I used the Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) to fight the Japanese.

Tiger was stunned by this whole operation. This guy's neck-twisting technique was so skillful, it was really crisp and cracking! Hmm, just like eating fried beans!

He restored the wire mesh and roof beams to their original state, erased all traces, and returned to the thatched hut to sleep fully clothed. Tiger tossed and turned in his bedding, finally unable to resist asking the question that had been nagging at him.

"Uncle Cang, why did it take so much effort to move that fat, heavy thing to the mine? Couldn't we just leave it in the bamboo grove?"

"Wouldn't it be easier to just leave it there and ignore it?" Zhao Mancang saw that this guy was thinking seriously and decided to test him, knowing that thinking was a good thing.

"That won't do. If the Japanese find a body in this area, they'll suspect us!" Tiger said seriously.

"That's right! That guy was sent by the Japanese. If he suddenly disappeared, the Japanese would definitely look for him. Leaving him in the bamboo forest would expose our location, so we can forget about pretending to be ghosts there. But throwing him down there is different. The place that's been haunted these past few days is the mine. It's reasonable for another Japanese soldier to die there, right?" Zhao Mancang tried to explain.

"There are so many twists and turns in this! Oh well, I'd better not waste my brainpower! Just thinking about it gives me a headache!"

"Hehe, this is a good thing! Fighting the Japanese requires using your brain; you can only make progress if you can think!"

The two chatted for a while and then went to sleep. The next morning, no laborers were called up for inspection. The group even got a full night's sleep before being urged to start work.

……

In the courtyard, Nagano Muko sat expressionlessly at his desk, listening to the investigation results of the group. The three-legged corpse patrol team had discovered the body early on, and the group had been busy examining the body and analyzing the case for most of the night. Now, they were reporting the situation to the major.

"Major, the autopsy results for Sanbakuchi indicate that he died from a head injury that broke his neck. What's suspicious is the fingerprints on his neck. If someone had broken his neck before throwing him into the mine, it could have caused this!" the doctor analyzed.

"So the handprint on his neck isn't some kind of 'ghost claw mark'?" Vice Captain Kato Nobuo asked first.

When Sanbangchui's body was brought back, the puppet soldiers immediately noticed the handprint on his neck. They were terrified and started shouting things like "ghost claw mark," filling the entire group with a sense of panic and fear.

"Yes! Although only three fingers are left, it can still be confirmed as a human hand. It's normal that the little finger and ring finger didn't leave any marks because the force was too weak!" the doctor confirmed again.

"Yosh! This confirms it's still a human act and not some evil spirit taking lives!" Nagano Muko breathed a sigh of relief. Although he had insisted for the past few days that it wasn't haunted, he was under a lot of pressure because he couldn't find the culprit! Putting aside everything else, the team being shrouded in terror for too long would cause serious problems!

“If Sanbangchui was murdered, then he must have discovered something. What did you find during your search this morning?” Nagano Muko asked.

"We searched the entire mining area but found nothing suspicious. According to the doctor's deduction, the body was found in the middle of the mine pit, near the front. The area around the sloping road for people to go up and down, and the bamboo grove behind the thatched hut, are all possible places where the body was dumped. That bamboo grove! It's guarded by barbed wire, so we've never been there. I'll send someone over to check it out right now!" Kato Nobuo's eyes lit up as he spoke, suddenly remembering the bamboo grove!

"Alright! Looks like you already have a suspect! Go check it out yourself, and don't make a fuss about what you find. Also, send two soldiers who speak good Chinese to infiltrate the area. If the Chinese can find something, there's no reason why Imperial soldiers wouldn't. Understand?" Nagano Mukoto was also invigorated to see that his deputy had a plan. The haunting incident that had been troubling him for days was finally showing some promise.

"Hey! I'll go there myself right away!" Kato Nobuo was also quite excited. Strange things without any clues or understanding can be frightening, but once you have a goal, you have the motivation to do things. He felt full of energy and wanted to find out the trick as soon as possible!

Sure enough, Kato Nobuo led his men down the slope towards the bamboo grove, a route that was relatively easier as it wasn't blocked by barbed wire. Soon, a group of Japanese soldiers discovered drag marks in the bamboo grove, and then they found the bamboo tube!

Kato Nobuo was immediately excited. The doubts that had troubled them for days were finally resolved. With this bamboo pole, they could confirm that the so-called evil spirits were just a hoax! This person had to be caught and torn to pieces. They had been living in fear for days and must be punished severely!

After checking the bamboo tube again, he put it back in its original place and quietly returned to the courtyard with the Japanese soldiers to tell Major Nagano what he had discovered.

"Yoshi! The Chinese are really cunning! We've been lying in wait for them to come to us tonight! You didn't touch those things, did you?" Nagano Muko asked.

"No! We confirmed that the bamboo tube was recently processed, so we didn't let them bring it back. They were all working in the mine and no one noticed that we had been to the bamboo grove," Kato Nobuo said excitedly.

"Yoshi! Well done! Did the soldiers infiltrate?" Nagano Muko continued to ask.

"They've already infiltrated! Both of them speak good Chinese, so I'm sure they'll be successful!"

"Yoshi! Well done! That guy called Three-Banded Hammer deserved to die! I hope we catch that rat soon. The ore train will be here around 4 a.m. tonight. Once we've solved the haunting incident, we can report back to headquarters!"

"Ha ha ha ha……"

The two old Japanese soldiers exchanged a glance and simultaneously grinned wickedly, looking just like a pair of cunning foxes!

……

Little did they know that the two Japanese soldiers they sent had already been marked by Zhao Mancang. Yesterday, one idiot joined their labor camp, and today two more have arrived! Even a fool would understand that these two were up to no good! Of course, this only applies to the people in this room; others who don't know the situation naturally wouldn't think in this direction.

As usual, Tiger and his companion got up in the middle of the night to prepare for their ghost-playing mission. After several nights of tormenting the Japanese soldiers, who were getting anxious and frustrated but had no clue what to do, the two of them had become somewhat addicted! Usually, the Japanese soldiers bullied them, but now they could scare the Japanese soldiers by pretending to be ghosts, which gave them an unparalleled sense of satisfaction!

There hadn't been any extra meals for several nights in a row. Following their usual routine of hauling a batch of ore every ten days, the train would arrive tomorrow. Zhao Mancang thought he'd prepare some food tonight so everyone could conserve their energy; once the train was loaded, it would be the perfect opportunity for them to wreak havoc!

"Great! Big white steamed buns, peanuts, braised beef... I haven't eaten these for days, just thinking about them makes my mouth water! This is good, this is good! You need to eat your fill to have the energy to work!" As soon as food was mentioned, Tiger was no longer sleepy and shouted that he would eat something before going to work.