From the beginning of this turbid world, the Taoist priest descended the mountain.

Upon hearing Lin Ye's words, Mei Lingyun felt a sudden surge of panic.

But seeing Lin Ye suddenly laugh, he knew that Lin Ye was joking with him.

Her pretty face flushed red, she pouted, and punched Lin Ye.

The girl didn't have much strength, so the blow to Lin Ye didn't hurt much.

After the two joked around for a while, Mei Lingyun finally revealed the reason why she had come here.

Last night, a man dressed in a silk mandarin jacket suddenly came to the house. Upon seeing him, my father appeared very frightened. Later, Mei Lingyun overheard that this man wanted to marry her off to Master Huang's son.

When her father came out, she sensed that something was wrong with the whole house. Her father, mother, and all the servants seemed to be possessed, completely obeying the man's orders.

The things that had been agreed upon were met with indifference from her father. In the end, he just kept saying that he wanted to marry her off to Master Huang's son.

Mei Lingyun dared not delay in observing this bizarre scene.

So he took advantage of the morning to sneak out and go talk to Uncle Zheng and Lin Ye.

Unexpectedly, before they had gone very far, white mist rose from Qing Shi Town, and they were bewitched by evil spirits in the mist and ended up in this mountain valley.

After listening to Mei Lingyun's words, Lin Ye felt that something was wrong.

How did you end up lost here after running away from Qing Shi Town?

Even the most powerful evil spirits probably don't have that kind of ability.

He then moved closer to Mei Lingyun and stared at her closely from left to right.

People were still conservative in this era, and the concepts of "three express delivery companies" (STO Express, YTO Express, ZTO Express, and Yunda Express) had not yet spread widely.

After being stared at by Lin Ye for so long, Mei Lingyun blushed even more. She turned her head away, covered her chest, and moved to the side, her voice barely audible.

"Brother Linye, what are you looking at?" she said, then secretly glanced at Linye again.

I never thought of it before, but now I realize that Brother Lin Ye is indeed different from the men I've ever met.

He is never bound by convention, like a free cloud, but sometimes he will step forward and take on heavy responsibilities.

At this moment, Lin Ye's eyes emitted a faint blue light as he pressed two fingers on an acupoint on the back of Mei Lingyun's neck.

He tapped twice, then removed his fingers from Mei Lingyun's body.

He actually pulled a sticky black hair from Mei Lingyun's body. Sure enough, someone had tampered with Mei Lingyun.

Upon seeing this, Mei Lingyun turned ashen-faced.

What on earth is going on?!

After Lin Ye pulled out the hair, he held it in his hand. As the heat surged in his heart and the yang energy circulated in his Shaoyang Hand Meridian, the black hair began to twist strangely in Lin Ye's palm.

"Whoosh—"

Under Mei Lingyun's incredulous gaze, the clump of black hair emitted white smoke before turning into several clumps of dry ashes in Lin Ye's hand.

As expected, the yang energy in his body could suppress these things, Lin Ye nodded.

He dares not use talismans recklessly now. Using a single talisman will attract the attention of the Celestial Master Daoist True Lord. This time, he only sent a hanging corpse, but who knows what kind of thing will be sent in the future!

But Mei Lingyun saw all of this, though she was unaware of the true situation in the forestry industry.

It is precisely because of ignorance that we are prone to worshipping the power of the unknown.

She looked at Lin Ye with sparkling eyes, her lips moving as she rubbed her thumb back and forth on the hem of her skirt.

What a silly girl! She's clearly educated, so how come she can't even utter a single word at this crucial moment?

Will Brother Lin think he's stupid?

Lin Ye naturally paid no attention to Mei Lingyun's petty thoughts; at this moment, his attention was entirely focused on the control panel.

(The "Southeast Evil Spirit True Lord" created three techniques, making him the most unorthodox among the Twelve Demons and Monsters. His alteration and creation of techniques was itself a rebellion against the order of heaven and earth. However, he never expected that his disciples and followers in this corrupt world would create such a non-poisonous, non-vine-like contraption, which he could so easily manipulate. Deep down, the Southeast Evil Spirit True Lord felt humiliated.)

(You used the [Azure Robe Aura Observation Technique] to break through the [human medicine]'s [method]. Although you didn't kill the guy related to [Southern Sea Evil Spirit True Lord], you successfully pleased [Zhen God General].)

It seems that Mei Lingyun's hair is related to the Tan'er Sect.

Ji Qian was also a cunning fellow. He was preparing to fight his master with magic while simultaneously targeting the Mei family's rice shop.

Even if they lose the magic duel, carrying Mei Lingyun's so-called "great medicine" would be considered a successful substitution.

Unfortunately, I ran into myself here.

……

In front of the altar south of Qingshi Town

Ji Qian suddenly opened his eyes. He opened his palm and saw a crack in his hand.

Just now, the thing I placed on the 'great medicine' in the Mei family was actually broken.

He had originally planned to use this opportunity of magical combat to smuggle the large medicine out of Qing Shi Town. Even if he lost the battle, he could still escape with the medicine.

Who exactly broke my spell?

At that moment, a figure suddenly appeared in Ji Qian's mind: the boy he had seen at the mortuary that morning.

Despite being a descendant of Taoist lineage, his vital energy and blood flowed as vigorously as a martial artist.

Could this be another case of cultivating both body and spirit?

Thinking of this, Ji Qian's expression turned somewhat ferocious.

My journey of self-cultivation has been incredibly arduous. I ate leftover food that others didn't want, slept in pigsties, and was treated like a drug by people in a Yunnan village. I finally learned some skills and returned to Hanyang, only to find myself having to be subservient to others.

This world is so vast, and fortunes are ever-changing. Why is it that someone as devout in his spiritual practice receives no favor whatsoever?

Just then, a pair of icy hands cupped his face from behind. This eerie and ghostly atmosphere, which would terrify most people, gave Ji Qian a rare sense of peace.

"My lady, I'm almost there. No one can stop me, I said it!"

……

After dealing with the strange occurrences involving Mei Lingyun, the forestry team continued north to search for the old hunter who lived outside the town.

The old hunter lived at the foot of Daqingshan Mountain in the north and rarely went to town. His daily necessities were delivered by Lin Hao, arranged by Lin Zheng.

After walking for several miles, the two indeed saw a wooden house surrounded by a fence at the foot of the mountain. Some vegetables were planted along the fence, giving it a somewhat rustic feel, reminiscent of the poem "Planting beans north of the mountain, the weeds are lush but the bean sprouts are sparse."

After crossing the fence, the two approached the wooden house. Lin Ye knocked on the door a few times, and seeing no response, he pushed the door open and went inside.

The old hunter's house was very tidy, but of course there wasn't anything valuable inside. The old hunter's most valuable possessions were his hunting rifle and his brain.

Lin Ye ran his fingers across the table, looking at the gray mark left on it. It seemed that no one had lived here for at least three to five days.

The old hunter is not here.

"Brother Ye, Uncle Zhang isn't here. Should we wait for him?" Mei Lingyun asked timidly.

Having run away from home, she now sees Lin Ye as her pillar of support. Mainly because as long as she's with Lin Ye, he can handle any unexpected situation properly.

The two boiled some water here, and after taking two jugs of water, Lin Ye prepared to go up Daqingshan Mountain.

The situation was urgent; it was impossible to wait here for the old hunter to return before heading into the mountains.

Three days from now, at midnight, it will be the time for my master and Ji Qian to fight. I don't have much time left.