Seeing everyone like this, Chunsheng’s eyes gleamed with smug triumph, yet he put on a conflicted facade:
“Oh dear, that man-eating tiger might not have gone far. In my opinion, it’s best if we hurry down the mountain. It won’t be too late to come back for all that gold, silver, and jewels once day breaks tomorrow.”
As he spoke, he intentionally gathered his robes together so that everyone present could catch a glimpse of the golden glint hidden inside his clothes.
“Gold!!”
Someone sharp-eyed pointed at the gold in Chunsheng’s chest and shouted, “There really is gold! This scoundrel wants to keep it all for himself!!”
Someone quick on their feet stepped forward and grabbed Chunsheng’s arm, only to feel an icy chill that made them shiver.
But greed blinded his eyes, causing him to ignore the anomaly as he tore open the front of Chunsheng’s robes—
Three or four gold ingots clattered and rolled onto the ground.
Ignoring the dirt clinging to the ingots, a runner scooped one up and bit down on it, his face instantly erupting into wild ecstasy:
“It’s soft! It really is gold!”
“It truly is gold!”
“This rascal didn't lie!”
Another runner reached out and tugged at Zhou Dalang, and sure enough, several glittering gold ingots tumbled from his sleeves as well.
Gold.
Not far from where they stood lay a vast fortune of ownerless gold and silver, resting in the mud, waiting for someone to claim it.
With this kind of money, who would still want to be a poor runner?
They could buy a few mu of land, a few head of cattle, marry a wife...
The men's breathing grew scorching hot, their eyes burning with feverish desire.
Even Zhang Long, upon catching sight of those glittering ingots, had only a single thought flash across his mind.
Someone swallowed hard and yelled at Chunsheng and Zhou Dalang:
“We're brothers who've faced life and death together! How could the two of you be so devoid of loyalty?”
Others chimed in, aggressively pressing them:
“Exactly! You pocket the spoils for yourselves and then try to trick us into going down the mountain! Who knows if you're planning to sneak back up with someone else tomorrow to take it all?”
“Cut the nonsense! Whether it's real or fake, won't we know the moment you take us to see it?”
“That's right! Brother Chunsheng, Dalang, we all came up this mountain together to hunt the tiger! These riches rightfully belong to all of us!”
Like a pack of wolves, the men glared hungrily at Chunsheng and Zhou Dalang, clamoring for the two to lead the way immediately to the spot where the bandits had divided their loot.
“I was only worried the tiger might double back. But fearing you wouldn’t believe me, I hurriedly grabbed a few gold ingots and stuffed them into my sleeves.”
Chunsheng demurred several times, putting on a helpless look:
“Why don’t we head down the mountain first? It won’t be too late to search once day breaks.”
“What is there to fear?”
Beside him, Zhou Dalang raised his head, turning his pallid face toward the crowd as he slowly squeezed out a bizarre smile:
“That fierce tiger took an arrow to its left hind leg from Constable Zhang during the day. Thinking back on it now, it's not all that formidable. With so many of us, are we really going to cower before a tiger with a crippled leg?”
He weighed an ingot in his hand, speaking in a tone half enticing and half provoking:
“If you don't have the guts to seize it, once word spreads tomorrow, what share of that treasure will be left for us? Wouldn’t it be better to take advantage of the night while no one knows, split the fortune swiftly among ourselves, and avoid complications down the line? Wouldn’t that be great?”
With the two playing off each other, how could the crowd doubt them any longer? They immediately gathered their belongings, eager to follow along in search of the loot.
Idiots!
A bunch of fools blinded by gold and silver!
When had there ever been bandits around Wen County?
Not to mention, there had been no news whatsoever of any wealthy household being robbed.
A deserted deep forest, ownerless treasure...
How could such a miraculous windfall just happen to fall into their laps?
And this Chunsheng was clearly just a hunter—why wasn’t he the least bit thrilled at the sight of such wealth, and instead generously told them where the riches were hidden?
There was undeniably something wrong with this hunter!
As Zhang Long scanned the ground, sure enough, under the flickering firelight, everyone cast a shadow beneath their feet—except for Chunsheng and Zhou Dalang.
They really were ghosts!
The Nan family’s eldest daughter had predicted everything!
Anxious dread surged within Zhang Long. He wanted nothing more than to expose their true identities on the spot, but remembering Nan Zhi’s warning from earlier, he hesitated.
And it was precisely that momentary hesitation that tipped Chunsheng off.
“Constable Zhang.”
Chunsheng’s eyes drifted slowly onto Zhang Long, an honest, simple smile spreading across his rustic face:
“That fierce tiger has devoured quite a few people just now. It must be stuffed and drowsy by now, with no energy to bother with us. I’ll take the lead and guide you there. Let’s collect the gold and silver quickly and head down the mountain together!”
“This...”
Unsure how to reply, Zhang Long let his eyes dart around frantically, searching for Nan Zhi’s silhouette.
Yet the forest was pitch-black, an endless tangle of branches and foliage almost entirely blotting out the sky, with only occasional fragments of the night visible through the dense canopy.
Oppressive, chilling.
It felt as if a demon with a bloody maw was lurking in the depths.
Birds in the woods were startled awake by the firelight and fluttered their wings. A cuckoo let out soft calls, echoing with a few chirps of “Cuckoo, cuckoo.”
—This was the signal Nan Zhi had agreed upon with him.
“I was just wondering which wealthy household those bandits managed to rob. If we truly find that gold and silver today, once I return, I’ll be sure to put in a good word for you before the Magistrate!”
His heart settling, Zhang Long let out a hearty laugh and clapped Chunsheng on the shoulder:
“Then we’ll trouble Brother Chunsheng to lead the way!”
“Gladly, gladly!”
Chunsheng laughed heartily as well. The man and the ghost locked eyes, each harboring their own sinister designs.
...
...
The power of money was truly boundless.
In the darkness, Nan Zhi flitted through the canopy like a cat.
Branches swayed slightly, leaves trembled, as if nothing more than a gentle breeze had just swept by.
Thanks to the 【Paper Skin Garment】, Nan Zhi’s Constitution stat had nearly doubled.
Forty points of Constitution was likely on par with a first-rate martial arts master in the pugilistic world—and specifically, one exceptionally skilled in lightness skills.
Fearing Chunsheng might notice her, she didn’t dare tail them too closely, maintaining a distance behind the runners.
Rustle...
Nan Zhi landed on a branch and parted the foliage before her with care.
She had seen clearly earlier: what Chunsheng produced in front of everyone was no gold ingot at all.
They were plainly mud balls shaped from dirt, masked by a glamour.
Unfortunately, the men, blinded by ghostly trickery, couldn't see through it. They foolishly followed Chunsheng, led step by step into the depths of Wenshan.
And Zhou Dalang seemed rather off as well.
Just as Nan Zhi was about to follow, she suddenly noticed something moving in her field of vision.
Curiosity piqued, she cast a glance toward Zhang Long and the others, then drifted toward that direction.
Soon, Nan Zhi located the source of the sound.
Tap, tap...
Tap, tap...
Tap, tap...
Faint, rhythmic noises carried on the wind in a steady cadence.
Nan Zhi slowly looked up.
This was a corpse forest.
Over a dozen corpses hung suspended from the trees—men and women, old and young.
Some bodies were severely weathered, their original features long eroded away, recognizable as male or female only by their tattered garments.
Among these corpses were village women, merchants, scholars, woodcutters, and hunters.
Every single one, without exception, was hung from the trees by vines.
Right nearest to her, a pair of large feet clad in official boots dangled down from a vine-covered tree.
A male corpse clad in white inner garments was hung from the branches by rope-like vines.
The corpse had no eyes, leaving only a pair of hollow, dark sockets.
Half of its head was crushed, smeared with a paste of red and white brain matter. Both arms were missing, and its internal organs had been completely scooped out.
When the night wind blew, the bodies swayed gently along with it, their toes knocking against tree trunks with soft “tap, tap” sounds.
Just like wind chimes.
Nan Zhi was surprised that she hadn’t let out a scream.
Gazing at the recently deceased male corpse whose viscera had been hollowed out, an inkling formed in her mind.
Could this place be something like the white tiger’s "dining hall"?
After devouring their flesh and organs, did it hang their bones on the trees—or suspend the leftovers to finish off next time?
—Quite particular of it.
Could Chunsheng’s corpse also be here?
Nan Zhi searched around, but failed to identify from among all the remains which skeleton belonged to the hunter.
In many movies and TV shows, burning bones and remains would destroy vengeful ghosts.
If Chunsheng hadn’t led the way today, she wouldn’t have stumbled upon this place by sheer chance.
Nan Zhi naturally wouldn't let such a prime opportunity slip by.
Since she couldn't tell them apart, she might as well burn them all.
After all, they were all chang ghosts that harmed people.
Either way, death left nothing but a handful of ashes. When the time came, she could scoop up some ashes to bring back to the Ma family, offering a measure of solace to the ghost of Chunsheng's mother.
Nan Zhi raised her index finger, faint arcs of lightning flickering upon its tip.
A fire on the mountain, and the station chief falls in love with me.
Rate on N.U.
