Logically speaking, the site where the Death Rite was held should have been guarded. Yet the two of them did not encounter a single villager—more precisely, they saw no one else at all.
However, the ground was remarkably clean, clearly the result of regular upkeep.
They walked toward the stone stele. Hawk-Eye stepped over the ancient bronze coins, placed his hand on the surface of the stele, and slowly traced the strange symbols carved into it.
"I don't recognize this script," he said.
About five minutes later, Hawk-Eye withdrew his hand.
"I didn't notice anything unusual," Qian Cangyi said. He had been observing quietly the entire time.
Both of them fell silent.
"If we could understand what's written on the stele, or learn its origin, we might find something," Qian Cangyi said, letting his thoughts branch out, approaching the problem the way one might in a puzzle game. "Usually, the oldest person in the village would know something. Who's the oldest here?"
"As far as I know, that would be Shi Wenwei—the village chief," Hawk-Eye replied.
"What if I take one of these bronze coins to ask him?" Qian Cangyi suggested. "Given my relationship with him, I might get something out of it. And since he wants me to be village chief, the chances might be even higher."
Hawk-Eye didn't respond immediately.
"Under the current circumstances, that is the fastest way to get answers," he said after a moment. "But you already asked Shi Wenwei about the Death Rite before. You saw his reaction—he clearly didn't want to talk much. If you go to him now with a bronze coin from the ritual site, given his personality, he won't tell you anything. Worse, he might restrict your movements afterward. At that point, whether you comply with his demands or ignore them, both would complicate your future actions."
His meaning was clear.
"That makes sense," Qian Cangyi nodded. "Since there's no guard here, these bronze coins obviously aren't anything that could pressure him. It would be normal for him to say nothing—or even accuse me of something. Hmm… then what should we do? Keep asking other villagers what the Death Rite really is?"
The question troubled Hawk-Eye as well. This wasn't a video game—there were no save points. One wrong choice, and they might never get another chance.
At that moment, someone appeared before them.
Shi Xingyun—the second son of Shi Wenwei.
Qian Cangyi had seen him once or twice before. According to the manual, he was a schemer with plenty of tricks, but they had never spoken directly.
"Well, well, look who it is," Shi Xingyun sneered the moment he opened his mouth. "Mr. Zhang Zian—and little crybaby Shi Hai Min!"
Every word dripped with mockery.
At that moment, Qian Cangyi finally understood why Shi Wenwei believed that handing the village over to Shi Xingyun would only lead it downhill. Shi Xingyun was the textbook image of a petty thug—kept in check only by the small scale of Yuxi Village and his father's authority.
The nickname "crybaby" made it clear that Shi Hai Min had suffered plenty of bullying from him as a child—perhaps even being treated like a punching bag.
"Good afternoon," Hawk-Eye greeted calmly, neither servile nor defiant.
Qian Cangyi kept his eyes on the ground. He had no interest in entangling himself with someone like this.
"What's wrong? Lost your voice after being away all these years?" Shi Xingyun pressed on, growing more aggressive.
"Is there something you want?" Qian Cangyi finally spoke. Since the other party was clearly targeting Shi Hai Min, retreating endlessly wasn't an option.
"I saw someone sneaking around the Death Rite site, so I followed them," Shi Xingyun said, arms crossed, chin lifted. "Didn't expect it to be you two."
"I'm interested in Yuxi Village's Death Rite," Hawk-Eye replied evenly. "I asked your elder brother, Shi Hongye, about the location and came to take a look."
"Of course I trust Mr. Zhang," Shi Xingyun said with a crooked smile. "But the person next to you? I'm afraid he's not nearly as upright as you are."
Every sentence was barbed.
Qian Cangyi frowned. Under normal circumstances, he would simply ignore someone like this. But here, he couldn't afford to act aloof. Shi Hai Min's childhood had clearly been intertwined with Shi Xingyun's—mostly in the form of being bullied.
"I think the one who isn't upright here is you," Qian Cangyi said sharply.
The words landed with force, momentarily stunning Shi Xingyun. After all, this was Qian Cangyi speaking—not the timid Shi Hai Min.
"Oh? You—"
Shi Xingyun didn't get to finish before Qian Cangyi cut him off.
"You stalk people like a voyeur and call it spotting suspicious behavior? We walked here openly, greeted villagers along the way, and clearly explained our purpose. Everything was aboveboard. Where exactly was the 'sneaking'? As for you—you open your mouth with vulgar insults and baseless accusations. Maybe you can act this arrogantly in Yuxi Village, slandering people at will. But outside the village, someone like you would've already been taught a lesson."
By the end of the tirade, Shi Xingyun was hopping mad. His usual sarcasm crumbled under Qian Cangyi's righteous rebuke.
"You!" Shi Xingyun pointed at him, rolling up his sleeves, clearly ready to throw a punch.
"If the two of you were to come to blows here, I couldn't stand by as a guest," Hawk-Eye interjected smoothly. "If there's a dispute, why not take it to Village Chief Shi Wenwei? I believe he's a fair and upright man and wouldn't favor either side. What do you say?"
The moment Shi Xingyun heard the word village chief, his courage evaporated. He could only throw out a parting threat.
"Just you wait. I won't let this go."
With that, he stormed off.
"I didn't expect you to snap like that," Hawk-Eye raised an eyebrow once Shi Xingyun was gone.
"That was me holding back," Qian Cangyi spread his hands helplessly. "If this were outside the village, I'd probably have already started swearing—and run off afterward."
"But Shi Xingyun definitely wasn't following us," Hawk-Eye said, steering the conversation back.
"Agreed," Qian Cangyi nodded. "I mentioned that we greeted villagers along the way, and he didn't refute it. If he'd really followed us, he would've known we didn't encounter a single villager. That also proves something else—the villagers don't really care about the ritual site itself. Otherwise, he would've argued that villagers should've stopped us from coming here."
Hawk-Eye glanced back at the stone stele. "In that case, there's nothing more to gain by staying. Let's head back."
"Mm… about those two deaths…" Qian Cangyi still felt uneasy.
"The village chief has already sent word to the police," Hawk-Eye said, shaking his head. "But I don't have much hope of finding the culprit. This doesn't feel like something a human could do. It's more like the work of a ghost."
Even as he spoke, his tone betrayed uncertainty.