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‘The rain patters continuously. It was saddening and gloomy. Listening over the mountains and trees, the wind roars loudly and the rain pours heavily.

‘Drop by drop, drop after drop, tears and blood cross a sorrowing soul. The sorrow comes from a grave of memories.’

At Grandmother Wang’s manor, the theatrical troupe was performing on stage with their heart and soul.

With the white plain gauze, the flickering candles, plus the drizzle at night, it could not get any sadder than this.

Grandmother Wang’s daughter-in-law passed out from crying several times. The doctor was even called over to give her some calming medicine, and she finally went to bed mournfully after a few hours.

The two young grandchildren, a boy and a girl, were running around in the manor without any idea about what had happened.

Tang Ling was sitting in the front yard of Grandmother Wang’s manor. He occupied a seat in the corner and was nibbling on sunflower seeds while sipping on the yellow wine provided. It was sour on the tastebuds and was said to have a lasting taste but Tang Ling could not taste any of that.

However, he could not reject the other like-minded youngsters beside him who kept asking him to drink, so he had to take sips from time to time to show that he was a well-mannered person.

Looking at the children running around the front yard, a youngster beside Tang Ling could not help but sigh. “Wang’s daughter-in-law is really pitiful. The men died in the mountains a few years ago and now even Grandmother Wang...”

“I heard that the death of the Wang family’s Dalang had many unsolved mysteries.” Tang Ling peeled a peanut and tossed it into his mouth.

Eating in the Dream Domain was a strange experience. Taste, fragrance, and texture were all present, but the food could not fill one’s stomach.

Nevertheless, Tang Ling enjoyed it a lot. Starting from the lunch he had in his manor, he was already in awe about the eating culture of ancient Huaxia.

The eating culture adhered closely to the saying: ‘The more intricate the meal, the better. The thinner the meat, the better. Meat should not overpower the amount of rice on the table. One can drink but cannot be drunk.’

Only the crunchiest and the most tender parts of the freshest bamboo shoots were kept. The best dry-cured ham was thinly sliced, and no extra toppings or sauces were given when it was served. The most delicate spring onions would bring the best taste of spring to the palate when eaten. The freshness and saltiness was perfectly balanced, hence providing a refreshing texture.

The freshest orange was cut at its three-fourth point. Its skin was carefully peeled, its flesh carefully taken out and squeezed into juice without the pulp. The crab from the lake was captured and shucked while its flesh and roe were put into the well-preserved orange skin and covered with the orange cap, which was the remaining one-fourth of the orange. Water, wine, and vinegar were added to it when it was steamed. It was then served with a sauce made with a tinge of salt and vinegar.

The mentioned dishes were just two of many dishes that Tang Ling had for lunch, yet they made the food back in the Purple Moon Era seem like garbage for pigs.

Was the ancient Huaxia of the old civilization that luxurious? Although it was just a wealthy family in a town, the intricacies were carefully preserved. What would the noble high-ranking officials eat then?

Tang Ling was curious but at the same time, troubled by a new question. Did the Dream Domain reflect the real way of living in ancient Huaxia? Or were some details exaggerated?

If it was real, then had all this happened in the past as a part of history? Was he experiencing history itself?

Tang Ling frowned, unconsciously taking a sip of the yellow wine. He had a feeling that he was latching onto something important and that it might be of great help for the upcoming tests in the Dream Domain, but he still had to verify with evidence.

At that moment, a delicate young girl partook in the conversation. “Second Brother Tang, since you mentioned the death of the Wang family’s Dalang, I have to say that I heard some truth about the incident. It’s more reliable than the rumors that the naughty tongues spread.”

“Oh?” Tang Ling raised his brow. The other youngsters around him started to laugh and tease him. It seemed like Second Young Master Tang had sought a way to exert his righteous way of the swordsman.

However, the young girl who spoke ignored the other youngsters. Her googly eyes were fixed on Tang Ling as she said, “My brother is the constable of the county. He inspected the body himself before it was buried. Rumour has it that the jiangshi [1] were causing it, but the cause of death was a palm strike to the body, shattering his organs. Then...”

The young girl suddenly looked a little pale.

The two white paper lanterns were dancing in the wind at the mourning altar and the candles cast an orange luster over the wooden coffin. The two Wang grandchildren ran around the coffin and the older sister said loudly, “Grandma, Grandma, wake up. There are a lot of guests at our house.”

The younger brother whose voice sounded like a baby’s echoed his sister and said loudly, “Grandma, Grandma, wake up. There’s a lot of food to eat here.”

The two children were tapping the coffin relentlessly, causing a continuous thumping and the whole coffin was shaking.

“Then what?” Tang Ling asked the girl as he glanced over the big black coffin. He was not overly concerned about the ignorant children.

“Then, he was bitten into many pieces, but the bite marks on his body were not by a jiangshi. There were two types of bite marks found—one was a human’s and the other was a beast’s,” the girl spewed everything in a single breath and looked down, not daring to even glimpse towards the mourning altar.

The other youngster beside her did not agree with her. “How is it not the work of a jiangshi? If it isn’t, why are you so scared? You don’t even dare to look at the coffin. Even the two children are bolder than you.”

“This is the third death this month and none of them died with a complete body. If it really is a common murder, who would have taken a bite out of the flesh? Some even said their skulls were cracked open and the brains were sucked out,” another youngster added loudly with his hands curled up into claws as he tried to frighten the young girl who screamed in fear.

At the mourning altar, the granddaughter of the Wang family was exalted. She clapped her hands and said with a loud giggle, “Grandma is waking up! Grandma is waking up!”

“Huh?!” The young girl was so frightened that she teared up when she heard that.

Smiling, Tang Ling stood up and walked over with his hands behind him. He held the hands of the two kids in front of the mourning altar and said, “Don’t make so much noise. Grandma is exhausted. Let her rest. Be patient. The cook is making fried fruits, so wait patiently and you can have some.”

The two kids clapped and cheered when they heard about the fried fruits. Then, they left the mourning altar gleefully.

Tang Ling squinted his eyes at the two kids. He then shifted his gaze to the central room.

Inside the central room was a table set up for important figures. His father in the Dream Domain was speaking with several respectful elders of the town. Meanwhile, his older makeshift brother was writing something beside them. He was probably writing an obituary. The contents must be about convincing the townspeople to be calm and not believe in the supernatural forces.

The master of the Tang family had mentioned before in the afternoon that staying in their houses and hiding behind walls in fear was not ideal. As the biggest family in the town, he must stand out as an example to straighten out the people’s beliefs.

Therefore, the Tang family donated some money to hold a grand funeral at night and everyone in the town came because of Master Tang.

Firstly, the people wanted to hear what a respectable person had to say about the incident. Secondly, they were not as afraid with so many other people around.

Tang Ling could not help but sneer at them. His makeshift father looked righteous as if he cared about the townspeople, but the Tang Manor door was tightly shut during the day. They were nervous before they decided to open the door. It seemed like they were also thoroughly frightened.

Then, the elders around Master Tang seemed to strike up an argument because they were rather agitated as they spoke.

Tang Ling did not care about them. He walked around the black coffin and stroked the wooden surface with his left hand as if he wanted to know the quality of the coffin that the Tang family had donated.

The theatrical troupe continued their performance professionally. The earlier piece sounded sad, so for the next piece, they decided to perform the sentimental “Phoenix Cry”. The youngsters were captivated by the performance as they exchanged gazes from their seats, and it seemed like there were many hidden feelings.

The people of ancient Huaxia are so coquettish!

Tang Ling did not return to his corner seat. Instead, he sat down close to the mourning altar.

He was not used to this kind of group ‘orgy’ since his love switch still had not been turned on. There were several young girls who stole coquettish glances at him, but he replied to them with a fierce glare, making it very awkward.

The theatrical play reached its climax just when the cook that was preparing the dinner was done with the fruits and pastries.

The Tang family did donate generously to the funeral after all. There were dried and fresh fruits as well as pastries in the lavish spread. Tang Ling sat beside the mourning altar and gobbled down the food.

Master Tang somehow glanced over at Tang Ling and saw his rude gluttony. His glance immediately turned into a fierce glare.

Grandfather Han, who was beside Master Tang, immediately walked over and bellowed, “Where are your manners? Are you starving as a hungry ghost after two days outside? Look at your big brother, and compare him to yourself! Go inside and help your brother.”

“I don’t want to,” Tang Ling rejected with a goofy smile.

Maybe he was overthinking, but when Grandfather Han said the word ‘ghost’, the breeze somehow got stronger and colder.

Since the place was crowded and noisy with people, Grandfather Han did not want to argue with Tang Ling, so he glared at him and said softly, “You are the second young master of the family. Behave yourself.”

Tang Ling stuffed a delicate-looking pastry into his mouth and nodded in agreement. Grandfather Han was furious, but all he did was stomp furiously and go back into the central room.

Then, the two grandchildren of the Wang family came back, each holding a stick of freshly fried fruit in their hands.

Young kids did not know anything about death, let alone fear. The two kids ran around Tang Ling before they ran back to the coffin.

At this time, another group of young kids with a big brown dog beside them started a soft discussion among themselves.

“My father almost beat me to death this afternoon.” Given that the bruise on his cheek would not lie, the kid who said that was not exaggerating.

“My mother made me kneel for over two hours, so I can’t stand straight now,” moaned another kid.

The kid who owned the big dog asked softly, “Then, did you tell your parents about what you saw?”

“I did. My parents scolded me and told me I was wrong. They didn’t just punish me, but they even forbade me from telling others.” The last kid was rather frightened as he shrunk his neck.

“My parents didn’t really say anything, but they told me to bring Dahuang wherever I go tonight,” added the kid who owned the dog.

Dahuang? Tang Ling chuckled. Was the dog’s name Dahuang?

He would never forget the group of kids with his great memory. They were the kids that he had seen sprinting madly in front of him earlier in the day.

The afternoon incident was rather serious. Several households had cried and screamed about losing their children, claiming that their children had been eaten by monsters.

Some even blabbered about jiangshi appearing, but the important figures in town from the county did not care. Now with the kids missing, the family wanted to make a report to Lord Qingtian.

In the end, the kids were found at Grandmother Wang’s house. The truth was that the kids ran out of their houses just to have a look to cure their burning curiosity.

With that thought in mind, Tang Ling grabbed some fruits and slowly walked over to the group of kids that he had seen earlier. Grandmother Wang’s two grandchildren were squatting beside the black coffin, eating their fried fruits.

“Hey, come here. Tell me what you guys saw.” Tang Ling smiled and distributed the fruits to each kid. They accepted the fruits but hesitated, not wanting to speak.

Tang Ling was not in a hurry either. He glanced over at the black coffin and took several coins from his pocket.

“Tanghulu [2], dough figurines, you can buy whatever you want. I’ll give the coins to anyone that tells me.” Tang Ling smiled like an old cunning fox.

The dog, Dahuang, seemed a little afraid of Tang Ling. It lay down before him while wagging its tail and revealed its belly to him. It was anything but useful at protecting its master. Compared to the dogs from the Purple Moon Era, this big brown dog was a few times cuter. Tang Ling reached out to stroke its head as though he was saying, “You are so darn cute!”

The dog’s face was pulled beyond recognition, but it whimpered happily like it was saying, “As you wish, my lord.”

At this point, one of the kids mustered enough courage and grabbed a coin from Tang Ling’s hand. He then said softly, “Grandmother Wang was eaten. Her brain was sucked out! I saw a big hole in her head when I went around her! It was empty inside!”

“Her stomach was empty as well!” Another kid came up and took another coin.

Tang Ling smiled but his gaze went deeper.

The kids were blabbering about what they saw while Tang Ling continued stroking Dahuang. He nodded at the kids’ replies and asked some strange questions.

“You said you saw a hole in her head? What kind of hole was that?

“Her stomach was empty? Was it ripped open? How did it look like?

“At the back of her head...do you mean this spot? Was there any wound there?

“Oh right, you said her brain was sucked out? Was there anything left inside?”

What did the kids actually know?

They felt that the questions that Tang Ling asked were strange and scary, but they were kids, and kids were honest, so they spewed out whatever they knew sincerely.

Tang Ling was in deep thought. Behind him, the two grandchildren started to tap their grandmother’s coffin again. “Grandmother, I have fruits here. They are so delicious and fragrant.”

The scene drew the ladies’ tears as they felt pity for the two kids.

At the same time, Master Tang finally came out from the central room with a few pieces of scriptures.

The theatrical troupe automatically stopped their performance, hence ending the charming exchange of thoughts among the young men and ladies. They youngsters suddenly realized they were at a funeral and should be sad and afraid, so why were they exchanging strange thoughts with one another?

Master Tang walked up to the stage. There were about 500 people in the front yard and all of them quietened down instantly.

Appearing anguished, he looked at the townspeople and said loudly, “Recently, Qingxi town hasn’t been as peaceful as before. There are demons that eat people and killers that roam the streets. Intentional parties have been using this to spread untrue rumors and fear, disturbing the peace. As the wealthiest family in town, I, Tang Jili, am saddened by the news. I feel hurt and frustrated.

“As for the man-eating demon, we Qingxi town people cannot sit back and do nothing. We cannot allow the rumors to spread. Since everyone in town is here for the funeral, we must discuss this later. Grandmother Wang’s death was the third in this town, and she died due to the killer’s evildoing. As a fellow townsman, I hereby represent everyone to send her away.”

After his little speech, with the obituary in his hand, Master Tang solemnly walked to the mourning altar.

The two grandchildren of the deceased were still calling out for their grandmother. The daughter-in-law also came out with help, appearing as pale as paper.

The group of kids that Tang Ling questioned went outside and played. Dahuang, whose face was almost swollen from Tang Ling’s rubbing, started to run around the courtyard madly. It saw a hen pecking on the ground and started to chase it.

The kids shouted and ran after Dahuang. The courtyard was in a mess with the kids running around unbridled. There was not a hint of grief in them.

Master Tang frowned, but since they were kids, he did not say anything. He opened the obituary and started to read it out loud, “Alas! What a pity, taijun [3] Wang Liu [4] of the Wang family...”

As Master Tang was solemnly reading the obituary, the granddaughter stopped eating her fruit and started to sob, “Grandma, why aren’t you awake?”

The younger brother wept right away when he saw his sister crying.

The daughter-in-law of the Wang family was too weak to take care of her children. All she could do was watch her children cry in sorrow. As though the death of her mother-in-law just struck her, sorrow rose in her heart and she started to sob too.

The people were clouded in gloominess. Their pain and sorrow were indescribable. Master Tang’s solemn voice reading the obituary got louder by the sentence. He was agitated as he blamed the man-eating demon that roamed free. He criticized the demon for deviating from the path of man and acting like the devil from hell.

Cluck! Cluck!

The hen that Dahuang chased suddenly flew under the coffin and Dahuang excitedly chased after it.

The hen seemed to notice that there were two crying children beside it when it reached under the coffin. Confused by the weeping, it started to wander around the coffin.

Dahuang made its way to the coffin before it leaped forward and tried to snap at the hen.

“Dahuang! Stop! We have to pay for the hen if you kill it!!” The group of kids chased the dog over to the coffin. Dahuang’s owner ran in front and shouted at his dog, trying to stop it from attacking the hen. He tried to reach out for the leash and pull Dahuang back.

Dahuang seemed to understand its owner. It suddenly whimpered in fear, quickly crawling under the coffin and reaching the other side in a flash.

The kids were running so fast that they failed to stop in time, so they crashed into one another and frightened the hen under the coffin.

The hen flapped its wings and jumped out in shock, dodging the crashing children. However, as the children fell down, they knocked the bench under the coffin over.

Tang Ling saw the scene and frowned tightly.

Since the burial will still some time away, the lid was not nailed onto the coffin yet. It clattered loudly on the floor as it fell.

Thud!

The tumultuous noise frightened Master Tang who was reading the obituary in front of the mourning altar. He turned around and saw Grandmother Wang’s body rolling out of the coffin. Her somewhat cleaned up remains and the longevity robe that was draped over her in a hurry were instantly messed up.

Her left hand was eaten to the point that not the slightest bit of flesh was left while her abdomen was ripped open. The cut was clean and big like a gaping mouth. She had bled out and her flesh was pale. Her neck was twisted, revealing the hole at the back of her head.

Master Tang had never seen such a horrifying scene before. Frightened to his core, he faltered backward.

Nonetheless, the two sobbing grandchildren of the Wang family were not afraid. They tossed the fruit in their hands and jumped over to their grandmother’s body.

The other kids who caused the scene were frightened on the spot, and they stared at the scattered coffin in a petrified state.

“Grandma.” One of the grandchildren held Grandmother Wang’s icy cold right hand.

It was at that moment that the night breeze suddenly turned sharp and the candles on the mourning altar flickered as the white lantern suddenly fell to the ground.

With the soft thud of the fallen lantern, Grandmother Wang’s eyes suddenly opened. Her hand that her grandchild was holding moved and she grabbed the boy’s hand instead. She bolted up all of a sudden.

“The dead corpse is alive!” the crowd shouted.

The daughter-in-law of the Wang family screamed her lungs out, “Ah, my child!”

At this point, a figure leaped high and flew over Master Tang’s head. Before the crowd could have a clearer look, a silver glare flashed and the hardened hand holding the child was chopped off.

In the next second, the sword glared in the other direction, severing Grandmother Wang’s head from her body.

Thud!

Her head fell and rolled to the side before a hand grabbed it.

The corpse was alive! The corpse really came back alive!

Alas, the corpse had not even started anything and it was beheaded?

In the midst of their astonishment, the people slowly recovered and got a clearer look. Was the person who slashed Grandmother Wang’s hand and beheaded her in the next second, then grabbed her head up single-handedly not the second young master of the Tang family?

It was Tang Chongwu!

The people stared at him in awe. Tang Ling borrowed the light from the candle and got a closer look at the head he had beheaded. The white matter in the cranial cavity had been dug out, but the layer of complicated neural network that intertwined like spider-webs remained intact inside.

Interesting.

A piece of new information finally popped up in Tang Ling’s mind. ‘Investigate the jiangshi incident in Qingxi town. Find out the truth in three days. Completion: 0%’

The mission from the Dream Domain was simple. It would never state how far one should complete it explicitly or the target that one had to kill on the mission. There were also no clues at all.

Tang Ling was not surprised at all. He put the head down and looked at the townspeople while saying calmly, “Put Grandmother Wang back into the coffin. She won’t be moving anymore. And I need 20 strong men to follow me to the Nanli Outpost tonight.”

Right after Tang Ling’s words subsided, everyone fell into a panic.

What was Nanli Hill? It was where the ancestral grave of Qingxi town was located and it had been there for a very long time.

The moving corpse was scary enough, yet he wanted to go to Nanli Hill? Even the bravest men in the down dared not follow Tang Ling on his trip.

On the contrary, Grandfather Han looked at Tang Ling with a deep meaningful gaze. He did not expect that this Second Young Master that he always nagged was already this powerful. He stepped up and said, “I’ll come along.”

“Grandfather Han, stop Chongwu from messing around! We should discuss what happened tonight instead of going to Nanli Hill like this!” Master Tang did not expect his second son to possess such an astonishing skillset, but he would not allow his son to go to Nanli Hill that night. If something happened to him...

Tang Ling actually wanted to call Master Tang “dad”, but he remembered that it was still a dream. He found it difficult to call someone else his father, so he stated his intention instead, “If we don’t go to Nanli Hill, the town won’t be peaceful.”

Without paying further attention to Master Tang anymore, he looked at the crowd. “As men, shouldn’t you stand up? Think about it. One day, when your wife, your mother, and your daughters end up like Grandmother Wang, would you be able to live up to yourself then?” His words encouraged the men of Qingxi town who were boiling with eagerness.

Some young men stepped up and announced, “I’ll go!”

“I’ll go!”

“I’ll go!”

The eldest son of the Tang family hid in the room, frightened. He looked at the words that he had written doubtfully. How could a few sentences be more convincing than the thousands of words that he wrote?

******

The town was quiet.

Maybe the continuous drizzle had finally exhausted the dark clouds.

Under the chilly night sky, the misty yellow moon showed itself. It was a plain crescent moon, but it also managed to shed its faint light over the dark areas.

Cornel, anise, bay leaves. The ingredients were tossed into a pot of boiling water.

Together with some half-cooked minced meat, the thinly sliced meat was put into the pot for a slow braise.

Inside the intricate porcelain bowls were bright red liquid sugar. Coupled with the white bowls, it looked very charming. A bowl of almond beancurd with a layer of honey sat beautiful and alluring under the copper lamp.

‘Unconsciously, the affection emerged and grew deeper. It anguished the living to die and raised the dead to come alive.

‘In both, one realized love. Without both, it was not the full emotion.

‘Why is love in a dream not real? How many are there in the dream?

“The Peony Pavilion” was being sung in a house with perfect intonation and rich pronunciation as the regulation of breaths was perfectly mastered. The voice was sentimental and affectionate, captivating anyone who heard it. One would resonate with the voice upon first hearing. Whose daughter was it that possessed such an angelic voice?

The singing paused. The voice asked a question with a gloomy sigh and echoed in the house, “It’s late. Why hasn’t he returned?”

******

A yellow moon?

Tang Ling looked up at the moon with a blank gaze. Even though he looked calm, his heart was utterly shocked.

Why is the moon yellow? Isn’t the Dream Domain reflecting reality? Or is it? Tang Ling was confused.

Nanli Hill was where the deceased refused to leave and the living refused to part. Everything bore no sorrow at all, not the crescent moon, the drizzle, the chilly night breeze, or the people that arrived.

The torches were bright and it shed light on the anxiety on their faces. Two new graves had been dug out and the coffins were empty.

As the leader of the people, Tang Ling was very calm. He seemed to have expected this to happen. He looked up at the sky blankly as though he had a heavy interest in the yellow misty crescent moon.

He kept quiet. The people around him were anxious and nervous, not knowing what he was thinking.

Someone finally mustered up enough courage and asked Tang Ling, “Second Young Master Tang, how do you view this?”

Tang Ling shook his head and said, “What view do I have? The villages and towns in the area must have gone through several deaths. As for whether Qingxi town can stay away from trouble, it’s still very difficult to say.”

He had already formed an outline of the entire incident in his heart. All he needed was a little more information.

In order to get his hands on the information, he would have to go to the county and borrow the county journal.