Chapter 66: Unexpectedly Acquiring a Mechanical Mouse

“What good thing… Ah!”

He Zheng let out a yelp.

Ning Mingmei pointed at the grave mound He Zheng had nearly stepped on. “A tombstone.”

It was a tombstone belonging to someone with the surname Shangguan.

Judging by the years of erosion on the stone, the grave had been there for at least a few hundred years. But overall, it was well-maintained.

It suggested that the person buried there had been financially stable. Perhaps not exceedingly wealthy but at least well-off.

As luck would have it, the old man who had tried to extort 200,000 from Ning Mingmei also had the surname Shangguan.

Ning Mingmei marked the location. He glanced at the sky and, seeing the lingering red clouds on the horizon, said, “There’s still light left. Let’s find Physician Wu first. We’ll come back here after dark.”

He Zheng: “Huh? What for?”

Ning Mingmei uttered four words, “To dig it up.”

…With each step, He Zheng grew more unsettled. He couldn’t understand why Ning Mingmei, a Divine Transformation realm cultivator, would bother digging up a mortal’s grave.

The system was equally confused.

Is this really all about the 200,000? Does he hate that old man this much?

Leaving the western part of the city, they first passed through a barren wasteland, then a neatly arranged graveyard, and finally arrived at the mass grave where unclaimed bodies were discarded.

He Zheng walked cautiously among the corpses, while Ning Mingmei still had the mind to observe the mountains and forests. “By the way, wasn’t the Li tribe’s village also west of Ye Town?”

He Zheng: ?

Ning Mingmei: “A village should have a river nearby, right?”

He Zheng suddenly felt lost. What had he missed in just one day?

In the span of a single day, all he had done was wake up with Jiang Yu, meet the eleventh disciple, travel west to the wilderness, and kill a snake monster.

Yet in the same amount of time, Peak Lord Ning had practically uncovered the entire ancestral history of Ye Province.

Crossing over a hill, He Zheng suddenly tensed. “Peak Lord Ning, there’s a thatched hut up ahead.”

He focused his gaze. “And there are two people in front of it.”

Ning Mingmei didn’t speak until he was right in front of the hut. “Physician Wu? What a coincidence, meeting you here.”

Sitting across from Ning Mingmei was none other than Physician Wu, whom they had met earlier that morning.

He was still dressed in that pale blue robe, tightly wrapped to cover his collar and hands.

On his face, he wore a silver mask that concealed half of his features.

“Immortal Master Ning,” he greeted, rising to bow to Ning Mingmei.

Another person had been sitting with his back to Ning Mingmei. Upon hearing their arrival, his first reaction was to shrink back.

Only after a moment did he stand up and bow as well.

“Immortal Master Ning,” he echoed Physician Wu’s words, addressing Ning Mingmei.

When he saw his face, Ning Mingmei showed no particular reaction.

However, He Zheng looked visibly surprised. “This…”

As He Zheng spoke, the man’s expression grew even more ashamed and uneasy.

Even in the dim twilight, the deformity on the right half of his face was clearly visible.

***

“His name is Hu Yang. He was originally from Ye Province. But after he was born, his mother passed away. His father was disgusted by his appearance and abandoned him. Later, his father also died.

“The people of Ye Province refused to take him in, calling him a bringer of misfortune. He survived by doing handicraft work but every time he managed to save a little money, it would be stolen. Eventually, he moved near the mass graveyard. At least there, no one drove him away.

“Like the people of Ye Province, Hu Yang falls ill from time to time but he doesn’t dare enter the city. So, I occasionally leave the city to check on his health.”

A surname of Hu?

It sounded like he might be a descendant of one of the five deputy generals.

Ning Mingmei and Physician Wu sat by the water. The river flowed from the mountains down past the grass hut below.

Ning Mingmei said, “That makes sense.”

If even the dead from the mass graveyard could crawl out and drive him away, that would be quite the spectacle.

He added, “But aside from that half of his face and the fact that he has six fingers on both hands, he’s no different from anyone else.”

In fact, the left half of his face, the part without deformities, was rather handsome.

Physician Wu said, “Yes. But most people would still reject him. His deformity is on his face, while they don’t realize that their own deformities are in their hearts. Whenever he goes into the city, he wears a mask to cover that half of his face. He usually lives behind the mass graveyard and never expected anyone else to come there. If he startled you, Immortal Master, I apologize.”

Ning Mingmei replied, “You underestimate me. Is the half-mask of yours also made by Hu Yang?”

Physician Wu smiled, as if he had expected him to ask. He removed the half mask from his face. “Yes. I have scars as well.”

Underneath, his features were delicate but a vicious scar stretched from left to right, cutting across most of his forehead.

Beyond that, his eyes were gray, not deep blue.

He put the mask back on.

Ning Mingmei said, “It seems the two of you are good friends.”

Physician Wu replied, “Given Hu Yang’s situation, anyone who is willing to speak to him becomes his friend.”

Ning Mingmei picked up a stone and tossed it into the river. “That’s only because Ye Province is too small. If Hu Yang were willing to go elsewhere, he would have many friends.”

Physician Wu asked, “How do you know the rest of the world isn’t just another Ye Province?”

The stone sank to the riverbed. Ning Mingmei fell silent.

Just as Physician Wu was about to rise, he spoke again. “Only when people have enough to eat do they learn courtesy. Human nature is animalistic at its core.

“Put anyone in a harsh, resource-starved environment and their worst instincts will surface. Survival is an instinct and no one is exempt. It is only in places of abundance that people have the luxury to discuss morality. Or, at least, to enforce ‘order’ to maintain peace. But that doesn’t mean human nature has been educated or improved. Human nature never changes. It simply submits to rules. So, don’t trust in human nature… Instead, trust in things that objectively exist.”

Physician Wu turned to look at him. Behind his mask, no one could see his expression.

But Ning Mingmei changed the subject as if he hadn’t just said those words. “Physician Wu, I am curious. You say he hardly ever enters Ye Province, so how did you come to know him?”

“…At the mass graveyard,” Physician Wu said flatly. “I came here to honor my ancestors. Did you know that this place was once a battlefield?”

He pointed ahead. “The military camp was over there.”

Ning Mingmei followed his gesture. “Your ancestors died in that war?”

“Yes,” he answered.

Ning Mingmei said, “My condolences.”

“It’s nothing,” Physician Wu said calmly. “In the end, people must die, just like flowers falling to the earth.”

Silence followed. Ning Mingmei and Physician Wu got up and took a different path, passing through the backyard of the grass hut.

As they walked past a small house, Ning Mingmei noticed a few things and raised an eyebrow.

When they reached the front yard, he saw Hu Yang focused on carving something.

He Zheng, who was waiting restlessly nearby, brightened at the sight of him. “Peak Lord Ning!”

He was quick to call out, looking both unsure of what to do and eager to leave as soon as possible.

But Ning Mingmei simply looked down and asked Hu Yang, “What are you carving?”

Caught off guard by an immortal addressing him, Hu Yang hesitated and glanced to the side, somewhat embarrassed. “Just… something useless.”

But from what Ning Mingmei could see, it didn’t seem useless at all. He said, “Physician Wu told me that you built the house with your own hands?”

Hu Yang replied, “Mm… no one else would build a house for me.”

Ning Mingmei asked, “Then did you make those things inside the house too? I took a quick look when we passed by.”

Hu Yang followed him nervously to the small house, visibly uneasy. He even started to stammer, his eyes full of doubt, as if he couldn’t believe someone would ask him such a thing. “Y-yes, I made all of them. Just… some useless things.”

“Gears and cam mechanisms… These are hardly useless,” Ning Mingmei remarked, observing the prototypes. “Hu Yang, the fact that you could come up with these and bring them to life means that you’re incredibly talented.”

Hu Yang stammered, “I-I’m talented? I…”

Even though he didn’t fully understand the technical terms, he was clearly shaken.

Ning Mingmei continued, “Hu Yang, you are different from others. You have a pair of hands gifted by the gods. Ordinary people cannot recognize the brilliance of these hands, so they call them monstrous. But in truth, the ones who should reflect on themselves are those blinded by their own ignorance.”

It was clear that those words had a profound impact on Hu Yang.

Physician Wu remained silent, simply watching.

Even as the three of them left, Hu Yang’s face was still flushed with excitement. Seeing them about to depart, he rushed back into his house and retrieved a small wooden carving of a mouse.

Hu Yang said, “This… I made it from leftover wood scraps. If you twist its tail, it runs.”

An automatic cat toy, basically.

Ning Mingmei took the mouse and said, “Thank you, I like it very much.”

Hearing this, Hu Yang grew even happier. He rubbed his deformed hands together, his awkward smile looking a little unnatural.

Hu Yang wasn’t good at smiling. No one had ever taught him what a proper smile should look like.

By now, night had fully fallen. Physician Wu lit a lamp and used its glow to guide their way back to the city.

He said, “I heard from the City Lord that there is no longer a need for the Immortal Master to continue investigating?”

Ning Mingmei replied, “That is correct. Physician Wu frequently visits the Royal General’s mansion, so you are naturally well-informed. Since the City Lord has withdrawn the request, the Supreme Clarity Sect will no longer involve itself in Ye Province’s affairs.”

Physician Wu gave a faint smile. Whether it was out of satisfaction or something else was unclear.

Ning Mingmei continued, “Before coming to see you, I stopped by your clinic. It didn’t seem to have any rare medicinal herbs.”

The system in Ning Mingmei’s mind: …

You just admitted to rummaging through the man’s entire house.

Physician Wu, however, seemed unbothered. “Ye Province’s land is barren. Many rare herbs cannot be found, so we have to substitute them with similar ones.”

Ning Mingmei said, “Physician Wu is quite skilled at cost-saving, I appreciate that. But I wouldn’t say Ye Province’s land is necessarily barren. Isn’t there a mine upstream of the eastern river? That should have been part of Ye Province’s fortune.”

At that, Physician Wu let out a cold laugh.

From the very first meeting at the Royal General’s mansion, Physician Wu had always remained indifferent, whether he was treating the Royal General, witnessing Ren Miao’s injury, or visiting Hu Yang’s home.

But at that moment, he actually let out a cold laugh.

“Fortune is the most fleeting yet fairest thing in this world. ‘Blessings lie within misfortune and misfortune follows blessings,’” he said.

Ning Mingmei replied, “But in this world, karma is not necessarily always repaying evil with evil.”

“No matter how barren the land, there are always people who find a way to profit from it,” Physician Wu said flatly.

It sounded as if he was hinting at something, yet also as if he was indifferent.

At the crossroads, Ning Mingmei suddenly stopped. “Physician Wu, this is where we part ways for today.”

Physician Wu frowned. “It’s already so late. Where are you going?”

Ning Mingmei said, “Like you, I also have someone to pay respects to, but not an ancestor, just… an old acquaintance.”

Physician Wu asked, “You’ve been to Ye Province before?”

Ning Mingmei looked at him calmly. “Yes. Unfortunately, when we met again, he had lost his memory and forgotten me… My old acquaintance was from four hundred years ago.”

?

Physician Wu was momentarily stunned. Then, it was as if a giant question mark was forming above his head.

Ning Mingmei sighed slightly. “Physician Wu, let’s part ways here.”

…Physician Wu left, completely bewildered, leaving Ning Mingmei and He Zheng standing where they were.

He Zheng had been confused the whole way, but now he finally spoke. “Peak Lord Ning, you… have an old acquaintance here?”

Ning Mingmei replied, “No. Never been here before. There’s no story.”

He turned and led He Zheng back into the depths of the mass grave.

He Zheng was utterly baffled.

The system in Ning Mingmei’s mind was also completely confused.

The system: [Huh?? Old acquaintance?]

You’ve only been here for a few days!

Ning Mingmei said, [Right now, he must be wondering when exactly we ever met.]

The system: [?]

Ning Mingmei: [Meaning, I can now be fairly certain that he is the Wu Yun from that story.]

Though how he had survived to this day in a human body remained a mystery.

Even the Royal General hadn’t recognized him… His appearance must have changed drastically.

The system: [Huh?? So you really know him?]

Ning Mingmei: [Of course not. I was lying.]

The system was completely thrown off. [What was the point of that, then?]

Ning Mingmei said, [Boredom. Giving him something fun to think about. No reason why he gets to play the mystery man while I can’t do the same.]

The system: ?

How was this fun? This was just pure mischief.

[And besides, if he really is Wu Yun, he’ll definitely follow us.] Ning Mingmei said, [Just wait and see.]

The system: …Damn it, Ning Mingmei, you’re a real piece of work.

They returned to the grave marked ‘Shangguan.’

He Zheng asked, “Peak Lord Ning, what do we do next?”

Ning Mingmei: “You dig up the coffin and open it. We need to collect a sample.”

?

Ning Mingmei: “Go ahead. You’re at the peak of the Foundation Establishment realm, so you should be able to handle this alone, right?”

Foundation Establishment wasn’t meant for grave robbing!

As He Zheng dug, he grumbled, “Peak Lord, I bet there’s nothing good in this grave. Maybe we should just…”

Ning Mingmei said, “That’s fine. All I need is the ashes.”

He Zheng: …

Well, best-case scenario, after a hundred years, the bones inside should have already turned to dust.

While He Zheng worked, Ning Mingmei stood idly by. He reached into his robes and pulled out the little wooden mouse.

The wooden mouse sat silently in his palm.

Ning Mingmei said, [In reality, those hands should not be given any special meaning. When I praised them as gifted by the gods in front of Hu Yang, it was only because they were useful to me. But in the end, those hands are just hands.]

The system: [Why do I not understand what you’re saying?]

Ning Mingmei said, [I truly envy the ignorant.]

The system thought Ning Mingmei was mocking it again and was about to retort…

But then it hesitated.

Because this time, there wasn’t even a hint of amusement on Ning Mingmei’s face.

The coffin was buried deep. Even with He Zheng’s peak-stage Foundation Establishment strength, it took quite an effort to dig it up.

Finally, a coffin appeared at the bottom of the pit.

Clearly, the wood used for it was of excellent quality.

At the bottom of the pit, He Zheng wiped his sweat and asked, “Peak Lord Ning, what now?”

Ning Mingmei: “Open it.”

He Zheng groaned inwardly but mustered his strength and pried the coffin lid off.

He took a quick glance inside and, sure enough, there was nothing but a few scraps of decayed fabric, with no remains in sight.

He looked up at Ning Mingmei and reported, “Peak Lord Ning, there’s nothing in this coffin!”

Above the pit, he saw Ning Mingmei also looking down.

For some reason, the sight made He Zheng uneasy.

As if he was afraid Ning Mingmei might suddenly kick him down.

Ning Mingmei said, “Look again carefully.”