Under One Person: The Taoist Priest Descends the Mountain

Chapter 80 The Medicine Immortal Society Has Some Tricks Up Its Sleeve (Please Subscribe)

Xia He's eyes widened: "Little Taoist, what did you find? That uncle's smile was just a bit fake, there weren't any other clues, right?"

Wang Zhenqiu, quick-witted, immediately recalled all the oddities that had arisen since they arrived in the village: "You think the village's busyness has nothing to do with us? But they said it was a sacrificial ceremony—how did you come to that conclusion?"

Cheng Mo didn't answer directly, but instead asked, "Did you notice those children gathered in a group in the village?"

Xia He peeked over and said, "This doesn't prove anything. In the past, when our village held ancestral worship ceremonies, the children were always called to the side and not allowed to move around, for fear that they would offend the ancestral tablets."

"You must have made other discoveries," Wang Zhenqiu said confidently.

Cheng Mo did make other discoveries, but those discoveries were based on reverse reasoning about the condition of these children.

From the moment he first saw those children, he knew they were the talents the Medicine Immortal Society used to cultivate Gu-body Saint Children.

Their expressions were so obvious—lacking the curiosity, timidity, and mischief of ordinary mountain village children, they possessed a tamed, wooden demeanor. They didn't run, make a fuss, or speak; they didn't even dare to make any big movements. Fear was etched into their very bones.

"Those children's expressions are strange," Cheng Mo explained simply. "And didn't you notice? The villagers have split into two factions, one of which is terrified of the other."

Xia He opened the window wider to look out and saw that several villagers were indeed peeking out of their doors. When they saw the gray-clad men approaching, they immediately shrank back and closed their doors tightly.

"This village has been inhabited for so many years. Even if a few families have conflicts, it's impossible for them to spread to the entire village," Cheng Mo continued. "Unless an outside force forcefully moves in, the locals won't dare to resist."

Wang Zhenqiu and Xia He exchanged a glance and accepted the explanation, but new questions arose.

Xia He frowned: "If those people really are from the Medicine Immortal Society, why don't they just attack us directly? There are only three of us, while there are so many of them."

Wang Zhenqiu rolled his eyes: "Old Hao said that Na Du Tong is besieging the Yao Xian Hui people, forcing them to go into hiding. Now that they've come to a village like this, are they trying to take some ordinary people hostage to negotiate with the company?"

Cheng Mo shook his head: "I don't know what they're up to, but that guy just said he was going to hold a ritual. Whether it's real or fake, they'll have to start something, and then we'll have a chance... Let's try to save the child first."

Wang Zhenqiu immediately chimed in, "The child is indeed a problem, and we have nowhere to put him—how about I contact Lao Hao and have them locate us here?"

Xia He nodded repeatedly: "That's a good idea!"

Wang Zhenqiu immediately took out his phone, found Hao Yi's number, and dialed it.

As soon as the call connected, footsteps could be heard outside the door.

The man in gray pushed open the door and came in with a smile on his face: "Sorry to keep you waiting, everyone. The kitchen is boiling water, and we'll bring you a pot of hot tea in a bit."

Wang Zhenqiu reacted quickly, pressing the phone closer to his ear and yelling with a frown, "Hey? Hey? Can you hear me? Ugh, why is there no signal in this godforsaken place!"

He held his phone up to the window, waving it left and right, muttering, "Not a single bar, this is way too out of the way."

He turned to the man in gray, looking troubled, and said, "Uncle, how do people from your village contact their families when they go out? It's so inconvenient."

On the other end of the phone, Hao Yi heard Wang Zhenqiu rambling on about "signal" and "contacting home."

He was stunned for a moment, then immediately realized what was happening.

There's a situation I can't discuss right now.

Hao Yi gestured to the technician next to him: Locate Wang Zhenqiu's position, immediately.

The man in gray chuckled and said, "The village is remote, and the signal isn't very stable. But a few households in the village have landlines installed. Would you like to use them?"

Wang Zhenqiu's eyes lit up: "That's great! I'll call my family to let them know I'm safe and sound, so they won't worry."

The man in gray was pleased: taking them down one by one was easier than killing all three at once.

"Come with me, this way." He beckoned to Wang Zhenqiu.

Wang Zhenqiu got up and followed, giving Cheng Mo and Xia He a wink as he passed the door—you two be careful.

Cheng Mo nodded.

Xia He waved her hand.

As the man in gray left, he gave a wink to one of his men, who immediately put on a smile and said to Cheng Mo and his companion, "Please rest here, gentlemen. I'll go to the kitchen and bring you some tea later."

He turned and went to the kitchen.

Wang Zhenqiu followed the man in gray through the threshing ground.

He noticed that the group of children were still standing in the same spot, like a cluster of mushrooms forgotten there.

Wang Zhenqiu waved in that direction in a friendly manner.

The children all stared blankly ahead, and none of them reacted.

One little boy even trembled.

Immediately, a member of the Medicine Immortal Society walked over and slapped the child on the back of the head.

Wang Zhenqiu still had a smile on his face, but in his heart he had already cursed that person's ancestors for eighteen generations.

He casually withdrew his hand and asked the man in gray with a smile, "Uncle, the children in your village are all quite adorable. School's started now, so why aren't they going?"

The man in gray kept walking: "There's something important going on in the village, so we asked the children to come back and help out. It's okay if they miss a day or two."

"You can't say that," Wang Zhenqiu said, shaking his head as if he were an experienced person. "You saw my sister just now, right? She's the one with the slightly pink hair."

The man in gray hummed in agreement.

"She has the same idea as you. She doesn't study hard. At first, she would skip classes for a day or two every month or two. Later, it became more frequent, once a week. And then she was not at school for the whole week."

Wang Zhenqiu sighed, "Guess what? She bombed the college entrance exam last time and can't go to any school. Now she's always running around the world with her boyfriend."

The man in gray chuckled twice: "It's alright, we're keeping a close eye on things, he can't skip that many classes."

As they spoke, the two had already reached the door of a house in the west of the village.

The man in gray pushed open the slightly ajar door and stepped aside to let Wang Zhenqiu in: "The landline is inside, take your time making the call."

Wang Zhenqiu stepped inside.

From the shadows behind the door, two plumes of pungent, black mist slammed into us.

At the same instant, two figures sprang out from the left and right sides, their sharp blades aimed straight at Wang Zhenqiu's ribs!

A flash of light appeared on Wang Zhenqiu's face, and the Godhood Mask instantly covered his face.

Hairy face, thunderous mouth, fiery eyes.

"Hey!"

A burst of golden light erupted, and a phantom image of a golden cudgel swept out, scattering the two clouds of black mist in all directions.

The two members of the Medicine Immortal Society who were lying in ambush behind the door were clearly not expected that this person would react so quickly. They swept their sticks and retreated in a panic.

Wang Zhenqiu gave them no chance to breathe, his golden staff swirling like a halo before crashing down on them.

Boom!

Before the two could even scream, they were thrown into the air, crashing into tables and chairs, and collapsing to the ground, convulsing.

The gray-clad man's expression changed drastically. He raised his hand and flicked his wrist, sending several thin, hair-like silver threads flying from his sleeve, aiming straight for Wang Zhenqiu's throat!

Wang Zhenqiu turned sideways, his golden staff sweeping horizontally, colliding with the silver line and producing a sharp, piercing friction sound.

The silver thread was not severed; instead, it twisted and turned as if it were alive, trying to entangle itself around the golden rod.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, the man in gray retreated, his hands moving rapidly, weaving silver threads into a fine silver net that descended upon Wang Zhenqiu.

Instead of retreating, Wang Zhenqiu advanced, his golden staff swirling in a golden light as it clashed with the silver net.

Sparks flew everywhere.

The two fought fiercely, from inside the house to outside, breaking tables and chairs and cracking door frames.