Chapter Forty-Four: The Good Child and the Old Grandmother

(1/3)

“The Skin-Painting Ghost is an aberrant fox spirit that has matured, and from what I can tell, the cultivation of this deformed fox is identical to that of the Skin-Painting Ghost at the Garden of Talented Scholars. Analyzing this, could it be that this aberrant fox and that Skin-Painting Ghost are siblings, or perhaps husband and wife?” Lin Yi muttered to himself, then followed his intuition and looked around.

As he surveyed his surroundings, Lin Yi’s gaze grew cold. After a brief consideration, he left Fatty Lin's congee shop in a few brisk steps.

He found a deserted alleyway with no surveillance and deposited the Black Snow Sword, villa deed, medicinal pills, and all else into the storage space of the Severing Divinity Codex.

…

Wang Tianchao was a good child.

At only fifteen or sixteen, he had always been the model of helpfulness. Though often mocked as a fool, he had been helping elderly people cross the street since primary school and never stopped, despite the ridicule.

Due to a viral outbreak, the school had announced an early dismissal that afternoon. The city’s populace was anxious these days; it seemed a secondary contact case had surfaced in Shengjing.

After eating lunch at home, Wang Tianchao headed out to the streets after school. Whenever he saw an elderly person trying to cross, he would eagerly offer his arm. If he noticed discarded water bottles on the road, he would pick them up and gently admonish the person responsible not to do so again.

Some thanked him, others cursed, but Wang Tianchao paid them no mind.

He could never forget that winter when he was struck by a tricycle and left sprawled on the ground. If not for an old man who rushed him to the hospital in time, he might have been left with a crippled right leg.

“Young man… please… help me…”

A hunched old woman approached, cane in hand, clad in a deep purple woolen coat and black striped trousers.

It was summer, and everyone else wore light, cool clothing, making her appear bloated and out of place. While others sported sun hats or straw hats, she wore a knitted woolen cap pulled low over her head, with wisps of gray-white hair poking out.

Her face was mottled with age spots, each one ringed with a bloody brown scab, making her entire face appear wounded and pitted. Her eyes were clouded and dull.

She spoke in ragged, breathless gasps. Slight and stooped, her baggy clothes made her legs look even thinner and frailer, as if all her strength clung to her cane with each step.

Wang Tianchao was stunned by the sight, then quickly said, “Don’t rush, Granny, take it slow. I’ll help you.”

He hurried to her side.

As he supported her, a pang of sadness welled up inside him. The old woman was far too light; though she stood as tall as one-sixty, she couldn’t weigh more than fifty or sixty jin—less than some children.

He sighed, but then noticed something odd: the scent in the air wasn’t quite right.

Usually, elderly people had a mustiness about them, especially if they didn’t bathe often due to health risks. But this old woman had no such smell; instead, there was a faint scent of blood.

How could a living elder smell of blood?

Looking closer, Wang Tianchao realized the source: the woman’s age spots had been scratched open, leaving scabs and fresh blood on her face.

That must be the source of the metallic tang, he thought.

(2/3)

Wang Tianchao felt even more pity for the old woman.

After helping her across the street, he was about to leave when her wrinkled, withered hand gripped his arm, her cloudy eyes pleading.

“Young man, could you help Granny just a bit more? Walking tires me out so much. Can you take me up to my apartment? Grandpa is sick, and I have to get him his medicine—otherwise, I wouldn’t have come down at all, cough, cough… cough, cough…”

She was wracked by coughing, her whole body trembling as if she might collapse.

Wang Tianchao patted her back and nodded firmly. “Don’t worry, Granny, I’ll take you home.”

His steadfastness brought a rare smile to the old woman’s face, a fleeting glint in her eyes.

“Good boy, such a good child. Good people are rewarded. You’ll be blessed for your kindness. Come, help Granny…”

They walked off together, gradually receding from view.

Some passersby, noticing Wang Tianchao’s silhouette, smiled and nodded.

“What a thoughtful child—there aren’t many like him these days. Good people will be rewarded—he’ll grow up to be a pillar of society.”

Elsewhere, Lin Yi emerged from the alley in a new set of clothes and a large mask.

Now, whatever happened, suspicion might fall on him, but it couldn’t be confirmed. He had learned his lesson: last time, after the incident on Antique Street, he’d ruined Daozi Zhang Ruofeng’s grand entrance, and realized he’d been too careless. Being seen for who he truly was was not always wise.

If anything major happened again, he needed to envelop himself in the energy of the Great Void Scripture, ensuring that surveillance cameras couldn’t capture his features.

With this in mind, Lin Yi began to tail the pair ahead—Wang Tianchao and the old woman.

The hunched woman walked slowly, saying little. Guided by her, Wang Tianchao made many turns, heading steadily farther from the bustling streets.

Lin Yi followed at a distance, until he was startled to see where they ended up: near the World Trade Tower.

Beside the tower ran a small artificial river called the Clear River, named for its limpid waters. This was the largest river in Shengjing, winding through the city. Along its banks were clusters of old tenement blocks, most notably a decaying tube-shaped apartment building—famous for being decrepit and tiny.

The property management here was all but non-existent; people and vehicles came and went at will. Most apartments were rented out, or even left vacant, with rental ads plastering every public wall.

Wang Tianchao supported the old woman inside.

The ground was uneven and full of potholes.

“My home is on the third floor, hurry, young man—I’m afraid Grandpa’s condition will worsen if he doesn’t get his medicine. Please, hurry, hurry…” the old woman urged.

In truth, she sensed something was off—someone seemed to be following her.

But every time she feigned a stiff neck and looked back, she saw nothing.

Uneasy, she kept pressing Wang Tianchao to hurry up the stairs with her.

(3/3)

Wang Tianchao nodded, thinking she was simply anxious, and quickened his pace.

But being just a child, he failed to notice the oddities: the old woman, though frail and barely able to walk, had followed him all the way from Antique Street—twenty minutes on foot—without breaking a sweat, despite the stifling heat and her heavy clothes.

Inside the dim, shabby building, there was no motion-triggered lighting. The droning of mosquitoes and flies was maddening.

“There are too many bugs here, Granny. You must keep your place clean—don’t get sick. I’ll leave you my number, call me if you need anything…” Wang Tianchao said, waving away the flies.

As they reached the second floor, he sensed something was wrong.

The grandmother, who had needed his support and relied on her cane for every step, suddenly let out a “thud” and tossed her cane aside.

At the same moment, Wang Tianchao reached the third floor.

With a sudden “bang,” the door directly opposite flew open, startling him.

But what truly terrified him was that the old woman had thrown away her cane.

Would she fall?

He turned to look over his shoulder—and what he saw made his eyes widen, his mind go blank with terror.

The harmless old woman was now grinning at him, revealing yellowed teeth. Her previously clouded eyes had become a sickly yellow, and the age spots on her face had opened, turning into gaping, bleeding holes.

Blood streamed down her face, soaking her bulky coat, staining the deep purple woolen fabric with crimson.

Her yellowed teeth quickly became smeared with blood, and her grotesque smile made her look all the more monstrous.

Wang Tianchao, petrified, saw her face swell and her features twist and distort.

“Oh my god, oh my god…” he shrieked, forgetting everything except the open doorway beside him, the only place that seemed safe.

Without hesitation, he dashed inside.

But once inside, he was even more stunned.

The sudden opening of the door, the old woman's insistence that this was the right place—everything clicked.

Sure enough, as he glanced back, the old woman had retrieved her cane and was slowly advancing toward him.

As she entered, the door shut itself. The old woman began to emit a sound—“chiu, chiu, chiu”—resembling the laughter of a bird.

Still grinning, she reached up and clawed at her own face.

With a single motion, a large patch of skin peeled away, and fresh blood flowed anew.

At the sight of the skin being torn off, Wang Tianchao wanted to scream.

And then he realized: beneath the mask of human flesh, there was no bloody skull—instead, it was the face of an animal.