Chapter 47: All is Ready, Seizing the Treasure

"What? A murderer!" The cattail leaf fan in the old man's hand jerked, and it almost dropped to the ground.

The old woman's expression changed drastically, her pupils violently contracting.

Li Siyu's rosy lips parted slightly, her eyes widened, and she subconsciously took two steps back.

The two police officers nodded simultaneously and spoke one after another, "There is only a possibility that he is hiding somewhere nearby."

"According to the traces left behind by the murderer so far, it is highly likely that he has fled into the mountains, but we cannot guarantee whether he might appear in the village. If any of you see him, be sure to contact us immediately."

Based on the information currently at their disposal, the murderer had fled all the way from Yaqian Town to this vicinity, after which his trail vanished nearby.

That left only two possibilities: first, that he had fled into the mountains; second, that he was hiding in one of the nearby villages.

If the murderer had escaped into the mountains, there were no good methods other than carrying out a large-scale search of the mountains.

However, the police force currently did not have that much manpower, and searching the mountains was still premature.

Therefore, they had no choice but to start by conducting investigations in the nearby villages.

At that moment, one of the police officers asked, "By the way, does anyone know the way to the village chief's house?"

"I... I know." An old woman picked up her stool and guided the two police officers into the village.

The rest of the people no longer felt like cooling off and gossiping. They immediately grabbed their folding stools, benches, and other belongings, gathered their things, and walked away quickly, their expressions showing varying degrees of unnaturalness.

Li Siyu looked at the receding figures of the police officers, biting her lip tightly with a worried look in her eyes, before turning around and returning home.

...

"This sun is really scorching," Zhang Hao muttered, raising a hand to shield his head from the sunlight above.

He was currently sporting a stubbly beard, yet he did not look unkempt; rather, he appeared quite clean, except for the fact that his clothes were noticeably dirty.

This was thanks to a clean stream Zhang Hao had found in the mountains. Every day, he would take time to bathe, wash his face, and occasionally wash his hair.

One could say that if he were to go on a wilderness survival trip right now, he would have absolutely no problems.

Withdrawing his gaze, he walked into the dense forest without hesitation, and a wave of refreshing coolness washed over him.

Ah~ How comfortable.

He rubbed the considerable stubble that had grown out and narrowed his eyes.

I must say, as the time for the fox wedding approached step by step, the yin energy in the area of the fox wedding was growing increasingly heavy, which could be felt from the extreme coolness within this dense forest.

If an ordinary person were to walk here without any protection, the yin energy would begin to continuously erode their body from this moment on, until they fell ill or encountered active mountain spirits and wild monsters.

Zhang Hao, however, did not need any defense; he actually wanted the yin energy to enter his body. In fact, it was better for a large amount of yin energy to enter his body before the fox wedding.

"Dile-dala-dili, deng-deng-deng-deng~"

Humming a little tune and leaning on a walking stick, he walked through the weeds, following the traces he had left behind.

Before long, he stood on a slope, raised his head, and looked at the dense trees above and the peak of the mountain, the top of which was just visible.

Turning back to look at the even denser jungle below, as well as that patch of open ground that seemed naturally formed, he stroked his stubble.

Zhang Hao took the tree root he had dug up from Old Man Zhao's grave out of the spirit-securing basket, placed it on the ground first, and then stood up, the chanting formulas of the Mountain-Guiding Art surfacing in his mind.

[Grave-head tree on the due north sloping mountain, wood buried within severs the yang soul.]

Licking his lips, Zhang Hao checked the specific direction and finally fixed his gaze on an open space beside an ancient tree.

He drew the hunting knife from his waist, thrust it straight into the soil, and pried hard, turning up a large chunk of mud.

Before long, a large, deep pit capable of holding the grave-head tree root appeared before him.

Zhang Hao picked up the tree root, placed it into the deep pit, and covered it with soil.

Looking at the three-inch-six trunk of the tree root protruding above the ground, he nodded with satisfaction.

The grave-head wood was done.

Next, there were four remaining items left. Once those were settled, all that remained was to quietly wait for the fox wedding to begin.

Patting the dirt off his hands, he sheathed the hunting knife back at his waist, picked up the spirit-securing basket, simply identified his bearings, and walked forward while humming a little tune.

"Dila-dala, deng-deng-deng-deng-deng~"

...

Down the mountain, in Zhao Village.

"What? A murderer has come to the village!"

"It's absolute truth! Didn't you see the police car parked at the entrance of the village? That's here to catch the murderer! I heard that murderer has quite a few lives on his hands!"

"Stop talking nonsense, let's hurry home! If we happen to run into the murderer on the street, we're done for!"

"Hah, don't let me see that murderer. If I see him, I could beat him to death bare-handed!"

"I'm going back right now to get my knife and stand right at the village entrance. Let's see who dares to enter the village."

"Get your ass home right this instant! You don't even dare to kill a chicken on normal days, and you think you can fight a murderer? Get back inside!"

"Sigh, alright then..."

"Don't let the children play outside anymore. Hurry home and stay there, close all doors and windows tightly, and under no circumstances go outside. No matter who knocks, don't open the door!"

On the dirt path of the village, the villagers wore panicked expressions, walking in hurried steps as they headed toward their respective homes.

After all, no one wanted to encounter a dangerous murderer on the road; getting home early to ensure one's own safety was the priority.

Before long, there were no longer any villagers on the street. Every single household in Zhao Village tightly shut their doors, not even a glimmer of light leaking through.

The Zhang Residence.

As the setting sun emerged and the evening glow hung in the western sky, the interior of the house grew increasingly dim.

Li Siyu did not turn on the lights; instead, she hugged Xiaobai and sat in the corner of the southern wing-room.

To be honest, upon hearing that a murderer might have appeared in the village, she couldn't help but feel a bit scared.

Because the Zhang residence was too conspicuous—it was the most imposing house in the entire Zhao Village.

It was entirely possible that the murderer might choose to hide here.

Furthermore, she was all alone in the house right now. If Zhang Hao were home, she wouldn't feel scared, let alone hide with Xiaobai in the southern wing-room.

Xiaobai slept soundly in her arms, and the faint snoring reaching Li Siyu's ears lessened the terror in her heart quite a bit.

Gently stroking Xiaobai's smooth fur, she raised her head and looked at the clay statue of Zhang Hao enshrined on the incense table in the southwest corner, the worry in her eyes intensifying gradually.

She still vividly remembered what the two police officers had said: the murderer had very likely fled into the mountains...

Right now, Zhang Hao was still in the mountains, helping out with a wedding for the mountain folk.

What if—what if Zhang Hao accidentally ran into the murderer...

She shivered violently and hurriedly banished the thought from her mind.

...

[Blade inserted in the due north grassy field, metal seals the mountain path to sever the soul.]

[Widow's tears by the due due west stream, water blocks the yang prosperity as yin spirits appear.]

[Ashes of ten households scattered on the due south ground, blazing fire seizes the treasures of the wedding.]

[Shroud suspended from the ceiling in the exact center, earth protects the mountain forest under divine grace.]

Chanting the formulas of the Mountain-Guiding Art under her breath, Zhang Hao stood atop the peak, overlooking the five places he had just passed through.

The items he had prepared a few days ago were the five yin objects.

The shroud, yin earth.
The grave-head tree, yin wood.
The butcher's knife, yin metal.
The ashes of ten households, yin fire.
The widow's tears, yin water.

All five of these items had already been used and placed precisely where they belonged.

And these five items were precisely the final preparations Zhang Hao had made in order to seize the treasures during the fox wedding.

Whether or not he could seize the treasures during the fox wedding depended primarily on these five items.

With these five items in place, seizing the treasures would surely succeed!