I Only Want to Lie Flat But Am Forced to Cultivate Immortality-Chapter 104 - 77: The Thief_2

Resuming the journey, Xu Qing shook his head regretfully and said, "Just remember, chivalry does not depend on one’s background, and good or evil does not discriminate between humans and spirits. As long as you can hold true to your heart, you will never feel guilty."

"I will remember the teacher’s teachings."

Wang Liang led the horse all the way to the village head.

Along the countryside dirt road, Xu Qing drove the carriage swiftly towards Linhe.

At the boundary marker of Wanshou Village, Wang Liang bowed deeply. He waited until the dust kicked up by the distant carriage disappeared at the horizon before he turned back.

...

Ten miles from Linhe, there is a relay station.

According to Dayong’s regulations, one relay station is set up every ten miles on the major routes between important counties.

Thus, the people of Dayong often refer to ten miles as "a post," matching one station per post.

Relay stations are only open to those with official titles; officials can replace mules or rest at the stations free of charge with official documents.

Those like Xu Qing, who do not have official titles but possess certificates of student merits, can also pay a certain amount of silver taels to receive services from the relay stations.

As for other civilians and merchants, even if they have money, relay stations will not be open to them.

Arriving at Linhe relay station, Xu Qing jumped down from the carriage, smiling at the chestnut horse that had accompanied him throughout his examination journey.

He used his Horse Inspection Skill to observe for a while and quickly reached a conclusion—

This is a fine steed; though not as precious as a Thousand-Mile Steed, it is still considered a superior horse among common breeds.

Now, however, this fine steed seems less spirited than when it first left the broker’s stable, showing signs of lethargy typically caused by frequent fright and harassment from wild beasts.

In simple terms, it looks decidedly less spirited.

Xu Qing pondered why, as he hadn’t encountered any fearsome wild beasts on this journey, so why would the horse be so mentally disturbed?

He stepped forward, intending to stroke its mane, but sensed a strong wave of fear emanating from the animal.

"..."

Xu Qing quietly withdrew his hand.

So, all this time, he was the perceived beast?

Handing over the carriage to the relay station, Xu Qing took off lightly and headed towards Shuimen Bridge Residence.

Inside the relay station’s stable.

A breeze blew, causing the screen covering the window frames to sway gently.

From the corner of the heavy wooden carriage, a nimble cat sprang out.

It jumped onto the carriage, perched on the roof, and licked its front paw with its barbed tongue.

Upon encountering a black rat stealing horse feed, the cat swallowed it whole.

Having filled its stomach, the black cat leaped onto the carriage front room, sniffing the lingering scent of makeup powder.

Then it jumped onto the wall, sat there quietly, and watched the officials outside the relay station with its piercing blue eyes.

The black cat’s tail, hanging over the wall, swung back and forth until it spotted someone driving a carriage towards Linhe, then it leaped down.

When it appeared again, the black cat had landed on top of the moving carriage.

...

Moonlight dim, stars sparse, midnight quiet.

Xu Qing’s figure appeared outside Shuimen Bridge Residence.

The two recently planted date trees at the entrance were still standing, now sprouting new shoots, looking even more vibrant than before.

Flipping into the courtyard, Xu Qing’s figure had not yet stabilized when he exclaimed in surprise.

Since when did this courtyard have visitors?

Xu Qing looked in astonishment at the triggered traps along the courtyard walls, with poison-tipped spikes gleaming coldly, impaling a masked corpse.

He pulled the body out and threw it to the center of the courtyard.

Xu Qing inspected the area and discovered several strange items.

For example, the Yin Locust Tree in the backyard had become a bare tree trunk, devoid of branches.

Xu Qing pondered momentarily and linked it to the palm strike from Bai Luo during their duel at Changting Wang Mansion.

The Yin Locust Tree had served as his substitute using the Piling Technique. After enduring Bai Luo’s strike, its crown was destroyed while the trunk survived, thus the Piling Technique remained unbroken.

After contemplating for a while, Xu Qing took out his Talisman Pen and Carving Saber, filling in the missing symbols at the top of the newly sprouted tree stump.

The stump remains stationary, while the original body moves.

Xu Qing continued drawing symbols on the Yin Locust Tree using Zombie Blood as the medium.

Qian for the head, Kun for the abdomen, Zhen for the feet, Xun for the thighs...

This time, only the Qian position was damaged, so Xu Qing carved out a portion at the stump’s top to serve as the head, completing the Piling Technique once again.

In addition to tending to the courtyard plants, Xu Qing discovered during his inspection that the door of his east wing was pulled along with the latch, completely removed.

He walked inside to take a look.

Really! Another thief!

But this one hadn’t even stepped over the beam before falling into the trap behind the threshold.

Xu Qing also retrieved this body and placed it in the front yard.

To avoid any oversight, Xu Qing wandered around the residence until he confirmed there were no further abnormalities. Only then did he re-examine the corpses.

This private residence was known only to the broker who does business with him, not anyone else.

The two masked bodies in the courtyard clearly were not acquainted with Xu Qing.

He pulled off the cloth covering their faces: one had a full beard with a scar on his face; the other had sunken cheeks, resembling a malnourished monkey.

Xu Qing quietly recited scriptures, turning the pages of the Sutra of Salvation.

These two were originally habitual thieves, with the skinny one responsible for surveilling the targets while the bearded one managed the aftermath.

When it came to tasks involving breaking and entering, the thin one handled it. If the homeowner noticed and came after them, the bearded one would use force to intimidate.

In the world of martial arts, they had nicknames: the skinny one was Fang Qianyan, and the stout one was Bai Richuang.

On this day, Fang Qianyan went about his usual surveillance.

He had arrived at Shuimen Bridge, stuffing paper money meant for the deceased into door creases of every house.

Dead man’s money carries bad luck; any homeowner who sees it would hurriedly clean it away.

After waiting for two or three days, Fang Qianyan would return for reconnaissance. If any house still had dead man’s money in the cracks, that would be their target.

This period coincided with Xu Qing’s departure from Linhe, his residence left empty. The brothers naturally set their sights on his Feng Shui Treasure Residence.

Fang Qianyan, small-built, had once trained Wall-Climbing Skill as a martial monk in a temple.

He swiftly scaled the wall of the residence, his toes pressing against the wall in nimble steps, reaching the top with ease.

"You circle the front, I’ll open the door for you!"

As per routine, Fang Qianyan directed Bai Richuang, then vaulting beautifully over the wall into Xu Qing’s meticulously dug trap!

The pit measured four feet deep and was filled with two-foot-long poison spikes.

Fang Qianyan barely let out two agonizing cries before falling silent.

Outside the courtyard wall, Bai Richuang sensed something amiss, called out a few times but received no response.

Bai Richuang, anxious, circled the residence and found a sturdy locust tree branch hung over the wall in the backyard.

He weighed his options and decided to climb the branch, pulling himself up to the wall top.

Looking down the wall, several pits caused by fallen branches glittered with poison spikes.

Bai Richuang’s heart chilled; no decent household would dig pits in their yard to harm people!

Avoiding the pits, Bai Richuang entered the pitch-black backyard.

Feeling the eerie chill pervading the place like entering a well shaft, Bai Richuang took out his Fire Stick, but just as he blew on it, a sudden gust of cold wind extinguished the flame!

Bai Richuang swallowed his saliva, cursing under breath, and headed to a wing room door, looking for an oil lamp for illumination.

Unlike Fang Qianyan, he lacked the skills for breaking and entering finesse.

Believing brute force could solve anything, Bai Richuang exerted himself, pulling the door off and tossing it aside.

"It’s truly darn dark..."

Whining about the utter darkness, Bai Richuang carelessly stepped over the threshold.

"Plop—Ouch!"

Just brief cries of pain, and the whole yard returned to silence.

Xu Qing couldn’t suppress his amusement.

After delivering the departed ones from suffering, the Sutra of Salvation rewarded him with a low-tier skill called Wall-Climbing Skill, enabling one to walk freely on walls and rocks as if on flat ground.

There was also a technique called Lighting Technique, allowing one to control the light of nearby lamps or candles.

Wall-Climbing Skill was a physical movement technique and somewhat practical, but this Lighting Technique...

Xu Qing stood in the courtyard, forming incantation gestures and chanting spells.

In the next moment, lights from lamps and candles flickered on in all rooms.