Chapter 247 The Truth Comes Late

He was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly choked, his expression turning ugly.

Ling Xiaoning opened his eyes groggily. Startled by the thud of Wan Chongshan's hammer, he shuddered and nearly rolled off the bed, but Shen Suning quickly steadied him.

"Wh-what's wrong? Did the monsters come back?"

Ling Xiaoning's voice was hoarse, his mind still muddled as he instinctively reached for the dagger by his pillow.

"It's nothing, Brother Wan just spoke a bit too loudly." Shen Suning quickly soothed him in a soft voice.

Only then did Ling Xiaoning slowly wake up. He realized there was nothing major wrong with his body, though his left arm was still bandaged and felt somewhat numb. He sat there dazed for a while before slowly recalling what happened yesterday.

"Chen Mu..." He looked toward the silent figure by the window.

"Has it been resolved? I seem to remember hearing you say something about a larger one?"

Chen Mu shook his head. "No, it escaped."

Ling Xiaoning gave a soft "oh" and didn't press further. He just huddled into his quilt, unsure if it was from cold or lingering fear.

The room fell into a brief silence again. After a while, Chen Mu suddenly stood up and, without a word, walked quickly toward the door.

The wooden door was half-ajar, and a cool morning breeze seeped in through the gap. Chen Mu crouched before the door, pushed it open a few inches, and used the faint light filtering through to inspect the inside of the door panel inch by inch.

From the edge of the door, to the hinges, to the slot for the door latch.

The door latch was made of old elm wood, smooth and glossy. It was thick and sturdy, with both ends slotted securely into iron brackets, fitting perfectly and as steady as a mountain.

At first glance, there was nothing unusual.

But Chen Mu didn't move. He remained crouched there, his gaze narrowing as it fell on a spot slightly to the left of the center of the latch.

He reached out and lightly traced the surface of the wooden latch with his fingertips.

There were a few scratches, extremely fine and shallow, across the smooth surface of the latch, like a wound.

Chen Mu leaned in closer.

At the bottom of the scratches was a tiny speck of dark brown. It wasn't rust, nor was it old grime; it was dried blood.

Chen Mu's pupils contracted. He withdrew his hand and stood up.

"There are claw marks on the door latch."

Wan Chongshan stepped forward abruptly, leaning in to look. Feng Qing also walked over to the door, and Shen Suning stood beside Chen Mu, her eyes fixed on the nearly imperceptible shallow marks.

Wan Chongshan's Adam's apple bobbed slightly.

"Claw marks..."

He repeated, murmuring, then suddenly looked up, a flash of incredulous clarity in his eyes.

"You mean... they didn't take the girl through the gaps."

Chen Mu nodded.

"They opened the door first, then latched it back."

"The six Blood Bats snuck into the house first and used toxins to paralyze the girl so she wouldn't struggle or call for help."

"Then, the largest one—or perhaps more than one—worked together to lift the latch."

Shen Suning's face turned pale, and Wan Chongshan clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking.

"Once the latch was open, the Bat King could easily push the door open, take the person, leave, and then... push the latch back into place before squeezing out through the gap."

"The door would still be latched."

Wan Chongshan stared blankly at the door latch. It was something his father had personally crafted and polished while he was still alive. He and Xiao Yuan had opened and closed it countless times since they were children, yet now, it seemed so strange.

Shen Suning murmured to herself.

"They actually... managed to do this..."

Feng Qing also said coldly.

"So the doors and windows were intact because they were opened from the inside from the beginning."

Wan Chongshan's voice was dry. He paused, as if still sorting through the chaotic thoughts in his mind.

"No... why would they... go to so much trouble?"

"Since they are monsters, they could have just snatched the person away. They could have smashed the door or broken the window. How much resistance could a young girl put up? Why go through the effort of doing it so... so..."

He struggled for a long time before finding a barely suitable word.

"So painstakingly?"

No one answered. Feng Qing silently lowered his eyelids. Ling Xiaoning leaned against the edge of the bed, opening his mouth, but no sound came out.

After a while, Shen Suning spoke slowly.

"Perhaps it didn't want to alert us."

Chen Mu glanced at her. Shen Suning paused and continued.

"Not that it didn't want to alert the villagers, but that it didn't want to alert the Demon Suppression Division."

Wan Chongshan was taken aback.

"It didn't want to alert the Demon Suppression Division? It was already harming people, so why would it be afraid of alarming us?"

Chen Mu looked thoughtful, then nodded.

"That's right. If it broke down the door violently every time, leaving behind thick Demonic Qi and signs of a struggle, the county yamen constables would immediately know it was the work of a monster and would certainly report it to the Prefecture Demon Suppression Division. Once the Demon Suppression Division takes notice, they wouldn't send local constables, but true monster-hunting experts."

"But what if the doors and windows are intact? When the constables come to investigate, they turn everything over and find no clues, so they can only file it as an unsolved case. A girl vanishes into thin air—no sign of life, no corpse. Even if it spreads and people get suspicious, no one would dare conclude it was the work of a monster."

As he spoke, his gaze fell on the door latch.

"The longer they drag it out, the more girls they can abduct."

Wan Chongshan felt a chill run down his spine.

"So... it wasn't afraid it couldn't beat us; it was afraid of its identity being exposed and inviting unnecessary trouble?"

Feng Qing nodded.

"It has already gained sentience; it knows how to assess the situation."

The mystery was solved.

The claw marks on the door latch, the dried blood, and the elm latch that had been lifted and replaced proved that the Blood Bat monsters didn't pass through walls. They were simply smart enough to restore everything to its original state after snatching their prey.

But this truth had come too late.

In last night's ambush, all six Blood Bats were exterminated, and the Bat King had fled, wounded. Six monsters died in Kaoshan Village in a single night, but it had also completely alerted the beast.

Chen Mu stood in Wan Chongshan's house, looking at the bright daylight outside, and fell into deep thought.

The ambush had succeeded, but it had also failed.

The monster had been scared off and would absolutely not set foot in Kaoshan Village again for a short time, but the four missing girls—were they still alive? Where were they hidden?

The trail... had gone cold.

"Brother Chen, what do we do next?"

Wan Chongshan's voice was hoarse, carrying the exhaustion of a sleepless night, and even more so, a nearly desperate anxiety.

Chen Mu didn't answer immediately. He just lowered his eyes, his fingers tapping unconsciously against the hilt of his soul-slaying blade.

Once, twice, three times.

Wan Chongshan couldn't wait for an answer. His throat bobbed, and he wanted to ask again, but Shen Suning stopped him with a gentle shake of her head.

A long time later, Chen Mu's fingertips stopped on the hilt, and he raised his eyes.

"Li Tiezui."

"The fact that the monster came yesterday proves that he must be colluding with it. Now that the beast has run off, Li Tiezui is the only living lead."

Wan Chongshan's pupils contracted sharply. He then turned abruptly and grabbed the hook-sickle spear leaning against the door.

"I'll lead the way right now!"

Chen Mu nodded and was about to follow, but after a moment, his footsteps paused, and he turned toward the bed.

"Xiao Ning, you've lost too much blood and still need to rest. Stay here."

Ling Xiaoning immediately shook his head like a rattle-drum. He braced himself against the bed to stand up, stiffening his neck.

"No, I want to see what that Li fellow looks like too."

Then he added in a low voice.

"If you throw me here all by myself and that bat sends a few more runts, what am I supposed to do..."

The more he spoke, the more righteous he sounded. Although he lacked strength, his tone was very stubborn.

"Anyway, I'm following you. Wherever you go, I go. If we die, we die together."

Chen Mu glanced at him. Without any extra words, he just nodded and turned to leave.