Chapter 47: Ghosts Forcing People
Li Lin was very surprised.
Weren’t True Lords unable to casually leave the regions they guarded?
Moreover, the Fourfold Wonder True Lord had not “summoned” any other True Lords either, so how had the Tree Immortal Lady come here?
The Tree Immortal Lady drifted down.
Her long serpent tail stretched into the darkness.
She was very quiet, yet emotions seemed to surge within the eyes fixed on Li Lin.
“Go back.”
Li Lin froze for a moment.
Go back?
Right now?
He looked at the pitch-black night outside the window.
Getting back now would not be a simple matter.
“Is it urgent? Did something happen in the village?” Li Lin asked.
The Tree Immortal Lady did not speak.
Instead, she gently shook her head.
Nothing had happened in the village?
Li Lin carefully observed the cold expression on the Tree Immortal Lady’s face.
Then he seemed to understand something.
Smiling, he said, “Don’t worry. I’ll go back tomorrow night.”
The Tree Immortal Lady’s expression softened somewhat.
It seemed that his spending the night in the county town had indeed made her unhappy.
But he had occasionally stayed overnight in the county town before.
Why had she not reacted so strongly back then, yet now...
Li Lin looked around.
He looked at the room.
A realization formed in his mind.
“I only bought this place as a convenient place to stay.”
Li Lin spoke gently.
“This isn’t my real home. Shangtikou Village is.”
Upon hearing those words, the Tree Immortal Lady’s figure gradually faded before disappearing.
Li Lin wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
Then he stretched lazily.
Just as he was preparing to sleep, he suddenly jumped out of bed again, pushed open the window, and looked toward the distant sky.
In his perception, a mass of resentment had appeared over there.
It was extraordinarily vast.
Li Lin estimated the distance and direction.
He realized it was the location of the great lake outside the county town.
The resentment he had sensed while sitting in the pavilion during the day was probably the same resentment that had now suddenly emerged.
I should go take a look.
The resentment was simply too enormous.
Li Lin felt uneasy.
He pushed open the door to the main bedroom.
After walking only as far as the second courtyard, he heard a voice call out from the side quarters ahead.
“Who’s walking around?”
“It’s me.”
“Master?”
“That’s right.”
Zhang Afu emerged from his room.
Using the moonlight, he recognized Li Lin and cupped his hands.
“Master, you’re going out so late at night?”
“I’m a Spirit Hunter.”
Li Lin tapped the white jade token at his waist.
Zhang Afu immediately became respectful.
“Master works hard.”
Li Lin waved a hand.
“Leave the gate unlocked for me. I don’t know when I’ll be back.”
“Yes, Master.”
Li Lin left the house and arrived beneath the eastern city wall.
He was just preparing to climb up when a patrol of local soldiers spotted him and shouted an inquiry.
“Who goes there?”
“Spirit Hunter Li Lin.”
After presenting his white jade token, the patrolling soldiers let him pass.
Li Lin climbed onto the city wall.
To his surprise, he found a familiar figure already standing there.
It was Zhao Hao.
“Young Master Zhao, why are you here?” Li Lin walked over and asked.
“That thing in the lake affected me, so I couldn’t sleep and came to take a look.”
Zhao Hao looked at Li Lin and smiled.
“I imagine it’s the same for you.”
Li Lin nodded.
Standing atop the city wall, they could see the distant lake.
Under the moonlight, only faint ripples covered its surface.
It appeared very peaceful.
Yet only Spirit Hunters knew that something in the lake was causing a disturbance.
Before long, Su Huafang also climbed up.
“Oh, what a coincidence.”
Su Huafang greeted them with a smile.
Li Lin could not help asking, “Judging by how calm you both are, you must already know what’s in the lake?”
“We do.”
Su Huafang smiled bitterly.
“It’s merely the result of an old miscarriage of justice. The victim developed resentment. Even after being sunk into the lake, he never abandoned his desire for revenge. Every year or two, it causes a disturbance.”
“A miscarriage of justice?”
Li Lin was somewhat shocked.
“The County Magistrate doesn’t seem like that kind of person.”
Su Huafang waved his hand.
“It was the previous County Magistrate’s doing. Because of that case, he was dismissed from office and his entire family was exiled to Ningguta. ”
“Is it dangerous when it acts up?”
Zhao Hao laughed.
“Not dangerous. It just makes a bigger spectacle.”
“I see.”
Li Lin yawned.
“Then I’ll head back and rest. Thank you for your hard work, gentlemen.”
“You’re too polite.”
The county town was jointly overseen by Su Huafang, Zhao Hao, and three other Spirit Hunters.
After all, the county town was large and had plenty of troublesome incidents.
Having several Spirit Hunters assigned to it was entirely normal.
Li Lin returned to his new home and immediately went to sleep.
He did not wake until nearly noon.
Gathering the five servants together, he said, “I won’t be living here permanently, so I’ll leave this household in your care for now.”
The five silently looked at Li Lin.
Li Lin took out several silver notes, placed them in a box, and handed it to Zhang Afu.
“There’s one hundred taels of silver inside. Use it to hire someone who can cook. From now on, money for rice, vegetables, clothing, and other necessities will come from this fund. I’ll replenish it regularly.”
It had to be said that last night’s meal had been rather unpleasant.
Li Lin felt he could cook better food himself.
Zhang Afu bent his waist.
“Master, please rest assured. I’ll make sure this household is properly managed.”
Afterward, Li Lin went to a restaurant.
Sitting by a window, he sipped sweet fermented rice wine and enjoyed fine food.
Not long afterward, two guests arrived at a nearby table.
They looked dusty from travel.
Li Lin paid them no attention at first.
Customers coming and going in a restaurant was perfectly normal.
However, the content of their conversation while eating soon attracted his attention.
They believed they were speaking very quietly.
Ordinarily, no one should have been able to hear them.
Yet Li Lin still heard everything.
After all, he was now a ranked Spirit Hunter, and his hearing had improved considerably.
“Where exactly did Zhang Xianrui and Yan Hai die? We’ve searched three places already and still haven’t found them.”
“Only Shangtikou Village remains unchecked.”
“The Young Master said it doesn’t matter whether they’re alive or dead. Those two garments must be found and brought back to the sect.”
“What if we can’t find them?”
“If we can’t find them, we’ll kill everyone in the village. Then the garments will naturally be found. Someone will hand them over.”
Hearing that, Li Lin calmly called over a waiter and settled his bill.
Then he left the restaurant, headed straight for a blacksmith’s shop, purchased a red-tasseled spear, and hid in the shadows of an alley outside the restaurant.
Before long, the two men also emerged.
After leaving through the city gate, they headed along the country road leading toward Shangtikou Village.
Li Lin followed from a great distance behind them.
Using the woods on both sides of the road as cover, he advanced in a crouch.
At that moment, the notification that had not appeared for a long time surfaced once again.
[Stealth +1]
Using stealth to hunt wild ghosts no longer increased his proficiency.
Unexpectedly, following these two outsiders brought a pleasant surprise.
The two men took large strides as they walked.
Yet Li Lin could easily keep up.
After several days of practicing his lightness skill, his walking speed had become much faster than before.
After traveling for quite some time, they reached a bend that was nearly a right angle.
Familiar with the terrain, Li Lin used the trees as cover and accelerated.
Very quickly, he shortened the distance between them.
They had already entered his attack range.
His eyes turned cold.
Without the slightest hesitation, he forcefully drove the spearhead of his long spear into the ground.
Then, through the gaps between the trees, he watched the two men in the distance.
His hands began forming seals.