Twilight Boundary

Hu Ma, however, didn't pay much attention to what the workers thought. He only noticed that after Zhou Datong learned this trump card, all the workers in the Manor practiced their skills with more dedication. He was quite satisfied with their performance.

He didn't only teach Zhou Datong. After carefully studying those oil lamps, he called Zhou Liang in. "There are some medicinal herbs on this list," he said. "When you're free, go into town and purchase them."

The first four oil lamps had already been used up. If he wanted to teach others, he needed to prepare more lamp oil.

The materials needed to prepare the lamp oil were not common; they were expensive, and some were extremely difficult to find on the market.

So, in the Shousui man's Path, preparing an oil lamp was a significant undertaking.

But Hu Ma didn't plan to do these things himself. Instead, he arranged for Zhou Liang and Zhao Zhu to handle it, since, after all, the oil lamps were for them. Letting them earn some materials to prepare the oil lamp themselves would also serve as a form of training.

This applied not only to them but even to Zhou Datong. For the first oil lamp, Hu Ma was just starting to teach and was worried about getting it wrong, so he'd used Zhou Datong as a test subject.

After that first oil lamp, they would have to earn the materials needed for subsequent ones themselves.

Of course, Li was an exception. Given his current state… he probably has no fate with the Shousui man's Path in this lifetime.

It wasn't just the procurement of materials for the oil lamps; Hu Ma tried to delegate other matters in the Manor as much as possible.

Now that the Red Lantern Lady had established a temple, the entire Red Lantern Society was likely to undergo earth-shattering changes. Although this hadn't impacted their Manor yet, some changes were already apparent.

Specifically, the Red Lantern Lady was now more concerned about her reputation than before.

The workers in the Manor patrolled the surrounding area every night. If any evil spirit disturbance occurred, not just within a ten-li radius but even within twenty li, it would reflect poorly on her. Consequently, the workers in the Manor became busier than usual.

When the surrounding villagers encountered troubles and came seeking help, the workers had to deal with them.

Of course, there was another issue. Previously, they collected donations openly, settling accounts monthly with the village chief of each village. Now, however, they felt rather embarrassed about it.

This was also why Hu Ma urged Zhou Datong and the others to work diligently. He feared that if they delayed any longer, the donations might dry up completely.

Initially, Hu Ma had worried they might not do well. However, he discovered that he had sometimes underestimated these youths; they had plenty of tricks up their sleeves.

Coming from different places, they had previously just followed others to expel evil spirits, doing whatever they were told. But now that Hu Ma let them take the lead, they boldly prepared all sorts of items for exorcism.

Hu Ma had peeked into their small storeroom: chickens, dung, dog blood, pot ash…

When villagers came for help, the lads would go along, armed with knives, spears, and dung forks. If they caught someone possessed, they'd pour chicken blood over their head. If that didn't work, they'd dunk the person in a dung bucket for a good soak. If there was still no improvement, they'd douse them with a bucket of dog blood, and then several of them would surround the person and blow air on them.

These were all strong young lads, each exhaling True Yang Arrows with every breath.

Never mind the evil spirits; the possessed person would be left half-dead.

However, there was one occasion when they encountered a particularly formidable entity they couldn't handle. Hu Ma had expected them to come looking for him, but instead, they hurried back to the Manor, striding towards the inner courtyard… only to make a sharp turn and duck into the kitchen.

All that could be heard were their strained voices and forced smiles, "Brother Li, that thing causing trouble in Gouzi Village… we really can't handle it."

"We had no choice but to come back and ask for your help…"

"…"

"You lot, wait!" Li scolded them. "Let me finish cooking for Brother Ma Zi first."

Li reprimanded them and then resumed cooking. When he finished the meal, he also casually boiled a pot of sugar eggs.

Then, with everyone escorting him, he went out carrying the pot of sugar eggs.

About an hour later, the group returned. They were all flattering Li, who wore a proud expression. "It was just a passing 'Hedgehog Master'," he announced. "We invited the Third Young Master over, and he resolved it."

"If we had encountered a more formidable one, I would have invited the Seventh Aunt. That would have really shown you something!"

"…"

Hu Ma, watching these incidents unfold in the outer courtyard, was quite surprised.

My jianghu experience is still insufficient, and my judgment is poor! I never would have thought… Li, who seemed the least promising… is actually the most promising one to come out of the village! Without anyone teaching him any particular Path, he became self-taught and learned the skills of a spirit medium, invoking animal spirits…

…

Sighing inwardly with relief, he realized this saved him a lot of trouble. He then focused all his energy on Cultivation.

With the ample support of Blood Food, in less than half a month, he had refined the life of his third organ. Now, it was time to cultivate the most important of the Five Organs: the kidneys.

Actually, in the Path of the Shousui man, among the Five Organs, the heart was universally acknowledged as the most important.

But Hu Ma believed the kidneys were the most crucial.

After all, the kidneys didn't just represent the physical organ. Refining the life within them also invigorated other very important bodily functions.

Moreover, Hu Ma not only wanted to refine the life of his kidneys but was also determined to invest significant effort in them.

The Shousui man possessed the trump card of detaching limbs. With sufficient power, even if a limb couldn't grow back, it could be detached and replaced with a new one.

And upon reaching the stage of the Five Organs, replacement was similarly possible for them.

Many folk tales about heart transplants originated from this ability. However, Hu Ma wasn't particularly fascinated by heart replacement. If I could master the kidney replacement technique, that would be incredibly powerful in the future…

Especially as one's Shousui skills deepened, it seemed one could even replace these organs for others.

Of course, whether detaching limbs or replacing the Five Organs, success depended on one's power and the right timing.

These abilities, however, were not considered trump cards but rather inherent skills that a Shousui man could develop.

Mastering them required endless, painstaking refinement.

Sometimes, an individual who hadn't found the correct approach might spend decades at the limb stage. Eventually, through sheer persistence, they might manage to learn how to detach limbs. Conversely, a Shousui man who obtained the proper dharma method and quickly advanced to the Five Organs stage might ironically find themselves unable to perform these feats.

So, these were not matters to be rushed.

Affairs in the Manor seemed to be progressing smoothly, and the workers were relatively free of concerns. However, Hu Ma, despite focusing on his Cultivation, did not forget to remain vigilant.

He was continuously monitoring events in the city, particularly regarding the green-clothed evil ghost, trying all means to gather information.

Due to the Reincarnator's continued hiding, his current sources of information were limited to Manager Xu and Yang Gong.

Feeling the time was right, Hu Ma called Little Hongtang over. He placed a wild rabbit and a wild pheasant into her basket, both of which Zhao Zhu had unintentionally caught while practicing with his fork.

After all, since he considered Yang Gong a brother, there was no need for overly precious gifts; sending some wild game was a better expression of their camaraderie.

Of course, besides delivering the items, the primary purpose was to gather information.

Little Hongtang did not disappoint. She departed like a gust of spectral wind and returned just as swiftly within a couple of hours. "The items have been delivered!" she announced.

Hu Ma quickly asked, "What did Yang Gong say?"

Little Hongtang tilted her head in thought. "He said, 'My brother Hu Ma has finally seen the light! He actually knows to send a little ghost to scout for news now.'"

"He also said you shouldn't worry. If there's any urgent matter on his end, he'll send Little Cripple to notify you."

"But he also said not to give such generous rewards anymore. His little ghost has become picky and is now insincere when speaking auspicious words to others.'"

"…"

Our Little Hongtang is still the best…

Hu Ma couldn't help but feel a wave of relief. Look how thoroughly she relayed the message!

Then he quickly asked, "What else did he say?"

Little Hongtang replied, "He wanted to remind you to be careful. He said that fellow surnamed Zheng couldn't stay put in the Society and has taken on a task to cooperate with the green clothes gang in searching for someone."

"Right now, they've started going through the Red Lantern Society's Manors, using mirrors to inspect people one by one. Anyone revealed by the mirror is taken away, their fate unknown. The Shopkeepers in each Manor can't stop them, and when the Red Lantern Lady is asked about it, she gives no word…"

"…"

"What?"

Hu Ma felt a chill run down his spine upon hearing this.

It's finally happening.

Earlier, when he heard about the green clothes gang visiting various Paths in Mingzhou City, he had worried they might eventually target the Red Lantern Society.

After all, when it came to the number of people involved in such Paths, which organization in Mingzhou City had more members than the Red Lantern Society?

Now, it seemed his guess had been spot on.

Although they might have started with the Red Lantern Society last, perhaps out of some deference, they had begun nonetheless.

What's more troubling is that fellow surnamed Zheng is helping the green clothes gang?

After a moment of quiet consideration, Hu Ma had to nod to himself. It actually makes sense.

Great Incense Master Zheng had offended the new Red Fragrance Disciples led by Yang Gong. Then, after a teasing remark from Er Guotou, he had also offended the Incense Burners. These were all people very close to the Red Lantern Lady.

Among those who had gained merit in the recent duel, his current situation was ironically the worst. Once this storm blew over, his position as an incense master would likely be precarious. So, his decision to go all out and help the green clothes gang find this person – perhaps it was a calculated gamble on his part?

Let's just hope this doesn't bring trouble upon me…

"Understood."

Taking a deep breath, Hu Ma maintained his composure. Then, he smiled and asked Little Hongtang, "Didn't I also ask you to casually inquire about something else?"

Little Hongtang nodded vigorously. "Little Hongtang remembers! You asked me to inquire about how the winnings in Silver would be divided."

"Yes, yes."

Hu Ma nodded quickly. "What did he say?"

Little Hongtang replied, "Brother Yang Gong said, 'Silver? What Silver?'"

"…"

This remark left Hu Ma completely dumbfounded. "What's this all about?"

"That was two hundred taels of my Silver! They were offering two-to-one odds, so they should owe me four hundred taels. Added to my original stake, that's six hundred taels in total…"

"And just like that, it's gone?"

"…"

That Yang Gong, with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, isn't always an honest fellow, is he…

I'll have to settle this with him sooner or later. But for now, Hu Ma knew what was more critical. Having received word from Yang Gong that the green clothes gang had begun targeting the Red Lantern Society's Manors, he realized it was time for him to make a trip into the mountains.

So, when night fell, after the Manor's workers had all gone to sleep and silence enveloped the surroundings, Hu Ma quietly got out of bed.

He instructed Little Hongtang to keep a good watch from her perch on the beam. Then, he changed out of his Red Lantern Society Shopkeeper's attire, donned a straw cape and a bamboo hat, and stealthily climbed over the rear courtyard wall.

It was time to have a proper chat with the Old Stump Elder…