Chapter 42

Chapter 42: Shui Ximen III

The four waterways below the feet diverged from the four arches of the old bridge, flowing toward the distance, soaked in ink-black under the night, blending with the horizon.

The little yellow ducks, under the water farmer's rod and shouts, swam far away.

The yellowish hue in the darkness looked slightly pale and dim.

"......"

Ming Yue patted the bridge's railing, looking around, thinking about who to report the anomaly of the first waterway to.

But at the moment, after Chen Wuqi issued the command for students to check things themselves, no one knew where he had run off to.

The upperclassmen were all busy with their own tasks, some measuring the foundation of Shui Ximen, some going to the fields to check the crops' growth to judge the direction of shadow and sunlight, while a large group of people was heading toward the chaotic grave mound...

It’s no wonder they were students from the Spirit Sealing Institute; they were brave enough to climb grave mounds in the middle of the night.

Who knows if the old ghosts wandering at night would get scared and scurry back upon seeing so many people coming to disturb the graves.

Ming Yue had the kind of personality where if she thought of doing something, she just did it. Extremely mobile, she planned to roll up her sleeves and check the situation herself. She had barely taken two steps and was about to climb over the railing when Yan Jun pulled her back — he had been seemingly checking the data but was actually watching her actions with the corner of his eye:

"What are you doing?"

Ming Yue, not understanding: "Going into the river, to see what’s going on."

"Just looking won’t do anything."

Yan Jun: "......"

Yan Jun had grown up in a big city and was truly astonished by people like Ming Yue, who would “climb mountains” or “go into rivers” without hesitation.

“It’s 9:30 at night, Ming Yue.”

“You’re a girl.” Shui Ximen has heavy Yin energy, and in such an environment, women are naturally weaker than men.

Yan Jun reminded her.

Besides, knowing that the waterway had issues, how could he possibly let her go alone to investigate?

Ming Yue raised her hand, mimicking a muscular pose after eating spinach, like Popeye: “I’m a little sun.”

“Full of Yang energy.”Yan Jun: "......"

Yan Jun chuckled: "You’re more like a little moon."

After saying that, he put away the unfinished Yin-Yang level map, "Let’s go, I’ll go with you."

Ming Yue stopped him, holding his arm: "Aren’t you still in the middle of drawing the map?"

"Important matters come first."

Yan Jun naturally folded the paper with most of the map still incomplete and calmly said: "Your life is more important."

"I’m quick with my hands, the rest will only take about half an hour."

So, the two bold individuals decisively “violated the rules” by climbing over the old bridge’s railing and jumped onto the riverbank covered with reeds.

From above, the reed patch didn’t look thick and appeared to float lazily on the riverbank. But after jumping down, they realized it was nearly impossible to see above the reeds.

The surroundings were eerily silent.

Ming Yue carefully touched a slender reed stalk, feeling the sharpness of its bristles.

The plant’s root system was deeply embedded in the earth, absorbing water and stabilizing the soil.

If something was off with the water and soil here, the plants would definitely show signs of it.

She carefully took a segment of the reed. In May, the reeds were tender and juicy. Ming Yue squeezed it, and her palm turned green. Then, she brought her palm close to her left eye.

The dry Yin eye immediately began to absorb the Yin energy in fine detail.

As expected.

"......"

Yan Jun knelt on one knee and placed the manifestation talisman on the soft, wet riverbank.

The damp talisman trembled, and the black mist visibly spread, staining the yellow paper as though it had been soaked in ink.

The Yin energy was so thick.

Yan Jun’s heart skipped a beat.How could this happen?

At this moment, the talisman paper was quickly corroded by the Yin energy, and it had already rotted away.

Yan Jun understood that the Shui Ximen station project was not handling an already exploded dangerous situation, but was simply a preventive measure. The main reason was that the transportation department didn’t want to close off the surrounding residential areas, which were like the mouths of cotton-padded pants, so they shamelessly asked the feng shui assessment team to come over and issue a report to appease the residents.

So, in a sense, Shui Ximen also had water and people.

But how could there be such a heavy Yin energy in this place?

Beside him, Ming Yue saw the rotting remains of the talisman paper on the riverbank and squatted next to Yan Jun. "This is really strange."

"Didn't you say there's a real estate development behind Shui Ximen?"

"Isn't anyone living there? How could this happen?"

"The yellow paper is all black."

Yan Jun frowned but said nothing.

He focused on the river.

There was a faint layer of black mist floating on the water, shallow and light, with no discernible origin or destination.

"Two possibilities."

He slowly spoke, but before he finished, Ming Yue picked up the conversation: "Either the flowing water has a problem, or the soil has a problem, right?"

"......"

Yan Jun looked at her.

Ming Yue smiled. "Looks like we’re in sync."

Then, she took out a few manifestation talismans and hopped across the small stones to the second and third waterways. Yan Jun didn’t even manage to call her back.

The river's pebbles were slippery from the water, but she wasn’t afraid of slipping and falling.

Ming Yue placed the manifestation talisman on the second and third waterways.

As expected, the talisman paper turned faint grayish-black, not exceeding the water's Yin energy value limit as recorded in the books.

However, the second waterway was a bit darker in color than the third.Ming Yue quickly bounced back and showed the talisman paper to Yan Jun, asking him to take a sample and make a record:

"It should be a water issue."

"But the Yin energy in the first waterway has already moistened the soil and started to pollute the second waterway."

"No wonder the ducks won't swim."

Birds generally have a weaker Yang energy.

Ducks can't crow to call for the sun, unlike roosters with their robust energy.

Naturally, they wouldn't want to enter this strange waterway.

Yan Jun looked at her, somewhat angry: "Can you please pay attention to your safety, Ming Yue?"

"You know this water body is abnormal, yet you're jumping around recklessly."

Ming Yue scratched her hair. "Thanks for your concern, class leader."

"Just think of me as having ADHD, hahahaha."

"Anyway, the Integrated Studies team always has to fight on the front lines."

After speaking, she squatted down and took two steps forward, staring at the dark river water for a moment, then asked: "Can you see what's in the water?"

Yan Jun replied irritably: "These are human eyes, not infrared."

Ming Yue gave a "Oh" sound, sniffed the air—no sewage smell—and then suddenly said: "How about tasting a spoonful?"

"The sensory data collected from the body is the most accurate."

Yan Jun's hair stood on end in fright: "You dare!"

"Put your hands down!"

After speaking, Yan Jun made a note next to the sampling talisman:

【Fluid water anomaly, questioning the upstream waterway.】

Ming Yue smiled, but after being stopped by Yan Jun, she didn’t say anything further. She took out her water bottle, poured out clean water, and scooped up a cup of dirty river water.Go back and ask Senior Chen Hongmei from the Medical School to test it.

Chen Hongmei: ...

Chen Hongmei: Can you let me be silent? I haven't appeared for dozens of chapters!

Time reached 10:30.

Ming Yue and Yan Jun climbed onto the bridge and walked towards the cemetery.

A group of people were gathered there.

After all, the cemetery was "someone else's" territory, so the students didn’t light any open flames—doing so would be too "Yang" and disrespectful to the deceased.

So, instead, there were a bunch of people using their phones as light sources, and a few students who were specialized in lighting phosphorus fires.

At first glance,

It was a scene filled with light, a ghastly pale greenish glow.

Passersby with poor eyesight couldn’t even tell if this sea of heads was made up of living people or dead ones.

"…"

Bai Linlang waved at Ming Yue.

However, Bai Linlang, the head of the room, was shining the flashlight from the wrong angle. The flashlight was aimed up from under her chin, casting a light that made Bai Linlang’s beautiful face look like Sadako.

Ming Yue: ...

Ming Yue walked over and quickly turned the flashlight in the correct direction.

Really can’t stand it.

Digging graves in the middle of the night and still having to watch living people act like ghosts.

Ming Yue thought.

The cemetery, as Yan Jun had said, had uneven terrain. The tombstones were arranged in a messy, crooked fashion, all slanted in the ground, with no paper offerings or incense. The earth was filled with lonely wandering spirits.

When the wind blew, everything was quiet.A group of people squatted in the cemetery, exchanging their findings.

The second-year students in charge of checking the Water West Gate station’s base station spoke up:

The construction at the Water West Gate station shows clear signs of rushing; the walls are not solid, unlike the previous calculations for the Tiantan station. The cause is unclear, and we need to liaise with the Ministry of Transport before making further assessments.

Additionally, there is a metallic smell of blood inside the station. It’s suspected that workplace injuries have been concealed.

The vegetable field team concluded:

No significant abnormalities.

The few tea trees beside the vegetable field are growing exceptionally well.

Yan Jun from the riverway team spoke up:

The first waterway has issues; the upstream section definitely has problems.

However, waterways are different from land routes, and since this is an old city gate, it’s recommended to come back during the day when there is more Yang energy to examine all four waterways.

Bai Linlang hugged her knees, poking Ming Yue who was playing with an anthill by a grave, “So what’s wrong with the waterway?”

Ming Yue gave the most impressive ant she found to the head of the room, Bai Linlang, who took it speechlessly:

"The Yin energy is especially strong."

"The talisman paper has turned completely black."

"The ducks refuse to cross it."

"A murder must have happened around here, probably not a small one, but whether it’s old or new, I can’t say."

After releasing the ant, Bai Linlang muttered:

"You’re calling old and new murder cases 'old wine and new wine,' Ming Yue? That’s a rather unique metaphor."

Ming Yue proudly responded: "Of course, I’m quite talented."

Bai Linlang: "..."

Bai Linlang pressed her head down and slapped her: "Talent? More like dog crap."Finally, it was the turn for the group in charge of organizing the Yin and Yang isovalue line map to speak. Qin Lin placed the large flatboard in the center of the crowd. The isovalue line map on it was intricately woven, with densely packed purple and blue lines that at first glance looked like the cold pressure of Siberian air masses on a geographical map.

Qin Lin: "The markings remain the same."

"The rainbow spectrum: the red end represents Yang energy, while the purple end represents Yin energy."

"Green is for safe zones." The second-year class leader, being considerate of the first-year students around, kindly explained again.

"Everyone take a look."

A group of people huddled around, heads bumping into each other.

The isovalue line map, spanning a few hundred meters, resembled a pot of red-purple porridge.

The red was not particularly saturated, but the purple was a deep, dark, almost black shade, fragmented into small clumps without ever forming a continuous mass. It was like a pot of bone broth that had been stomped on, bubbling with dark bone fragments.

The two main colors alternated like a two-color jigsaw puzzle. The purple was prominent, the winding isovalue lines failing to form complete loops, twisting and turning.

The crowd: "…"

The crowd: "???"

Strange.

Why was it so fragmented?

Yang didn’t gather, and Yin didn’t converge.

What in the world?

Ming Yue scratched her head and was the first to speak: "Senior, is this some new type of Yin-Yang landform?"

Qin Lin chuckled, "I’m puzzled too."

"Normally, the Yin-Yang energy in natural flow patterns tends to cluster together. This is my first time encountering something like this."

"And look here—"

Qin Lin pointed to the area where the red and purple blocks met on the screen. The crowd leaned forward to take a closer look, and Ming Yue let out an "Oh!" as her head bumped into Yan Jun’s.

"This place, where the Yin and Yang energies condense in the gap between clusters, has a narrow buffer zone. It should have transitioned through the spectrum, from red to orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and then into purple."

"But the map doesn't show this.""Every place, basically, doesn't have a buffer color."

"This proves that underground Yin and Yang energy in this area are clashing violently. There must be a very strong source of Yang energy or Yin energy present."

Qin Lin's observation was on point.

But no one could answer this question.

Jin Yuanbao, the little chubby boy, hugged his knees and raised his hand, his face turning pale from the cold:

"Could it be dismembered corpses? If the dead have grudges and are buried in many places, then... there would be many Yin energy sources?"

Qin Lin chuckled: "Good idea, Junior."

"But this is a bit too fragmented, too much." Also, each purple section isn't small.

"Dismemberment doesn't seem realistic."

Chen Wuqi didn't plan to explain.

This class was meant to let a group of students experience the fieldwork firsthand, to practice hands-on.

Now, the objective had been achieved.

As for whether something would happen in the Water West Gate area, Chen Wuqi didn’t care much.

He wasn’t like Li Xianzhou, who had a cold exterior but a warm heart.

Chen Wuqi, on the other hand, didn’t have much of a sense of good and evil. He only cared about responsibility.

The safety of the students was his responsibility, and he would manage it.

As for the residents around this Yin area with ill intentions, it wasn’t his responsibility. If they died and piled up like a mountain by the roadside, he might not even glance at it.

After letting the students discuss for a while longer, Chen Wuqi threw away his cigarette butt and clapped his hands to end the class:

"Alright, alright."

"It’s getting late.""Qin Lin, Yan Jun, organize a taxi."

"We’re getting ready to head back."

The next morning, Ming Yue went straight to the Medical School to ask Chen Hongmei for help with testing the river water.

Chen Hongmei readily agreed.

"How interesting."

Chen Hongmei, wearing a white lab coat, said: "After last year's academy formation, your Spiritual Academy became famous."

"Now you’re asking me to test river water, this feels really..." materialistic and non-materialistic, quite interesting.

"To be honest, Junior, you should have asked the Environmental Engineering department to do the testing, you know?"

Chen Hongmei patted the little junior’s head.

Ming Yue tapped her head, "I’ll go look for the senior students in Environmental Engineering later."

"Hehe, Senior, don’t mind me."

"We’re all from the same school, teamwork!"

"Spiritual Academy and Medical School united, invincible under the heavens!"

Chen Hongmei laughed.

"Consider this as a thank you for helping us remove a hidden danger last year."

"Alright, good girl, go to class now."

At the same time,

Other sampling teams were also in contact with other departments within the school for collaboration.

After all, every profession has its own expertise, and the Spiritual Academy doesn't know everything.

Yan Jun and Qin Lin, early in the morning, took the surveying map and went to find the Department of Earth Sciences.The next afternoon, the School of Architecture received the on-site photos from last night's Water West Gate station.

There were also students who went to the Agricultural College to audit a class, and by the way, consulted about the growing habits of major vegetation crops within a kilometer of the Water West Gate.

Just as Ming Yue had said.

Comprehensive universities, teamwork.

A few days passed in the blink of an eye.

Today, Chen Hongmei asked Ming Yue to come and pick up the test results.

Ming Yue had just put on her clothes and was preparing to go out for the results, when Qin Lin, the administrator of the Feng Shui calculation course group, forwarded a piece of news, like a bolt from the blue, which stirred the whole group—

The news was from "Stirring the Stick" "First Vanguard" of the Jinling Morning News.

This morning, while cleaning the Water West Gate station, sanitation workers found a ground collapse, and a human leg was exposed in the pit.

After sorting by the police, it turned out to be two bodies.

Ming Yue: "......"

Bai Linlang, who came over to take a look: "......"

Bai Shizhang sighed: "There really was a murder."