Ink Mountain County, midnight.
The Milky Way hung low, and the moon was hidden in the clouds.
Chen Ming had been waiting early at the entrance of the City God Temple's main hall.
The City God held a noble position, unlike other Earth Gods who could be summoned or dismissed with a single divine scroll.
If he didn't possess a Zhong Kui talisman, the City God probably wouldn't even pay him any mind.
He had heard other Earth Gods mention that the City God's name was Song Tao, originally a scholar from another county, who was once invited by Dongyue Dadi to take an examination.
The examination question was: One person, two people, with heart, without heart.
Song Tao replied: If one acts with the heart to do good, though it is good, it will not be rewarded; if one acts without the heart to do evil, though it is evil, it will not be punished.
Later, Dongyue Dadi took notice of him, and because Song Tao's mother still had nine years of life remaining, Song Tao pleaded with the Dadi to grant him time to care for his mother.
The Dadi, moved by his filial piety, granted him a nine-year leave, after which he would assume his post.
At the time, Chen Ming had scoffed a little when he heard it, wondering if Song City God had ever heard: Of all virtues, filial piety comes first; judge by heart, not by deed, for by deed, no poor family would have a filial son; of all evils, lust is foremost; judge by deed, not by heart, for by heart, no one in the world is perfect.
As the midnight drum just sounded, a gust of Cold Wind suddenly swirled within the City God Temple.
“Creak—”
The hall doors opened without a breeze.
Chen Ming straightened his attire and strode in.
The hall was cold and eerie, the ever-burning lamp on the incense table flickering erratically.
Chen Ming bowed towards the divine platform, his voice clear: “This junior, Chen Ming, apologizes for the intrusion and pays respects to Song City God, Clerk Wen, Wu Judge, and all the esteemed Underworld Deities.”
“From where does the Taoist priest come?”
The voice was ethereal, as if drifting from a great distance, yet also like a whisper right by his ear.
Chen Ming took out a scroll from his sleeve and slowly unrolled it.
The paper was covered in dripping ink, depicting a ferocious demon: eight eyes like lamps, a ghostly face on its belly, and blood-red spider webs wrapped around its body.
“May I ask City God and all the esteemed ones if you have ever seen this creature?”
The scroll moved by itself without a breeze, floated up, and finally landed in the embrace of the City God's statue.
The great hall was dead silent, the City God's statue housing its spirit.
A group of Clerk Wen and Wu Judge stood on both sides, looking at each other, finally turning their gaze to Song City God sitting on the high seat.
Of course they had seen it!
That demon was right here in Ink Mountain County…
But who dared to speak?
Their intelligence was quite good; the ghost Chen Ming had inquired about before, the Painted Skin Ghost, had been slain by Chen Ming in Ji County.
Now that he had set his sights on this Spider Demon, well…
Not to mention whether he could defeat that spider, after all, in their eyes, Chen Ming was considered one of their own; Clerk Wen even held a Zhong Kui protective talisman.
Song City God frowned deeply, clearly pondering how to answer.
He had witnessed the Zhong Kui protective talisman in Chen Ming's hand; that talisman contained the true essence of Zhong Kui, making it a rare protective item for underworld ghosts and deities.
Chen Ming gave him the Zhong Kui talisman, and he helped the other party search for the Painted Skin Ghost's whereabouts, but at that time, the Painted Skin Ghost was not in Ink Mountain County, and the search yielded no results, so he promised to help him search one more time.
Song City God sighed inwardly, his gaze sweeping over the judges in the hall.
“You all must remember,” his voice was low, carrying an undeniable authority, “not a single bit of information about this demon is to be leaked! Otherwise…”
Cold sweat trickled down the foreheads of the Clerk Wen and Wu Judge, and they all bowed in unison, assenting.
The candle flame “popped,” flaring up a bit, making the City God's face flicker between light and shadow.
“Taoist priest, I just searched, and there is no trace of this demon in the entire Ink Mountain County!”
Chen Ming didn't mind, simply nodding to indicate he understood.
Ink Mountain was not particularly big nor small, but it was just one of hundreds of counties under Nanhe Road.
He had searched for the previous Painted Skin Ghost for many years, so he was not in a hurry.
“This junior has one more matter, please enlighten me, Song City God!”
“Speak!”
“This junior humbly asks, does Song City God know the origins of that Eight-Eyed Taoist?”
Upon hearing this, Song City God pressed his hand to his forehead.
However, he could also understand Chen Ming's intention.
A powerful person had suddenly arrived in Ink Mountain County, with unknown origins, and he definitely needed to clarify this, especially since he had relatives here and certainly didn't want any unforeseen disasters to occur.
But this, too, could not be truthfully disclosed.
“The Eight-Eyed Taoist…” The City God's voice suddenly became ethereal, “This person is an enlightened master from Kunyu Mountain.
Kunyu Mountain has been known as the ancestor of immortal mountains on the sea since ancient times, and many immortals and deities have emerged from this mountain.
You must be extremely careful and never easily offend him!”
“Thank you for the reminder, Song City God, this junior takes his leave!”
Chen Ming bowed and cupped his hands, retreated a few steps, then turned and departed.
For a moment, the City God's main hall fell silent, with only the candle flame of the ever-burning lamp flickering constantly under the night wind's sway.
… …
Night fell.
As Chen Ming pushed open the main door, the door hinge let out a soft “creak,” startling the nightingale perched on the eaves.
“Coming back so late?”
A familiar voice came from behind him.
Chen Ming turned and saw Li Xiangwen standing at the bottom of the stone steps, holding a dim yellow lantern.
He was dressed in the dark uniform of the county yamen, with a saber at his waist, and his face showed a hint of weariness, clearly having just finished his shift.
“Brother-in-law,” Chen Ming greeted with a nod, pushing open the vermilion-lacquered main door.
He was a bit curious.
Although Song City God had warned him not to easily offend the Eight-Eyed Taoist, it wouldn't hurt to learn a bit about him, would it?
“Why are you so late today?”
“Don't even mention it!” Li Xiangwen waved his hand helplessly, “That old Taoist is truly eccentric!”
“He entered the backyard this morning, and by noon, he started demanding to select spirit children, but he made all sorts of strange requests.”
“First, no fire sources were allowed within fifty zhang; second, he liked darkness, so the room had to be pitch black.”
“Third, only one pregnant woman could enter the room at a time.”
“Finally…” He spat, “He insisted that bird calls gave him a headache, so he wanted us to chase away all the birds for several miles around.”
As he spoke, he rubbed his sore wrist, “Beating gongs all day, my arm is almost broken.”
Upon hearing this, Chen Ming speculated, could these be the eccentricities of an exalted master?
Li Xiangwen saw Chen Ming standing still, not paying attention, and decided he needed to rest early, as he had to work tomorrow.
He gently pushed open his room door, afraid of disturbing Chen Jiao.
“Creak—”
The candlelight flickered inside the room, and there were still dishes on the table.
“You're back?”
Chen Jiao sat up from the bed, rubbing her sleepy eyes.
Seeing her husband still in his uniform, she quickly said, “Change your clothes quickly, I'll go warm up the food.”
“No need to bother,” Li Xiangwen said as he untied his belt, “The Qi-gathering technique my brother-in-law taught me is very effective; hot or cold doesn't matter.”
Chen Jiao got out of bed, put on her shoes, draped an outer garment over herself, and sat beside Li Xiangwen.
“Xiang Wen, I want to discuss something with you.”
“Tell me!”
“My brother-in-law told me today that he wants us to move to Mount Lao. What do you think?”
Li Xiangwen paused with his chopsticks: “Why bring that up suddenly?”
“What else did my brother-in-law say?”
Chen Jiao poured a plate of leftover food into his bowl, “He said that demons are rampant outside, and Mount Lao is a sacred Taoist site, making it safer.”
Li Xiangwen put down his chopsticks, silent for a moment, “My brother-in-law is right.”
“If Ink Mountain hadn't had my brother-in-law secretly clearing out demons, where would this current peace come from? Do you still remember that tofu seller, Xishi, on Eastern Street?”
“Of course I remember, you and my brother-in-law often went to buy tofu.”
Li Xiangwen's face was indignant, “It wasn't for buying tofu! That Tofu Xishi was a demon in disguise, luring people into the mill to make blood tofu out of them!”
“Then she used magic to send the bodies outside the city, hiding herself behind the scenes.”
“We dug three feet deep there and couldn't find any bodies. If it weren't for my brother-in-law's intervention, who knows how many more people would have been harmed.”
“Ah—”
Chen Jiao gasped, covering her mouth: “You are usually in such danger?”
She had only heard that her brother-in-law could draw talismans to cure illnesses, but she didn't know the dangers involved.
“Then we—”
Chen Jiao looked at Li Xiangwen, hesitant to speak.
“Alas—”
