Early the next morning, everyone went their separate ways. Zhang Yuanshan and Qian Yiduo went to the market town to buy some magical instruments and daily necessities, while Li Bing accompanied Shi Liya and Zhao Wan'er to view the mountain scenery.
In the evening, everyone returned to the hotel, rested for a while, and went out to have dinner together. After dinner, the few people who returned to the hotel began to chat about what they had done that day.
While everyone was chatting, Zhao Wan'er was busy putting the photos she took during the day into her laptop. The other four people were chatting and felt bored, so they started playing cards. When the atmosphere was getting lively, Zhao Wan'er, who was sitting in front of the computer, suddenly exclaimed, "Look, where is this?"
Everyone was stunned. Li Bing said in surprise, "Wan'er, weren't these photos taken during our daytime outing? There are no scenic spots in this mountainous area. Who knows where they are?"
Zhao Wan'er snorted and said, "Li Bing, you must have been kicked in the head by a donkey. I'm not asking about the place name. Come and take a look at this photo to see if it looks familiar to you."
Li Bing was stunned and quickly put down the cards in his hand. Several people gathered in front of the computer and looked at it for a long time. Everyone was stunned. It turned out that Li Bing took a group photo of Zhao Wan'er and Shi Liya. The background really made everyone feel familiar, but they couldn't tell where they had seen it before.
Li Bing suddenly shouted, "Could this be the place where old man Songyang lived in seclusion? Look at those faint hills in the back, don't they look very similar?"
After Li Bing's reminder, everyone couldn't help but exclaimed. It was unbelievable that the place where Zhao Wan'er and Shi Liya took the photo, the shooting position and angle were highly consistent with the photo that Zhang Ping took out.
But then something puzzling happened. In Zhang Ping's photo, there was a low thatched cottage where the old man Songyang lived on the hillside behind him. But in the photo in front of him, there was no thatched cottage, but there was an isolated grave.
"Zhang Ping is lying." Li Bing said to himself, "Why is it that in the same place, at the same angle, the thatched cottage behind him has become a lonely grave?"
Li Bing suddenly broke out in a cold sweat: "Oh no, Zhang Ping is a ghost. He is the evil ghost who really wants to absorb Xiaoli's essence. Brother Zhang, what do you think?"
Zhang Yuanshan said with a confused look on his face: "I am confused too. Let me think about it carefully. If Zhang Ping is a ghost, then is Xiaoxia a ghost? Could it be that both of them are ghosts in disguise?"
Qian Yiduo stammered, "You can't say that. I grew up in the mountains. Many places have certain mountains as the background. Even if they are not in the same place, because of the visual difference, it feels like they are in the same place."
Shi Liya said, "Yes, what Brother Qian said makes sense. Maybe these two places are just very similar. It doesn't necessarily mean that Zhang Ping's photo is fake."
Li Bing hesitated for a moment and said, "This is easy to handle. We can find out if we go there again. Wan'er, Sister Shi, you two should not go. Let Brother Qian take care of anything. Brother Zhang and I will go there again to find out what's going on."
Without saying a word, Li Bing pulled Zhang Yuanshan and headed straight for the SUV parked in front of the hotel. After starting the vehicle, they immediately drove in the direction of their daytime outing.
Soon, Li Bing arrived at the place where he had played with Zhao Wan'er and Shi Liya during the day. He stopped the car, looked in the direction of the small hills, and tried to find the position where he had taken photos during the day.
However, although he knew the road during the day, it was very difficult for him to find the same location in the dark. Li Bing looked for a while and was sighing when he suddenly saw a dim light on the hillside.
He and Zhang Yuanshan looked at each other for a few times, their hands tightly clasped together, already understanding each other's intentions. Zhang Yuanshan and Li Bing carefully approached the lighted house step by step.
After a few cups of tea, the two men had approached the house. It was a low thatched cottage, and they could vaguely see an old man sitting under a kerosene lamp.
Li Bing was very nervous and whispered, "Brother Zhang, could this thatched cottage and that old man be the old man Songyang that Xiaoxia and Zhang Ping mentioned separately?"
Zhang Yuanshan whispered, "We can't rule out this possibility. It's really weird to suddenly see a low thatched house with a single door and a single household here. Li Bing, do you feel the yin energy?"
Li Bing said softly, "Brother Zhang, I don't know if it's the Yin Qi or the chill of late autumn, but I do feel a cold wind blowing on my body. However, I feel something is wrong. This cold wind seems to feel warm at the same time. It's a really weird feeling."
Zhang Yuanshan sighed, "Li Bing, maybe you are right. I also feel that the yin and yang here blend together, which is indescribably strange. You have accumulated energy from several adventures in your body, and you may be able to sense things much more strongly than I can."
"Welcome two distinguished guests. Now that you are here, there is no need to hide. The door is open, please come in." A loud voice suddenly came from the hut.
Li Bing and Zhang Yuanshan were shocked and lay on the side of the road for a moment, not daring to move. The voice said with a smile, "You two, I invited you. I knew you would come tonight, and I have been waiting for a long time. Show up."
Li Bing and Zhang Yuanshan were shocked, but they dared not hide anymore. They came out from the bushes by the roadside, moved step by step into the thatched cottage, stood at the door and said, "Li Bing and Zhang Yuanshan are here to visit the old man."
The old man in the house said with a smile, "Come in!", and then the door opened wide. Li Bing and Zhang Yuanshan were shocked and walked into the house slowly.
There was an octagonal table in the middle of the room, and an old man with a sage-like appearance was sitting beside the table. A kerosene lamp was lit on the table. Under the light, the old man's face was flushed and he looked energetic.
The old man stroked his long beard and said, "I am a hermit from Ciyuan Pavilion, calling myself Old Man Songyang. I have received the order from Senior Li Chunfeng and am waiting for you two to come here."
Li Bing was shocked and stammered, "Li… Li Chunfeng, he asked you to wait for us."
The old man Songyang looked at Li Bing and said with a smile: "It seems that the dream I had was not false. As expected, a strange person came today. Your name is Li Bing."
Li Bing nodded and replied respectfully, "I am Li Bing. I wonder what Elder Songyang wants me to do for you."
Old Man Songyang said with a smile: "Li Bing, your ancestor is Li Chunfeng, a great man in the early Tang Dynasty . You should know this clearly. Your hard work along the way is the arrangement of fate. Li Bing, I know that you are close to solving the mystery of Qianling Mausoleum, but have you ever thought about why you have to go through so many hardships along the way?"
Li Bing said in panic: "Please explain to me, Elder Songyang. I only know that the things that happened along the way, such as the night shadows and the yin and yang , are a test for us, just like the 81 trials that Tang Monk had to go through."