First, the matter of the butcher shop!
At first glance, meat rotting and workers falling ill seemed related to declining fortune, like the handiwork of the Fortune-Handling Family but a flash of inspiration struck Lu Yuan's mind, a key point emerging.
The Fortune-Handling Family sought fortune flow. What would they gain from spoiling meat?
This was beyond the pass, not Sichuan-Chongqing.
People here didn't eat rotten pork!
Initially, Lu Yuan couldn't figure out how this related to the Life-Severing Wang Family no matter how he thought but when those three characters "Malevolent Slaughter Register" entered his vision, all the clues were instantly pierced through by a bolt of lightning!
Lu Yuan understood!
That wasn't fortune decline at all, but an even more sinister method!
The big butcher shop had been planted with a "malevolent seed" by the Life-Severing Wang Family!
The "Malevolent Slaughter Register" was conducting its first "malevolent qi harvest"!
It drained the butcher shop's "wealth qi," so the meat rotted overnight.
It devoured the workers' "human qi," so the workers collectively developed high fevers!
As for that gray frost the workers couldn't wipe off no matter how they tried...
That was the "disease malevolence" condensed into physical form!
Connecting this to the second incident Auntie Qin mentioned, those merchants encountering strange events late at night...
Lu Yuan suddenly stood up and strode outside.
Under the moon gate, two powerfully built martial masters stood with hands lowered in solemn silence.
Lu Yuan cupped his hands toward them, his voice steady, "I trouble you both to please fetch Steward Wang for me. I have urgent business."
The martial masters didn't dare delay. Their figures flashed and disappeared into the night.
Moments later, Wang Fu arrived hurriedly, carrying a whip soaked in salt water and still bearing traces of blood.
The bloody smell from the whip made Lu Yuan's brows furrow imperceptibly.
Seeing this, Wang Fu quickly handed the whip to a servant and explained to Lu Yuan, "These cheap hides won't talk unless beaten."
Lu Yuan didn't ask more, only urgently inquiring, "Steward Wang, recently in Fengtian City, there have been strange incidents of shops hearing knocking sounds and abacus sounds at night. Have you heard of this?"
Wang Fu was startled, his face showing some bewilderment as he shook his head.
"These past two days because of Madam's situation, I haven't gone out much. I'm not too clear about outside matters..."
Lu Yuan nodded. This was within expectations.
"Then this way, I trouble Steward Wang to call all the people in the residence. Someone must know."
After hearing this, Wang Fu nodded repeatedly, "I'll go call them right away."
Wang Fu agreed readily and immediately turned to handle it.
Soon, over a hundred people from throughout the Zhao residence gathered in a dark mass before the back courtyard's moon gate, every face carrying fear and unease.
Lu Yuan stood before the crowd and again asked about the "ghost door knocking" matter.
This time, there was an immediate response from the crowd.
A purchasing steward stepped forward and recounted the news he'd heard in complete detail with vivid description.
A hundred times more detailed than what Auntie Qin had said.
Some silk shops, dry goods stores, and carriage houses had all been awakened at the third quarter of the zi hour.
The third quarter of the zi hour!
12:45 AM.
In a day, when yin qi was most abundant and yang qi had not yet arisen, known as the "extinction time."
First came heavy knocking sounds like hammers, approaching from the end of the street alleys from far to near, uniform and orderly, completely unlike human hands.
More like wet cloth-wrapped weights pounding the door one strike at a time.
Ghost door knocking!
Following this, when the door knocking stopped, an even more eerie commotion penetrated through walls into rooms.
That was the sound of abacus beads rapidly colliding, crackling, ice-cold without a trace of human warmth.
So fast that absolutely no living accountant could move them.
Ghost accounting!
The next morning, these merchants without exception suffered calamities.
Either newly arrived goods were mysteriously short by "yin measure."
Or old regular customers came to the door without warning to "withdraw red shares."
Or the shop's most reliable clerk tripped on flat ground and drew blood.
And the most crucial point was a detail even Auntie Qin didn't know.
After incidents occurred, if the shopkeeper went to check where the night sounds had been loudest.
Often at the door lintel or corner of the accounting desk, they would discover several spots of grayish-white, powder-like "account ash."
Ice-cold to the touch, not dispersing for half a day and now Lu Yuan had completely figured it all out.
This was the terrifying manifestation of the "Malevolent Slaughter Register" conducting "midnight malevolent accounting"!
These shops' thriving business and gathering popularity formed "vital auspicious qi."
The Wang Family had planted "fortune-defeating malevolent seeds" here, actually burying "yin debt contract nails" one by one.
Every third quarter of the zi hour, the "Malevolent Slaughter Register" had "accounting yin servants" follow these "contract nails" to collect debts!
That "ghost door knocking" sound wasn't actually trying to enter but rather knocking on the merchants' "fortune gates," shaking loose the wealth qi and human qi they guarded.
The "iron abacus" sound was the "Malevolent Slaughter Register" body synchronously conducting "measurement and accounting" of malevolent qi.
That street had become a small "malevolent domain," a "pasture" ceaselessly providing nourishment for the "Malevolent Slaughter Register"!
This was the intermediate stage of the "Malevolent Slaughter Register's" "malevolent cultivation"!
As for why the Life-Severing Wang Family was targeting Lu Yuan.
Why they suddenly started cultivating malevolence, and concentrated it after Auntie Qiao'er returned to Fengtian City.
Very simple.
The other side knew of Lu Yuan's existence.
After all, they could place the Disease-Drawing Talisman on the beams of Auntie Qiao'er's room.
So naturally they knew Auntie Qiao'er didn't die in Ningyuan Town and that Lu Yuan had saved her.
In their eyes, someone who could save people from the hands of an evil thing like the "Human-Faced Two-Legged Sheep" was definitely no ordinary person.
Of course, that Zhao Qiao'er survived was actually because of Gu Qingwan but this Life-Severing Wang Family naturally didn't know, since the Two-Legged Sheep had died on the spot and after Auntie Qiao'er returned, she didn't seek anyone else but single-mindedly waited for him to come to her door.
This posture was tantamount to lighting a bright lamp in the dark night, clearly telling the other side—
Lu Yuan would definitely come!
So... these strange incidents throughout the city, this carefully arranged "malevolent domain," this "Malevolent Slaughter Register" used to collect malevolent qi from the entire city...
From beginning to end, it wasn't for dealing with Auntie Qiao'er.
It was waiting for Lu Yuan to come to the door, to use against Lu Yuan!
Regarding these matters, Lu Yuan could only say, fortunately...
Fortunately the old man was more skilled!
Fortunately the old man had Lu Yuan advance to Celestial Master before coming.
Otherwise, rashly barging in with his previous cultivation level, he probably really would have taken a huge fall!
Now, the only question was... this "Malevolent Slaughter Register" with human skin for pages and malevolent force for ink, exactly how far had it been cultivated?
The merchant shop incidents were already two days ago.
By now, how much more malevolent qi had it devoured?
At this moment, Xu Erxiao and Wang Cheng'an came over, lowering their voices and nervously asking, "Brother Lu, this job... doesn't look right."
Lu Yuan slowly exhaled, the night wind making his robes flutter loudly.
He knew that to break this situation, he must find the eye of the malevolent array, find where the Life-Severing Wang Family was hiding to perform their rituals but right now, there were no clues.
Finally Lu Yuan frowned and let out a long breath, "They come with ill intent..."
Xu Erxiao and Wang Cheng'an were seeing such a grave expression on Lu Yuan's face for the first time, their hearts rising to their throats, "Then Brother Lu, what do we do?"
At this moment Lu Yuan came back to his senses. Walking toward the back courtyard's main room without turning his head, he said, "Raise the high altar, prepare the ritual implements."
"No rush!"
"Let's play with them!"