She Had Come!

It was night.

Snow fell in thick flurries, and the cold wind howled like a blade.

This was usually the hour when every household was fast asleep. Yet the silent Chen Mansion suddenly sprang to life, as lanterns in the corridors, wall lamps, and palace lanterns were lit throughout the grounds.

Servants and maids from the storerooms and side rooms scrambled out of bed, got dressed, and hurried from all directions toward the Central Courtyard.

"Why are we being dragged out of bed in the middle of the night? What's going on in the Central Courtyard?"

"I'd just emptied the chamber pot and barely had a chance to sleep before I had to get up again... Living under someone else's roof really isn't comfortable."

"Keep your voices down. The Second Young Master just gave the order..."

"What? It was the Second Young Master's order? Oh, then that's fine."

Once they heard that Chen Mo had given the order, the servants and maids didn't dare complain. They lowered their heads and hurried along.

There was no other reason.

They had all seen Chen Mo cut down three Blood Rush Realm experts single-handedly on the Training Ground, including Liu Mazi.

Who would dare complain about the Second Young Master's decision?

Haitang, the head maid of the household, didn't dare object either. She opened the Central Courtyard gate and let everyone in.

The Chen household had more than eighty people. Fortunately, the Central Courtyard was spacious enough that it didn't feel crowded, though the din made for a chaotic scene.

The noise only died down when Chen Yin Fu and Lin Yu Lan emerged from their bedroom.

Chen Yin Fu swept his gaze over everyone and called Zhou Liang over. "Brother Zhou, do you know what happened?"

Zhou Liang shook his head. "Qiulan just woke me up too. She said the Second Young Master urgently wants everyone gathered in the Central Courtyard."

Chen Yin Fu then called Qiulan over. "You're always attending to Xiao Mo. You should know what's going on, right?"

Qiulan stepped closer, curtsied, then quietly explained what she knew.

Chen Yin Fu was greatly shocked when he heard her. His face turned pale.

The enormous Xie Manor had been wiped out just like that?

No wonder Xiao Mo had been so quick to give the order. He must have thought the Chen household was in danger too.

The thought made Chen Yin Fu's heart pound with ever greater dread.

Fortunately, as the head of the household, Chen Yin Fu quickly steadied himself. He called out to everyone outside the hall, "My son must have a good reason for arranging things this way. There's no need to panic. Once he gets here, we'll find out what's going on.

"Haitang, take a few nimble people to the kitchen next door and bring back some firewood. Build a few fires in the snow so everyone can keep warm. Don't let them freeze."

Chen Yin Fu then sent several elderly, frail servants to warm themselves in the main hall. The crowd soon settled down.

Six fires were lit in the courtyard. Everyone gathered around them for warmth, nervously waiting for the Second Young Master to arrive.

With the Second Young Master absent, they couldn't help feeling uneasy.

Creak—

As the courtyard gate swung open, everyone turned to look.

Chen Mo walked in with Ma Tie. Ma Tie was carrying a heavy-looking burlap sack, and no one knew what was inside.

Everyone felt much more at ease when they saw Chen Mo arrive.

Dressed in a blue silk robe with a broad saber at his waist, Chen Mo strode across the courtyard and into the hall. He cupped his hands to Chen Yin Fu and the others. Without explaining anything, he instructed Haitang, "Haitang, take a head count. See if anyone's missing."

As the head maid, Haitang knew all the servants, guards, and maids in the household. She quickly took out the roster and began counting.

Before long, Haitang returned to the hall with the roster and respectfully reported to Chen Mo, "Second Young Master, only Guard Ma San and the two stable hands haven't arrived. One is called Li Erniu, the other Li Tiezhu. They're from the same village."

Chen Mo knew that Ma San had gone out to deliver a message, so he glanced at Qiulan. "Did you go to the stables to notify them earlier?"

Qiulan nodded. "I did. Li Tiezhu answered me then and said he'd be right over."

Chen Mo nodded, then looked back at Haitang. "Do you know what's going on with those two?"

Haitang said, "They're the household's old stable hands, and they're excellent at caring for horses. But they caught a chill a few days ago. I even gave them leave and had a physician examine them and prescribe medicine. Perhaps they're too sick to get up?"

Chen Mo shook his head, a deep sense of danger rising within him.

He quickly called toward the courtyard, "Wei Heng, Liu Jiang, take torches and your blades and go check the stables for Erniu and Tiezhu. Remember, don't split up. If anything seems wrong, retreat immediately and shout for help. I'll step in when it matters."

Even Wei Heng and Liu Jiang could tell something was wrong in the household. But hearing that Chen Mo would step in put them somewhat at ease, and they each took a torch and went out to find the missing men.

After the two left, the others grew even more uneasy.

Before long, two sets of hurried footsteps sounded outside. Wei Heng and Liu Jiang rushed into the Central Courtyard.

Chen Mo shot to his feet. "What happened to Erniu and Tiezhu?"

Liu Jiang was so frightened he could barely catch his breath. "Th-they... They were hanging from the rafters. There was waterweed and mud on their bodies, but no signs of a struggle. Their deaths were horrifying... It looked like they'd encountered an Evil Spirit."

Chen Mo's heart sank.

Li Hongxi had really come after all!

And she had arrived sooner than he'd expected.

An Evil Spirit!

As soon as the people in the household heard this, panic seized them. They erupted into frantic discussion.

"An Evil Spirit's come to the household again?"

"Liu Mazi lost his head last time and still managed to attack people. Now there's another one... We can't stay here."

"Li Erniu's built like a bull. A little cold shouldn't have been anything serious, yet he's dead. I don't want to die here."

"I don't want to die!"

Most of the servants and maids were barely into their teens. At these words, they panicked and grew frantic, clamoring to leave the Chen household.

The courtyard was already crowded, and now everyone jumped to their feet. The scene descended into chaos. One burly servant even deliberately stirred up trouble, leading the way toward the courtyard gate and shouting, "The Chen family angered an Evil Spirit, and now it's come to take revenge! Anyone who stays here will die! Follow me!"

The crowd was already terrified. Now that someone had taken the lead, everyone else surged after him, and the situation was on the verge of spiraling out of control.

Chen Mo rushed into the courtyard and swung his saber at the burly ringleader's neck. With a wet squelch, the man's head flew several feet into the air, blood gushing from the severed neck.

"Anyone who tries to run will end up like him!"

Chen Mo's roar finally frightened the others into stopping. They retreated to their places, heads bowed, not daring to make a sound.

Chen Mo said coldly, "I gathered you all here because I intend to protect you. If anyone dares cause trouble, I'll tear them limb from limb until not even scraps remain!"

Having witnessed Chen Mo's brutal methods, everyone lowered their heads in fear and said nothing.

Only then did Chen Mo relax a little. "Wei Heng, Liu Jiang, and the other guards, keep order. If anyone causes trouble or runs around, cut them down!"

The Chen family was powerful. The authorities wouldn't interfere over the killing of a few servants and maids.

Liu Jiang and Wei Heng acknowledged the order. Chen Mo then returned to the hall and had Haitang lead the elderly, frail servants under the eaves to warm themselves by the fires.

That left only his family and Zhou Liang in the hall.

Chen Mo finally explained what had happened. "Father, Mother, this is what happened..."

He recounted in detail how he had gone to the Blood Ridge Black Market to buy Qi and Blood Pills, become Possessed by Evil and entered Ghost Land, and the enmity between the Li family and Third Master Xie.

There was no point hiding anything now.

He had kept silent before because he didn't want his parents to worry.

But now Li Hongxi had come right to their door... His parents needed to know why.

After hearing Chen Mo's account, everyone was horrified.

Even Chen Yin Fu, the head of the household, was pale.

Chen Mo set the Red Candle he had bought from Granny Li on the table. "I bought this Red Candle from Granny Li. It can suppress Evil Spirits. There's no need to panic too much."

When everyone heard it was one of Goddess Hong Deng's Red Candles, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

After all, the people of Honghe County had worshipped Goddess Hong Deng since childhood.

Chen Yin Fu still couldn't relax. He glanced around, then got up and headed toward the bedroom. "Xiao Mo, Yu Lan, come with me."

Chen Mo didn't know what his father had in mind, but he followed him inside.

Chen Yin Fu closed the bedroom door behind them. Then he pulled a small wooden box from beneath the bed and solemnly pressed it into Chen Mo's hands.

When Lin Yu Lan saw the box, she seemed to understand what was happening. She said nothing, but her eyes grew red.

Chen Mo sensed that something was wrong. "Father, what is this?"

Chen Yin Fu sat wearily on the bed. The vigor he'd shown earlier was gone, and he seemed to have aged considerably. "You may think I'm only a businessman, but I know quite a lot about Evil Spirits. I learned even more secrets after meeting Daoist Priest Li. The Evil Spirit that wiped out the Xie family has already come to our Chen household. Even with your martial training, I'm afraid you're no match for it... But you're the one in our family with the best chance of escaping.

"This box holds the banknotes I've saved over the years. Some of them are ten-thousand-tael notes issued exclusively by Tongbao Bank. There are also other valuables inside. If things go wrong, take the box and leave."

Chen Mo's heart clenched painfully.

He had never imagined Chen Yin Fu would make such a decision.

Before Chen Mo could reply, Lin Yu Lan stepped forward and caressed his face, tears in her eyes. "When you're out there, spend your money carefully. And I'm always nagging you to take a wife. I know you think I'm annoying, but when you're out there, find a good girl. Don't let the Chen family's bloodline die out... If you have a daughter, give her the character 'Yu' in her name. And if you have a chubby little boy, even better—give him the character 'Yin'..."

As Chen Mo listened to his mother's rambling, his fingers trembled around the brocade box. His grip was so tight that his knuckles had turned white.

He looked up and gazed deeply at his parents, their temples already streaked with gray.

For some reason, his nose stung and his eyes burned.

Chen Mo had lived two lifetimes and saw through many things. He wasn't someone easily moved, but his parents' words had nearly broken through his defenses.

After a long while, Chen Mo finally spoke. "Father, Mother..."

Chen Yin Fu raised a hand to stop him. "That's enough. A grown man shouldn't act like a bashful girl. It's settled! Everyone outside is watching us. We can't stay in here too long, or they'll start imagining things."

He had thought about entrusting Xiaoyuer and Chen Wu to Chen Mo too.

But Xiaoyuer and Chen Wu were too young and weak. They would surely become a burden to Chen Mo. So he decided not to bring it up and to shoulder the cruel and ugly choices himself.

Chen Yin Fu didn't give Chen Mo a chance to argue. He opened the bedroom door and walked out first.

Lin Yu Lan couldn't bear to part from Chen Mo. She clung to him and talked for a while before leading him out of the bedroom.

The atmosphere in the hall remained heavy. Everyone stared at Chen Mo, then at the Red Candle on the table, their hearts uneasy.

Chen Mo sat at the side, head bowed as he drank his tea. His parents' words echoed in his mind.

Compared with what his parents had done, Chen Mo felt somewhat ashamed...

Just moments ago, he'd been tempted to say something like, "I won't leave, even if it costs me my life." But the words had caught in his throat.

He'd only been in this world for three months. He wasn't sure he could follow through...

Fortunately, Chen Mo wasn't indecisive. He quickly pushed aside the distracting thoughts and told himself, Why think so much? I'll give it everything I've got, swing my blade a few times, and see what happens!

Once he had made up his mind, Chen Mo no longer hesitated. He circulated his Qi and blood, marshaled his True Qi, gripped his broad saber, and opened all Six Roots and Six Senses, sharply attuned to his surroundings.

Time passed bit by bit. The atmosphere grew deathly still.

Just then, someone suddenly knocked on the courtyard gate.

Knock, knock, knock!

The crisp sound rang out, piercingly loud in the silent Central Courtyard.

A timid servant suddenly cried out in terror, "The Evil Spirit is here! The Evil Spirit is here..."