Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 40: Ghosts and Evil Spirits
Lu Zheng swam nimbly to the surface and placed the body on the shore.

Liu San and the others looked at the corpse curiously, their expressions suddenly changed, and they turned their heads away, unable to bear to look at it any longer.

"vomit……"

Some young people couldn't bear it and started retching on the spot.

Even though Huang Shu was knowledgeable and experienced, he was still shocked when he saw the corpse.

The water in the cold pond was so cold that the corpse was well preserved deep at the bottom of the pond without any change in shape.

The reason why everyone was like this was because the corpse had no skin at all. It seemed as if someone had peeled off the skin, revealing the bloody bones and flesh inside. It looked extremely terrifying.

Liu San mustered up his courage, took another glance, and whispered, "This must be a woman, who is so heartless!"

It was the first time that Liu San had seen such a horrific thing as skinning someone and drowning them in a pond.

It's no wonder that this place is haunted. It's because the dead have too much resentment, and their souls linger and turn into evil spirits in the water.

Lu Zheng lifted the ghost in his hand out of the water and asked, "Who knows this woman?"

A young man said weakly, "Scholar, how can we recognize the body when it's in this state?"

He felt nauseous after taking one more look. He was afraid that he would not be able to sleep tonight. He did not dare to look back at the body to identify who it was.

Upon hearing this, Liu San slapped the young man who spoke in annoyance, "The scholar has caught a ghost in his hand. I asked you to see a ghost, not a corpse. Why are you so timid!"

Upon hearing this, everyone turned their heads slightly and looked at the ghost caught in Lu Zheng's hand.

Liu San also stared at her carefully, and suddenly his eyes lit up, "I think I know this person! Isn't this the daughter of Landlord Zhang from Qinghe Village?"

Qinghe Village is a relatively large and wealthy village, in which there is a landlord named Zhang.

Landlord Zhang had a daughter who was a famous beauty in the neighborhood, but she was still unmarried.

When Liu San went to Qinghe Village to play with his friends, he happened to meet this woman a few times and was quite impressed.

Now the other party has turned into a fierce ghost. Although her appearance has changed a little, Liu San is sure that it is the young lady of the Zhang family.

"Huh? It seems to be true..." Some young men had also seen the girl and recognized her.

Liu San angrily said, "What a sin! Who the hell did such a thing? Could it be someone from your Daliu Village?"

A young girl in her prime encountered such a thing. Who could feel calm after seeing it?
"Liu San, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want! No one in our village would do such a thing!" A young man spoke up to defend the village.

Liu San raised his eyebrows and said, "It's hard to say. The body was found here. He became a ghost and harmed the people in your village..."

Seeing that everyone was about to quarrel, Lu Zheng said calmly: "Liu San, there is no evidence, don't talk nonsense!"

Liu San immediately became honest after hearing this and waved his hand, saying, "I won't say anything more. I ask the scholar to investigate and find the real culprit."

Seeing this, the other young people in Dalui Village also asked Lu Zheng to make the decision.

They don't want the village to be badly criticized and lose their good reputation.

Huang Shu was examining the corpse. He said, "Sir, this body has been left for too long, and there's no trace of any scent left. But I see the skinning was done so cleanly and neatly. I'm afraid it's not something an ordinary person could do. Perhaps it was done by a demon or something."

Was it the work of demons and monsters? Lu Zheng thought of a possibility, "Painted Skin?" Painted Skin is a special kind of skin made from human skin.

After putting on painted skins, demons and monsters can conceal their own aura, disguise themselves as humans and hide in the world, making them difficult to be discovered.

Not only did the other party peel off the girl's skin, but it seemed that he also wanted to raise her into a ghost. His evil heart was condemned by both humans and gods.

At this moment, the girl's ghost underwent a slight change.

Perhaps it was the dual influence of sunshine and righteousness, the fierceness in the girl's eyes faded, revealing a hint of clarity.

"I..." The girl suddenly uttered a word.

Hearing the voice, everyone couldn't help but look at the girl.

Lu Zheng restrained his breath, looked at the girl, and said, "I am a scholar from Kaiyang County. What happened to you, young lady? Please tell me and I will take care of it for you!"

The girl's eyes flickered slightly as she remembered many things.

She knew she was not in the right state, and she didn't have time to feel sad. She said sadly, "I am Zhang Wei, the second daughter of the Zhang Shou family in Qinghe Village. On the first day of June, I went to visit my relatives. On the way, I encountered a monster. It killed my guards and servants, kidnapped me, flayed me alive, and drowned me here. I turned into a ghost, and I harmed people in my confusion..."

Everyone's expressions changed when they heard this. They didn't expect that the girl had suffered such inhuman torture before her death. It was chilling to think about it.

Lu Zheng said calmly, "What did that monster look like? Where did it harm you?"

The girl recalled, "It was a snake demon, with a large green snake head and a human body. It wore a white robe, and its exposed arms had some green scales on them..."

The girl paused, then continued, "As for where he killed me, I can't remember exactly. It happened suddenly, in the wilderness... I only remember him skinning me and carrying me along a mountain path. There was gray fog and many snakes in the mountains. Then I fainted and can't remember how I got here."

Lu Zheng carefully wrote down what the girl said.

The girl's spirit drifted away, and she said faintly, "I have a favor to ask of you, sir."

"Go ahead." Lu Zheng said softly.

The young girl looked miserable. "Please, sir, don't report me to the authorities. Just bury my body hastily. Tell my father that I was killed by a demon. As for the villagers I killed, say they died because of me. My father will compensate them... Please help me to cover up my lies. I can't bear to see my parents saddened by my corpse, nor do I want my sins to tarnish their reputation... I can only pay for my sins in my next life by working as a slave."

Liu San's eyes were red as he said indignantly, "This is the work of a demon. The girl is also a victim. Why do you have to do this?"

"Yes, yes, how could we blame the girl..." said a young man from Dalui Village.

The girl pleaded, "People's words are scary, please help me."

Liu San felt the same way and said quickly, "I, Liu San, would never say anything nonsense. What about you?"

Upon hearing this, the other young people also said that they would not spread the matter.

Lu Zheng was silent for a moment, then spoke softly, "I will bury you in the green mountains, find your skin, kill the snake demon, and then tell your family the truth."

The girl's heart was touched, and she seemed to see the scenes that Lu Zheng described.

She couldn't help but smile and bowed to everyone.

Afterwards, the girl's soul gradually became illusory, melting like ice and snow under the sunlight, and disappeared in front of everyone in the blink of an eye.

(End of this chapter)