Chapter 1204: National Destruction

"Who wants sweet fried pancakes?" He Lingchuan asked. The two monkeys immediately raised their hands.

They were fragrant and sweet; only a fool wouldn't love them.

After buying their food, the two sat down to eat and asked, "How far is Jishi Village from here?"

"Jishi Village?" The steamed bun shop owner had just put away his money. Hearing this, he looked left and right before asking in a low voice, "If you're heading to Jishi Village, how did you end up here?"

"We got lost..." In these sprawling mountains, getting lost wasn't surprising, was it?

Before Dong Rui could finish, the shop owner quickly waved his hand. "Never mind, never mind, I don't want to know."

He pointed northwest. "It's about fifteen li from here."

Dong Rui grinned at He Lingchuan. "So we walked past it. But the error wasn't too significant, was it?"

The owner added, "But you two might not be able to get through."

"Why not?"

"The border is tense. The other side is Gaopu territory." The owner's voice grew even softer. "Actually, this used to be their territory too."

"And now?"

"Now this place belongs to Bixia." The owner sighed, his expression grim. "Alas, fortune is fickle."

Dong Rui observed his expression; he seemed to prefer being under Gaopu's rule. "Are things better on the other side?"

"How should I put it?" The owner's lips moved, but he seemed to hold back his words.

He Lingchuan reached out and placed a small piece of silver on the counter. "I see you still have a few strings of dried sausage hanging. Give them all to me; keep the change."

Dried sausages were tough, but when they cooked hot food in their pot in the wilderness, adding some sausage would give it a unique flavor. Besides, Guiyuan particularly liked them; its teeth were strong.

"These are delicious; they even have fermented grain starter added," the owner said, beaming. He wrapped three dried sausages for them in oil paper, understanding that "keep the change" was a way of paying for some information.

Just then, a small hand emerged from beneath the winnowing basket filled with pancakes, attempting to snatch one when the owner wasn't looking.

The owner, however, spotted it in a flash. He grabbed a fly whisk and swatted the hand. "You dare to steal when you're not given it? How audacious!"

The four or five-year-old child cried out, "Wah!" and ran out from behind the counter.

Dong Rui glanced over. "Your daughter?" he asked. She even had a small topknot.

The shop owner nodded.

What he was about to say wasn't appropriate for a child to hear. Besides, the sweet cakes were so expensive; they were only for selling to customers.

"Originally, under Gaopu's rule, taxes were low, and there were fewer levies. The government spent money to repair our bridges and pave our roads. Goods were cheap too; a catty of rice was only five wen, and a catty of sugar fifty-five wen." The owner kneaded dough, glancing outside. Seeing no one passing by, he spoke more boldly. "Now, alas, ever since Bixia occupied this place, prices have soared. A catty of rice is now eleven wen, and sugar has reached ninety-two wen!"

He quickly poured out his grievances. "You see, I barely dare to raise my prices; if I do, no one will buy anything."

The livelihood in their former country was better, which is why he missed it. But a commoner like him was destined to simply drift with the current; what decisions could he make for himself?

"There's only one good thing: at least we're no longer suffering the ravages of war." The owner pointed northwest. "Bixia is still attacking Gaopu, so it's not peaceful there. In fact, Gaopu itself is gone; only General Situ and General Lu are still holding out."

As an outsider, He Lingchuan asked, "When did the state of Gaopu fall?"

"Four—no, about five months ago, the capital was captured, and the monarch committed suicide," the owner sighed softly. "Bixia wanted to seize all of Gaopu's remaining territory in one fell swoop, but General Situ and General Lu held their ground, and the two sides fought several battles."

"Actually, the area you're heading to—Jishi Village and Rolling Stone Valley—was taken by Bixia three months ago, but General Situ led his troops to reclaim it. I even have a relative living there, but now I can't visit them."

Dong Rui chuckled. "Do you also wish this place would be taken back?"

The owner's face hardened. "I wouldn't dare say such a thing."

Outsiders could speak carelessly, but they could not.

"What is this place called?"

"Jucheng," the owner whispered. "If you try to go to Jishi Village openly, the Bixia people will arrest you as spies along the way."

He Lingchuan pointed at the mud wall outside. "Why is Situ He wanted?"

"I don't know about that," the owner said, also glancing outside. "Someone secretly tore down the previous one, but when did the authorities put up a new one? They're certainly diligent about reposting them."

He mumbled again, "All day long, they don't do anything useful."

"One last question." He Lingchuan finished the last sip of his peanut soup. "Has anyone in the surrounding area been inexplicably killed recently?"

"What do you mean by 'inexplicably killed'?"

"An unnatural death, perhaps eaten by monsters or ghosts."

"I haven't heard of that, but Bixia has arrested many people, and a lot of them have never reappeared," the owner countered. "Does that count as an unnatural death?"

"Yes," Dong Rui said, standing up and wiping his mouth. "Of course, it does."

Having eaten their fill, the two then went to a nearby shop and bought some rice wine, cooked dishes, and dry rations. Dong Rui kept his promise and bought some nuts for the two monkeys.

As he walked out, he peeled peanuts, giving one to Guiyuan, one to Lingguang, and one to himself, in rotation.

"Let's go, time to take care of our own business."

"Isn't it a coincidence? The place we're heading to is haunted, and the task Lingshan assigned you is also to exorcise ghosts."

"They're all nearby," He Lingchuan mused. "Unusual occurrences often point to supernatural activity. Could these be connected?"

He had two reasons for coming here. First, he needed to complete the task assigned by Lingshan: to eliminate King Xuanlu, the Ghost King of Howling Forest.

He and Dong Rui were already familiar with this Ghost King's name.

It was the ruler of Howling Forest. Lingshan's mission brief stated that the Ghost King was originally Wang Xuanlu, a renowned general from three hundred years ago. He led his vast army in various campaigns, but at that time, the Blazing Gold Plain was teeming with powerful figures, and the political landscape was volatile. Wang Xuanlu failed to secure his domain; his army was utterly defeated, and he was eventually beheaded in Howling Forest.

Wang Xuanlu died, and by a strange turn of events, Howling Forest gained a Ghost King.

With the human nations of the Blazing Gold Plain weakened and demons running rampant, it was no surprise that such an evil spirit could grow formidable.

In short, the malevolent spirit of Xuanlu was a formidable ghost with over three hundred years of cultivation. In recent years, it had wreaked havoc far and wide, colluding with local forces and plaguing the central Blazing Gold Plain. Thus, the task given by Lingshan was direct: eliminate this scourge!

Secondly, there were also properties belonging to the Yangshan Archipelago nearby that had experienced some issues. Since He Lingchuan's current mission was already to exorcise ghosts, he decided to inspect these properties while he was in the area.

Circumventing Bixia's checkpoints would be incredibly easy for He Lingchuan and his companion.

The steamed bun shop owner hadn't given them wrong directions, but they first passed through a village.

The village was nestled in a mountain hollow, backed by a large mountain, and occupied a considerable area. There were dozens of houses, but the grass on the ground had grown knee-high.