I can't be a demon

According to the rules of martial arts, he only wore a single layer of clothes.

Shen Lian had just left the pawn shop and was blown by the biting cold wind. He began to miss the stove in the shop and couldn't help sighing.

"Hey."

"Ahhh~"

The starling gloated and screamed.

Shen Lian didn't bother to pay attention to the starling and walked quickly towards the Chaoxiong martial arts hall.

At this time, the atmosphere of the New Year in Yanliang Town was already very strong. There were lights and decorations everywhere, children playing on the street corners, and every household posted blessing characters.

"It's a pity that I don't know when Old Man Shen will come back."

Shen Lian was a little worried about Shen Hansheng.

In theory, the route to Gaojia Town had been arranged, and the pawn business had not been problematic, so it should be fine.

"Huh?"

When Shen Lian approached the street where the martial arts hall was located, he suddenly heard a sobbing sound. There were men and women in mourning, and paper money was scattered all over the ground.

People gathered outside the alley at the entrance of the street.

"The old lady of the Chen family is so miserable. She just celebrated her 70th birthday last month, right?"

"Yes, I heard that the youngest son woke up and saw his mother lying on the edge of the bed with her skin peeled off."

"Where did the bad guy come from? This has probably happened three or four times this month."

"She died without a complete body."

………

The people were talking about it, and Shen Lian frowned slightly after hearing it.

"Zhu Sanxing?"

Shen Lian was secretly shocked. The government used all its manpower to investigate the corpse peeling case, and even the Jinwu Guards had been dispatched, but there was still no clue.

He thought that even if the government could not catch Zhu Sanxing, the latter would be more restrained.

Now it seems that Zhu Sanxing is quite willing to commit crimes against the wind.

The target of the crime was actually a 70-year-old woman.

Shen Lian muttered to himself, "It's not the ghost in Caotang Miscellany, how can it come and go freely in densely populated residential areas?"

"Haha, no wonder the gangs have been quiet recently."

At this time, twenty or thirty constables swarmed out of the alley, and the people retreated one after another, and at the same time, a pungent fishy smell hit them in the face.

"It stinks." The myna crawled into Shen Lian's sleeve.

"It is indeed a corpse peeling case."

The old woman's body was wrapped in linen and tied with several circles of red rope.

If the body died tragically, red ropes are indispensable in Yanliang Town. It is said that it prevents the exposed evil spirit from disturbing the living.

Zhu Yihong followed with a solemn expression, staring at the body.

After not seeing each other for a long time, Shen Lian found that Zhu Yihong's hair became more dry and rough, probably due to some special characteristics caused by practicing martial arts.

Zhu Yihong shouted: "Silence! From today, Xicheng District will be under curfew. The posted notice will be taken down in a moment."

Zhu Yihong left after saying this, and disappeared at the end of the street with many constables.

The smell of blood lingered in the air.

The people could not help but show fear on their faces, and then they all ran to tell each other.

"Curfew..."

In Shen Lian's impression, Yanliang Town has not had a curfew in recent years, which shows how difficult it is for the government to deal with Zhu Sanxing.

But why is it limited to Xicheng District only?

"Ah!!!"

Shen Lian came back to his senses in the long cry of the starling.

"The pawnshop and the tide martial arts hall are both in the scope of Xicheng District. I hope nothing will go wrong."

Shen Lian did not delve into the corpse stripping case. Since even the government was helpless, it was not something that he, a commoner, could control.

"Starling, let's go."

The starling hovered at the entrance of the alley, and its dark eyes seemed to be looking at something.

Shen Lian went to the Tide Martial Arts Hall without looking back. The starling quickly flapped its wings and landed on his shoulder, continuing to comb its feathers.

Not long after he left, there was a clucking sound in the alley.

The people around could not hear any sound at all, and the constables on duty did not show any abnormality, except that some mice were scrambling to escape.

A few drops of blood flowing from the linen cloth flowed for no reason, gathering together little by little, and attached to the moss growing in the dampness of the wall.

The moss became brighter and brighter red.

It was as if minced meat had stained the wall, and it was growing rapidly with time.

Some people looked at the entrance of the alley. It was pitch black and pitch dark. The wind was whistling, and a creepy sound came suddenly.

From a perspective that ordinary people could not see, an old woman crawled out of the wall little by little.

The old woman was about seventy years old, with ravines on her face, dull pupils without eyeballs, and age spots like corpse spots.

After she completely left the wall, her skin became smooth at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"Who?!!"

The constable held a lantern and looked inside, but there was no one.

The lantern was moved away.

In the transition between light and dark, the old woman in the shadow disappeared, replaced by a young woman holding a green umbrella to cover her facial features.

The woman covered her mouth and chuckled, looking at the back of Shen Lian not far away. The instinct from the new ghost made her stare at the young man with abundant blood.

Then, she turned into a human skin and penetrated into the gap of the wall bricks.

………

What is a painted skin ghost?

It was extremely ugly when it was alive, and turned into a ghost after death. It likes to eat human hearts. It usually uses women's skins to paint and wrap its body.

If the painted skin ghost devours ninety-nine and eighty-one human hearts, it will no longer be satisfied with disguising itself as a woman.

The greed of the bottomless pit makes the painted skin ghost repeatedly seek comfort from skinning, and the discarded skin will turn into a new ghost.

[Skin Ghost]

Chapter 7 Second Occupation [Martial Artist]

As soon as Shen Lian approached the entrance of the martial arts hall, a dozen children poked their heads out.

"Hello, Senior Brother."

Bai Haibo had told the children in advance that Shen Lian would be the senior brother of the martial arts school from now on and would receive the true teachings of the Chaoxi martial arts school.

"Happy New Year to all the junior brothers."

Shen Lian nodded and distributed the red envelopes containing copper coins to the junior brothers.

The children took them happily.

"Huh."

Shen Lian found a strange-looking boy in the courtyard, looking at him timidly.

The boy was thin, with delicate skin, slightly sharp teeth, translucent fish scales on his neck, and a thin film between his palms.

It looked like an aquatic animal.

"Are you Master Bai's son? It's okay, come here."

The boy hesitated for a moment, then ran towards Shen Lian. The children around him were immediately afraid, but they did not avoid him.

Shen Lian touched the boy's head and couldn't help asking, "What's your name?"

"Big Brother, my name is... Bai Jinbao."

"Thank you, Big Brother."

After taking the New Year's money, Bai Jinbao disappeared into the backyard of the martial arts hall.

"Hai Min, you're really weird."

Without Bai Jinbao, the other children were much more relaxed. They stole a glance at the starling on Shen Lian's shoulder, their eyes full of curiosity.

"Ah, a handsome man and a beautiful bird~"

The starling enjoyed the children's admiring gazes, puffed out his chest and combed his black feathers. Its appearance was definitely close to that of a large bird of prey.