threshold stones

Grand Elder. If I get caught and have to make a statement, this whole thing is going down the drain.Someone has already rushed up the stairs, and the sound of their footsteps shows they are well-trai..."Why move the body" I looked at him in surprise.

Before dawn, the mountain wind howled.

A rustling sound coupled with the stench of rotting flesh sent shivers down my spine.

“No corpse taken, left here for people to find This is close to the immigration station.” Long Xiao choked out, his voice raspy. He couldn't help but cough several times, coughing up some blood.

I think his body is being poisoned, but he says he won't die.

"But what if we get stopped on the way How are we going to explain why there's a body in the car" I asked, bewildered.

He pondered for a moment, then whispered, "The mountain road here is still drivable. When there's no way to go, we abandon the car. As for these bodies, I can herd them along. The weather isn't bad right now, so they won't decompose immediately."

"What!" I jumped up in alarm. "You're going to run away with these bodies"

"It's useful in a pinch," he said briefly. "At least it can stop bullets or draw away pursuers, right Stop talking and get this into the car!"

I'm so wronged! I've grown up this big, I can't lift heavy things or carry anything, and my first time doing hard labor is moving corpses

Long Xiaoge's injuries were severe, and I couldn't bear to see it. I let him sit down first, and from the back of the car, I took out a camping first-aid kit. I didn't care if the iodine was expired or not, so I poured it on his wound, then carefully wrapped it with gauze.

He didn't try to be tough this time, he seemed to have truly accepted me as one of his own. He took off his shirt, sat down cross-legged beside the car and let me bandage him up.

Although he was slender, every part of his body was well-trained and strong.

"Do you know how to get back into the country" I asked as I bandaged him.

"Just look at the stars, you'll know the direction. Just keep heading north." he said faintly.

“I don't have that kind of survival skills.”

"How did you escape" I asked next.

He casually pulled a weed from beside him. His fingers flew, quickly forming a "large" character-shaped straw man. He smeared blood onto the straw with his finger and drew a simple symbol on it.

The scarecrow landed, a little top-heavy and unsteady, swaying back and forth before finally standing still. Then it quickly ran to the corpse of the corrupt official, pulling out an ID card and some loose change.

It's really helpful.

"Where's that mob boss and those big guys Did you..." I whispered.

He gave me a gloomy look, as if blaming me for asking knowing full well.

"The two bodies are over there in the bushes. While they're still not stiff, I'll go make some arrangements." He pulled a windbreaker from the camping gear in the back of the car and walked into the bushes.

I immediately followed him, afraid to stand alone by the car with the corpse playing dead.

When he started doing it, I stepped back a few paces and turned away to avoid suspicion.

Secrets are usually not passed down, I understand the rules within this circle.

He called me over to help move it. We struggled to get the body to the car, then he pulled out a tarp and wrapped the body tight, shoving it into the back seat.

I was horrified: "Why not put it on the roof rack! I don't want to sit in the car with a corpse!"

"...Cut the crap."

“This is so scary! I'd rather just sit in the back seat. What if he suddenly pretends to be dead…”

"Daybreak is coming." he said simply.

"I don't care if it's daylight or not, I'm scared of the daylight too! Why not put it in the back of the car There's plenty of space there—"

He slammed the car door shut, stubbornly turned around and said to me: "There are rules for corpse transporting—three things you should do and three things you shouldn't. After sunrise, yang qi is strong and the sun's energy is powerful, which can easily break the spell. The car can avoid direct sunlight."

This…

"Then you, you drive... I'm scared, I want to watch the back." I was really afraid that someone would suddenly pretend to be dead and strangle me.

He said it matter-of-factly, “I don’t drive.”

"It's really simple, just grip the steering wheel, press the accelerator and brake!" I imparted my understanding of driving to him.

He glanced at me, then looked down at his own shoulder.

It's a bit of a stretch for someone with a hole in their collarbone to drive.

I had the most nerve-wracking car ride of my life.

There are more dead people in the car than living ones.

There was no road ahead, only weeds and gravel. Although the terrain was flat, my heart beat more erratically than the wheels.

"The air here is pretty chaotic this week." Long Ge leaned his head against the car window.

A small crack was opened in the car window, and the wind blowing in made his stray hairs dance above his head.

"This place is desolate and chaotic, it wouldn't be surprising if people died unjustly here... You, you sorcerers who specialize in corpse retrieval, don't you often take on such commissions Send the wrongfully dead, those who died far from home, back to their roots."

"...now there are very few left."

"Occasionally, right"

"Yes, but there are three taboos about driving away ghosts: three can be driven away, but three cannot. The corpse just now couldn't be driven away."

"Why" I sniffed, trying to perk myself up for the drive. I couldn't help but want to hear a ghost story.

"That one was drowned."

"Huh But isn't he in the weeds There's no water around here..."

He was drowned by having his head held under water, just one basin of water would have been enough. It must have been extrajudicial punishment carried out here at the detention center.

Oh my gosh, places outside of home are scary.

"The drowned person's resentment is too heavy, easily leading to corpse transformation. Now I'm the only one here, without any artifacts or talismans. I don't want to cause more trouble, besides, they are not of my kind, difficult to command." Long Xiao explained.

"...that, I want to ask, even if it leaves the region of faith, are even immortals and honored gods restricted everywhere"

"It's just nature," he said, his eyes fixed on the passing scenery.

My ancestors told me that the kingdom of our Miao King extends north to beyond Dongting Lake, east to the Xuefeng Mountains, west to the plateau, and south to Yunnan. Within this realm, our magic is most potent. The farther we stray from it, the weaker our spells become... Likewise, away from the mortal believers, no celestial or divine being would willingly cause trouble. Even the Underworld's summons only reach within the 'realm' of the City God and Earth Gods.

A streak of morning light pierced the horizon, suddenly illuminating an unusual brilliance, unlike any ordinary sunrise.

"Huh What kind of light... is the sunrise here so strange" I don't know how long I've been awake, my eyes are sore and watery from this glare, I can't help but raise my hand to rub them.

Long Xiaogē furrowed his brow: "Is the morning light coming too early today"

"What does that mean"

After dawn, there will still be a period of time when the darkness gradually fades away, but this morning light disperses the night so quickly... Something is amiss, there are signs in the sky that something unusual will happen. Let's be careful.

"... Can I sleep for a bit My eyes are so heavy." I could feel tears streaming down my face, even opening my eyes felt like an effort.

He seemed to disapprove of me, but still nodded and said: "I can only give you two hours. I'll wake you up."

I glanced back at the three corpses wrapped in waterproof cloth. I swallowed hard — to be able to sleep for even two minutes in this environment takes guts.ncircling nine and leaving one, this is a strategy."This isn't a feigned kindness, but rather forcing the prey into only one path.And this road, is the road to utter annihilation.If she ran, all her c...