Above the Great Dao

Zhuge Jian returned to Water Buffalo County, organized the documents on his desk, and although he was discontent with his position in the county, he had already prepared to resign as the archivist. However, as the archivist, he wanted to put everything in perfect order, so that his successor could smoothly assume control of the county affairs.

"Sir, I have gathered and organized the information regarding the events near Huangpo Village and the life of Talisman Master Chen Yindou."

A government official strode into the study, presenting documents and saying, "Sir, Huangpo Village falls under the jurisdiction of Xinxiang County, not our Water Buffalo County. Getting involved in Xinxiang County's affairs could lead to unnecessary complications."

"I understand, you may step down now."

Zhuge Jian waved his hand, then remembered something and said, "This matter must not be mentioned to anyone. Even if the County Magistrate inquires, you cannot speak of it."

The official left.

Zhuge Jian opened the documents and his brows gradually furrowed, tighter and tighter, like two ropes knotted together, forming an indissoluble bond.

"So many incidents occurred near this small Huangpo Village, and so many experts have vanished?"

He gasped in shock; each incident that occurred near Huangpo Village, if it had happened in Water Buffalo County, could be considered a major case!

There were over a dozen missing person cases alone, and those missing were all noteworthy individuals!

"Quanzhou Li Xian, Danjiang He Qinghe, the second young miss of the Zhao family, Lin Family's Lin Feishuang, Xiao Zhu of the Nascent Soul Realm..."

Zhuge Jian's scalp tingled; these were people who had disappeared in the past two years.

"Rumors say that there's a True King's Tomb within Qianyang Mountain, and these individuals were likely lured by it with the intent of unraveling its secrets and treasure hunting. They ended up missing within Qianyang Mountain. Treasure hunting has always been fraught with death, particularly the True King's Tomb, which is no doubt filled with danger. Thus, it's not entirely surprising. The only question is, why have so many disappeared in the past two years compared to before?"

Zhuge Jian's gaze flickered.

"So many have vanished in the past two years, which suggests there's been a fearsome demon in the vicinity of Huangpo Village who ruthlessly kills every expert who comes his way! Could this person be Talisman Master Chen Yindou? Does he really possess the power to eliminate so many experts? Is his motive to monopolize the wealth of the True King's Tomb?"

He continued reading; the documents described Huangpo Village's Chen Yindou as an ordinary talisman master who made his living by painting and selling talismans and who was law-abiding without any abnormal behavior.

He had a son named Chen Tang, who was seeking a livelihood in the provincial capital and rarely came home.

Chen Yindou also had a grandson who had been dead for a long time and who had suddenly come back to life two years ago, mischievous and bothersome to gods and ghosts...

Zhuge Jian's eyes widened as he repeatedly read the passage to confirm he hadn't misread.

The document indeed stated that Chen Yindou's grandson, Chen Tang's son, had come back to life after being dead for so long!

"In rural areas, many bizarre things happen, and it's likely an Evil Spirit possessed the corpse!"

Zhuge Jian calmed his mind and whispered, "Evil creatures are categorized as: evil, demon, monster, calamity, catastrophe. The one possessing Chen Yindou's grandson should be at the evil or demon level, not yet reaching the level of a monster, a far cry from causing calamities. That suggests those who have gone missing in the past two years are mostly related to Chen Yindou's grandson."

He read on: "Chen Yindou's grandson's name is Chen Shi. Hmm, Chen Shi, Chen...Cheng Shi?!"

Zhuge Jian was startled, standing up suddenly, almost throwing the document in his hands.

This Chen Shi was clearly the same young Cheng Shi who had killed Li Xiaoding and the other nine people, and he was also the righteous Chen Shi who had dredged up the bones of three children and returned them to their families!

"I had never heard of the surname Cheng; turns out his surname is Chen, related to Chen Yindou!"

Zhuge Jian felt his scalp tingle again, but also found it strange. If Chen Shi's resurrection was the result of being possessed by an Evil Spirit, then the villagers of Huangpo Village should have been devoured by him long ago.

Not just Huangpo Village, but all the nearby villages and towns would have been eaten clean by him!

Yet, surprisingly, Chen Shi appeared quite kind, evidently not possessed by an Evil Spirit.

He sat down slowly and picked up the document to continue reading.

"The villagers of Huangpo Village claim that half a month ago, Chen Yindou died... Chen Yindou died, too?!"

He paused at this point, took a breath, and continued reading, "The day after he was buried, Chen Yindou became a corpse demon, sitting up in his coffin, eating candles, smelling incense, sleeping in his coffin. Since then, livestock often die in the village, drained of blood, and the villagers believe he has become a corpse demon, saying: zombie..."

Zhuge Jian's scalp tingled; Chen Yindou was the demon!

He took a moment to compose himself. If Chen Yindou had been possessed by an Evil Spirit or turned into a corpse demon, not just livestock, but the villagers of Huangpo Village would have been long gone!

"In half a month, this zombie could have devoured every living being within miles. The first person he would have eaten is Chen Shi by his side, so why has he never made a move?"

Zhuge Jian was perplexed and thought to himself, "Could it be because Chen Shi is also a zombie? Or perhaps both are possessed by demons, and that's why there's been no grandfather-grandson conflict? However, Chen Shi seems very much alive, definitely not a zombie. Then it could only be possession by a demon, yet he doesn't seem to be..."

This grandfather-grandson duo was too strange, as if each of them had many secrets.

"Those who disappeared these past two years are likely related to this odd pair. The missing individuals often come from powerful families, and they surely won't just let matters rest."

Xin Xiang Province has another name for its capital city – the Emperor Town, the Imperial City!

Emperor Town, what does this title imply?