The Truth Revealed

Lu Changsheng followed the mountain village path all the way forward. Before long, he saw a massive locust tree ahead.

Its branches and leaves were lush and dense. Shrouded in the night, it resembled a cluster of ghostly faces.

Before the locust tree stood a dilapidated courtyard, which must have been the place Brother Yang had mentioned.

He quickly headed toward the courtyard.

"Creak..."

After gently pushing open the rotten wooden gate, he stepped into the yard.

Weeds ran wild all around, and the air was thick with a foul stench.

Just then, a disheveled man emerged from the house ahead.

The man was clad in tattered rags, his body hunched over. His face was covered in pustules, with pus still trickling down.

"She's here, she's here..."

He muttered as he walked, sending chills down the spine.

Lu Changsheng frowned at the sight. The stench coming from the man was far too strong.

"Who is she?"

He casually asked.

The man abruptly opened his eyes. Like an evil ghost from hell, he stared fixedly at Lu Changsheng.

"She's here, she's here..."

Then he strangely lowered his head, his mouth endlessly repeating those words.

Seeing that he could get nothing out of him, Lu Changsheng did not press further and headed out of the courtyard.

He retraced his steps, pondering carefully as he went.

By his reckoning, the strange happenings in Yunxi Village were likely connected to that dead bride.

It might even have been her directly.

Perhaps she had turned into a wicked spirit for some reason.

Or perhaps some mysterious existence was watching from the shadows.

Since joining the Demon Suppression Department, Lu Changsheng had done nothing but train in martial arts and read books every day. He had gradually gained a deeper understanding of this strange and chaotic age.

According to the records in those books, wicked spirits did not exist in ancient times. Once people died, they simply turned to ash; it was utterly impossible for them to become wicked spirits.

Humans and wicked spirits were entirely different species.

Yet ever since demons and evil creatures appeared, everything had changed. Wicked spirits sprang up everywhere, thus beginning the protracted struggle between humanity and wicked spirits that had lasted tens of thousands of years.

Lu Changsheng had encountered this claim in more than one ancient book, and he found it quite convincing.

Of course, he had never witnessed it himself, so it still needed to be verified.

Still, he held deep doubts about the idea of humans turning into wicked spirits.

Before long, Lu Changsheng returned to Brother Yang's home. The others had long since drifted into sleep.

Over the next few days, everyone continued keeping watch, but they still found nothing.

Until the third day, at dawn.

Li Yunhua gathered everyone to discuss matters.

The group assembled once more on an open patch of ground in the village.

Once everyone had arrived, Li Yunhua spoke first.

"Over the past few days, I've also investigated the strange incidents in the village. The bride who died years ago is likely closely connected to this matter..."

After speaking, he swept his gaze over the group.

Yue Shulan raised a graceful brow.

"I agree completely. I heard that the bride's father forcibly married her off to a middle-aged man for two taels of silver, and Peng Yuntian and the bride, childhood sweethearts, were forcibly torn apart..."

"In the end, the bride hanged herself. Her resentment could not be dispelled, and she became a wicked spirit..."

"Afterward, all those people died, while Peng Yuntian alone went mad. That also proves it."

The remaining two men nodded as well.

Everyone deeply sympathized with Peng Yuntian's plight. Not only had the woman he loved been sold to another, but he himself had been driven mad by the blow.

Then everyone turned their eyes toward Lu Changsheng.

"What I discovered was the same."

Lu Changsheng smiled faintly.

There was no shortage of clever people in this world. This group had quickly found the crucial information.

"However, Peng Yuntian has already gone mad. We can't get any useful information out of him. How are we supposed to find that wicked spirit?"

"If we keep waiting, I'm afraid we still won't be able to complete the mission even after ten days or half a month."

Yue Shulan's expression darkened somewhat.

At that moment, Lu Changsheng spoke calmly.

"Since everyone involved is either dead or mad, why not start with those who are still alive?"

At his words, everyone's eyes lit up. They quickly understood the meaning behind Lu Changsheng's words.

"Then let us follow Brother Lu's suggestion and go to Zhang Dahan's home to investigate."

Yue Shulan nodded in full agreement.

The way the others looked at Lu Changsheng now carried a hint of something indescribable.

None of them had expected that Lu Changsheng, supposedly the "weakest" among them, would be so quick-witted.

Soon, the group headed for Zhang Dahan's home.

Before long.

They arrived before a courtyard on the western side of the village.

Li Yunhua pushed open the gate first and led everyone inside.

This family had only recently risen from bed and was preparing to head out to work the fields. When they saw Li Yunhua and the others, their faces turned pale with fright.

"We did not know such esteemed lords would honor us with your presence. What are your instructions?"

A middle-aged man who appeared to be the head of the household took the lead in kneeling.

Behind him stood a middle-aged woman and a young girl in the bloom of youth.

"What is Zhang Dahan's relation to you?"

Li Yunhua's face was icy.

The middle-aged man wiped the sweat from his forehead, his face full of alarm. "He was my clan uncle. After he passed away, I inherited the family property here. This was registered with the village chief..."

"Hmph... Who asked about the property? Did Old Zhang leave behind any other belongings?"

Li Yunhua looked impatient.

"No... no..."

The man answered tremblingly.

At this, a shadow passed over Li Yunhua and the others' hearts.

The trail had gone cold again.

Just as they were preparing to leave, a clear voice suddenly rang out from behind them.

"Before Grandpa Huan passed away, he gave me a letter. I've never opened it..."

The man's daughter spoke in a crisp voice, traces of worry in her eyes.

"Quick, show us the letter."

Li Yunhua's face brightened, and he could hardly wait.

The girl timidly rose and walked into the house.

Before long, she returned with a letter in hand.

Li Yunhua took the letter and immediately opened it before everyone.

He then held the sheet of paper in the air for them all to read.

Lu Changsheng fixed his eyes on it.

It was covered in fragmented, crude handwriting, showing that the letter's owner had little education.

Still, everyone could barely make it out.

"Peng Yuntian always wanted to marry Yan'er, but that old man stubbornly refused. In the end, she fell into my hands..."

"That day, I was very happy..."

"Driven by love into hatred, Peng Yuntian killed the old man. I discovered him while he was disposing of the body..."

"He begged me not to report him to the authorities. He sold Yan'er to me as my wife, while he took over the old man's courtyard and family property, then married another wife..."

"One person after another has met with misfortune. I'm afraid I won't live much longer either..."

"She's here..."

"She climbed out of the dry well..."

The writing came to an abrupt halt there.

The words seemed to have been recorded in passing, with no clear connection between them. Yet from these scattered fragments, everyone could roughly infer what had happened.

Unable to win her love, Peng Yuntian murdered the bride's father. After he was discovered while disposing of the body, he sold his childhood sweetheart to Old Zhang to silence him. Later, he even used the bride's father's property to take another wife...

This utterly shattered their worldview.

Just moments ago, they had all deeply sympathized with Peng Yuntian. Who would have thought he was such scum?

It left them unable to help sighing over the fickleness of the world.

"Is there a dry well in the village?"

Lu Changsheng turned and asked the man.

At a glance, he had spotted the key point in the letter.

Upon hearing this, Li Yunhua and the others all stared unblinkingly at the man.

"Yes, yes, there is..."

"It's on the back mountain behind the village."

The man stammered, fear filling his eyes.

"Let's go. We'll go meet it."

Li Yunhua waved his hand grandly, looking spirited.

Now that they had a clue, all they needed to do was kill it.

According to the Demon Suppression Department's investigation, it was merely the lowest-grade wicked spirit, roughly equivalent to the peak of Skin Refining.

The five of them working together would be enough to suppress it.

Once they completed the mission, each of them would receive a minor merit reward, which could be exchanged for various cultivation techniques and medicinal baths.

That was the true reason everyone's enthusiasm had soared.