Chapter 15 "Eh?"

Old Master Sun, who had been repeatedly apologizing to the red lanterns on the paifang and whispering sweet nothings, was startled when he saw Hu Ma leading people to him. He was immediately taken aback, his face full of vigilance.

He wasn't afraid of Hu Ma. After all, after entering the valley, he hadn't really done much other than shout a few times. He hadn't used his skills much. Now, no matter who he faced, he could fight.

But he was afraid of these red lanterns.

He had heard of the Red Lantern Goddess before, but since they weren't in the same province, there wasn't much interaction. No matter how impressive others made it sound, he didn't take it seriously, thinking it was just a minor shrine deity who had won a fight against a Blue-Clad Evil Ghost. What was so special about that?

The *shousui* (year-guarding) during the entry to the manor, that was the Shousui Master, and one naturally had to respect such evil beings, but there was no need to be obsequious.

But now it was different. He had witnessed the Red Lantern Goddess's methods with his own eyes. Just a trace of her divine power could drive away the Lotus Virgin and severely injure the witch village's evil god. What kind of power was that?

If this little manager of the Red Lantern Society took the opportunity to borrow the Red Lantern Goddess's power to make things difficult for him, he wouldn't be able to handle it.

"Old Master, there's no need to panic."

Hu Ma glanced at him and said calmly, "Our Red Lantern Goddess isn't unreasonable. She just hates people who have no rules. Earlier, you came into our mine and caused trouble without even a word, so it's right that you suffered a loss."

"But now that the misunderstanding has been cleared up, and everyone is of the *shousui* lineage, why be unreasonable?"

"..."

Hu Ma spoke politely and respectfully, which eased Old Master Sun's mind a little. He carefully sized up Hu Ma and said, "Good kid. I heard people say that your master is Old Yin Mountain's Master Zhou the Second?"

"How much skill does it take to teach a disciple like you... what do they call you?"

"..."

Hearing this, Hu Ma smiled and nodded, saying, "My surname is Hu, and I'm a manager in our Red Lantern Society."

"The title isn't important. I'm just working for the Goddess. If you're not convinced, Old Master, feel free to come to Mingzhou. Our Red Lantern Society has plenty of people who can take on the Old Master."

"..."

"Hey, what's this talk about being convinced or not?"

Iron Bridge Sun the Third suddenly chuckled and shook his head, saying, "We're all people of the Order doing things, it's not a personal grudge, Manager Hu. This old man will remember the favor you've given me today, and I'll repay it in the future."

Hu Ma smiled, "You're too kind, Old Master. If there's a chance in the future, please feel free to give me pointers."

Only now did Old Master Sun finally relax. He turned around and hurriedly checked the injuries of the people who had come with him, but his face couldn't help but turn gloomy.

The One Coin Sect Dharma King had too much of his *qi* and life force eroded by the Lotus Virgin's forcibly descended Dharma Body. Now, his hair was white, and he looked twenty years older. Even if he was saved, he probably wouldn't have many years left to live.

And his disciples and grandchildren, except for Zhuang Erchang, who had a deeper cultivation, were barely breathing. The others had been bitten by the Gu bees, their bodies full of holes, and they had long been dead.

This trip had been a great loss, but most of the hatred in his heart was directed at the witch people. He couldn't bring himself to complain about the blood food gang manager in this mine who was courteous and respectful to his elders.

He grabbed the half-dead Dharma King, who had lost all his Dharma power, in one hand and the unconscious Zhuang Erchang in the other, and turned to leave the valley.

Hu Ma was a little surprised to see him leave so decisively. He suddenly said, "Old Master, when Mining Chief Zhuang recovers, he'll have to come back and hand over the accounts of the mine. When our Goddess asks about it, I'll have to report it to the people above..."

"..."

"Understood!"

Old Master Sun said gloomily without looking back, "If he doesn't come, I'll break his leg!"

"Eh, are they leaving already?"

Seeing Old Master Sun leave so easily, everyone present looked at each other in disbelief.

"The affairs of the Society are the affairs of the Society, and the inheritance has the friendship of the inheritance."

Hu Ma shook his head and said, "He came to steal the *shituo* for the One Coin Sect, and we have to protect the treasure for the Red Lantern Goddess. These are all official matters, there's no personal grudge."

In fact, he also breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. To be honest, the most dreaded thing in this whole affair was this old *shousui*. He seemed to have used some kind of entry-level secret technique, with rolling baleful aura and a blue face with fangs, which was truly frightening.

But he hadn't found his position. He didn't know whether to rush to the front or stay behind, and he couldn't figure out the details. He was frightened by the Red Lantern Goddess's power and didn't dare to risk his life with his true skills.

In fact, if he had gone crazy and used this Dharma power to kill and cause trouble in the mine, it would have been a headache for everyone...

While thinking, he waved his hand, turned around, and looked at the ore vein wrapped in red cloth. His expression didn't relax. He said to Old Abacus beside him, "Brother, what exactly is going on with the things in the ore vein?"

"Didn't you say you understood everything? You should tell me about it."

"..."

"Me?"

Old Abacus was stunned for a moment, thinking that he still had many questions to ask you, such as how you could withstand the palm of that entry-level old *shousui*, how you could force out the possessed Tangshangke with a single saber strike, and even scare him away?

But feeling the urgency in Hu Ma's voice, he also took a deep breath and hurriedly said, "This old man has seen a lot in his life, but how can I explain this situation..."

"I only know that these witch people don't worship any witch god at all. The real witch gods have been conferred titles, but this branch of theirs participated in the Upper Capital Grand Altar incident back then, and they were punished and exiled by their original clan, so they came here."

"The real witch gods have been conferred titles and won't bless these sinners..."

"..."

"Another tribe affected by the Upper Capital Grand Altar incident? It's a bit like the Dongzi Li family's situation..."

Hu Ma's heart also stirred slightly as he pondered to himself and slowly said, "If the witch gods won't bless them, then what are they so piously offering?"

During the fight just now, he also felt that what the witch people had summoned from outside seemed different from the evil spirits and Tangshangke he had seen. It was indescribably strange.

"Perhaps it's some kind of evil spirit that took advantage of their tribe's confusion and took the opportunity to pose as a witch god to swindle incense offerings..."

Old Abacus was also obviously hesitant. As he slowly spoke, he suddenly felt a little terrified: "Perhaps it's just because the Black Tai Sui ate too much and its brain became abnormal, and it created something unknown..."

Hearing Old Abacus's words full of doubt, Hu Ma also suddenly seemed to have thought of something. He carefully pondered: what was summoned from outside wasn't a witch god, but something that this branch of witch people, who had eaten too much Tai Sui flesh and blood, had imagined out of thin air...

But if it was really just imagined out of thin air, this thing shouldn't have a will, at least it shouldn't have a clear purpose that went beyond the scope of the witch people's prayers!

But the one outside clearly did. It even had a clear purpose to use the things in the mine to come to the human world...

Then this will...

His heart suddenly jumped: "Does this will come from Master Tai Sui?"

Thinking of this question and recalling the chaotic information that arose in his mind when he absorbed the Black Tai Sui's blood, Hu Ma took a deep breath and realized a terrible problem:

'Did I just fight with Master Tai Sui?'

'...'

"These things are too difficult to guess..."

While Hu Ma was thinking, Old Abacus sighed softly and said, "The more powerful the Tangshangke and conferred gods are, the more they dislike blood food mines, or rather... they are instinctively afraid."

"Even our Society's Red Lantern Goddess is unwilling to be easily invited to blood food mines, let alone those more powerful than the Red Lantern Goddess?"

"But, there are some blood foods that they can't live without, and they can invisibly create even more powerful evil spirits. Moreover, some are full of attraction to them..."

"..."

"Both attracted and instinctively afraid?"

Hu Ma caught the key point in these words and looked deeply at the ore vein that was still sealed with red cloth, and said in a low voice, "Then, what they are all抢qiang (robbing)... seems to be called what *shituo* (corpse mound)... what exactly is it?"

"That's exactly what makes me feel a little strange..."

Old Abacus paused and whispered, "What they said seems to be different from what I understand. If this is really what that group of people in Upper Capital were fighting for more than twenty years ago, how... could it appear here?"

"Hmm?"

Hearing Old Abacus say this, Hu Ma couldn't help but be shocked. He turned his head and glanced at him.

He had heard about the Upper Capital Grand Altar from the Dongzi Li family earlier, but didn't the Dongzi Li family say at the time that the Grand Altar was set up to understand the origins of Master Tai Sui?

Of course, he later heard Senior Mountain Lord say that the Grand Altar seemed to be related to the previous generation's reincarnation, the Great Virtuous Teacher...

Now, there's also the thing inside the ore vein?

Thinking of Old Abacus's unreliable performance on weekdays, suspicion couldn't help but creep into his eyes, which frightened Old Abacus into hurriedly saying, "Don't look at me, I can't guarantee anything. I'm just telling you what I heard from others..."

Hu Ma said, "Why haven't others heard of it, but you've heard of it?"

The suspicion in his words was already undisguised.

Hearing this, Old Abacus directly glared his eyes, "Do you know what I did before I joined the Red Lantern Society as a chaplain?"

"In order to make a living, this old man used to walk the streets and alleys telling stories. If I didn't listen to these strange legends and secret anecdotes, boudoir gossip, how would I have the ability to coax rewards from those tea drinkers?"

"Damn..."

Hu Ma, who had been suspecting that Old Abacus had a problem, was stunned: "His answer is unexpectedly reasonable..."

He also sighed softly in his heart, seeing everyone around him looking at him, that ore vein over there, even if they talked about it more, it was still just sitting there, it wasn't a solution...

So he hardened his heart and said, "Datong, go get a shovel!"

(End of this chapter)