Chapter 131

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Chapter 131: The Ten Mysteries of the Imperial Capital

Teahouse in the Imperial Capital, Natural Inn.

There was a refined storyteller named "Clairaudience" dressed in a moon-white robe, speaking to the tea guests below:

"Today, I will tell you about a recent strange phenomenon in the Imperial Capital… It is quite mysterious and is known as the Ten Mysteries of the Imperial Capital!"

"Now, let me tell you about an old house in the east of the city, which was originally owned by a family named Fang…"

"One night, the head of the Fang family suddenly woke up in the middle of the night and saw a ghostly figure in a red robe standing by the courtyard gate, appearing and disappearing…"

"The head of the Fang family didn’t take it seriously, but little did he know that every night, the red ghostly figure, which seemed to be getting closer to him, appeared."

"On the first day, it was still at the front gate of the house. On the seventh day, it was already at the bedroom door. On the tenth day… it had entered the bedroom and stood silently behind a folding screen, watching him. On the fifteenth day, it was already standing by his bedside!"

"Since then, the head of the Fang family and his wife have been plagued by sleepless nights, nightmares, and drenched in sweat, even after seeking numerous renowned doctors in the Imperial Capital."

"One day, he finally met an old doctor who told him that he wasn’t sick but rather frightened. The doctor said that there were unclean things in his ancestral home and advised him to move out soon."

"The head of the Fang family believed in doing no harm and having no fear of ghosts. He thought his years of trading had kept him clean and safe. Little did he know that ghosts didn’t need reasons to harm people."

"After another half month, both the husband and wife of the Fang family suddenly died with no apparent illness…"

"…After the Fang family’s old residence became a leased courtyard, a strange event occurred just half a month ago…"

"…The next day, when the sun rose, the tenant named Lu Renjia was found hanging dead at the entrance gate of the courtyard. The hall was covered in blood, and there was a ‘ghost’ word written on the wall!"

This Clairaudience was an experienced storyteller, who could effortlessly tell stories in a flowing and endless stream of words.

The tea guests stared wide-eyed, feeling a chilling breeze even in broad daylight, causing cold sweat to form on their backs.

A corner of the teahouse.

Storyteller Jiang Chen listened to the story, only to smirk.

The storytellers of Tide Listening Building are divided into two factions, "Real Events" and "Strange Tales".

This group called Clairaudience is a fantastic faction. Today, news of a haunted old house in the eastern part of the city has spread like wildfire in the Imperial Capital. Of course, Clairaudience couldn’t overlook this matter.

As a storyteller belonging to the "Strange Tales" faction, Clairaudience tells stories regardless of their truth or falsehood, with the sole aim of creating something "strange".

So after hearing about the haunted old house, he carefully investigated and then started embellishing the story.

Of course, according to Clairaudience, this is called "artistic embellishment".

Who came up with "the Ten Mysteries of the Imperial Capital"? It was all created by Clairaudience himself, and this wasn’t the first time he had done something like this.

"Can it really be like this?" Jiang Chen sighed inwardly.

"In this world, there are indeed cultivators and also creatures."

"Though I have yet to see ghosts or monsters with my own eyes, I have heard many rumors… I just don’t know if they are true or false."

"If they hear about Clairaudience, these tea patrons from the Imperial Capital will probably believe it."

Jiang Chen was originally a martial artist, but later became a storyteller who focused on practical matters. He was a little uncomfortable with this kind of thing, but when Clairaudience spoke up, he felt a bit uneasy.

The storyteller Clairaudience continued:

"That tenant named Lu is just the beginning."

"A few days ago, another tenant arrived at the old Fang family mansion. He was a small, elderly man in his sixties who lived alone. He used to practice martial arts and was quite skilled!"

"The people from the Wan-family Chamber of Commerce thought that this old man’s martial arts skills were impressive and that he could keep the mansion in check. So, they deliberately hid the rumors of ghosts to let him move in, in order to debunk the rumors."

"But unexpectedly, this highly skilled old man met a tragic death in the hall on the second day."

"When he was found, his body was covered in blood, his face pressed against the ground in a pool of blood in the hall. Before he died, he stretched out one finger, dipped it in blood, and wrote a strange message: ‘Don’t stop…’. Next to it, there were the words ‘haunted’ written in black and red."

"From this, we can see that the elderly martial artist was tormented by a fierce ghost before his death, to the point where he went insane and wrote nonsensical words."

When the upper and lower lips touched, a strange story popped out of the mouth, which fascinated the tea guests.

"The people from the Wan-family Chamber of Commerce were thinking of something bad this time. It seems that the name of this haunted house will spread throughout the Imperial Capital, so they dare not continue to rent it out."

"The next day, after the authorities’ law enforcement officers were properly arranged, they immediately sealed off the house, not allowing anyone to enter or exit."

"When the neighbors around the old house heard that it was haunted, they naturally avoided it like the plague. Some even went to stay at their relatives’ houses for a few days, fearing to disturb the vengeful spirits. From then on, the area near the old house became sparsely populated, with hardly anyone daring to wander around there even in broad daylight."

"Who would have thought that two days ago, another unexpected incident occurred."

"Non-stop drizzling rain fell over the Imperial Capital, making the weather damp and cold, causing great discomfort."

"There was an old beggar on the street who, to seek shelter from the rain, sneaked into the Wan family’s old house. He didn’t dare to barge in but took cover under the eaves to stay dry."

"However, the unexpected still happened…"

The tea guests listened to the story with great fascination.

In a corner of the teahouse, there was an old tea drinker with all white hair. He wrinkled his nose disapprovingly.

"This person sure knows how to talk big. How can things be so mysterious?"

This old tea drinker was actually Qiao Mu.

The things he did weren’t actually that exaggerated, but this skilled storyteller exaggerated them, turning it into a spooky story about the Imperial Capital.

This ghost story spread more widely and became even more bizarre than Qiao Mu had expected.

Qiao Mu picked up the teacup on the table, took a gentle sip, and let his mind wander.

It’s time for the Death Assessment: D+ (humanity as fuelwood)

Lifespan consumed by death: 1 (0.5*2) years

Remaining resurrection chances this week: 3/5

Current age: 93 years old.

Vitality: 66%.

Skills: A little bit.

In a blink of an eye, three years had passed.

Qiao Mu felt that time flew by like a white horse, and the years made people age.

These three deaths were caused by tenant Lu Renjia, a stubborn fourth-ranked martial artist, and an old beggar.

Because of Qiao Mu’s proficient Flesh Changing Skill, he would make subtle adjustments to his appearance and even his body shape every time he changed his identity.

Clearly, he succeeded, and the result was better than expected.

Otherwise, the officials would not have treated this as a haunting, and the situation would escalate to a more eerie level.

After all…the three old triplets disguised themselves and died consecutively in the Fang family’s old mansion. There was an evil presence in this matter. It might not just be the Ten Mysteries of the Imperial Capital, it could be the biggest mystery in the Imperial Capital.

Qiao Mu stood up, paid for the tea, and walked towards the door. He secretly stretched his muscles, twisted his neck, and turned his waist.

Every joint in his body made crackling sounds.

"Am I really getting old?" Qiao Mu had this doubt in his mind.

It’s an undeniable fact that his appearance has indeed aged.

It is true that his vitality has declined. As he aged from 90 to 93 years old, his vitality also decreased by 4%, reaching 66%.

But these are just numbers on paper.

Qiao Mu clenched his fist secretly, feeling the surging vitality in his body.

"The Xumi Mountain King Sutra, or should I say the Human Path Sutra, is truly an extraordinary skill in this world. Hai Wuya’s progress in martial arts may be no less than that of the Martial Saint, who cultivates weird martial arts and feeds on humans."

Qiao Mu only knew that Hai Wuya seemed to be connected to the Wuji Association, but he didn’t investigate his background further.

He didn’t know that Hai Wuya was actually considered one of the "seventy-two wise men" under the Martial Saint. This meant that he possessed abilities or special techniques that surpassed the Martial Saint in a certain aspect.

"However, no matter how impressive Hai Wuya is, his energy and lifespan are limited. It’s impossible for the ‘Xumi Mountain King Sutra’ to transform into the ‘Human Path Sutra’ that Hai Wuya envisions in just one step. It will require a long passage of time."

"And perhaps my talent can be seen as accelerating the progression of time?"

This thought crossed Qiao Mu’s mind.

Even after experiencing three deaths, he still couldn’t deduce the sixth layer of the ‘Xumi Mountain King Sutra’.

However, he already had a certain direction in mind. He was no longer blindly rushing and practicing techniques, which made it similar to the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method.

Qiao Mu walked out of the teahouse, and as he continued walking, he heard a familiar voice.

"Senior Qiao, are you also here at the teahouse to listen to stories?"

The person speaking is Gaoler Fang Yuan.

These past few days, when Qiao Mu wasn’t causing trouble, he often appeared in front of the young prison guard, teaching him martial arts. "Qiao Shuanglin" and Gaoler Fang Yuan were gradually becoming familiar with each other.

"Yes, listening to a book." Qiao Mu casually said.

"Speaking of which, I heard that your old house has recently been haunted."

Fang Yuan paused for a moment, then replied.

"Indeed. I heard that several tenants suddenly died… Is it a haunting? Perhaps only a cultivator has such mysterious methods?"

He didn’t look at Qiao Mu, his expression unchanged.

"Yes. By the way, did the value of your family’s old house decrease?" Qiao Mu asked.

It was at that moment that Fang Yuan suddenly realized.

"Naturally, the price dropped significantly, and people naturally avoid such a haunted house."

"Doesn’t Wan Ronghua have a background in the Great Dao Sect? Why not ask for help from the inhuman members of the Great Dao Sect?" Qiao Mu asked.

"Who would ask a subordinate to do things for their master? Wan Ronghua may have climbed the high branch of the Great Dao Sect, but expecting someone as proud as the inhuman members to do things for him is just wishful thinking," Fang Yuan sneered.

"Of course, we can’t guess the thoughts of the inhuman members accurately, but if there is an inhuman member willing to do so, it is not impossible."

"Let’s not talk about that. The price of our ancestral home has dropped by… one-tenth in the past month or so!"

One-tenth?

It dropped even more than Qiao Mu imagined.

But if you think about it, it makes sense.

In Qiao Mu’s past life, there were also so-called "haunted houses", and their prices would typically be discounted by about thirty to forty percent.

And in the Great Yan Imperial Court, which is a feudal kingdom where cultivators exist, it is perfectly normal to have evil spirits like monsters and ghosts. It is true that people might actually die because of them.

Therefore, it is not too surprising for this house, suspected to be haunted by a fierce ghost, to drop to only one-tenth of its original price.

If Qiao Mu were even more ruthless and caused a few more deaths, no one would want this house, even if it was given away for free.

However, there is also a saying that too much of anything is not good.

During these three deaths, Qiao Mu tested his already advanced "Flesh Changing Skill" and managed to hide it from the authorities in the Imperial Capital.

That would be enough.

If the situation continues to escalate, it may attract cultivators or even alert the most powerful Condor Wei En in the entire world.

If things go wrong at that time, it will be quite a spectacle.

"With only one-tenth of the price, can you afford it with your savings?" Qiao Mu asked.

"Nature is enough," Fang Yuan said with a smile.

"This time, the Fang family business really suffered a disaster. We can only say that those who do wrong will eventually face their downfall."

"Indeed, it is a disaster."

Qiao Mu glanced at Fang Yuan and then walked away.

When Fang Yuan buys the ancestral house, he will obtain the Blood Moon Chart that every Spirit Refining martial artist desires. He can also take this opportunity to have a showdown with Sword Ghost, another Spirit Refining martial artist.

Fang Yuan stood in place, watching Qiao Mu’s departing figure. Many thoughts flashed through his mind, but in the end, he didn’t voice the lingering questions in his heart.

Did Qiao Mu send three assassins just to stage this play and end up dying?

Did they really go to such extreme lengths just to lower the price of the house?

Did he use some clever technique, like a secret technique called Turtle Breathing, to make the three assassins fake their deaths? But can they really fool the authorities?

Fang Yuan, as a 9th ranked martial artist, couldn’t understand at all.

But he didn’t ask either.

Everyone has secrets, just like "Qiao Shuanglin" and Fang Yuan.

Qiao Mu never asked why he could complete the first level of the Xumi Mountain King Sutra in just one month, and he also didn’t ask Qiao Mu how he managed to do such strange things.

He was young, but a smart person who knew when to advance and retreat.

Moreover, what Qiao Mu did was obviously beneficial to him and was helping, acting to lower the price of the ancestral home. It’s just that his methods were a bit strange.

Fang Yuan naturally didn’t come forward to question things.

"I need to start preparing money. If I can really buy the ancestral home, it will fulfill a great wish in my heart."

Fang Yuan’s eyes showed a little excitement.

Although he was confident and had excellent martial arts skills, and he trained diligently and had many adventures, he knew it would be extremely difficult to face someone as formidable as Wan Ronghua.

He had thought that it would take decades of hard work and mastery of his skills before he could hope to redeem his ancestral home, but now he saw a glimmer of hope.

"It’s a pity that my little sister who left home couldn’t wait for this day," he murmured to himself.

As the moment of his wish coming true drew near, memories of the past started to resurface in his mind.

"Ever since my little sister got that strange illness called ‘Yu Yu Syndrome’ and ran away from home, I haven’t seen her again."

"If I buy back the ancestral home and she hears the news, she should know that I, Fang Yuan, am no longer in the same difficult situation as before. Maybe there will be a chance for us to reunite… if she’s still around the Imperial Capital area."

The deceased is gone.

Buying an old mansion is just a symbolic gesture that can only bring some peace to Fang Yuan’s heart.

Deep down, what he really cared about was his little sister who left home without telling anyone.

The parents passed away and had to sell the old house. The little sister ran away from home.

Bought an old house, didn’t call it home because being alone, the family ancestral home was only an old courtyard.

Having family is what makes a home.

This is Fang Yuan’s obsession with buying the ancestral home.