Chapter 76: Human Pill? (Please Bookmark, Please Follow)

Shang Lu endured the scorching heat, carefully searching through the ruins of the fire. Others, unaware that he was hunting for treasures, thought he was inspecting for hidden embers and praised him for his diligence and responsibility. Even the fire brigade commended his professionalism.

Despite the compliments, Shang Lu’s mood remained grim. Whether it was that the corpse driver had no real treasures or the fire had burned everything too thoroughly, after scouring the wreckage for a long time, he found nothing. San Niang, too, did not emerge from her oil-paper umbrella.

By the time Shang Lu stepped out of the ruins, daylight had already broken. At this hour, all the demons and evil spirits had retreated, ceasing their mischief. Shang Lu made a round of the area; seeing nothing amiss, he returned to the county office.

On the way, he noticed that the citizens of Luoshui County, despite last night’s chaos that had left them sleepless with fright, did not hide indoors after sunrise. Instead, they went about their business as usual. No matter how terrified, life had to go on—especially for the common folk with little savings, who could not afford a day without work and had to venture out, braving their fears, to earn a living.

Fortunately, the disturbances in the city seemed to be under control, allowing the people, though still anxious, to breathe a little easier. Nonetheless, the atmosphere in the city was heavy. At every gate and crossroads, armed officers rigorously checked all passersby and even livestock.

Shang Lu said nothing, but inwardly he doubted the effectiveness of such inspections. There are paths for men, and paths for spirits. The demons and ghosts would hardly travel these ordinary roads; even if they did, they had countless ways to evade the scrutiny of regular officers.

To Shang Lu, the arrangements of the magistrate and the secretary seemed more like measures to calm the public than to catch any real threat.

Upon returning to the county office, Shang Lu intended to inquire about the interrogation of the corpse driver, but was informed that both the process and outcome were strictly confidential.

“This matter, aside from the few old hands who participated in the questioning, only the magistrate and the secretary know,” Head Constable Niu whispered. “Last night’s demon trouble is said to be far-reaching. The fewer who know, the better.”

Shang Lu thought to himself: Of course it’s far-reaching. I also know those demons are all heading for the secret realm in Yunhua Mountain. The calm in the city today must be because the demons have gone to Yunhua Mountain.

Since the interrogation was confidential, Shang Lu asked no further, turning instead to discuss the casualties among the constables and the arrangements for their recovery and future duties with Head Constable Niu.

After finishing business, Niu said with concern, “Brother Shang, you’ve worked hard all night. Since things are quiet now, go home and rest. If anything comes up, I’ll send for you.”

“Will you not rest a bit, Brother Niu?” Shang Lu asked.

Niu laughed and confided, “Truth be told, after escorting the corpse driver back last night, I managed to catch a nap in the guardroom.”

He explained further that the chaos in the city had temporarily subsided, so not all constables needed to be deployed. He planned to divide them into teams and have them rest in rotation—Shang Lu and himself included.

Shang Lu found this arrangement reasonable and voiced no objection. “I’ll take my leave to rest, then. I’ll count on you to watch over things here, Brother Niu.”

He was eager to return home, cook the rat demon, and offer it as a sacrifice to the Temple of Five Viscera. He did not fear that the demon meat would spoil and upset his stomach, but he worried that if too much time passed, the essence within the meat would dissipate, diminishing its effect.

Niu thumped his chest, assuring him, “Go on, leave it to me. You needn’t worry.”

Shang Lu left the guardroom, but instead of heading straight home, he visited the wounded constables, offered them comfort, and only then returned to his “ghost house.”

The house was quiet and peaceful, a world apart from the turmoil outside. As soon as Shang Lu entered the courtyard and closed the door, the oil-paper umbrella floated itself into the main hall.

Immediately, San Niang, dressed in her bridal gown, appeared in the courtyard, holding a bowl of bloody, chilled minced meat.

Shang Lu was truly hungry. He took the bowl with a smile, but noticed today’s meat was different from before. Amidst the bright red flesh, faint blue glimmers flickered, and its chilling aura was even stronger.

He remembered San Niang once said the bloody meat came from a special “snake” in the secret realm. Had something changed in the secret realm, causing the special snake to grow stronger and improve the quality of its flesh? Was it due to the demons invading the secret realm—had they been devoured by the snake, boosting its power?

Was this the fortune of the fisherman amid the struggle of clams?

Curious, Shang Lu asked San Niang, but she did not know the specifics; she always left right after cutting the meat, never lingering in the secret realm.

Regretfully, Shang Lu raised the bowl of glowing, bloody meat and gulped it down.

San Niang took the basket of rat demon meat from his hands and carried it into the kitchen.

Shang Lu followed, asking, “San Niang, do you know how to prepare rat demon meat?”

San Niang nodded. She took up a knife and expertly skinned the pieces of rat demon from the basket. With their fur, the rat demons looked dirty, but once skinned, their flesh was surprisingly pale and clean.

She washed the meat in clean water. Seeing Shang Lu hovering in the kitchen, eager to help but unsure what to do, she shooed him out, telling him not to be a nuisance.

“Alright, I’ll just wait to eat,” Shang Lu said with a smile.

He went to the center of the courtyard and practiced the Five Beast Vitality Exercise, channeling the blood energy from the meat throughout his body. Then he activated the Internal Scripture Diagram, refining his organs and meridians.

During cultivation, Shang Lu was delighted to find that the mist shrouding another statue in the Temple of Five Viscera had dissipated somewhat. This glowing blue bloody meat not only increased his blood energy, but also strengthened his organs. He wondered whether it was the lung or kidney that was being fortified. Previously, only the statues of the lung and kidney had shown no change; now, one was progressing unexpectedly.

Once he absorbed and digested all the blood energy, Shang Lu paused his cultivation. Rather than tiring him, the practice invigorated him, easing even the exhaustion from last night’s battle.

Suddenly, a delicious aroma wafted from the kitchen. Just as he was about to check on the rat demon meat, San Niang floated out, holding a cup in her left hand, brimming with fragrant wine—likely fruit wine from the Earth God’s statue. In her right, she carried a plate with several dark red balls, resembling meatballs or pills.

“What is this...?”

At the sight of these meatballs, Shang Lu’s expression changed. Though he had never seen such pills before, he had read descriptions of them in a page of alchemical recipes.

“Human Pill?!”

Shang Lu cried out in astonishment.