The four of them climbed into the carriage and headed through the rain toward the Zhao Residence.
On the way, Xie An recounted every detail of what had happened before Zhao Hu died.
Before long, the carriage reached the gate of the Zhao Residence.
When A San spotted the Xie Residence carriage, he hurried over to take the horse.
Uncle Shui jumped down first. "Has anyone come to the Zhao Residence while we were gone?"
A San shook his head. "No."
Only then did Uncle Shui nod and help Xie Zhengtang down.
Xie An was about to jump down too, but Daoist Master Yusu, his father's honored guest, sat across from him. He paused. "After you, Daoist Master Yusu."
Xie Yu remained seated, studying Xie An with eyes full of tenderness. "After you, Young Master Mingxi."
Xie An could not shake the feeling that something was strange about the way this expert looked at him.
But both his father and Uncle Shui held her in great respect, so he could hardly object. He jumped down first, then turned to help her, only for Daoist Master Yusu to leap down on her own.
Xie An withdrew his hand awkwardly and followed her into the Zhao Residence.
Wrapped from head to toe in a cloak, Daoist Master Yusu wore a cool expression. She spoke to no one, heading straight into Zhao Hu's bedroom to examine the two pools of blood on the floor.
What surprised Xie An was that his father and Uncle Shui seemed perfectly accustomed to her aloofness.
Was this Daoist Master really such a big deal?
Xie An edged over to Uncle Shui and asked quietly, "How does Daoist Master Yusu's strength compare to yours?"
Uncle Shui chuckled softly. "Put it this way... Tie ten of me together, and we still wouldn't be enough for Daoist Master Yusu to poke with one finger."
Xie An was stunned.
Uncle Shui was the strongest person he had ever encountered.
Ten Uncle Shuis together could not stand up to one finger from Daoist Master Yusu?
Was she really that formidable?
Curious, Xie An watched Daoist Master Yusu's back and secretly activated Qi-Gazing.
All he saw was a murky mass of darkness. He could make out nothing at all.
It was as though something peculiar had cut off his Qi-Gazing.
Xie An had never encountered anything like it.
She really was an expert!
What shocked Xie An most was that after a single glance, Daoist Master Yusu seemed to sense something. She whipped around and looked straight at him.
Hiss!
A chill ran down Xie An's spine. He immediately stopped using Qi-Gazing.
He had used his Qi-Gazing talent countless times without ever being detected.
But Daoist Master Yusu had noticed...
Xie An promptly labeled her "utterly terrifying" in his mind.
To his relief, although Daoist Master Yusu had caught him peering at her, she was not angry. Instead, she gave him a faint smile.
In that instant, Xie An grew more curious about her than ever.
Xie Yu said nothing more. She turned back to the blood on the floor, raised her right index finger, and drew a strange talisman on the ground. Then she began speaking, as if to herself:
"Liu Fu must have been lying here when the Monster Strain burst out of her belly. After devouring her, it lunged at Zhao Hu and devoured him too... The Monster Strain infant then became a Monster Strain youth. It climbed onto the roof beam and spoke to Young Master Mingxi before breaking through the window and leaving..."
Every detail matched the scene perfectly.
Xie An thought it was nothing short of miraculous, but when he glanced at Xie Zhengtang and Uncle Shui, both looked calm.
His father and Uncle Shui probably already knew Daoist Master Yusu possessed extraordinary arts.
Xie An gave it no more thought and could not help asking, "Daoist Master Yusu, do you know where the Monster Strain youth went?"
"To find where it went, we must begin with where the Monster Strain came from." Xie Yu looked around. "Folk tales speak of specters borrowing a womb to be reborn, but this Monster Strain is different."
"How is it different?" Xie An asked.
"When Zhao Hu went to Li Family Village a month ago, Liu Fu was already nine months pregnant. The child in her womb was fully formed. Even if Zhao Hu slept with Liu Fu after returning and passed the evil energy to the unborn child, it could at most have turned the child into a stillbirth. It could never have turned it into a Monster Strain."
Xie An grew even more curious. "How can you tell, Daoist Master Yusu?"
Xie Yu explained patiently, "As Young Master Mingxi said, Zhao Hu had a nightmare in which the Grain-Collecting Ghost devoured his organs. When he woke, his organs truly were gone!
"Does Young Master Mingxi really believe a mere specter from Li Family Village could enter someone's dream and kill him?"
Sensing that Daoist Master Yusu understood specters far better than most, Xie An said eagerly, "Please enlighten me."
"There are indeed specters in this world that can enter dreams and kill. But the specter in Li Family Village has no such power." Afraid Xie An would not understand, Xie Yu continued patiently, "When Young Master Mingxi went to Li Family Village, at what point did your heart first begin to race?"
Xie An thought back carefully to entering Li Family Village with Zhao Hu. "When I first saw the old locust tree, its branches crowded with hanging corpses."
"Why did your heart race?" Xie Yu asked.
"Because the corpses looked as though something had gnawed on them, and they gave off a sharp, foul stench. There was also the strange incantation the old Daoist kept chanting."
"That was what you saw, smelled, and heard. Yet Young Master Mingxi still entered the village. Why?"
"Because I thought it was within the bounds of reason. Under Great Qian Law, a village head may kill tenant farmers who flee the village, and such things are far from rare."
"That was Intent Sense. Because it seemed reasonable, you did not panic. Young Master Mingxi, when did you become truly afraid?"
Xie An spoke as he searched his memory. "I had asked Li Degui to fill the hand warmer with hot water and was about to leave when I suddenly heard a grain official calling for taxes outside. The official had already collected taxes at the village entrance during the day. Why had he come back?"
Xie An added, "Earlier, at the village entrance, I'd sent Zhao Hu to ask why the tenant farmers had fled. The old Daoist said the grain-collecting official came every night demanding taxes, driving the tenants to flee because they could no longer survive. Later, Li Degui said the tenants had claimed the same thing... When I heard the tax calls at night, that was the first time I felt afraid!"
Xie Yu nodded. "Intent Sense again. Later, you turned around and noticed something wrong with Li Degui. You smelled a corpse's stench and sent Zhao Hu to check. He found corpse spots all over Li Degui's body; the man had been dead for seven days. Young Master Mingxi, did you feel cold all over then, with a chill down your spine?"
Xie An nodded. "Exactly."
Xie Yu tucked both hands into her long sleeves. "That is a specter's special ability."
Xie An thought he was beginning to understand a specter's power, but the answer remained hazy.
He rarely had the chance to question an expert and was not about to let it pass. "Please explain it plainly, Daoist Master Yusu."
Before you continue