Chapter 106 – Beacon Flame Lure

A group of people clutching chicken legs and chewing on rabbit meat squatted on the ground, staring at the tree line ahead. Behind them, a bonfire roared, wafting the aroma of meat from time to time.

Three quarters of an hour passed, then another three quarters.

“Nothing. Sigh.”

Most of an hour went by.

“There really is nothing.”

A full hour passed.

“The flower sea really has disappeared.”

Zhan Changfeng found these students suspicious. If they had truly come to pick flowers, they should have been rubbing their hands in eager anticipation. Three breaths was an incredibly short window—one could barely react in time, let alone squat here like spectators watching a show.

Yu Sheng seemed to read her confusion and explained, “Actually, we didn’t come to pick flowers. We came to verify a rumor.”

“What rumor?”

“Half a month ago, someone was waiting here on schedule to pick flowers when they suddenly saw a man appear out of thin air. With a wave of his hand, he took the entire flower sea away. Since then, no one has seen the Beacon Flame Lure here again.”

“Something like that happened?” Zhan Changfeng suspected the Beacon Flame Lure was connected to entering the thin mist, but now this lead appeared to be a dead end.

The group treated the outing as nothing more than a nighttime excursion. After enjoying a barbecue midnight snack, they contentedly went their separate ways home.

Zhan Changfeng and Yu Sheng happened to be heading the same direction. Before parting, Yu Sheng said, “Don’t you have anything you want to ask me?”

“If you still have any Beacon Flame Lure, that is.”

“I do, actually.”

The two looked at each other in silence, then both broke into a smile.

“I humbly ask Miss Yu to part with it.” Zhan Changfeng cupped her fists and bowed.

“‘Part with it’ is too strong a phrase. I’ll just give it to you. After all, someone who’s already been inside once has exhausted their opportunity—keeping it would be pointless.” Yu Sheng casually unclipped the sachet from her waist. “That is, if you don’t mind that I’ve made it into a fragrance.”

Zhan Changfeng accepted the sachet, planning to go in again once the Community School matter was settled.

She returned to her dwelling and spotted the front door wide open from a distance. Gripping her sword, she walked inside to find tables and chairs overturned, bowls and jars smashed on the floor, bedding and clothes shredded to ribbons. The entire room was in chaos—more deliberately destructive than even a bandit raid.

She pinched a book from the desk between two fingers. It was in pieces, every page torn to shreds.

“Heh.”

Zhan Changfeng went straight to the village chief’s house and woke Fan Zhili.

Late at night, Fan Zhili wrapped himself in an outer robe, eyes bleary with sleep. “Getting old, getting old. Young one, tormenting an elderly man like this is immoral.”

“I just came to inform you that my home was deliberately vandalized. And to file a complaint about the militia’s dereliction of duty while I’m at it.”

Fan Zhili’s entire body jolted alert, his eyes suddenly sharp. “What happened?”

“What happened?” A head poked out from behind the door—Fan Zhili’s granddaughter, Fan Siyuan.

Zhan Changfeng still remembered her. After all, they had just been together, and her screaming had left quite the impression.

Fan Zhili summoned the militia, and a mighty procession marched to her dwelling to inspect the scene. With their trained eyes, they could naturally tell the damage was deliberate.

The militia’s leader, Wuhe, asked, “Have you made enemies with anyone?”

“I have always conducted myself with integrity—upright and above board. How could I possibly make enemies?”

Wuhe looked at this girl praising herself with such a straight face and couldn’t help feeling something was off. She even paused to think for a moment before declaring with conviction, “Unless someone is jealous of my talent.”

Fan Siyuan, who had tagged along to watch, couldn’t help but cover her face. Your house has been trashed like this and you still can’t act normal?

But when Fan Siyuan considered the word “talent,” her mind naturally went to the Community School. Besides, as a student, the people Zhan Changfeng interacted with most were from the school, so she asked, “You think someone from the Community School did this?”

“I don’t know.”

Wuhe led his men through a thorough search but couldn’t find any clues, which made him frown.

Since its founding, Qingbai Village had taken in descendants of various powerful figures, reclusive masters, and orphans with neither father nor mother. How could such people commit acts of lawlessness like this?

Though the militia patrolled every night, their primary concern had always been wild beasts coming down the mountain. Who could have predicted that a break-in would actually occur?

This was the first time such a thing had happened, and they felt their duty to protect the village had been challenged. They would have to post notices and conduct a thorough investigation.

Zhan Changfeng saw them to the door, glanced up at the calm night sky, and spoke. “By the way, the hundred spirit stones I kept in the house were also stolen.”

“Why didn’t you say so earlier?” A hundred was no small amount. Deliberate vandalism combined with theft—for Qingbai Village, where crime was virtually unheard of, this was as serious as it could get.

“I coated those hundred spirit stones with poison. Tomorrow, just look for whoever’s hands are covered in festering sores.”

Wuhe swallowed his reproach. Fan Zhili, Fan Siyuan, and over a dozen militiamen all fell silent at once, staring blankly at the figure standing in the courtyard.

She stood with her arms at her sides, her tone cold and detached. “The poison will fully take effect within twelve hours. You’d best find the person quickly. Otherwise, their entire body will rot—especially the face.”

Fan Siyuan swallowed hard. “Isn’t that a bit too cruel?”

“I didn’t ask them to touch the money.” Zhan Changfeng turned and walked back inside. “Those who do wrong must pay the price.”

In truth, Zhan Changfeng had noticed something amiss over a dozen days ago. Every few days, rotting rats would appear inside the house and in the yard, and snakes would suddenly crawl out from under the covers. She had never managed to catch the culprit, and since it hadn’t caused her any real harm, she’d set it aside—but that didn’t mean she would do nothing about it.

After all, everyone who had ever acted brazenly in front of her ended up wishing they were dead.

“Old Fan, what exactly is this girl’s background?” The child handled matters with seamless composure, her methods decisive and ruthless. The moment she struck, there was an air of uprooting the problem entirely—not something an ordinary household could produce.

Fan Zhili stroked his beard. “Hard to say.”

Wuhe felt uneasy. “When she first moved to Qingbai Village, didn’t the Bureau of Patrol give us a heads-up to keep an eye on her? Could she be—”

He wanted to suggest that Zhan Changfeng might be from some fallen clan, seeking refuge here.

“Don’t worry about it, don’t worry about it.” Fan Zhili waved his hand. “Since she lives in Qingbai Village, it’s our duty to look after her.”

Wuhe nodded.

The next day, Zhan Changfeng finished her last written exam. The results from the previous day were already posted—unsurprisingly, she had passed every single one.

Li Baimao stared at the rankings for a long while, then sidled up next to Zhan Changfeng and said resentfully, “You big liar.”

“Hm?”

“What happened to being illiterate? Who’s the one with top marks across the board?!” Li Baimao couldn’t believe how gullible he’d been, actually buying it—believing she couldn’t read!

Zhan Changfeng glanced at him. “Do you know the highest principle of playing it cool?”

“What?”

“Once you’ve played it, you have to back it up.”

Li Baimao heaved a great sigh. “This student has been enlightened.”

Over the past few months, Li Baimao had indeed changed. Though he still had his clownish personality, he could now read the room and pick his moments. His language skills had improved, and in this round of exams, he had achieved second-tier marks in all the earlier subjects.

Every hair on the kid’s body was bursting with pride, yet he didn’t say a single word about it—deliberately waiting for others to praise him. And when they did, he’d say with feigned surprise, “Second tier? Really? I couldn’t even understand the questions. I just scribbled a few things down.”

He was later dragged out and beaten up by Han Zhigao and company.

“Yi Zhan!”

Someone came running over. “This is your letter, right? Someone gave it to me just now at the entrance.”

“Who?” Zhan Changfeng took the envelope and opened it.

“I didn’t recognize them. Seemed to be from Wangmei Residence.”

Li Baimao blurted out, “Wangmei Residence is right next door and they’re sending letters? Must be a suitor.”

Zhan Changfeng gave him a look. He instantly realized his old habit had flared up again and slapped himself on the mouth. “I’m the suitor, I’m the suitor.”

“Here, your suitor.” Zhan Changfeng casually tossed the letter to him. The money from the herbs she’d sold a few days ago still hadn’t been collected—it was time to go collect that debt.

Li Baimao watched her retreating figure, scratched his head, and asked the classmates beside him, “Can I read it?”

“She gave it to you, so of course you can.”

“If you ask me, anyone sending that kind of letter is either confessing love or picking a fight—both troublesome. Either way, we’ve been classmates together. We can lend a hand.”

“Well said.”

Li Baimao unfolded the letter. On it was a single line with no signature: “Eastern woods. Come immediately. Otherwise, face the consequences.”

“That is a threat,” one classmate observed in a scholarly tone.

“No kidding! This person’s got some nerve, bringing threats right to our doorstep.” Li Baimao shot to his feet and drew the blade from beneath his seat. “I’m going to have a word with them.”

“We’ll back you up.”

In an instant, everyone forgot about the rankings. They swarmed toward the eastern woods and came face to face with three people standing among the trees.

(End of Chapter)