Chapter 245: A Night of Terror in Holy Soul Village
After chatting casually for a while, the door to the room was knocked on by the person in charge. Behind him, attendants carrying various dishes followed. Only then did Han Li notice that it was already noon.
Everything had gone so smoothly that he hardly felt the passage of time.
After lunch, Zhu Zhuqing entered a state of cultivation, while Han Li went to find the business association's manager to arrange follow up matters. He remained busy until dusk before finally wrapping things up.
Zhu Zhuqing was true to her word.
That night, Han Li was finally able to see the close fitting white soft armor. Just by looking at it, he could tell it had impressive defensive capabilities.
After all, it had long been said that the less one wears, the stronger the defense.
After spending a night in Gengxin City, the two set off again the next morning, heading straight for Star Luo City.
As they got closer to Star Luo City, Zhu Zhuqing grew increasingly silent.
Han Li had no good way to help he couldn't truly empathize with her feelings. The choice was entirely hers to make.
Finally, after arriving in Star Luo City, Zhu Zhuqing merely observed her mother's situation from the shadows, then quietly left behind a letter and the dragon zhi leaf Han Li had given her before returning to the hotel.
Han Li watched the whole time without saying anything. Her mother's health seemed fine, and no one was paying special attention to her. That was good.
After staying for another day, the two began their journey back.
Compared to their peaceful situation, Tang Hao's side was a completely different story.
Suppressing his injuries as much as possible, he rushed back to Holy Soul Village at full speed, not even stopping by his home he headed straight to the place where Ah Yin was.
But the moment he passed through the waterfall and entered the cave, he felt as if he had been nailed to the spot, unable to take another step forward.
Before his eyes, the once tidy cave was now covered in dust.
The soil mound where Ah Yin had been planted was gone. All that remained on the ground was the skeletal remains of a soul beast, long since turned to bone. The hidden spot where he had concealed the soul bone was now covered in spiderwebs, with small insects struggling in them, still clinging to life.
All of this confirmed one thing.
His lover was gone.
"Pfft "
Tang Hao spat out a mouthful of blood, his body swaying as he collapsed forward.
The string in his heart, which had been stretched tight for so long, had snapped!
A heavy thud echoed as he hit the ground, and the cave once again fell into silence.
Only the sound of the waterfall outside continued to play, and the mist in the air seemed even heavier.
It was unknown how long had passed before Tang Hao regained consciousness.
But he did not open his eyes. He was afraid that if he did, the scene before him would still be the same. He could not accept it.
As the sound of water crashing against the rocks below filled his ears, his mind was flooded with memories how he and Ah Yin had met, how they had grown to understand each other, and how they had fallen in love.
It wasn't until moonlight streamed through the opening above, falling onto his body, that Tang Hao finally struggled to get up.
There was no need to check. Though he had kept his eyes closed, his spiritual power had already swept through every corner of the cave. There were no traces of human footprints.
Every mark in the cave came from the same kind of soul beast the Wind Baboon. The skeletal remains on the ground belonged to one of them as well.
His mind automatically reconstructed what had happened. A group of Wind Baboons must have fallen from the upper caves more than one.
Then, they must have discovered Ah Yin growing on the soil mound, and in their rough play, they also found the hidden soul bone.
Wind Baboons were a species of soul beast extremely skilled at mimicking human behavior. Though they had no use for soul bones and did not eat plants, they still fought over them.
A struggle had broken out in the cave, ending with one baboon's death.
As for Ah Yin and the soul bone, the victor must have taken them away.
Perhaps Ah Yin had been crudely uprooted, clenched between the baboon's teeth before being swallowed whole. Or maybe she had simply been tossed aside somewhere.
The soul bone likely met the same fate.
"Ah !"
In an instant, Tang Hao's eyes turned blood red, his breathing became as heavy as a raging bull.
He could not accept this outcome.
The Clear Sky Hammer, glowing with black light, appeared in his hand, and he swung it with all his strength at the Wind Baboon's skeleton.
A loud explosion rang out. The bones vanished, leaving only a deep crater in the ground.
Tang Hao didn't stop. Like a madman, he continued to swing his hammer faster and faster, each strike heavier than the last.
Finally, with his last strike, the entire cave, along with the small mountain and the river above, froze for a moment then collapsed with a deafening roar. Terrified creatures scattered in all directions, fleeing as fast as they could.
"Ah Yin, I swear, I will slaughter the entire Wind Baboon race to be buried alongside you!"
In midair, Tang Hao let out a long, grief stricken howl, his voice filled with endless sorrow and hatred.
Not far from there, in Holy Soul Village.
Within the run down houses, lights flickered on one after another. The collapse of the mountain had already startled the villagers awake.
When Tang Hao's anguished roar echoed through the night, the villagers panicked, grabbing whatever weapons they could shoulder poles, hoes, sickles and rushed toward Old Jack's house at the village entrance.
"It might just be soul beasts migrating in the nearby mountains. They're still far from us. Everyone, don't panic for now."
Old Jack was also panicked, but as the village chief, he still stepped forward to calm the crowd. "Carry the children, support the elderly. Ergou, distribute torches to the young men. We're heading to Nuoding City overnight hurry!" Quickly, under Old Jack's command, everyone in Holy Soul Village set off in an orderly march toward Nuoding City. He just hoped it wasn't a beast tide. If only Xiaosan were here… he wondered how he was doing now. Under the flickering firelight, Old Jack looked back at the village, feeling a bit dazed. Now, all he could do was hope that the Soul Masters of the Spirit Hall would easily resolve this situation. Otherwise, the Holy Soul Village, where his ancestors had lived for generations, might completely disappear.
When Tang Hao, still in a daze, returned to Holy Soul Village, he found it completely empty, but it was clear that the people had only left recently. He glanced at the faint firelight in the distance but had no intention of warning them. Ah Yin was gone. Their departure might as well be a funeral procession for her.
He grabbed two cold steamed buns and stuffed them into his mouth, swallowing mechanically. He still had to avenge Ah Yin he couldn't fall now. Returning home, he saw that the place was still relatively clean, covered with only a thin layer of dust. Heh, must have been that old fool Jack. Always wasting time on trivial matters. But Xiaosan was destined to soar in the skies how could he ever return to this place?
Tang Hao slapped himself hard, then let out a mocking laugh, though whether he was laughing at Old Jack or himself, even he didn't know. Then, he simply collapsed onto his bed. He was exhausted.
It wasn't until the next morning that he was woken by noises outside. Vaguely, he heard Old Jack's voice. Frowning in annoyance, Tang Hao got up and walked to the door, seeing Old Jack leading a group of officials some dressed in Spirit Hall uniforms, others in the City Lord's attire searching house by house.
Seeing the door open, Old Jack was momentarily stunned before looking at Tang Hao in surprise. "Tang Hao? When did you return?" Without waiting for an answer, Old Jack quickly turned to the wary officials. "Sirs, this is our village's blacksmith. He's lived here for many years, but in recent years, he's been away working. He is not a Soul Master."
Despite Old Jack's words, the officials remained cautious. Tang Hao still had dried blood on him, which was reason enough for suspicion. "Tang Hao, speak up. What's with all the blood?" Old Jack seemed even more anxious than Tang Hao, rushing up to grab his arm.
"Don't touch me. I was delayed getting back last night, tripped on the way, and hit my mouth." Tang Hao waved his left arm, easily shaking Old Jack off. As he spoke, the wound on his lower lip and his bloodstained gums became visible.
He wanted nothing more than to kill these Spirit Hall people on the spot. If not for them, Ah Yin would never have sacrificed herself, and he wouldn't have lost her. But considering that Tang San was still at the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy and the Soul Master Tournament was approaching, he held back. His wife was already gone he couldn't cause trouble for his son too.
A Spirit Master with a canine martial soul in the search team sniffed the air and nodded, confirming that the blood on Tang Hao was his own. Only then did the officials relax.
"When did you return to the village last night? Did you hear anything unusual?" The lead officer questioned Tang Hao sternly.
"I don't know the time. When I got back, some houses still had lights on. I was too tired and just went straight to sleep I didn't hear anything." Tang Hao forced himself to suppress his irritation and answered casually. He still needed to go out and search for Ah Yin's soul bone. Yesterday, in his fury, he had overlooked that crucial detail.
Hearing this, the official nodded and didn't order further searches. Tang Hao's house was the last one in the village. If a soul beast had been hiding here, Tang Hao wouldn't even be alive.
Turning to Old Jack, the official said, "Village Chief, it should be safe now. You can bring the villagers back. Last night's disturbance was likely caused by the mountain collapsing due to water erosion, which startled the wildlife. There are no soul beasts nearby." Seeing Old Jack's lingering concern, he added, "I will continue patrolling the village perimeter for three days. You have nothing to worry about."
"Thank you, thank you, sir!" Old Jack made a move to kneel in gratitude, but an officer beside him quickly held him up.
"There's no need for that. We'll begin patrolling now. Also, you don't need to fetch the villagers we'll send people to bring them back. Just focus on cleaning up the village." With that, the leading official waved his hand, and the patrol team headed toward the village outskirts.
"Many thanks to the esteemed officials of Spirit Hall!" Old Jack bowed deeply toward their departing figures, shouting loudly in gratitude. "It's all thanks to the great Soul Masters of Spirit Hall. Don't you think so, Tang Hao?"
"Hah, fake righteousness. You fools with no insight are so easy to deceive." The very man who had caused all this, Tang Hao, sneered coldly and turned to leave.
"You… You… Don't forget, it was Spirit Hall that awakened Xiaosan's martial soul!" Old Jack trembled with anger, even his pointing finger shaking. He wanted to say more but held back in the end. Stomping his foot in frustration, he still chased after Tang Hao he wanted to ask about Tang San's situation.
(End of Chapter)
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