Chapter 192 - 101 Wandering Merchants, Resurrection Cross (5k)

Underneath the coniferous forests of the Northeast, only an aged, cracked voice singing a folk song still echoed, but not a single person could be seen.

"The moon is bright, the wind is still, the tree leaves cover the window lattice..."

While that voice was still echoing in the forest, thousands of miles away in Virtue City, on a small path outside a villa district, the same aged singing floated up.

An old man dressed in a padded coat, sitting on a flatbed cart and waving a horsewhip, stopped his singing. He looked around, feeling the temperature of this place.

"Ah, the South..."

He closed his eyes and sensed carefully.

For him to have been so compelled that he hadn’t fully processed abandoning the transaction there, and had instead crossed thousands of miles to appear here—there could only be one reason.

There had to be a unique treasure here, one of a kind in all the world, to have drawn him directly to this place.

And it was definitely worth traveling thousands of miles for.

The old man took off his padded coat and pulled out a new phone to lock in his location.

"Heh, Virtue City, Nanwu County. I’ve run quite a distance this time. Don’t even know what kind of treasure it is."

He collected his padded coat with agile movements, changed into shorts and slippers, and stowed his clothes in a box on the flatbed cart.

He came to the head of the large horse and gently patted its neck.

"Old pal, we’re in the South now. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Time for a change of clothes."

As the old man’s hand gently swept over it, the large horse rapidly shrank, transforming into a Four-eyed Mole Cricket. The flatbed cart it pulled silently morphed into a tricycle.

The old man placed the Four-eyed Mole Cricket into the tricycle’s cargo bed and started pedaling around the neighborhood.

When he approached the outermost fence of the villa area, he took out something that looked like a fire poker from his waist, drew a circle with it, and pointed from a distance. The wall in front of him split apart on its own, revealing a new path on the ground.

Pedaling the tricycle, he entered the villa area. At that instant, outside Pei Tugou’s house, an off-tune whistle sounded abruptly.

Pei Tugou, whose clothing seemed as if it had been soaked in blood and was still dripping, appeared silently on the internal road.

Whistling, he walked step by step toward the north and soon blocked the path of the old man riding the tricycle in the middle of the internal road.

Pei Tugou grinned, showing his teeth. "I’m in a good mood today. Plus, it’s the first day of moving—not a day for killing. I’ll give you a chance. I’ll count to three."

Pei Tugou held up three fingers.

The old man’s expression changed slightly, and he immediately abandoned the spiel he’d prepared for ordinary folk.

"I’m just here to do business."

"Three."

"I mean no harm; I just want to trade for something. We can talk. I can offer terms that will satisfy both sides."

"Two."

"There’s a very special item, unique in the world, but..."

The old man didn’t finish speaking when he suddenly felt an overwhelming killing intent rush toward him, and Pei Tugou had disappeared.

The next moment, a blood-colored rope had already wrapped around his neck, and his body seemed to lose control.

Even more terrifyingly, his consciousness felt bound, his range of thought restricted, leaving him utterly unable to save himself.

Pei Tugou, still smiling, revealed his large white teeth. "I’ve suddenly changed my mind. Acting civilized is too tiring. A housewarming still requires a bit of blood."

The Four-eyed Mole Cricket inside the tricycle yelped once before Pei Tugou glared at it.

"I didn’t want to kill anyone today. Seeing as we’re both ’Dog’ kin, I’ll spare your dog life. Bark again and disturb my son’s sleep, and tomorrow I’ll sacrifice you to the Stove God."

The Four-eyed Mole Cricket didn’t want to cower, but that one look... Terrifying killing intent, wrapped in a murderous aura, poured directly into its eyes, plunging its consciousness into what felt like a cruel and horrifying Purgatory.

Corpses were everywhere. Butchers mechanically slaughtered, bled, skinned, and dismembered flesh.

The moment it was plunged into the Illusion Realm, the Four-eyed Mole Cricket’s eyes rolled back. It collapsed onto the tricycle, convulsing continuously.

Pei Tugou, holding the blood-colored rope, walked up onto the roadside lamppost, hung the old man from it, and then stepped back down.

Watching the old man’s body hang heavily, he turned and walked back.

Standard procedure: kill, but don’t bury.

Besides, there was a funeral home employee nearby. Why bother with burial?

As he passed Wen Yan’s room, he walked horizontally up the wall, perched there, and knocked on Wen Yan’s window.

Wen Yan wasn’t fully awake yet. Sparrow Cat’s ears twitched, its eyes opened, and seeing the brilliantly smiling, sunshine-boy outside the window, it nearly peed itself in terror.

Little Zombie, as if teleporting, appeared protectively in front of the bed.

By then, Wen Yan had also sensed something and suddenly opened his eyes.

Seeing the silhouette outside the window, he too was startled. But after recognizing Pei Tugou’s face—no, it was definitely Pei Tugou—he felt somewhat relieved.

He immediately got up and approached the window.

"Brother Gou, it’s so late. What brings you here?"

Wen Yan’s heart hammered in his chest. He stared at Pei Tugou, who was squatting sideways on the wall, drenched in blood and radiating a terrifying murderous aura. The sight stimulated his primal instincts; his body geared up for an adrenaline-fueled, desperate struggle.

This was the first time he had truly laid eyes on Pei Tugou in such a state; he was far more terrifying in person than when his presence had merely been an unseen menace.

"I don’t like burying people," Pei Tugou said. "But having someone hanging around near my house, in case it scares my daughter or son, isn’t good. When you wake up, go deal with it. Burning’s fine, chopping him up to feed the dogs is fine too. Just handle it."