Hauntings and Sudden Changes

Upon arriving at the restaurant, the guards of the Medicine Escort Team, who hadn't eaten a proper meal all day, immediately began to feast under the arrangements of Liu Fusheng.

During the banquet, Liu Fusheng kept the atmosphere lively, leading the pharmacy's senior staff in showering the guests with flattery, which kept everyone laughing heartily.

They were especially astonished to learn that Lin Yi was a disciple of the Martial Academy and a friend of the master's young master.

Not only did they spout endless praise, calling him a dragon among men with a boundless future, but they also secretly slipped Lin Yi a banknote worth fifty taels of silver. They truly handled the social niceties perfectly, earning a bit of goodwill from Lin Yi.

Thus, amidst Liu Fusheng's flattery, the group exchanged cups and toasted one another. By the time the banquet ended and the crowd dispersed, it was already late into the night.

"Come! Drink! Brothers! Drink!"

"No! I'm not drunk! Drink! Keep pouring for me!"

"I want to drink! I want to drink!"

At the sprawling Beicang County branch of the Wang's Pharmacy, the drunken members of the Medicine Escort Team were led back to the pharmacy to rest by the apprentices and guards.

Lin Yi followed behind them, his gaze clear and his steps steady and powerful.

He hadn't touched a drop of alcohol tonight; or rather, in both his past and present lives, he had never been much of a drinker.

He always felt that alcohol dulled his mind and prevented him from staying sharp, something he thoroughly disliked.

Furthermore, although everything had gone extremely smoothly since he began the escort mission, Lin Yi felt even more vigilant.

Because, as history from his past life had taught him time and again, the smoother things go when you are doing something, the less you can afford to relax at the final moment. You must remain cautious and careful until you have finally achieved a result that truly satisfies you!

"Young Master Lin Yi, we have arrived at your quarters!"

Just as Lin Yi was lost in thought, a young maidservant, about thirteen or fourteen years old with a delicate and pretty appearance, who was holding a lantern for him, respectfully reminded him outside a tastefully decorated small courtyard.

"Mm, it's very late. I'm going to sleep now. You don't need to serve me here; go and get some rest!"

With that, Lin Yi strode directly into the courtyard.

However, to his complete surprise, upon hearing his words, the young maidservant was so terrified that she knelt on the ground and began kowtowing repeatedly.

"Young Master Lin Yi, I beg you! Please, don't send me away! The manager ordered me to serve you well tonight. If you send me away now, the manager will surely beat me to death."

"Beat you to death? Over such a trivial matter, Liu Fusheng would beat you to death?"

Hearing this, Lin Yi frowned slightly.

"Even if his true personality isn't as humble as he acts in front of me, you are, after all, someone the pharmacy has spent years training."

"Besides, Liu Fusheng mentioned that your martial arts training is quite good, and you have the potential to reach the Eighth Grade in the future. In this Beicang County, you can be considered a rare talent."

"Logically speaking, even if Liu Fusheng doesn't treat you like a treasure, he wouldn't execute you over such a small matter, would he? Are you trying to deceive me?"

A flicker of suspicion crossed Lin Yi's eyes. To be honest, he really suspected that this Young Maidservant was making excuses not to leave, when in reality, she was just lusting after his body.

It wasn't that Lin Yi was narcissistic; it was just that for a top-ranked genius disciple of the Guangling Martial Academy like him, let alone in a county town like Beicang County, even in the Guangling Prefecture City, there would be no shortage of noble young ladies willing to offer themselves to him if he so desired.

If this Young Maidservant had truly taken a fancy to his talent and potential, then finding excuses to stay with him would be perfectly normal.

"I... I didn't, Young Master Lin Yi!"

Seeing the great figure from the Prefecture City—whom even the shopkeeper had to coddle—frowning, the Young Maidservant turned pale with fright and hurriedly explained:

"Although the shopkeeper used to be arrogant, his temper was actually fine. He was quite tolerant toward me and the other promising pharmacy disciples. It was actually the pharmacy doctors and the martial arts instructors who were stricter, often resorting to physical punishment at the slightest provocation."

"But ever since a month ago, the shopkeeper's temperament changed drastically. He became extremely irritable and short-tempered, often having other pharmacy apprentices put to death over trivial matters."

"For instance, just a few days ago, A Huan, who was the best performer among our batch of pharmacy apprentices, was beaten to death in public by the shopkeeper's orders just because she accidentally said the wrong thing."

"Then there were A Xiu, Zhang Gou'er, and Wang San. They had joined before me and usually performed very well, but they were also beaten to death by the shopkeeper recently."

"So, if I were to disobey the shopkeeper's orders today, he would definitely beat me to death too."

"Oh? Is that so?"

Hearing this, Lin Yi fell into deep thought.

If what this Young Maidservant said was true, then he really had to take this matter seriously.

After all, as the saying goes, when things are abnormal, there must be a demon at work. Liu Fusheng's sudden change in temperament suggested that he must have encountered something recently that caused him to become this way.

Otherwise, whether it was the A Huan, A Xiu, or those like Zhang Gou'er and Wang San mentioned by the Young Maidservant, these people were the very foundation of Liu Fusheng's control over the pharmacy and his influence in the county. It would be impossible for him to execute them so casually.

Yet, the current Liu Fusheng seemed not to care at all, which was truly abnormal.

With this thought in mind, Lin Yi continued to ask:

"Xiao Zhi, let me ask you, besides these things, have there been any other abnormalities with your shopkeeper or the pharmacy recently?"

"Other abnormalities?"

Hearing this, the Young Maidservant Xiao Zhi lowered her head and pondered for a moment. A short while later, she seemed to recall something, but just as she was about to speak, she hesitated.

"Don't be afraid!"

Seeing this, Lin Yi sensed that something was up and spoke to reassure her:

"Xiao Zhi, if there is anything on your mind, just say it. With me here, even Liu Fusheng wouldn't dare touch you at the Beicang branch of Wang's Pharmacy. You can rest easy."

"This..."

Hearing this, Xiao Zhi frowned, a look of struggle appearing on her face. But after thinking for a moment, as if she had finally made up her mind, she nodded and said:

"Alright! Young Master, the manager originally forbade us from speaking of this, but since you are of noble status and wish to hear it, Xiao Zhi dare not hide it from you."

"About two months ago, a major incident did indeed occur at our White Bird Medicine Manor in the west of the city."

"Overnight, everyone at the manor, from the head of the guards down to the herb-tending apprentices, suddenly died. And their states of death were extremely gruesome."

"Later, the manager went there himself to investigate. Not long after, he returned in a panic and told us that the manor was haunted. He claimed that a vengeful spirit had killed everyone inside. The very next day, he personally led people to seal off the manor and forbade anyone from going near it, threatening severe punishment for anyone who disobeyed."

"In the days that followed, a few bold apprentices took advantage of the night to sneak over and take a look. They either ended up dead at the manor gates or were struck with a madness that left them completely insane. Even the best doctors in the pharmacy couldn't cure them. Soon, no one dared to go near that manor again."

"A manor? Haunted?"

Hearing this, Lin Yi's brow furrowed even deeper.

He was a transmigrator. Having already experienced something as mystical as transmigration, he certainly wouldn't spout foolish remarks about how "there are no ghosts in this world" or claim to be a staunch materialist.

However, Lin Yi had lived in this world for over a decade and had never actually seen a ghost. Even when he occasionally heard rumors of fierce spirits harming people, investigations always revealed that it was either human-made or that the witnesses hadn't seen clearly and were merely speculating wildly.

In short, in this world, Lin Yi had never seen a ghost, and no one else had truly seen one either.

Therefore, Lin Yi remained highly skeptical regarding the haunting of the medicine manor.

Furthermore, the manor had been "haunted" just before Liu Fusheng's personality underwent such a drastic change. These two events seemed unrelated, but Lin Yi had a faint feeling that the truth behind them was not so simple.

Forget it! Regardless of what is abnormal about Liu Fusheng, the most important thing for me right now is to go and tell Wang Chuan about this!

Although this might seem like making a mountain out of a molehill, it is better to be safe than sorry. Having Wang Chuan come to question Liu Fusheng is never a bad idea.

As for whether I'm overthinking things or if there is truly some hidden secret, Wang Chuan is a Sixth-Rank Martial Artist; he can shoulder the burden. That is far better than me sitting here alone, letting my imagination run wild.

Thinking of this, Lin Yi immediately said to the young maidservant beside him:

"Xiao Zhi, I have something to attend to and must go out. Since you are unwilling to leave, just stay in this courtyard tonight. Wait here until I return."

"If I don't return by nightfall, no matter what kind of commotion you hear outside, do not come out. Avoid bringing trouble upon yourself, do you understand?"

"I understand! Thank you, Young Master Lin Yi! Thank you, Young Master Lin Yi!"

Seeing Lin Yi's serious expression, Xiao Zhi hurriedly nodded in gratitude.

After giving his instructions to the young maidservant, Lin Yi grabbed his long saber and immediately strode toward the courtyard where Wang Chuan was resting.

However, just as Lin Yi was halfway there, a series of terrified screams suddenly erupted from outside the pharmacy.

"Oh no! The Mountain Bandits from Black Wind Stronghold have broken into the city! The Mountain Bandits from Black Wind Stronghold have broken into the city! Everyone, run!"

Terrified screams rose one after another, and before Lin Yi could even react—

"BOOM!"

Another massive explosion rang out right beside his ears.

Immediately after, a tall section of the courtyard wall about a hundred meters in front of Lin Yi, not far from Wang Chuan's residence, was smashed to pieces by a giant hammer.

Then, a burly man over two meters tall, wielding a giant hammer with muscles like granite, charged into the apothecary with a group of Mountain Bandits:

"Hahaha! Boys! Loot everything! Kill everyone!"

"This tiny Magistrate of Beicang County actually dared to offend our Black Wind Stronghold. The Great Chieftain has personally given the order: we must teach them a proper lesson."

"Tonight, this Beicang County belongs to us, the Black Wind Stronghold! Kill!"

"Hahaha! Kill! Loot!"

"ROAR! KILL! KILL! KILL!"