Zhang Ji has only done two businesses since he placed orders in Qingfeng Guan.

One is the strange incident of the evil death of the son of Dingkang who was demoted to Suzhou, and the body could not be cremated. The other is the case of a girl floating on the Suzhou River. He solved these two businesses neatly, and the remuneration was not low, just because the subject was a relative of the emperor or the people's livelihood, so he could only keep it secret.

Yes, Zhang Ji is still unknown in Suzhou City, and no one cares about him. Unlike the places he has been to in the past, after ten days and a half of settling down, he has already made a name for himself, and the door is like a market.

Although it is a pending order, Zhang Ji is not embarrassed to live in vain. On this day, he helped the head of the tide viewing dao write a talisman in his room to add some sesame oil money. I saw that he was holding the decision with his left hand [Note 1], and his right hand was about to drop the cinnabar-stained pen, when there was a rapid knock on the door.

"Zhang Ji! Zhang Ji!! Open the door! It's your aunt and grandmother, I'm here! ”

Zhang Ji almost spit out a mouthful of old blood, but fortunately this tip did not fall on the paper, otherwise she would have been frightened into scattering and going mad.

There was also a voice outside the door: "Who taught you to call your aunt?" Those words again? Or the storyteller of the teahouse? ”

"It's all there! Recently, it's Jin Catcher! He called me 'Grandma' hahaha......"

Zhang Ji opened the door, looked at Ji Cunyan with a cold face and said to Lei Qi: "I'm busy!" Don't bother me if it's okay. ”

"Of course I came to you for something. Where's your son, my good friend? ”

Zhang Ji's Gu King came out of his collar and landed on Ji Cunyan's shoulder very familiarly.

"This is Zhang Ji's Xiangxi Gu King, isn't it cute?" Ji Cunyan asked Lei Qi.

Lei Qi frowned and looked at the Gu King for a long time and said, "...... This thing is very evil, you quickly return it to Zhang Tianshi. ”

Zhang Ji had no choice but to let the two into the house. After a short time, a small Taoist priest in charge of sprinkling and sweeping in the temple served refreshments to the two.

"The two of you are looking for me, is there anything wrong?" Zhang Ji asked Lei Qidao.

"It's a murder case in Dingkang Shizi's Mansion, I heard that Zhang Tianshi also went to Yishan County and saw the body of the prince, so I wanted to come over and ask about the story." Lei Qi Dao.

Although the two men were talking, they both looked at Ji Cunyan. Seeing that she was opening the tea lid, the little Gu King plunged into her cup of tea and swam up.

Then, both of them could only sigh helplessly.

Zhang Ji didn't pay attention to Ji Cunyan and Xiao Gu Wang, and only said to Lei Qi: "I have indeed seen it." Shizi's legs were dissolved, and the stump was oozing blood and pus, and the stench was incomparable. If it weren't for the fact that the person had lost his qi and his blood was stagnant, this demonic qi could still dissolve the person to the point that only the head remained. ”

"Do you mean that as long as people don't die, they will always dissolve?" Ji Cunyan asked.

Zhang Ji nodded.

"Later, no matter how the corpse burned, it didn't burn, you said it was because there was a monster in the corpse?"

Zhang Ji nodded again.

"I know that Neidan is the essence of monster cultivation, and losing Neidan will show its original form at best, and at worst it will kill you on the spot. How can there be a youkai who harms people, but leaves Neidan in people's bodies? ”

Zhang Ji said: "In fact, if the Tao is shallow, it is true. But if the Tao is profound, Neidan can get out of the body. As for why Nedan is in the body of the son. I guess the youkai put Nedan in it himself. When Neidan enters the human body and walks with the meridians, it can absorb all the essence of the person's internal organs - the so-called scum is not left. ”

Lei Qi pondered for a moment and said, "Then why didn't the monster show up to take Neidan after the death of the prince?" Or is it that before it has time, it was taken by Xiao Zhang Tianshi, you? ”

"Actually, this is just my guess. It's not that the monster doesn't want to retrieve the Nedan, but that this Nedan is in the body of the Son, and the Son is in the Prince's Mansion. ”

"What do you mean by that?"

Zhang Ji stood up, walked to the window, pushed open the window, and looked at the mountain scenery outside the room.

"The name of the Shizifu is Yishan County, which is a collection of various essences of Suzhou gardens. When the emperor's relatives build a house or build such a large garden, in addition to inviting famous teachers and craftsmen, they have to wait for one person. This person is even more important than a famous teacher. ”

"Who?" Ji Cunyan asked.

"Please ask the Heavenly Master to look at Feng Shui." Zhang Ji said: "Isn't it my senior brother Zhang Yunchu who helped Dingkang Shizi look at feng shui back then!" At that time, Dingkang Shizi invited my senior brother to come over to show him feng shui and build a mansion. The senior brother saw at a glance that the land in Yishan County was not very good. The mountain behind is a dead mountain, there is no wind and no water, the terrain in front is too low-lying, and a living water bypasses the deep ditch, leading away all the aura of the sun and the moon. Don't talk about living people, burying people is a big murderer. But I don't know why, it may be that Dingkang Shizi is used to calling the wind and rain, and everything has to depend on him. So he didn't want to change places even if he was killed. ”

Lei Qi coughed lightly twice, suggesting that Zhang Ji had to respect the prince's son, whether he was alive or not.

But Zhang Ji didn't care at all, and only continued: "Senior brother said that this is the dragon's lair, and the pattern is not big. Dragons can't be attracted, but snakes, insects, rats and ants like them the most. Since the prince has to build a house here, he can only secretly bury a formation in it, hiding the two gates of life and death, so that the ghosts and spirits will not be able to find a way to come in, and they will not be able to find a way out, maybe they can prevent disasters and avoid disasters. ”

Ji Cunyan nodded slightly and said, "No wonder." I went to Shizi's Mansion with Senior Brother Lei Qi, and there were many twists and turns in it, which made my head dizzy. If it weren't for the old butler to lead the way, I might have lost my way out. ”

Lei Qi said: "What Zhang Tianshi means is that the monster who put Neidan into the body of the prince originally wanted to enter the Shizi's mansion to take the Neidan, but who knows if he can't get in?" ”

Zhang Ji nodded and said, "That's probably the truth." ”

Lei Qi asked again: "In that case, I don't know where the monster's Neidan is now?" ”

Zhang Ji pointed to the Gu King who was still bathing in the tea bowl and said, "Oh, you ask it." ”

Ji Cunyan thought that Zhang Ji was referring to himself, and frowned: "What's the matter with me!" I haven't seen any corpses of the Son of the World, and I haven't seen any Neidan in the body of the Son. ”

"It's not you, it's my son." Zhang Ji said: "I was carrying Neidan, and I wanted to take it back and study it. When I returned to Qingfeng Temple, I took it into my arms, and I actually felt empty. Then, I saw this worm! ”

Zhang Ji was so angry that he called the Gu King of Xiangxi so well.

"This dead ghost worm! My belly bulged out of my clothes, and my whole belly was round and still flashing white. I thought it was a fat firefly. When I looked closely, I almost got black! It swallowed the entire youkai's inner dan! ”

Lei Qi almost choked on a mouthful of water, and looked at the Gu King in the tea bowl with wide eyes in disbelief.

Ji Cunyan sneered and said, "No wonder you said that the little Gu King hasn't eaten for three years, and he has been in charge of one meal for three years, so he has been in charge for three years?" ”

"I'm so angry that I can't wait to pinch it flat on the spot!" Zhang Ji pointed to the tea bowl and said.

The Gu King was lying on the edge of the tea bowl, looking very comfortable in the bath, it shook its wet tentacles, shook off the water on it, and was very disdainful of Zhang Ji's accusations.

Lei Qi held his forehead and said, "So...... Now this Neidan has been given to it by the Gu King of Xiangxi...... Do you eat it dry and wipe it clean? ”

Zhang Ji also added: "Well, it may be in no one's place, and it has become and pulled out." ”

I checked and found such an allusion. The son of the world is still dead in an unknown way, and the murderer may have turned into his original form, hidden in the mountains, or died quietly somewhere.

Seeing this, Ji Cunyan comforted him and said, "At least that murderous monster will no longer be able to make waves without Neidan!" ”

Lei Qi and Zhang Ji said together: "I'm afraid it's not that simple." ”

After speaking, the two of them glanced at each other, but they both frowned.

Zhang Ji said: "Although I have never seen the true face of the monster that killed Dingkang Shizi. But I can be sure that this Neidan should be a snake demon. In addition to the Neidan trait. The snake demon absorbs the essence and enters the body, and it will indeed turn people into blood and water. It is consistent with the death of the son. Think about how pythons eat people? The serpent has no teeth to chew, so it swallows people or living creatures into its abdomen, slowly turns it into blood, and then digests it. Isn't it the same as the death of the son? ”

Ji Cunyan frowned and said, "It's a snake again?" ……”

"Some snakes are born to eat other snakes that are weaker than them. The same kind, the same species, or even the same litter will not be spared. Zhang Ji said, "This snake dares to rest assured that Neidan will be implanted into the human body, and the Tao must be not shallow." Its inner dan is gone, and it can still eat other snakes and take its inner dan for itself. Also, I was worried about something even more terrifying. ”

"You make the soles of my feet cold. What could be more terrifying? ”

"Ancient snakes, when they grow up to a certain extent, most of them have a fixed partner, and they are all one male and one female, in pairs."

"But in "The Legend of the White Snake", it is Xiaoqing who is paired with the White Lady." Ji Cun said.

"Who told you that Xiaoqing is a woman?" Since Zhang Ji asked her.

"Huh? Is Xiaoqing a man?! ”

"How do I know? It's not me who imprisoned the White Lady in Leifeng Tower. ”

Lei Qi said: "The night before yesterday, the Qinglin python you killed by the river......"

Zhang Ji and Ji held down their words and looked at Lei Qi together.

Zhang Ji threw away the work of writing talismans and came to the Suzhou Mansion with Lei Qi and Ji Cunyan.

The Qinglin python was placed in a vacant house behind the government office, and because Lei Qi would dispose of it in the future, the government would not dare to touch it.

As soon as he opened the door, a fishy smell almost smoked Ji Cunyan out.

She covered her nose, frowned, and followed Lei Qi over to look at the python.

After two days and one night, the snake was completely dry, and the whole snake was a little smaller than it looked in the river, but it was more than a few feet long, and a room could not hold it unless it was curled up. Layers of white skin rose on the snake scales, which was the result of the Gu King's poison powder causing it to molt, and after drying, these dead skins were like dried fish scales, and it was even more disgusting to look at.

Ji Cunyan didn't want to get closer, so he just watched from a distance at the door.

Lei Qi looked sideways at Zhang Ji and said, "Does this snake have Neidan?" ”

Zhang Ji shook his head.

Lei Qi said: "This snake kills people and absorbs essence, and you have to find a helper to trick the victim girl to the river, which shows that it will not transform into shape." The size is already so big, and there are horns on the head, which can almost turn into a Jiao, so it stands to reason that it will not be able to transform into shape. Therefore, this snake is very likely to be the one who killed Dingkang Shizi who lost Neidan. ”

Ji Cunyan blocked his nose with his arm, and said angrily: "I think it is, too!" How could it be so coincidental that there are so many big snake demons in a Suzhou city. There must be one. ”

Lei Qi breathed a sigh of relief, and now he was able to make a difference.

The timing of the mysterious death of the son is really delicate. As soon as the emperor issued an edict, news of his death was reported here. Soon after the new emperor ascended the throne, the remnants of the abolished prince lurked inside and outside the court, either openly or covertly. What Tianlongwei asked Xuanjingtang to investigate was not a bizarre allusion to witchcraft harming people, but to find out whether the death of the prince was related to the infighting in the court.

Therefore, the ins and outs of this harmful monster must not be ambiguous, and it must be investigated.

Now that the ins and outs of the case are clear, it seems that there is nothing to do with Xuanjingtang.

Who knew that Zhang Ji denied Lei Qi's statement at this time.

He said lightly: "No." This serpent is not the same as the one that killed the son. ”

"Why? Does this make sense, there are no loopholes? Ji Cunyan was so surprised that he put down the arm covering his nose and walked up to Zhang Ji and asked.

Zhang Ji said: "This is a male snake. And it was a female snake that killed the son. ”

It's Lei Qi's experience. When he heard this, he walked to the tail of the Qinglin Python, turned it over with force, revealing the snake's belly, and found a strip-like crack covered by snake skin. [Note 2]

He looked up at Zhang Ji and said, "It is indeed a male snake." But why was it the female snake that killed the son? ”

Zhang Ji looked at Ji Cunyan and said, "I want to tell you about this, but you can't listen to it." ”

Ji Cunyan flattened his mouth dissatisfied.

Lei Qi said: "Little junior sister, you go out to play for a while." Take your Gu King friends with you. ”

Ji Cunyan listened to Lei Qi's words very much, turned around and went out.

Zhang Ji turned back to Lei Qi and said: "Implanting your inner pill into a man's body is not as simple as prying open the man's mouth and stuffing it in. Nedan had to go in from 'below', and it was when the snake demon was with the man Jiaohe. ”

Lei Qi frowned and said: "This male and female, the male only eats girls, and the female only eats men?" ”

Zhang Ji said: "The monsters in the world are probably like this. ”

"The male is dead, and Nedan is not there. Could it be...... The female took away the male's Neidan? ”

Zhang Ji said: "Since the male snake devours the female snake, I didn't expect this pair to be reversed." But if this is the case, the female snake is extremely powerful, and it is even more difficult to deal with. ”

Lei Qi only felt that his head was big. When Ji Jingyang Feige passed the book to him, he said, "This case is extremely difficult." At first, he didn't think that the more he investigated, the more bizarre it became. If the real murderer who killed the prince was really a female snake who devoured the male snake Neidan, he couldn't hold it at all with Lei Qi's words and deeds.

Thinking of this, Lei Qi raised his eyes to look at the young Heavenly Master in front of him.

Zhang Ji is not very old, although his face is still childish, but his starry eyes are clear and bright, the bridge of his nose is high, and the corners of his lips are naturally raised, as if there is a grandmaster temperament dormant between his eyebrows and eyes. Judging from the story of killing the snake demon these days told by Ji Cunyan and Lei Qi, as well as Zhang Ji's analysis of the Shizi case, he does have some ability.

Lei Qi then said to Zhang Ji: "The case of the prince is quite tricky, since Zhang Zhenren is already involved, please continue to assist us and destroy the female snake as soon as possible to ensure the peace of the party." ”

Zhang Ji said: "Conquering demons and eliminating demons is my Zhang family's business, but adults don't have to be so polite." ”

Lei Qi replied: "I naturally understand the rules, after the case is over, Xuanjing Hall will not treat the Heavenly Master badly." ”

Zhang Ji smiled: "It's easy to say." Say. ”

[Note 1] When the Celestial Master writes a talisman, he holds the pen in his right hand, seals it with his left hand, and recites the mantra in his mouth to make a talisman

[Note 2] In addition to the size, snake pattern, and personality, the most accurate way to distinguish the male and female snakes is to open the snake's abdomen and press down on the anus of the snake's tail