Where Immortals Once Walked

He explained that as medicinal herbs began to be sold statewide, Zhitian Township’s water use continued to rise. Naturally, the township wanted the upstream to open new sources and release more flow. The porcupine monsters refused, because opening channels and building dams would damage their territory.

“Isn’t that something you can negotiate and compensate for?” He Lingchuan said. He had done his share of mediation work back in Dunyu.

One of the local worthies could not help but let out a cold laugh. “They may be pigs[1], but they love to demand like lions.”

So the porcupines wanted more money, and the talks failed.

He Lingchuan took a sip of fine wine and said, “So then, if the entire porcupine nest got wiped out, who benefited most?”

The mood in the room shifted instantly. Everyone hurried to distance themselves.

“My lord, it has nothing to do with us!”

“We’re just here buying herbs and selling them outward. What we earn is runner’s money! How would we have the heart or the ability to harm anyone?”

He Lingchuan smiled. “Generally speaking, whoever profits the most is also the most suspicious.”

One of the rich households burst out indignantly. “My lord, you can’t talk like that. We’ve worked diligently, and that’s why Zhitian Township is prosperous. How does that make us the biggest suspects? Without us, those herb farmers and tenant laborers, and those—!”

He had been about to say “monsters,” but someone jabbed him in the ribs. He immediately corrected himself.

“...they wouldn’t be living the good life they have now!”

“Yes, yes. Zhitian Township’s abundance surpasses other places, and we’ve all done our part in contributing to that abundance.”

The magistrate of Baishi County quickly interjected, “My lord, didn’t you say this might be a monster at work? And the victims are scattered across the State of Chiyan. How could these local worthies be connected?”

He Lingchuan’s gaze swept over their faces. “Which of you has dealt directly with the porcupine monsters?”

Silence fell.

Jiao Yu looked to the county magistrate. “You should know, at least.”

The magistrate could only steel himself and point them out one by one.

Three of the worthies here had dealt with the porcupine monsters, and the three had bad blood with them, at that. Their surnames were Wang, Li, and Tu.

All three hastily defended themselves, insisting they had never intended harm.

General Ling scraped his hoof irritably against the floor.

He Lingchuan studied them for a long time, staring at them so long that their scalps went numb. In the end, however, he simply sighed and said, “I’m only asking as a matter of routine. Don’t take it to heart.”

The Li magnate asked cautiously, “If you really catch the killer, what crime will it be?”

“For plotting the death of a Lingxu courier, the minimum would be a beheading.”

General Ling added from the side, “The three familial exterminations.”

The giant ram spoke with murderous calm, leaving everyone choking on their words, unsure how to respond.

The banquet ended quickly.

Back at the inn, He Lingchuan washed his hands and face.

In midsummer, even the night was not necessarily cool. The cicadas had been screaming without pause until now.

General Ling took its guards and rented a room next door.

In the courtyard stood a large water vat filled to the brim. Jiao Yu simply jumped in to cool off, then asked He Lingchuan, “Do you truly think the case is connected to those few wealthy households?”

What the magistrate had said made sense. The killer operated across Beijia; what did that have to do with the local gentry?

And those households were ordinary humans; there was not a single cultivator among them.

“When we looked at Fushan Ji’s files, almost every case had only two or three victims—one or two humans, or one or two monsters. Even those sheep thieves who came for my cliff ram only set one target,” He Lingchuan said. “That’s smart. It doesn’t draw attention.”

He then paused for a moment.

“But the drillwind beast case broke the pattern. Suddenly, there were over twenty victims. And if tomorrow we can confirm that the porcupine clan was also killed by the same culprit, then a year ago, his appetite was even bigger. After all, he would have slaughtered over a hundred victims in one go.” He Lingchuan said slowly, “These two anomalies happened only fifteen to twenty kilometers apart. It might just be a coincidence, but if I’m not wrong, why did the killer suddenly butcher so many?”

Jiao Yu did not know how to answer.

Killing one or two people, or two or three monsters, could be explained as hunger.

But a hundred at once?

That no longer looked like mere feeding.

“It was never mere feeding,” He Lingchuan said seriously. “Don’t forget, Lingxu City’s specially dispatched courier died in their hands. Normally, no one would dare lay a hand on a courier.”

Jiao Yu’s expression changed. “By your logic, Zhitian Township is hiding foreign spies?”

“We’ll only know once we find the killer.” He Lingchuan suddenly said something unrelated, “I used to think Beijia truly was a paradise for monsters. But now, I’m not so sure.”

Jiao Yu did not respond.

There was no rain this night. With no sleepiness, He Lingchuan drew out the Rising Dragon spear and practiced spear techniques for an hour.

Ever since he exchanged for the spear technique in the Panlong Dreamscape, he had practiced diligently, practicing with the spear longer even than with the saber.

The spear technique had only sixteen lines of mnemonic verses, which were more concise even than those of the saber.

The spear was called the king of all weapons; it was far harder to master than a blade. Fortunately, martial techniques relied on the principle that once one path was understood, a hundred paths could be understood. His overall level had risen, so his spear could not be too far behind.

Besides, he had witnessed the Red General, Xiao Maoliang, and Hong Chenglue strike in combat, performing true thunderbolt blows. He replayed them often in his mind and learned from them.

An hour passed in the blink of an eye. He had warmed into the movements and did not feel tired at all. A faint buzz of wine rose in him. Unable to help himself, he loosed a long howl. The spear tip flicked, then rammed sideways into a tree trunk.

A crepe myrtle burst into a blizzard of petals.

He Lingchuan spread out his spiritual sense. The spear shot like a needle, piercing petal after petal and pinning them all to the spearpoint.

This spear weighed twenty-three kilograms and was over two meters long. He held it with one hand. Even the slightest movement of the butt made the tip tremble unpredictably, making it hard to control. To pierce soft, thin, floppy petals that offered no resistance was genuinely difficult.

The crow perched in the tree saw only a burst of spear shadows—cold, murderous, bristling with killing intent. It puffed up in fright, feathers standing on end, and hurriedly flapped away over the wall.

It’s the middle of the night! Can’t a bird get some rest?

He Lingchuan was practicing a killing art, yet the scene was strangely tender.

When the rain of petals finished, only a few petals lay scattered on the ground.

All the rest were hanging from the spearpoint.

Jiao Yu had been dozing on the steps. The surge of killing intent startled him awake.

Just as He Lingchuan drew the spear back with the force of a tiger pressing down, a voice commended from the side, “Excellent!”

It was General Ling. It was somehow sprawled atop the courtyard wall, watching. When it half-stood upright, it was over three meters tall, its head crest rising above the wall.

It had long experience on the battlefield. Though the youth’s spearwork could not be compared to Chiyan’s old king, it still had the viciousness of a mad serpent striking, and the quick withdrawal of a rabbit slipping back into its burrow. Courageous, fierce, yet able to hold power in reserve. This already surpassed most military officers.

So this kid really does have some skill.

He Lingchuan exhaled deeply and wiped sweat from his forehead.

This move was called Plum Blossom Piercing, and he had finally reached minor success in it.

Just then, someone tapped twice at the courtyard gate.

He Lingchuan had already heard footsteps approaching and leaving outside. He opened the door and found only a letter on the ground.

It was an anonymous denunciation, reporting the Tu Household’s feud with the porcupine monsters.

Apparently, the two sides had long been at the point of irreconcilable hatred. The Tu magnate’s grandson had even been shot in the calf by porcupine quills. The wound had festered down to the bone and nearly required amputation. It took over three months of treatment before he slowly recovered.

An hour later, there was movement outside again.

Someone crept close, light-footed, yet how could his steps possibly escape He Lingchuan?

The man bent down, about to shove a slip of paper under the door, when the gate creaked open.

He Lingchuan stood in the doorway, smiling at him.

“Since you’re here, why not speak face-to-face? Who is your master, and who are you trying to report?”

“Ah...” Caught red-handed, the man turned green.

He Lingchuan snatched the slip from his hand and read it on the spot, then said, “Oh, so you want to report the Li Family. Is your master surnamed Wang or Tu?”

The man did not dare speak. The slip was unsigned.

“I hope your master isn’t surnamed Tu.” He Lingchuan took out another letter and waved it in front of him. “Someone already reported him earlier.”

“Ah?!”

* * *

Less than eight kilometres away, in Shuanglu Town of Zhitian Township, inside a grand estate.

An owl fluttered down onto a large tree beside the main hall and hooted a few times softly.

A window opened, allowing the owl to fly in.

The person inside shut the window again. Now there was only one man and one bird in the room.

He casually set up a barrier to prevent eavesdropping, then asked the owl, “Any messages from the capital?”

“The ruler has handed the Lingxu City courier disappearance case to Fushan Yue.”

The man gave a short sound of acknowledgment. “Fushan Ji couldn’t solve it, and Fushan Yue is a brute...” He paced twice, then continued, “But Fushan Yue wants to please the ruler right now. He’ll put serious effort into it. He still has a few capable people under him. Who did he assign to handle the case?”

“Not yet clear.”

The man stopped pacing. “Not yet clear?”

“His officials all have other duties,” the owl replied. “Only one person left the capital a few days ago, Royal Palace General Jiao Yu of Mount Bai. His whereabouts are unknown.”

“Jiao Da’s[2] son?” The man sounded surprised. “Would Fushan Yue assign him alone to handle this?”

The owl could not answer.

It ate meat and drank water here, then shut one eye and went to sleep.

In the latter half of the night, a steward-looking man arrived.

“My master sent me to report in the middle of the night,” the steward said. He entered through the back gate. “The Crown Prince dispatched a special envoy to Youtian Town to investigate the Lingxu City courier case.”

“Oh?” The man demanded immediately. “Who?”

“The envoy’s name is He Xiao. He carries the Crown Prince’s token. Also, there’s a fierce tiger called Jiao Yu, who seems to be some Bai... something...”

“The Royal Palace General of Mount Bai?”

“Yes, yes!” The steward nodded vigorously. “And there’s also a goshawk, rumor says it’s an inner-palace guard.”

“He Xiao, huh?” The man thought for a long while. “Never heard of him.”

“The county treated him to a banquet, and he had the nerve to suspect the local worthies of killing the porcupine nest at Mount Yulun.”

The man sat up straight at once. “Does he have evidence?”

“No. He hasn’t even been there yet. He’s just running his mouth.”

“Not necessarily, it could be bait, and he could be trying to bluff you.” The man then asked, “What else?”

“He’s going to check the porcupine nest tomorrow.”

“And the things that surname He used, did you bring them?”

The steward pulled out a cloth bundle and opened it. Inside was a wine cup.

“They ate at West Hong Tower. He Xiao used this cup.”

“Alright, go back and tell your master to put his heart back in his belly.” The man took the cup. “He won’t find his way to you.”

“Yes.”

After the steward left, the man sat in thought for a long while, then suddenly stood and went out to the courtyard.

Shadows swayed in the trees. In the yard was a corner where even moonlight could not reach.

The man seemed to crush something in his fingers, then scooped up a ladle of clear water and poured it into that dark corner.

Very soon, something shifted within the shadows.

“Assign a new target: He Xiao.” The man lowered his voice and set the cup down on the ground. “He’s in Youtian Town now. Tomorrow, he’ll go to the porcupine nest at Mount Yulun. You know what to do.”

1. Note that the word for porcupine in Chinese is 毫猪, the latter character of the two literally translates to pig. Porcupine in Chinese is literally bristly pig. ☜

2. This is Uncle Da, by the way. ☜