Chapter 39: A Bizarre Death

Next, he placed three emerald willow leaves in an inverted triangular pattern over the white jade buckle. In this position, the wood element was originally constrained by the damp earth, but the faint wood qi of the willow leaves acted like a fuse, subtly agitating the scattered peach-blossom water energy within the formation—the pool was situated in the Xun-Si sector; Xun represents the wind and the eldest daughter, while Si represents the snake and yin fire, both carrying the aura of a peach-blossom calamity. By utilizing the "acupuncture point" formed by the buried jade buckle, this energy was drawn upward.

Then, he sprinkled the pinch of pink crystal sand, covering the willow leaves evenly. Pink crystal belongs to fire, symbolizing peach-blossom luck. Scattering it in this position of damp earth and false fire (the Xin-Xu fire dragon) was like throwing phosphorus powder onto damp wood; while it could not burn for long, it instantly ignited a bizarre, soul-draining "false peach-blossom flame," causing it to burn with greater intensity.

Finally, he inserted the base of a pitch-black crow's tail feather deep into the pink crystal sand, with the tip pointing precisely toward the master bedroom of the villa. The crow belongs to water, possessing a cold and yin nature, symbolizing misfortune and finality. The pointed feather acted like a compass needle for malevolent energy, channeling the stimulated and magnified essence-draining and peach-blossom calamity qi through invisible "energy veins" directly toward the ultimate target: Bai Shi, who was drowning in a sea of desire within the master bedroom. Water generates wood, wood generates fire, and fire consumes earth, forming a small, sinister, and catalytic cycle.

The entire process was fluid and silent. Using his compass to pinpoint the critical juncture of the formation—the Wei position in the Kun palace, the leakage point of the Xin-Xu dividing line—he leveraged the existing peach-blossom calamity. With just a few ordinary items imbued with symbolic meaning, placed in specific orientations and manners, he completed a "calamity-inducing and omen-triggering" setup that exerted a massive influence with minimal force. There were no earth-shattering energy fluctuations, only the most subtle and lethal guidance of the natural energy field. After finishing, Yang Rui quickly covered his tracks, leaving not a single flaw. As if he had never been there, he vanished silently into the night.

The effect of this "Peach Blossom Calamity Trigger" was not an immediate death. It acted like a chronic poison, quietly exacerbating the burden on Bai Shi’s already fear-hollowed body, amplifying his indulgent desires, and accelerating the exhaustion of his vital essence. According to Yang Rui's calculations, in as little as one or two months, or at most half a year, Bai Shi would inevitably collapse entirely from extreme indulgence, becoming a withered husk plagued by illness, eventually dying from some "accident" or "sudden acute illness." It would be a form of "retribution" that unfolded from within, perfectly consistent with the laws of nature.

Returning to the small courtyard in Xiyuan Village, Yang Rui felt as if a heavy burden had been lifted, yet he acted as if nothing had happened. He continued to read, take walks, and chat with Auntie Zhou. Only occasionally, his gaze toward the city would grow deep and inscrutable.

A few days later, explosive news swept through the city’s tabloids and online gossip headlines:

"Hengtai President Bai Shi Hit by Scandal! Suspected of Sudden Death During Wild Party with Third-Tier Starlet 'Lillian' at Villa!"

The reports vividly described the scene: the luxurious villa, the disheveled bedroom, scattered wine bottles and stimulants, and two naked bodies on the bed—one was Bai Shi, already lifeless with a sallow, grey complexion and sunken eye sockets, and the other was the starlet, terrified out of her wits and incoherent. The medical examiner’s preliminary finding was "acute cardiac arrest." Combined with the circumstances on the scene, public opinion generally speculated it was a "heart attack induced by overexertion and excessive stimulation."

When the news reached Xiyuan Village, Auntie Zhou sighed repeatedly: "Tsk tsk, the rich, playing so wildly that they’ve lost their lives!"

Yang Rui was watering the herbs in the corner of the courtyard. At her words, his hand paused slightly, and a drop of water fell onto a leaf, crystal clear. He looked up toward the distant mountains, his brows furrowing almost imperceptibly, his eyes flashing with a profound and heavy sense of doubt.

It was too fast!

The "catalytic formation" he had laid could never have achieved a lethal effect in just a few days! It should have been, at most, the final straw that broke the camel's back, but Bai Shi—this camel—should not have been crushed in such a short time! The rate of his life-force depletion far exceeded expectations!

Su Jin’s call came in almost at the same moment the news broke. Her voice carried shock and a trace of hard-to-detect probing: "Yang Rui! Did you see the news? Bai Shi... he’s dead! And it happened... so suddenly!"

"Yes, I saw it," Yang Rui’s voice was calm and waveless, devoid of any emotion. "Heaven’s punishments may be avoided, but those who bring disaster upon themselves cannot survive. It is merely retribution."

"But..." Su Jin hesitated on the other end of the line. "The way he died... it’s too suspicious. The coroner says it was a sudden heart attack, but... something feels wrong. You..." She did not continue, but the implication was clear.

"Dr. Su," Yang Rui interrupted her, his tone carrying a deliberate sense of distance. "How he died is for the coroner and the police to investigate. We... should focus on our own affairs." He paused, then added, "I’ve recovered enough here; I’ll be back in the city in a couple of days."

Hanging up the phone, Yang Rui stood in the silent courtyard, the mountain breeze tugging at his clothes. He looked at the news photo of Bai Shi’s sallow, distorted face in death. He felt no sense of satisfaction, only cold suspicion coiling around him like vines.

His "formation" was merely a catalyst, certainly not the lethal blow.

Who was it?

Who, after him, had precisely delivered that truly fatal strike?

Was it the mantis stalking the cicada, with the oriole behind?

Or... was there a deeper, more dangerous vortex hidden behind the seemingly settled storm at the River-Suppressing Pagoda?

Bai Shi’s sudden death was not the end. It was like a stone cast into a deep pool; it seemed to stir only a ripple, but it might have awakened something far more terrifying lurking at the bottom. Yang Rui knew his brief period of peace was over. A new, more inscrutable storm was already brewing in silence.