As it turns out, my worries were completely unnecessary. They showed me with facts that even without my reminder, they would definitely have finished off the food on the table before it got dark! The reason is simple. It's because the fish soup was too delicious.
Except for me, everyone ate heartily. In less than half an hour, the food on the table was all gone. Apart from Lao Wu, who was still happily gnawing on the fish head. Everyone else put down their chopsticks.
After finishing the meal, Sha Biao picked his teeth with a fish bone and smiled, "Come on, what did you want to say earlier?"
I instinctively looked at Lao Wu. Feeling a bit depressed, I said, "Are you sure you want me to say it now?"
"Just say it! Say it now!"
Sha Biao put down the fish bone and said with great interest, "I really want to hear about this dragon and tiger arrangement you talked about!"
"Okay!"
After taking a deep breath, I told everyone about the 'Hidden Dragon and Crouching Tiger' feng shui arrangement one by one.
"Huh?"
As expected, after hearing my narrative, everyone was immediately dumbfounded, their eyes involuntarily glancing at the pile of fish bones on the table. Lao Wu, in particular, shuddered instinctively and the fish head in his hand fell to the ground while he was still gnawing on it.
"Damn!"
Zhang Ge muttered unconsciously, "So, these monsters were already eaten by us?"
"Sigh..."
Sighed and shook my head, only to hear Sha Biao say, "Lao Wu didn't have that luck, so what you pointed to as treasure, is this dragon and tiger?"
"No!"
I quickly shook my head and explained, "The dragon and tiger arrangement is just one type of feng shui layout. Although it can be considered a treasure, it will not bring calamity. Either I made a mistake, or there's something else in this house causing the trouble!"
Hearing this, Lao Wu's face brightened, and he eagerly said, "Then... shall we go back to the house and search carefully?"
"No time!"
I said with a serious face and subconsciously looked up at the sky, "If there really is a treasure, then you will be in danger tonight! It did not dare to enter the house before because of this dragon and tiger arrangement, but now that the 'Hidden Dragon and Crouching Tiger' layout is broken, the monster that wants to take the treasure might come immediately!"
"Ah?"
The villagers, already superstitious by nature, seeing my explanation so logical, naturally did not dare to doubt. At this moment, they were both surprised and scared, and they quickly begged me, saying that if I could figure this out, then I must have real abilities. They implored me to save them and the old couple.
I had come to help in the first place, so I naturally couldn't refuse at this point. Plus, this matter was caused by us. If we hadn't come, Lao Wu wouldn't have killed that big carp to entertain us. So, in terms of both reason and emotion, I should help the Lao Wu family get through this difficult time.
I said, "Alright, while it's still not completely dark, Zhang Ge and Han Ge should take the old couple and quickly hide in the village! As for me and Sha Ge, we'll stay and meet that monster. If there really is a treasure in the house, it's likely that it will try to come after it tonight!"
"Okay! That's settled!"
As soon as I finished speaking, I immediately got a response from Sha Biao. Truly the "headman" of the village, Sha Biao's courage was much stronger than ordinary people. Not only was he not afraid at all, but he was also excited, saying, "I've never seen what monsters really look like all my life! I'm going to broaden my horizons today!"
With everything arranged, I saw that time was getting late, so I urged them to leave quickly. Otherwise, if the monster came, it would be too late.
However, we were still a step behind. Almost as soon as Zhang Ge led Han, Lao Wu, and the others to the courtyard gate, the fat cat, which had been lying on the ground motionless, suddenly meowed and rushed straight to the gate.
"Oh no! We can't leave, it's already here!"
Seeing this scene, my face immediately changed, and I shouted to Zhang Ge and the others, "Quick! Come back!"
"Ah?"
Hearing this, everyone was startled and quickly ran back, all hiding behind me and Sha Biao.
Then the fat cat let out a cry and was kicked back into the courtyard by someone, struggling for a while on the ground, not knowing whether it was alive or dead.
With the dragon gone, the tiger was no longer the same "tiger" as before, so it was naturally impossible to stop that evil creature! However, the loyalty of this fat cat trying to protect its owner deserves praise! It could have walked away, but it courageously charged forward, ultimately ending in an uncertain fate. It's undeniable that sometimes, animals are more reliable than people!
"What kind of monster is this!"
It was obvious at a glance that the person who came wasn't a good person. My heart immediately rose to my throat, and as I loudly shouted at the gate, I asked Lao Wu in a low voice, "Do you have any weapons?"
"W-what... what do you mean by weapons..."
Lao Wu was already trembling in fear, and even stuttered as he spoke.
"I mean, a knife that has taken a life!"
Time was pressing, and I didn't have time to explain too much to them, so I quickly said, "If not, any knife used for slaughtering cows, sheep, or pigs will do!"
"I know where it is! Wait, I'll go get it!"
As soon as Sha Biao finished speaking, he dashed into the main hall. At the same time, a gust of cold wind suddenly pushed open the slightly ajar courtyard door. A humanoid creature completely enveloped in black aura suddenly rushed in!
"Ah--"
Lao Wu and his wife had never seen such a scene before and immediately let out a frightened scream and then both passed out.
"Hmph!"
The newcomer's gaze disdainfully swept over everyone, eventually landing on me. There seemed to be some lingering fear, so he said, "I just want the thing! I don't want to hurt anyone!"
Upon hearing this, I couldn't help but feel relieved. So I took a step forward and said, "Please go ahead! As long as you don't harm anyone, I won't stop you."
Since the other party had already transformed into a human form, it was obviously not an ordinary monster, most likely a true demon who had cultivated an elixir. This could be sensed from the spiritual energy emanating consciously and unconsciously from its body.
I didn't have absolute confidence in being able to take it down. If it was just me, I might have been able to take a gamble. But the problem was, I had Zhang Ge and others behind me! So I didn't dare to take the risk. Even if I could fight it evenly, what if it targeted Zhang Ge and the others behind me? What would I do?
With so many people here, I, Wang Lin, was inadequate to protect everyone.
Since we couldn't find the treasure anyway, I decided to just let it have it. If it took the treasure and left, it probably wouldn't bother us.
After all, from the way it looked, it seemed to also be wary of me, so it wasn't absolute in its confidence!
"Very well!"
The newcomer nodded directly and then squinted his eyes, unabashedly inspecting the four earthen houses behind us, then walked straight ahead.
"What should we do?"
Zhang Ge and Captain Han were equally frightened, but the two of them had fought alongside me several times already, so despite being afraid, they could still maintain rationality and alertness.
"Back off! Let it take the treasure!"
Since we had reached an agreement with the other party, I naturally didn't intend to stop it. With them, we stepped aside, clearing the way.
"Thank you."
The other party was quite astute, nodding slightly at me and then confidently walking towards the house.
However, at that moment, from the main room, there erupted Shabiao's voice full of excitement: "Found it, found it!"
As soon as his voice fell, this guy rushed out with a large butcher knife and almost collided head-on with the newcomer.
"You bastard! How dare you betray me!"
Seeing the large butcher knife in Shabiao's hand, the newcomer suddenly became furious, roaring, and a strong demon energy surged, sweeping straight towards Shabiao!
Indeed, it was a demon who had already cultivated an elixir!
"Bad!"
Seeing this scene, I couldn't help but be startled, and without any hesitation, I quickly rushed forward!
In a sudden move, I pushed Shabiao aside and quickly bit my middle finger, forming a sword seal in my hand, and fiercely pointed at the demonic energy, chanting: "Xuanbing fights the Dharma, array principle, heavenly symbols everywhere, forever suppressing all evils. As commanded by the divine, slay the demon, urgently and imperatively!"