Twilight Boundary-Chapter 531 - 522 Not Eating Beef Decree

"So, it has finally started..."

In the deep, silent night, everyone in the village had already gone to sleep, but Hu Ma quietly took Little Hongtang out of the village. Utilizing the abilities of the Heaven Measuring Boots, they traveled over a hundred miles to the edge of Old Yin Mountain, to a place filled with neglected, chaotic graves.

He sat cross-legged among the desolate graves, listening intently to the wind and the eerie ghostly cries, seemingly quite absorbed.

At times, to hear more clearly, he would rest his head against a grave mound.

Little Hongtang squatted beside him, her small hands propping up her cheeks. She didn’t understand why, after returning to the village, he neither worked the fields properly nor slept soundly in the house. Every two days, he had to come to this heap of graves. What was the point of listening?

She watched him frown at times and appear serious at others. After sitting silently for a long time, he finally stood up, a look on his face as if he had found the answer, and led Little Hongtang away from the grave site.

"What is Brother Hu Ma doing?"

Only after they were far from the graves did Little Hongtang tilt her head and ask curiously.

"Listening to the graves."

Hu Ma explained to her, "This is a family Magic, listening to ghostly cries from the graves. These graves are where the people of Mingzhou rest after death. By carefully listening to their voices, I can understand the current situation in Mingzhou. For instance, in these past two days, I’ve heard more resentment in the wind."

Little Hongtang clearly didn’t understand. "And then?"

"When the resentment grows heavy, it means outsiders are acting more and more recklessly. It’s becoming intolerable not only for the living but also for the dead in Mingzhou..."

Knowing Little Hongtang couldn’t understand, Hu Ma patiently explained, "And when this resentment grows, their killing intent will soon follow..."

He thought of the ghostly cries he had heard from the graves that night. Even though he seldom used this ability from the Age Suppressing Book, he could distinctly sense that the sounds tonight were different from those of previous nights.

He sighed quietly, knowing the time had nearly come.

At a secluded spot, he summoned the Heaven Measuring Boots again to quickly take Little Hongtang back to the village. In his own small straw hut, he lit a stick of special incense, then sipped tea while patiently waiting.

Indeed, in the latter half of the night, a gust of eerie wind swept in from outside the house. It revealed a little ghost stepping into the room, dressed in a red official robe that was a size too small and wearing a cap with two small wings.

It walked in measured steps, its tiny hands behind its back. As soon as it saw Hu Ma sitting on the chair, it respectfully approached and saluted.

"Ah, Ghost Messenger Bean Official, I pay my respects to the Elder."

"I’ve heard Aunt mention you often. Upon meeting you today, Elder, you are indeed both handsome and imposing. Seeing the Elder makes me feel refreshed and my mind even sharper. As this is our first meeting and I have nothing to offer, please allow me to give you a grand kowtow first..."

Hu Ma listened, momentarily confounded. ...What is all this?

The incense he burned was given by Immortal Miaoshan; lighting it could summon her little ghost to facilitate tasks.

But why was this little ghost raised by Immortal Miaoshan so peculiar?

He steadied himself slightly before asking, "I’ve been back from Shima Town for a while. How are things there now?"

"Not too well," the Little Bean Official replied. "After the Lantern Festival, a period passed without any retaliation. Aunt Miao Shan felt assured, thinking she’d made a great achievement, and didn’t want to stay there guarding any longer."

"First Senior Uncle advised her that things had started well and she should continue her efforts there. Aunt then asked First Senior Uncle what else needed doing, so he patiently explained there was this and that..."

"...He said a lot, which I couldn’t quite grasp; I just found it bothersome."

"Aunt Miao Shan couldn’t understand either and found it even more bothersome. She even grumbled that First Senior Uncle always says strange things that are hard to understand, unlike our Sect Hierarch, whose words are clear and who doesn’t like to boss people around, handling things himself as they come..."

"First Senior Uncle couldn’t out-talk her and also got fed up and left, merely sighing that everything is fate. Luckily, the Not Eating Beef Sect learned early to hedge their bets; otherwise, nothing would be accomplished."

Indeed, a professional undertaking like rebellion can’t accommodate a slacker like Miao Shan... Hu Ma thought, shaking his head slightly, before telling the little ghost, "I summoned you today to pass on a message."

"I know the situation at Shima Town; there’s no need to be so afraid. No trouble will come for a short while. If they want to accomplish something big, they’ll need to find the right timing. For now, Mingzhou here is quite lively..."

"Tell her to pass a message: If there are any No-Eating Beef Disciples available, they should come join the excitement. Furthermore..."

He paused slightly, contemplating while fiddling with something in his hand, then spoke softly, "Also, inform her to bring over the head I left in Shima Town. It’s time for it to be returned to its rightful owner."

"Absolutely, absolutely!"

The little ghost, adopting an adult-like manner, quickly bowed and said, "Aunt Miao Shan will be overjoyed when these words from the Elder are conveyed."

"She’s longed to serve by the Elder’s side, where she can also learn things. There’s something I, as a ghost messenger, shouldn’t say, but the Elder is no outsider, so I trust you won’t mind..."

"...Our Aunt Miao Shan, although nearly thirty and unmarried, has had her dowry prepared for a long time—three loads of gold and ten loads of silver, quite generous indeed..."

"Now, is this something a little ghost messenger like you should be worrying about?"

Hu Ma found it bewildering. Glancing up, he saw Little Hongtang also craning her neck, watching the little ghost talk animatedly, clearly having her eyes opened. He quickly waved his hand and said, "Don’t pass on unnecessary words; I’m afraid you won’t remember them properly..."

Saying this, he took a paper on which he had already written the message and then, from his bosom, he retrieved a seal.

It was the wordless seal that had fallen from the old elm tree when he was leaving Shima Town. On the table beside him were some leftover mulberries. He pressed the seal onto the mulberries and then stamped it onto the paper, handing it to the little ghost.

Then he extended his hand, and Little Hongtang reluctantly handed over the jar. Hu Ma took out a piece of Blood Food from the jar and offered it to the little ghost as a reward.

However, the little ghost didn’t take it. Instead, it tilted its head, examining the piece, and asked, "Elder, what’s the measure of this?"

"?"

A little ghost asking for reward money, and even inquiring about the amount?

Hu Ma found it peculiar. He weighed it in his hand and said, "About one tael? Do you think it’s too little?"

"No, no..."

The Little Bean Official seemed moved and immediately knelt down, saying, "The Elder is so generous with rewards! Allow me to give the Elder another grand kowtow."

"But I won’t accept this reward. When I return, I’ll tell Aunt Miao Shan that the Elder offered me one tael of Blood Food, but I didn’t take it, thereby greatly enhancing her prestige. When Aunt sees how obedient I am, she’ll surely give me two taels, or perhaps even more. That would be much more advantageous..."

After speaking, it took the paper stamped with the wordless seal, opened its mouth wide, swallowed it whole, and then bowed again. "Elder, I’m leaving now!"

With that, a gust of eerie wind carried it out of the house, and in a blur, it vanished into the night.

"Wait a minute..."

Seeing the little ghost leave, Hu Ma was a bit confused. Immortal Miaoshan is so... pure...

...How did she raise such a clever little ghost?

His eyes couldn’t help but glance towards Little Hongtang on the beam, silently re-evaluating her. What a pity... In terms of cleverness, our Little Hongtang has just dropped another rank.

After sending out the letter, Hu Ma felt somewhat relieved. He stepped out of the door slowly, pondering. Summoning the Beef Avoidance Sect Disciples for the first time... who knows how lively it will be? Whether what I’m preparing to do will achieve the expected effect, I don’t have complete confidence...

How should I put it? All things considered, at most, it’s a 98% success...

"Why aren’t you asleep yet?"

As he was thinking, a head unexpectedly popped out from behind the low wall nearby.

It was Second Master, who had drunk too much that night and come out to relieve himself, and he dazedly saw Hu Ma strolling in the yard.

Hu Ma quickly smiled and said, "I slept too much, so I got up to move around a bit..."

"Fair enough. You don’t do farm work, so you must sleep a lot, right?"

Second Master said while relieving himself, "But you’ve been back for so long. Aren’t we leaving yet?"

"?"

Hu Ma found this odd. When he first returned, Second Master had been overjoyed, seeming to wish he would stay in the village every day.

Yet, only seven days had passed, and now he was starting to urge Hu Ma to leave, looking at him with apparent displeasure.

"I finally get to come back and rest for a few days, and Second Master is already tired of me?"

"It’s not that I’m tired of you. You’re young and capable, yet you’re staying in the village instead of going out. People are gossiping!"

Second Master said, "I tell people you’ve become the manager of the Blood Food mine, but they hardly believe me anymore. They just see you lazing around the village all day, as if you’ve been kicked out by the Blood Food mine."

"Well, alright then..."

Hu Ma sighed helplessly and said, "I should be leaving in the next couple of days. It’s just that there’s a rather difficult matter I haven’t quite figured out. Second Master, imagine distant relatives show up at your door, looking to take advantage. How do you think one should handle such a situation?"

"That kind of situation?"

Second Master was caught off guard by the question. He thought for a moment and said, "How to handle it? Wouldn’t you first need to see what they brought with them?"

"Eh?"

Hu Ma hadn’t expected this answer and quickly asked, "What do you mean?"

Second Master explained, "You said they’re distant relatives, right? Meaning you don’t usually interact much. So, since these relatives have made the effort to visit, how could they show their faces without bringing something substantial?"

Hearing this, Hu Ma felt enlightened and praised sincerely, "Second Master, you are truly wise..."

As they were speaking, in the pitch-black night, a fierce wind suddenly arose faintly from outside the village. This wind was abrupt, seeming to blow directly from the other side of the mountain. It even carried a slight metallic scent and the sounds of shouting and combat.

Second Master, having just finished relieving himself, shivered instinctively, looking around in surprise, wondering where such a strange wind had come from.

"They’re here?"

Hu Ma, however, suddenly raised his head, gazing at the gloomy night sky, and said softly, "A day or two earlier than I thought. Brother Yang Gong, you truly haven’t disappointed me..."