But no matter how unreasonable it was, no one in this family dared to question the authority of First Young Master Liu. Even His Royal Highness, who was above ten thousand people and below one, was not very good at it. Liu Xian’an took another look into the barracks and saw that there were many military officers sitting in the room, so he asked: “The prince hasn’t finished handling military affairs yet?”

“There are a dozen or so mouths, sticking to their own words and chattering endlessly,” Liang Shu said. “The Baifu Sect has released a lot of news about the Valley of Ten Faces recently.” So much so that all the spies and non-spies had received information. People went to the garrison camp to report the news every day, and once the news spread widely, it immediately became as “worthless” as the ancient characters carved into the cliff. The Baifu Sect was only short of engraving the words “there’s something coming to the Valley of Ten Faces” on their foreheads. At such a time, the Southwest Garrison’s method of dealing with it would be particularly eye-catching.

The military officers all had their own opinions. Some thought it was a feint, some thought it was a provocation, and some thought that there was indeed danger in the forests. But no matter what their opinions were, there was surprisingly one point that they all agreed on unanimously. That is, everyone disapproved of Liang Shu approaching the dense forest.

Liu Xian’an said: “I don’t agree either.”

Such a huge swathe of deep mountains and old forests, only ghosts knew what was hidden in it. Even the most capable general could not attack blindly without a target, and it was even more impossible to search the mountains inch by inch. It was estimated that another fifty thousand people would have to be transferred from outside.

Liang Shu nodded: “All right, if you disapprove, then I won’t fight.”

Liu Xian’an saw through him at a glance: “What do you mean you won’t fight if I disapprove? The prince originally didn’t want to fight.”

Taking advantage of the fact that no one in the barracks was looking this way, Liang Shu kissed his hand: “Who says I don’t want to fight? I want to fight, but I’m afraid that if I don’t listen to my wife, I will suffer.”

His voice was a bit loud and carried with the wind, causing the group of military officers next door to look solemn and lower their heads, silently saying “see no evil” as they pretended they hadn’t heard their prince’s fear of being blamed.

By the time Liang Shu brought Liu Xian’an into the barracks, everyone had basically adjusted their attitudes and expressions, and greeted Second Young Master Liu enthusiastically.

The wall was covered in maps. Liu Xian’an scanned them and asked: “These are the outskirts of the Valley of Ten Faces?”

“Yes,” an adjutant replied. “Further down, the miasma is too heavy. There are all kinds of poisonous snakes and insects, and the white mist is hot from the sun. Going in during the summer is like walking into a huge steamer, and there is really no need to waste the manpower.”

Therein lay the problem. The Southwest Garrison couldn’t get in, and it didn’t make sense for the Baifu Sect followers to get in, which was why everyone suspected that the cult was bluffing. Another asked: “But what is their purpose for doing this?”

The release of this news stirred up the area around the Valley of Ten Faces, causing the garrison to raise their vigilance……the adjutant gave a “tsk” and said: “I still feel that they are targeting the prince.”

“I don’t think so. Although our prince is in the Southwest during this time, there are so many military officers in the Southwest. The cult could not know in advance that he would be drawn to the Valley of Ten Faces. What if the prince just didn’t come? Would they have been so busy in vain?”

The scene fell into silence again. Liu Xian’an agreed with the latter statement. He also felt that the news from the Baifu Sect this time was not necessarily aimed at Liang Shu, or to be more accurate, at least not solely aimed at Liang Shu.

Compared to the high vigilance of the garrison against the dense forest, glaring like a tiger watching its prey, the common people of the Valley of Ten Faces were much more relaxed, and the arrival of Liang Shu especially caused everyone to feel more secure. Not to mention anything else, the number of aunts carrying vegetable baskets to the gates of the camp in the past two days was several times more than before.

In the end, no one was able to see His Royal Highness Xiao Wang, but they twice saw the famous Second Young Master Liu, wrapped in a big black cloak that covered his face against the wind. One time he was walking from south to north with a medicine basket, and the other time he was walking from north to south with a food box. Regardless of anything else, didn’t he look very diligent?

But in fact, he was forced by First Young Master Liu. He arranged a bunch of herbs every day in order to survive, but this made the lazy man miserable. His life creed still hadn’t changed. If it doesn’t have to be done by me, I don’t have to do it…..but no matter how firm this belief was, it couldn’t stand up against his Da-ge, who had a ruler in his heart, and regarded everything as a ruler. In the end, he had no choice but to compromise with a yawn, going in and out all day long like a diligent person, busy from morning to night.

After working, he didn’t even want to eat dinner anymore, and lay in bed refusing to move.

“You really don’t plan to eat?” Liang Shu picked him up. “I specially ordered the kitchen to cook mushroom chicken soup for you.”

Liu Xian’an lay his arms softly on the other’s shoulders. I’ll eat, but I don’t want to move.

A-Ning stood beside him, once again wanting to sigh. Alas, he’s so spoiled by the prince that he doesn’t even want to lift his chopsticks to eat.

Liang Shu smiled and hugged him tightly. But before he had time to step over the threshold, three sharp whistles suddenly sounded above the camp, like arrows piercing through the golden red glow of the sunset. Then, the assembly drum also sounded with a dong dong!

There were five grades of whistles used to convey military information in the camp. The higher it went, the more dangerous the situation was. The Valley of Ten faces had always been at peace. The last time there were three whistles was decades ago, when nearly a hundred lost wild elephants rushed into the village in the middle of the night.

Liu Xian’an was sleepy, and upon hearing the whistles, he didn’t react immediately. He was set back on the bed by Liang Shu in a daze, and the soldiers outside quickly surrounded him, protecting the small courtyard in an airtight manner.

“Your Highness!” Cheng Suyue also rushed over to make a report. “There is something strange in the village below the mountain. It’s like a…..monkey?”

Her words were unsure. The sun had already disappeared below the mountain at this time, and the glow of the sunset had also faded. The entirety of the Valley of Ten Faces was covered in a drowsy light. Even with a looking glass, one could only clearly see shadows jumping up and down in the village below the mountain. Liang Shu took his sword and mounted his horse. He was just leaving camp when Gao Lin galloped toward him on horseback, carrying the black lump of an unknown object in his hand.

Cheng Suyue was still inspecting it carefully with her eyes wide open at first, but after distinguishing it clearly, the food in her stomach that she had just eaten surged up. It was too disgusting. It was…..a person with the stature of a five-year-old child. Its skin was gray all over, with lines of corruption on its face. Gray eyeballs, red pupils, dry palms, sharp, curved nails, and gray hair like weeds. The latter was being held up by Gao Lin, causing the facial features to rise strangely and reveal a smiling face.

A smiling face like that was enough to make everyone who had seen “him” have nightmares for ten days.

Not to mention that there was a bloody black hole at the base of the throat.

“What the hell is this, ah?” Gao Lin was also shocked. “As soon as it entered the village, it went on a rampage, running faster than a cheetah, jumping over walls and demolishing tiles. It knocked over the tables, chairs, and benches of more than a dozen families, and dozens of men failed to catch up. In the end, because it was running too fast, it straightened its neck and ran into my sword.”

Liang Shu asked: “Is this the only one?”

Gao Lin was taken aback. “Ah? When I was there, it was the only—”

Before he finished speaking, whistles rang through the sky one after another, and this time there were as many as four! The garrison had already packed up and rushed down the mountain. Liang Shu flung his whip and said: “Let’s go!”

Gao Lin made a noise of agreement and tossed the thing in his hand forward. Cheng Suyue was forced to catch it, and having close contact with this thing almost caused her to spew again.

“Take it for Second Young Master Liu to look at!”

“…….”

Cheng Suyue hesitated. Can I really take it to him? Second Young Master Liu will be frightened, and the prince will deduct money from us afterwards.

But on second thought, that was someone from Baihe Mountain Village who had been scalping people since he was a child.

So in the end, she dragged the “trophy” back to the camp. Liu Xianche was also in his brother’s room at this time. When he heard the guards outside the gate retching suddenly, he was puzzled, and the two brothers walked outside the door: “What’s wrong……what the hell is this thing?”

“My brother caught it in the village at the foot of the mountain,” Cheng Suyue said. “There should be more than this one. The prince has already rushed over.”

Liu Xian’an ordered people to light all the lanterns in the courtyard, then rolled up his sleeves and put on gloves. Stepping forward to examine carefully, he said: “It’s like a Ghost Boy.”

Liu Xianche had also heard the legends of wizards who would use herbs and lime to dehydrate a child’s body, put it in colorful clothes and nail it to a wooden stake, then walk through the streets with it in hand. He said: “Although a Ghost Boy sounds strange and terrifying, it is in essence just a mummy doll. How can it run and jump?”

“I’m just saying that this creation method is similar to creating Ghost Boys,” Liu Xian’an said. “But it didn’t completely kill the child. They must have used some kind of poisonous Gu to control his brain and meridians, making him incredibly powerful and turning him into a strange beast.”

“Find an empty house,” Liu Xianche said. “I’ll take a look at it.”

Liu Xian’an nodded: “Okay.”

His expression remained unchanged, calm and tranquil.

This was professionalism.

Baihe Mountain Village was amazing.

And His Royal Highness Xiao Wang at the foot of the mountain was also very amazing. Holding a longbow, he shot a flaming arrow with great precision. It drew a crackling shadow in the twilight before penetrating heavily into the soft eye socket of an evil creature, causing a twittering scream!

There were estimated to be seven or eight Ghost Boys in the village, and the garrison outflanked them left and right, taking care of five of them. Another one was bigger, and looked like the leader. It initially curled up in the corner of a wall and didn’t move. When everyone attacked together, there was a sudden “bang,” and it smashed a big hole in the wall with its head.

“Ah!” The peasant woman in the house screamed in terror!

At the village entrance, Gao Lin beheaded a Ghost Boy with a backhand swing of his sword. Before he had time to breathe a sigh of relief, a black streak swished before his eyes, accompanied by the weak cry of a baby and the shouts of officers and soldiers behind: “Lieutenant General Gao! Stop it! Stop it! Stop it, ah! It snatched a child away!”

What ‘stop it,’ quit yelling, can’t you see that the thing has run away without even a shadow left? Gao Lin cursed to himself, mounting his horse to give chase, but Liang Shu had already galloped past him with a gust of wind, his long sword stained with blood.

“You few, follow the prince!” Gao Lin turned his horse’s head. “The rest of you, follow me into the village!”

“Yes!”

The Ghost Boy held the baby’s swaddling clothes in one hand, and used its legs and other hand to move back and forth between the trees and vines. With its hunched figure, its speed was not hindered at all! The baby’s cry was so weak that it was nearly inaudible. Seeing that the edge of the miasma and white fog was approaching, Liang Shu drew his longbow and shot an arrow through the shadows of the trees!

With a puchi, the Ghost Boy’s neck was shot through precisely, and it staggered twice, its pace slowing. The group of soldiers took the opportunity to rush forward, trying to snatch the baby back, but the creature seemed to be enraged, and threw the swaddling clothes in its hand to the other side!

The cliff was not too high nor too short. An adult may be able to survive the fall, but a baby only a few months old would encounter disaster. She slipped out of the blanket crying, and that fragile little life simply fell straight down! At this critical moment when her life was hanging by a thread, a person suddenly jumped from up high and held the baby firmly in his arms, drew his sword out of its sheath with his right hand, and then used all the strength in his body to nail the blade into the cliff!

The metal drew a string of sparks, and the blade finally stuck smoothly into a crack, allowing him to hang on the stone wall.

The baby was still crying, “Wah, wah!”

“Young Head Escort Chang!” The soldiers gathered at the cliff and shouted, “If you hold on for a while, we’ll let the rope down!”

“Okay!” Chang Xiaoqiu held the baby in one hand and the hilt of the sword in another, his face flushed red! The night wind in the mountains was cold. He lowered his head and put his face against the child’s head, trying to pass some warmth to it. At times, the wind got stronger and blew his whole body to and fro. The hand holding the sword had completely frozen, and the blood flowing in his veins was more like needles just plucked out of the snow. He raised his head with difficulty, just in time to see Liang Shu also standing there at the top, his robes blown up by the wind and his face backlit, like a god.

This wind didn’t seem to be so bad at all.

Chang Xiaoqiu thought hard.

In order to leave a good impression on the prince, he even forcibly concocted a calm and breezy smile, striving to maintain it even if Mount Tai collapsed.

The soldiers knotting ropes on top of the mountain saw this and were very anxious, worried that the boy had been frozen stupid and was having hallucinations, why was he still smiling? So they sped up, their fingers flying.

Finally, the moment before the foolishly smiling Young Head Escort Chang was unable to hold on any longer, a soldier slipped down the rope. He first tied his waist tightly, then held the baby in his arms and gestured to the people above.

The rope was pulled up quickly, but only one person was pulled up. As for the other….the person pulling the rope wondered if Young Head Escort Chang was stuck on a branch, as he was so heavy that he couldn’t be pulled up at all.

“When I went down, I didn’t see any trees anywhere, ah.”

The group of people were lying on the edge of the cliff, looking down. Someone shouted: “Hey! Xiao Chang! Try to move yourself!”

From the moment Chang Xiaoqiu had the rope tied around his waist, he completely let go of his strength. Almost paralyzed in mid-air, his brain and body both frozen, he just waited for those at the top to start pulling. Now that he heard everyone shouting, he regained his frozen soul and thought, why aren’t you pulling me, but asking me to climb up by myself?

Just climb, ba!

He gritted his teeth and stretched out his hand to hold the hilt again, trying to climb up, but he couldn’t move an inch.

An ominous premonition surged in Chang Xiaoqiu’s heart. He slowly looked down, and saw a skinny dark hand with sharp nails “growing” abruptly from the stone wall, holding tightly to the hem of his clothes.

He took a gasp of cold air.

“Xiao Chang! Xiao Chang! Say something! Are you all right!” The people above yelled a few more times, and seeing that he didn’t move, they wanted to go down the rope to rescue him, but Chang Xiaoqiu raised his head and shouted: “Don’t move yet!”

He collected himself, held the rope tightly, and slowly slid down a section. As he descended, a cave hidden beneath the stone wall was revealed, and inside the cave, gray-red spots of light were flickering on and off.

Dozens, hundreds, or even more Ghost Boys were squatting there neatly, looking at him silently and uniformly.

Upon seeing the scene in front of him, Chang Xiaoqiu’s pupils constricted, and he almost screamed out in fear at this terrifying scene! He desperately pulled the rope to try to climb up, but the Ghost Boys in the cave screamed and rushed out, hanging on his legs one after another, like a huge beehive!

The rope, swish, slid down by a lot!

Chang Xiaoqiu watched helplessly as he got farther and farther away from the sword stuck in the stone wall, and could only rely on his fists, closing his eyes as he smashed down to break free from the burden! But there were too many Ghost Boys. Even if he was lucky enough to hit one or two, a new batch soon rushed up, and the rope around his waist was about to break. At the moment it broke, an awe-inspiring sword energy suddenly swept across!

The Ghost Boys were caught off guard, and fell in a batch down the cliff, thud, thud. Holding onto the rope with one hand, Liang Shu flew through the air to catch Chang Xiaoqiu, kicked those ghost boys still hanging on his legs to break their skulls, and then flew back to the top of the cliff, tossing Chang Xiaoqiu back to his subordinates.

“Your Highness!” A man threw his sword over.

Liang Shu held the hilt of the sword, and the cold light condensed in his hand. Almost instantly, he turned and fell off the cliff again, returning to the stone cave and penetrating through it with a ruthless wave!

Amidst the screams of “Eee, eee, wah, wah,” more than half the Ghost Boys were killed or injured, and those who survived by chance buzzed and climbed rapidly like a swarm of poisonous bees whose nest had been burst. They scattered toward the white miasma forest in all directions, dark figures bouncing up and down through the trees like huge fleas.

After the group of “fleas” disappeared, the surrounding wilderness regained its silence.

All the soldiers were terrified. They exchanged glances, and after a long time, choked out a sentence: “Damn it, why are there so many?”

“There may be many more in the future.” Liang Shu picked up Chang Xiaoqiu with a grim expression. “Someone carry him on their back and return to camp first.”

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Chapter Ninety-Four << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-Six