Alone and Infinite.

Chapter 5 Shanmu Cave

The fact that there were two ghosts in such a small place was truly beyond Li Xia's expectations.

No, the ghost I encountered last night was a newly transformed one.

Even so, the number of ghosts was somewhat beyond his expectations.

Li Xia stared intently at the boatman, wondering how to deal with him.

The boatman's eyes were somewhat flustered. He was holding his straw hat and a bundle of hemp rope in his hand, not understanding why Li Xia was still standing.

What happened to those scars on his body? How many battles, how brutal, must it have taken to leave such scars?
Is this guy a samurai?

He was so tall, much taller than any samurai I had ever seen.

That looks terrifying! And what's with that axe? Am I going to die? I'm definitely going to die!

What should we do? What should we do? Should we run?
Li Xia loosened his grip slightly, then tightened it again, making the rough axe handle fit his palm more snugly.

He took a deep breath and stared at the boatman's neck.

At 1.5 meters tall, he's a bit short, so it's not a very comfortable position.

Having learned from past experience, I absolutely cannot afford to cut off the mark this time.
No, his gaze shifted slightly. Murata lay on the ground, helplessly watching but unable to move.

We also need to know what kind of medicine the boatman administered and how to treat him.

Li Xia took two steps forward, trying to keep her body steady, as making too much movement on the small boat could cause it to capsize.

These two steps, however, seemed to break down the boatman's defenses. With a 'plop', the boatman knelt on the ground.

Sobbing uncontrollably, she cried, "I'm sorry, I was forced into this!"

Li Xia:
Those who understand the times are wise; that's very Japanese.

After binding the boatman tightly, Li Xia sat down in front of him, pointed in the direction of Murata, and before she could speak, the boatman obediently knelt down again in the dogeza position.
"It's a mushroom. I've discovered a type of mushroom that makes people lose all their strength when eaten. All I need to do is feed them licorice powder."

Li Xia found the licorice prepared by the boatman in the cabin, and poured it and water into Murata's mouth. Soon after, Murata's fingers began to twitch slightly.

Barely supporting himself against the side of the boat, he first sincerely thanked Li Xia, then angrily questioned the boatman:

"We're all from the same village, why would they do this!"

"I...I didn't want to do this, but that monster said it would eat me and my family if I didn't. I didn't want to."

"How many times?"

Li Xia asked abruptly.

The boatman shuddered and suddenly fell silent.

"Thump!" The axe struck the boat plank with a dull thud.

"Number One"

"Boom! Boom!"

"The ninth time!"

That means at least a dozen people were eaten. Li Xia stroked his chin, lost in thought.

Because the transformed ghosts have no reason at all, only endless hunger, they can only regain their sanity by eating enough people.

A ghost that knows how to coerce humans into hunting for it must have regained its senses.

Murata, standing nearby, widened his eyes and was about to shout, but was stopped by Li Xia's gaze and could only glare angrily at Funami.

This scumbag has already done it nine times!
Whether someone is a scumbag or not has nothing to do with Li Xia, and he can't empathize with them, but he's more interested in knowing the specific details.

Once he opened his mouth the first time, everything else fell into place. Chuan San spilled the beans, explaining his schemes in detail.

During one voyage, they encountered a monster that looked like a human, incredibly fast and with immense strength.

Everyone else was killed, and the monster began to devour the corpses in front of Chuan San, finally threatening to eat him and his family if he didn't bring more people.

Terrified, Ship 3 followed the monster's instructions, using poisonous mushrooms to paralyze the passengers before tying them up and sending them over.

"I...I didn't want to harm my own village, but I had no choice. No merchants from other places have been sailing here these past few days, and the deadline is fast approaching."

Chuan San cried out in anguish:

"Please spare me, I'll never do it again."

Li Xia continued, neither confirming nor denying:

Where did you send all those people?

"There's a tributary ahead, and at the end of the tributary is a cave. I always leave after dropping people off in the cave."

"Shan Lao Cave?!"

Murata exclaimed in shock, and he hurriedly whispered an explanation to Li Xia:
“Long ago, when people couldn’t get enough to eat, they would leave their parents and elderly parents in caves to fend for themselves in order to save food. This cave is said to be the place where parents were abandoned in ancient times.”

Legend has it that the old man's resentment transformed into a mountain hag, who sharpens her knife day and night, seeking to vent her hatred for being abandoned. No one dares to enter this cave.

Li Xia nodded, abandoning the idea of confronting the ghost.

Knowing how to coerce boatmen into giving people away to avoid the risk of being preyed upon, and also knowing how to use legends to cover up their hiding place, such a ghost is very clever.

I'm currently powerless to deal with this, perhaps I should tell the Demon Slayer Corps?
I just don't know if I'll get a reward for this.
"My lord, are we... are we going to Yamanbagiri Cave?"

Loyalty -1

Li Xia was jolted awake from his reverie. "This is what lowers loyalty?"

But he saw that Murata's face was full of fear, he kept swallowing his saliva, and his body was trembling.

Uh... I misunderstood you because you were so scared.

Li Xia glanced at the blazing midday sun and pondered for a moment:

"Go, take a look from a distance in the sunlight."

This is very likely a side quest; at the very least, I should check if there's an opportunity.

Sunshine is the best protection for yourself.

Murata let out a sigh of relief, then looked at Funamichi and asked in a low voice:
"Sir, what about him?"

Li Xia countered with, "How do you plan to handle this?"

Murata hesitated for a moment: "I feel that if what he said is true, then Funami was also forced into it, but I feel unwilling to let him go like this."

As the boat gradually approached the tributary, Murata clumsily steered it into the tributary.

"Murata, do you still remember the bloodstains on my body?" Li Xia stood up and walked towards Funamichi.

"Of course I remember!" Murata was a little embarrassed. He had always thought that Li Xia was a bad person and that he had gone out with him to join the gang, and that he probably wouldn't come back.

That's why he asked for five silver dollars as payment for his life, but now he feels that his adult might not necessarily be a bad person.

"The monsters in the Yamaba Cave are called Oni. They cannot live in the sunlight, like to eat people, are very strong and fast, and can quickly regenerate even if their arms are cut off."

As Li Xia watched the cave on the cliff in the distance getting closer, he picked up Chuan San.

"And the blood on my body is from fighting with a ghost."

The three men opened their mouths, staring blankly at Li Xia. Even Murata stopped what he was doing, looking extremely shocked.

"Ghosts dare not eat or kill people indiscriminately, because that would attract ghost hunters to eliminate them, but some people are more terrifying than ghosts."

Li Xia turned around and looked at the exquisite silk lining under the three-clothed mantle. The first time might have been forced, but later…
"Murata, has the Funaza family suddenly gotten better off?"

Murata nodded in confusion:
"Yes, sir, the three boatmen suddenly started renovating and rebuilding, and his wife also bought a lot of new clothes. We thought..."

Murata's voice grew softer and softer, and the knuckles of his fingers gripping the oar turned slightly white from the excessive force.

It seems he understood; once the boatman discovered that this was a faster way to make money, he was no longer forced into it.

Li Xia looked at the seemingly bottomless cave in front of him and sighed with some regret.

He had hoped to see if there was a chance to kill the ghost using sunlight.

If I'm not mistaken, this is very likely a side quest...

It seems that this ghost is probably quite cunning.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Chuan San creeping about, and suddenly he shouted hoarsely towards the cave entrance:
"Master! Help me! I brought the rations as you instructed!"

"Save me! Master!"

Murata's face suddenly turned pale. He looked around in panic, as if a terrifying monster might appear at any moment.

In the darkness, a pair of scarlet eyes seemed to slowly open.

Bathed in sunlight, Li Xia slowly pulled out his axe and, amidst Chuan San's desperate curses, slowly raised it.

This time, the cut wasn't off.

A notification popped up abruptly.

Side Quest: Ghost Ship Completed

[Completion Level: Barely Satisfactory]

[Gain a 4% chance of transcendence]

[Obtained Exquisite Treasure Chest (White)]

Murata's loyalty +5

Good haul?