For thirty years, he has roamed the Northeast, his divine might overwhelming all immortals under hea

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, the village was in an uproar.

"Blood! It's all blood!"

"My two pigs have completely deflated! They're as shrunken as dried-out eggplant buns!"

"Chickens! A whole brood of chicks, their feathers perfectly intact, except for two small holes on their necks, from which all the blood has been drained!"

I slipped on my shoes and ran out, following the sounds of people to Old Han's pigsty at the east end of the village. A thick, overwhelming stench of blood mixed with the stench of animal dung hit me right in the head.

Two half-grown black pigs lay in the pen, their bodies showing no external injuries, just skin clinging tightly to their skeletons, their eyes wide open, as if they had seen something extremely frightening before they died.

Sure enough, there were two black holes side by side on his neck, about the thickness of chopsticks, with charred edges, as if they had been burned by something.

The news spread far and wide, not just to the Han family, within a morning.

All the livestock in the village—pigs, chickens, ducks, geese, even the guard dogs—were drained of their blood overnight and died completely.

The courtyard and the enclosure were filled with shriveled corpses, which gleamed with a pale, bluish-white deathly light under the rising sun.

The villagers, young and old, gathered around the large millstone at the village entrance, their faces looking even more wilted than frostbitten eggplants.

This isn't just a weasel stealing chickens; this is wiping out the entire family! Without these livestock, even plowing the fields in the spring will be a problem.

Moreover, if livestock dies today, it could very well be a human tomorrow.

"Was...was that thing not disposed of?"

Someone asked, trembling.

"That can't be... there's been no movement on the foundation pit, has there?"

"Maybe that flying zombie isn't completely dead..."

"Wasn't this handled by the Thirteenth Office...?"

Panic spread like a plague.

I squatted on the edge of the millstone, picking at the moss in the cracks between the stones with my fingers, and the ominous premonition in my heart grew stronger and stronger.

This method, insidious and efficient, exudes an evil aura, and is just like the skull and incantations that Sanlu did that night.

The little fox tugged at my ear with its paw, its voice extremely low.

"Something's not right. This blood-sucking power doesn't seem like that of a flying zombie. Flying zombies suck human blood, which makes a bigger commotion. It's more like it's being done by some kind of evil spirit called a 'Chang Gui,' which specifically targets animals with weak yang energy."

"A cougar?"

My heart skipped a beat.

"To pave the way for something even more ferocious."

The little fox squinted its green eyes.

"It seems that Sanlv hasn't been idle."

"What should we do then?"

"What should we do? We can only resort to the lucky charm."

Sure enough, things quieted down for a day.

The next night, I didn't sleep well. I felt the earthen bed beneath me trembling slightly, one tremor after another, as if something heavy was jumping in the distance.

I sat up abruptly and glanced at the old grandfather clock on the windowsill; its green hands had just passed twelve.

"They're here!"

The little fox's ears perked up instantly.

I hastily threw on some clothes, yanked open the door latch, and rushed out.

The moonlight outside was quite bright, but the scene before me made all the blood rush to my head in an instant, and then drain away just as quickly.

The village road was covered in white, all skeletons!

Some were tall and some were short; some were still relatively intact, human-shaped, missing arms and legs; others were simply a pile of scattered bones, seemingly strung together by invisible threads, swaying and moving forward.

The sound of them walking is a "thump-thump" sound, with bone fragments hitting the dirt road with a crunching sound that makes your teeth ache.

The eye sockets were dark and empty, but in the skull of each skeleton, a small wisp of green will-o'-the-wisp floated, flickering as they moved, making the stark white bones even more eerie.

This didn't crawl out of a graveyard. The graveyards in Zhujiakan are deep, and I've never heard of such a large-scale resurrection of corpses.

These bones, of varying colors and ages, some still covered in mud that hadn't completely rotted away, looked as if they had just been forcibly pulled out of the soil from different places!

Behind the group of aimless, yet subtly converging skeletons in the village, a figure followed at a leisurely pace.

Three donkeys.

He changed into all black clothes, almost blending into the night, with only his face and hands being white.

He held a flag in his hand, the flag itself was a ghastly white, as if it were stretched with human skin, and it was covered with twisted runes drawn on it in black and red.

At the top of the flagpole, several small bones were tied, making a soft "clattering" sound as they collided.

He held up the white flag, his steps stiff yet steady, muttering to himself.

As his flag swayed slightly, the skeletons changed direction, and the green will-o'-the-wisps all turned, creating an extremely eerie scene.

My blood went cold, then suddenly burned again.

It really was him! He's trying to turn Zhujiakan into a death trap!

"Brother Sanlv!!!"

I yelled, my voice cracking, and it exploded in the dead silence of the night.

The skeletons all turned to look at me, their ghostly flames surging in their eye sockets.

Sanlu also stopped and slowly turned his head.

The moonlight shone on his face, which was devoid of any color. His eyes were as empty as two dry wells, but deep within those wells, a completely unfamiliar, icy madness and hatred churned.

Thirteen.

He spoke, his voice hoarse and dry, like sandpaper grinding wood.

"Get out of the way. This is none of your business."

"None of my business?"

I walked towards him, my legs a little weak, but I didn't stop for a moment.

"Brother Sanlv, wake up! What exactly do you want?!"

"What do you want to do?"

Sanlu's lips twitched, but it wasn't a smile; it was more like a grimace.

"Collecting debts."

He raised the white flag and pointed it at the surrounding white skulls.

"Look at them, do they look familiar? This might be your great-grandfather, and that might be his maternal grandfather, buried underground, enjoying the incense offerings of Zhujiakan. But what about their children and grandchildren? How did they treat my father back then?"

"The older generation in the village may have been wrong about your father's situation, but that's no excuse for what you did!"

My eyes turned red with anxiety.

"It's not too late to stop now!"

"Stop?"

Sanlu seemed to have heard the biggest joke in the world, his shoulders shaking and making a "ho ho" sound.

"From the day my mother remarried, from the day Old Wang beat me like an animal every day, from the day they argued and set themselves on fire, leaving me all alone, from the day I learned that my biological father was driven to desperation and died in the wilderness! I have never known what it means to stop!"

He slammed the white flag to the ground!

"Tap-tap!"

The bones at the top of the flagpole collided violently.

The will-o'-the-wisps in all the skulls' eye sockets suddenly shot up half a foot high, all turning towards me, the bones emitting a teeth-grinding "crunch," as if they were about to pounce on me at any moment.

"Thirteen, move aside."

"I remember clearly that when my mother took me away from Zhujiakan after remarrying, you were the only one who saw me off at the village entrance. What happened today has nothing to do with you, so get out of the way."

"Tonight, I want everyone in Zhujiakan, young and old, to kowtow and apologize to my father. Anyone who tries to stop me will have to go down there first and pave the way for him!"

Looking at his completely distorted face, my heart felt like it was stuffed with a frozen stone, heavy and painful.

Is this still the same Sanlu Brother who secretly gave me roasted grasshoppers when I was a kid and helped me chase away Er Gouzi who bullied me?

I was naive back then. I only have a vague memory of what I did. I never imagined that my unintentional actions would leave such a lasting impression on Brother Sanlv.

"Brother Sanlv!"

"Do you remember the winter your father died? You were freezing, and it was Granny Wu from the village entrance who pulled you into the house and gave you a bowl of hot porridge? There are people in Zhujiakan who have wronged your father, but not everyone is heartless! By doing these things, you're not just hurting those who have wronged you, but also people like Granny Wu, and those newborn babies who don't understand anything! If your father, Sun Dahong, were still alive, would he have let you do this? Would he have wanted to watch his son become this inhuman, ghostly state?"

"I heard from my father that your father, Da Hong, is an upright man who has never done anything wrong in his life. What you are doing is bringing shame to your father, Sun Da Hong."

Sanlu's hand, which was holding the flag, trembled almost imperceptibly.

The icy lake in his eyes seemed to crack open, and something extremely painful surged up, distorting his entire face.

He opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

Just then, a low "woo-woo" sound came from beside my feet.

Looking down, I saw it was the little gray dog.

It had followed me out at some point and was standing in front of me, baring its still-growing baby teeth at Sanlv and the cluster of white skulls around him.

The oily sheen on its body, reflected in the moonlight and will-o'-the-wisps, seemed to subtly shift, even carrying a hint of scorching heat.

Sanlu's gaze fell on the little gray dog, especially lingering for a moment on its glossy fur. In the cracked fur, the pain was quickly replaced by a deeper sense of surprise and a kind of indescribable frenzy.

"It ruined my plans."

He murmured, his eyes turning cold and ruthless once more.

"Thirteen, even you're trying to stop me?"

"Thirteen, I know you've taken action, but you've only been doing it for a few days. I advise you not to meddle in other people's business."

"Otherwise, you can't blame me."

"Brother Sanlu, if that's what you say, then I have nothing more to say. Let's get started!"

He stopped looking at me and suddenly waved the white flag!

The first few skeletons lunged at me, baring their teeth and claws, their bones carrying a chilling, fishy wind!

I quickly stepped back and pulled a thick fire poker from the woodpile.

The little gray dog ​​howled, not out of fear, but as if it had been provoked. It lunged forward, aimed at the nearest skeleton, and spat out a small cloud of scorching air.

The first few skeletons to pounce on me, their bone claws carrying a chilling wind, were scratching straight at my face.

I swung the fire poker, not caring about any technique, and swept it across with all my might.

The stick struck the bone with a crisp "crack," and several ribs broke off and flew everywhere.

But the skeleton only swayed slightly, the will-o'-the-wisps in its eye sockets flickered twice, and the remaining skeleton stubbornly pushed forward, the broken bone shards pointing menacingly at me.

More skeletons surged from behind Sanlu, a white mass, the sounds of bones clashing and footsteps dragging filled the air, mixed with Sanlu's increasingly urgent and shrill incantations, making my head ache.

The little grey dog ​​darted around my feet, occasionally exhaling a small breath of scorching heat to repel the approaching skeleton, but it was too small and its breath was weak, barely able to protect a small area in front of me.

"This can't go on!"

The little fox perched on my shoulder and cried out anxiously.

"To catch the thief, first catch the king; we must subdue that flag of the three donkeys!"

I understand the logic, but with the three donkeys surrounded by layers upon layers of skulls, I simply couldn't get through.

The fire poker was wielded with great force, smashing several skeletons apart. Yet the scattered bones twisted on the ground, showing signs of piecing themselves back together! The incantations on the white flag reflected the moonlight eerily, and the small bones at the top of the flagpole made a clattering sound as if it were a death knell.

The three donkeys' faces were half-lit and half-shadowed by the flickering will-o'-the-wisps, revealing only a cold stubbornness.

He watched me struggle among the pile of skeletons, his eyes unwavering, as if I were not a childhood playmate, but a troublesome rock.

The fire and coldness in my heart were intertwined, and I felt like I was about to explode.

At this rate, I could work myself to death and still not get a single hair on his head, but the whole village would die at his hands.

Just then, the little gray dog ​​suddenly stopped attacking. It took two steps back, raised its head, and let out a very strange long howl at the moon, which was half-hidden by clouds.

The sound wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear and penetrating. It didn't sound like a dog barking, nor like any howl of a wild animal I had ever heard. Instead, it sounded like some ancient sigh with the sound of metal and stone.

The glossy sheen on its body suddenly brightened with this long cry, no longer a faint reflection, but a warm, golden-red glow emanating from beneath every single hair!

"This is the manifestation of pure Yang energy!"

The little fox's voice was filled with unbelievable surprise.

"This old dog, did he really refine the Yin energy of the flying zombie?"

The golden light emanated from the puppy and spread out with a "hum," forming a faint, warm halo.

As the light swept across the skeletons, a miracle occurred. The green flames leaping in the skeletons' eye sockets seemed to have encountered their nemesis, shrinking sharply and then extinguishing several flames with a few "poof" sounds.

The skeleton, enveloped in golden light, immediately became sluggish and stiff, emitting a "crunching" friction sound, as if it had rusted.

The sudden turn of events interrupted Sanlu's incantation. He groaned, and the hand holding the white flag trembled violently, causing the black and red incantations on the flag to fade slightly.

He stared in astonishment at the little gray dog ​​that was glowing with golden light, and for the first time, a look of near-fear appeared on his face.

"Now!"

The little fox shrieked and transformed into a white blur from my shoulder, as fast as lightning, rushing straight for the three donkeys' faces!

I moved almost simultaneously, taking advantage of the skeletons in front of me being stiff, I kicked one of them away, and used the fire stick as a javelin to throw it hard at the white flagpole in Sanlu's hand!

Sanlu hurriedly dodged the little fox's sharp claws, causing the flag to tilt.

"Clang!" The fire poker grazed the flagpole and flew past, missing him but causing him to stumble.

The golden light on the little grey dog ​​intensified once more. It pushed off the ground with its four paws, and like a small golden arrow, it pierced straight through the gap in the slow-moving skull and slammed into Sanlu's calf!

"what!"

Sanlu cried out in pain, and a wisp of black smoke rose from his calf as if he had been branded with a hot iron.

He could no longer stand and fell to his knees with a thud. The white flag flew out of his hand and landed in the dust a few steps away.