Inner Demons

Chapter 116: South Mountain

The old Daoist was stunned for a moment by these words before he said, "Ah… Head Constable Yin. Brother Xin… he's already dead."

Yin Pingzhi rubbed his foot on the ground and looked around. "Death is letting him off easy. In my opinion, all these—"

He swept his left arm around. "All these broken and ruined families, it's all because of him. He's no good, that demon Daoist! Maybe he was a demon himself. Anyone who gets involved with him comes to no good. You brought this demon Daoist into the city, caused the deaths of so many people, caused the death of my niece! I must kill you, to rid the world of this evil!"

After Yin Pingzhi said this, he put force into his wrist. His waist saber came out of its scabbard an inch, revealing a bright blade that reflected the sunlight, making the old Daoist squint.

This Old Daoist Liu raised his hand to block it and said, "If you want to kill me to vent your anger, you could just leap over and cut me down with one strike. Why bother… saying all this. I think, old Daoist that I am, that you're scared. You're afraid that Brother Xin isn't dead yet, and once you make a move out of anger, there will be no room to turn back, am I right?"

Yin Pingzhi frowned. He looked around and sneered. "Not dead? Someone already told me that last night a white-robed monster mashed his corpse to a pulp. How could he not be dead?"

The old Daoist sighed. "If that's the case, Head Constable Yin, then make your move."

Yin Pingzhi gritted his teeth, his jaws tensing. He took two steps closer to Old Daoist Liu and drew his waist saber. "You think I don't dare to kill you?!"

The old Daoist reached out and picked up a fist-sized stone from the side, holding it in his hand as he looked up at Yin Pingzhi. "Head Constable Yin. I've heard of your reputation before. They all say you're a man who hides his thoughts deep, generous but also decisive in your actions. But your niece, you said you weren't sure if she met her misfortune at Brother Xin's hands. Now you're also afraid that Brother Xin isn't dead and will come to settle scores with you."

"But even so, you still insist on tangling with me, an old Daoist… a man like you, how did you lose your composure and do such a thing?" The old Daoist sighed at this point. "Could it be that you've had an incestuous affair and have feelings for your niece?"As soon as this casual remark was made, Yin Pingzhi's face changed dramatically. He swayed for a moment, then slashed down with his saber. "I'll chop you up, you old coffin!"

This strike used all the strength of the able-bodied man, tracing a beautiful arc in the air.

But in the next moment, with a thud, his body fell to the muddy ground.

Old Daoist Liu… weighed the fist-sized stone in his hand again. It was stained with blood.

Yin Pingzhi fell to the ground, his eyes wide, seemingly unable to understand how he, a Head Constable of many years who had captured countless thieves, could be… knocked down by this old man in one blow?

How could this old man have such strength, such speed!

He only felt dizzy, as if a large hole had been opened in his forehead, and light, sound, and wind were all pouring in. He vaguely heard the old Daoist say something like "...Brother Xin's Heart-Executing art..."

Then he saw the stone in Old Daoist Liu's hand come crashing down again.

Old Daoist Liu smashed it seven or eight more times, holding nothing back. He had been practicing the Water Cloud Strength that Li Yunxin had taught him, and though it had only been a month, he had already felt the power of the Celestial Heart Orthodox Law. These seven or eight blows… completely caved in Yin Pingzhi's head.

Only then did the old Daoist toss the stone aside and spit.

"I'll let you step on it."

Then, as if waking from a dream, he looked around.

The sun had risen to its zenith, casting a blinding white light that made him a little dizzy. The few people nearby had stood up, watching him with their mouths agape. Old Daoist Liu felt his mouth become even drier, and a sense of anxiety rose from the bottom of his heart, making his chest feel tight.

He turned in place a couple of times and noticed a few other people were also looking at him. But as soon as he met their eyes, they would flinch back, as if afraid of him.

He bent down and tore a large piece of cloth from Yin Pingzhi's corpse to make a bundle. He then found a few items from the ruins, placed them in the bundle, and tied it to his back.

They were all sorts of strange little things. For example, half a porcelain dish, a wine cup, a corner of a straw mat from a heated brick bed. He didn't know why he was picking these things up, but he just felt a sense of security having them on his back—at least he had some familiar things with him.

Then, this Old Daoist Liu left Weicheng, where he had lived for decades.

In the city, he walked quickly, afraid of being caught. But in fact, no one paid him any attention—even if someone had reported it to the authorities, the government didn't have the energy to deal with a single murder case at this time. After all, there were too many things to deal with.

So he left the city smoothly. After leaving the city, he walked for half an hour on the main road and turned onto a small path. Li Yunxin had also walked this path before; it led all the way to the pier by the Wei River. But the old Daoist walked halfway and then took another fork to the east.

This road was close to the Wei River, and the air was humid. The trees on both sides grew lush and green. The leaves blocked the sky above the road, with only occasional specks of sunlight leaking through. He walked on this tree-lined path for a while, and the heat from his brisk walk gradually dissipated, leaving him feeling refreshed and comfortable.

After walking a little further, he saw a jujube tree growing by the side of the road. The flowers had withered, and only green jujubes the size of a little finger's tip had grown. He walked over, pulled down a branch, and slowly picked the sour jujubes to eat. He popped the jujubes into his mouth one by one, occasionally spitting out the fuzz he had eaten.

His mouth was filled with green juice, and he ate the unformed pits of the jujubes as well.

He stood there eating for a while, until all the green jujubes on the branch were gone. He let go of his hand, and the branch snapped back.

Old Daoist Liu continued on his way, feeling a sour taste in his mouth and saliva flowing, as if he wasn't as thirsty as before. His stomach was filled with something, and it wasn't so empty.

But his heart still felt empty. It felt as if it were floating in mid-air, lacking something to support it. Feeling flustered, he pressed his right hand to his chest and continued on his way.

After walking for another stretch, the small path entered the Wild Plains Forest. The trees gradually became denser, and the number of towering trees increased. The sunlight was blocked out, and the light grew dimmer. The old Daoist was walking when he suddenly stopped, remembering the time when he had first met Li Yunxin and was abducted into that forest.

So he stared at the dense forest in the distance for a long while.

Then he raised his other hand and covered his face with his sleeve—this sixty-year-old man finally started to cry in the wilderness.

There was no one in the wild, so the old man just kept crying. He cried for a quarter of an hour before stopping. He wiped his face fiercely with his palm and rubbed it, then blew his nose. He then grabbed a handful of fine grass from the roadside to wipe his hands clean, took a deep breath, and continued on his way.

Old Daoist Liu walked like this for three hours without stopping, finally arriving at the foot of a small mountain. It was called a small mountain, but it was still three or four hundred meters high—the summit was also shrouded in a faint mist, giving it a rather otherworldly feel.

A half-collapsed stone tablet was hidden in the overgrown grass, and a small path slanted up to the mountainside. Old Daoist Liu pushed aside the grass. The tablet was carved with the two words "South Mountain," the cracks in the characters filled with dirt.

He turned and went up the mountain path. After walking for another hour, he finally arrived at a small temple on the mountainside.

Shi Kuizi was bent over, holding a large broom, sweeping the flat ground in front of the temple. On one side were five or six rows of green vegetables, looking lush. On the other side grew a Huangshan pine. A step further was a cliff, with clouds and mist swirling. Under the pine was a wooden table and two stools. On the table was a wooden tray with half an uneaten sweet potato.

The old Daoist stood there, watching Shi Kuizi for a while, and then spoke with a hoarse voice.

"My real name is Liu Gongzan. In my early years, I was a bandit, with the nickname Ghost Calculator. I just killed a Head Constable and have nowhere to go. Do you dare to take me in?"

After saying this, in Shi Kuizi's astonished yet pleasantly surprised gaze as he just turned around, he fainted.

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