A slight breeze drifted by, the willow branches by the lakeside dancing in the wind; a gentle wind that wasn't cold on the face, altogether a rather pleasant scene. Granny Fan walked a circuit along the dam, finding nothing unusual, so she descended to the lake's edge. Xiushui Village's natural environment had never been optimal, so there were no lotus flowers in the lake, yet the expanse of several dozen mu was enough to refresh one's mind and spirit. However, Granny Fan kept feeling that something was amiss here. On the dam, it was just a vague feeling of wrongness, but down by the lake, she realized there was indeed a problem. This lake behind the dam wasn't stagnant; it was connected to the outer canals, meaning it shouldn't be considered dead water. But upon drawing closer for a careful look, Granny Fan discovered that although the entire lake surface was calm, the water possessed an extremely murky hue. A foot beneath the surface, nothing could be discerned—a clear sign that the entire lake was steeped in heavy Yin energy, much like a wild lake born in barren mountains.

Leaning against a willow tree by the lake, Granny Fan couldn't help but frown. Ordinarily, in a village setting, it shouldn't reach such a saturation of Yin energy. The Yang energy generated by hundreds of residents should be sufficient to neutralize the Yin influence from both the lake water and the nearby mass grave. Even if the area possessed an inherent Yin nature, it shouldn't reach the extent of saturating the entire water surface. Could it truly be something she had overlooked?

Observing the compass swaying idly in her hand, Granny Fan began to ponder deeply. The more she thought, the more her head ached. Granny Fan had Liu Dashao fetch her a wooden stick, and she started making calculations on the ground. Just as she was lost in thought, a sudden gust of wind blew, and a willow branch struck Granny Fan squarely on the face. She instinctively brushed at the withered, dead branch, and a memory suddenly surfaced.

Granny Fan’s ancestral home was in Pingdingshan, Henan, a historically famous coal-mining region. During the Japanese invasion, hundreds of thousands of civilians were enslaved there to dig coal for them. The ultimate fate of these cheap laborers was collective slaughter by the Japanese devils. The mass graves of ten thousand discovered in the mountain valleys after liberation served as irrefutable proof. The Japanese military often included geomancers or Shinto priests; after massacring Chinese people, they would plant seven willow or locust trees at the North Star positions above the mass graves. Both tree types carried Yin attributes, and if planted according to the layout of the Seven Star Soul-Locking Formation, the aggrieved spirits in the mass grave would be firmly nailed to that land—making not just haunting, but even reincarnation, nearly impossible. Moreover, because this layout was so malevolent, even passing solitary spirits would be tethered there by the Soul-Locking Formation, unable to depart. Over time, the trapped spirits generated malevolent Sha energy, turning the burial site into an extremely dangerous Sha formation.

Willow trees! A flash of insight struck Granny Fan. She tossed the wooden stick aside and scrambled up to a nearby small slope. The elevation was perfect for overlooking the entire dam, and as she gazed from the summit, Granny Fan gasped sharply. She saw that the west, south, and north sides of the dam were each planted with exactly seven willow trees, with only the east side—the direction associated with the heaviest Yang energy—lacking trees. Three Seven Star Soul-Locking Formations, composed of extremely Yin willows, together formed a Triple Sha Formation. This layering of Sha upon Sha, using Sha to deploy Sha, unquestionably locked down the entire dam. Water itself inherently carries Yin; building a dam here should have neutralized overly vigorous spiritual energy while using the village’s energy to balance the water’s Yin nature—a fundamentally excellent layout. But with the addition of these dozens of willow trees, the formations on three sides created a standard Yin-Locking Array, tightly trapping the lake’s Yin energy beneath the surface. No wonder the water looked so dark. It was because of this.

Granny Fan let out a long breath; so that was it. The other two Sha formations, though smaller in scale and lacking in Sha intensity, were positioned at the vertices of a perfect equilateral triangle relative to this main Triple Sha Formation. This meant the three formations combined to create one massive Sha nexus, locking down not only the spiritual energy of the entire mountain range but also trapping the Dragon's Mouth—this area was undoubtedly secured by a deliberately placed Sha configuration!

The realization sent a trickle of cold sweat down Granny Fan's spine. Connecting this to the strange occurrences in the village recently, she began to understand. But looking at the condition of these willow trees—each one requiring several people to encircle—they must be centuries old. Why did they only activate now, and not earlier? The dam, yes, the dam!

Granny Fan’s eyes lit up. She snatched her compass and hurried back to the lakeshore, crouching down to float the compass on the water's surface. Suddenly, the compass needle snapped upright with a kacha sound, then plunged straight into the water.

No wonder. It turned out this dam was the mechanism at the formation's core. Once this Triple Sha Dragon-Trapping Array activated, not only was the Dragon Vein severed, but the Yin energy from dozens of li around would enter a vicious, self-feeding cycle, multiplying several times over before being injected into this lake water. If left unchecked for too long, who knew what other monstrous things might manifest. I said why there have been so many ghosts and monsters causing trouble lately; this is the root of it all. But what exactly lies at the bottom of this lake, absorbing so much Yin energy?

"Before I leave, a piece of advice! Just as you said, when doing business, one must know when to advance and when to retreat. This entity is not something one Granny Fan, or even a hundred of us, can afford to provoke!"

"Not something one hundred of us can afford to provoke!" For some reason, the Snake Spirit's final counsel echoed in Granny Fan's ears like a phantom sound, lingering long after.

"Child, before the Snake Spirit left, I had doubts about her final words. But in these few short weeks, so many strange things have happened in our village. Now, I fully believe her. Alas! When things are out of the ordinary, there must be a demon involved. What on earth could stir up such a massive disturbance..." Old Immortal Wang had been walking for a while when he spotted Granny Fan and Liu Dashao by the lake. Approaching them, he happened to overhear Granny Fan's words.

"Senior Sister is indeed here!"

"What are you doing here?" Granny Fan's voice immediately turned icy upon seeing Old Immortal Wang.

"I know my tone was a bit harsh last time. I came to apologize," Old Immortal Wang said. Though Granny Fan and Old Immortal Wang were diametrically opposed now, they were, in fact, disciples of the same master over twenty years ago—Old Daoist, a figure of high prestige and formidable decisiveness, the pillar of the village leadership. While he was alive, Old Immortal Wang was entirely obedient, diligently learning skills and performing commendable deeds. The relationships between the master and his two junior siblings were quite harmonious. But upon Old Daoist's death, Old Immortal Wang completely changed. Unrestrained, all his previously hidden vices surfaced. Furthermore, he paid no mind to his Senior Sister, who harbored feelings for him, eventually leading to the rupture of their relationship. One must remember that Old Immortal Wang was quite an opportunistic and arrogant man. Now, he was humbly apologizing to her repeatedly. Granny Fan, thinking he might have reformed after years of tempering, felt her anger subside considerably.

"Forget it, I'm not that petty," Granny Fan retorted, giving him a sidelong glance.

The current Old Immortal Wang dared not utter another extraneous word. After the lesson learned from the Jiangshi, he had to concede to his Senior Sister's capabilities. Otherwise, if he had burned Li Yang's corpse, it would have amounted to another sin on his record; the King of Hell would certainly hold him accountable after death.

Seeing Old Immortal Wang acting so meekly, Granny Fan truly believed he had repented, and her tone softened considerably. "I'm saying you don't need to butter me up so much. It was fortunate I arrived in time today, or burning Li Yang's body would have been for nothing, wouldn't it?"

Upon hearing this, Old Immortal Wang immediately chimed in, "Yes, yes, thanks to Senior Sister, otherwise, it would have been very difficult for me before the King of Hell upon my death." As he spoke, Old Immortal Wang clasped his hands in a respectful bow to Granny Fan, appearing completely subdued.

Liu Dashao watched the two of them, it was like an elder sister disciplining a younger brother, and they weren't young either; he couldn't help but chuckle inwardly.

"You brat, what are you laughing at?" Granny Fan noticed Liu Dashao secretly snickering and asked curiously.

"Ah? Nothing much? I just wanted to know, was the Jiangshi Li Yang turned into really that powerful? Although Old Immortal Wang's skills aren't as great as yours, dealing with one Jiangshi shouldn't have been a huge problem, right?" Liu Dashao quickly changed the subject, though it wasn't entirely a distraction; it was something he genuinely wanted to know.

Old Immortal Wang felt a prick of annoyance when Liu Dashao suggested his power was inferior to Granny Fan's, but he had to agree. He muttered under his breath, "Who knows what happened? I lost two disciples over it."

"Mmm," Granny Fan agreed with Liu Dashao’s premise. "It was mainly because the grave site was chosen incorrectly."

"Li Yang's birth date and time lacked water element. Whether for the tombstone or the grave location, there needed to be a connection to water. Yet, the tombstone depicted a coiled dragon sucking water, draining it entirely. And the grave site itself cut off the water vapor from all surrounding underground directions—that must be one reason Li Yang turned into a Black Jiangshi, perhaps?" As Granny Fan spoke, she deliberately glanced at Old Immortal Wang, an expression that made him extremely uncomfortable.

"So, simply choosing the wrong Feng Shui location can turn a dead person into a Black Jiangshi? If we extrapolate that, the world would descend into chaos," Liu Dashao gaped, astonished. He hadn't realized such a minor oversight could lead to such a catastrophe.

"I said this is only one part of the reason. Wang Weizhen, how did Li Yang die? When I left, I saw him behaving inappropriately towards that young lady near the village entrance. It’s only been a few days, and now he’s gone?" Granny Fan turned to Old Immortal Wang beside her.

"He..." Old Immortal Wang stammered, finally relating the entire story of Li Yang being bitten by A'Lan to Granny Fan. As an avid gossip, Old Immortal Wang had managed to pick up some whispers about their private affair, and he recounted it to Granny Fan truthfully.

Hearing Old Immortal Wang’s account, Liu Dashao immediately recalled the event. He had been present when Village Chief Tian burned A'Lan, serving as a vanguard scout.

"Yes, yes, Old Immortal Wang is right. When Village Chief Tian ordered the militiamen to place A'Lan's body into the coffin, Li Yang asked for one last look at A'Lan. Just as Li Yang stood beside the coffin, A'Lan suddenly sat up and bit Li Yang's arm! It terrified us. But the clinic doctor said one bite wouldn't do much; it wasn't a cat or dog, no infection from bacteria, just bandage it a few times and it would be fine," Liu Dashao interjected. Having witnessed the events firsthand, Liu Dashao still felt a chill down his spine recalling it.

"A'Lan? That girl the Old Mudsmith found? How did she die again?" Granny Fan frowned upon hearing A'Lan's name. Going around in circles, she felt somewhat confused; the intricate web of connections was truly complex.

"This... the first person to discover A'Lan dead was the village secretary, Li Yang!" Old Immortal Wang exclaimed involuntarily. This meant everything happening here was connected to this widow, A'Lan.

"No wonder. Perhaps Li Yang did something shameful to A'Lan? It's just retribution!" Granny Fan couldn't help but sigh.

"Perhaps so. I heard from the village gossips that A'Lan had some entanglement with a man from the county construction team, but with Li Yang, things seemed equally ambiguous," Liu Dashao, upon hearing the Jiangshi was connected to A'Lan, immediately recalled the village rumors.

"What about that man? I want to see him," Granny Fan asked Liu Dashao.

"Don't bother, you won't find him; he's likely buried somewhere near this dam," Liu Dashao replied, scratching his head.

"What? He's dead?" Granny Fan was stunned. This was getting confusing; why did everyone die?

"Supposedly, he died of fright. When the construction team was building the dam, transporting machinery and equipment back and forth was inconvenient, so someone had to stay behind to guard it. This dam is very close to the mass grave. Perhaps some unclean thing from there encountered that young man? I heard about this too; the way he died of fright was quite gruesome," Old Immortal Wang recalled something when Liu Dashao mentioned it.

"Unclean thing? Why didn't it appear when I was around?" Granny Fan was skeptical. Although she lived in town, she knew Xiushui Village like the back of her hand. She had never heard of any unclean things here.

"Hehe, that’s because Senior Sister is so divinely powerful; those wandering ghosts and lost souls wouldn't dare cause trouble!" Old Immortal Wang seized the opportunity to flatter Granny Fan.

"Enough with this talk to try and get close to me; I don't fall for that!"

"Hehe, Senior Sister, what you say..." Old Immortal Wang tucked his hands into his sleeves, shuffling closer with a playful grin, nudging Granny Fan with his shoulder. "I was wrong thirty years ago. I always spoke my mind about trivial things, but when it came to crucial moments, the words would get stuck, and I couldn't squeeze them out. That angered you. I thought you were just momentarily upset and didn't try to stop you from leaving. Then, alas! You left and married a man from the next village, and I never got the chance to say what I needed to say again."

"What words?" Granny Fan actually understood what Old Immortal Wang meant. When they were fellow apprentices, they spent a long time together, and there was indeed a faint spark between them. At that time, Old Immortal Wang presented himself respectably, and Granny Fan was rather fond of him, but for some reason, he never made a proactive move. Granny Fan's family was pressuring her with matchmakers. Finally unable to bear it any longer, Granny Fan arranged to meet Old Immortal Wang by the small village pond, intending to give him one last chance. If he confessed his feelings, she would go with him; if not, they would part ways forever. But Old Immortal Wang, as if possessed, skillfully steered clear of the topic. Disheartened, Granny Fan returned and quickly married, having a child. Thirty years passed in a blink. Granny Fan's husband died, and Old Immortal Wang remained unmarried his entire life, perhaps waiting for Granny Fan. The moment he saw her today, feelings suppressed for decades erupted, truly like wildfire that can never be completely extinguished, only growing deeper when the spring wind blows.