Granny Sue turned around, blinking as she asked, "Who’s leaving the village now?"
Village Chief chuckled, "I may be just a common man, but I know what’s what. You haven’t been eating or sleeping well these days, so of course you’re restless. You’re heading out to look for Quinn, aren’t you?"
Granny Sue grumbled, "You saw right through me. I’m leaving! Not staying here anymore!"
Apothecary coughed and said, "If you leave the village, who’ll help you keep your inner demon in check? With us here, Master Li’s primordial spirit doesn’t dare act up. But if you go, I’m afraid you won’t be able to keep him down. Master Li was a true master of demonic arts—before dying, he turned himself into a demon seed and planted it in your dao-heart. He’s survived by borrowing your dao-heart, always waiting to strike. If you can’t erase him or hold him down, he’ll bite back, destroy your spirit, and take your body for himself."
Granny Sue’s eyes flickered. "He won’t take my body."
"Is it because he loves you too much?"
Apothecary sneered, "Then you’re wrong. If he takes your body and is reborn through you, then he becomes you. What he loves isn’t you, but your flesh. Once he becomes you, he can finally love himself. He’s your heart-devil, and you’re his heart-devil too. By being reborn through you, he conquers his own inner demon. Master Li wants to use you to temper himself—he wants to become a god."
Granny Sue shivered, then suddenly smiled. "Apothecary, you’ve said all that—can you get rid of my heart-devil?"
Apothecary fell silent. Li Tianxing’s primordial spirit was already planted in Granny Sue’s dao-heart; he couldn’t remove it. Not only was he powerless—even Grandpa Mark’s Buddhist arts and Village Chief’s sword couldn’t eradicate the demon lurking in her heart.
Only Granny Sue herself could resolve this heart-devil. All they could do was help her keep it suppressed.
"I’ve lived here for over forty years. If none of you can solve this, what’s the point of me staying any longer?"
Granny Sue hefted her basket and walked off, not looking back. "I’m going to find Quinn. I’m always worried he’s not eating enough, not dressed warmly, or getting bullied. Don’t worry—if I can’t keep Old Li the ghost suppressed, I’ll come back!"
Village Chief and Apothecary both frowned.
Granny Sue, basket on her arm, reached the riverbank, summoned a Riverbear Beast, climbed onto its back, and rode downstream.
After traveling a hundred li or so, Granny Sue suddenly paused. In the middle of the river, she saw a blind man walking with a staff. Her face darkened; she reached out, grabbed him, and set him on the Riverbear Beast's back, snapping, "Blind, are you here to stop me too?"
Blind looked bewildered and gave a sheepish smile. "Oh, it's you, Granny. I'm just walking along—who's stopping you?"
Granny Sue eyed him suspiciously. "You came out this early and walked so far—aren't you trying to block me from leaving the village?"
Blind protested, "You go your way, I go mine. Why would I stop you? By the way, where are you headed, old lady? Mind giving me a lift?"
Granny Sue blinked her cloudy old eyes and smiled. "I'm heading to the Everpeace Empire. Want to come along?"
Blind clapped his hands. "Perfect! I'm heading to the Everpeace Empire too!"
Granny Sue stared hard at him, her eyes wide. Blind looked completely innocent. Granny Sue sneered, "What are you going to Everpeace for?"
Blind replied calmly, "My eyes were gouged out. I'm going to find the one who did it."
Granny Sue's heart skipped a beat, but she laughed, "I thought you were worried about Quinn and planning to go to Everpeace to find him. Turns out you have real business."
"He's grown up. Naturally, he can handle whatever comes his way."
Blind's words made Granny Sue feel a little guilty. He went on, "I won't go to him directly—I'll just watch over him from the shadows."
Just then, a streak of light flashed overhead. Granny Sue looked up, but it vanished. Suddenly the light doubled back and landed on the Riverbear Beast's back with a swish—Crippled Joe appeared, scowling at the two already riding.
Blind snapped, "Crippled Joe, you dart around like a ghost—it's creepy! What are you doing here?"
"Just stretching my legs outside the village."
Crippled Joe looked around. "Did you see Grandpa Mark? I didn't see him yesterday, and he didn't come home last night."
Granny Sue was surprised. "Grandpa Mark didn't come back? He always returns to the village on time."
Crippled Joe sighed. "I figure he missed Quinn and went to Everpeace. I'm going to find him. That old guy left without a word—I'm going to ask him why, and why he'd toss away all these years of friendship. I also want to check on my leg..."
Blind sneered, "You're not just going to see Quinn, are you?"
Crippled Joe retorted coldly, "Me, miss him? Never! That brat was just a stray we picked up—always mischievous and annoying. I've wanted to kick him out for ages... Hey, look, that scoundrel ahead is Butcher... It really is Butcher!"
A moment later, four people stood atop the Riverbear Beast—though Butcher was standing on his hands. The three exchanged glances; Blind leaned on his bamboo staff, listening intently, but no one spoke.
Granny Sue carried her basket, Crippled Joe whistled through his cane, Butcher lowered his hands and stood with his hands on his hips, looking around.
After a long silence, Blind muttered, "Grandpa Mark ran off too. With the four of us gone, the only ones left in the village are Apothecary, Village Chief, Deaf, and Mute Smith..."
"Mute Smith ran off."
Butcher snorted, "Village Chief and Apothecary weren't even up yet when Mute Smith left. He ran off carrying a big chest—I tried to chase him but couldn't catch up!"
Blind was stunned, half laughing, half crying. "So only Deaf, Village Chief, and Apothecary are left."
Crippled Joe chuckled, "It's not like we're missing Quinn. Each of us has our own business. I'm going to the imperial palace to check on my leg—if the Everpeace Imperial Preceptor has salted, roasted, or smoked it into ham, that'll be a disaster!"
Blind nodded. "I've got business too—I'm going to avenge my eyes."
Granny Sue nodded repeatedly, laughing. "As the former Saintess of the Holy Cult, now that the new Cult Master has ascended, I have to go pay my respects."
Butcher thought for a while, then found a reason. "I think my lower half might've fallen off somewhere. I'm going to look for it—maybe I can put it back on."
The four of them all breathed a sigh of relief and said in unison, "So we all have proper business!"
Back in the old village, Village Chief and Apothecary sat silently at the entrance, drinking tea. After a long time, Apothecary said, "There are only four of us left in the village."
"Apothecary, Grandpa Mark left yesterday."
Village Chief sipped his tea. "They still lack patience, can't sit still. Deaf, though, is well-read, learned, deep-minded, and calm..."
He turned his head, staring blankly as Deaf walked past, carrying a bamboo basket covered with a sunshade cloth.
Apothecary couldn't help but ask, "Deaf, where are you going?"
Deaf seemed not to hear, and simply walked away.
“That rascal—pretending not to hear again!” Apothecary huffed.
“Now there’s only the two of us left in the village.”
Village Chief smiled wryly, then suddenly asked, “When will you leave?”
Apothecary quickly shook his head. “With so many enemies, how could I dare? What worries me now is that all these villains have rushed out at once—there’s bound to be trouble. Our village’s villains..."
Village Chief chuckled, “Let outsiders worry about that. If you want to go, you can—I'll stay and watch the village, waiting for you all to come back.”
Apothecary hesitated, then shook his head, saying, “If I went out, I’d just make things worse for them. Of all the villains in our village, my reputation is the worst…”
Village Chief grinned, “If not for that, you’d have run off long ago.”
The two exchanged glances, then burst out laughing.
At the border of Embankton County and Tigerwell County, Quinn looked up at the newborn sun. He raised his hand, Vermilion Bird yuanqi flaring, and burned the Cult of the Corpse Immortal clothes he’d taken. As for the human skin, he’d discarded it long ago; wearing someone else’s skin still weighed on his mind. Besides, he carried a large bundle packed with all sorts of odds and ends Granny Sue had prepared for him, so he couldn’t wear the skin anyway—he’d look like a hunchback and be easily spotted.
“What does Granny Sue hide in her hunchback?” Quinn suddenly wondered, curiosity piqued.
He carried his pack, and if he wore someone else’s skin, he’d look hunchbacked. Granny Sue wasn’t actually a hunchback, so clearly she hid things inside. Quinn was genuinely curious about what oddities she might have stashed in there.
After a night of fleeing and fighting, he was truly exhausted. Lina the Spirit Fox, curled up in his bundle, had already fallen asleep.
A gust of wind blew by. Quinn tried to catch the wind’s edge and ride it, but after a few steps, fatigue set in and he had to drop back down, trudging along honestly on foot.
Suddenly, a buzzing sound came from overhead. Quinn looked up and saw several fiery red beetles flying toward him. They circled him fearlessly, making a few loops.
“Corpse-biter beetles!”
Quinn’s eyelid twitched unconsciously. He yawned and muttered to himself, “So tired… Maybe I should just find a place to sleep…”
His fingers flicked rapidly, and the beetles exploded into fragments!
Quinn immediately sped up, dashing away.
He’d seen these beetles before at Apothecary’s place—corpse-biters came in blue, black, and other colors, but the red ones were the rarest. These fiery red beetles were red corpse-biters!
Just then, a loud buzzing filled the air. Quinn looked up and felt his scalp tingle—a massive red cloud was barreling toward him, menacing and fierce!
The red cloud dropped lower and lower. Suddenly, beetles flew into the forest, burrowing into the graveyard. The ground trembled, and skeletons clawed their way up from the earth, striding madly after Quinn!
More corpse-biters dove into wild wolves, badgers, and even tigers along the way. The beasts’ eyes blazed red—they too lunged at Quinn!