As they were about to reach the foot of the mountain, Widow Brooks saw beads of sweat trickling down Ryan Thompson's temples and gently wiped them away with the back of her hand.

"Yeah, I am a bit tired, but we’ll be at the village soon." Ryan Thompson kept walking forward without turning his head.

Seeing that Ryan Thompson did not refuse, Widow Brooks's face showed a shy, happy smile, and then she obediently leaned against the man's back again.

After walking a little further, they saw Xiahe Village ahead.

At this time, all the adult men and women of Xiahe Village were gathered at the village entrance. The men had prepared torches, hoes, shovels, and other farming tools, while the women stood by their side. Led by an old Taoist in a robe, they were about to head up the mountain in groups.

"They’re back, they’re back, the young master is back!"

"That’s great, the young master is safe."

"Widow Brooks has been rescued too."

When the villagers saw Ryan Thompson carrying Widow Brooks down the mountain path, they immediately greeted them warmly and joyfully.

Blind Preacher saw his precious disciple return safely and stood there stroking his beard with a smile. But when he saw Widow Brooks on his back, he quickly calculated with his fingers, then shook his head with a wry smile.

"Someone come help Widow Brooks back home. Her leg was injured by the shanxiu—make sure to find someone to treat her," said Ryan Thompson.

Immediately, Aunt Harris and another village woman hurried over and helped Widow Brooks down.

"Du-shi, your clothes..."

One woman noticed that Widow Brooks's clothes were torn to shreds, as if ripped apart by brute force, and she was wrapped in the young master's outer garment. She couldn't help but ask.

Aunt Harris quickly shot her a look, and the woman, being clever, immediately understood and closed her mouth.

"Hehe, Du-shi, it’s good you’re back, really good. We were all so worried about you."

Aunt Harris beamed and said, "Young master, don’t worry. We’ll take good care of Du-shi, you can rest assured."

"Mm." Ryan Thompson nodded.

Widow Brooks, blushing and head lowered in shyness, was helped away by the women.

"Master, this is the shanxiu that was causing trouble in the nearby woods. I killed it. But it’s strange—the shanxiu was scared off by my spear at first, but then it came back, striking poses and walking on stilts. Very odd."

Ryan Thompson swung the old vine from his back, and the shanxiu’s corpse he’d been dragging fell to the ground. He then recounted what had happened in the woods.

Blind Preacher stroked his beard and smiled, pointing at the woman’s clothing on the shanxiu’s corpse: "This shanxiu was trying to confuse you. It walked on stilts and wore women’s clothes to cast an illusion. Outsiders would see it and think it was a mountain beauty, unable to harm it, never suspecting it was a monster. But this shanxiu was foolish to try illusions on you. With your eyes, what monster in the world could deceive you? Even a thousand-year-old demon in human form couldn’t fool you."

"So that’s how it is." Ryan Thompson touched his nose, realizing the shanxiu hadn’t come to die, but to cast an illusion on him.

But his cheap master had long said he had a mind of seven apertures, immune to all worldly magic and spells, and could see through illusions with ease.

"The young master is truly brave, to have killed the shanxiu!"

"So this is a shanxiu—how ugly it is."

"Look, this shanxiu is a male, too. Look at what’s between its legs!"

A loafer poked between the shanxiu’s legs with a stick, causing the nearby women to spit in disgust.

Blind Preacher shook his head, boasting, "That’s nothing. I’m even better endowed, and so is my disciple…"

"So is what?"

The nearby villagers all looked at Blind Preacher, even the women pricked up their ears, wanting to hear more.

Blind Preacher laughed, saw Ryan Thompson's face darken, and quickly changed the subject: "Can’t say, can’t say, heaven’s secrets mustn’t be revealed. Now that the shanxiu is dead, I’m relieved. But its corpse can’t be left here—burn it, lest it cause more trouble."

"The Taoist is right."

A few straightforward villagers immediately chopped down some dead trees nearby, piled them on the shanxiu’s corpse, and set it on fire.

After burning the shanxiu’s corpse, Ryan Thompson told the villagers to disperse and return to their homes.

"Didn’t you say before, Master, that it was impossible for monsters to appear near Guobei County? This shanxiu has been around for years—at least a decade ago it had already become a spirit." As they walked, Ryan Thompson asked curiously.

"I did say that. On the day you were born, purple energy came from the east for thirty thousand li, vast and mighty. Swept by your purple energy, all the monsters and ghosts near Guobei County were wiped out, and the world was cleansed. I felt so exhilarated watching it," said Blind Preacher, but then he shook his head slightly, "But the world is vast, and there are countless demons and monsters. This shanxiu probably became a spirit after you were born, or maybe it wandered here from elsewhere."

"As the saying goes, when a nation is about to fall, monsters will appear. The world is about to fall into chaos."