Immortality begins in Goose City

Chapter 18 The Strange Ape's Identity, Consort Dong's Tomb

The tragedy at the train station square was like a most terrifying plague, sweeping across the entire Goose City overnight.

The next day, the news spread like wildfire, and everyone in the streets, alleys, teahouses, and taverns was talking about it, their faces turning pale with fear.

"Have you heard? Last night at the train station, the Black Dragon Gang and the Horse Gang clashed, and a lot of people died!"

"It wasn't just a fire! The way they died...tsk tsk, I heard they were all disemboweled, their hearts, livers, spleens, and lungs spilling out all over the ground, it's really bizarre!"

"It's Jack the Ripper! That Western monster from the foreign newspapers has come to our Goose Town!"

"Bullshit! What Jack or whatever, I think it's just evil spirits at work! The world's in chaos, and all these things have come out!"

People were filled with anxiety, and rumors were rampant.

The city's police department symbolically sent a few people to the scene to take a look, and finally just posted a "hunt for the murderer" notice, and then nothing more.

But soon, well-informed people learned that not all of them survived last night.

Apart from a few cowards who ran away before the fight even started, only three people truly survived the Ripper's hellish ordeal.

The young master of the Huang family who had just recovered from a serious illness.

A master named Ma Yongzhen.

The last one is Iron Head, the Red Flower Double Stick of the Black Dragon Gang. It is said that he was knocked unconscious, but fortunately he was not targeted by the Ripper.

"Is it Young Master Huang again?"

"Wasn't he the one who killed the man-eating monster last time?"

"Young Master Huang really cares about Goose City!"

For a time, Huang Shujian's image in the eyes of the people of Goose City became somewhat vague and mysterious.

……

The Huang Family Manor, the shooting range in the backyard.

Huang Shujian changed into a clean white shirt, with a black leather hunting vest over it, and sat on a cushioned rattan chair.

In the open space in front of him, on a straw mat, lay a headless, burly body, next to which was a hairy head.

It was the same "strange ape" corpse from last night.

Huang Shujian needs to figure out what this thing is.

Hu Wan bent over and stood cautiously beside Huang Shujian.

"Young Master Shujian, the investigation is complete."

"This isn't an ape, it's a human!"

"This person was seen in the shantytown west of Goose City two years ago."

"He was a homeless man, mentally challenged, unable to speak or understand human language, all he did was laugh foolishly."

"He was much stronger than the average person, and was often bullied by thugs and hooligans on the street who would steal his food and beat him for their amusement."

Everyone calls him Silly Abao.

Hu Wan paused.

"Later... about half a year ago, this idiot Abao suddenly disappeared."

Everyone thought he had starved to death, or that he had been beaten to death and thrown into some mass grave.

"Nobody expected...he would turn out...turn into this horrible state!"

Huang Shujian nodded, his gaze falling on the abdomen of the headless corpse.

Last night the light was dim and the scene was chaotic, so I couldn't see clearly.

Under the sunlight, it is now clear that the body is sunken from the chest to the lower abdomen.

Instead of being dissected and having their internal organs removed, it was more like they were born with deformities.

The other internal organs are still there, but they are all compressed to the sides and bottom of the abdominal cavity, exposing a natural cavity.

Huang Shujian recalled the last time last night, when the small, dark monster crawled out of the corpse's chest and abdomen.

"Could it be... that thing has been hiding inside this fool Abao's stomach all along?"

Huang Shujian muttered to himself, feeling a wave of nausea and chills.

Treating a living person as a mobile nest and host?

Could they even control his actions?

Finally, when faced with a fatal threat, did they decisively abandon and flee?

This is more sinister, eerie, and chilling than a simple wild beast or demon.

"We must find it." Huang Shujian raised his head, his tone cold and resolute.

"That thing is the real Ripper. I'm not at peace as long as it's alive, and Goose City will never have a peaceful day."

Hu Wan nodded hurriedly, "Young Master is right! This thing is too strange; we can't keep it!"

"Young master, I seem to remember someone who might be able to help with the search."

"Bring it up."

Hu Wan immediately ran out and soon returned with a man.

The man who came was an old man in his fifties, thin and with a slightly hunched back. He wore a gray cloth jacket covered in patches and mud, and his sparse, gray hair was tied up in a haphazard bun.

His face was lined with deep wrinkles, but his eyes were unusually bright and darting around. He also carried a faint smell of earth and mildew.

"Why haven't you paid your respects to the young master yet!"

Hu Wan kicked him to the ground and began to introduce him to Huang Shujian.

"This man is called Hu Laosan. He's a grave robber, specializing in tomb raiding and grave robbing."

"It is said that one of our ancestors was a legitimate tomb raider, who passed down some strange and unusual skills."

"This Hu Laosan isn't particularly skilled in other areas, but he has one exceptional talent—his nose is even more sensitive than a dog's!"

"Let him smell this corpse; maybe that will help us track down that little monster."

Old Hu had never seen such a grand spectacle before. He knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly.

"Young Master Hu Laosan greets you!"

"Old Hu, Young Master Shujian has a job for you. If you dare to cheat or try to evade responsibility, you'll lose your life!"

Old Hu trembled with fright and quickly said, "No, no! I will do my best."

Huang Shujian raised his hand, gesturing for him to stand up, and got straight to the point: "Go and examine that corpse. If you can find any useful clues, you'll be well rewarded."

Upon hearing the words "reward," Hu Laosan's eyes lit up noticeably, and his fear lessened considerably.

"Yes, yes, yes! I'll go see and smell right away!"

He got up, rubbed his hands together, and walked to the body.

First, it circled the corpse twice, wrinkling its nose and sniffing it like a dog.

Then, he crouched down, approached the corpse, and sniffed it carefully from head to toe, finally stopping in front of the large hand covered in black hair with sharp, black nails.

He looked at it extremely closely, almost pressing his face against those disgusting fingers.

"what?"

Old Hu took out a thin bamboo stick from his pocket and gently poked at the gap between the nails of the monster's right index finger.

Some dark red powdery substance was picked out with a bamboo skewer and stuck to the tip of the skewer.

Hu Laosan brought the bamboo skewer to his nose, took a deep sniff, then stuck out his tongue, licked it, and smacked his lips.

He closed his eyes, seemingly savoring the moment, his expression shifting.

A moment later, he opened his eyes, a look of certainty and surprise flashing in them.

"Young Master!" Old Hu turned around to face Huang Shujian, "We've found something! The red powder under these fingernails is cinnabar corpse soil!"

"Cinnabar corpse soil?" Huang Shujian pressed.

"This is a very high-grade material for sealing tombs."

"It is made by repeatedly pounding and refining high-quality cinnabar powder, mixed with ten-year-old glutinous rice paste, black dog blood, and several special minerals."

"Once dried, it becomes as hard as stone, with a dark red color. It can prevent decay, insects, and moisture. More importantly, it is said to be able to ward off evil spirits and lock away souls, preventing corpses from turning into zombies!"

He paused, then emphasized, "This kind of cinnabar corpse soil is complicated to prepare and extremely expensive. Ordinary small families and even ordinary officials cannot afford it."

"To the best of my knowledge, there's only one place around Goose City that might have used this type of earthen mound!"

Huang Shujian leaned forward slightly: "Where?"

Old Hu uttered a name: "Dong Fei's Tomb!"

A glint flashed in Huang Shujian's eyes, and he abruptly stood up.

"Gather the men and prepare the equipment. Tomorrow, we're going to Consort Dong's Tomb!"

Hu Wan immediately fawned over him, saying, "Young Master is wise! He cares deeply for the safety of the people of Goose City, working tirelessly and personally to eradicate this evil spirit that plagues the people! Truly a benevolent and compassionate man, a living Buddha to all!"