52: Father

My heart seemed to collapse in that instant.

Given what I knew of Xu Buhuo, I could tell by his expression that something was seriously wrong. If there were no problem, he would never look like this.

“Old man, don’t scare me. Is it possible or not? Just give me a straight answer.”

My legs were shaking, my whole body weak; if I weren’t still carrying my mother on my back, I might have just sat down on the ground right there.

“We’ll talk when we get back,” Xu Buhuo said, not even turning his head as he walked ahead. I forced myself to swallow my anxiety and hurried after him.

The feng shui array in the graveyard was linked with something inside the house. As we reached the door, Cao Guangshan came out rubbing his temples, saying my mother was missing—only to see her right there on my back.

Inside, the four uncles gradually regained consciousness. Following Xu Buhuo’s instructions, I fetched a blanket and laid my mother flat on the ground. The Soul-Swallowing Chicken was placed beside her by Xu Buhuo.

My anxiety mounting, I couldn’t help but draw close to Xu Buhuo. Before I could speak, he said, “Don’t rush. I’m thinking of a way.”

Then he walked alone to a corner of the courtyard and stood silently. I dared not disturb him, so I asked Cao Guangshan what had happened earlier.

Cao Guangshan said they’d all been drinking tea inside when a wave of dizziness hit, their bodies went weak, and they collapsed to the floor. In the haze, he’d vaguely seen my mother leave the house, stiff as a wooden puppet.

I wondered if Old Man Qin had been outside then, so I asked if he’d seen him. He shook his head.

“Wasn’t Old Man Qin dead?” Uncle Zhongfu and the others looked astonished.

The news that Old Man Qin had been torn apart by a wild animal had spread through the village days ago. Since few had gotten along with him, the villagers’ main reaction was shock, nothing more.

“The body found wasn’t his. He’s been hiding in the shadows, killing people—Granny Wang and Liu the Leper, it was all his doing.”

“So it was that old bastard. I always thought he didn’t look like a good person,” Uncle Zhongfu slammed his fist on the table.

The room fell quiet. My earlier suspicions returned—had my grandmother also been murdered by Old Man Qin?

By rights, she and Old Man Qin had been at odds for years. Her sudden death must have something to do with him.

The more I thought, the more unsettled I felt.

Especially recalling how Li, the eldest brother, and Old Qian had committed suicide after being possessed. I realized I’d been mistaken, thinking the one controlling them had been Jiang Yan.

Remembering Jiang Yan’s terrified look, I realized the one she feared was likely Old Man Qin. After that night, she never appeared again—she’d probably fallen under his control.

Under Old Man Qin’s influence, Jiang Yan possessed Li and Old Qian, forcing them to kill themselves.

Given how many years he’d feuded with my grandmother, her death surely delighted Old Man Qin. Forcing those possessed to laugh at her grave made sense in that context.

Snapping out of my thoughts, I looked at my mother lying on the floor, anxiety gnawing at me. I knew whatever afflicted her was grave; otherwise, Xu Buhuo wouldn’t be so troubled.

After a while, Xu Buhuo returned from his pondering in the courtyard. I looked at him anxiously. He paused, then said, “With the Soul-Swallowing Chicken having taken the soul, restoring it is very difficult.”

“But—”

That pause pulled my chaotic thoughts back together. He continued, “If we are to save her, I need a special item. I’ll have to leave to find it. I can’t say how long I’ll be gone. Until I return, you must protect your mother’s body and the carcass of the Soul-Swallowing Chicken. If either is harmed, even I won’t be able to help.”

There was hope, at least.

I nodded. Xu Buhuo didn’t rush to leave. He explained that without her soul, my mother’s body could be easily possessed by malicious spirits. He drew protective sigils on her brow, palms, and soles as a safeguard.

Before leaving, he told me to try and find two black dogs to tie in the courtyard—their presence would deter evil spirits.

There were plenty of dogs in the village, but few were black, and the two that were had been killed. I wasn’t sure if I’d find any, but I had no choice but to search.

Luck was with me; though I couldn’t find any pure black dogs, I managed to get two with mostly black fur.

Once the dogs were tied in the courtyard, we were left to wait.

As dusk fell, the village grew quiet.

The four uncles played cards to pass the time. I sat at the door, poring over my grandmother’s books, hoping to find a solution. Cao Guangshan, curious, tried to read as well, but with no background, he only stared blankly at the pages.

Midnight came and went without my noticing. My mother’s condition required someone to stay up, but the uncles offered to watch over her and urged me to sleep. Fearing something might happen to them, I refused.

“Woof! Woof!”

Shortly after one in the morning, the two black dogs in the courtyard suddenly began barking, heads raised to the sky, snapping at the air.

Alarmed, I stood in the doorway, staring out, suspecting a spirit had come. All at once, the entire village’s dogs joined in, their furious barking like they’d spotted an enemy.

Something was about to happen.

The cacophony of dogs set my heart pounding with dread—I knew something was in the village.

“Could it be them?”

I thought of the two corpses that had escaped from the sealed burial well. Xu Buhuo had analyzed that, after so long in the well, their malevolent energy was suppressed by the water. Though they’d escaped, they’d need a day or two to become truly dangerous.

Judging by the time, tonight would be when they emerged.

Even Xu Buhuo found these corpse-spirits troublesome—and now he was gone. I was terrified, worried the children would harm the villagers or come for my family.

“Knock, knock.”

Just as my anxiety peaked, someone knocked at the gate. I shouted, asking who it was, but got no reply.

“Woof! Woof! Woof!”

The two black dogs, who had been barking at the sky, now turned to the gate, barking and snapping furiously.

I knew then—the two children must be right outside. I grabbed the prepared gasoline bottles and a hatchet.

Cao Guangshan and the uncles, awakened by the dogs, hurried out. Uncle Sunlin had just asked what was going on when the gate crashed open with a bang.

The two children leapt into the courtyard.

Their faces were deathly pale, eyes black as pitch.

Seeing them, the uncles gasped, calling out their childhood names—the boy was Little Dragon, the girl, Little Ling.

“How is this possible? Didn’t they disappear eighteen years ago?”

They were beside themselves, unable to comprehend how the children missing for eighteen years could suddenly reappear.

With no time to explain, I kept my eyes fixed on the children.

I’d told Cao Guangshan about them earlier, so he picked up a gasoline bottle, while I lit the torches we’d prepared.

“Uncles, guard the house!”

After giving the order, I nodded at Cao Guangshan. We stood outside the hall and shut the doors.

With Xu Buhuo gone, this was the only way I could think to try fending off the corpse-spirits, even if Xu had warned how hard they were to deal with. I didn’t expect to destroy them—just survive the night. At dawn, they would at least vanish.

A chilling aura radiated from the children, unmoving as they stared at us.

Gritting my teeth, I smashed the gasoline bottle at their feet. Just as Cao Guangshan was about to toss the torch, the two children suddenly sprang into action.

Little Dragon lunged at me. I swung the hatchet at him, striking his shoulder with a clang. Though it bit into flesh, his bones were unnaturally hard.

Stunned for a moment, I felt Little Dragon’s hand clamp onto my arm.

Ice-cold pain stabbed me like needles, making me cry out. I swung the hatchet again, hacking into his body. The flesh yielded, but the bones resisted.

Despite being just ten, Little Dragon’s strength was terrifying. As I raised the hatchet for a third blow, he shoved me hard. I tumbled backward, crashing into the stairs.

Cao Guangshan fared slightly better. Little Ling fixed her gaze on him, but since he held a torch, she merely stood off, not daring to attack.

A chill swept over me as Little Dragon approached, reaching for my throat. Instinctively, I tried to block him, but with a swipe of his arm, he knocked the hatchet from my grip. As I struggled to sit up, his hands closed around my neck—cold as death, freezing me into numbness, unable to muster any strength.

Choking, vision blurring, I thrashed desperately, but Little Dragon gripped tighter, stronger than I could resist.

I couldn’t breathe. My sight dimmed.

Was this the end?

Just as the thought flashed through my mind, I glimpsed a shadow rushing in from outside the courtyard. Suddenly, my throat was released and I gulped down air.

Little Dragon was hurled against the wall—by my father, now a corpse-ghoul.

Little Ling, who’d been facing off with Cao Guangshan, launched herself at Father. But when she reached him, he grabbed her, and with both hands, tore off one of her arms.

Her wailing scream pierced my ears.

Little Ling struggled wildly, tearing the black cloth from Father’s head.

His face was all too familiar—blood-red eyes, terrifying to behold.

Sensing that Father was not to be trifled with, Little Ling and Little Dragon bounded out of the courtyard.

Cao Guangshan, tense, asked if he should hurl the gasoline. I waved him off.

Gradually, the village dogs fell silent. Father slowly turned his stiff body to look at me.

Beneath the ragged black cloth, his blood-red eyes met mine, and my heart ached with unspeakable sorrow.

Though Father was dead, in that moment, I knew he was looking at me—that he could truly see me.

“Dad…”

I couldn’t hold back. Sobbing, I knelt on the ground. Father approached, reached out with his stiff, cold hand, and gently stroked my face. From his mouth came a clicking sound, and then he left the courtyard.

Unable to hold it in any longer, I broke down, howling like a child.

“Ziwu, your mother is awake!”

The hall door burst open. Uncle Zhongfu shouted excitedly.

Hearing my mother had woken, I scrambled to my feet and rushed inside, finding her already sitting up.

But as she lifted her head to look at me, I involuntarily drew back.

Her eyes were pitch black.