Boom!

The main gate collapsed, and the thick scent of blood and the stench of corpses surged forward like a tidal wave.

"Ugh..." A Zhang Family disciple couldn't help but retch.

This mansion was crowded and had become a chaotic scene.

Before Li Yan and the others could investigate, a flash of anger crossed Zhang Tiankui's eyes as he leapt forward, checking several corpses in succession. Then his eyes showed surprise, "It's 'Snake Head Sore'?!"

Li Yan noticed his gaze, crouched down, and examined the male corpse nearby.

This person seemed to be a house servant here, and his death was particularly gruesome, bleeding from all seven orifices, with his upper body turning a bluish-purple, especially the fingertips, which looked eerie.

Li Yan frowned and examined the other corpses.

Indeed, the fingertips of all the corpses showed a bizarre sort of decay.

Unlike cuts by sharp objects or signs of corrosion, it was as if the explosion came from deep in the flesh, at the tips of the finger bones, with flesh rolling back and joints twisted and deformed, leaving behind black, foul blood and rotten tissue.

Li Yan borrowed a silver needle from the Captain Bureau personnel accompanying him, gently prying apart the decayed flesh. A pungent, indescribable stench mingled with the earthy scent and deathly odor wafted forth, more sinister than ordinary corpse stench.

But the silver needle did not change color.

"It's not weapons, not poison..."

Li Yan slowly stood up, his eyes sharp, "It's a spell! A highly sinister curse!"

"A curse?"

Upon hearing this, Households Commander Zhou swallowed a mouthful of saliva and looked around, "Wh-what kind of curse is so vicious?"

Li Yan's eyes swept over the courtyard that resembled a chaotic scene, speaking solemnly: "Resentful power clings, with the poison spreading from the fingers straight into the bone marrow, harming one's vitality and blood. Anyone afflicted will suffer heart-wrenching, bone-scraping agony until their entire bloodstream stiffens, and their consciousness goes awry... This is by no means an ordinary method."

"Senior Zhang, it seems you know this curse?"

"Yes."

Zhang Tiankui, not bothering with being temperamental, nodded with a serious expression, "In Wu, the region is crisscrossed with waterways and teeming with snakes. The ancients revered them, and worshiping snakes became a trend, especially for the house snake, regarded as 'Barbarian Family,' and worshipped for peace."

"Not to mention ordinary families, even City God Temples in various places must pay homage to the Snake God."

"The people have many taboos about snakes, such as avoiding calling them by name directly, referring to them as the 'Barbarian Family'. When talking about snakes, avoid gesturing about their length. Killing a house snake brings misfortune. Finding a house snake on a rice bin or bed is a good omen; on eaves or beams, it's bad. Seeing a hanging snake in the morning brings joy, seeing one in the evening brings death..."

He listed one taboo after another, then looked again at the corpse on the ground, "These rules were told to us by adults from a young age. One among them is the taboo against pointing at snakes with fingers, or else 'Snake Head Sore' will appear on the fingertips."

"Honestly, I've never seen it myself and thought it was just talk from country folks."

"Tsk tsk..."

Sha Lifei shook his head, "It's rare indeed, but according to what you've said, 'Snake Head Sore' is a minor issue. Killing so many people at once doesn't seem right, does it?"

Zhang Tiankui fell silent, "I've never heard of such a thing either."

Just then, several elite members of the Captain Bureau approached to report:

"Sir, we searched the entire village and found no signs of outsiders."

Li Yan pondered, "Senior Zhang, what other customs do people in Wu have regarding snake worship?"

Zhang Tiankui replied, "Ordinary families might build a small niche near the stove or rice bin, or stack bricks and stones to make a barely noticeable chamber for the 'Snake King Divine Position'. Many people dig cellars to build 'Snake God Temple', only opening them on major festivals and ceremonies, and usually, the family head manages the incense offerings personally."

"A cellar?"

Without a word, Li Yan formed a Yang Jue with his fingers and activated Divine Skills. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

In an instant, his senses were amplified infinitely.

The air's every smell rushed into his nostrils like a torrent:

The thick stench of blood in the front yard yet to dissipate, the serene greenery of the backyard, the damp earth, the slight saltiness of dripping water... And beneath the backyard, the scent of aged incense ash emanated.

There was also a faint snake odor!

"Follow me!"

Li Yan moved forward immediately, with everyone following closely behind.

They bypassed a corridor, went through a moon gate, and entered the silent backyard.

The place, a bit farther from the slaughter scene in the front yard, had less of a bloody smell but was even gloomier.

Brushing aside several clusters of nearly ground-reaching, dew-laden evergreen ivy, a low, narrow passage made of green bricks appeared, only allowing one person to enter stooped over.

Breaking open the stone door, indeed, there was a small temple below.

The small temple was embedded entirely beneath an artificially stacked miniature mountain. Its door comprised two roughly polished blue stone slabs with no plaques above the lintel, only a few carved lines, blurred and serpentine.

A tangible chill flowed steadily from the gaps in the stone door.

Inside was pitch black, akin to the maw of an abyss ready to devour.

A man from the Captain Bureau dropped a torch, revealing the scene inside the temple at once:

On the stone wall facing the temple gate, there is a carved relief.

The relief's lines are simple and bold, with the upper part depicting the face of a man with indistinct features and disheveled hair, an expression both dignified and bizarre; the lower body is a coiled, contorted snake, its tail reaching into the depths of the relief as if rooted in the Nine Netherworld.

Human head, snake body!

Li Yan became intrigued upon seeing it.

A human head on a snake body, originating from those ancient beliefs.

Nuwa, Fuxi, and many of the ancestor gods of early peoples had similar traits.

There was no incense burner or sacrificial offerings before the statue, but a dark red altar cloth, faded and its edges blackened by years of dampness, covered the ground. On it remained many burnt incense sticks and some strange, half-burnt grass stems.

Scattered on the ground were a few pieces of large, dull snake molts.

In the corner lay a few copper coins stained with a dark, dirty hue, like those used by a witch.

The entire small temple exuded an indescribable sense of decay.

Long Yan'er followed Li Yan into the small temple, her gaze instantly captured by the statue and altar.

She frowned sharply, quickly approached the altar without regard for the filth on the ground, and pinched a small pinch of the dark green powder left on the altar cloth with her fingertips, her face suddenly changing:

"They are not worshipping an ordinary household snake god!"

"What is it?" Sha Lifei asked curiously.

Long Yan'er looked at everyone: "It's the 'Snake Sect' secret technique!"

"Snake Sect?"

Hearing this, Li Yan was a bit surprised, "The Snake Sect has spread to the land of Wu as well?"

The Snake Sect is also a famous Magic Sect, but it is loosely organized and mostly found in Xiangxi Ganzhou.

In his past ventures into the pugilistic world, he had even crossed paths with some Snake Sect magicians.

Long Yan'er explained: "This is a Forbidden Technique of the Snake Sect, one I only heard about from my elder brother. They use the method of raising Gu and ghosts to nurture snake demons, which is more effective and extremely dangerous."

"Even within the Snake Sect, it is classified as a Forbidden Technique, not to be practiced lightly."

Everyone looked at each other in surprise.

"So, it seems that this branch family brought it on themselves, unrelated to the pirate clues..."

Households Commander Zhou wiped his cold sweat, a look of regret on his face.

He thought he could follow the clues, find traces of the pirates and demon sects, and with the help of Twelve Primordial Spirits and Zhang Tiankui, success would mean promotion and riches.

Unexpectedly, it was this family that caused their own downfall.

Li Yan was also a bit disappointed, but since things had come to this, he couldn't just ignore it. He looked at Long Yan'er, "Sister Long, can you track down that wretched creature? It's ultimately a threat."

"Yes."

With a gentle lift of her wrist, Long Yan'er released the Qin Insect Gu from her sleeve, letting it scurry outside.

Instantly, the melodious sound of a zither echoed through the night sky.

Everyone followed, unconsciously arriving at the back mountain.

"Stop!"

Suddenly, Li Yan motioned for everyone to crouch down.

Without Lv San, he assumed the role of lead scout, relatively weaker.

Nevertheless, he could see a faint firelight halfway up the distant mountain.

"Young Hero Li, it's..."

The Households Commander from the Captain Bureau immediately became excited upon seeing it.

"Don't rush."

Li Yan turned his head and said softly, "You all wait here for me."

The distance was too far, and only the firelight was visible. The hawks of the Captain Bureau were ordinary creatures, not like Lv San who could see at night, so he had to go scout personally.

"Nuogao! Innate Taisu, Essence of Ren and Gui. Internally resonates with the kidneys, externally corresponds with Mercury..."

As he chanted the spell of the North Emperor Mysterious Water Escape, Li Yan's form immediately became hazy, enveloped in vapor, and completely vanished into the darkness.

While the others remained calm, Zhang Tiankui was thoroughly impressed.

On the way here, he had already witnessed Li Yan's prowess, which was as good as his own.

Unexpectedly, even his escape technique surpassed many magicians he had seen.

Putting aside what Zhang Tiankui thought, as Li Yan performed the escape technique and swiftly approached the small mountain, he suddenly stopped, perplexed, and reached into his chest.

The Hook Paper was unexpectedly starting to heat up...