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墨書 Inktalez
More than an hour had passed, and the four of them decided to sit down on a pile of large stones to wait, extinguishing their flashlight. The atmosphere grew even more eerie. As night deepened, the mist in the mountains thickened. Aside from looking a bit dazed, Xiao Yu showed no other symptoms. Having encountered such possession before, I knew that as long as we could drive away the evil spirit, it wouldn’t cause much harm to the body.
The group sat silently on a small pile of rocks, without light or moonlight. Aside from the faint croaking of frogs in the distant rice fields, all they could hear was each other's breathing, especially Xiao Yu's, which was particularly heavy. Zhang Min voiced her concern for Xiao Yu, saying, “Xiao Liu, do you think Xiao Yu might turn into an idiot? Even though he’s always picking on you, he has a good heart.”
Her words came out abruptly, leaving me unsure how to respond. I knew that Xiao Yu was defending Brother Mao; even if he wasn’t, I wouldn’t make things difficult for him over such matters. After pulling out a cigarette from my pocket and lighting it, I took a deep drag and said, “Don’t worry; I’m not that confused about right and wrong.”
Another silence followed until about an hour later when the light bulb inside the Hermitage flickered twice before coming back on. I stood up and said, “Let’s go in. However, there’s one thing: we can’t enter those two doorways. We’ll settle our luggage in that corner first and then figure out how to deal with them.”
“Why do we need to deal with them? They haven’t bothered us; let’s not provoke them either. Once dawn breaks tomorrow, our adventure will come to a perfect end,” Zhang Min replied with confusion.
I shook my head and said, “You’re partly right; the adventure will end, but it won’t be perfect. If this is how it ends perfectly, then our trip would have been meaningless and without purpose. Brother Mao, don’t you agree?”
Brother Mao paused for a moment before replying, “You’re right; however, I usually just explore and have never sent souls before. If you want me to do this, it might be a bit challenging. Of course, if you know how to send souls, I can assist you unconditionally because my master has also said that sending souls is a good deed that can improve fortune and accumulate merit.”
I nodded. “Yes, I can send them; it’s just that there are two inside now. I can’t send them together, so I’ll need your help later. After we go in, you all stay outside first while I go in to prepare some Talisman Water for Xiao Yu to drink to drive away the evil spirit. Otherwise, I’m afraid the evil spirit on Xiao Yu might attract the Spirit God inside.” With that said, I headed straight for the entrance of the Hermitage. Brother Mao placed his hand on Xiao Yu's shoulder to guide him as they walked behind me while Xiao Yu stayed in the middle.
When we reached the entrance, I took out my compass and checked it; there was a very faint reaction—almost none at all. This meant that the two Spirit Gods were not close to us and were in a very calm state. I stepped inside and gestured for them to stop. Then I found a small plastic bowl, poured in some mineral water, and prepared a talisman to drive away evil spirits before handing it to Xiao Yu to drink. I instructed them to wait outside for five minutes before entering and warned them not to touch the talisman on the threshold just in case.
After saying this, I walked in alone. In those five minutes, I needed to delineate a safer area. Leaning against the wall corner and surveying my surroundings revealed nothing alarming; after all, this wasn’t about competing for territory but merely food—there was no risk of being driven away. Generally speaking, wandering souls return from where they came after taking what they want. It was hard for me to believe that the soul from earlier hadn’t returned here.
The compass showed no reaction here; there were only two possibilities: either it was very calm—so calm that it had already attached itself to something—or its ability was significantly weaker than that of the one by the grand archway. Such Spirit Gods would hardly pose any threat to people without ritual interference. With this thought in mind, I felt relieved and considered that sending away these two Spirit Gods shouldn’t be too difficult; Brother Mao could block one while I dealt with the other.
Just as I prepared to turn back and discuss strategies with them, an unusual response suddenly emerged from the small archway—one that was quite unstable. Perhaps it had sensed my arrival. This instability posed no danger; it was merely a simple distress signal.
I suppressed the urge to return to Brother Mao and walked straight through the small archway without a second thought.
As I expected, it led into a kitchen, which also had a wooden door. However, the door was no longer on its hinges; it lay tilted beside the frame. I focused on the compass as I entered the kitchen, feeling the response grow stronger—an unthreatening supernatural presence.
Holding my flashlight, I scanned the dilapidated kitchen. There was a stove and an old dining rack, used for holding bowls, utensils, and tea containers. It was equally worn down, covered in a thick layer of dust. Next to the dining rack stood a large water jar, which surprisingly remained intact and even appeared relatively clean; the flashlight reflected slightly off its surface.
Looking at the direction indicated by the compass, it pointed directly to the water jar. I shone my flashlight at the circular opening of the jar, squinting to get a better look. I thought to myself that if something were crouching inside waiting for me to approach, it would indeed startle me. Often, people are frightened not by the ghost itself but by the environment in which it appears. For instance, if the jar were full of water and I leaned over to look inside only to see a pale face slowly rising to meet me with wide eyes, that would be quite unsettling—not just uncomfortable but hard to accept.
I cautiously moved closer to the large water jar, silently praying that nothing would manifest as I had imagined. Just five steps away, a large rat suddenly darted out from behind the jar and scurried away into an adjacent room through the doorway. The tension that had gripped me eased with this unexpected interruption. After a wry smile, I continued toward the water jar.
After taking two more steps, I noticed a vague shadow within the jar; it must have been the head of this Spirit God. Thankfully, there was no water inside, which relieved me.
Seeing this Spirit God without any violent reaction calmed my nerves further, so I quickly approached.
Standing before the large water jar, I finally got a clear view of this Spirit God. Judging by its size, it appeared to be an eleven or twelve-year-old boy. He had his back turned to me and was crouched inside the jar with his head lowered, seemingly lost in thought. Although he must have sensed my light, I wondered why he didn’t turn around to look at me.
I gently tapped on the side of the jar twice, producing dull sounds. Then I quietly recited a passage from Soul Requiem in hopes of communicating with this Little Spirit.
My efforts paid off; after finishing the incantation, the Little Spirit slowly stood up and gradually turned around.
When I finally saw his face clearly, he indeed looked like a young boy. If not for his hollow eyes and pale skin, he could be described as quite adorable.
Not only that, but he smiled at me as I gazed back at him. Before I could speak, he surprisingly initiated conversation with a voice that didn’t quite match his age—hoarse and slow.
He said his first sentence: "Big Brother, aren't you afraid of me?" I couldn't discern his tone, but his expression seemed very innocent.
Hearing this, I was a bit taken aback. Had he frightened many people before? I chuckled and replied, "I'm not afraid of you. Are you afraid of me?" Sorry, I had some things to take care of today, so the update is a bit late. I just finished writing it, and I feel especially tired today. Good night, everyone.
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