Otherworldly Merchant

The uncle turned back to look at us. When he saw us, he urged us to hurry up since there were venomous snakes and wild animals hiding in the mountains. If we slowed down, we could be attacked.

I nodded and said, “Okay.”

Then, we increased our speed and followed after him.

The uncle brought us back to his house and sat in the funeral hall. This further set off his abnormal behavior. Under normal circumstances, the first thing he should do was check his mother’s coffin to see if anything had happened.

However, he didn’t seem too interested in his mother right now.

I didn’t say much and just sat next to him. “We should rest first. Tomorrow, we will go back to the mountain and check things out. We couldn’t see things clearly today because it was too dark.”

The uncle nodded. Although he was sitting on the chair, he soon started snoring.

I pretended to sleep and laid right next to him.

Li Mazi continuously winked at me. I knew he was wondering how I could sleep when I knew that the uncle could do something to harm us.

I shot him a meaningful glance, hinting that I wasn’t sleeping and was pretending in order to see what the uncle planned to do.

Li Mazi also closed his eyes and pretended to sleep.

I was tired, though. So when I laid down, I started to feel sleepy. However, I didn’t dare to sleep. I quietly read the sacred text of Daoism to keep my mind clear.

The uncle didn’t move. It was as if he was really sleeping.

No matter how effective the sacred text of Daoism was, I still began to feel anxious and restless. I felt sleepy again and almost couldn’t bear it.

After holding on for three or four hours, I was exhausted both mentally and physically. I felt that the uncle wouldn’t do anything, and he had just wanted to rush home from the dangerous mountain. There shouldn’t be any problems.

With that thought, I decided to rest.

I stopped reading the sacred text of Daoism and prepared to take a nap.

However, as soon as I was about to drift into sleep, the uncle next to me started to move.

He got up from the sofa and gently called, “Mr. Zhang.”

Of course, I didn’t answer.

When he confirmed that I was sleeping, he exhaled in relief. Then, he went to check his mother’s coffin. He just stood there and gazed at it.

What the heck is he doing there? 

I thought that he would mess with the five-thunder thread to help the Ghost King suck his mother’s Yin energy, but he didn’t do that. He stood there for a while then headed towards the entrance.

When the uncle got to the courtyard, Li Mazi got up and prepared to wake me up.

I gave Li Mazi a wink and asked him not to act rashly. Perhaps the uncle was still prying on us.

Li Mazi laid back and pretended to sleep again.

Sure enough, the door was pushed open again soon after. The uncle staggered in, and after he confirmed that we didn’t chase after him, he went out again.

Once he left, I woke Li Mazi up and we both rushed after him.

Li Mazi followed behind me and gasped for his breath. “What the heck does he want to do? I knew he was sketchy!”

I shook my head and said, “I don’t know. Let’s just follow him. We can’t let him discover us.”

“ARGHHHH!” As soon as the two of us got to the mountain, we heard the scream of an old man.

After hearing the voice, I almost shouted in shock.

The voice was too familiar. It was my grandpa’s voice!

Although it had been ten years since I had parted from him, his voice and face were deeply carved in my heart. I was sure it was him.

It’s really my grandpa!

That female corpse had occupied his coffin, and he had nowhere to stay. Did that mean he had to endure torment every day? I had to save him!

 I knew I was facing a Ghost King, but even if my opponent was the King of Hell himself, I wouldn’t retreat!

The uncle went all the way to the mountain. His somewhat hunchback body moved as agilely as a monkey. He quickly moved through the trees and the bumpy path and headed toward the cave that hid the coffin.

Li Mazi and I struggled to climb up, and we almost lost sight of him a few times. But in the end, we managed to reach the cave.

The uncle didn’t go near the coffin. Instead, he went to a thick bush nearby. When he lifted the dried grass, I stopped breathing from shock.

A man was quietly lying inside the bush...

His clothing, his face... he looked exactly the same as that other uncle!

How can there be two of them? It seems that the uncle that took us down the mountain was fake...

I took in a deep breath.

The fake uncle touched the real uncle's forehead. As the real uncle woke up, the fake one prepared to sneak away.

That bastard has been deceiving us all this time!

My face turned purple in rage. I raised the Sirius Whip and dashed forward, lashing at the fake uncle’s back.

However, the Sirius Whip didn’t affect him a bit. He was surprised but soon disappeared into the darkness. He angrily glared at us before fleeing.

Damn, even my Sirius Whip couldn’t hurt him. Who was that man? 

The real uncle woke up and was panic-stricken. “Help me! Help me!”

Since I was focused on the fake uncle, I didn’t have time to care about him. I asked Li Mazi to stay and take care of him while I ran after the fake uncle.

However, that fake uncle didn’t have a tangible body. After he hid in the forest, I lost sight of him.

Then, I heard my grandpa’s voice like a head-splitting siren from the peak of the mountain.

My grandpa is at the top of the mountain!

I didn’t hesitate and climbed up to the mountain top. I had to find my grandpa and ask him about his death. Then, I would look for his murderer.

While I was climbing up the mountain, I noticed that someone was watching my back.

I immediately turned around to check.

It turned out that the beautiful female corpse was chasing after me! 

 When did she get out of the coffin? And, why is she chasing after me?

I halted and stared at her.

The beautiful corpse was almost illusory, just as if it was some 3D projection.

I grabbed a handful of soybeans and shouted angrily, “Who the hell are you? Why are you stalking me?”

She didn’t say anything but kept staring at my eyes.

She had curves in the right places, crystal clear eyes, and exquisite facial features. She was extremely beautiful. However, I wasn’t in the mood to admire her. I just wanted to find my grandpa.

I threw the soybeans to the ground and warned her, “If you cross this line, don’t blame me for attacking you.”

After I threw the stunning corpse a fierce look, I turned and headed to the mountain.

The corpse didn’t want to give up. When I took a step forward, she also took a step forward.

I was enraged. There was a high chance that she was a Ghost King, so I needed to see her real face.

Forests were always filled with things with strong Yin energy. If I could find some items with strong Yin energy, I could open my Yin and Yang Eye to see her real face. I checked around and found a tuft of Myriad Root Grass.

According to legends, the Myriad Root Grass would grow after ghost tears fell to the ground. Since it had absorbed the tears of a ghost, it was full of Yin energy; it could help me open my ‘Yin and Yang Eye.’

I was excited and quickly pulled out the Myriad Root Grass. I crushed it in my palms and applied the grass extract to my eyes.

The female corpse didn’t know what I’m doing. She observed me with curiosity.

After I smeared the fluid on my eyes, I felt a sharp pain, as if I had grains of sand in them.

I tried to rub my eyes to adjust to the pain. Then, I turned to look at the female corpse.

In the next moment, I was dumbstruck. The beautiful female corpse was gone, and the only thing left was a strange set of clothes that flew back and forth. It looked really weird.

I didn’t know what the clothing was made of, but it was shiny and somewhat resembled a set of armor. The upper body looked like a t-shirt and the lower body looked like a pair of long-legged boxers.

Also, the upper garment seemed to have plates of gold connected to one other. It shined dazzlingly.

Is that the culprit or just the otherworldly item? 

“Why did you want to swallow those souls? It’s something that goes against the will of the heavens. You will be punished for it!” I shouted.

The set of clothes didn’t say anything and just floated in front of me.

I wanted to chase after it and capture it. However, as soon as I came close, it quickly retreated. When I moved back, it followed me…

I cursed under my breath. I didn’t want to waste time on this golden clothing. My current goal was to find my grandpa.

I turned around and rushed toward the mountain top like crazy.

It looked like no one had ever visited this place. There was no path, and the plants here were lush. Centipedes, snakes, and rats were everywhere. If I was a little careless, I could step on a venomous snake and get poisoned. I regretted not bringing some realgar powder to keep the animals away.

Eventually, I reached the mountain top. The set of garments still followed after me.

The plants at the top of the mountain were even lusher. Although the moon over my head was round, the moonlight couldn’t pierce through the branches. The entire place was deadly silent except for the cicadas and crickets. My grandpa’s voice had also vanished into thin air.

However, I had a strong premonition that his soul was nearby!