Lin Guanhuo

(Author's new book, read with confidence. The first 40,000 characters are a bit slow but not boring, mainly telling the story. After 60,000 characters, it starts to pick up speed, and after 100,000 characters, it's an unstoppable, overwhelming, and invincible journey. The overall tone of the book is that the protagonist is unstoppable and kills instantly without any setbacks.)

Great Yan Dynasty, Kaiyang Prefecture, Blackwater County yamen.

It was not yet dawn.

Clang, clang, clang!!

Outside the window of a small room in the Miscellaneous Room courtyard, a series of knocks sounded.

"Brother Lin, Brother Lin! Wake up, it's time to work!"

Hearing the voice, Lin Guanhuo slowly opened his eyes.

"Coming."

He responded, quickly put on his clothes, and pushed the door open.

Outside stood a thin young man, about eighteen or nineteen years old.

This man was Zhou Kai. Like Lin Guanhuo, he was a low-ranking official at the Blackwater County yamen. They lived close by and worked together.

Outsiders called them low-ranking officials, which, to put it plainly, meant they were temporary workers.

They had no fixed salary and were not on the county yamen's roster.

Usually, they stayed in the Miscellaneous Room courtyard, waiting for orders, doing dirty and tiring jobs, their only motivation being the two meals provided by the county yamen.

Even so, countless people squeezed their heads off trying to get this job.

"It's damn cold. What kind of ghastly weather is this?" Zhou Kai rubbed his hands, muttering a curse.

Lin Guanhuo didn't say anything and followed Zhou Kai to the front hall's kitchen.

This was where the low-ranking officials from the Miscellaneous Room courtyard usually ate. In this chaotic world overrun by demons and monsters, being able to eat one's fill meant surviving another day.

The cook in the kitchen brought out the breakfast.

There were two large basins in total: one with steamed buns and one with plain congee.

The side dish was a plate of salted mustard greens. This was the breakfast for the low-ranking officials of the Blackwater County yamen.

Lin Guanhuo picked up a steamed bun and took a few bites. It was very hard and dry, and he could only force it down with the congee.

It had been three months since he arrived in this world.

He had long learned a truth: here, being able to eat your fill was the greatest fortune.

This was not any of the historical dynasties he was familiar with, but a bizarre world where demons and monsters roamed.

Here, demons and monsters ate people, and every household turned off their lights early.

The wedding procession on the empty street at night was not human. If they call your name, never answer.

The sight of frozen corpses by the roadside was commonplace. Even more terrifying were the things lurking in the shadows.

There were new graves every night in the mass grave outside the city, and strange deaths often occurred in desolate villages and wildlands.

The lives of ordinary people were as cheap as grass and mustard seeds; they could be gone in an instant.

The original owner of this body, orphaned in childhood, had fled to Blackwater County to escape a demon disaster in his hometown.

With his youthful strength, he had managed to get a job in this Miscellaneous Room courtyard.

Although he was doing the most lowly work as a low-ranking official, although he had to deal with corpses and filth every day.

At least... he didn't have to worry about starving to death.

"Sigh..."

Zhou Kai opposite him sighed, "Eating this pig slop every day! Those constables and bailiffs in the adjacent office, I heard they eat meat buns and drink lamb soup in the morning! And look at us..."

Lin Guanhuo's reaction was not as strong. He just said calmly, "It's good enough that we have something to eat. The refugees outside would risk their lives for a bite of this steamed bun."

"I'm just complaining," Zhou Kai said, his face full of longing, "Brother Lin, wouldn't it be great if we could practice martial arts? Even if we were just a ranked martial artist, we could work as scouts for a security company, or get a formal position in the yamen, with wine and meat at every meal..."

Martial artist.

Hearing these two words, a ripple flashed in Lin Guanhuo's eyes.

There was supernatural power in this world.

Demons and monsters could devour vital energy, while martial artists could crack stone slabs.

In this chaotic world, only the martial path was the foundation for survival and establishing oneself.

Unfortunately, academics were cheap and martial arts were expensive. For people like them, low-ranking officials who couldn't even get enough to eat, practicing martial arts was simply a pipe dream.

"Alright, stop dreaming," Lin Guanhuo interrupted his fantasy. "What's the job today?"

As soon as the topic turned to business, Zhou Kai's face instantly drooped. He lowered his voice, "Damn it, someone reported to the authorities yesterday evening. They said Widow Sun, who sells tofu in the south of the city, hasn't shown up for several days."

Lin Guanhuo asked, "She's missing?"

"If it were just a disappearance, it would be simple."

Zhou Kai continued, "The neighbor who reported it said that in Widow Sun's courtyard... there's been a foul smell wafting out for the past few days... And I heard that every midnight, there are sounds of a baby crying from her courtyard, sometimes laughing, sometimes crying. It's very eerie. It scared several of the surrounding residents into moving away..."

Lin Guanhuo asked again, "Have the people from the Demon Suppressing Division gone to check?"

"The government office sent us two to take a look. If it's just Widow Sun who died, they'll send the body to the charity morgue for cremation. If there's anything unusual, report it to the Demon Suppressing Division." Zhou Kai said with a hint of helplessness and grievance, "We're just destined to be bossed around."

Having said that, Lin Guanhuo didn't say much more.

He slowly got up. "Let's go."

The two left the government office before dawn.

On both sides of the side streets in Blackwater County, every household had their doors and windows tightly shut, with various faded images of door gods and yellow talismans pasted at their entrances.

Some houses even hung white lanterns outside, indicating a recent death in the family that had not yet been buried.

The wind blew, scattering paper money and dead leaves everywhere, creating an eerie atmosphere.

Zhou Kai, sitting in the carriage, couldn't help but start to overthink. "Brother Lin, do you think... do you think that Widow Sun might have..."

Lin Guanhuo held the reins and said calmly, "We'll just go take a look. If something's wrong, we'll run. We'll report it to the Demon Suppressing Division when it's light."

Afterward, the two drove the carriage around several street corners, heading into the slum district south of the city, then winding their way through.

Finally, they arrived at Widow Sun's residence.

"Whoa~~~~"

Lin Guanhuo pulled the reins, stopping the carriage. The two got off.

"We're here."

Lin Guanhuo jumped off the carriage and looked ahead.

Not far away, a solitary small courtyard stood in the darkness.

The surrounding houses had long been vacated, making the area appear particularly desolate.

"That's right, this is it."

Zhou Kai, standing beside him, took out a case file from his pocket and said as he read, "Sun Sanniang, forty-two years old, originally from Bing Province... Her husband died many years ago, and she made a living by grinding tofu."

As he read this, Zhou Kai glanced at Lin Guanhuo. "I heard those old constables gossiping that this woman is still quite charming and very alluring. Her husband's death back then was unclear. Some say she colluded with her lover to kill him, and the body was buried under that old locust tree in the backyard."

"Some people claim to have seen blood seeping from that old locust tree whenever it rained. Human blood..."

"What happened then?" Lin Guanhuo felt it was indeed a bit strange and asked.

"Later, the government office dug there, but they didn't find anything except a few [dog bones]. The matter was dropped."

Lin Guanhuo chuckled. He knew better than to take the words of constables and bailiffs too seriously.

He took a step forward and knocked on the door of Widow Sun's house. "Anyone home?"

Knock, knock, knock.

The muffled knocking sounded somewhat hollow.

But...

There was no response.

Only the rustling sound of dead leaves blown by the wind.

The two exchanged a look, then Zhou Kai, gathering his courage, shouted, "Sun Sanniang! This is the government office! Someone reported that you haven't been seen for several days. Come out and respond!"

Still, there was deathly silence.

Just as Lin Guanhuo was about to force the door open.

A rustling sound suddenly came from inside the door, like something being dragged and crawling on the ground.

Immediately after, a voice came through the door panel, "Are... you here to buy... tofu...?"