Xue Liangliang was the first to speak, “Xiao Yuan, is there a mark on the three of us that you don’t have?”
Li Zhuiyuan nodded, “The appearances on all three of you are quite poor, which means you are experiencing extreme misfortune. Although fate and fortune can’t be absolutely accurate, at least it indicates you've gotten involved with something. I thought I should be affected too, but strangely, I am not.”
“Binbin, pass me your notebook and pen.”
“Here, Brother Liang.”
Xue Liangliang opened a page, drew a square box, and then sketched two small figures at the top and bottom, representing the four of them. Finally, he added a door on the left side of the box.
“Let’s use the process of elimination. After we got off the train, we ate together, and then took Zhu Yang's truck. During this time, Xiao Yuan didn’t separate from us, and the only outsiders we encountered were Zhu Yang and that pair from the repair shop.
So, we can eliminate that part and look further back.”
Tan Wenbin asked, “Why not consider further back, like that night on the truck?”
“Because that was when things started. Zhu Yang's disappearance marks the beginning; plus, since Xiao Yuan said it’s the three of us who are in misfortune, doesn’t the flat tire count? If it does, we can extend the timeline backward to perfectly include our collective time in the truck, do you understand?”
“Seems like… I understand.”
“Then we can zero in on the train.”
“But there were so many people on the train.”
Xue Liangliang shook his head, “Actually, not many, because for most of the time, we stayed in the soft sleeper compartment, which is an absolutely clean area since Xiao Yuan was fine. Moreover, I remember clearly, the three of us never went out together.
So, the only possibility is that we each touched something as we went out individually.”
“Then should we each recount our experiences of leaving the soft sleeper? Should we include bathroom trips?”
“Runsheng, you go first.” Xue Liangliang pointed at Runsheng. “You went to smoke right after boarding. If I’m not mistaken, afterward, you didn’t go again, right?”
Runsheng scratched his head, recalling, “I think so?”
Xue Liangliang frowned slightly and then decisively raised his hand, “I’m not mistaken. You only went once. I asked you during the trip why you weren’t smoking anymore. You said the incense you brought this time was better for eating, so you couldn’t waste it.”
“I… I think I said that.”
“What’s wrong?” Tan Wenbin touched Runsheng's forehead, “You’re not burning up, right?”
Li Zhuiyuan watched Runsheng silently, then turned to look at Xue Liangliang.
Xue Liangliang continued, “Whenever Xiao Yuan went to use the bathroom, he was always accompanied by you, Runsheng, so that part can be eliminated as well.
That means the only time you could have contacted something dirty was that one time you went to smoke when we just boarded. Now, narrow it down even more; who did you come into contact with, whether physically or through interaction?”
Runsheng struggled to recall and narrated hesitantly.
Until he mentioned giving candy to a little girl who was “hungry” for her grandmother, Xue Liangliang and Tan Wenbin all raised their hands to stop him.
Xue Liangliang said, “I gave her a box lunch.”
Tan Wenbin added, “I gave her breakfast.”
Li Zhuiyuan looked at the two of them, “Describe that grandmother's clothing to me specifically.”
After hearing their descriptions, Li Zhuiyuan pursed his lips and said, “We should have found her because when I saw that grandmother, there was no little girl with her, but a cloth-wrapped urn instead.”
Strictly speaking, Xue Liangliang’s exclusion method was indeed not rigorous, and it had many loopholes, but this was a common practical way of thinking—ignoring the corners and trying to eliminate problems within as large a scope as possible. If nothing was found, then he would tackle the edges.
Xue Liangliang closed the notebook and said, “It’s that little girl. Xiao Yuan’s ability to walk in the shadows is due to real skill, so the little girl wouldn’t dare let him see her, or perhaps… Xiao Yuan is simply hard to deceive with ‘gaze.’”
Tan Wenbin asked in confusion, “But we all fed her; why would she still harm us? Isn’t that biting the hand that feeds?”
Xue Liangliang looked towards Li Zhuiyuan.
Li Zhuiyuan attempted to analyze, “Using the moral standards of the living to fit that kind of dirty thing doesn’t make sense. Besides, it’s possible that the little girl didn’t intend to harm you, but her actions caused you harm.”
Tan Wenbin pointed at his own face, then pointed at Xue Liangliang and Runsheng, “So what did she want, just because we gave her food, she wants us to keep giving?”
Xue Liangliang asked, “Xiao Yuan, I remember you used to use offerings to solve such matters; can we do the same this time?”
Tan Wenbin smacked his thigh, “But our luggage and food are all on the truck. Now that the truck's gone, where do we get offerings? The incense we have is hardly enough.”
Xue Liangliang replied, “There’s a lot of stuff hanging out to dry outside the village. To solve the immediate issue, I can risk going back into the village to fetch some things for the altar, and I will leave money.”
Li Zhuiyuan said, “No, if it’s just a hungry ghost, it might bring bad luck, but it wouldn’t be this intense. She needs food, not to drain us dry. At most, she’d stick to you unless…”
“Unless what?”
“Unless the ‘hunger’ that little girl spoke of refers to her wanting your lifespans.”
When this was said, the three fell silent.
Li Zhuiyuan continued, “It would take someone who desperately wants you dead to create such an aged appearance.”
Tan Wenbin spread his hands, “But she’s already been put in an urn; she’s dead! What does she want with lifespans?”
Xue Liangliang spoke, “Her grandmother is getting old, and she might be dying soon too. She’s not asking for herself; she’s asking for her grandmother.”
Li Zhuiyuan looked again at Xue Liangliang, then at Runsheng, who was still struggling to follow the logic.
Tan Wenbin swore, “This does make sense. Damn, that little kid is really scary! If I could meet her again on the train, I’d dump her ashes in the toilet!”
Anyone who can be harmed for doing a good deed would be exceptionally furious.
Li Zhuiyuan said, “She might not be on the train anymore; she could be inside you.”
Tan Wenbin gasped!
Though the current situation was strange, it was still just a temporary predicament without direct danger. But knowing that such a thing was beside them felt completely different.
Xue Liangliang immediately asked, “Xiao Yuan, did you see her?”
Li Zhuiyuan shook his head, “I didn’t see her, but I suspect she’s on you. This morning, she might have been on Brother Liang.”
“On me?”
“Because the you now and the you before are drastically different; you were clearly more flustered and your mind wasn’t clear, and the questions you were asking were quite basic.”
Xue Liangliang pointed to his own nose, “Was I?”
“People in this situation often don’t feel it. I’ve had similar experiences.”
Li Zhuiyuan had experienced the fortune of his ancestors, so he guessed misfortune might be somewhat similar.
“So if she was on me before, then now she’s on…” Xue Liangliang said as he looked towards Runsheng.
Clearly, he had already sensed something was off with Runsheng.
Tan Wenbin finally came to the realization that although Runsheng was usually taciturn and seemed dull and honest, his thoughts were rather detailed, especially his memory. Xiao Yuan had often given him a series of locations and requests, and he could always remember them well.
But earlier, Runsheng had seemed quite dazed, struggling to recall even simple events.
“Me?” Runsheng raised his hand and started feeling his own body, “Where is she?”
Then, Runsheng took out a talisman, sticking it to his forehead.
He took it down afterward and found it hadn’t changed color.
“Xiao Yuan, there’s nothing.”
“She shouldn’t be dead.”
“What should we do?” Runsheng clenched his fists, “If she’s on me, then I won’t follow you. You three try running away, maybe you can get out.”
After a pause, Runsheng pointed at Xue Liangliang and Tan Wenbin, “Or you guys can stay here with me, let Xiao Yuan run out alone. Xiao Yuan is clean; he couldn’t get out earlier because of our influence.”
Both Xue Liangliang and Tan Wenbin nodded; it was clear they agreed with this plan.
However, Li Zhuiyuan rejected the suggestion, “We can’t do that. I don’t think that little girl can orchestrate such a big scheme. What we have entered is likely a separate, eerie area.
Originally, we should not have been able to come in, and even trying to enter voluntarily would be difficult. But because she followed us, we were guided in by her. So, whether she’s here or not, we likely won’t be able to leave easily.”
Tan Wenbin became anxious, shouting, “Then what do we do? What do we do? What do we do?”
Li Zhuiyuan and Xue Liangliang both glanced at Tan Wenbin and then immediately looked away.
Runsheng was about to speak when Li Zhuiyuan interrupted, “Runsheng, don’t say anything. Just sit here and hold my hand. I’ll try using the method of fishing for the dead to see if I can help you shake her off.”
Runsheng nodded vigorously and grabbed Li Zhuiyuan’s hand.
Li Zhuiyuan pulled his hand back, then held onto Runsheng instead.
The boy’s fingertips were already red, having pressed into ink previously.
Next, Li Zhuiyuan flipped the compass in front of him, opened the compartment below, and pinched a bit of white powder.
Since they were using public transportation, larger equipment like the Yellow River shovel was inconvenient to carry, but smaller items were all brought along.
This came from Ding Dalin’s compass, which already had grooves. Li Zhuiyuan had previously had a fan, which contained various groove designs and different powders used for various purposes.
In fact, the fan was rather impractical. It was normal to carry a fan in ancient times, but in modern times, it felt a bit odd.
So, Li Zhuiyuan shifted all the useful powders into the compass compartment; anyway, this compass would always be carried by Runsheng.
“Runsheng, get ready; we’re about to begin.”
Runsheng nodded again, obedient and silent.
Li Zhuiyuan closed his eyes. Before entering the shadow-walking state, he suddenly released the hold he had on Runsheng and grabbed Tan Wenbin instead.
Shadow-walking successful!
In Li Zhuiyuan’s sight, the other three disappeared, and only a little girl in red appeared before him, with her hand held tightly within his grasp.
The last time he walked in the shadows, he had leaned against Runsheng, and the little girl hadn’t been on Runsheng then, thus evading his shadow-walking probe.
However, just now, it was evident that Runsheng had recovered, his thoughts becoming nimble again, while Tan Wenbin had shown rare emotional instability.
Rational suspicion suggested that she had heard their conversation, shifted from Runsheng, and moved onto Tan Wenbin.
But clearly, in terms of playing tricks, she couldn’t compete with people.
Xue Liangliang and Li Zhuiyuan had already noticed but purposely kept quiet about it.
“Brother, I’m so hungry.”
The girl begged Li Zhuiyuan, her face still sheepish and shy.
She was indeed quite cute and easy to pity; no wonder she had managed to elicit help from Xue Liangliang and the others.
But unfortunately, Li Zhuiyuan had no extra emotions.
Perhaps she sensed this, so she didn’t go after the younger brother.
Li Zhuiyuan raised his other hand and swatted at her.
In reality, Li Zhuiyuan sat still, but the white powder he pinched at his fingertips floated without wind, drifting toward Tan Wenbin, specifically, the nape of Tan Wenbin's neck.
Tan Wenbin felt an itch in his nose and couldn’t help but want to sneeze.
But soon, he felt a chill on his neck, as if a large block of ice was pressed against him, followed by a burning sensation—like being caught between ice and fire, he felt like his skin was about to peel away.
In shadow-walking, Li Zhuiyuan saw the girl let out a scream.
“Bam!”
She ran away into the distance, her figure gradually growing fainter.
Li Zhuiyuan looked down. In his hand was a bloody arm belonging to the girl, like a bleeding piece of lotus root.
Now it was awkward for him—he didn’t know if he should chase after her. He had never fought in a shadow-walking state, nor did he know how to fight. Should he just run up and tear into her until she was dead?
But how could that count as killing her? Her arm was already here, and yet she hadn’t “died.”
Or, he could use the method from Wei Zhengdao’s black book to see if he could control her?
But it seemed the girl wasn’t dead either; she had turned to ashes.
While he hesitated, the opportunity slipped away. The girl’s figure faded further and finally disappeared.
This was still a good outcome; he had driven her away.
No wonder it was called “driving away ghosts.”
Even professionals would find it hard to deal with something like this, let alone himself, who was across fields.
Now, could she return to the urn, or would she simply become a wandering spirit, ultimately dissipating?
Let her dissipate; it was what she deserved.
Li Zhuiyuan closed his eyes, his consciousness beginning to float up, soon ending the shadow-walking.
When he opened his eyes again, he found that Runsheng, Xue Liangliang, and Tan Wenbin each had a talisman stuck to them.
Li Zhuiyuan said, “This talisman is useless.”
Runsheng rebutted, “It’s useful. Just now it transferred from me to Binbin, which is why it didn’t change color.”
Everyone clearly understood the situation, as Tan Wenbin’s nape had turned a shade of dark green, and he seemed to be in considerable pain.
“Ugh… she actually snuck onto me! This is outrageous!”
While Xue Liangliang checked his wounds, he teased, “She might’ve been clinging to your neck most of the time.”
“Damn, it’s true! I always wondered why I could never remember my English words; I’d forget as soon as I repeated them!”
Li Zhuiyuan said, “She’s already been driven away. She probably won’t come back. Even if she does, we can just drive her away again.”
Saying this, Li Zhuiyuan looked down at his hand. The arm was, of course, invisible and didn’t exist in reality, but even so, Li Zhuiyuan picked up some dry leaves and rubbed them together with both hands.
He observed the appearance of the three again; although it wouldn’t instantly return to normal, it was much lighter than before.
“Now, we should think about how to leave here,” Xue Liangliang pointed to the village. “If we can’t find another way to break through, then I can only suspect that the key to leaving lies in the village.”
“Someone is in the village, I saw them, but I don’t know if they are alive.”
Runsheng said, “If we’re going to enter the village, we should do it now while I’m not too hungry and still have strength.”
“Give me a moment; I’ll think of a way.”
Li Zhuiyuan picked up the compass again, standing up to observe the feng shui.
Xue Liangliang followed Li Zhuiyuan, while Runsheng was giving Tan Wenbin a massage on his neck.
“Be gentle! That hurts!”
“Flow means no pain; pain means no flow.”
Li Zhuiyuan didn’t walk far, first gazing at the village, then looking at the path, and finally bending down to fiddle with the compass.
At this point, he had somewhat given up. If he could have thought of a solution earlier, he would’ve done so. Now it was merely a final struggle because he really didn’t want to enter the village.
“Xiao Yuan, I truly think we should try the method I mentioned and see if we can investigate the village.”
“Brother Liang, your personal experience is an exception; last time you were able to leave because someone outside pressured Bai Family Town.”
“Xiao Yuan, you misunderstood. I mean, since we want to leave but can’t, does that mean that entering means exiting, that it’s all backwards?”
Li Zhuiyuan realized he had genuinely misunderstood Brother Liang, while feeling grateful that Brother Liang, who wasn’t hanging with that little girl, was truly useful.
“To verify this, we can split into two groups—one group stays behind, while the other follows a specific route to run, then observe and record. For example, running in corners or looping around, and see how we end up back at the starting point.”
“No, we can’t split up.”
“Then…”
“I’d rather we all charge into the village together.”
“Yes, Xiao Yuan, you decide.”
Li Zhuiyuan observed the feng shui for a little longer, and realizing he couldn’t discern anything further, he finally said, “Everyone check your pockets. See if there are any snacks or candies; we’ll give them to Brother Runsheng.”
There were some snacks, but not much, barely enough for Runsheng to stuff into his teeth. He took ten sticks of incense, chewing them all at once, and then pulled up some grass and leaves to chew and swallow as well.
This action was somewhat too vigorous, but he was also trying to increase his sense of fullness.
In fact, to him, incense was like a condiment; he couldn’t gain much energy from it, and the little he might get wouldn’t be enough to digest all that incense.
However, Runsheng's belly indeed bulged now.
“Xiao Yuan, I’m ready!”
“Let’s go into the village before it gets dark.”
Staying here was a more human choice. But there were only tree barks and leaves, no proper food. Staying here would only worsen everyone’s condition, which wouldn’t help.
The four of them just reached the village entrance when they all paused, hearing a noise.
Tan Wenbin asked, “What sound is that?”
“It’s so chaotic, near and far,” Xue Liangliang looked around, but there was only sound and no sight of anything.
Li Zhuiyuan’s ears were constantly twitching. He said, “There are gongs, drums, and suonas, along with chanting—like someone is performing a ritual.”
Soon after, Li Zhuiyuan moved at the entrance of the village, lowering his head to look at his feet. This place was at the center of the sound's source.
As he looked ahead, Li Zhuiyuan discovered a pair of shallow footprints had appeared in front of him.
“Clear out, be careful!”
Everyone quickly moved aside, all focusing on that spot.
The footprints became clearer, and right opposite the footprints, four depressions began to appear.
“Runsheng, go!”
“Okay!”
Runsheng took a steel pipe and approached the footprints, waving it around but hitting nothing.
At the same time, nothing particularly significant occurred to him either.
“Stop, Runsheng.”
Runsheng halted his actions and started breathing steadily.
Li Zhuiyuan came closer, squatted down, and scrutinized the two closely positioned depressions.
Xue Liangliang also squatted down to take a look, “These are human footprints; they should be from boots. But what are these four depressions next to them?”
Li Zhuiyuan answered, “A table.”
“A table?”
“It should be a table, and also, the sound of the instruments resembles a musical band.”
Just as he finished speaking, Tan Wenbin, who stood at the edge, shouted, “Watch out! Fire!”
A floating fireball appeared over the heads of Li Zhuiyuan and Xue Liangliang, igniting Xue Liangliang’s clothes and hair. He quickly evaded while using his hands to pat out the flames, extinguishing it without injuring himself.
Li Zhuiyuan, being shorter, found the fireball floating at a distance above him, so he didn’t evade but kept his head tilted, observing the movement of the fireball.
While watching, his hands were moving slightly, as if planning a prediction.
Suddenly, the fireball began to move rapidly, making a much larger turn than before.
As Li Zhuiyuan kept his eyes on it, he also glanced down at the four table leg impressions.
In his mind surfaced the habit of his ancestor when performing rituals: First holding yellow paper, lighting it with a candle, then reciting scriptures at the offering table, swinging the paper while circling around the table.
When the yellow paper was about to burn his hand, he would toss it into a bowl filled with duck blood, chicken blood, and pig blood.
Now, all he needed was to wait for the next step.
“Zzz…”
The fireball dropped suddenly, extinguishing without a trace, and there were no sparks.
As Li Zhuiyuan patted the mud off his pants and stood up, he looked at his three companions, “We are currently at a place where someone is performing a ritual.”
Tan Wenbin screamed, “Can ghosts also perform rituals? That's too topsy-turvy!”
“Smack!”
Runsheng pulled out a talisman and slapped it on Tan Wenbin's forehead with force, making him stumble back a few steps.
The talisman didn’t change color.
Tan Wenbin tugged at his collar, gesturing for Runsheng to take a look at the talisman stuck to his neck, “Didn’t you check mine before putting on another one?”
“Who told you to suddenly get so emotional?”
“I believe in what my Brother Yuan says, but the fact that ghosts perform rituals is really hard to believe.”
Xue Liangliang said gravely, “Perhaps it’s not the ghosts performing the ritual.”
Tan Wenbin asked, “If it’s not the ghosts, then why can’t we see them?”
Li Zhuiyuan replied, “Perhaps we are the ghosts right now.”
Li Zhuiyuan remembered when he last walked in the shadows, hearing cursing coming from the village, scolding which beast broke down their door.
Tan Wenbin exclaimed, “Bro, who is coordinating this ritual?”
Li Zhuiyuan nodded, “Possibly us, because we broke two doors in the morning. A ghost that can kick down doors should be fierce enough to frighten villagers to invite a ‘master’ to perform a ritual.”
However, the Taoist or monk who was invited didn’t seem skilled at all; the effectiveness was likely equivalent to that of his grandfather.
Tan Wenbin applied pressure on Runsheng’s arm. “Does it hurt?”
Runsheng shook his head, “No.”
Then, Runsheng squeezed Tan Wenbin’s arm, “Oh! Oh! Oh! It hurts!”
Xue Liangliang walked up to Li Zhuiyuan, “Xiao Yuan, are we ghosts now?”
“Brother Liang, this matter I also don’t understand. I’ve never been a ghost either. Besides, I think on this matter, your experience gives you more authority than I do.”
Runsheng added, “Yes, you’ve dealt with ghosts before.”
Xue Liangliang inhaled heavily, “She’s neither a dead person nor a ghost, and she doesn’t seem like a living person either.”
Li Zhuiyuan observed, “Not human nor ghost, it appropriately fits our current state.”
Xue Liangliang raised his hand, indicating he was deep in thought, “I often recall my experience in Bai Family Town from a long time ago…”
“Brother Liang, there’s no need to recall; you’ve been there almost daily recently.”
“Oh, right, that’s true. So, now I think our current environment is similar to Bai Family Town; it exists at the bottom of the river but isn’t truly present.
Look, the Yangtze River isn’t the sea; it’s not that deep or wide. They’re planning to build a bridge across the river later. If there was indeed a town there to explore, it would have been discovered long ago.
After returning to school, I checked some materials in the library…”
“What did you find?”
“I didn’t find anything. Then I went to consult our school’s club.”
“A club?”
“A supernatural phenomena enthusiasts club; the female president gave my story a fairly logical explanation and speculated that it might be a spatial interlayer.”
“Did she tell you how to leave this spatial interlayer?”
“No, she even doubted whether the town I spoke of was real and asked me to take her to see it.”
Tan Wenbin, seemingly proving he wasn’t possessed by the little girl again, asked a very reasonable question, “But Brother Liang, haven’t you been to the spatial interlayer many times? How did you come out?”
Xue Liangliang waved his hand dismissively, “I just stumbled out every time.”
Tan Wenbin didn’t hear clearly, “What did you say?”
Runsheng added, “Every time it was comfortable coming out.”
Xue Liangliang raised his voice, “Each place has a different layout; the Bai Family Town was controlled by her. I just needed to jump into the river in that area, and then I’d pass out, lying on the bank upon waking.
Here, I think it’s uncontrolled; it’s not artificially created but naturally formed. Otherwise, those villagers wouldn’t be frightened enough to invite someone to perform rituals.
Xiao Yuan, we should still take a look, like the ancestral hall or the central well of the village. The exit is usually in such positions.”
“Alright, let’s go.”
As the four of them walked towards the village, again, the sound of instruments echoed, and that fiery ball appeared once more.
They all looked back, knowing this indicated the second round of rites had begun, and they didn’t take it to heart.
Once inside the village, most doors were shut tight, but a few were open. The open houses appeared quite dilapidated.
Neither had spring couplets or guardian deities posted on either side of their doors.
Tan Wenbin also noticed this and muttered, “I used to complain when my mom told me to paste the ‘Fu’ character and spring couplets for New Year. I was so foolish.”
Xue Liangliang chimed in, “I’ll paste them on the dormitory doors next time.”
They all arrived at the old well in the village center, which might be the landmark for exiting. Without hesitation, Runsheng tied up a rope and, biting down on the steel pipe, began to descend into the well.
The others waited patiently by the well’s edge.
Tan Wenbin asked, “Xiao Yuan, if Runsheng went down without touching the water, does that mean he went out?”
“Don’t worry. If the exit is truly below, Runsheng will float back up to tell us.”
Li Zhuiyuan countered, “If he’s really out, wouldn’t he know where the entrance is when he comes back?”
“Ah, right. What if he really got out? Our…”
“Brother Binbin, can you pull up the rope, see if you can straighten it?”
“Okay.” Tan Wenbin began to reel in the rope at the edge of the well. As he pulled, the rope suddenly tightened, and he felt a pull back, “Runsheng is still down there. He just tugged on the rope a couple of times; I felt it.”
Tan Wenbin worried, “He’s been down there a long time; he won’t get into trouble, right?”
Li Zhuiyuan shook his head, “No, Brother Runsheng is a good swimmer.”
Li Zhuiyuan was quite sure of this, especially since Runsheng was capable of battling dead spirits underwater.
“Xiao Yuan, I have another question. Earlier, how do we explain the corpse water we found in those two rooms?”
“Perhaps an elder was bedridden there and eventually passed away.”
“But in the second room, the corpse water in the cabinet, you can’t say they were bedridden in the cabinet, right?”
“Maybe something was placed there. Isn’t there a custom in some places to consume placentas?”
Xue Liangliang pressed, “Xiao Yuan, how do you manage to remain so calm and give such reasonable explanations so quickly?”
Li Zhuiyuan replied coldly, “Because I don’t want to think about the worst-case scenario.”
Xue Liangliang first looked puzzled, then understood, responding, “Yes, that would be too terrifying, especially for Zhu Yang.”
“Hey!” Tan Wenbin shouted, visibly distressed, “You guys can’t leave out my feelings; I’m listening too! Don’t skip over crucial parts!”
At that moment, there were sounds from below the well; Runsheng was coming back up.
He climbed out of the well and said, “This well is deep; I dove all the way to the bottom and found no exit.”
“Brother Runsheng, do you want to rest a bit?”
“Can’t rest.” Runsheng touched his belly, “I’m already hungry.”
Li Zhuiyuan pointed to the corn hanging on the door of a local house, “There’s something to eat over there.”
Runsheng cheered, “Can we eat that?”
“Sure, to them, it’s just another ghost incident.”
Runsheng quickly went over to grab a bunch of corn, chowing down without needing to cook or roast it.
Li Zhuiyuan and Xue Liangliang also each grabbed one and took a bite; the taste was indeed poor, but at that moment, they all felt any form of sustenance was better than nothing.
Tan Wenbin ran out of the house, saying, “Eat this, eat this! There’s some cured meat hanging inside; I brought some!”
Xue Liangliang asked, “There are still things like that inside?”
“All the other stuff has gone moldy; the food on the table is as well, but the cured meat should be fine. I took a bite earlier; it’s a bit oily, but isn’t that just for energy replenishment? I don’t mind at all.
Here, Brother Runsheng.”
Runsheng accepted it and took a large bite, only to slow down his chewing considerably, swallowing it without spitting it out.
Tan Wenbin asked, “How is it? The flavor isn’t bad, right, Runsheng?”
Runsheng replied, “This is dirty meat.”
Li Zhuiyuan and Xue Liangliang were immediately astounded.
Tan Wenbin exclaimed, “It’s definitely dirty! What isn’t dirty here? The whole room is full of dust, but I dusted off all the dust on it.”
Li Zhuiyuan reminded, “Brother Binbin, when Runsheng said ‘dirty meat,’ he meant it’s not livestock meat.”
“If it’s not livestock meat, then what kind of meat is it? Can it be… gag!”
Runsheng patted Tan Wenbin’s back, comforting him, “Don’t throw up; it’s all energy.”
“Ugh!”
Li Zhuiyuan calmly stated, “Let’s go to the ancestral hall.”
The four of them walked towards the largest building in the area, where two stone lions stood at its entrance. An old plaque hung above, but the words on it were unreadable.
Not due to being old and neglected, but when drawing closer, they suddenly found that the eaves of this ancestral hall were dripping with considerable amounts of water, like a small waterfall, which completely covered the plaque.
“What kind of decoration style is this?” Xue Liangliang looked at Li Zhuiyuan, “Or are we seeing things that don’t exist in reality?”
“Hmm, water has no source; earth has no accumulation; things unseen in reality.”
Tan Wenbin excitedly exclaimed, “Then the exit is right here!”
Because this building was unique, displaying a different ‘atmosphere’ than in reality, the exit was likely here.
Xue Liangliang asked, “Xiao Yuan, how does feng shui explain this situation?”
“In ancient times, emperors constructing tombs greatly feared leaks, viewing them as ominous. Any occurrence of this sort would lead to severe punishments for the craftsmen and officials responsible for the tomb’s construction.
An ancestral hall represents a family’s fate, a place of good fortune. Such leaks turning into waterfalls can only suggest:
【Debts like water, heavy losses in shadow virtue; the plaque hides its words, ancestors ashamed to be seen.】
Brother Runsheng, break down the door to the ancestral hall.”
“Alright!”
Runsheng moved forward and began to kick at the door. The door of the ancestral hall was evidently sturdier than those of the houses, but Runsheng was still formidable, and after several powerful kicks, the door finally burst open.
The four stepped inside and paused collectively at the foot of the stairs.
Visible from the outside of the ancestral hall, the waterfall also meant there was a considerable amount of water inside. Each drop of water was a manifestation of some debt.
But if the water just formed a pond inside the ancestral hall, it wouldn’t have astonished everyone so much.
The reason was that this pond was densely packed with people.
This was still the first time since entering the village that the four had seen “people,” and many in number at that.
All of them were with their eyes closed, their faces pale as paper, gently swaying with the water. They were all deceased individuals.
Standing right at the front, seemingly the most newly added and closest to the four, was none other than the truck driver, Zhu Yang.
Tan Wenbin exclaimed in disbelief, “Zhu Yang, he’s dead? Shouldn’t he still be in reality since he didn’t come in with us into this spatial interlayer?”
Li Zhuiyuan replied, “So, he’s dead.”
Tan Wenbin swallowed hard, “W-why?”
Li Zhuiyuan pointed at their feet and then indicated outside the ancestral hall, saying, “Because this… is a bandit village!”
(End of Chapter)