Chapter 143: Waiting for the Hare at the Stump

Fang Mu shook his head and said, "Let's go inside first."

With that, he released his grip, letting the paper crane in his hand flutter out to join the others in monitoring the surroundings.

The two arrived in front of the house and paused for a moment.

Fang Mu shot a glance at Ghost One. "Go knock on the door and take down Wang Wu."

Ghost One approached the door and reached out to knock.

Wang Wu's voice came from inside: "Who is it?"

Ghost One replied calmly, "Facing south, the lotus hand seal."

Fang Mu grinned behind him; this was indeed a direct and effective method.

Directly stating Wang Wu's secret technique—if Wang Wu cared at all about his sister, he likely wouldn't be alarmed.

After a short while, a voice sounded from inside: "Coming."

The door was opened by Wang Wu, and simultaneously, a sharp blade thrust outward...

Along with the thrusting blade, Wang Wu's gloomy, pale face was revealed.

Ghost One moved. He grabbed Wang Wu's wrist and jerked it upward, sending Wang Wu sprawling onto the ground with a soft thud.

"What is it, brother?"

The voice of a young girl drifted from inside the room.

Wang Wu's face turned ashen, despair flashing in his eyes.

"Nothing, we're just here to give you a hard time. Oh, and you can roll out here too," Fang Mu said, stepping forward with a casual, familiar tone while glancing at Wang Wu.

Ah Bai, perched on his shoulder, sprang into action, kicking the blind girl out of the house.

The blind girl rolled across the ground, looking extremely disheveled.

Fang Mu's gaze remained cold, completely indifferent.

This blind girl revolted him; she disgusted him to the point of nausea.

Wang Wu understood the situation in an instant and blurted out quickly, "We have no grievances between us! Who are you? Why are you making things difficult for us?"

Finished speaking, Wang Wu looked at Fang Mu with a pleading gaze, seemingly hoping Fang Mu would spare him.

Fang Mu grinned. No grievances?

That's right, there were no grievances, but some things transcended the relationship of grievances and grudges.

Ghost One grabbed Wang Wu by the neck, dragged him over to Fang Mu's side, and slammed him onto the ground.

"You... what kind of people are you?" Fear appeared in Wang Wu's eyes.

Fang Mu raised his foot and kicked Wang Wu, sending him rolling three times over, then said indifferently, "I only want to know the outcome—including what you've done and that so-called miraculous power. I don't want to hear any superfluous nonsense."

From the moment the door opened and the blade flashed, Fang Mu had already witnessed Wang Wu's ruthless side, so he saw no need for idle chatter.

Wang Wu shrank his neck, his eyes darting around. "Divine doctor? What divine doctor? I don't know..."

Fang Mu looked toward the blind girl and said calmly, "Kill her."

Ghost One nodded and walked toward the blind girl.

"I'll talk! I'll tell you everything!" Wang Wu caved instantly. "I beg you, please don't hurt my sister."

Fang Mu smiled, signaling for Wang Wu to continue.

In Wang Wu's eyes, Fang Mu's smile was exceptionally chilling, resembling an evil ghost.

Wang Wu blurted out hastily, "The divine doctor is a monk. He said that as long as I killed someone and took their eyeballs, he would cure my sister's eyes."

Fang Mu frowned. "Then how did you acquire the technique of reincarnation?"

"I killed someone, but to my surprise, I was investigated by the very next day," Wang Wu explained. "The divine doctor found me in prison. I originally thought the divine doctor would rescue me, but he said he would only teach me this method and wouldn't save me, and that he would come to cure my sister seven days later."

Fang Mu rubbed his chin. A monk?

This term brought to mind the members of the Evil Buddha Sect; the connection wasn't far off, and it was easy to deduce.

Yet, what was the purpose of this divine doctor's actions?

"Master," Ghost One said slowly, "mentioning the word monk reminds me of a method I've seen before."

"Speak," Fang Mu commanded.

"When Cangyun City was first opened up, a monk once came by. I learned a bit about it," Ghost One recounted everything he knew. "This is a method to create anomalies. When someone dies by decapitation, if they use the reincarnation technique to become an anomaly and then devour their own kin, they become even stronger."

Fang Mu squatted down and said with keen interest, "Did you hear that? It's going to eat your kin."

Wang Wu, lying on the ground, wore a blank expression, unresponsive for a long time.

Become an anomaly and devour one's closest kin?

An expression of rage surfaced on Wang Wu's face as he cursed, "Divine doctor, you lied to me!"

Disregarding Wang Wu's thoughts, Fang Mu asked, "Will killing him have any repercussions?"

Ghost One replied, "Yes, they are certainly connected, but killing this woman will cause no trouble."

"Hmm..." Fang Mu mused, "Tie them up first and wait for the hare to run into the stump. As for this woman, don't touch her for now; I'd really love to see the spectacle of a brother devouring his own sister."

These words carried a somewhat villainous flavor, yet they were precisely what Fang Mu had in mind.

Wang Wu going out to kill people and harvest eyes had a lot to do with his sister's encouragement; she had even provided her brother with sleeping potions.

Since both he and his sister enjoyed playing this game, he would let them taste the flavor of reaping what they sowed.

"Understood!"

Ghost One swung into action, efficiently tying the two of them up.

Especially in the case of the young girl, Ghost One's rope-tying technique was remarkably specialized.

Fang Mu rubbed his chin and remarked, "You've got quite a bit of experience."

"What?" Ghost One was momentarily stunned.

Fang Mu waved a hand. "Nothing."

Entering the house, Fang Mu had Ghost One toss the brother and sister duo beside the bed, then took a seat on a stool.

"Wait."

Since they were waiting for the rabbit by the stump, they might as well wait.

At the table, Fang Mu sat while Ghost One stood, quietly awaiting the person pulling the strings behind the scenes.

...

Time slipped away quietly over the course of seven days. Throughout these seven days, Fang Mu even began eating his meals right there in Wang Wu's house.

Wang Wu's complexion had grown increasingly pale, and a greenish glow had begun to surface within his originally pitch-black pupils.

Fang Mu knew this was the rhythm of the impending transformation, though the time had not yet arrived.

Finally, night fell, and the sky gradually darkened.

Wang Wu, lying off to the side, suddenly stirred.

The ropes binding Wang Wu shattered into pieces in an instant. Like a lunatic, Wang Wu lunged toward his sister.

There was a folk legend that when a person turned into a filthy entity, it happened in one of two ways.

One was indiscriminate attack, while the other was prioritizing the harm of one's own kin. Wang Wu belonged to the latter category.

Fresh blood splattered. Amidst the young girl's expressions of despair and agony, Wang Wu frantically set about gnawing on her.

In less than the time it took to burn half an incense stick, Wang Wu had devoured his own younger sister clean, chewing up even her bones.

The scene was intensely bloody, yet the two onlookers remained entirely calm.

Having finished devouring his younger sister, Wang Wu shifted his gaze to Fang Mu and charged straight at him.

"Crack!"

Ghost One raised his foot and slammed Wang Wu down onto the floor, shaking his head. "A mere Yellow-grade anomaly dares to act impudently in front of the master."

Fang Mu stood up and slowly extended his hand.

The familiar notification chime rang out.

[You touched a corpse of an anomaly and obtained a sliver of true qi.]

A very simple notification. Fang Mu mentally dismissed it as trash.

"Wait and see when that divine doctor shows up." Fang Mu stood up and poured himself a cup of tea.

The two resumed their wait. Just as the night grew deeper, an anomaly occurred.