Immortalis

Yin Residence 13

Yang Wujian actually hoped that by the time they returned, Baihe would have already left with his people.

After all, they were just a group of children. Even while pretending to be ghosts and deities, they couldn't resist coming to him to take the remaining roast chicken.

Moreover, if their background was truly as he suspected, then Baihe's current employer...

He followed the other two toward the Xue residence with growing anxiety. However, before they could reach it, someone holding a lantern was waiting for them not far away.

The One-Eyed Daoist, dressed in white, stood silently in the middle of the deserted street, as if he already knew what they had done. He smiled and said, "Three young heroes, I've already retrieved your luggage for you. Returning now would only bring trouble."

"You..."

Yang Wujian's heart turned cold.

He recalled Madam Xue mentioning earlier that the master had taken Baihe's calming medicine.

"Xue Mingchang's health has taken a sharp turn for the worse these past two days. Could it be you..."

He stared at Baihe in shock, unable to comprehend why he would stay here to confront them. Could it be to buy time for those children?

"Did you come to the Xue residence specifically to kill Xue Mingchang?"

Zhou Huai wasn't foolish either. By now, everything had become clear.

Chang Xiuyun wasn't killed on her wedding night; she was murdered in retaliation for interfering with the Cage Play, then dressed as a bride after death to disgrace her reputation in the martial world.

Even the man who died with her wasn't her lover—perhaps he was merely the informant who had told Chang Xiuyun about the Cage Play years ago.

If the first four victims might have been killed to avenge Chang Xiuyun, then the Tongueless Ghost targeting Xue Mingchang could only mean one thing.

Their hatred wasn't just for Chang Xiuyun's killers, but for all those who knew about the Cage Play yet did nothing.

Yang Wujian frowned. "Are there survivors from the Cage Play children back then? Is that why they're so afraid of dogs—because they witnessed the Life Harvesting and Dismemberment methods?"

Baihe smiled, appearing unexpectedly unwilling to flee. He glanced at the full moon overhead and said, "Why don't we talk somewhere else? Since we've already committed the gravest offenses, how about visiting that desolate house again? Everything started there, and I owe you three an explanation."

With that, he walked toward that direction on his own. The others followed behind, leaving the city gates under cover of night and arriving once more before the yin residence.

As they entered, Baihe illuminated the spirit wall with a fire starter and explained, "This residence was built by Northern Desert people. They believe in the Underground Heaven—if heaven is underground, then naturally there would be yin and yang residences. Those four acquired this property back then precisely to conceal their activities."

Northern Desert people...

Shen Qingshi recalled Cao Zhao's words and added, "So they were the owners of this residence fifteen years ago? But they hadn't made their fortune yet back then—how could they afford this property? Unless Northern Desert people were involved in the Cage Play from behind the scenes?"

Baihe didn't turn back. "That remains unknown. However, the Northern Desert version of Cage Play wasn't what they later turned it into, and the subsequent audiences for Cage Play weren't Northern Desert people either."

He led them into the inner courtyard. During this time, Yang Wujian wanted to speak several times, but the words caught in his throat, leaving him uncertain what to say.

Why wasn't he leaving?

Yang Wujian had even prepared—if Baihe wanted to escape, he could always find a way to detain Shen Qingshi and Zhou Huai. With Baihe's skills, he would surely be able to break free and survive.He was extremely anxious, but for some reason, Baihe merely strolled leisurely ahead, seemingly indifferent to his own predicament.

"However, even the Northern Desert's Cage Play is not something honorable. The Northern Desert people believe in the Underground Heaven, and to glimpse the heavenly way, one must pass through the Underground Heaven. Taking the Heaven-reaching Medicine is merely an unorthodox method—unless chosen by heaven, one either goes mad or dies."

Hearing this familiar rhetoric, Zhou Huai couldn't help but ask curiously, "How do you know so much? Are you from the Northern Desert?"

Baihe smiled. "I've stayed in Jingyang City for many years and have dealt frequently with Northern Desert people. It's only natural I'd learn some of their secrets. There's nothing strange about that."

The group passed through the moon gate and entered the spacious courtyard. Ten years ago, Chang Xiuyun had died here.

After a long silence, Yang Wujian finally spoke. "Who died with Chang Xiuyun? Did those children tell you?"

"Just an unfortunate man. He took Chang Xiuyun to 'experience' the Cage Play, ruined the show, and of course those people wouldn't let him go. So they killed him along with her, and he inexplicably became known as Chang Xiuyun's lover."

Baihe seemed truly unwilling to conceal anything further, his tone indifferent as he gazed at the Green Stone brick where Chang Xiuyun had knelt that day.

"Those children weren't my clients from the start. I picked them up because I saw them being chased by vicious dogs on the street, looking utterly pitiful, and wanted to give them a meal. Unexpectedly, they didn't want food—they only begged me to find the killer who murdered Chang Xiuyun. With no other choice, I entered the Ghost Market. After several inquiries, I finally learned that the one who killed Chang Xiuyun was the White-faced Guest."

"Have you ever seen the White-faced Guest?"

For some reason, mentioning this person gave Yang Wujian a strange feeling, and judging by Baihe's expression, he seemed to share the sentiment.

Hearing this, Baihe shook his head. "This person's whereabouts are unpredictable, and he rarely shows himself. But rumors say his martial arts are unfathomable, and his methods are extremely cruel. I am no match for him, and neither are you."

Shen Qingshi asked again, "If you've never seen him, why do you say that?"

Baihe smiled bitterly. "You can ask at any other Ghost Market. This person is not only famous in Jingyang—he's known everywhere. Often, he doesn't even kill for money, but merely for amusement."

Zhou Huai thought for a moment. "So you knew you were no match for him, and that's why you settled for killing the one who hired him instead?"

"You could say that."

Baihe stood in the center of the empty courtyard, his white robes gazing at the moon, truly resembling a stranded wild crane.

"All these years, I've been running around, just to have fewer nightmares at night. You've seen those children—because of what happened back then, they all have disabilities. Fortunately, they can still speak. After they told me about this, even though they couldn't offer proper payment, I couldn't ignore them. So, three years ago, I took on this task and lived with them under the haunted mansion, vowing to help them capture all the remaining fugitives from that year."

Looking at Baihe's haggard profile, Yang Wujian understood in an instant.

Why those children, despite their disabilities, possessed such excellent martial arts foundations and could always escape right under their noses.The reason was quite simple: Baihe had extracted his own internal energy and given it to them, which was why those children could follow him as Daoist acolytes for a full three years.

However, Yang Wujian understood better than anyone that the Longevity Heart Sutra only allowed energy to be expended without replenishment. If one continuously drew it out...

Yang Wujian then recalled the woman he had encountered a few days ago in front of the government office, who claimed strange occurrences were frequent at her family's medicine shop and that her husband had been paralyzed after seeing a snake.

In truth, it was not a snake at all.

It was those half-paralyzed children secretly stealing medicine to replenish Baihe, who suffered from Blood Deficiency Syndrome.

Thinking of this, Yang Wujian gritted his teeth. "You stayed here for three years just to kill them?"

"I might have stayed even longer, but I didn't expect to run into you."

Baihe turned around and faced them calmly.

"Fifteen years ago, these four men made their fortune through the Cage Play. However, as you've likely seen, the so-called yin residence beneath is their doing. Their so-called Jackal, Wolf, Tiger, and Leopard, capable of speaking human language, were actually just young children dressed in animal skins, their limbs crippled. After being captured, many children died from the unbearable, torturous conditions. The few who survived became their caged beasts, forced to utter 'divine revelations' as commanded, performing for the wealthy and powerful of Datong."

Shen Qingshi frowned. "But the Cage Play originated in the Northern Desert. Why would it be..."

"You want to ask why it was performed for Central Plains people, right?"

Baihe sneered. "By now, you should also know that the Northern Desert people hold great reverence for peering into Tian Ting's will. They are well aware that mishandling such matters could lead to a gruesome death. Even in the past, few Northern Deserters dared to watch the Cage Play. However, the Central Plains people do not believe in the Underground Heaven. They saw it as a highly profitable business and took the rumors of the Cage Play as truth, even attempting to glimpse divine secrets through it."

Given this, Baihe, who had Northern Desert heritage, was likely even more outraged by the situation.

Yang Wujian clenched his fists. "But they succeeded, even securing a major client."

"Exactly. Eleven years ago, the very year Xue Mingchang became the county magistrate here, a prominent figure hired them to perform the Cage Play, offering a hundred taels of gold for a single show."

"A hundred taels of gold?"

Zhou Huai's eyes widened in shock.

Even though the White Rainbow Tower had been the wealthiest in the martial world in recent years, they had never handled a single transaction of such extravagance.

What kind of prominent figure could directly offer a hundred taels of gold?

Shen Qingshi was equally astounded.

Having spent years in the palace, she knew that ordinary officials would never have such capability. Unless...

Baihe continued, "Naturally, the four were overjoyed. However, they faced one problem: their caged beasts were insufficient. After all, even the children who survived such torment rarely lived more than a year or two. Having accepted the invitation, they needed to fill the empty cages. Consequently, they began directly abducting unattended beggar children from Jingyang City."

Zhou Huai's expression turned grim. "Was that when they bribed Xue Mingchang with silver?"

"Of course. Abducting children openly, even if they were just beggars, couldn't be kept secret for long. So, they secretly wrote to Xue Mingchang and slipped him silver. Aware of the deep implications, Xue Mingchang turned a blind eye to it."

"Did they eventually succeed in performing?""No, transforming humans into beasts takes time, and many children die during the process. They spent nearly a year experimenting, but just then, Chang Xiuyun learned of this matter. Unable to stand by, she broke into this mansion one night and killed all the caged beasts who had already been wrapped in animal skins, granting them release. Afterwards, she also freed some children who had just had their limbs broken but hadn't been skinned yet."

"But this place is so well hidden, how did Chang Xiuyun's friend come to know about it..."

Shen Qingshi found it strange.

The Cage Play was so cruel and ominous - those four would never dare speak of it carelessly. How could Chang Xiuyun have learned about it?

Baihe said calmly, "Chang Xiuyun is dead, so this matter may never be clarified. Back then, when those four discovered their scheme had been exposed, they flew into a rage and hired the White-faced Guest to eliminate Chang Xiuyun. However, even they didn't know that the White-faced Guest had a perverse nature and wouldn't completely follow orders. After killing Chang Xiuyun and her friend, he skinned them, cut out their tongues, hollowed out their organs, then actually brought the bodies to this mansion to discard them, creating the illusion of an elopement night - all to make the martial world believe Chang Xiuyun had violated the Jade Pavilion's major prohibition by eloping with a man."

Zhou Huai shuddered upon hearing this: "What did he gain from doing this? Pure amusement?"

Baihe shook his head: "That's why I said the White-faced Guest is no ordinary assassin. While he appeared to complete the mission, he also made sure his four employers suffered. Since then, this mansion became haunted, and those four naturally didn't dare return to continue the Cage Play. Thus, the Cage Play completely disappeared ten years ago."

So, could it be that the White-faced Guest also wanted to end the Cage Play for good?

This person's nature was unclear, neither wholly good nor evil.

Even in the martial world, such figures hadn't appeared for a long time.

Yang Wujian grew increasingly uneasy, then heard Baihe laugh: "Originally, I intended to keep Xue Mingchang for last precisely to let him experience the fear those children went through, never expecting him to uncover the truth... Yet unexpectedly, you all still managed to uncover the Cage Play."

Shen Qingshi now understood why Baihe had appeared before them: "So that's why you no longer plan to keep Xue Mingchang alive?"

"Probably just a few more hours. He'll die before dawn."

Baihe sighed: "Actually, he wasn't completely inactive in his investigation. Earlier, knowing several officials who had watched the Cage Play, he wrote down their names for me in hopes of saving his life. Pity, I never intended to spare him from the start..."

Before he could finish, suddenly, several thuds were heard as bloody sandbags landed before them.

"What's this..."

Zhou Huai was startled and immediately hid behind Yang Wujian.

By candlelight, Baihe saw that the corpses wrapped in these sandbags were all the young Taoist acolytes he had sent out of the city earlier.

"What!"

"Reverend, your acolytes weren't fast enough."

On the haunted mansion's roof stood a figure who had appeared unnoticed. In the moonlight, his dark official robes bore embroidered snake patterns in the shadows - the imperial-bestowed scale uniform.

Baihe stared blankly at the long-dead children before him. Not long ago, while Yang Wujian and the others were at the Ghost Market, he had sent them away...

How could this be!Just as the crowd was struck with terror, the figure gracefully descended from above, the tiger-head gold plaque at his side clinking crisply. For some reason, his face was still veiled by a black cloth.

"I am Bi An Envoy Cao Zhao."

Though the newcomer's voice carried a hint of laughter, it sent chills down everyone's spine.

"This matter is of great importance. From now on, I must trouble you all to refrain from interfering and leave everything to the Northern Zhaoming Division."