Chapter 140: The Bait

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Thanks to the dear “Sea Monster” for the pink hearts~~

Wen Jing cautiously touched the bamboo skewer; it was already firmly stuck. However, since it was glued with paste, it wouldn’t be very secure, so he carefully covered it with clay until it was fully embedded. This allowed him to precisely control the thickness of the facial muscles, avoiding the mistakes made previously. Even a slight difference could result in two entirely different faces.

“What should we use instead of eyes? There aren’t any prosthetic eyes here; looks like I’ll have to make them myself,” Wen Jing pondered.

“What material suits making eyeballs? Stones?” Wen Jing asked Ji Changge.

Ji Changge thought for a moment. “Find two pebbles, and have Dong Sheng paint the pupils on them. How about that?”

Seems like the only option, Wen Jing thought. Glass spheres would have been better.

Soon, the guards brought a pile of stones in various shapes.

Wen Jing picked out a dozen or so that were the closest to spherical and similar in size, then handed them to Dong Sheng. “You can paint eyes, right? Paint all of them.”

Dong Sheng considered this, then took a brush and began painting on the stones.

“All done,” Dong Sheng said with a smile, handing them to Wen Jing.

Looking at the stones, which had vividly painted eyes complete with eyelids and eyelashes, Wen Jing was somewhat speechless. It was her fault for not clarifying—eyeballs are spheres, merely encased by muscles and eyelids.

“Paint like this.” Wen Jing drew a large circle on paper, then a smaller circle inside it.

Dong Sheng suddenly understood and picked up another stone to start over.

Wen Jing continued piling clay onto the skull, moving very slowly to avoid dislodging the bamboo skewer.

“This time, it should be right,” Dong Sheng said confidently and, without consulting, placed two “fake eyes” into the eye sockets of the skull.

Wen Jing nodded at the remarkably lifelike painted eyeballs; Dong Sheng’s artistry was commendable.

The guards stared at the skull suddenly endowed with eyeballs and an open mouth, their hairs standing on end.

Dong Sheng released his grip, proudly admiring his work.

The two eyeballs, lacking support, rolled to the feet of several guards.

The guards all jumped back in unison, watching the smooth eyes roll about—somewhat eerie...

Wen Jing stepped forward, picked up the eyes, and carefully placed them back into the sockets. Then, using clay, he filled the gaps and fashioned two eyelids to cover the upper halves of the eyes, fixing them securely.

The guards looked at Wen Jing with admiration. For them, this was a novel sight. The face model taking shape in his hands was far better than the dark lump of clay before. They wondered what it would look like when finished.

“Everyone, you may leave now,” Ji Changge said to the guards, as the space was cramped and full of people was uncomfortable.

Though a bit disappointed, the guards obediently stepped outside.

After layering clay over the jaw, a complete human face finally appeared before them.

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After removing all the toothpicks, Wen Jing slowly kneaded the facial contours to smooth and round the surface.

He washed the clay off his hands and surveyed the final result. “Now we just wait for it to dry. This might take a while.”

Looking at the roughly shaped face, Ji Changge’s gaze flickered with amazement. It was incredible. Seeing Wen Jing’s exhausted expression, he felt a pang of sympathy.

“Qi Niang, go rest a bit,” he said gently.

Wen Jing shook his head. “There’s no time. There are still seven more.”

“Then tell me—I’ll help,” Ji Changge rolled up his sleeves. Having silently observed Wen Jing’s process, he roughly understood the steps involved.

“I’ll help too,” Dong Sheng stepped forward.

Wen Jing looked at the two of them in surprise but thought it over. The basic tasks of mixing clay and making toothpicks were manageable for them, and the workload was immense. Doing it alone would be impossible, so he agreed.

The three divided the work and set to it.

...

Unconsciously, dawn had broken. Ji Changge looked at Wen Jing and Dong Sheng, who were already fast asleep from exhaustion. A faint smile curled his lips. Opening the window, the first ray of morning sunlight shone upon the first dried skull. He couldn’t help but slightly part his lips...

All the Taoist nuns were summoned to the clearing in front of Lingyun Hall. They watched curiously at the long table beside Ji Changge, on which two objects were covered with black cloths. What were these mysterious things? They speculated on the reason for their summons.

Wen Jing glanced at Ruan Qinglian standing in the corner. Her disciple, Xuan Yu, was behind her. Both stared expressionlessly into the distance.

“Today, I’ve gathered all of you to help identify who this person is,” Ji Changge addressed the Taoist nuns.

They looked around but saw no other faces.

“Sir, you want us to identify someone, but where is the person?” a Taoist nun asked.

“Please be patient,” Ji Changge smiled.

The nuns stared in surprise as Ji Changge turned to the table and slowly lifted the black cloth. A head without a body appeared before them—so lifelike, and wearing a Taoist hat.

“Ahhh!” they screamed.

Ji Changge closed his eyes slightly, a smile blossoming at the corner of his mouth. The chorus of screams only proved Wen Jing’s success.

Ruan Qinglian’s composure finally broke. She fixed her gaze on the familiar face beside Ji Changge, her complexion instantly paling.

“Do you recognize who this is?” Ji Changge asked loudly.

“This... should be... Patriarch Mingjing,” Ming Xin said, her face full of fear, voice trembling.

Ji Changge beckoned Ming Xin over and said, “Can you be sure this is Taoist Mingjing?”

Ming Xin nodded. Approaching closer, she realized it wasn’t a real head, only an extremely realistic model. She felt some relief and added, “But this must be a young version of Patriarch Mingjing.”

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Ruan Qinglian stepped forward and stared unblinking at the restored head, then looked at Ji Changge in astonishment. “How did you come to know Patriarch Mingjing’s appearance?”

“Patriarch Mingjing appeared in person,” Wen Jing smiled at Ruan Qinglian.

Ruan Qinglian sneered. “Do you take me for a child? Unless you practice witchcraft, or you’ve seen Patriarch Mingjing’s portrait. This little trick won’t fool me.”

“Then what about this?” Ji Changge lifted the other black cloth.

Ming Xin and Ming Yuan suddenly screamed, then knelt, chanting something repeatedly.

Watching their behavior, Wen Jing said expressionlessly, “You should know her?”

Ming Xin bowed her head, trembling. “This is Xiaoxiao. Such a sin, such a sin.”

“You two watched her die back then. Last night, she appeared in a dream and told me she died unjustly and asked Lord Ji to seek justice for her,” Wen Jing said, looking at them.

“You’re lying. There’s no such thing as ghosts or spirits! Don’t try to scare us here!” Ruan Qinglian snapped angrily.

“Then what about Ruan Daoist’s claim to ‘exorcise demons and protect the Way’? If demons and ghosts don’t exist, why would Daoists need to exorcise them?” Wen Jing countered.

Ming Yuan glanced at Xiaoxiao’s face, then quickly lowered his head. “Young Mistress Wen has never seen Xiaoxiao. Surely Xiaoxiao’s restless soul is haunting her, hence the dream. Such a sin, such a sin.”

Ruan Qinglian eyed Wen Jing suspiciously. She thought, Ming Yuan’s words made sense. It was possible that Wen Jing had seen Mingjing’s portrait in the temple, but Xiaoxiao had no portrait. The chance Wen Jing had seen Xiaoxiao was very slim. Then how did she make this head?

“That’s all for today. Thank you, Daoists. Tomorrow, I’ll trouble you again. The others will soon be finished,” Ji Changge said to the group.

Ruan Qinglian’s eyes flickered sharply, glanced at Wen Jing, then turned and left with Xuan Yu.

...

Seeing the remaining unfinished heads, the three hurriedly resumed work.

“From now on, you must not leave Lingyun Hall. Since the news is out, the culprit might target you. Whether or not it’s Ruan Qinglian, the murderer is extremely ruthless,” Ji Changge warned.

Wen Jing nodded. She wouldn’t gamble with her life. Having decided to publicize the identities of the deceased, the culprit certainly wouldn’t remain calm. No pain, no gain.

This was a gamble. If the culprit was confident that even after uncovering all the victims’ identities, he could not be found, then no loss. If the culprit took action, the objective was achieved.

“But if the culprit didn’t want us to know the identities of those in the tomb, why kill Mingqing and lure us there?” Wen Jing asked Ji Changge, a question that had long troubled her.

Ji Changge pondered for a while. “Perhaps the culprit who killed the tomb victims is not the same as the one who killed Mingqing. Or it might be a coincidence. The culprit may not have lured us but was performing some kind of ritual. What we can say for sure is that the person who killed Mingqing, Mingxi, and the temple master is the same. According to what Zhu Chengde and Ming Yuan said, Mingqing and the temple master committed many heinous acts. The culprit might be seeking revenge?”

“Maybe the victims were killed by Mingqing and the temple master. The culprit might be a relative or friend of one of them, avenging their deaths by killing Mingqing and the temple master. If so, the culprit certainly doesn’t want us to discover the victims’ identities...”

Ji Changge’s expression grew solemn as he reviewed the entire case in his mind. He felt they were getting closer to the truth. The culprit was nearby, beckoning. Yet he regretted today’s action, recalling the Wang Erlang case last time. He still shuddered at the memory. If not for Wang Jue’s timely arrival...

If Wen Jing were harmed again, he would be culpable. He shouldn’t have listened to her suggestion. But since it was done, he had to stick close to her. Above all, he must not repeat past mistakes.

(To be continued...)