When Madam Zhang knocked on Li Qinglin's door, he was sitting cross-legged on his bed, practicing. He heard the knock and without any expression, simply said, "Come in."
The door opened, and a fragrant breeze filled the room. Madam Zhang entered gracefully, holding a pot of wine, and asked softly, "Please don't mind the humble abode in the countryside, young master."
Li Qinglin opened his eyes and replied, "Madam's guest room is clean and exquisite. There’s no neglect. I thank you for your hospitality."
Madam Zhang set down the wine tray, poured a drink, and said gently, "There’s not much to offer in the countryside. It’s cold tonight; how about a warm cup of wine?"
Li Qinglin looked at her but didn’t say anything.
Anyone could see her intentions were obvious, especially since Li Qinglin was actually waiting for her.
Seeing that Li Qinglin wasn’t responding, Madam Zhang took a sip from her cup, smiled lightly, and moved closer to the bed, offering him the cup she had just sipped from. "Can you drink, young master?"
Li Qinglin took the wine and smiled, "The wine is fragrant, and so are you, Madam. How could I refuse?"
Madam Zhang's expression became even more charming, her eyes sparkling, "Do you want it to be even more fragrant?"
Li Qinglin glanced at her in her mourning white attire and sighed, "But with you dressed like this... it makes one feel uneasy."
"What does that matter? The past is gone; we must look to the future," Madam Zhang said seductively. "Besides, isn’t this outfit more interesting?"
"Indeed, it is more interesting." Li Qinglin smiled knowingly, "I didn’t expect such charm in this rural farmhouse."
Madam Zhang smiled sweetly, "It seems you are quite wealthy and well-traveled..."
Li Qinglin replied, "With your charm, it surpasses the ordinary women at my home. Why not come back to the capital with me? I can guarantee you a life of luxury, far better than this countryside where you don’t even have proper accessories."
Madam Zhang sighed lightly, "Ah, the City of Fire... I’m afraid my fate is too weak to enjoy wealth. If you are willing, just keep me company for one night; that would be enough for some memories..."
Li Qinglin didn’t know that his sister and Qin Yi had overheard valuable information. From his perspective, he had already gotten the answer he wanted.
A flirtatious widow in a rural farmhouse was not a devoted woman. If such a person could really reach high society in the capital, she would be eager to do so. Even if she had reasons not to, she would hesitate before outright refusing. But this woman rejected him without a second thought.
If she wasn’t coveting the things she managed in this farmhouse, she was likely afraid that her secrets couldn’t be hidden from the high society in the capital.
Even if the strange happenings in the farmhouse weren’t caused by her, she was certainly connected to them.
"Since that’s the case, I certainly can’t refuse your kind intentions." Li Qinglin finally tilted his head back and drank from the cup.
Seeing him drink, Madam Zhang's eyes showed a hint of joy.
At that moment, the Taoist priestess had arrived outside the guest room, still standing on the opposite rooftop. Seeing the scene, she shook her head.
"Such a strong aura of death, no amount of incense can cover it. This woman is either a demon or a monster. Li Qinglin seems clever, yet he dares to drink the wine she offers."
She couldn’t tell that Li Qinglin was testing her; she just felt he was beyond saving, a typical case of being seduced by beauty.
"How strange..." She looked at the turtle shell in her hand, which she had started using for divination when she first saw Li Qinglin: "The dragon fights in the wild, its blood is dark yellow. Why would Li Qinglin have such an omen? Isn’t he off the battlefield already?"
Inside the room, Li Qinglin's eyes began to glaze over, revealing a lustful expression as he reached for Madam Zhang's waist. The Taoist priestess sighed, losing interest in her divination. No matter what this prince did, she couldn’t ignore the harm caused by the monster.
Just as she was about to intervene, something unexpected happened in the room.
Madam Zhang, who had been sitting close to Li Qinglin, suddenly brushed her hand over the jade pendant at his waist. The pendant emitted a strong, colorful light, which seemed to carry a terrifying burning sensation, penetrating her hand and coursing through her body.
"Ah!" Madam Zhang jumped up as if shocked, clutching her head in pain and stumbling into a chair. The wine pot and cups fell to the ground, and she continued to wail while holding her head.
This was the sound that Qin Yi and the others had heard.
"This jade pendant..." The Taoist priestess was momentarily stunned and didn’t intervene, watching coldly.
The farmhouse erupted into chaos as the young master rushed in with a group of farmhands. Qin Yi and Li Qingjun took advantage of the confusion to slip away from the other farmhands and burst into the room.
The first sight inside nearly made Li Qingjun vomit.
Madam Zhang's beautiful face was starting to rot, as if a layer of human skin was peeling away, revealing countless maggots crawling out from her face, a truly disgusting sight.
The colorful light surrounding Li Qinglin began to fade, settling down in front of everyone’s eyes.
A huge corpse worm slowly detached from the layer of human skin, darting out the window and disappearing in an instant.
The young master and his farmhands stood there, dumbfounded.
Remembering the earlier tender moments, everyone present nearly bent over and vomited.
The corpse worm monster was Madam Zhang's true form; she had merely donned a beautiful layer of skin.
"Corpse worm monster," Liuying said in Qin Yi's mind. "It just wore a layer of human skin, not even transforming. It grows by absorbing people's essence and life force. That’s why the young master looks so wasted; his essence has been drained."
Qin Yi connected the dots from what he had seen in the mourning hall and reached the same conclusion. The young master wanted to monopolize the monster, but thankfully he hadn’t; otherwise, he might have lost his life. The farmhands who had "disappeared" were likely drained to death and placed in the cave to create a formation, probably to gather spirit energy and completely transform into human form, then... to be "together" with the young master?
Li Qinglin was drawn to her not because she was stunningly beautiful, but because she believed that absorbing his innate cultivation would help her transformation.
Thinking of this made Qin Yi feel much better...
He glanced at the young master, who, after vomiting, looked dazed.
"She really cared for me..." he murmured. "She didn’t have to try so hard; she had been cautious for so many years, only getting anxious in these past few months..."
Li Qingjun heard this and also fell into a daze, then sighed.
Maybe it was true.
"You all will pay me back... you will pay..." The young master’s expression slowly turned fierce.
Li Qingjun shook her head, "You’re crazy. She’s a monster; everyone in the village has been harmed by her."
Qin Yi tugged at her sleeve, "He knows about the arrangements in the cave; he even helped cover up the lies about it. The harm done was a conspiracy."
Li Qingjun was taken aback and fell silent.
"Where’s the monster? Did you see it?" The young master turned to the farmhands with a twisted expression. "Who saw it?"
The farmhands took a step back in fear, "We... we didn’t see anything."
The young master glanced at Li Qinglin on the bed, who still seemed lost, his face flushed and eyes dazed. Suddenly, he laughed and said sharply, "You three murdered my stepmother; do you still have any regard for the law?"
Li Qingjun retorted, "Step-mother? That’s a huge pile of worms..."
"No one saw the monster," the young master sneered. "We only know that as soon as you arrived, my stepmother died! If it wasn’t for you three seeking wealth and killing her, who else could it be?"
Li Qingjun didn’t argue, sighing, "Are you going to avenge her?"
Qin Yi added, "Brave sir, are you sure you want to fight here in the village? I suggest you report it to the authorities instead."
The young master looked at Li Qingjun’s weapon, a hint of fear in his eyes. Qin Yi's words reminded him that regardless of whether he could win, fighting a martial artist would only lead to destruction. What would that mean for him?
Monsters were still monsters; even if she had genuine feelings, she was still a monster. Thinking of the disgusting corpse worm, all his anger faded. Why fight to the death for her?
Perhaps a quiet settlement would be better?
The young master’s thoughts shifted, and he slowly said, "If we report it, the suspicion of you three murdering my stepmother will likely be troublesome. I have some connections in the county; even if you’re a dragon crossing the river, you might not be able to run rampant here."
Qin Yi replied, "You don’t need to worry about that; I trust the authorities."
Li Qingjun couldn’t help but laugh.
The young master didn’t know their confidence. Seeing their stubbornness, he pointed at Li Qinglin on the bed and said, "Your brother has been poisoned by my stepmother's unique drug. I do have the antidote."
"Oh?" Qin Yi smiled, "What do you want us to trade for it?"
"As long as you leave that jade pendant, we will provide the antidote, and we can treat this incident as if it never happened."
The trap was set.
Remembering the strange powers of the jade pendant they had just witnessed, it was clear it had the ability to ward off evil. The young master calmed down and abandoned his desire for revenge, instantly filled with greed, wanting to claim it for himself.
Liuying quietly said to Qin Yi, "This jade might really be a valuable treasure; I’m a bit interested..."
Qin Yi silently shook his head.
Li Qingjun, furious, pointed at the young master and scolded, "You’re even worse than that monster. She may have harmed many, but at least she had some genuine feelings for you. You’re not even worth a piece of jade."
If he truly wanted revenge, Li Qingjun might have praised him, but now she was just angry.
The Taoist priestess on the rooftop sighed. Below her, a corpse worm had split in two, the escaping corpse worm monster, and even her sword couldn’t avoid it. She looked down at the monster's corpse and whispered, "Why bother?"
Suddenly, a sigh came from the bed. Everyone turned to see Li Qinglin, who had been lost in confusion, sitting up straight, his eyes clear, no longer showing any signs of confusion.
He smiled at Qin Yi, "Brother Qin, I’ve always said that sometimes people are more troublesome than monsters."
(End of Chapter)