Zhou Cong stumbled all the way down the mountain that night, and panicked in his heart, how can he remember the road, came to the mountain and pointed out randomly, which caused everyone to take a lot of wrongful roads, and finally lost the head catcher Liang Chunming to observe everything, and Lu Kang and other local villagers are familiar with the terrain on the mountain, so they followed the mountain and the traces of trampling, crushed branches and shrubs, and Zhou Cong's clothes and ornaments left along the way, all the way to find it.

"Liang Zhutou, look, there's a person!" Lu Kang walked ahead, suddenly saw something in his eyes, and then shouted.

Everyone looked at the place pointed by Lu Kang, and saw a person lying in a small ditch from a distance, everyone approached quickly over there, and after approaching, they were sure that it was a person, and he was a scholar from the clothes, but Liang Chun shouted loudly and said: "Everyone stand still, don't approach without orders!" ”

Everyone was settled, Liang Chun slowly approached Xiaogou, came to the man's side, and after observing for a while, he turned the man over, only to see that the deceased was about thirteen or fourteen years old, and his appearance was delicate, and he was the same as Zhou Cong described.

Liang Chun shouted: "Xiao Zhang brought Zhou Cong over, be careful with your feet, don't step on the evidence." ”

After Zhou Cong approached, he couldn't help but hide his face and cry after seeing Xiao Tong's pale face: "Xiao Yang, Xiao Yang, you died so miserably......"

Liang Chun ordered the catchers to search around, but did not find any landslides and dry bones, Liang Chun asked the child to check the body, and Meng Hai said with certainty: "Liang Zhutou, the back of the child's head is broken, it is obviously caused by being knocked with a blunt object, the rest of the injuries on his body are not fatal, the lower abdomen of the lodging ditch is not swollen, it should be pushed into the ditch after death, the scars on his body are all traces of wear and tear, it should be down the water, and he was injured by the sharp stones in the ditch." ”

Liang Chun frowned and looked up the hill along the small ditch, but Zhou Cong asked stupidly, "Wasn't Xiao Yang killed by monsters?" ”

Liang Chun turned around and shouted, "Come on, take Zhou Cong down for me!" ”

The two catchers quickly pressed Zhou Cong to his knees, and tied his hands with a rope without saying a word, and Zhou Cong shouted: "Why tie me? Lord Headcatcher, I'm a lifter, you guys are insulting! ”

Liang Chun sneered: "This little boy was obviously thrown into the ditch after you killed it, and then came up with a string of lies to deceive the official, now the evidence is conclusive, what else do you have to say!" ”

Zhou Cong shouted: "Wronged! I was wronged, I obviously saw it with my own eyes, Xiao Yang was crushed by a landslide, I wanted to save him, a dry bone crawled out of the ground, grabbed Xiao Yang and dragged it down, my lord, what I said is true, there is no lie, my lord, I am in love with Xiao Yang, I also want him to accompany me to Beijing, what do I kill him, my lord! ”

Lu Kang was more inclined to believe Zhou Cong's words, and he also said: "Liang Zhutou, I don't think Zhou Cong has any motive to kill, Xiao Yang is his servant, even if he makes a mistake, it is natural to be punished, so as not to be killed from behind, not to mention that we did hear the sound of ghosts crying on the mountain before and after we saved Zhou Cong that night, and it didn't completely disappear until early in the morning, it was definitely not an echo of the valley, please Liang Zhutou was aware of it." ”

Liang Chun frowned and said, "Do you suspect that the demon in your village is the one who is legendary?" How to explain the wound on his head? ”

Before Lu Kang could reply, villager Ren Yuan hurriedly replied: "Lord Head Catcher, it's a ghost, not a demon, everyone heard it that night, the ghost screams on the mountain from time to time, we are used to hearing it, and we will never be wrong." ”

The locals believe in ghosts and gods very much, and Liang Chun actually believes in it in his heart, but he is still skeptical: "How to explain the injury on Xiao Yang's head?" Zhou Cong said that Xiao Yang was buried by the collapsed soil and dragged to the ground by dry bones, how can this be explained? ”

Lu Kang said: "Maybe Xiao Yang broke free from the hands of the ghost pawn, accidentally slipped while running, hit the back of his head against a stone, and then rolled into the ravine?" ”

Liang Chun said: "That's a bit of a coincidence, okay, Xiao Zhang, untie Zhou Cong for the time being, let's go up the ditch and see if we can find any clues." ”

Zhou Cong was untied, the two catchers stared at him, everyone walked up along the small ditch, not long after walking, the careful Liang Catcher found a bloodstained stone on the side of the ditch, he grabbed the stone with one hand and walked back to the side of Xiao Yang's corpse, Meng Hai, who had cooperated for many years, took the stone, compared it with Xiao Yang's head, nodded and said: "That's right, this guy hit it." ”

Liang Chun came to Zhou Cong and sneered, "What else do you have to say now?" Besides you, who else will beat this child to death in the middle of the night on the mountain? ”

Zhou Cong didn't know how to explain, he looked at the stone and shook his head: "I didn't do it, it's a monster, there are really monsters!" ”

Others couldn't help him, Liang Chun snorted and said, "You stay in the court and wait for these words, let's talk about it when the county magistrate asks about the case, see if the adult doesn't beat your ass, tie it up and take it away!" ”

Zhou Cong was tied up again, everyone began to go down the mountain, the people of Shannan Village led the shortcut, turned a mountainside when Zhou Cong suddenly tripped over a stone under his feet, he hit his head on a protruding stone on the ground, and immediately fell to the head and bleed.

Everyone hurriedly stopped the bleeding for him, Zhou Cong looked at the stone blankly for a while, and suddenly shouted: "I remember!" I remember! I've seen this stone, and I fell here that night, and I was holding my hands on the stone, and my hands were broken! Lord Headcatcher, if you don't believe me, you can look at my hands! ”

Liang Chun was stunned for a moment, he turned around and spread out Zhou Cong's hand, and then it was exactly the same as the new wound on his forehead.

"You've really been here?" Liang Chun asked cautiously.

Zhou Cong nodded again and again, and said: "I remember, Liang Zhutou, I came from that side that night, and Xiao Yang and I found a soil hole in a valley not far from that mountain, and wanted to squeeze in it to hide until dawn, but I didn't expect it to rain in the middle of the night, and the hole collapsed." ”

Liang Chun looked at Lu Kang, Lu Kang looked at the mountain peak that Zhou Cong pointed to and seemed to be a little nervous, not only him, but the entire Nanshan Village looked nervous, and after a while Lu Kang said: "Liang Zhutou, that is the main peak of the Dead Man's Mountain, if Zhou Cong is not wrong, he should be talking about the Valley of the Unjust Soul, that is, the birthplace of the story that circulated in our village, it is very evil, maybe what Zhou Cong said is true." ”

Liang Chun's face sank, and he said: "What nonsense are you talking about, it's still early now, let's go over and have a look, Zhou Cong, I'll give you a chance at the end, if we go to the place you said but get nothing, the county order doesn't beat you, I'll kill you first." ”

Zhou Cong grabbed the last straw, and he said with certainty: "I am never lying, please believe me!" ”

Everyone discussed for a while, and the villagers of Nanshan Village finally agreed to go to the Valley of the Wronged Soul together under the reprimand of Liang Zhutou, and everyone went up again along the mountain road where the grass and trees were reborn.

Revisiting the old place, Zhou Cong found several memorable places along the way, and there were also many traces of broken trees on the side of the road, and when everyone found a cloth shoe left by Zhou Cong in a thorny shrub, Liang Chun's face also changed a little.

Finally everyone came to the mouth of the valley that Zhou Cong said, before they could stand firmly, a cold air was blowing in their faces, Liang Chun looked into the valley, and couldn't help but gasp, only to see the vines and grasses in the valley, the shade of the trees on the top, this valley is carrying the sun, the humidity in the valley is pressing, even if there are no ghosts, the insects and snakes here can carry away the two big living people overnight.

"You two lords and servants want to spend the night in this valley?" Liang Chun asked incredulously.

"Yes, we didn't know how to get here, I really couldn't walk, so I asked Xiao Yang to find a hole nearby to rest." Zhou Cong said as a matter of course.

Even Lu Kang couldn't help but say: "It's a miracle that you are still alive now, even if you want to find a place to rest temporarily in the mountains, you should find a dry and sunny place away from the water's edge, this place is full of yin and qi, even if there are no insects, snakes and that thing, you will be sick if you stay overnight." ”

Zhou Cong smiled bitterly: "How do I know, anyway, it's pitch black everywhere, and all the torches on my body have been extinguished, what's the difference when you feel the dark?" ”

"Okay, let's stop talking nonsense, now that we're on the ground, Zhou Cong, you quickly lead the way in and find the place where you rested last night, the humidity here is too heavy, I don't want to stay here for too long."

Zhou Cong trembled and followed behind Liang Zhutou to show the way, the people of Shannan Village didn't dare to go in at all, they stood in a sunny place and looked at the Valley of Grievances a little trembling, waiting in fear.

After a long time, several screams suddenly came from the valley, Zhou Cong's screams were particularly sharp and poignant, and the villagers of Shannan Village who stayed outside the valley took two steps back in shock, looking at each other one by one, not knowing whether to go in and have a look or flee immediately.

Lu Kang was also so frightened that his face turned pale, but he had a duty in his body, and after a battle between heaven and man in his heart, he finally stomped his feet and said, "Let's go and put up a few torches, let's go in and rescue Liang Zhutou and them!" ”

As soon as the words fell, I heard a strange movement in the Valley of the Soul, Liang Zhutou dragged Zhou Cong, who was already soft as an insect, and ran out, followed by several other officials, Lu Kang counted, there was no one less, and they didn't see any scars on their bodies, their hearts were settled, and they stepped forward and were about to ask, only to see Zhou Cong suddenly vomit wildly, and then except for Meng Wai, the others squatted down and vomited with pale faces.

"What's going on?" Lu Kang's heart was furious, and he asked in a trembling voice.

The old servant Meng Hai was not surprised, but he also said with a calm face: "We went to the place that Zhou Cong said, where it did collapse a piece, revealing more than a dozen corpses, some of which had already turned into white bones, some were rotting, and maggots were crawling all over the ground, miserable, really miserable." ”

Lu Kang's heart was furious, his mouth was sour, and the other villagers were trembling in their legs, as long as someone shouted, everyone would turn around and flee together.

Lu Kang asked in a trembling voice, "Could it be...... True...... Is there really a ghost who eats people? ”

Liang Zhutou spit out a few mouthfuls of a lot better, hearing Lu Kang's words, he snorted and said: "It's all, there are no ghosts in this world, people did it, those unrotten corpses have a lot of obvious man-made scars, Lu Kang, you immediately take people down the mountain, and return to Lushan County overnight to report to the magistrate, just say that there is a serial murder case under Yaoshan Mountain, please bring more people over tomorrow to investigate the case." ”

Lu Kang was taken aback and said, "Did someone do it?" How many did he kill? Liang Zhutou: Are you going to spend the night here? ”

Liang Chun nodded fiercely and said: "This is a big case, if it can be solved in our hands, everyone will have a lot of benefits, and judging from the traces at the scene, the murderer has already begun to sort out the corpses, but because there are too many of them, they haven't had time to remove them all, we must guard it, and we must not let him destroy the corpses, by the way, how many exits does this valley have?" ”

Lu Kang said: "Just this one, there is a cliff over there, and monkeys can't climb it." ”

Liang Chun nodded and said, "One is the best, you can go down the mountain." ”

Lu Kang's eyes looked at Zhou Cong, and Liang Chun said, "Take him away and place him in your village temporarily." ”

Lu Kang nodded, beckoned the people of Shannan Village to carry Zhou Cong's body on their backs, and walked down the mountain.

Seeing that the people in Shannan Village were getting farther and farther, the whole valley was suddenly very popular, and the catcher named Xiao Zhang hesitated and said, "Liang Tou'er, do we really want to stay on this mountain for one night?" ”

Liang Chun said: "Yes, what are you afraid of? It's not a ghost, it's a human, according to me, there are at most three or five murderers, and the people who kill are ordinary people, so we shouldn't have any skills, a few of us have knives and sticks, I'm afraid of a ball, and whether we can fly Huang Tengda in the future will be here to fight! ”

Liang Chun began to arrange for people to collect dry firewood to find a water source, he personally went to deal with the traces of everyone's trampling, set up traps, after the sky gradually darkened, Liang Zhutou took everyone to a hill opposite the Valley of the Soul, surrounded by stones, covered by grass and trees, even if the fire was lit, it was not easy to be found by people from afar, but here you can see the Valley of the Soul, provided that there is a moon in the sky, or the murderer lit a torch.

The night is getting deeper, and there are strange sounds around from time to time, and a few catchers who come with them are a little scared, and they roast the roe deer legs as Meng Hai, and said: "Don't be afraid, everyone, these are all nocturnal animals in the mountains, and they are even more afraid of us, as long as you don't suddenly run out of a big tiger, you can sleep peacefully until dawn." ”

A catcher said with a wry smile: "There are many of us, even if there is a tiger, we are not afraid, we are afraid...... What you can't see or touch......"

"Don't talk, be careful not to scare the murderer away." Liang Chun shouted lightly.

Everyone fell silent, Liang Chun stared at the direction of the Valley of Grievances without blinking, the night wind was howling, and various voices kept coming, everyone was a little tired, but their hearts were tense, and no one dared to squint.

Suddenly, there was a ghost cry in the night sky: "I died so unjustly...... Help me...... Giggles...... Hey, hey, hey...... Heheha......"

The voice was so erratic that I couldn't even tell where the death was coming from, as if there was a real ghost flying around in the sky.

Liang Chun's heart was mentioned in his heart, he opened his eyes wide and searched around, but he couldn't see a ghost, and suddenly, the voice exploded above their heads: "Liang Chun! You give me my life! ……”

"Hell!" Xiao Zhang opened his red eyes, pulled out his waist knife and slashed indiscriminately, and in a blink of an eye, he slashed Meng Hai, and several other catchers also screamed, everyone pulled out their knives and slashed each other, Liang Chun shouted in vain: "Stop!" Stop it! ”

Meng Hai fell to the ground, but vaguely saw a ghost shaking above his head, with long hair scattered, a long red tongue hanging down on his chest, and a silent grin with his mouth open......

The ghost crying and screaming on the mountain vaguely spread to the bottom of the mountain, and the villagers of Shannan Village spent a terrifying sleepless night, and everyone did not dare to go up the mountain to see anything at dawn, and the village chief had to send two brave thighs to be faster, and after the sun came out in the morning, they took the road to Lushan County.

On the way, I happened to meet Lu Kang and others with the county order and the brigade, Lushan County ordered Tan Bin to hurry up after hearing the news, and after arriving at Shannan Village, he took a short rest, and directly led people up the mountain.

Xiao Zhang was covered in blood, his right arm was gone, the wound was blurred with flesh and blood, the broken bones were uneven, it looked like he was bitten off by some fierce beast, everyone carried Xiao Zhang down the mountain to heal, and at the same time accelerated up the mountain, along the bloodstains they found Liang Zhutou and Meng Hai them, the scene was extremely miserable, making people frightened.

The six servants who stayed on the mountain for the night, except for Xiao Zhang, all died, they seemed to have gone through a tragic fight, but the traces of the scene showed that they should be cannibalistic, after death, their bodies were all over the place, their heads were gnawed off by unknown beasts, scattered on all sides of the hill, their limbs were also damaged, some of the stumps and broken arms were thrown down the hill, and some were hung high in the treetops, when the catchers collected the heads, everyone found that their eyes were gone, And the five heads and their bodies were arranged in the shape of pentagrams.

Lushan County ordered Tan Bin to write down the details of the scene, and then took people to the Valley of the Soul, and sure enough, he saw many corpses, Tan Bin immediately ordered someone to clean up the scene and dig up the corpse, most of the people he brought did not dare to do it, Tan Bin had to take the lead in digging with his own hands, which led to a lot of people, the body was cleaned up for a day and was not cleared, often just dug out a body and found one or more next to it, digging and digging, Tan Bin's hands were a little shaky.

After the sun turned west, someone proposed to go down the mountain, because no one dared to stay on the mountain for the night, Tan Bin had no choice but to take people down the mountain, and the bones dug up did not even have time to converge, let alone send them down the mountain.

That night, the ghosts on the mountain cried wolves all night, and the next morning, when Tan Bin took people back to the Valley of Unjust Souls, the bones in the Valley of Unjust Souls were like being trampled by a herd of mad cows.

This time, Tan Bin gave a death order, and no one was allowed to go down the mountain without making it clear!

Everyone then couldn't care about hurting the bones, quickly cleaned up the bones that had been dug up, and dug up the whole hillside for a while, and finally no new bones appeared, everyone hurriedly went down the mountain, and temporarily treated the corpses that had not completely rotted with lime and dry sand, and roughly pointed the heads, there were as many as one hundred and sixty-five people, plus the scholars Xiao Yang and Liang Zhutou, the total number of dead was one hundred and seventy-one.

Seeing this number, Tan Bin's head was a little dizzy, when did so many people die under his own rule, it's all over, the hard-won official reputation is useless in the face of so many deceased, losing the official is a trivial matter, I am afraid that in order to find a scapegoat, I will sacrifice myself, and it will be a catastrophe.

The two of them suddenly had an idea, they pulled Tan Bin to a place where no one was, and the county Cheng Han Yi quietly discussed with him: "Lord Tan, there is such a big thing, it is impossible for the three of us to bear it, and this matter is very weird, once someone is sent to investigate, I am afraid that the future of the three of us is in danger, and now we only have one way to live, the legendary Jinyi Wei who solved the case like a god commanded Lord Duan did not just pass through Xiangcheng, and wanted to go to Ye County, Does Yuzhou go to Nanyang? If we send the two of us to rush from Nanzhao to Yuzhou, it should be too late, if this adult is willing to take over, the three of us will be saved! ”

The main bookkeeper Chun Yujian also said: "Yes, I heard that the adult has great powers, can pass through ghosts and gods, and claims to be the first in the world in magic, if he refuses to take over, we finally have an excuse, I don't know what Lord Tan thinks?" ”

Tan Bin was stunned for a while, and said with a wry smile: "Do I have any other way?" This matter must be hurried, send someone with an official letter, Pegasus to ask Lord Duan for help......"