A common tavern that connects all fantasy worlds

The few people were terrified, and couldn't help but lower their heads to look at the woman's feet, and they saw brown tree roots faintly protruding from the corner of her skirt, spreading into the ground below her.

Taking a closer look with the lamp held in her hand, the woman's outstretched wrist and a small piece of neck exposed under the veil are also covered with brown and black bark, which clearly does not belong to the world.

Chinese legends of gods and monsters often believe that all things have spirits, and it is not uncommon for trees to take human form and speak human words.If it has killed or harmed people, it is naturally a dryad or a dryad; if it has appeared to help others, then it is a tree fairy.The woman in front of her doesn't know where she came from, and she doesn't know good and evil, so she has to be called a tree spirit.

But it seems that she has good intentions.

The lady "walked" forward, and the tree roots at the bottom of her skirt were wriggling and crawling, which made several young people's eyes widen.She came close, stretched out her hand to caress the locust tree, and continued in that nervous tone:

"This is not a product of nature...but the flesh and blood of a knight. The undead surround this place, weeping for their heads..."

Ikab seemed to have thought of something suddenly, picked up the shovel on one side, glanced at the lady, and swung it towards the middle of the withered trunk of the locust tree.

The expected scene of sawdust splashing did not happen. The tree was cut with a wound, and a stream of blood spewed out along the arc of the shovel from the middle of the bark, spraying him in the face.

Uncle Jiu and his two apprentices hurried forward to pull him away, then glanced at the lady again.

Ms. Tree Spirit nodded, stretched out her left hand, turned into a long branch, entangled the shovel and the tree trunk, she didn't know what she did, just saw the shovel was pulled out, and a large piece of bark followed her. The movements came crashing down.

Several dead heads rolled all over the ground in a pool of blood. Ikab wiped the blood off his face and took a closer look, and he screamed again.

He didn't know anyone else, but the one in the middle was obviously Reverend Stingway!

Uncle Jiu at the side also took a look, his eyelids twitched, and said angrily: "This is really a demon tree, we will burn it soon!"

"...can't be burned... until the knight's head is returned, you have nothing to do with him."

Ms. Shuling said, and stretched out her hand to Uncle Jiu.

Uncle Jiu saw that her white palm mixed with small pieces of brown and black bark was spreading out, and there were four small pine cones in the palm.

"Take this...go east from here and you'll find the answer....If you need to hide, just hide behind a pine tree and call my name..."

Uncle Jiu took the pine cone, and when he looked up again, the woman had completely disappeared.

Beside the dead locust tree, the raised mound suddenly bulged and opened, and the thick root system carried a large mass of soil back, and the lid of the wooden coffin was lifted by the way.

Inside lay a skeleton with a long sword in its hand... but like several of the victims in Sleepy Hollow Mortuary, there was no head in the coffin.

This is the tomb of the Hessian knight.

Uncle Jiu suddenly thought of something, raised his head and called, "What's your name?"

The lady's murmur was faintly heard in the air, and gradually faded away with the sound of the wind: "... Lisa..."

Chapter 28 The Man in the Mist

"Are we going to trust the 'Sapling'?"

On the way to the east, Ikab was still questioning Uncle Jiu suspiciously.

Uncle Jiu nodded and said to him: "You told me before you went out...the so-called 'wizards' and 'witches' here call themselves 'children of nature', right?"

"That's right, that's what my mother said." Ichab also rode alongside him, nodding in response.

"That's right... the first sentence of the 'tree spirit' after it appeared was that we brought disaster to 'her'. I thought about it carefully, this sentence refers to the witch who wanted to scare us away There is no one else. It seems that the witches here regard 'nature' as their god, and I guess the one we met is protected by the spirit of the pine tree. As for the disaster in the mouth of the tree spirit, the murderer must have known that we are going to I'm here to find the witch, so I'll kill you first."

As Uncle Jiu said, he couldn't help sighing, it was because they were not careful enough to kill innocent people.

Under their urging, several horses sped up and ran towards the east, so that several people could only lie down on the horses, avoiding the hanging branches of the trees in the forest.

Not long after, what the tree spirit lady wanted them to find appeared... a hut.

The fireplace, beds, and books in the cabin are all in order, and it can be seen that the original owner took life here very seriously.But now it was impossible for her to get up to entertain guests again. When Uncle Jiu and the others came in, they saw her lying on the ground with her head in a different place. The veiled head was still downcast, retaining the expression of the last moment before death.

It wasn't the Headless Horseman who killed her, because her head hadn't been brought back to the locust tree; a bloody, sharp ax was thrown aside and looked like the murder weapon.

Ikab inspected the scene and shook his head at Uncle Jiu: "No, there are no traces of fighting, and there is no way to deduce who the murderer is..."

Uncle Jiu squeezed the pine cone in his hand, and said thoughtfully: "...she is a witch, so she should have some magic power. Besides, that 'tree spirit' couldn't have led us here for no reason. .”

"Master, what do you mean..." Qiu Sheng stepped forward and asked.

"Of course I invite ghosts." Uncle Jiu replied.

Wen Cai also followed Qiu Sheng forward. Hearing Uncle Jiu's words, he said doubtfully, "It's not time to return to the soul, and Master, you don't have magic power. How can you invite ghosts?"

"We have friends from the spirit world to help."

As Uncle Jiu said, he showed the pine cone in his hand.

Normally, a concubine would ask for rice for someone, and she would always know the name and date of birth of the dead, so that she could cross the boundary between life and death, and drag the underground people up to have a chat with their relatives; Using the most primitive way, I hope the tree spirit can help.When she was at the locust tree, she said something similar to "Dead Souls Weep", so she should also have the ability to communicate Yin and Yang!

Uncle Nine led Ikab and two apprentices to stand beside the witch's corpse, holding arms with each other, holding pine cones in each hand, whispering: "Lisa... Lisa...we found your 'Kid', need to ask her a few questions... Let her show up to us..."

After repeating this silently a few times, Uncle Jiu felt the cold engulfing his body, and secretly said "here it is", and when he asked the others to open their eyes, they couldn't help but startled at the same time.

I don't know when there was a layer of fog in front of me, and it was no longer the scene in that hut.

When the fog faded, several people looked forward and saw two very similar little girls playing while looking for less damp branches on the snow-covered hillside.

Suddenly someone shouted in the distance, "Grab that Hessian, grab that Hessian!"

With this cry, a man in armor suddenly emerged from the bushes.

Uncle Jiu and the others recognized the armor at a glance. Isn't this the same as the Headless Horseman?It's just that in the mist, his head was still on his neck, just as the wanted poster described, with fangs, hooked nose, and hair standing up.

This face on the battlefield will definitely make the enemy fearful, but in this dead end, he looks a bit embarrassed instead.

Seeing the two little girls, he raised his finger and made a "shh" motion.

It's just that one of the girls raised the branch in her hand and snapped it off.

In the silent woodland, this movement was enough to attract the attention of the pursuers, and the footsteps on the other side of the bush suddenly became hurried.The Hessian didn't bother to attack the child, and continued to flee in a hurry.

A thick fog drifted past, and the scene changed again.

Appearing in the woods were two teenage girls who were recognizable at a glance as the grown-up twins; one of the girls shouted to the other: "I just want their whole family to die. When there are enough materials, we will use witchcraft to wake up the Hessian knights, kill them all, and take all the property of Fang Galei, who told them to drive us out of the house, and give the house to Fantaso and the others!"

"We are the serfs of Van Garley, sister. That was the master's house, and we have to move out if he wants us to move out. And...it's just a thatched cottage..."

"Nonsense, nonsense! If you want to help me, go to Fantasuo's house with me and be a maid, or you can get out of the way. If you hinder me, I will show you!"

Saying this, the angrier girl lifted her skirt and ran down the mountain angrily.

The fog in front of Uncle Jiu's eyes became thicker and thicker, and finally covered all the space around them.

At the end of the fog, a figure came slowly.

That was exactly what the witch looked like now, only without her head on her shoulders, and only a river of blood poured down her front, dyeing her white veil dress red with blood.

Holding her veiled head in both hands, she walked slowly towards several people.

"You haven't left Sleepy Hollow...she won't let you go..."

The voice of the witch came from the head held at the waist.

Uncle Jiu blinked and asked, "...that was your memory just now, you are that younger sister, and it is your older sister who controls the Headless Horseman, right?"

"That's right...that's my twin sister, Mrs. Fantaso."

The witch's next sentence exploded, making Ichab's eyes widen.Yes, that's right, Mrs. Fantasso also has the same motive, and she has an improper relationship with the pastor. It is possible to learn the secret behind the widow's pregnancy from the pastor!

Before going to the tavern, he accidentally revealed that Uncle Jiu had seen this witch. Mrs. Fantaso was also there at the time, so she came back today and killed her own sister!

And... Mrs. Fantaso was also a witch, she knew how to control knights.

Sure enough, Uncle Jiu asked again: "Your sister took the knight's head, so she can control him, right?"

"Yes...she abandoned the spirit of nature we once served, and threw herself into the arms of black witchcraft. She threatened the undead knights with her head. No one can escape from the Hessian knights..." The witch replied, "She has already set her sights on you, and the killing can only be stopped by stealing the head from her... Hurry up, hurry up, she is about to finish..."

The surrounding fog quickly rushed in, covering her voice and figure.

Uncle Ninth's eyes suddenly lit up, and they found that they were still in the witch's hut, standing in front of the beheaded body, and the horses neighing softly outside the window.

"someone is coming."

Ikab came back to his senses, and hurried to the window to look out.

A person in a white cloak was riding towards here, with a petite figure and a pointed chin, it was Miss Katrina Fantaso.

"Katrina! Here, come in!" Ichab immediately opened the window and shouted, while looking around nervously.

He didn't know how strong Mrs. Fantaso's black witchcraft was, but the girl came to the forest alone at this time was enough to worry him.

Uncle Jiu quickly stopped him and said, "You don't want that little girl to see this, do you?"

Ichab looked back at the witch's body, thought it was right, and hurried to the door to stop the girl who had just dismounted.

"How did you come here?" he asked.

Katrina first kissed his face, and then whispered in his ear: "...I dreamed that you were attacked by the headless horsemen in my dream, and it was the 'spirit' that gave me the prophecy...I will not Leaving you alone in danger, Iqab."

"But just thinking of putting you in the same danger, I am already burning with anxiety." Ichab said, he could not accept the one he loved to leave him again... But the Headless Horseman is too powerful, behind him Mrs. Fantaso must get rid of all obstacles to inheritance.As the only daughter of Master Fantaso, Katrina is obviously one of the so-called "obstacles".

This time, instead of comforting him, Katrina stared into his eyes and whispered to him, "Trust me, Ichab. I'm a witch, have you forgotten? I have the ability to protect myself, and I have the ability to protect you." , don’t exclude me from this matter.”

"I think Miss Katrina is right."

While the two were chattering, Uncle Jiu had already walked over.He stroked his beard, and continued without the consciousness of spoiling the scenery in this warm moment, "That woman must send the headless horseman to hunt her down, we have to tell her what happened..."

Ichab nodded helplessly. He knew that Uncle Jiu was right, so he began to organize his words, intending to tell Katrina what they discovered.

When he was thinking about where to start, looking at Katrina's big eyes, a flash of inspiration suddenly appeared in his mind.

"Wait, Uncle Ninth... She has killed the witch now, which means she has eliminated all the evidence and traces that have appeared in this incident... But she doesn't know what information we have. We can take advantage of this Come to lie to her, let her think that we are still suspicious of Master Fantaso, and don't pay attention to us for the time being!"

"Then we can hide in the dark and try to get the Hessian knight's head back." Uncle Jiu immediately picked up his words.

"Then it's better to go deeper and make her think we've been driven back to New York and can no longer hinder her actions!" said Ichab, turning suddenly to Katrina: "beautiful witch, you will come with me Do you want to play a play?"

Chapter 29 The Volunteer Takes the Bait

Later, news came from Fantaso's house that Mr. Botus Fantaso fell into a coma under extreme grief and sorrow because of his wife's disappearance, and it is likely that he will die soon.

After Dr. Lancaster went for diagnosis and treatment, he also reluctantly announced that it was impossible for Master Fantaso to wake up again.

Miss Katrina Fantaso, who lost her fiancé and father one after another, was in tears all day long, but the locals witnessed another strange thing.

The police officer Corin from New York and his three Chinese friends boarded the carriage and returned to New York after Mr. Fan was diagnosed.

At that time, Miss Katrina rushed out to try to keep them back, but Officer Corin said coldly: "The villain has many faces, but the most dangerous one is the innocent one."

Everyone felt that this was secretly accusing Miss Katrina. After all, the Van Garley and Fantaso families are the two richest families in the local area, and they are still relatives; as long as Master Fantaso dies, Miss Katrina can inherit. Property so huge that you could buy the entire town and the two surrounding mountains.

In the evening, Miss Katrina went out sadly, refused all the servants to follow, and said that she would visit her mother.

As we all know, the current Mrs. Fantaso is actually the continuation of the master... Before her, there was another woman in this position, Miss Katrina's biological mother.

Katrina returned to Fantasso's old house—the house with its stone walls and thatched roof, where a warm family once lived, but was abandoned and demolished because it was too small.

During the several years of living here, she has never felt a day of unhappiness.But after moving into the big house and hiring a house full of maids, it's been a long time since she laughed from the bottom of her heart. In high society, she became an alert, intelligent, discreet woman with impeccable manners. The walking dead.

Until the arrival of that naive and reckless New York police officer who seemed to have endless vitality... The time spent with him in the past few days was even more unforgettable for her than the fine clothes and fine food in the previous few years.

Thinking of this, she stood in the ruins of the old house again and shed tears.

There is a lush forest in front, and the lights of human settlements in the back, and she stands here alone, as if she should not belong to any of them.

"It's amazing... how dare you still go out at night alone. Did that little man from New York get you out of your head, Katrina?"

Just when Katrina was sad, a familiar voice came from behind the stone wall, and then appeared the black pattern on the dress, which was as conspicuous as coiled snakes.

Madame Fantasso appeared from behind the stone wall with a smug smile on her face.

She should have stayed in hiding until the Headless Horseman took Katrina's life and returned to Sleepy Hollow, announcing that she had just lost her way in the forest two days ago... so that she would be perfectly acquitted and inherit all the property.

But to be honest, it's a pity that no one else knows about such a perfect plan.She just wants to see Katrina's expression now, if this "pleasure" is missing in the process, what's the point!

"You... it's really you!"

Katrina stood up, with still wet tears on her face, and gradually regained her composure in front of Mrs. Fantasso.

[34. No. 34]

"It's me... oh, you're such a brave boy, Katrina. That's what I've always hated about you! You're dying, so stop here pretending you're not afraid! Give me Cry! Shout to me! I, Mary Archer, will return to Sleepy Hollow today, without your fear as a footnote!"

Mrs. Fantaso's expression became ferocious, making Katrina think of what Ichab had said to her in a trance.

"The Headless Horseman is not as terrifying as a human... There is no need for hell, anyone can become a devil in an instant."

She shook her head, wiped away the tears from her face, unwilling to show a weak expression in front of Mary, and said as coldly as possible: "Archer...you are the ones who carved the archer beside the fireplace, so this room was originally yours. Yes! You are the daughter of the serf who was kicked out, that's why you want to destroy our Fang Jialei and Fantaso family."

"That's right, little clever ghost." Seeing that she was neither running away nor rushing up to try to fight, Mary walked out with confidence, reached out her hand and took out a skull from the bottom of her skirt, and said with a sneer, "Our family has served the Fan Garley and his son loyally." After so many years, they were ruthlessly abandoned into the wilderness. Do you think it’s fair for Winship, who was originally a serf, to get so much property just because he climbed into Old Peter’s bed? No, those properties belong to me... yes The Knights of Hessian hunted them down for me, and no one escaped."

"And what about the priest? And what about the witch in the woods?"