A Whole Spring

Tangshe Town lay north of Maple Forest City. It was one of the seven towns under Wei Quji's jurisdiction, as well as the smallest and most remote. Backed by the miles-long Qichang Mountain Range, its residents lived off the mountains, most of them hunters.

Walking through Tangshe Town, they saw old houses and few pedestrians. The occasional passerby hurried along, brows furrowed. Compared with Maple Forest City, it was no contest; even compared with Phoenix Creek Town, where Jiang Wang had been born, this place fell far short.

"The villages around Tangshe Town are scattered along the Qichang Mountain Range. The people here make their living by hunting, and usually only gather in town on the first and fifteenth days of the month. It isn't market day now, so there aren't many people about."

Jiang Wang had done quite a bit of preparation before coming, so he was able to explain things to Zhang Linchuan.

Even though the dean had arranged this trip as an older fellow disciple looking after a younger one, Jiang Wang knew better than to expect someone to guide him through everything. He didn't dare slack off.

Throughout the journey, Zhang Linchuan had worn a faint smile. He was neither distant nor familiar, and showed little emotion.

At this, he merely nodded and headed on his own toward the household where the family had been massacred.

Though they had come representing the Dao Academy's independent will, they couldn't very well fail to notify the local authorities. Tang Dun, the constable of Tangshe Town, was waiting for them at the entrance to the house.

"Both Tang Daniu and his wife were locals here in Tangshe Town. Daniu and I used to fight all the time when we were kids..." The dark-skinned, blunt-featured, burly man was clearly grieving. His ox-bell eyes were bloodshot, and he stood there rambling incessantly, repeating, "Those damn demonists are too vile! Damn their mothers! Damn their mothers!"

Zhang Linchuan glanced at the constable's uniform he wore. "Why are you the only one here? Where's your chief constable?"

"Our chief constable's busy with something else." Tang Dun hadn't noticed Zhang Linchuan's displeasure at all. He went on, "You'll all be important officials someday, so you have to get justice for us!"

"How curious. In a little place like Tangshe Town, is there something more important than this mass murder?" Zhang Linchuan gave a scornful smile, but didn't press the matter. He simply waved a hand, cutting Tang Dun off. "Get to the point. What leads have you uncovered? And what did the Criminal Investigation Bureau say when they came?"

Dong A had sent someone to investigate on his own, making it plain that he didn't trust Wei Quji. By the same token, the Criminal Investigation Bureau's people had avoided meeting them, and the local authorities in Tangshe Town had only sent an insignificant constable to receive them. That, too, was only to be expected.

Tang Dun scratched his head. "We... haven't found any leads. Those officials from the Criminal Investigation Bureau didn't tell us what they found, either..."

Zhang Linchuan nearly laughed in exasperation. If they had no leads, why had he spent all that time chattering?

But he was a man of considerable composure, and held back his irritation. "Fine. Let's go in and have a look."

Tang Dun swiftly tore down the seal on the gate, then took out a key and unlocked the General Lock. Only then did he push open the wooden door.

Jiang Wang noticed that the seal was no ordinary one; an Evil-Suppressing Talisman had been drawn on it. Clearly, the cultivators from the Criminal Investigation Bureau had taken care to protect the scene.

As the seal came down and the gate swung open, a foul stench of rot, filth, and decay surged out.

Jiang Wang forced himself to look around the small courtyard. It was full of the usual things hunters used: hunting knives, traps, bows and arrows. There were also animal hides and smoked meat, all scattered haphazardly across the yard.

A hunting dog had been reduced to a skeleton, lying by the main gate. Judging by its posture, it had probably been the first to notice the intruder, but had been dealt with in an instant.

Jiang Wang turned back. Zhang Linchuan had already covered his nose and mouth with a handkerchief embroidered with orchids, his brows knitted together.

Seeing the questioning look in Jiang Wang's eyes, Zhang Linchuan tilted his chin forward slightly and spoke from behind the handkerchief. "It's fine. Let's go in."

Tang Dun stood to one side of the gate, hesitating. "I... I'd better not go in. This place is... creepy."

He was only an ordinary man, and Jiang Wang had no intention of forcing him. He nodded. "That's fine."

Then he strode into the courtyard first.

A thick, overwhelming aura of corpses instantly closed in around him, filling his nostrils. This level of corpse aura couldn't have come from simply killing a few people and summoning a few walking corpses. It was more like someone had made contact with some kind of evil presence.

Behind him, Zhang Linchuan glanced at Jiang Wang's hand resting on his sword. His long, pale fingers looked clean and strong.

"Is swordsmanship your strong suit, Junior Brother Jiang?" he asked.

Jiang Wang surveyed their surroundings without turning around. "You flatter me, Senior Brother Zhang. My Dao Vortex hasn't yet formed, so I haven't been able to practice Daoist Arts. I can only rely on my swordsmanship to defend myself."

"I heard that when the Outer Academy was attacked, you were among those targeted, yet managed to escape calmly. That alone shows your ability."

"It was actually quite dangerous. The demonist was far stronger than I was. I only managed to escape after alerting my fellow disciples."

There was a wooden doghouse beside the courtyard, now empty as well. Jiang Wang's gaze swept over the yard. There wasn't a trace of blood to be seen.

"Things don't look good here. Be careful, Junior Brother," Zhang Linchuan said.

"I understand."

The small courtyard had three rooms. The main hall stood directly opposite the gate, its door open. A skeleton lay sprawled across the threshold. It, too, had been stripped of flesh, leaving only bones. Judging by the clothes, it was probably the male head of the household, the hunter Tang Daniu.

Jiang Wang carefully stepped over the skeleton and entered the main hall.

The four walls were bare, without a trace of decoration. In the middle stood an Eight Immortals table and four long benches. Some leftover food sat on the table, covered by a woven bamboo food dome.

Beneath the bench on the left lay the woman of the house; the heap of coarse cloth and skirts was proof enough.

And yet... the food hadn't spoiled, while the bodies had been reduced to bare bones.

A nameless chill pricked at the base of Jiang Wang's spine. An indistinct fear rose from nowhere, and he nearly drew his sword. But he had been through more than a few life-or-death battles. He suppressed his instincts, avoiding the embarrassment of losing his composure in front of Zhang Linchuan.

"The flesh wasn't gnawed away. It was the work of some kind of evil art." Zhang Linchuan kept one hand over his mouth with the handkerchief, casually surveying the surroundings. He showed disgust, but no fear. "These two didn't die long ago, but all their flesh is gone, and with it, many clues. You fought the demonist who attacked the Outer Academy. Did you notice anything familiar?"

Jiang Wang shook his head. "I've only seen two skeletons so far. I can't tell. It's just that this corpse aura filling the place..."

"What about it?"

"I was attacked by corpses controlled by the other side. I was poisoned by corpse venom, and Master Dong was the one who cured me."

Zhang Linchuan nodded. He never lowered the handkerchief covering his mouth, and headed straight for the room on the right side of the main hall. "Let's split up and look around. Tell me immediately if anything happens."

"Understood."

Zhang Linchuan was a cultivator who had entered the ranks. In his Heaven-Connecting Palace, the Dao Vortex revolved, and Dao Essence arose on its own. Jiang Wang had no reason to worry about him, so he rested a hand on his sword and walked toward the room on the left.

This room...

Was very small.

As soon as he stepped inside, he saw a wooden horse standing silently on the floor. It was an especially finely crafted, smooth little horse. Its maker had clearly poured a great deal of care into it.

Not far from the wooden horse stood a low table, scattered with little toys like a slingshot and a rattle drum.

On the wall beside the low table, Jiang Wang saw the only decoration in the courtyard so far.

It was a small canvas, on which three little figures had been drawn in clumsy strokes.

Two taller figures held the hand of a smaller one, running through a sea of flowers.

Behind the little figures, a puppy followed, shaking its head and wagging its tail.

This had once been a complete family. A whole spring had once bloomed here.

Jiang Wang forced himself to keep going, until he saw scraps of flower-print clothing in front of the low bed.

He looked up, and there, just as expected, was the last skeleton in this family.

A tiny, delicate, fragile skeleton, helpless and alone.

It was all that remained in this world of a little girl once treasured by her parents.

He felt anger.

Uncontrollable, brutally fierce anger.