the Xie Manor... something, something huge has happened."