CHAPTER 88: LIN FAMILY SHRINE, ZHANG HAI

In such a heavy, eerie atmosphere, any ordinary person would already be chilled to the bone with fear. But Li Yanchu continued forward at an unhurried pace. Meanwhile, Bai Hongtu, with a long sword at his waist, walked shoulder-to-shoulder with him.

At the entrance of the Lin family Shrine, the gates stood wide open, revealing a dark and shadowy interior. The ancestral shrine was a vital place for any village as it was used to enshrine ancestral tablets and offer prayers for protection over future generations.

With his skill and confidence, Li Yanchu boldly stepped forward, intending to take a look inside the Lin ancestral shrine.

Tap tap tap...

Suddenly, an old man leaning on a cane emerged from within the shrine. His sudden appearance startled them slightly.

“Young sirs, you must be outsiders. The ancestral shrine is a sacred place of Longmen Village. Outsiders must not enter,” the old man said.

His voice was old and raspy, yet full of strength and authority.

“Sir, we’ve just arrived and aren’t familiar with the local customs. Sorry to intrude,” Li Yanchu said with a polite smile.

The cane-wielding old man gave him a once-over, his eyes flashing with something strange. “You’re quite the bold young man. You must’ve seen quite a few strange things on your way here.”

Li Yanchu replied calmly, “Indeed. Why is it that the villagers of Longmen Village all prefer to eat so late at night? And why is nearly every household crying out in hunger?”

The moment the word “eat“ left his mouth, a red gleam flickered in the old man’s eyes. Suddenly, he raised his heavy cane high and swung it down viciously! His movement was swift and fierce, nothing like an old man’s.

Li Yanchu grabbed the cane with one hand, stopping it cold. The old man couldn’t budge it at all; he was monstrously strong.

With a roar, the old man lunged at him with blood-red eyes, his hands clawing straight for Li Yanchu’s throat. Those shriveled, hook-like fingers gleamed with a sinister light, aiming to strangle him on the spot.

His expression was utterly crazed.

Bang!

Li Yanchu struck with one palm, slamming the old man to the ground. A surge of scorching-hot blood qi burst from Li Yanchu’s body in an instant.

But the moment the old man hit the ground, he leapt up again like a wild beast, movement unnaturally agile.

Malevolent qi exploded from his body, his hair whipping wildly behind him. He looked nothing like a frail elder anymore, but more like a savage beast of the mountains.

Li Yanchu’s brow furrowed as he threw out a heavy punch.

Boom!

The old man was sent flying again; this time, Li Yanchu infused it with a massive surge of Six Yang Force. The old man’s body crashed hard to the ground, lying there completely still.

But, the next moment, something strange happened. The elder’s body suddenly vanished right before their very eyes, disappearing into thin air!

Li Yanchu and Bai Hongtu exchanged a look. Where did that old man go!?

Roughly three breaths later, a sound came from within the ancestral shrine.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

An elderly man, holding a cane, slowly walked out from the shrine.

“Young sirs, you must be outsiders. The ancestral shrine is a sacred place of Longmen Village. Outsiders must not enter,”

Li Yanchu’s gaze darkened. This time, he was genuinely taken aback. He can’t be killed!? After being killed... he just reappears somewhere else!?

Li Yanchu asked in a low voice, “Old Sir, do you know someone named Zhang Hai?”

The white-haired old man nodded. His eyes held no red glow, no hostility or killing intent.

“You mean Mr. Zhang? He was a good man.”

“A good man?”Li Yanchu pressed on.

Zhang Hai was just a regular antique merchant, doing business in Longmen Village. Calling him a “good man” seemed... a bit much.

The old man nodded slightly, sighing. “A year ago, a feng shui master came to our village. Said he could change the layout of the Lin ancestral shrine to bring great fortune and prosperity.

“The villagers were overjoyed, thinking that from then on, life in Longmen Village would improve. But who could’ve known that after the feng shui was altered, strange things began happening one after another.

“First, a child playing by the river was swept away and drowned. Then Lin Wang, who went in to rescue him, also died in the river. Three people died in quick succession.

“After that, it was one death after another in every household. Some died of illness, some fell to their deaths while gathering herbs in the mountains, some drowned fetching water from the well, some were killed by accident during domestic disputes between husband and wife.

“In just half a year, almost half the villagers were dead. So many died that even I can’t remember them all clearly anymore. But then... people started noticing something strange... The ones who died... came back and lived among the villagers just like everyone else...

“But the people of Longmen Village were struck by a strange illness, the Hunger Plague! No matter how much meat they ate, every time the Blood Moon rose, they’d become ravenous. They’d be so hungry they felt like eating themselves.

“Mr. Zhang came to Longmen Village around that time, looking to trade for antiques. He was a warm-hearted man. Many households gave him old junk they no longer wanted, and he happily took it all. After he accidentally learned about what was going on in the village, he said he would go to Wei City to invite a skilled Daoist or exorcist to come and cleanse the evil.”

In the stillness of the night, this white-haired old man, who was one dead but now somehow alive again, slowly recounted the tale of Longmen Village.

And as he spoke, an indescribable chill crept into the heart. Resurrection after death, the reversal of yin and yang?

Even Li Yanchu and Bai Hongtu couldn’t help but feel a cold shiver run down their spines.

Without knowing why, Li Yanchu looked up and saw that the terrifying dark cloud in the sky had descended even lower.

The color of the Blood Moon had grown deeper, brighter, as if fresh blood was seeping through the cracks in the clouds.

Suddenly, a thought struck Li Yanchu. “And then? Did Zhang Hai ever come back?”

Bai Hongtu froze. Wasn’t Zhang Hai already dead in the Wei City prison?

But to their shock, the white-haired old man in the Lin family shrine actually nodded. “He came back. I saw him today with my own eyes. He was at Lady Zhou’s house.”

“What?!” Bai Hongtu exclaimed in disbelief.

Zhang Hai is at Lady Zhou’s house?

Li Yanchu remained composed and continued questioning, “If your village is plagued by evil, why rely on an outsider to go and fetch a exorcist or Daoist? Why not go yourselves?”

The old man narrowed his eyes and studied Li Yanchu for a moment. Then, suddenly, he smiled.

“Because the people of Longmen Village simply can’t leave this place.”

Under the night sky, the old man’s smile froze on his face, as if time had suddenly stopped.

“Old Sir?” Li Yanchu called out.

The old man inside the ancestral hall of the Lin clan had gone completely still. The stillness felt deeply unsettling. The person who had just been speaking with them suddenly became motionless, as if frozen in place.

Li Yanchu gently reached out and pushed the old man, only to find that his palm seemed to pass right through him, as if he wasn’t even there.

“This isn’t right... Just a moment ago, I nearly struck him down. So why can’t I touch him now?” A thoughtful look appeared in Li Yanchu’s eyes.

Bai Hongtu drew in a sharp breath. “What is going on in this village? It all feels so chaotic... so wrong.”

Li Yanchu said in a low voice, “Indeed. This village is far from normal. No ordinary evil spirit would be capable of something like this.”

“But how did Zhang Hai return to Longmen Village? He was clearly dead,” Bai Hongtu said in confusion.

“Could it be that his spirit came back to the village?”

Li Yanchu frowned. “Didn’t the coroner confirm he’d been dead for over three days? Even if his soul were to return, it wouldn’t be today. Besides, as the saying goes, fallen leaves return to their roots. Even if Zhang Hai’s soul came back, it wouldn’t come here.”

Bai Hongtu pondered, “Could it be that some force within this village dragged his soul back here?”