"Something unusual?"
Qin Jianghe thought for a while and mentioned some seemingly peculiar events, but nothing useful was uncovered.
Zhou Chen, who had always been playing the role of a small, invisible follower, suddenly interjected:
"County Captain, I encountered something unusual last night."
Although he didn't wish to be in the spotlight, he wanted to leverage Zhang Long's power to deal with the thing knocking on his door last night.
"What was it?"
Zhang Long and Qin Jianghe, among others, looked at Zhou Chen.
Zhou Chen spoke with fear, with a look of lingering panic:
"Last night at midnight, the missing Elder Qin suddenly came knocking, asking me and Qin Hongyu to open the door!"
"I sensed something odd, and since I didn't have a good relationship with Elder Qin, I was wary and didn't open the door right away!"
"Besides, having hunted since childhood with keen hearing, at that time I was still awake, and I can confirm there were no footsteps outside."
"Therefore, I told Elder Qin to discuss matters during the day, and simply didn't open the door. The other side called for a while and then fell silent!"
"I didn't dare to open the door and go out; it was only at dawn today that I came out and opened the door, finding no traces at all."
"However, Qin Hongyu and I went to Elder Qin's house, only to discover that Elder Qin was missing, and then found out Elder Qin wasn't the only one missing!"
Qin Jianghe felt a sudden shock in his heart, certainly not believing the person knocking last night was Elder Qin himself, meaning there might be some goblin or ghost appearing in Dahe Village?
Zhang Long narrowed his eyes, stared at Zhou Chen, and pondered:
"Did Elder Qin try to break the door or force entry last night?"
"No, he was just outside calling for me and Qin Hongyu to open the door."
"Anything else unusual?"
"Nothing more!"
Zhang Long nodded slightly, sighed in relief, glanced at the grave-faced Qin Jianghe and other constables, and stated calmly:
"No need to be nervous; it shouldn't be anything powerful!"
"If it were something powerful, would he still be alive?"
"Moreover, the missing ones are all solitary individuals, indicating the opponent's power isn't impressive!"
"Wise words, sir!"
The constables, along with Qin Jianghe and Zhou Chen, offered praise and flattery.
Zhang Long's reasoning made sense.
The tension they initially felt slightly eased.
Zhou Chen and his group returned to Dahe Village, where Zhang Long asked villagers for various information.
"Judging by the mold on the food in Widow Chen's house, her disappearance certainly exceeds two days, at least over four days, yet someone saw Widow Chen and Zhang Dageng meeting late at night the night before last!"
"Based on Zhang Dageng's situation, he probably went missing the day before!"
"Elder Qin also met with Widow Chen before his disappearance..."
While organizing the collected information, Zhang Long realized that the events seemed tied to Widow Chen, suggesting she might have harmed others and fled fearing punishment.
But judging by the leftover food and stock in Widow Chen's house, it didn't seem like fleeing from guilt, and Zhou Chen's encounter with the 'Elder Qin' knocking last night didn't seem man-made...
Suddenly.
Zhang Long thought of something, abruptly turned to Zhou Chen: "I seem to have heard your master was recently eaten by a tiger?"
"Indeed!"
Zhou Chen nodded.
"Did you hear a tiger's roar last night?"
"Yes."
Zhou Chen's heart jumped:
"Could it have something to do with the tiger? Acting as the tiger's accomplice!?"
It's said that when a tiger eats a person, it turns their soul into its puppet, a Chong Ghost. The 'Elder Qin' knocking last night might have been a Chong Ghost.
Widow Chen likely turned into a Chong Ghost long ago, then seduced Elder Qin, Zhang Dageng, and other old bachelors into the tiger's lair to ultimately become Chong Ghosts themselves.
Zhang Long's eyes glowed with a brilliant light, clearly aware of something.
Gazing at Zhou Chen, he thought for a moment, and said:
"The encounter you had last night might have been with a Chong Ghost, and the culprit is likely the tiger that devoured your master!"
"A tiger that eats people easily gains intelligence, transforming into a beast, the more it eats, the faster the transformation!"
"You've hunted since childhood; can you track if the tiger's been around?"
"I should be able to!"
Zhou Chen nodded, his face immediately filled with resentment:
"I will definitely track that tiger down and avenge my master!"
"Good, come with me to the mountains to track down that vicious tiger!"
Zhang Long, swift and decisive, immediately gathered his constables to take action.
Zhou Chen packed his bow and arrows and gear, joining the company.
"Sir, since the vicious tiger likes eating people, it's likely to come again tonight; why not set a trap, wait for it?"
Zhou Chen asked, somewhat puzzled.
"An intelligent tiger is clever, and has Chong Ghosts gathering intelligence, it won't enter the village; even if it comes at night, it will only be near the forest, and it will run away at any sign of danger!"
Zhang Long replied casually.
Though, he omitted that nighttime is perilous, likely to encounter other eerie events, preferring daytime hunts in the mountains over nighttime forest ventures.
"I see, thank you for clearing that up, sir!"
Zhou Chen appeared to have an epiphany, deeply enlightened.
The group moved quickly and reached the back mountain in less than half an hour. Zhou Chen's mastery-level Tracking Technique instantly detected the traces of the tiger's activity.
"I haven't seen it when I was hunting before; it seems to have appeared these past few days. If I encounter it alone, I don't know if I can handle it?"
Zhou Chen's mind was heavy:
"I must find it and have Zhang Long help eliminate it. Otherwise, as it grows stronger, it will become more and more of a threat to me. With it around, hunting here will become very dangerous!"
Zhou Chen followed the traces and led Zhang Long and the others in pursuit.
As they tracked, Zhou Chen noticed that this path almost overlapped with the one Old Man Cao had taken him on when he was eaten by the tiger.
"It seems there's a ninety percent chance it really is the tiger that ate Old Man Cao!"
After advancing for about another half-hour.
Zhou Chen reached the place where Old Man Cao was initially attacked.
Suddenly.
He caught a familiar scent.
Old Man Cao's scent.
He hurried forward and found a pair of worn-out cloth shoes in the grass.
"These are my master's shoes!"
Zhou Chen picked up the shoes, his face full of sorrow.
However, the moment he picked up the shoes, his heart suddenly trembled.
The soles had a hidden layer, and because they were torn by the tiger, part of it was exposed. Zhou Chen vaguely saw three large characters:
[Yi Arrow Skill]
"Old Man Cao was actually hiding a martial arts manual?"
Zhou Chen was both shocked and delighted, without much time to think, covering the exposed manual with his palm discreetly, holding the shoes in his arms, grieving as if mourning Old Man Cao genuinely.
Zhang Long didn't pay attention to an old pair of shoes, he knew Old Man Cao was eaten by the tiger, so it was normal to find the shoes here.
What's more, he asked Zhou Chen to track the malicious tiger not because he trusted Zhou Chen's Tracking Technique, but rather he suspected that the tiger's lair might be near where Old Man Cao was killed.
If Zhou Chen couldn't track the tiger, he would have Zhou Chen bring him here to search.
"Everyone be careful, that malicious tiger might be nearby!"
Zhang Long gripped his treasured sword at his waist and instructed the constables before looking at Zhou Chen, who was holding the shoes sadly:
"Can you find the tiger?"
"It shouldn't be a problem!"
Zhou Chen tucked the shoes into his arms securely and continued to examine the traces around.
Soon, he confirmed the direction and led Zhang Long and the others towards the two o'clock direction.
"Help, please…"
A voice filled with pain and helplessness came from a distance.
Zhang Long instantly drew his treasured sword and charged forward first.
Zhou Chen frowned, retreating behind the constables.
Under the shadow of a large tree ahead, there lay a disheveled and partially unclad beautiful woman.
The woman frowned delicately, her appearance so pitiful that it made people want to hold her in their arms and cherish her dearly.
Who else could it be but the missing Widow Chen?
Clang!
The crisp sound of a sword rang out, and Zhou Chen only saw a flash of blood-red blade, accompanied by a shriek, and Widow Chen vanished like smoke!
"Is this what a Martial Artist is? Is the blood-red covering on the sword their Qi and blood?"
Zhou Chen stared intently at Zhang Long, filled with curiosity.
"Vile creature, come out and die!"
After killing Widow Chen, Zhang Long didn't pause, striding forward, his voice thunderous.
"Roar!"
The forest shook as a massive tiger with white forehead and pendant eyes suddenly leapt out from behind the bushes, its blood-red mouth gaping wide, fangs sinister, a dreadful, foul stench rolling forth.
"Hiss! It's much bigger than before!"
Zhou Chen's eyes widened. Tigers of this species didn't usually exceed three meters in body length, but this malicious tiger was at least five meters long, with a shoulder height estimated at about one meter seventy-eight—a truly mighty and robust sight!
"Zhang Long should be able to handle it, right?"
Zhang Long seemed full of confidence despite knowing about the tiger, showing no fear at all. Moreover, Zhang Long displayed a strange enthusiasm, clearly not considering the tiger a threat.
Additionally, defeating this tiger would surely benefit Zhang Long greatly.
Otherwise, Zhang Long wouldn't have been so eager to venture into the mountains to deal with the tiger.
It's well known that the Eight-Character Government Office is not easily accessible if you're without means or connections.
The government office here is notoriously corrupt as well.
"Breaking Army!"
Just as Zhou Chen was imagining a fierce battle between Zhang Long and the tiger, he saw Zhang Long's sword light flash, slicing out a three-inch blood-red sword aura.
The tiger, majestic as it charged forward, was disemboweled by Zhang Long's sliding slash, killed with a single strike.
"Hiss!"
...