Chapter 124 The Mysterious Fores (1/2)

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The two dark and cadaverous figures drifted towards me and stopped. ”Who summons us?” One of them spoke before they recognized me. With a quick change, they began to speak more amicably, ”Oh! It's you, sir! So fate has brought us together once again! What is your purpose today?”

Much to my amazement, it was the same pair of Hell Guards whom we had encountered after our adventures at the haunted hospital!

I immediately released the souls of the fox demons from my gourd and told the two keepers of the Underworld about our fight. They were gleeful at the prospect for more rewards, bowing respectfully while wearing cheerful smiles as they muttered words of thanks before they left.

The pair of Hell Guards had barely disappeared and Yuan Chongxi grumbled, ”You should've asked the two Guards about the whereabouts of Aunt Ulan's soul while you're at it! They are the keepers of the Underworld. Surely they know a thing or two!” But before I could answer, Godmother knocked on his head with her knuckle. ”And what makes you think they'll tell you? Every life and death is destined by Fate. They would be going against the will of Heaven by divulging such secrets! Severe penalties will be awaiting them!” Chongxi rubbed at his head and muttered a disinterested ”oh”. ”Godmother is right,” I said, nodding, ”The Hells Guards have their own rules. Imagine the embarrassment if they could reveal nothing to what we ask.”

With the matter of the fox demons concluded, it was time we continue on our hunt for Aunt Ulan. With a brisk wave to Edelweiss, I began strolling towards the entrance and motioned for everyone to leave. But nobody moved. I turned back and discovered Edelweiss and the girls all shocked with their mouths hanging wide! It took a moment before one of the girls uttered, ”B-brother-in-law... What were those two!?” But what she said left me stunned. I was usually addressed as 'Young Master' because I was Aunt Ulan's godson. But somehow they have begun addressing me as 'Brother-in-law' all of a sudden! Then again, it was understandable; Edelweiss has always been viewed by the rest of the girls as Aunt Ulan's second-in-command. Given their younger age, it should be normal that they call me such.

With my cheeks emblazoned with red patches, I replied, ”That two? They're Hell Guards, what else? They were here to help escort the souls down to the Underworld.” Still, despite my explanation, the girls were still frightened. It was surreal for common humans to encounter the paranormal. Even Edelweiss was still perplexed. But as bandits in the Mongolian wilderness, the girls quickly recovered from the ordeal, although they began surrounding me, peppering me with more questions about the supernatural.

Edelweiss' snickers came suddenly from a corner. ”How brazen of you!” She scowled her fellow sisters, albeit much to their amusement, ”Our Chief and Shiyan's parents are still unaware about everything between us. Yet you decide everything on your own!” But Godmother quickly quipped, ”It's okay! Let Godmother decide for you!” Realizing that things were spiraling out of hand, I immediately put a halt in their banter by roaring loudly, ”ALL RIGHT! ALL RIGHT! OFF WE GO NOW!”

I survived the trek out the cave system by enduring the constant teases pelted at me by everyone and we got back on our horses. We began riding again and the trees around us began to look more sparse and thin. We must be far away now, I mused as we came before a mountain gorge. I made a signal to slow down to observe as our horses traipsed uneasily amongst the wood. The dusting of frost on the ground of the forest was no more.

Suddenly, a loud ”eh” came from one of the girls. She called at me, saying, ”Look, Brother-in-law! There's a human skull here.” The sudden remark made all of us turned. A human skull was hanging from a broken branch on a tree. With my Spirit Sight, I found there was nothing peculiar about the skull that was festooned with dust and bird droppings. I heaved a sigh of relief. ”It's all right. No problem here,” I pronounced to everyone.

However, Lin Feng was still wary. He was looking around, surveying our surroundings carefully while murmuring, ”Who the hell would hang such a thing on the tree?” ”I've heard of a kind of bird which loves to hang their prey on a tree after catching them!” Yuan Chongxi interjected. ”Nah...” I disagreed, ”If this is the work of such a predator bird, then there would also be other bones from the rest of the person's remains. But there's nothing under the branch. I'm guessing that this might be the sinister prank by some hunters to ward people off!” ”Such an awful prank!” Some of the girls began complaining, ”how terrible!”