Chapter 64: Night Walk with a Knife

Chapter 64: Chapter 64: Night Walk with a Knife "What the hell is going on?" The sudden, eerie wind and the chaotic, drifting sounds frightened everyone present. All the torches were extinguished, and the surroundings plunged into a darkness so profound one couldn’t see their hand in front of their face. Only the cold wind brushed lightly against their bones. Incredibly, he couldn’t hear the slightest sound of breathing from any of his companions around him. His heart suddenly jumped in shock—everyone had held their breath, not daring to move. Everyone stood rigidly in the darkness until a creepy laugh suddenly drifted by. "Mother..." The laugh sounded as if it were right next to their ears. Someone couldn’t hold on any longer, dropped their knife, and turned to run. With this person’s collapse, the others couldn’t hold on either, scrambling and shouting as they fled the village in the dark. "Don’t... don’t run..." Xu Ji was also paralyzed on the spot, desperately shouting. But as he shouted, he realized he was so nervous that his voice had changed pitch; his throat felt blocked. He couldn’t suppress the panic rising within him; he wanted to flee, but he clutched the Wooden Sword tightly, forcing himself to endure. When he returned to the city this time, he had also seen the situation at his home. His father had suddenly been caught in a scandal, losing his former wealth; even a large part of their family assets had been confiscated by the incense master. None of his former friends and acquaintances were to be seen, and there would likely be even greater troubles in the future. His father had secretly shoved the last few valuable items the family possessed into his hands, urging him to sneak out the back door. He was to bring them back to the Shopkeeper to learn the Method of becoming a Shousui man, so he could, in turn, protect his family. So I have to win! How could I lose to that country bumpkin? But even if I stay, the previous plans are completely disrupted. What should I do now? As he stood overwhelmed, unable to see anything, he suddenly heard a strange sound, a RUSTLE, RUSTLE, RUSTLE, as if a snake’s scales were sliding over dry grass and wood. Amidst the swirling, eerie wind and the distant noise of his fleeing companions, it sounded unusually clear, as if a snake were slowly slithering nearby. But the weather had already turned cold; where would a snake come from? Even if there were one, how large would it have to be to make such a distinct crawling sound? His mind was in utter chaos until his ankle suddenly felt heavy, as if something soft and hairy had wrapped around it. Only then did he react. It wasn’t a snake, it was hair! It was the hair from the well, coming out again, wrapping around his ankle. "Ah..." In a flurry of terror, Xu Ji let out a muffled shout from his throat, slashing down with his red Wooden Sword. With a SIZZLE, a faint flame flickered. When the hair touched the red Wooden Sword, it was suddenly incinerated and severed. With the help of this weak light, Xu Ji finally saw the situation around him. Those bastard companions had already fled in terror to who knows where. By the well in front, countless dense strands of hair seemed to grow out from its mouth like aquatic weeds. Li from Dayang Village, who had been too close to the well’s mouth, had already been wrapped into a cocoon by the hair and was being slowly dragged towards the well. Xu Ji was both frightened and terrified. He raised his red Wooden Sword, ready to slash. But suddenly he heard a sobbing sound coming from the well, and his vision seemed to blur for a moment, revealing a ghastly pale face. It slowly emerged from the well’s mouth, eerily staring at him. In that instant, as if struck by lightning, Xu Ji’s courage was instantly overwhelmed by the yin qi, and he turned to flee. He couldn’t fight it. I spared no expense to gather these many assistants from the Manor. I told them they were just here to provide support, but I had actually thought it through. These assistants were all selected by the Red Lantern Society from various places; their stove fires were the most vigorous. They were all virgin youths, and with their fire qi sealed, even ordinary Wandering spirits would feel scorched approaching them, let alone so many at once. It was precisely because I had so many helpers that even though it was midnight, the yang qi overwhelmed the yin qi. This was exactly what could restrain that thing in the well. But once these people got scared and fled, the situation instantly reversed, and the balance of power became clear. Dusk is the boundary; yin and yang divide. How could living people contend with such evil spirits in the dead of night? This is no longer about whether I should seize this last chance. This is about saving my life... Having understood these things, Xu Ji couldn’t care about anything else and turned to flee madly out of the village. As he ran, he tore open his tunic, revealing a pouch on his chest. He grew up with his father in the city, but every year his father would take the family back to a distant, desolate village a hundred miles away to visit relatives, which he couldn’t understand at first. He had even found it somewhat distasteful when his father grabbed a handful of pond ash from the old fire pit in that village and made him carry it. But now, I can only rely on this thing to stay alive. Once a person’s courage is broken, it’s like a river bursting its banks, releasing an endless flood of fear. Xu Ji was still holding up relatively well; at least his legs hadn’t gone weak from fright. He just kept running at a steady pace. But behind him, the sobbing continued unabated, always right by his ears. Moreover, there was a RUSTLING sound from behind, and from time to time, something would try to wrap around his feet. He cursed loudly, occasionally slashing back with his sword before continuing to run. Each time the crying sound drew near, the pond ash on his chest would grow warmer by a few degrees, and then the crying would gradually recede. He didn’t know if it was the old artifact in his hand that was truly formidable or if the pond ash on his chest was taking effect, but he had actually managed to escape the village. Logically, he should be far from that well by now. But for some reason, even outside the village, the wind was still bone-chillingly cold. Behind the unseen curtain of night, something always seemed to be stirring. Xu Ji didn’t dare to slow down; he just kept running forward with large strides. Finally, he saw a figure on the narrow path ahead, running in front of him. It seemed like one of the Manor’s companions, and Xu Ji was both angry and furious, shouting, "You bastard, why are you running?" "If your courage had been just a bit stronger, we could have dealt with that thing together..." "..." He ran, quickening his pace to catch up, also thinking that having someone for company would ease his mind a little. But even though he was scolding him harshly, the person still didn’t turn their head and continued forward, though their speed did gradually slow. As Xu Ji drew closer, he finally caught a glimpse of the person’s appearance. He saw a face staring directly at him. The person hadn’t turned their head but was still watching him because that face was on the back of their head. The rigid features looked as if they were drawn on. Its exaggerated expression featured a pair of most peculiar eyes, which stared fixedly at him, revealing a bizarre smile. It wasn’t facing away from me; it had been staring at me all along! "Ah..." Xu Ji didn’t know what it was, but he could only feel a rush of yin qi hitting him, scaring him half to death. He swung his red Wooden Sword wildly forward. The entity vanished suddenly, leaving only the sounds of sinister laughter in the empty space. Xu Ji was so terrified his head was spinning. He could only run, taking deep and shallow steps, sometimes falling, then scrambling up to run again. He didn’t know how far he ran before he calmed down slightly. Ahead, he saw a group of people gathered, trembling. This time, Xu Ji had learned his lesson. He squinted his eyes hard to look, and finally recognized the green sashes around the waists of the group, confirming it. He’d found them. This time, they really were the attendants from his Manor. "Wait for me, wait for me..." This time he didn’t dare to scold, just hurried over to them. But as he neared, he stopped again. He saw clearly that they were indeed his Manor’s attendants and could even vaguely make out two of his own followers among them from the background. But now, they were clustered together, their bodies shivering. It looked as if they were discussing something, or perhaps they were just huddled together crying. As he approached, making a sound, they slowly turned around, their eyeballs rolling like dice, their bodies still shaking uncontrollably. This time, Xu Ji saw they weren’t trembling. They were holding their own fingers and gnawing on them with RUSTLING, CRUNCHING sounds. They had already gnawed them into a bloody mess, leaving only white bone. "Oh..." One of them seemed to recognize Xu Ji, their eyes suddenly brightening. Their voice was shrill and strange, extremely grating, yet it seemed to carry a hint of pleasant surprise: "We’ve finally cornered you again, kid..." "Ah..." As these figures approached, Xu Ji felt his scalp tingle, terror rising to the top of his head. He was about to flee, but a gust of yin wind hit him in the face; his body felt as if it had been plunged into an ice cellar. It became so stiff that he couldn’t even lift the hand holding the red Wooden Sword. He stood almost rigidly rooted to the spot, watching as the attendants from his Manor, their lips curling back to reveal ghastly, cold teeth, surrounded him. Under the assault of endless terror, Xu Ji’s last ounce of strength was only enough to emit a bloodcurdling scream, which traveled far, far into the dark night. "Yes, that’s the feeling!" Far away, Hu Ma, who had been sitting on a hill, suddenly stood up. He heard Xu Ji’s scream, and within it, discerned much. This is it. This is the feeling I had when I first arrived in this world, surrounded by so many evil spirits. "It’s our turn now." He blew on the incense in his hand, and shortly after, Little Hongtang darted out of the darkness. Her little hands were clutched tightly. Hu Ma pried them open to see they still held a piece of meat, and she warily glanced behind her. She attracted so many things just now and was chased so desperately, yet she actually managed to save a piece? "Eat it quickly!" Hu Ma stuffed it into her mouth, then let out a breath. He stood up and turned to face the inky blackness ahead. Ahead, there wasn’t a single spark of light, only the deep night, concealing the reveling and roaming evil spirits. And humans, trembling in fear. When others are timid, that’s precisely one’s own opportunity... Hu Ma slowly began practicing, stoking his own stove fire to bolster his courage. Then, with a SHING, he drew his steel saber from its sheath. Accompanied by Little Hongtang, who was contentedly licking her fingers, he strode into the deep night where the evil spirits roamed.