Chapter 96

“Xin Ya, what are you doing here?” Beside the village chief stood a man with a dark expression, his hands empty, but a fierce look unmistakable in his eyes.

“Come, let’s go back with us,” the village chief said. “You child, running out in the middle of the night and disturbing the Taoist master’s rest—it’s really inappropriate.”

As he spoke, he gestured to the man beside him to go in and take Xin Ya away.

Xia Tianwu stepped in front of Xin Ya, blocking her. “She was frightened earlier. I’m a medical cultivator; let me check on her.”

The cool and composed woman stood there, not budging or flinching, her gaze clear and cold. Even the hem of her dress didn’t sway as the man approached.

“She came to see me because she was feeling discomfort in her belly at night. My junior master was messing around with the Fei Xing Sect people, and she got startled and collapsed right here.”

The man looked skeptical. “Really?”

Xia Tianwu didn’t blink. “I am Xia Tianwu, the hundredth-generation disciple of Supreme Sect, trained under Jiang Liang, the top alchemist of the 69th class. A healer has a heart like a parent’s. I will stabilize her pregnancy and return her to you safely.”

She then glanced over at her little martial uncle. “My junior master is still a child and likes to play around, causing a bit of a commotion. Apologies for the disturbance.”

Lin Du silently accepted the blame, marveling at how someone with such a stoic face could lie so smoothly. She thought to herself that Xia Tianwu had unexpectedly shown some hidden talent for deception, despite usually being straightforward and never lying.

“This is our village’s business. There’s no need for your concern,” the man said coldly. “Every woman here gets through childbirth just fine. Why does she need a medical cultivator to help with the pregnancy? There’s no need for it. Let’s go, Xin Ya!”

The man stared at Xia Tianwu, but under the pressure of her barely concealed aura, he didn’t dare step forward and instead directed his intimidation toward the woman still sitting on the ground.

The woman looked up, seemingly terrified, and trembled at his words. She mumbled something but remained silent in the end.

Suddenly, Lin Du stood in front of her, completely blocking the view between Xin Ya and her husband.

The man wasn’t tall, standing just about eye level with Lin Du. She looked him straight in the eyes, the corner of her lips curling slightly into a smile. “As disciples of the righteous path, it’s our duty to help those in need. Since she came to us, it forms a bond of karma. If you take her away now, it will leave this karmic debt unresolved, which would interfere with my second martial niece’s cultivation.”

“If you insist on taking her, your village will forever owe her a karmic debt. Let us settle this debt, and we will return her when it’s done.”

Lin Du paused before adding, “Since your village is blessed by the Moon God and the Moonlight Vine is here, rest assured we won’t do anything harmful to your village. What do you think?”

The village chief finally spoke up after hearing this. “The Moon God is watching. Whatever Xin Ya has done, the Moon God’s retribution will come. Outsiders… there are some things you shouldn’t meddle with. They are forbidden.”

Lin Du smiled and nodded. “Naturally. According to the rules of the Taoist sects, we cannot lightly involve ourselves in karma.”

The group of villagers dispersed, and Lin Du’s gaze fell on the ground near the door, where she noticed some rust.

What kind of village farming tools would rust like that?

At Supreme Sect, their tools were refurbished annually. Though patched together, they were always polished and shiny.

A village that’s being raised like livestock.

A village that doesn’t need to be self-sufficient.

Lin Du narrowed her eyes, closed the door, and then activated a formation disk, tossing it on the ground. She glanced over at Xia Tianwu, who was currently checking the pregnant woman’s pulse, but said nothing for the moment.

“You were frightened, and your emotions are unstable. The fetus is not in a good condition right now,” Xia Tianwu said, her clear eyes focused on the woman, who was now lying on the bed. She took out a handkerchief and wiped the woman’s tears. “Lie down and focus on your breathing.”

After a while, Lin Du dragged over a stool and sat by the bed, getting straight to the point. “I have some questions. Would you mind answering?”

The woman looked at Lin Du, lifting her head slightly. “Little master, if I answer, will you take me away?”

Lin Du paused for a moment. “I can’t guarantee I can take you away, but I might be able to give the next generation some freedom.”

That damned Moon God was probably the one who left the spiritual mark on Tao Xian.

And whatever connection this Moon God had with the Granny Ma could be key to curing Mo Lin.

Organizing her thoughts, Lin Du decided to ask the most crucial question. “The well in the center of your village—when was it dug? And when did the Moonlight Vine appear?”

The woman hesitated for a moment. “The well has been there for as long as I can remember. I don’t know exactly when it was dug.”

“I only know that long ago, the Moon God suddenly blessed us and the Moonlight Vine descended.”

The child standing by the bed, restless, was holding a heavy iron fan, tapping it against his palm. His hand, already pale, was now faintly red from the repeated tapping.

After listening, Lin Du asked again, “When did the Granny Ma come to the village? Is she also a messenger of the Moon God?”

“No, the Granny Ma is a traveling healer. Sometimes, in the spring, she would pass by the village on her way to the mountains to gather herbs. She noticed many pregnant women here, and we begged her for help. In return, she asked us to keep an eye on the mountains.”

“Keep an eye on the mountains? What kind of activity?”

“The movements of insects, animals, and birds in the mountains are usually random, but if one day, things near the mountains go quiet, or there’s some unusual disturbance, we record the date and inform her. And if anyone comes down from the mountains, we’re supposed to note their characteristics.”

Lin Du lowered her gaze. In the texts, it was recorded that the mountains of western Yunnan were rife with miasma and venomous creatures, often used by Gu practitioners for their rituals. These practitioners would capture different creatures based on the time of year, and all living beings instinctively feared more powerful counterparts. When the Gu King appeared, lesser creatures would automatically bow to its presence.

The Granny Ma’s deep hatred for Gu practitioners, yet her extensive knowledge of them, suggested she might have come from a Gu village herself.

She might not be the Moon God, but she had formed a connection with this village. In other words, she preferred things to remain as they were.

But the Moonlight Vine still didn’t quite add up.

Lin Du asked one more question. “When do the Moon God’s messengers appear? Do they have any distinguishing features?”

“They come in autumn, wearing white robes and silver masks. The chosen boys are taken away, and those not chosen are blessed by the Moon God and made to eat the Moonlight Vine’s fruit.”

Lin Du closed her eyes for a moment. “White robes, huh.”

As she spoke, spiritual energy swirled in her hand, and she used her power to form the vague outline of a figure in white robes, sculpted from ice. Once the spiritual energy dissipated, she held it up in front of the woman. “Is it like this?”

It was just a simple trick meant to amuse children, but Lin Du had put some extra effort into carving the mask and patterns. Though it still looked like a crude ice sculpture, the woman recognized it and nodded.

Xia Tianwu’s eyes flickered, confirming their suspicions.

That incident had been no accident. When the children entered the secret realm that day and broke the ancient city’s grand formation, someone had clearly been watching. Although whatever happened inside the cave was obscured by sand and tree roots, those responsible decided they couldn’t afford to let them go and tried to ambush them, preferring to kill rather than risk anything slipping by.

At that time, the location had been isolated, with no one nearby. Whoever ambushed them must have known when they were leaving and calculated the timing based on the speed of the spirit ship.

There had to be someone among the elders present at the event that day, confirming Lin Du’s earlier suspicions.

It seemed that these schemers liked to tamper with divine residences. The attack wasn’t necessarily intended to kill them—only to capture them quickly, erase or alter their memories, and then let them return alive to the sect. That way, the whole incident might have just blown over without anyone realizing what had happened.

Lin Du, her face expressionless, pulled out another booklet. This one unfolded like an accordion, stretching out long.

Xia Tianwu glanced at it and saw that it was filled with names, along with their sect affiliations, ages, and cultivation levels. At the top was Ju Yuan’s name, marked with a check.

The names of the top three sects were all checked off, and as the list continued, one name was circled in red.

Fei Xing Sect, Yin Zhong.

Lin Du stared at the name for a moment, then closed the booklet. She pulled out another one, which was even more ominous.

This booklet was densely filled with names written in red and black ink. Many of the names had already been crossed out in bright red, making the list resemble a grim death ledger of the underworld.

Lin Du studied the booklet briefly, as if confirming something, then put it away. She offered a polite apology before leaning forward and pressing her slender fingers to the woman’s forehead.

Suddenly, a rustling sound echoed around them, like the slithering of snakes beneath the ground, or the eerie noise of plants growing.

Tao Xian sensed something was wrong. He had been obediently crouching inside the trap formation Lin Du had drawn, afraid to step out for fear of being caught and tied up. But now, when he looked up, he noticed the floor tiles shaking violently, with blades embedded in all directions, trembling as if something underneath was pushing them upward.

Startled, Tao Xian quickly straightened up. His sword gleamed like snow as he slashed just before the blades fully tilted over. “Master Lin! There’s something under the ground!”