Daishan Turns The Wind Chapter 16

The case of the Zither Player (IX)

It was too early to talk about the needle. After that sharp sting, the person was momentarily dizzy. Upon waking, their body felt impossibly heavy, their limbs dragging their head down to smash onto the ground, which was covered in cold, thick mud.

Feng Yuluo couldn’t open his eyes. Immediately following, several doors and windows opened simultaneously, as if carriage wheels were grinding over a stone road. Various sounds mixed together, pouring into his ears like mud, impossible to avoid, as if a morning market had been brought inside.

Shan Wuzhou saw that Feng Yuluo looked like he wanted to stuff his ears with mud, so he quickly pulled him up and applied spiritual energy to counteract the effect.

The muddy illusion receded, and Feng Yuluo felt slightly better. He managed to open his eyes and look around.

It was just the two of them. The others who had entered were not here.

Shan Wuzhou flicked his sleeve, lighting the room.

This room was furnished with many musical instruments: gongs, drums, bells, ceramic instruments, chime bells, flutes, pipas, zithers… a dazzling array. Outside, a winding, nine-bend corridor was faintly visible.

Feng Yuluo quickly suggested they go out and see where the others were.

A string of jade wind chimes hung along the corridor. The jade stones clinked together, clear and pleasant, but when thousands of jade stones knocked against each other haphazardly, it became quite noisy.

Feng Yuluo’s head ached. As he ran, he felt something chasing him from behind. He turned back several times, but saw nothing.

Shan Wuzhou also looked back and asked what was wrong.

It was the sound. The ubiquitous noise suddenly concentrated behind them, forming a force that pushed the two of them forward.

Feng Yuluo even unconsciously quickened his pace.

Midway through the run, someone suddenly giggled right next to his ear. The miscellaneous noise vanished. Before he could think further, a pair of huge, icy hands pressed against his back, shoving him violently forward.

The blare of suonas and copper gongs erupted, and the two were pushed into a forest clearing.

Ghost fires flickered ominously, gravestones stood in rows, and dead leaves covered the ground.

Eight or nine other people were successively pushed in from all sides, similarly clutching their ears and looking terrified.

Feng Yuluo had a strong impression of a few of them.

He had been observing many people: that middle-aged man who shoved his wife and glared at her; that woman who cursed the person next to her with disgust; and that other person who seemed to be secretly touching others until Kang Xiaole separated them.

Wails broke out.

“What is this place?”

“I was just at Illusion Moon Pavilion, why am I here?”

“My head hurts! I want to go home!”

“…”

Suddenly, their throats seemed to be squeezed shut. Those people desperately clawed at their necks, trying to tear away the invisible restraint. Their eyes bulged, unable to speak.

The suonas stopped, but more chaotic sounds arrived, buzzing and clamoring together, impossible to distinguish!

To prevent being strangled, they couldn’t cover their ears. Several people were quickly tormented by the sound until blood flowed from their seven orifices.

Feng Yuluo was in no better state. His ears were throbbing painfully, warm blood was faintly seeping out, and a red mark appeared on his neck.

Only Shan Wuzhou, with his profound cultivation, was temporarily unaffected. He cast a spell to release spiritual energy, intending to help others block the noise, but this was a Thought Projection Illusion created by someone else. No matter how strong an outsider was, their power would be weakened by five points.

Therefore, the others remained in extreme agony. Tree shadows swayed. One person, unable to bear it any longer, broke through the throat restraint and let out a dying shriek. The next moment, they were dragged into the ground. A new tombstone rose where they vanished.

The tombstone was blank, inscribed only with weeping blood.

Feng Yuluo was startled. Were those twenty-six missing people underground?

Shan Wuzhou immediately swept away the dead leaves and struck the ground with spiritual fire. The ground lit up, and they could faintly see figures squirming underground, twisted and fighting each other.

Four other people saw this and screamed in terror, but there was nothing they could do. The clamor tormented them, and their legs sank three inches into the earth.

Feng Yuluo looked up at the sky and shouted, “Gan Youyou!”

“Gan Youyou, I know it’s you. Come out quickly. You captured these people because, like Gan Daqiang, they beat, cursed, and insulted others, so you brought them here for punishment. Your goal has been achieved. It’s been twelve days; the punishment is enough. If you continue like this, you will be eroded and possessed by the demonic spirit Yuanbao.”

Shan Wuzhou was confused. “Grandmaster? Is Gan Youyou the original creator of this illusion? We’ve been suspecting Kang Xiaole all along, haven’t we?”

The previous deduction was that if Gan Youyou was the creator, he wouldn’t have needed to kill Gan Daqiang in that manner. How did the situation change?

They noticed that the chaotic noise had significantly diminished. The other four people managed to hold on, able to cover their ears, though their expressions were dazed.

Feng Yuluo took a breath. “Look at the characteristics of this illusion: the noise, the fact that Gan Youyou is deaf, and the room full of musical instruments we first entered. So, it is him.”

Shan Wuzhou was even more puzzled. “Is that so? Then was Gan Daqiang killed by Kang Xiaole?”

Feng Yuluo nodded. “Exactly. At the time, the place was packed, and everyone was focused on the zither player Gan Youyou on stage. Kang Xiaole was briefly absent, and few people would have noticed. If he left earlier to go to the outskirts, killed Gan Daqiang, rushed back to change clothes, wash up, and clean himself, and then blended back into the crowd to do odd jobs, everything would be seamless. I observed that his face was red that day. I initially thought it was due to the summer heat, but now that I think about it, he might have just scrubbed his face.”

Shan Wuzhou nodded thoughtfully. “Then were the musical scores in Kang Xiaole’s room just for learning to play the zither?”

Feng Yuluo: “He had a good relationship with Gan Youyou, so it’s normal for him to have the opportunity to learn the zither. I thought he composed many of the pieces for money, but the handwriting on those scores belongs to Gan Youyou, so he was merely studying.”

He paused, then added, “Of course, he did write one for you. It was very pleasant.”

Shan Wuzhou nodded, his gaze unreadable.

Feng Yuluo: “Gan Youyou, Gan Daqiang is dead, and you have punished these people. Is there still some unresolved matter on your mind?”

A soft chuckle.

The two froze.

Mist permeated the air. As dead leaves were crushed underfoot, a person walked out from the mist, their steps light. They stood with their arms crossed, displaying a different aura than before, looking over with an indescribable gaze.

Feng Yuluo: “…”

Shan Wuzhou sighed. Having extraordinary thoughts about his Ancestral Master led him to believe his nonsense every time. Truly, lust makes one foolish.

“Is this the result the Feng Mountain Ancestral Master achieved after investigating for several days?”

Kang Xiaole suppressed a smile at the corner of his mouth.

Feng Yuluo was both happy and distressed, forcing himself to remain calm. “Why is it you?”

Kang Xiaole glanced at the four people to the front left. They were instantly restrained, as if isolated in a separate small circle. Dense, continuous insults were shouted directly at those four.

“I’ll give you one more chance. What is the reason I captured them?”

Feng Yuluo looked back. The four people’s eyes had rolled back, their faces covered in blood. He closed his eyes, urgently trying to think.

The common thread was that they had started arguments, beating, cursing, and insulting others. The sixteen families didn’t even want these people back, indicating they were usually quite malicious. Furthermore, the attendant had made things difficult for Kang Xiaole, and the woman holding the child was also troubled…

But Kang Xiaole hadn’t bumped into Gan Daqiang that day; Shan Wuzhou had pulled him back, yet he was still cursed. The woman had accidentally bumped someone very lightly and apologized, yet she was still insulted.

So, the unique factor here was unprovoked insults?

Then there was Gan Daqiang’s oppression of Gan Youyou, and Gan Daqiang and the attendant’s deference to Feng Yuluo… They had discussed Gan Daqiang before. That’s right, he was a person who was outwardly strong but inwardly weak, bullying the soft and fearing the tough.

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law who were constantly mistreated, the child scared by the aunt, the waiter with no background, the woman holding a child who had a weakness, the frail Gan Youyou… Could it be that these people specifically picked on the weak who were unable to resist, using a small excuse to wantonly insult them?

After Feng Yuluo stated the reason, Kang Xiaole smiled, struck the four people down into the ground, and said happily, “You finally got it right.”

Feng Yuluo looked at the four new tombstones that had just emerged and said angrily, “I got it right, and you still did that?”

Kang Xiaole: “I never promised I would release them if you were right.”

“…” Feng Yuluo clenched his fist, accepting it.

“What else do you want?”

“Second question: Who killed Gan Daqiang?”

This was simple. Since Yuanbao was parasitic in Kang Xiaole, Gan Daqiang must have been killed by Gan Youyou.

Kang Xiaole drew out his words. “Are you sure? Not going to change your mind?”

To be questioned like this, the dignified Feng Mountain Ancestral Master felt it was outrageous. Feng Yuluo held out his hand and said, “Wait. Let me think.”

From a normal perspective, Kang Xiaole, using Yuanbao’s power to create the Thought Projection Illusion, could perfectly well have captured Gan Daqiang and tormented him inside. But if Kang Xiaole simply didn’t follow the usual path, or if his hatred for Gan Daqiang was so intense that he had to kill him personally and publicly, this wasn’t impossible. After all, three years ago, he dared to push Gan Daqiang into the water.

So, Gan Daqiang’s death…

Shan Wuzhou pondered the events of the past few days and concluded that Gan Youyou was the killer.

Feng Yuluo looked up. “I’m not changing it.”

“Alright, please tell me how he did it.”

Feng Yuluo couldn’t fall for the trick again. He quickly said, “The condition is that you release these people.”

Kang Xiaole shook his head. “It’s not time yet. However, as a condition, I can tell you where Gan Youyou went.”

Feng Yuluo was stunned.

“If Gan Youyou was the murderer, wouldn’t he run away once suspected? Today was his last performance, and he had already packed his bags.”

Feng Yuluo and Shan Wuzhou moved aside to discuss, checking and rechecking to ensure there were no problems.

Kang Xiaole watched them, lowering his head and smiling, kicking the dead leaves scattered on the ground.

Feng Yuluo voiced his new conjecture.

Previously, they suspected Kang Xiaole killed Gan Daqiang, believing Kang Xiaole was not at Illusion Moon Pavilion. Now that they confirmed Gan Youyou was the killer, it was Gan Youyou who was not at Illusion Moon Pavilion.

Gan Youyou didn’t even go to Illusion Moon Pavilion. It was Kang Xiaole, who could play the zither, who disguised himself as Gan Youyou and performed on stage. After the performance, he put on a cloak, covered his face, left the building, took a carriage, washed his face, changed clothes, got off the carriage, and returned to continue his odd jobs. The carriage continued driving, picked up Gan Youyou, and took him back to his residence, where he was intercepted by the constables at his doorstep.

Kang Xiaole lowered his gaze. “How do you prove it?”

“By capturing the coachman and Gan Youyou’s attendant, you can interrogate them for the truth. You can also go to Illusion Moon Pavilion and ask where you were during that hour. If no one can testify to seeing you, then you were the person performing on stage.”

Kang Xiaole said “Oh,” and smiled strangely, a hint of admiration in his eyes.

Seeing this, the two knew the truth was exactly as they guessed, and they relaxed slightly. Although the process had been dizzying, they had at least guessed correctly in the end.

Yuanbao must have helped in this, otherwise the frail Gan Youyou wouldn’t have had the strength to pull it off.

“But since you were willing to cover for Gan Youyou, why tell us where he ran off to?”

“Because I am also looking for him.”

“Oh.” Feng Yuluo thought about Gan Youyou’s reason for killing Gan Daqiang, then suddenly felt something was wrong. “Wait, you’re looking for him too? You lied to me again!”

Kang Xiaole offered an apologetic smile. “Not exactly. Haven’t you already figured it out? The chaotic noise, the room full of instruments—that’s right, he is here. I locked him in, but he created a small illusion within my territory and hid. I can’t find him.”

Why did you lock him up? Weren’t you accomplices?

As if knowing their confusion, Kang Xiaole proactively explained, “When my younger brother had his accident, I couldn’t directly seek revenge on Gan Daqiang, so I approached Gan Youyou, who played the zither at Illusion Moon Pavilion. He wasn’t famous yet, but he kept everyone at a distance. I put in some effort, learned sign language, and managed to gain his trust.”

“It turned out he was also oppressed by Gan Daqiang. I wanted to help him, but he was too timid. He was bullied by Gan Daqiang but dared not resist. I was furious. I felt that it was precisely because of his weakness and compliance that Gan Daqiang became more aggressive, bullying many people, including my brother. So, I did something.”

Feng Yuluo felt a bad premonition and asked cautiously, “What did you do?”

Kang Xiaole didn’t answer. He bent down, picked up a single intact dead leaf from the scattered fragments on the ground, and handed it to Feng Yuluo. He said, “Find Gan Youyou. I want to push him down and lock him up for a while. After that, I will withdraw the illusion, and these people can go home.”

Shan Wuzhou had been observing the entire time. Now, his brow furrowed.

Kang Xiaole looked over, as if just remembering. “By the way, did you figure out which piece he wrote for you?”

Shan Wuzhou didn’t answer directly. Instead, he asked, “Did Gan Youyou teach you all your zither skills and composing abilities?”

Kang Xiaole admitted openly, “It was very difficult to get close to him. I asked him to teach me the zither. Only when he saw my progress did he trust me more.”

A cold edge appeared on his lips. Shan Wuzhou, staring at his clear and candid eyes, also picked up a dead leaf and said, “I understand.”

Kang Xiaole’s eyebrows twitched slightly as he watched the two leave to search for the person.