Chapter 92: Rigorous Deduction

“Speak up! Speak up! My daughter was perfectly fine, so how could she hang herself?” A hoarse, broken voice wailed like a cry of anguish, mingling with several other voices trying to intervene, shattering the deathly silence in the room.

Shi Mengzhu sighed again, then led Mei Qing into an adjacent room. There they saw an elderly man, his eyes bloodshot, being restrained by several people as he desperately tried to charge at a young man cowering in a corner of the kang bed.

Mei Qing had seen this young man yesterday—he was the groom, Dashan. Now, Dashan stared blankly ahead, his eyes glazed and unblinking, as the old man lunged at him, punching and kicking. Dashan, however, stood there like a walking corpse, showing no reaction whatsoever.

“Enough! Even if you beat him to death, Tian Niu won’t come back. Don’t ruin your health over this,” Shi Mengzhu said, motioning for the others to pull the old man away. Then she turned to Dashan, still cowering in the corner, and spoke sternly, “Dashan, you’ve always been a quiet and obedient boy. Now that something so serious has happened, can you not even say a word? Calm yourself. We’re all here. If there’s anything you want to say, tell us anytime.”

The old man, clearly Tian Niu’s father, finally stopped struggling under the persuasion of the others. He collapsed onto the floor, staring at Tian Niu’s body, and burst into loud sobs. Those around him tried to comfort him, but even they couldn’t help shedding tears.

Mei Qing watched the scene with a mix of shock and confusion. He had only met Tian Niu twice, but from her cheerful demeanor, there seemed to be no reason for her to take her own life. Yesterday at the wedding banquet, Dashan had also been smiling and joyful. From what Mei Qing had overheard, the two had grown up together since childhood, childhood sweethearts with no hint of discord between them. So how could it be that, after their wedding last night, Tian Niu had hanged herself early this morning?

Suddenly, a thought struck Mei Qing. Last night, after finishing his cultivation, he had sensed an unusual fluctuation in the spiritual energy of the village. Although his experience was limited, he knew that such disturbances were not common. The most likely explanation was that someone had been casting spells or fighting nearby, causing a disturbance in the balance of yin and yang and the five elements.

If that were the case, could it be that someone had done something to Tian Niu or Dashan, leading to her suicide?

Suddenly alarmed, Mei Qing turned to A-san beside him and asked, “A-san, did you see that yellow-faced magician who stayed at the estate last night? Have you seen him this morning?”

A-san shook his head in confusion. “I didn’t really notice. This morning, as soon as we got up, we heard about the tragedy here. No one at the estate was paying attention to him. Who knows whether he’s left or not?”

Hearing this, Mei Qing didn’t say anything further. He quickly took Hou Shen with him and rushed to Shi Mengzhu’s mansion. Upon entering the gate and inquiring among the servants, they were told that no one had seen the magician, and the room where he had stayed remained locked.

Mei Qing then ordered a servant to lead them to the room. Hou Shen pushed the door, surprised. “Master, the door is bolted from the inside.”

“Open it,” Mei Qing commanded. The servant was about to go find tools to break the lock when there was a loud crack—Hou Shen had already forced the door open.

Mei Qing followed him inside. As they entered and looked around, they were stunned.

The room was completely empty. There was no trace of the magician.

The servant behind them rushed in and exclaimed in shock, “How can the door be locked from the inside, yet the man is gone? Could he have flown away?”

Mei Qing and Hou Shen had both encountered many strange and powerful individuals before, and each of them possessed their own unique abilities. They were not particularly surprised to find the room locked with the occupant missing. However, they had seen the magician several times on their journey here, and had never suspected he was a cultivator. Yesterday, when the magician had been following them to this small village, Mei Qing had indeed felt suspicious, but had not pursued the matter further. Now, with a death having occurred in the village and the magician having vanished mysteriously, the situation was highly suspicious.

“Master, look,” Hou Shen pointed to a small wooden box by the wall. “This box is part of the magician’s props. It’s still here, so he didn’t take it with him. Could he have left suddenly due to some unexpected event?”

Mei Qing mused for a moment. “It could be that he left in a hurry, or it could be that his purpose here has been fulfilled, so he no longer needs to maintain his disguise as a magician, and thus abandoned the props.”

Hou Shen nodded. “So you think this magician is connected to Tian Niu’s death?”

Mei Qing nodded. “I suspected it yesterday. This is just a small fishing village. If it weren’t for someone guiding us, we wouldn’t have found our way here. Why would a magician leave the bustling cities and come to this remote place? At first, I even worried he might be targeting us. But now, thinking back, two days ago when Tian Niu came to deliver crabs, this magician was performing downstairs. He must have seen Tian Niu. I don’t know his exact intentions, but it’s very likely that he followed her here. Last night, Tian Niu died, and this magician must have left around the same time. Given this timing, he’s the most suspicious.”

Hou Shen nodded repeatedly. Indeed, after hearing Mei Qing’s reasoning, the yellow-faced magician was full of suspicious points and must be involved in some way.

“But now, he’s probably long gone. How can we catch him?” Hou Shen asked.

Mei Qing was also at a loss. If there were more experienced cultivators here, they might be able to track him down. But Mei Qing lacked such abilities for now.

The servant who had been listening to their conversation suddenly spoke up loudly, “What? That magician isn’t a good guy? Hmph, in our little corner of the world, he won’t get away. Let me go round up some people to chase him.”

Mei Qing quickly stopped him. “Wait. First, this is only our speculation and not confirmed. Moreover, if he really is the culprit, he likely possesses extraordinary abilities. Ordinary people would be powerless even if they caught up to him. My suggestion is that you quickly report this to your master, while Hou Shen and I go to investigate further.”

The servant thought this made sense and immediately ran off to inform Shi Mengzhu of Mei Qing’s deduction.

“Master, where should we go to look for him?” Hou Shen asked as they walked out.

Mei Qing slowed his pace, thinking for a moment before replying, “To be honest, I’m not sure either. If this man is indeed involved, I don’t know what he did to Tian Niu or what his purpose was. If he’s already far away, we’d be too late no matter how hard we chase. But if he has other intentions, I think there’s one place worth checking out.”

“Oh?” Hou Shen asked. “Where is that?”

“The Fishbone Temple.”

Ever since A-san had mentioned the strange occurrences at the Fishbone Temple, Mei Qing had been paying attention.

The reason was simple: first, strange and supernatural phenomena appeared; then, a “spirit medium” showed up, claiming it was divine punishment for the villagers’ lack of faith and morality; then came rituals and blessings, and the villagers believed and followed the teachings. In Mei Qing’s mind, this was a classic template used by evil cults—so standard that it seemed like a pre-set system with no customization.

Therefore, when he first heard A-san’s account, Mei Qing had already been suspicious of the temple. Even if it wasn’t a deliberate attempt to manipulate the villagers, there was likely some hidden activity going on inside that required an undisturbed environment. Since this magician was also acting suspiciously, if he had come here with a plan, whatever his goal, it was likely connected to the previous strange events. Therefore, the Fishbone Temple was the most likely place for him to have stayed.

Of course, Mei Qing had no idea how wrong his seemingly logical deductions were. Hou Shen, meanwhile, was looking at him with admiration, repeatedly praising, “Master’s insight is truly extraordinary. I could never match your brilliance.”

—Though a fool himself, even a fool can find another fool to cheer for him.

Later, when Mei Qing recalled this moment, he could only smile bitterly at his own naivety.

“Eight winds arise, the crane dances in the sky, so it is commanded!” Mei Qing flicked his hand, and a giant white crane materialized before the two of them.

“Master, this is…” Hou Shen was stunned to see the crane talisman Mei Qing had summoned.

“Speak up, speak up! How could my daughter, who was perfectly fine, end up hanging herself?” A hoarse voice, as if wailing in grief, broke the heavy silence in the room, accompanied by several voices trying to dissuade, creating a chaotic uproar.

Shi Mengzhu sighed once more before leading Mei Qing into a side room. There, they saw an elderly man with bloodshot eyes, being restrained by several people as he desperately tried to lunge at a young man huddled in the corner of the kang.

Mei Qing had seen this young man yesterday; he was the groom, Dashan. Now, his eyes were vacant, staring straight ahead, allowing the old man to punch and kick him without any reaction, as if he were a walking corpse.

“Enough! Even if you beat him to death, Tian Niu won’t come back to life. Don’t ruin your own health in the process,” Shi Mengzhu said, motioning for the others to pull the old man aside. He then turned to Dashan, who was still curled up in the corner, and spoke sternly, “Dashan, you’ve always been an honest child. How can you stay silent after such a tragedy? Calm down first. We’re here for you. If there’s anything you want to say, tell us anytime.”

The old man, presumably Tian Niu’s father, collapsed to the ground after being restrained, no longer attacking Dashan. He looked at the portrait of Tian Niu and burst into tears. The people around him tried to console him, but they too couldn’t hold back their tears.

Mei Qing watched the scene unfold, his heart filled with doubt and unease. He had only met Tian Niu twice, but she had always been cheerful, showing no signs of distress. During yesterday’s wedding banquet, Dashan had also been in high spirits. From what he heard at the banquet, the two had grown up together, childhood sweethearts without any suspicion between them. How could it be that after their wedding night, Tian Niu had taken her own life by hanging herself?

Suddenly, Mei Qing recalled something from last night. After finishing his cultivation, he had sensed an unusual spiritual energy fluctuation in the village. Although he lacked experience, he knew such fluctuations were not common. The most likely explanation was that someone had been performing a ritual or engaging in a fight, disturbing the balance of yin and yang and the five elements.

Could it be that someone had targeted Tian Niu or Dashan, causing Tian Niu to commit suicide?

Mei Qing’s thoughts raced, and he turned to Ah San, who was standing nearby. “Ah San, did you see that yellow-faced magician who stayed at the manor last night? Did you see him this morning?”

Ah San shook his head in confusion. “I didn’t pay attention. As soon as we heard about the incident this morning, everyone in the manor was too preoccupied to care about him. I don’t know if he left or not.”

Without saying another word, Mei Qing hurriedly took Hou Shen and left for the Shi residence. Upon entering, they asked the servants, but none of them had seen the magician. The room where he had stayed was still locked.

Mei Qing instructed the servants to lead them to the room. Hou Shen pushed the door and exclaimed in surprise, “Young master, the door is bolted from the inside.”

Mei Qing ordered, “Open it and let’s take a look.” Just as the servant was about to find something to force the door open, there was a loud crack, and Hou Shen had already broken the door down.

Mei Qing followed him inside, and both were stunned by what they saw.

The room was empty. There was no trace of the magician.

The servant who had followed them in was equally shocked. “How could the door be bolted from the inside, but the person is gone? Did he fly away?”

Mei Qing and Hou Shen, having encountered various extraordinary individuals before, were not surprised by the disappearance. However, they had interacted with this magician several times during their journey and had never suspected that he might also be a cultivator. Yesterday, when the magician had persistently followed them to this small village, Mei Qing had felt a hint of suspicion but hadn’t investigated further. Now, with a death in the village and the magician mysteriously gone, the situation was highly suspicious.

“Young master, look,” Hou Shen pointed to a small wooden box by the wall. “This is the magician’s prop box. It’s still here, untouched. Did he leave in a hurry?”

Mei Qing pondered for a moment. “It’s possible he left unexpectedly, or perhaps he achieved his goal and no longer needed these props to conceal his identity, so he abandoned them.”

Hou Shen asked, “Are you suggesting that the magician is connected to Tian Niu’s death?”

Mei Qing nodded. “I suspected as much yesterday. This is a small fishing village. If it weren’t for someone guiding us, we wouldn’t have found this place. Why would a magician come here instead of seeking opportunities in larger towns? At first, I thought he might be targeting us, but now I think he might have been following Tian Niu. When Tian Niu went to deliver crabs yesterday, the magician was performing downstairs and must have seen her. Although I don’t know his intentions, it’s highly likely he was after Tian Niu. Last night, after Tian Niu’s death, the magician disappeared. The timing matches, and he is the prime suspect.”

Hou Shen nodded in agreement. Indeed, based on Mei Qing’s reasoning, the yellow-faced magician had many suspicious points and was undoubtedly involved.

“But now, he’s probably long gone. How can we catch him?” Hou Shen asked.

Mei Qing was also at a loss. If there were other skilled cultivators present, they might have a way to track him down, but Mei Qing lacked such abilities.

The servant who had been listening to their conversation seemed to understand their concerns and spoke up, “What? That magician is no good? Hmph, he can’t escape in our territory. I’ll gather people to chase him down.”

Mei Qing quickly stopped him. “Wait. First, this is just our speculation, and we can’t be certain. Moreover, if he is indeed the culprit, he likely possesses extraordinary abilities. Even if ordinary people catch up to him, they won’t be able to handle him. In my opinion, you should report this to your master, and we’ll try to pursue him ourselves.”

The servant found this reasonable and rushed off to inform Shi Mengzhu of Mei Qing’s suspicions.

“Young master, where should we go to pursue him?” Hou Shen asked as they walked out.

Mei Qing slowed his pace and thought for a moment. “To be honest, I’m not entirely sure. If this is indeed connected to that man, we don’t know what he did to Tian Niu or what his goal was. If he’s already fled far away, we’re probably too late. But if he has other plans, I think there’s one place we should investigate.”

“Where?” Hou Shen asked.

“The Fishbone Temple.”

When Ah San had first mentioned the strange occurrences at the Fishbone Temple, Mei Qing had taken note.

The reason was simple. First, there were various supernatural phenomena, then a so-called immortal appeared, claiming that the people’s lack of faith and morality had angered the gods, who were now punishing them. After performing rituals to appease the gods, the people would follow the immortal’s teachings… To Mei Qing, this was a classic template for spreading evil doctrines—unchanged and unoriginal.

Thus, when Mei Qing heard Ah San’s description, he had already harbored suspicions about the temple. Even if it wasn’t intentionally used to deceive people, there was likely something shady happening inside that required a secluded environment. Since the magician was also mysterious and seemed untrustworthy, if he had come with a purpose, it was likely connected to the earlier events, and the temple would be the most logical place for him to stay.

At this point, Mei Qing had no idea how far off his deductions were. Hou Shen, standing beside him, was full of admiration, repeatedly praising, “Young master, your insight is truly remarkable. I can’t compare.”

—Even a fool has someone even more foolish to cheer him on.

Later, when Mei Qing reflected on this, he could only laugh at himself.

“Eight winds arise, the crane dances in the sky, as swiftly as the law commands!” With a flick of his hand, Mei Qing summoned a giant white crane that appeared out of thin air before them.

“Young master, this is…” Hou Shen was momentarily stunned by the sight of Mei Qing’s spirit crane talisman.

Mei Qing had only recently mastered this talisman before their departure, and he was still not entirely proficient. Today, they needed to cross the seven-mile Nether Sea to investigate the Fishbone Temple on Xiangyun Island. Traveling by boat would not only be time-consuming and laborious but could also alert their target—not to mention that neither of them was particularly skilled at rowing.

The crane wobbled and swayed, at times nearly plunging into the water, at others soaring into the clouds, leaving both of them drenched in mist… As with any first attempt, there were bound to be some hiccups.

Mei Qing, who had initially tried to look composed while mounting the crane, was now sweating profusely, clinging tightly to the crane’s neck as he struggled to keep it steady. Behind him, Hou Shen was hanging onto the crane’s tail for dear life, swinging back and forth. “Don’t worry, we’ll be fine soon,” Mei Qing reassured him.

As soon as they had mounted the crane, it had indeed taken off. However, its momentum was a bit too strong, and it shot straight up into the sky, turning Hou Shen from a passenger into a dangling ornament.

When the crane finally stabilized and began gliding smoothly over the water, both Mei Qing and Hou Shen breathed a sigh of relief. Suddenly, a gust of wind swept beneath them, and they felt themselves plummeting. The giant crane instantly transformed into a small paper crane, which flew back into Mei Qing’s arms. Both of them cried out in unison as they fell toward the sea below.

“Bold scoundrels! How dare you fly in broad daylight after committing such crimes? Prepare to face justice!” A sharp voice rang out, and a beam of light shot toward them.

The crane flew erratically—sometimes nearly crashing into the water, sometimes shooting straight up into the clouds, leaving the two of them completely bewildered. After all, this was their first test flight, and some difficulties were to be expected.

When Mei Qing first mounted the crane, he had looked around with a casual air, trying to appear cool. Now, however, he was drenched in sweat, clinging tightly to the crane’s neck with both hands, desperately trying to guide it to fly steadily forward. Meanwhile, Hou Shen, gripping the crane’s tail for dear life at the back, was swinging wildly in midair. Mei Qing shouted to him, “Don’t worry, it’ll be fine soon, it’ll be fine soon!”

As soon as they had mounted the crane, it had indeed taken off. But it had flown straight up into the sky with too much force, and Hou Shen had quickly gone from being a passenger to a dangling ornament.

Finally, the crane began to fly more steadily, skimming the water’s surface. Mei Qing and Hou Shen both exhaled in relief. Suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew, and they felt a sudden drop beneath them. In an instant, the giant white crane had shrunk into a small paper crane, which zipped back into Mei Qing’s robe. The two of them cried out in unison as they plummeted toward the sea below.

“Daredevil scoundrel! You dare to fly in broad daylight after committing such a crime? Surrender your life to this Taoist priest!” A loud shout rang out, followed by a streak of light rushing straight toward them.