Chapter 264 – Tainted Gold, Spiders, Dolls, and Dogs—A Full Tour of Happyland Zoo - Part 1

Li Yuan had encountered many ghost domains over the years, and the mightest one he had seen so far was still Yan Yu’s general store. But compared to the Exotic Beast Park located within the depths of Hidden River Province’s ancient ghost street, his wife’s dual-entity shop wasn’t even on the same level.

Now, the place the Holy Tree Temple had come to explore was precisely the Exotic Beast Park of Silkfloss Province, also known as Happyland.

Most ordinary people only knew it as Happyland, but in truth, the correct name for this ghost domain was Happyland Zoo.

Li Yuan was nervous because he had no idea how such a complex ghost domain operated. The disciples of the Holy Tree Temple were cautious as well, driving groups of condemned prisoners off into the distance to scout the area.

Two hours passed; then four; and soon, night fell. The surrounding mountains formed dark silhouettes on the barren plain. Yet the death row convicts still hadn’t encountered a single threat, even though they ran around shouting, rolling on the ground, and carrying on in bizarre ways.

Bonfires flared in clusters, lighting up the heavy gray-black tents and the silent shadows of prisoners walking by. Li Yuan and Cui Wuji had chosen a secluded, safer spot up on a mountaintop. Before long, Jing Banfeng appeared with a few clan members in tow. A short while later, an elder of the Gu Clan also arrived.

“Thank you for your efforts, Master Li,” Jing Banfeng said with a jovial laugh. He took a seat next to Li Yuan and turned to admire the winding wall of crimson flowers that snaked across the land like a blood-red python. “Remarkable, truly remarkable. I can’t believe you’ve managed to tame that thing so well... You’re one of the finest talents we’ve got in the Holy Tree Temple.”

Li Yuan gave a half-helpless smile. “Clan Head Jing, I’m your clan’s son-in-law, you know. You don’t have to overdo the flattery.”

Jing Banfeng laughed again. “I’m just telling it like it is. Master Li, your abilities eclipse even some of our Holy Tree Temple’s elders.”

Cui Wuji didn’t seem bothered in the slightest; Li Yuan was also married into the Cui Clan, and if you wanted to talk seniority, Li Yuan belonged to them first. If his status had surpassed the Holy Tree Temple’s elders, then so be it.

The truth was that the Cui Clan had once had three elders. One died in the battle at the Jade Capital, another was gravely injured, and the only one who could still move about freely was Cui Wuji. Of the three, he had been the weakest, which was why he had stayed behind to guard the clan.

The three chatted for a while, during which a few members of the Jing Clan made tea over the campfire. Roasting meat was considered too uncultured for these high ranking martial artists. For basic nourishment, they had fasting pills, which could stave off hunger with only one pill. Now was simply the time to sip spiritual tea and revisit the day’s work.

The group discussed how the day’s initial probe had gone, finding it both unsurprising and yet slightly puzzling. The outskirts of a ghost domain rarely behaved like the core; in general, they didn’t cause much trouble. If it hadn’t been for Mu Chen’s sudden, mysterious death, no one would have bothered investigating so soon.

“Maybe those undying husks used some sort of ghost item that only took effect out here. Without that item, there wouldn’t be any trouble.”

“That does make sense.”

“Exactly. If ghost domain borders could kill people on a whim, then never mind Silkfloss Province...wouldn’t the whole empire be in chaos by now? So this kind of lull is actually normal.”

Li Yuan stayed quiet, analyzing the situation with his own experience. In the carpenter’s workshop ghost domain, for instance, unless conditions were just right, a person couldn’t randomly push open its doors. Usually, an unlucky soul would have to accidentally wander in.

𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Still, the undying husks had unique methods that could dramatically increase the odds of people stumbling into danger. Li Yuan himself could casually open a door to the carpenter’s workshop if he wanted to. Thinking about it that way, it could be argued that undying husks themselves were extensions of ghost domains.

His wife’s general store currently did most of its business on the ancient ghost street. It hardly harmed anyone in the real world, unless some fool barged inside or purchased something like Yin marked rouge. Even those items weren’t lethal on their own; the rouge and dark pouches were more like utility items.

When you got right down to it, ghost domains weren’t always as scary as people made them out to be. If you never set foot in one, you’d likely stay safe. So Mu Chen was probably killed by an undying husk making use of Happyland’s outer boundary of influence, augmented by some ghost item.

Eventually, everyone turned in for the night. Li Yuan could sleep in a tent if he wished, or simply sit and meditate under the moonlight. The chill of the mountain winds barely affected him, making it all the same either way.

Although they were right on the edge of Happyland, Li Yuan didn’t dare sleep. He simply sat there with his eyes closed, resting but staying alert. After a while, everyone else left, and only he and Cui Wuji remained.

At that point, Li Yuan began chatting about random topics, nothing to do with the matter at hand.

“Such a long night,” he said with a sigh.

Cui Wuji chuckled. “You’re missing your wife, aren’t you?”

Li Yuan seized on that cue and kept talking. After a bit, he said matter-of-factly, “Patriarch, you have no idea. That young lady from the Jing Clan is almost too considerate, overly so.”

Cui Wuji hesitated for a moment, a fleeting look of uncertainty flashing across his eyes. Then he said quietly, “I’ve heard of Jing Shuixiang. That’s just her temperament. If she’s truly devoted to you, that’s not a bad thing.”

“But why is she like that?” Li Yuan asked.

Cui Wuji gave a noncommittal laugh. “Master Li, why not ask her yourself? We’re all outsiders here; we can’t really know.”

Li Yuan could tell that Cui Wuji was keeping something under wraps, but the old man’s expression didn’t suggest any malice or hidden scheming—just a bit of odd reticence he wasn’t willing to discuss. Li Yuan made a mental note to be cautious, yet he didn’t press the point. After all, pushing too hard would just put people on guard and wouldn’t yield any real answers.

˙·٠✧🐗➶➴🏹✧٠·˙

So the night passed quietly without any incident. Apart from the howls of wild beasts—or the occasional roaming demonic beast—nothing else disturbed them. There were no midnight raids, no spooky episodes, no ambushes or desperate fights for survival.

The same was true the second night, and the third. Five full days went by, and still the scouting teams turned up absolutely nothing.

Eventually, the higher-ups conferred and decided to leave the disciples behind to keep investigating while they themselves went to inspect a nearby mining site. Right on the outskirts of Happyland stood a major Holy Tree Temple mining operation, guarded by two martial artists at the fifth rank. The site was important because it yielded large amounts of blood crystal ore and soul iron ore—both vital resources for the entirety of Silkfloss Province.

Li Yuan went along with the senior group. They flew there, borne aloft by their more experienced companions. Apart from Jing Banfeng and Cui Wuji, an elder of the Gu Clan also accompanied them. Cui Wuji carried Li Yuan through the air until the crimson glint of crystal ore came into view.

Two elders were stationed at the mine—one from the Gu Clan, one from the Jing Clan—to maintain balance in leadership. When they saw the visitors arrive, they welcomed them warmly. They even arranged a decent midday meal, though there wasn’t much local produce this far out. Most provisions had to be transported from nearby towns.

Once everyone had settled in, the conversation turned serious. Throughout the discussion, the two resident elders kept giving Li Yuan curious glances. Word had traveled fast. The two major clans—Gu and Jing—had made peace, and this Li Yuan was their newly minted

good-luck charm

. He was also known to be a prodigious weaponsmith and beastmaster.

Jing Banfeng looked at the Jing elder. “We’ve been investigating Happyland. Since your mining operation is close to that ghost domain, have you had any unusual incidents here?”

The elder thought for a moment. “The mine itself isn’t within the ghost domain, so we don’t have much trouble. Occasionally, though, people just...vanish.”