The stolen magic is a bit magical

The two households that practiced hair-making actually received guidance from the same person.

As the investigation continued, they became completely unsettled. All the hair-pulling incidents were linked to the same person!

That person was extremely mysterious.

Lin Xiaosu had initially appeared nonchalant, as if listening to a story.

But at this moment, the expression on his face also changed to some extent: "Who is this person?"

Miao Ruolan said, "Many years ago, this person was a senior monk of the Yuan generation at Qingyuan Temple. However, because he violated the five major precepts of Buddhism in one day, he was expelled from Qingyuan Temple by the abbot at the time. He then practiced alone in a stone cave on Tashan Mountain. As he practiced, his hair grew out, so he stopped practicing Buddhism and turned to Taoism. Some villagers called him 'Taoist Monk' and others called him 'Mad Taoist'."

"A Taoist monk, a mad Taoist? The madman who carved 'Pious men and women seeking pleasure' on the mountainside cliff?"

"It's him!" Miao Ruolan exclaimed. "You know him too?"

“When I was in No. 1 Middle School, I went on a spring outing and took a wrong turn on Tashan Mountain. I ended up at the entrance of his cave and saw him with my own eyes. At that time, he didn’t look like a monk or a Taoist priest. He looked like a lonely old man who had been abandoned by his children and grandchildren.”

Zhou Xi laughed: "That's right. When we were in school, he was in the transition period from monk to Taoist. At that time, he was just an ordinary old man. I heard that he took a fancy to Widow Feng from your old Tashan Village and asked someone to invite Widow Feng into his cave. Widow Feng was still young at that time, and a bunch of rural men were eyeing her. She regarded this invitation as a great humiliation. She stood with her hands on her hips and cursed him at the entrance of his cave for an entire afternoon. He didn't dare to stick his head out. Later, he became obedient and became a Taoist."

Both women laughed when this funny story was brought up.

Lin Xiaosu smiled gently and said, "Theoretically speaking, the practice of 'pulling hair out of people' is nothing but feudal superstition, and you don't need to get involved."

Zhou Xi blinked: "What about you? Are you going to get involved?"

"I might have fallen into a rut now, really, I really don't want to do anything without money..."

Before the words had even faded, the detective agency door opened.

The spring breeze blows, and whether it's the fragrance of flowers or people, it smells quite nice.

Zhou Mei, dressed in a police uniform, stood smartly in front of Lin Xiaosu: "When did you get back?"

"last night!"

Zhou Mei's gaze swept over the two women's faces: "Are you free today?"

"I'm relatively free for now."

"Would you like to go for a walk with me?"

"Row!"

The two went out.

The detective agency was a little quiet.

Zhou Xi's gaze shifted subtly, landing on Miao Ruolan's face: "Sister Lan, Zhou Mei asked him to handle a case, is he paid?"

“The county-level public security budget is very tight; in fact, there was never any money before,” Miao Ruolan said.

"Brother Lin just announced that he won't do anything that doesn't pay, and then he turned around and happily hit the road... If he's not after money, what is he after?"

Miao Ruolan glared at her, too lazy to answer.

In the car, Zhou Mei's gaze swept over Lin Xiaosu's face: "What time did you get home last night?"

"It's quite late, they're all asleep," Lin Xiaosu answered honestly.

"Did you sleep well last night?"

Lin Xiaosu frowned: "Why do I suddenly feel like no matter how I answer, it's a bit ambiguous?"

"Just tell me whether you slept well or not, because there's something really brain-taxing that I need you to analyze for me when you're more alert," Zhou Mei said.

"The Hairy Man Killer? Is that right?"

"you know?"

"They just told me this before you came in."

“That makes things much easier. To be honest, there was originally nothing to discuss; it was just feudal superstition. But the more I investigated, the more uneasy I became. I feel like there's a ghost living in the cave below my police station… Do you know what that madman is doing in there?”

"what?"

"Mao Ren! A whole bunch of Mao Ren!"

Lin Xiaosu was shocked: "The hairy man, he made it himself?"

"Yes, he didn't just provide ideas for killing people. He personally made hairy figures using thatch that could be found anywhere in Tashan. His technique was extremely crude, but these hairy figures have now been given a kind of eeriness. When I saw the hairy figures he displayed outside, I'm not afraid to say it, but the hairs on my back stood on end."

"Shall we go take a look?" Lin Xiaosu asked.

"now?"

"Now!"

The car was parked at the foot of Tashan Mountain, and the two walked up the mountain.

Instead of taking the old road to Tashan, we took a different side road.

This side road has been deserted for many years. Nature has such a magical power to repair things in a simple and brutal way. After three years of no use, the side road has become overgrown with branches and vines, and there is basically no road left.

Fortunately, both of them were extraordinary, and they traversed the dense jungle with ease.

They went around a large tree above and saw a line of words on the stone wall: "Pious men and women seek pleasure and indulge in debauchery."

This was carved by this madman... well, back when he was a monk who had abandoned Qingyuan Temple.

No one knows what he was thinking when he carved those words.

However, the people of Qingyuan Temple and Buddhists found the words quite jarring. Fortunately, the main road up Tashan Mountain was on the other side, and no one bothered with the side road on this side. Otherwise, the words carved on the stone wall would definitely have been scraped off.

That's improper.

Today, the two of them went hiking and saw this phrase again, which they had seen in their childhood. Their feelings were somewhat different.

"If a monk violates the precepts and is expelled from the temple, will it really cause him great harm?" Zhou Mei's voice came through: "Could he really turn from a Buddha into a demon, and then study some kind of demonic killing technique?" "I don't know, I've never been a monk," Lin Xiaosu said.

"Even if you wanted to become a monk, no temple would accept you!" Zhou Mei glared at him. "A lecherous little rascal like you, no matter which temple takes you in, you'll end up like this old madman—expelled!"

"Does that mean... today's visit can be understood as me now visiting my future self?" Lin Xiaosu asked.

"If you become like this, who will play the role of Widow Feng back then? Your wife Xiaoye, who guards the empty room day and night, or Ruolan?"

"What nonsense are you spouting? How could my Xiaoye and Ruolan possibly stand with their hands on their hips and curse in the street? The only person who could do something so outrageous is probably you!"

After some gossip, the two arrived at the cave.

Outside the cave, there was a line of hairy people.

It was made of thatch from the mountains.

To be honest, it's quite rough.

But in the dark mountain forest, it also seemed somewhat eerie.

Fortunately, the sun was still high in the sky, and sunlight dappled through the woods. Lin Xiaosu's gaze fell on the outside of the cave, where a large red flower stood.

This flower is the red spider lily.

The red spider lily is very unique; the flower blooms without leaves, and the leaves bloom without flowers, meaning that the flower and leaves can never be together in life after life.

This biological uniqueness imbues it with a sense of unfulfilled longing, making it a helpless figure on the Bridge of Helplessness...

After the red spider lilies bloom, the mountain cave becomes dark and gloomy.

In the past, Lin Xiaosu had only passed by and had never seen the inside of the cave. Today, however, he had come specifically for this purpose, so he could see clearly that the cave was exceptionally deep and secluded.

An old man sat in the cave, just like my second uncle.

They were about the same age, somewhere between fifty and sixty.

They were dressed similarly, both in Taoist robes.

If we had to find a difference, it would be that this Taoist priest was far worse off than his second uncle. He failed to abduct Widow Feng back then, and without a wife, no one would help him wash his clothes, so his clothes were much dirtier than his second uncle's.

However, their lifestyles are strikingly similar.

There's a teapot next to me, and the tea stains are quite obvious.

On the broken table was a pack of cigarettes, a pack of Red Golden Dragon cigarettes that cost five yuan.

A cell phone is playing Dongchu drum music...

A pot of tea, a pack of cigarettes, and a cell phone to play music all night.

This is probably a common carefree attitude among elderly people of this age.

At that moment, the old Taoist flicked his hand, sending a long trail of ash drifting through the air. He raised his eyes, lifting half of his head off the recliner, and sized up the two people who had arrived: a handsome young man and a beautiful woman—Zhou Mei had changed her clothes in the car, wearing a trench coat to conceal her police officer identity.

"Hello, Taoist Master!" Lin Xiaosu greeted him.

The Taoist priest grinned and asked, "What is it?"

He speaks in a very rustic local dialect from the moment he opens his mouth.

"I'd like to have a chat with you, Taoist Master."

"The Taoist path is deep and complex; it's not so easy to talk to people about heaven... You have to pay!" the Taoist priest said.

Zhou Mei's eyebrows were slightly raised...

Take money?

I'm here to investigate cases. You have to cooperate. Have you ever seen anyone pay the person they're questioning while investigating a case?

Lin Xiaosu smiled: "How much does it cost?"

"One yuan per character! The first character is free, but the last character is one yuan per character."

Lin Xiaosu nodded: "Can I scan the code?"

"What kind of decorum is it to use mobile phone QR codes in front of the Taoist sect? Therefore, this Taoist master will not engage in such shady dealings; cash is fine!"

Lin Xiaosu raised her hand and handed over a bright red 100-yuan bill: "Give me 100 words first."

"You've already said 26 words, that's 26 yuan off, so there are still 74 words left... Oh, wait! I've said so many more words now, let me count... 35 words, that's 39 words left, wait, how many words did I generate in this sentence? Young man, it seems you don't have much money left to spend on words."

Lin Xiaosu helped him calculate: "It's not that there were only a few words, it's that there were none at all! It's just a complete reset."

The Taoist priest stared at him blankly, seemingly still not having counted...

Zhou Mei's chest rose and fell slightly, clearly indicating that she was being stimulated quite a bit.

After paying the 100 yuan, the Taoist priest spouted some nonsense, and the money was gone.

And it just happened to be gone.

You're not some charlatan, I'm a pro!
However, Lin Xiaosu sat down.

Their attitude was excellent.

He stretched out his hand, and a stack of banknotes spread out in his palm, forming a fan shape, which he fanned in the wind: "I quite admire the style of the Taoist priest. Let's have a serious talk now!"

The Taoist priest's eyes lit up as he looked at the banknotes Zhou Mei was using as a fan. He was quite pleased with himself. He reached out and pulled out another small stool, handing it to Zhou Mei: "Young man, you look like someone destined for great things. This old man has no real skills of his own, but I especially admire young people who are capable of great things. Young lady, please have a seat. Would you like some tea? By the way, I picked this tea myself, and judging by its appearance..."

Zhou Mei's face twitched: "Daoist Master, can we get straight to the point? You need to know that what you say is basically like throwing gold beans out the window. You may be having a great time, but our money doesn't grow on trees. If you understand, just answer with one word."

"Alright!" the Taoist priest replied with a single word. (End of Chapter)